The text of the petition
was widely circulated beforehand. It begged the Czar to order immediately
"that representatives of all the Russian land, of all classes and groups,
convene." It outlined a moderate program which had the support of almost
the entire nation with the exception of the bureaucracy:
Let every one be equal and free in the right of election; order to
this end that election for the Constituent Assembly be based on
general, equal, direct, and secret suffrage. This is our main
request; in it and upon it everything is founded; this is the only
ointment for our painful wounds; and in the absence of this our
blood will continue to flow constantly, carrying us swiftly toward
death.
But this measure alone cannot remedy all our wounds. Many others
are necessary, and we tell them to you, Sire, directly and openly,
as to our Father. We need:
_I. Measures to counteract the ignorance and legal oppression of
the Russian people_:
(1) Personal freedom and inviolability, freedom of speech and the
press, freedom of assemblage, freedom in religious affairs;
(2) General and compulsory public education at the expense of the
state;
(3) Responsibility of the Ministers to the people, and guaranties
of lawfulness in administration;
(4) Equality before the law for all without exemption;
(5) Immediate rehabilitation of those punished for their
convictions.
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