Page:The Annual Register 1899.djvu/315

 1899.] Russia. — Finland. [307

monument in honour of the memory of the poet, but Prince Ukhtom8ky and the Polish novelist Sienkiewicz pointed out that this would be an unpardonable waste of money at a time when thousands of Bussians were perishing from starvation, and the latter started a penny subscription for their relief. Puschkin was the friend of the Polish poet Mickiewicz, and the Poles, both in Bussia and abroad, manifested their admiration and sympathy on the occasion by speeches and newspaper articles.

In September a step was taken by the Bussian Government towards conciliating the Poles by allowing the teaching in all classes of the middle-class educational establishments to be carried on in the Polish language and by making that language one of the main subjects in the educational curriculum of the higher forms. Unfortunately, as is habitually the case in Bussia, the officials generally neglected to carry out in their entirety the instructions they received from St. Petersburg, and in many of the educational institutions of Bussian Poland the teaching continued to be given in Bussian as before.

Finland was this year in a very disturbed condition owing to the evident determination of the Bussian Government to reduce it to the status of a second Poland. The rescript issued in September of the previous year (see Annual Begister, 1898^ p. 276) was the preliminary to a series of measures for the complete Bussification of the province, which had enjoyed an autonomy since its incorporation with the Bussian Empire in accordance with the solemn promises of successive Czars. A bill was laid before the Finnish diet for subjecting the inhabi- tants of the province to the general obligation to military service in all parts of the empire by which all other Bussian subjects are bound. Hitherto Finland had had an Army of her own which cost her about 400,000Z. a year ; under the bill she would have to furnish to the Bussian Army four times the number of recruits which she had hitherto raised for her own Army, and to pay an annual contribution to the Imperial Treasury for military purposes amounting to about 800,0O0J. a year. This bill was laid before the diet not for its decision, but for any suggestions it might wish to make for the consideration of the Imperial Council of State. This was a flagrant violation of the constitution, which places the legislative power in the hands of the diet, and does not recognise the Imperial Council as having any lawful authority in Finland. Bepresentations were ac- cordingly made to this effect, and in reply to them a manifesto was issued on February 15, curtly informing the Finnish people that although owing to the "peculiar conditions of life " pre- vailing in Finland they were "by gracious consent " permitted to enjoy certain " special institutions," yet in effect the Czar was autocrat over the whole empire, including the Grand Duchy of Finland, and had the sole right to decide on all matters " of general interest and importance to the empire " ; and further,

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