Jasper County Democrat, Volume 20, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 July 1917 — RUSSIAN PREMIER BEGINS HIS IRON RULE OF ARMY [ARTICLE]

RUSSIAN PREMIER BEGINS HIS IRON RULE OF ARMY

Kerensky Restores Penalty for Traitors at Demand of Gen. Korniloff. TURN GUNS ON DESERTERS Slaughter Uhpalleled in History Ensues When Loyal Artillerymen Train Their Cannon on Whole Division of the Army. Petrograd, July 27.—1 n the battle Tuesday and Wednesday on the Rou-. manitin front Roumanian forces captured more than 1,000 prisoners, says the oliieial statement issued by the Russian war department. The Roumanians also took 33 guns, 17 machine guns, 10 mine throwers and much military material. On the same front, the statement says, the Russians captured about 1,000 prteWiprs and 24 guns. London, July 27.—Kerensky and Korniloff, Russia’s men of the hour, met anarchy and disloyalty with blood and iron. ■ ,■ ' 1 HspateheS from Petrograd leave no room for doubt that Kerensky’s dictatorship is to be a real dictatorship; that lie will sanction and approve ex-, treme measures when necessary to restore a semblance of order out of chaos which for a time seemed to threaten the complete disintegration of the Russian armies and, indeed, the Russian state. Russian is now no longer an anarchistie Utopia; a place of impossible freedoms that contained more of ■license ti an of liberty. She is feeling the strong hand. Rules Workmen's Council, Four outstanding things were in dispatches from Petrograd, tilings which held out promise, in the. opinion of observers here, that Kerensky, with the aid of his military commanders, of whom Korniloff stands but, might yet “pull Russia through.” These things were:

1. Kerensky has acquired complete ascendancy over the workmen’s and soldiers’ committee, so that it now makes no attempt to issue decrees. His command o? the provisional government is supreme. The ministers he has gathered around him have agreed completely so far with all his proposals ami are supporting them to the utmost. 2. His first act has been to restore the death penalty for treason. This action, taken with the consent of his ministers,” is designed to wipe out disaffection in the army which has made its commanders powerless and which has enabled the Germans to make their gains in Galicia after the Russian army had apparently regained its power as a war machine. 3. A censorship of dubious newspapers Ims been established. The papers affected were guilty of disseminating appeals to disloyalty among the troops. The new order provides for the suspension of such papers. Begin Counter-Attacks. 4. As a result, the Russian army Is again showing evidences of resistance. The Germans continue to strike in Galicia, but in the Carpathians and Roumania Russian and Roumanian forces have opened a counter-offensive apparently designed to lighten the pressure on Korniloff’s hard-pressed legions, and has met with considerable initial successes. Korniloff himself has taken, the most extreme measures to halt the rout of his army. He wired to Kerensky threatening to resign his command unless permitted to order executions for treason and cowardice among his men. This forced Kerensky’s hand. After a hurried meeting of the provisional government the permission was wired back. Korniloff immediately, according to press dispatches, ordered his loyal artillery to turn their guns on a whole division of the Eleventh army (approximately 18.000 men), slaughter ensued unparalleled in the history of modern civilization. s> The provisional government deckled to establish on all the Russian fronts courts martial composed of three officers and three soldiers.