Justice must be done even the basest. It should be mentioned at the outset that in a land of universal venality21 the reputation of Plehve had this considerable advantage, he was said to be absolutely unbribable. That is a great deal, a very great deal, when[Pg 175] one considers that in Russia certain legislative22 acts are quite openly traceable to the payment of this or that high functionary. Suspicion, which as a rule does not even spare princes, never once tainted23 him. But little account do the Russians take of this characteristic. Probably they would prefer it if his other evil traits were a bit softened24 by the vice13 of venality. For Plehve passes for something far worse than a spendthrift or a wasteling. He is a rascal25 without scruples26, a political Sadist, a bloodhound, an accomplished27 deceiver; at the same time, a cynic entirely28 without heart, a "va banque,"[2] a swindler to whom a political career or the playing with human lives means nothing more than a pleasant nerve stimulant—in short, a tiger clothed in a human form. At the same time, he has the most charming manners, is delightful29 and entertaining, and possesses the most true-hearted face possible. His unbelievable falseness is the next thing about which all complain who have had doings with him. "Every word that he speaks is a lie," is the assertion which one oftenest hears about him. The criminal element in his tactics consists not only in the fact that he persuades the Czar that revolution is at hand, and keeps him in continual, nerve-killing anxiety by means of threatening letters, proclamations, and so forth30, which he causes to be smuggled31 into the Emperor's pockets, but still more in the[Pg 176] fact that he actually provokes disorders32, in order to be able to use them as arguments and to strengthen his position, and in the further fact that he is continually discovering conspiracies33 and handling the supposed members in the most fearful way in order to prove his indispensability. The whole store of police tricks which have been played on despots in order to turn autocrats34 into willing tools of their Pr?torians has been pillaged35 by Plehve in order to bring his system to a state of perfection. In particular the Jews and the Poles must suffer in order to contribute to the danger of the situation—i. e., the indispensability of Plehve. Not a soul in Russia doubts that the Kishinef massacres36 were the direct result of his commands; the cynicism with which he rewarded Krushevan, the leading agitator2 from Bessarabia, with which he took under his protection the agitator Pronin, who had been insulted by a congress of teachers, is a shameless acknowledgment of his deed, which, to say more, he only repudiates37 before foreign countries, not, however, before his confidants. He seizes upon every little thing in order to make some big affair out of it. In Warsaw the widows of the members of a committee which had collected money for a Polish hospital corps39 were stoned by students. Immediately was sent the telegraphic order to investigate the thing most thoroughly41, and if those who were the sufferers had not refused all assistance to the police another couple of dozen would-be rioters[Pg 177] would have been sent to Siberia, in order that the existence of a Polish revolution might be proved. A Russian editor, whose paper had been suppressed because of the publication of a revolutionary poem, sought audience of the head of the censorship at the ministry42 of the interior, in order to obtain permission for the reappearance of the paper. The chief of the department explained to the editor, according to a Russian nobleman, that if he should simply declare to the minister that the revolutionary poem had been smuggled into the paper by Jews, he would immediately obtain permission to publish his paper again! From a source whence I never should have expected such a statement, from a highly conservative aristocrat43, an "excellency" in the service of the state, I received in all seriousness the information that only Plehve, in league with Alexeyev, had conjured44 up the war by holding off the Japanese, simply because in this way he would become so much the more indispensable. Nay45, more, it was even indicated to me that the nihilists, who killed Alexander II. at the very moment when the proclamation of a constitution lay upon the table awaiting his signature, could not have found their way to the imperial carriage without help from the police. And the ally of Loris-Melikov, the man who had drawn46 up the plan, and who best of all knew how near its signature, which must be avoided, the proclamation was, was none other than Plehve! His instinct drove him to the ranks[Pg 178] of the reactionaries47, for there is little use for people of his caliber48 in a constitutional state. His anti-Semitic tendencies, which he naturally disavows to every Jewish visitor, are only assumed because people high in position and influence, like the empress dowager, Prince Sergius, and others of the generation of Alexander III., are fanatically anti-Semitic. So even this is not genuine in him. Nothing is but his theatrical49 ambition to assert himself as long as possible, and to have the nerve-tickling of a tight-rope walker who balances on his wire rope over fixed50 bayonets.
