Michael Speransky. Statesman of Imperial Russia, 1772–1839 - Marc Raeff

288 PROJECTS FOR REFORMING THE PROVINCIAL ADMINISTRATION

functional specialization.^1 Thereby, the prestige of lower local ad-
, ministrative bodies would be raised and equal - within the limits of
the district - that of the provincial government.
The principle of a division of functions had already been introduced
at the level of the local administration in 1775. But as a functional
division had not been carried out adequately or systematically,
Speransky wanted to bring the process to completion. He realized,
however, that the ideal of a complete separation between police powers,
fiscal duties, and judicial functions at all levels, could not be achieved
in Russia at the time. First of all, it would require a greater number
of trained officials, and for these the Empire had neither the manpower
nor the money. At any rate, on the district level, the basic functions
of administration could be separated more clearly and effectively.
The independence of the judiciary from the governor, for one, could
be strengthened by giving the Provincial Court a status equal to that
of the Provincial (governor's) Council. This could be easily achieved:
the combined civil and criminal courts of the province would become
the highest instance of the judiciary from which - in specified cases

• appeal could be made directly to the Senate, by-passing the office of
  the governor. Furthermore, supervision of the judiciary process as to
  form and speed, should rest in the hands of an official (Procurator)
  nominated by the Minister of Justice and with a status equal to that
  of the governor. Speransky had offered these ideas in embryonic form
  in his Plan of 1809, but now they were stated precisely and their scope
  was specified. 2
  The lowest levels of local government should be the township or
  canton (volost') and the village. Speransky believed that the occasions
  for abuse of power by ~~e local police officials could be limited by
  having them deal only with groups, instead of with isolated and weak
  individuals. The traditional role of city and village "communities"
  (obshchestvo - i.e., "society") had been to stand between the individual
  and the administration. Consequently, the village commune should be
  strengthened and given more latitude in carrying out its specific
  function. Such a strengthening would also have another very important

and beneficial consequence. It 'would be a first step in the training of

the peasant for self-administration; it would raise the peasant's

confidence and self-respect, and thus provide a training ground for

future leaders of the nation's "public opinion". As we see, Speransky

never left out of sight the pedagogical and "spiritual" benefits of

1 Ibid., p. 101.

2 Ibid., p. 99.