THE BEGINNINGS 13prolixity, disorganization, redundance, and ponderousness of the
ordinary government papers of the period. His clear and analytical
mind grasped immediately the main fact and inner structure of the
problem under consideration and pointed up the implications and
relationships to other issues. These findings of his, Speransky then
described in a lively, graphic, clear and pleasantly readable manner.
The value of such a talent to a busy and exacting ruler, himself without
serious technical preparation for the task of government, was indeed
great. Much of Speransky's later success can be attributed directly to
his ability in setting forth complicated and technical questions in a
readable and engaging manner, a talent none of the other bureaucrats
and high dignitaries possessed.^1 No doubt, this very quality contained
some serious drawbacks, as it could - and often did - lead to a
mechanistic and superficial approach to difficult and perplexing
questions of national policy. But at first only the advantages of
Speransky's manner were perceived. To use a modern American
comparison, like the editor of the popularizing mass-appeal magazines,
Speransky had a wonderful "knack" for simplifying and "digesting"
complex issues, and of coming up with a "formula" prescription for
their solution - that such a procedure may easily become a double
edged weapon, we know all too well. 2
Men of Speransky's talents and promise were rare in Russia at the
end of the 18th century, and it was a foregone conclusion that he
would be the object of enticing offers. In the first place, his superiors
at the Aleksandro-Nevskii Seminary wanted to retain him as a
permanent member of the faculty. Secondly, the ecclesiastic authorities
- in particular the Metropolitan of St. Petersburg - would have
liked to see Speransky join the ranks of the regular clergy where men
1 The thesis that Speransky's administrative originality and creativity lay more
in his style than in his thoughts has been developed at length, and, in this writer's
judgment, overstated by A. Nol'de in an unpublished biography of Speransky. A.
Nol'de, Biogratiia Speranskogo (Manuscript, at present deposited at the Archive of
Russian and East European History and Culture, Columbia University). I wish to
take this opportunity to thank Mr. Emmanuel Nol'de of Paris who has kindly
put the manuscript at my disposal. May I also express my gratitude to Professor
M. Karpovieh who called my attention to the existence of this biography.
2 In this connection, the following words of Professor Jacob bear quotation, as
they show the favorable impression Speransky's approach made - at the height of
his career - on an intelligent foreign scholar: "Er fasste das, was man ihm sagte
sehr leicht auf, und studierte sieh schnell in des anderen Ideengang; er harte sehr
auf die Griinde anderer und gab seine Meinung auf, sobald sie griindhch widergelegt
wurde. Er hatte seine Laufbahn als Lehrer begonnen und dabci gelernt seine
Gedanken andern deutlich und ordentlich mitzuteilen... Alles was er schrieb war
logisch gerundet, bestimmt und deutlich gefasst und mit einer ungemeinen Eleganz
ausgedriickt. Es konnte nieht fehlen, dass ein Mann von solchen Talenten und in
solchen Posten sehr bald dem Kaiser bekannt wurde." Jacob, Denkwiirdigkeiten,
pp. 276-277.