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39°
A VISIT TO PETROGRAD [chap. xxi.
Germany—was at last becoming visible on the horizon.
From that moment everything was done to bring about
the outbreak as soon as possible. On one side the
agents who influenced the working-men redoubled their
efforts; on the other, the invisible but numerous wires
which still—in spite of the war—connected Russian
society with Berlin were set working. Gossip, false
rumours, exaggerations were disseminatedin the capitals,
the provinces, even in the ranks of the Army. The
conscious and unconscious agents of Germanic influence
incited the Court and the rulers of the hour to the worst
follies, whilst on the other hand public displeasure was
skilfully stimulated and exasperated.
Nevertheless, at the beginning of 1916 the principal
forces of the Russian Opposition, forces which, as I
have said, had sworn not to allow the revolution to
break out as long as the war lasted, still remained
loyal to their pledge. In order that their formula, " no
revolution in war-time," should be abandoned and
replaced by " a revolution to save the war," it was
necessary that, by a series of actions and measures of
calamitous absurdity the supreme power should give
them the illusion that the reactionary party was
contemplating an understanding with the enemy; it
was necessary that rumours cleverly exaggerated and
disseminated should lead even the allies of Russia to
doubt the fidelity of the Russian Monarchy to the
common cause. All this was necessary and all this was
done from the month of July, 1916, through the
strenuous efforts of the agents and partisans of
Germany in Russia; through the ingenuousness of
Russian public opinion—not to mention foreign public
opinion; finally through that fatality which presides
over the great events of history, setting at nought all
human prophecies, weighing men and nations in the
scales of destiny and hurling into the abyss all those
who are found wanting.
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