That is the picture of the minister of the interior as public opinion in Russia paints it. I must confess that the picture is as little to my taste as is the man. While the great Russian novelists are, above all, masters in the use of shades, political public opinion likes to work with the strongest colors, with bloody51 superlatives. Suspicious as the circumstances may be that not a soul in the broad Russian empire is inclined to say a friendly word for the ruling power of the time, yet the unprejudiced observer must reckon with the circumstance that even without a free press in Russia there is a certain uniformity of political opinion which can only be explained on the hypothesis of a certain uniform centre of opinion, many of whose statements are taken on faith by every one. I imagine that this centre is situated52 pretty high, perhaps in the immediate40 neighborhood of the Czar, and that the picture of each minister is[Pg 179] sketched53 by his rivals, but, like every article for the masses, only in poster style, in striking words, very white or, oftener, very black. He, not a Russian and not a rival, who has not the same burning interest in getting rid of Plehve, will therefore do well to transpose this rascal from his supernatural atmosphere into an every-day one, and a somewhat different picture will result.
I think of it in this light: Plehve comes from a states-attorney and a police career. Some traces of this origin cleave54 to every one of like training. Judges who have been states-attorney are the terror of lawyers, because of their inquisitorial manner, and because of their inclination55 to see in every defendant56 a person already condemned57. Furthermore, dealings with police agents are least of all fitted to cultivate scrupulousness58. Let only Puttkammer's words be recalled, "Gentlemen do not volunteer for such services."[3] The continual fear of assassination60, which is well founded in the case of the head of the Russian police—Plehve allows his expenditures61 for the guarding of his person to amount as high as eight hundred thousand rubles a year—does not conduce to making a man human; and, finally, all bearers of honors in Russia are cynics, because their existence is founded only on the mood of a single person, and their whole career is a game of hazard. In the case of Plehve and others there is this[Pg 180] additional evil influence, that not being Russians—Plehve is a Pole, of Lettish-Jewish origin—they must distinguish themselves by special Russian Chauvinism in order to avoid suspicion. Plehve is not a great man, his whole ministerial career being devoid62 of a single noteworthy act. He is a successful official, who intends by every means to make himself felt in high circles, and who considers himself justified63 in countering the intriguing64 of his rivals by any or all the means customary in the land, and "Voilà tout65." But, in general, love of truth is not a characteristic of so-called public life in Russia. Hence it would be unjust to count as a special crime Plehve's special falseness.
It must be conceded that even this picture is far from being a pleasing one. If to these features the proved fact is added that Plehve denounced to the governor-general, Count Muraviev, his own Polish foster-parents, who picked him up, so to speak, in the very street and raised him (Plehve was originally a Catholic), so that they were sent to Siberia in return for their kindness; that Plehve, therefore, began his career with a deed of infamous66 ingratitude67 and treachery,[4] then the black will be black enough to allow of passing over the remaining smirches in the picture of a monster.
But the most pitiful of all that I heard about Plehve's régime was the answer I received when I[Pg 181] asked a man in a very responsible position whether better things might be expected when Plehve should be overtaken by his inevitable68 fate.
"No," the answer was; "deserved as such a fate will be, for us it will bring no help. Another man, that is all. Plehve is only the ideal required by the régime. A police state needs police natures, and always finds them. He has all the vices59 save that of corruptibility69, but is by no means unique in the hierarchy70 of Russian officials. And it is far from probable that anything better would succeed him. If all Russia hopes [sic] that he will soon be annihilated71, it is not because an amelioration of things is hoped for, but because some satisfaction is felt when one of these beasts meets his due. But a philanthropist and a friend of justice will be just as unlikely to be minister of the interior under an absolutism as he is to desire to be an executioner. Only another system can bring us other men. A reign38 of terror tolerates only hangmen."
FOOTNOTES:
[2] One who risks everything on one card.
[3] "Gentlemen geben sich für diese Dienste nicht her."
[4] See Struve's Oswobozhdenie.
