Page:The Spirit of Russia by T G Masaryk, volume 1.pdf/124

98 With the introduction of constitutional government must naturally be associated suitable administrative reforms, and above all reform in judicial and criminal procedure (publicity, trial by jury, the appointment of official counsel for the defence, and so on). Other important requirements were a restriction of the censorship and a remodelling of the conditions of military service. All the decabrists were opposed to the military colonies; the term of service was to be reduced from the twenty-five years then prevalent; corporal punishment was to be mitigated—not abolished.

Most of the political labours of the decabrists, so far as we can judge to-day, remained unfinished, being mere sketches, intended to form the basis of discussion in their meetings. Alexander's death and the peculiar interregnum that followed induced the revolt of December 14, 1825, and by this revolt and its consequences the literary elaboration of their ideas was prevented. When the materials furnished by the evidence given at their trial and the works they subsequently wrote in prison and in Siberia have been sufficiently examined, it may become possible to combine the decabrist fragments to constitute an organic whole.

We possess certain decabrist projects for a constitution. Nikolai Novikov, nephew of the freemason, drafted a republican constitution, but in outline merely. A more finished work is that by Nikita Murav'ev (there were no fewer than seven Murav'evs among the decabrists), of which two separate drafts exist; this is of especial importance because it was known to many of the decabrists and was eagerly discussed. Moreover, Murav'ev's constitution is genuinely republican, or at least the monarch's role is reduced to that of president of the republic. Should the tsar fail to approve the scheme he and his family were to be expelled and a republic was to be proclaimed. Murav'ev's plan was based upon the constitution of the United States. Russia was to be subdivided into thirteen states (thirteen was the original number of the states of the American union) and two territories; these were to be federated to constitute a realm known as the Slavo-Russian empire; four governmental departments only were to be common to all the states, foreign affairs, army, navy, and finance. Moscow was to be the capital. The property qualification of an elector was to be very high; in fact, in Murav'ev's constitution the electors were to be Crœsuses. Serfdom was to be abolished,