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45°
170 RUSSIA IN DECLINE [chap, xxiii.
loyalty to the Allies’ cause. This speech, which one felt
was perfectly frank, made the best impression at the
Duma as well as abroad. Nevertheless the Trepoff
Ministry could not succeed in calming the tremendous
ferment reigning in Russia. First there were the
colleagues of M. Trepoff: a certain Dobrovolsky,
appointed Minister of Justice, was more especially
known for his occult exploits—one knew that he had at
once become persona grata with the Empress Alexandra,
for whose benefit he arranged spiritist sittings at
Tsarskoe; and then there was Protopopoff in
particular, who was becoming every day more excited, more
enterprising and who did not in any way conceal his
ambition to play the leading part at Court and in the
Government.
And in view of such an unusual Ministry, the Duma
called loudly for the formation of a homogeneous Cabinet
responsible to national representation. The institution
of a responsible Cabinet became the watchword of all
parties, for all were now in the Opposition.
I have already alluded to the sensation caused in
the Russian Press in August, 1916, by the news of
the meeting between M. Protopopoff and the German
Warburg in Stockholm; I have also related my
conversation with Protopopoff on the subject. During the
month of November this story reappeared in the Russian
Press and was vehemently discussed.
I learnt through this controversy, that towards the
middle of September, that is a fortnight after I had seen
him and received the assurance that his recollections
tallied perfectly with mine, Protopopoff, who was not yet
Home Secretary and who was combining his mandate
and his position at the Duma with the elective functions
of Marshal of the Nobility of the Government of
Simbirsk, went to Moscow for a meeting of Marshals of
the Nobility. And there he gave a truly fantastic version
of the famous Warburg incident: the meeting with
Warburg was supposed to have been arranged by Baron von
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