it had not struck me in the same way during my previous visits. . . .
I called at once on Milyukoff, whom I found on the point of resignation—an unpleasant surprise. However, I established relations little by little with the other members of the Provisional Government, including the Prime Minister, Prince Lvoff, and with Milyukoff’s successor, Tereshtchenko. At the Foreign Office and War Office, with which I was chiefly concerned, I met, here and there, a few intelligent people who were open to reason and had retained pro-Ally feelings. Especially useful, in view of the obvious unpreparedness and weakness of the Government, were my relations with the Allied representatives, particularly General Niessel and Colonel Lavergne, of the French Military Mission at Petrograd; Major Buchsenschutz and General Janin (who was afterwards Commander-in-Chief of our army) at headquarters; General Tabouis at Kieff, and General Berthelot at Jassy—all good friends and helpful. In the place of the French Ambassador, M. Paléologue, who had just left Petrograd—my train must have crossed his on the way—I found M. Albert Thomas, well disposed towards us, whereas Paléologue had been pro-Austrian. M. Thomas’s secretary was Pierre Comert, a good friend of Steed’s.
The British Ambassador, Sir George Buchanan, was very obliging. As a loyal friend of the Provisional Government and of Liberal circles generally, he had remarkable influence in the Petrograd of that time. Against him the Conservatives and Reactionaries spread all sorts of obviously slanderous gossip, accusing him of having caused the Revolution. With the Italian Ambassador, Marquis Carlotti, my relations were very intimate. He urged his own Government to form a Czechoslovak Legion in Italy out of our prisoners of war. Finally, I was in constant touch with the Serbian Minister, Dr. Spalaikovitch—whom I had known when he gave evidence in the Friedjung trial—and with the Roumanian Minister, M. Diamandy.
An American Mission, led by Senator Root, came to Petrograd just then. Among its members were my old friend Mr. Charles R. Crane, Dr. John R. Mott and others. The Slavonic expert, Professor Harper, whose father had been Rector of Chicago University when I was lecturing there, was attached to it. Voska also turned up from America to organize a Slav Press Bureau for the American Government, and with him were our fellow—countrymen Koukol, Martinek and Švarc.
