Page:Michael Farbman - Russia & the Struggle for Peace (1918).djvu/171

gramme of the Revolution, was simply incapable of doing so. All the urgent economic and agrarian reforms were set aside. The most urgent business of a more democratic organisation of the Army was progressing very slowly, thanks to the hindrances put in its way by the War Office. Urgent and necessary changes in the military and civil service were not realised. The most deplorable thing was that the Government neglected to purge the diplomatic and consular services of all the reactionary elements. It was a paradox that revolutionary Russia continued to be represented by people who had grown up in the spirit of the corrupt and autocratic Tsarist diplomacy, and were imbued with that spirit. In short, in all the urgent questions raised by the Revolution, the disagreements between the democracy and the Government became more and more irreconcilable. Popular discontent was becoming stronger. The extreme Left got more and more material for their propaganda: "All power to the Soviets!" And yet the dominant mood of the democracy as a whole, including the army, was one of tolerance. At all costs they wanted to avoid a split, and were content to refrain from bringing matters to a head, pending the convocation of the Constituent Assembly. Guchkov's obstruction policy in the question of army reform aroused indignation in the army and was generally condemned and despised. A demand for his resignation would easily have removed him, but even in this case the democracy wanted to postpone the conflict. There was only one matter which could not be postponed, in which the democracy could not and would not compromise—namely, the need for an energetic and active foreign policy in accordance with the international manifesto of the Soviet. In this matter the democracy would not be arrested by any fear of a split. And a split was bound to come, because all the demands and protests of the democracy to the Government remained unheeded. Miliukov stood out in defence of imperialism.