1917. Week 8. February 20–26

Speech, No. 48 Diet for Convicted Deputies The Presidium of the State Duma recognized that convicted deputies of the faction must continue to receive parliamentary stipends, as they are members of the State Duma…

Over the Week The past week presents of exceptional political interest due to the opening of the State Duma session… Hopes for a conscious attitude from the working class regarding the importance of the current moment proved well-founded. February 14th passed quite calmly… …The question of whether the State Duma can reach a consensus on complex food issues is now the most pressing issue for both the country and the Duma itself…

Morning of Russia, No. 51 Active Army Reports confirm that the Germans are currently hastily building «land battleships, ” which resemble the famous English „tanks“ in design. Rumor has it that these „battleships“ have a rounded shape at the front…

Germans and Wolves A new enemy has appeared for the German army on our western front—wolves prowling in entire packs near the rear positions and even penetrating the forward trenches… This abundance of wolves is partly due to their expulsion from the Białowieża Forest, which the Germans are aggressively destroying… The wolves are terrifying the German soldiers… The duties of sentries, guards, and regular personnel, who must go out at night, have become particularly dangerous. There have been many cases where these individuals were left only bones and clothes…

In Germany …Since January 1st of this year, the distribution of potatoes to the population has ceased in many cities, being replaced by turnip (two pounds). Lately, chocolate, cocoa, canned, and smoked fish have been requisitioned for the army. Most of the personal gold jewelry has been surrendered to the treasury at the government’s request. Only wedding rings have been left with the owners. Count Zeppelin is being accused of rendering his airships unfit for combat.

Air Travel Europe — America The cage is open. The renowned German aircraft designer Fokker recently commented that he believes it is entirely possible to establish passenger service between Europe and America using enormous aircraft that will undoubtedly compete with ocean liners soon, as one can fly from Europe to America within two days aboard these planes.

Morning of Russia, No. 52 Agronomic Congress The congress of representatives from cooperatives, cooperative unions, agronomic organizations, educational institutions, and heads of departments—including resettlement, state properties, and horse breeding—has concluded. The main topic of discussion was the countryside’s plea regarding field seeding and the increasing need to expand cultivated area, as further reduction threatens famine…

Ban on Kvass In the «Army Herald,» an order was published halting the distribution of bread to troops for making kvass. Bread was distributed in quantities of three pounds per person per month.

Wool Requisition In Nizhny Novgorod. Today, the requisition commission completed the seizure of wool at all Nizhny Novgorod warehouses. A total of 6,800 poods were requisitioned, valued up to 100 thousand rubles.

Russian-American Chamber of Commerce Branch In Tashkent. A group of local figures, noting the growing trade volume with America, is opening a branch of the Russian-American Chamber of Commerce in Tashkent. This branch will handle direct dealings with America, which exports machinery to Turkestan and receives alfalfa and gourd seeds, as well as fresh santonic, from there.

Neglected Farmland In Yalta. The German lands that were liquidated some time ago in the district have been purchased by high-ranking individuals. Despite the general need for land and the acute, immediate necessity, every parcel of land could be used more widely and completely for planting, yet those who bought the German lands have abandoned them, neglected them, and do not cultivate them at all.

Systematic Railway Theft In Rostov-on-Don. Grand thefts of goods have occurred at Bataysk station; entire wagons of manufactured goods have disappeared. An organized railway gang is operating—34 people, including weighers, coupling men, and guards, have been arrested.

Moscow Gazette, No. 43 On Trial The grand halls of the District Court, its long, dark corridors, where justice once unfolded loudly amidst great crowds, now house a strange and unusual life. One sensational case gives way to another. War has cast its grim hand over this realm of Themis. The deafening trials of the past are long gone. They have all been postponed for various reasons. Either the defendants have been called to military service. Or the majority of witnesses are unable to appear for a legitimate reason—they are defending the motherland. Less frequently do barrister’s robes appear in the corridor or chancery, having been replaced by military tunics or field-gray jackets. Court statistics sadly note a monotonous string of «military» cases. Cases that, in peacetime, were as rare as white crows: The production of moonshine and bribery.

New Times, No. 14716

And all this crowd speculates—speculates from early morning until late at night, speculates about anyone and anything…

During Maslenitsa, I went into the «Comedians’ Halt, ” hoping to escape the suffocating company of candidates for the Pskov and other prisons of the Russian Empire.

…A year ago, the „Wandering Dog“ was resurrected under the guise of the „Comedians’ Halt.“ If the „Dog“ was a cozy, magnificent tavern of true bohemian spirit, the „Comedians’ Halt“ was an elegant artistic cabaret, catering to the most refined tastes of aesthetes. It was good there at first…

I walk into a marvelous theater hall, decorated by the talented Sudeykin, and—I freeze in terror! The hall is packed wall-to-wall with the very people I desperately wanted to avoid!

