[Russian newspaper] Общее Дело (Obshchee Delo)(= The Common Cause) 10 October 1917 (No. 13) Burtsev, Vladimir, editor (one of the leading anti-Bolshevik Socialist-Revolutionaries)

In Russian. 4 pages. 55 x 37 cm. Pages are yellow and fragile. Summary of the front page: Vechernyaya Gazeta - "Evening Newspaper" Headline Articles : "Kerensky, Kornilov, Kaledin". A long editorial by Vladimir Burtsev analyzing the crisis of national leadership following the failed Kornilov Rebellion. Kerensky, head of the Provisional Government, is portrayed as indecisive, trying to preserve revolutionary gains but unable to maintain authority. Kornilov is discussed as a tragic figure - personally brave, motivated by patriotism, yet politically mistaken for trying to restore discipline through force. General Kaledin, the Cossack leader in the Don region, is presented as continuing to rally the "healthy forces" of the army and the Cossacks in defense of order. Burtsev calls for national unity between democrats, moderate socialists, and military patriots to prevent the country's collapse. The tone is anti-Bolshevik and alarmed, warning that revolutionary chaos may soon lead to the loss of both freedom and Russia itself. Bolsheviks Threaten to Establish a Commune in Petrograd. Report on growing Bolshevik agitation in the capital. According to the paper, Bolshevik leaders are openly preparing to seize power and declare a Petrograd Commune, modeled on the 1871 Paris Commune. Factories are holding meetings under Bolshevik influence; Red Guards are being armed. The government is said to be too hesitant to act decisively. The article warns that the Bolsheviks intend to overthrow all existing authority and will plunge the city into anarchy. In Reval, now Tallinn). A correspondent's dispatch describing the situation in Reval following the German advance across the Baltic. Panic among civilians; evacuation of warehouses and naval equipment. Local authorities attempting to maintain order as refugees pour in from nearby islands (Osell and Moon). The Russian fleet is regrouping in the Gulf of Finland. Secondary News Columns "Today." A program of upcoming articles in the issue: Notes by N. Lvov on internal affairs. A letter by Sakharov to V. Burtsev about "betrayal in Petrograd." Reports on the blockade of Petrograd. Editorials on Kerensky and Kaledin, and social essays. Military Dispatches Brief war-front updates: Riga Front: German artillery active; Russian troops holding positions. Austro-Italian Front: Fighting near Gorizia and Trieste. Anglo-French Front: British push near Ypres; heavy rain slowing operations. Romanian Front: Relative quiet. Explosions and Railway Delays in Reval. Details of sabotage at the harbor as troops withdraw. Rail transport disrupted by German aerial raids. Evacuation of Petrograd. Short notice confirming that government ministries are preparing evacuation plans, though officials publicly deny it. Offices may move to Moscow if the German threat continues. Mutinies in the Austrian Fleet. A report (via foreign telegrams) describing unrest among sailors of the Austro-Hungarian navy in Pola and Cattaro. The mutinies are attributed to exhaustion and revolutionary propaganda. Overall Tone and Context. This issue is dominated by fear of Bolshevik insurrection in Petrograd (just three weeks before the October Revolution). Alarm at the German advance in the Baltic (fall of Osel, Reval threatened). Disillusionment with the Provisional Government, but rejection of both Bolshevism and reaction. Burtsev's editorials try to rally "patriotic democracy" - a hopeless middle course as events accelerate toward revolution. "Petrograd Jewish Gymnasium"Petrograd Jewish Gymnasium Director B. I. Elizbet (Elizbetta). Full secondary education is offered in accordance with the program of the Imperial Ministry of Education. Instruction is conducted in Russian; Hebrew and Jewish history are taught . . .