Date: 1901
Source: ru:PSS/v5

Source: CW vol 5

Liberal Reflections on the Remnants of the Zemstvo

And in general, the publication is of considerable interest[165]

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more interesting points[166]……………….............……..

relatively less important: from simple reviews by foreign observers and scholars. Here is what Mackenzie Wallace, the author of a well-known (though not for the Russian public, of course) English book on Russia, says about the zemstvo: "This institution, in its form, is purely parliamentary, i.e., it consists of an assembly of elected representatives of the population." Here is the opinion of the French writer on questions of state law, Demombynes (Demombynes): "the establishment of county, provincial, and district assemblies can be regarded as the starting point of the era of reforms, which inevitably spread up to the legislative power." Here are references to the history of Prussia. Municipal self-government was introduced here as early as 1808, and Stein, who carried out this reform, linked it with the future introduction of a constitution. From municipal self-government, it was necessary to gradually move to provincial diets. Despite their aristocratic composition, these diets began to petition for the convening of a national representation from 1842. It was necessary to establish joint meetings of committees from all these diets in Berlin, with only a consultative voice on the issues proposed by the government. "This united diet, not content with its advisory role, began to seek authoritative participation in supreme governance, first in the very respectful form of addresses of thanks, and then through direct opposition to the wishes and will of the king." And three years after its convening, this advisory diet turned into the constitutional parliament of 1848"[167].

Speaking simply and directly, it must be openly acknowledged that Mr. R. N. S. is just as unworthily pandering to the political prejudices of the broad mass of zemstvo liberals as "Rabochaya Mysl" [The Workers' Thought] is to the political prejudices of the broad mass of workers. To condone this pandering would be just as insane and criminal for revolutionary Social-Democracy in the first case as in the second. It is a prejudice that great reforms are conceived not for the greater triumph of the bureaucracy—that the zemstvo has significant political importance—that the existence of the zemstvo presents the best opportunity to give the country a moderate constitution—that the banner of the struggle for political freedom in Russia can be the slogan "rights and an authoritative all-Russian zemstvo."