…The „Halt“ threw open its doors to the street, and the speculating street, naturally, is immeasurably richer than the mansards. Now, for the residents of the mansards, visiting the „Halt“ is out of reach…

K. Ostrozhsky

Moskovsky Listok, No. 44 Not for the People</b/> For whom do «People’s Houses» exist? It seems obvious from their name… …Never has the «People’s House» been needed as much as it is now. The people have been deprived of vodka; it is necessary to replace it with some form of entertainment. The «People’s House» falls into an important role: to solidify what the manifesto on sobriety provided. To make the absence of alcohol not a deprivation, but a blessing… Reports from the provinces are now appearing in the newspapers about the paralysis of the «People’s Houses.» In the largest provincial cities, these houses are now dormant. The doors are closed, the windows boarded up… And the people are gorging on lies… On the front page of every Petrograd newspaper, you can find tiny advertisements announcing the tours of Sobinov, Lipkovskaya, or Kuznetsova. These ladies sing at Aksarin’s opera. And Aksarin’s opera is held in: — The People’s House. …We know how much the pleasure of listening to them costs. It is not difficult to understand that this pleasure is not for the people… Sobriety is a great blessing. But the people need to understand this. Unfortunately, everything is being done in such a way that the people can only despise this state-mandated sobriety…KaiThe Evil of Automobiles …The other day, a wildly speeding automobile swerved into a funeral procession following the coffin of dramatist I. V. Shpazhinsky. The car smashed the coffin lid into splinters, injuring the person carrying the lid. Yesterday, a car ran over a boy. Although the rules for driving automobiles on Moscow streets have been revised, decisive measures must be taken to curb motorists who disregard all regulations.

New Times, No. 14717

The minister, representatives from the bread provinces, peasant deputies, and the voices of the local populace—everyone acknowledged that as soon as the fixed low prices were announced—the delivery of grain stopped. Peasants who arrived with loaded carts would turn their backs and leave the marketplace cursing. But who introduced fixed prices? The former minister, Count Bobrinsky. And on whose advice? On the advice of Groman, the statistician, Voronkov the deputy, and that urban intelligentsia which only considered the interests of the city consumer…

The Vegetable Market Nowhere in the world are the vegetable markets and stalls so pathetic, nor are the prices for vegetables so high, as they are in Russia. This is especially true in Petrograd… Even vegetables such as beets, cabbage, and carrots, which can be grown in Petrograd or its environs, are valued by traders as if they were gold, despite being presented in some pitiful, sickly heaps…

At Village Markets They are empty now. There is no flour, no bread, and no meat…

Russian Gazette, No. 45 (by phone from our correspondent) The Food Question …The arguments resume with a short speech by the right-wing peasant K. Ye. Gorodilov. He argues that low bread prices have ruined the country, killed trade, and destroyed all agriculture. The entire responsibility for the low prices falls on the State Duma and the progressive bloc. He states that the unrest in the country is fueling the progressive bloc. (Voice from the right: «Bravo, bravo!»). The peasants are being re-enslaved. They are forced to plant fields and give up grain at low, cheap prices. (Shouts: «Bravo, bravo!»). One class of the population is being pitted against another. Is it acceptable to set fixed prices on only one type of bread when other necessities are left without fixed prices?

Speech, No. 52 | Novoe Vremya, No. 14717 | Russkaya Volya, No. 52…Numerous paintings cover the walls, shields, and the spaces between the windows. The overall impression of solidity and seriousness is particularly enhanced by the new works of Rerikh, who is presenting an entire separate exhibition… Perhaps Rerikh has never shown himself as a more powerful and delicate landscape painter as in the current exhibition, such as in «Overflow, ” „Hills, ” „Mischievous Village, ” and especially „The Sign, ” where the sky above the horizon is astonishing in its most delicate tonal rendition… …Boris Grigoriev also made a vibrant appearance, refusing to stop in his artistic journey… The portrait of Meyerhold, which somewhat detracts from the sharp division between the black and color halves, can boldly be called a museum piece… Works like Grigoriev’s demonstrate the extent to which the sight and perception of artists are sharpened, and their subtle ability to select from nature not to give a copy of it, but the very character through sophisticated emphasis and pictorial harmony…A. Rostislavlev

…The painting «On the Line» by Petrov-Vodkin draws attention both through its subject matter and its execution. It is evident that war can sweep away even such contemplative artists… In the very lighting (the color) of the painting, in its orange tone, there is a sense of intentionality, of artificiality—a falseness pervades this «green carpet» and the colorful haze, immediately cooling the viewer… And only the face of the dying officer draws some attention with its expression of acceptance of fate…

G. Magula

…In this painting, rendered in paint, in this young, meek life that has not yet lost its color, in the unwavering face—our mysterious immortality is expressed as simple and clear reality. You can almost touch it with your hands. You can see it! The spirit has conquered the flesh, and its upward aspiration is so calm and powerful that all doubts are dispelled… In this painting, in this wondrous face, there is something else: a true, profound, and pure resolution to the question of our Russian attitude toward war… Do we love the god Mars so intensely, or do we possess another, a god unknown even to ourselves?

…If we are as Petrov-Vodkin perceives us (and believe this!), then we are far from ruin and death, and our days on earth are long. And they are not meaningless! We too have our place in the sun.

Leonid Andreev