At ten o’clock in the evening of that same day, the 15th of March, they reached Pskov. Their intention had been to confer at first with General Roussky, but an Imperial aide de camp met them on the platform, and asked them to follow him immediately into the presence of Nicholas II. The latter received them in his railway carriage. With him were old Count Fredericks, the Minister of his household, and a favourite aide de camp, General Narischkine. Nothing in the appearance of the Emperor could have led any one to suppose that something extraordinary was happening to him. He was as impassible as was his wont in all the important occasions of his life, and he shook hands with the delegates as if nothing whatever was the matter, asking them to sit down. He motioned Goutschkoff to a chair beside him, and Schoulguine opposite. Fredericks and Narischkine stood at some distance from the group, and Roussky, who came in uninvited at that moment, placed himself next to Schoulguine. Goutschkoff was the first one to speak. He was extremely agitated and could only control his feelings with difficulty, keeping his eyes riveted on the table and not daring to lift them up to the face of the Sovereign whose crown he had come to demand. But his speech was perfectly correct, and contained nothing that could have been interpreted in an offensive way. He exposed the whole situation, such as it was, and concluded by saying that the only possible manner to come out of it would be the abdication of the Czar in favour of his son under the regency of the former’s brother, the Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovitsch. At this juncture Roussky could not restrain his impatience, and, bending down towards Schoulguine, murmured in his ear: “This is already quite settled.” When Goutschkoff had finished his speech, Nicholas II. replied in a perfectly quiet and composed tone of voice: “I thought the matter over yesterday, and to-day, and I have made up my mind to abdicate. Until three o’clock I was ready to do so in favour of my son, but then I came to the conclusion that I could not part from him.” He stopped for a few moments, then went on: “I hope that you will understand this,” and after another pause he continued: “On that account, I have decided to abdicate in favour of my brother.”