The delegations: Preliminary sketch of a semi‐parliamentary institution

Summary

The introduction of glasnost heralded a revival of interest in the last years of tsarism and the period of semi‐constitutional monarchy from 1905–1917. The October Manifesto of 1905 was the first time a Russian autocrat had devolved any part of his unlimited and autocratic powers to an elected assembly. The Duma, which met for the first time in April 1906, was a parliament, but it had limited powers and the Tsar still referred to himself as an autocrat.

During the period between the summer of 1905 and the Duma opening there was a considerable debate in Russian intellectual and political circles as to the form the new body should take and what its powers should be. This paper is primarily concerned to discuss this debate and the differing concepts of the role of the Duma. It examines the historical precedents in Russian history for the idea of such a body and looks at the ideas put forward as to the nature of the new parliament by different political groups. It concentrates on the various branches of the liberal movement but also considers briefly the attitudes taken by the socialists and within government circles.     

Literatur

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Enhancement of ninhydrin- or DFO-treated latent fingerprints on thermal paper

A new method for enhancement of ninhydrin or 1,8-diazafluoren-9-one (DFO)-treated latent fingerprints on thermal paper will be described. Most thermosensitive surfaces of thermal paper become dark when treated with DFO or ninhydrin petroleum ether (NPB) solution. This effect minimizes contrast between the developed fingerprints and the background. The new method described reduces this dark staining without removing the thermosensitive layer and parts of the developed fingerprints, as occurs with acetone washing. Through the new method, the developed fingerprints appear in sharp lines and high contrast. Extensive tests were performed, leading to an optimized working solution, which charges the paper with a minimum of chemicals, is cheap, and enables a large quantity of papers to be treated in a short time. The working solution contains commercially available, nonvolatile, nitrogenous organic compounds and can be used like the application of NPB solution by dipping.