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1
smother
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| vt./vi.使窒息；抑制；闷死；n.浓烟；窒息 | |
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2
agitator
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| n.鼓动者；搅拌器 | |
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3
agitators
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| n.（尤指政治变革的）鼓动者( agitator的名词复数 )；煽动者；搅拌器；搅拌机 | |
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4
proceedings
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| n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报 | |
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accomplices
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| 从犯，帮凶，同谋( accomplice的名词复数 ) | |
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indicted
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| 控告，起诉( indict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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7
polytechnic
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| adj.各种工艺的，综合技术的；n.工艺(专科)学校；理工(专科)学校 | |
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8
agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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9
pretext
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| n.借口，托词 | |
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10
niche
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| n.壁龛；合适的职务(环境、位置等) | |
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11
functionary
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| n.官员；公职人员 | |
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12
acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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13
vice
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| n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的 | |
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14
zeal
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| n.热心，热情，热忱 | |
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15
machiavellian
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| adj.权谋的，狡诈的 | |
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16
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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17
delineation
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| n.记述；描写 | |
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18
sketch
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| n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述 | |
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19
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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20
unanimity
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| n.全体一致，一致同意 | |
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21
venality
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| n.贪赃枉法，腐败 | |
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22
legislative
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| n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的 | |
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23
tainted
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| adj.腐坏的；污染的；沾污的；感染的v.使变质( taint的过去式和过去分词 )；使污染；败坏；被污染，腐坏，败坏 | |
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24
softened
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| （使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰 | |
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25
rascal
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| n.流氓；不诚实的人 | |
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26
scruples
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| n.良心上的不安( scruple的名词复数 )；顾虑，顾忌v.感到于心不安，有顾忌( scruple的第三人称单数 ) | |
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27
accomplished
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| adj.有才艺的；有造诣的；达到了的 | |
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28
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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29
delightful
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| adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的 | |
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30
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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31
smuggled
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| 水货 | |
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32
disorders
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| n.混乱( disorder的名词复数 )；凌乱；骚乱；（身心、机能）失调 | |
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33
conspiracies
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| n.阴谋，密谋( conspiracy的名词复数 ) | |
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34
autocrats
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| n.独裁统治者( autocrat的名词复数 )；独断专行的人 | |
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35
pillaged
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| v.抢劫，掠夺( pillage的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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36
massacres
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| 大屠杀( massacre的名词复数 )； 惨败 | |
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37
repudiates
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| v.（正式地）否认( repudiate的第三人称单数 )；拒绝接受；拒绝与…往来；拒不履行（法律义务） | |
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38
reign
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| n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势 | |
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39
corps
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| n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组 | |
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40
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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41
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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42
ministry
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| n.(政府的)部；牧师 | |
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43
aristocrat
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| n.贵族，有贵族气派的人，上层人物 | |
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44
conjured
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| 用魔术变出( conjure的过去式和过去分词 )； 祈求，恳求； 变戏法； （变魔术般地） 使…出现 | |
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45
nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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46
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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47
reactionaries
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| n.反动分子，反动派( reactionary的名词复数 ) | |
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48
caliber
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| n.能力；水准 | |
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49
theatrical
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| adj.剧场的，演戏的；做戏似的，做作的 | |
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50
fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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51
bloody
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| adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染 | |
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52
situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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53
sketched
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| v.草拟（sketch的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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54
cleave
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| v．(clave；cleaved)粘着，粘住；坚持；依恋 | |
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55
inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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56
defendant
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| n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的 | |
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57
condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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58
scrupulousness
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| n.一丝不苟；小心翼翼 | |
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59
vices
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| 缺陷( vice的名词复数 )； 恶习； 不道德行为； 台钳 | |
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60
assassination
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| n.暗杀；暗杀事件 | |
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61
expenditures
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| n.花费( expenditure的名词复数 )；使用；（尤指金钱的）支出额；（精力、时间、材料等的）耗费 | |
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62
devoid
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| adj.全无的，缺乏的 | |
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63
justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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64
intriguing
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| adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心 | |
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65
tout
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| v.推销，招徕；兜售；吹捧，劝诱 | |
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66
infamous
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| adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的 | |
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67
ingratitude
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| n.忘恩负义 | |
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68
inevitable
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| adj.不可避免的，必然发生的 | |
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69
corruptibility
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| 腐败性，易腐的倾向，堕落性 | |
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70
hierarchy
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| n.等级制度；统治集团，领导层 | |
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71
annihilated
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| v.（彻底）消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 )；使无效；废止；彻底击溃 | |
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