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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — A. I. Makurin, D. M. Nechiporuk. THE TRUTH IS IN THE MIDDLE: THE EXPERIENCE OF STUDYING THE SIBERIAN EXILE BY THE SCOTTISH SCIENTIST JAMES YOUNG SIMPSON

This article examines the debate about Siberian exile among English and American travelers in the late 1880s and mid‑1890s. It shows that initially the Siberian exile did not attract much attention among Anglo-American travelers who published books about their travels in Russia. After the journey of the English missionary Henry Lansdell through Siberia in 1878, the Siberian exile became the main subject of discussion among Anglo-American travelers in the 1880s. For example, an 1885 trip to Siberia by the American journalist George Kennan and his criticism of the treatment of political prisoners paved the way for a lively debate among Englishmen about the harshness of Siberian exile. Some of them disputed Kennan’s conclusions. The main opponent was the avid traveler and writer, the British aristocrat Harry de Windt. He pointed out that since Kennan’s visit to Siberian prisons, conditions for prisoners had been improved by the Imperial authorities. Until the mid‑1890s, however, the British press largely supported Kennan’s view. News of the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway began to change attitudes in the West towards both Siberia and exile. An analysis of the work of the Scottish traveler and diplomat James Young Simpson (1873–1934), who visited the Siberian exile after Kennan and de Windt’s trips, shows that attitudes towards the region had begun to change after 1895; Kennan’s conclusions were no longer relevant. Simpson, impressed by the scale of the railway onstruction, believed that the transport of prisoners on foot and by water should cease. He expected prisoner conditions to improve. Simpson warned that it was wrong to generalise about prison conditions in Siberia. He pointed out that attitudes towards criminals varied according to the style of prison administration and the type of prison. After Simpson foreign travelers were more interested in the prospects of Siberia’s economic development, as well as the geopolitical position of the region in the Far East at the beginning of the 20th century.

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PHJ №1 (45) 2025 — A. A. Sorokin. DISCUSSIONS ON THE ORGANIZATION OF ZEMSTVO SELF-GOVERNMENT IN SIBERIA IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

The article at first discusses the establishment of an elected zemstvos’ self-government in Siberia, as well as projects on the organisation of a zemstvos’ electoral system in Siberian provinces and regions in the early 20th century. The study was carried out on the materials of the proceedings of the local committees of the Special Council on the Needs of the Agricultural Industry. The author highlights the essence and content of the attitude of the Siberian public to the institution of elected zemstvos’ self-government, and presents the arguments of Siberian officials in favour of introducing the principle of appointment in the zemstvos’ selfgovernment in Siberia. The attitude of the authors of the projects and participants in discussions in local committees to the problem of the class composition of potential voters is also demonstrated. The article goes on to highlight the positions on the issue of suffrage and proposals for its expansion at the expense of tax and educational qualifications. The analysis then shifts to the national composition of Siberian provinces and regions in the context of granting voting rights to foreigners, before concluding with a discussion of the characteristics of the electoral rights of rural and urban populations in various projects of the organisation of the zemstvos’ electoral system. Finally, the article considers the organisation of a small zemstvos’ unit in the context of the significant remoteness of Siberian settlements from each other.