II. If the illegal acts of the authorities are known to the indicated individuals what steps were taken by them towards the punishment of the guilty and the prevention of similar breaches of law in the future? The significance of this interpellation cannot be overestimated, insofar as the facts implied in these questions are officially accepted by the great standing committee of the Duma as worthy of cognizance. Had the questions originally proposed by the Left groups been without foundation they would have been rejected without reference to the Committee on Interpellations; and had the Committee on Interpellations found, upon examination of the evidence underlying each question by both the Right and Left deputies on the Committee, that the evidence was defective or inadequate, the interpellation would never have been reported out in this form. =The fact that it was so reported indicates that the evidence was incontrovertible, and was so accepted by the Liberals and reactionaries alike.= The report of the Committee is dated August 30, 1915, but as the Duma was prorogued immediately afterwards, the Government’s answer to the interpellation is not known. In the course of the debates on these and other questions affecting the Jews the expressed attitude of the representatives of the great bulk of the Russian population left no doubt of their absolute opposition to the Government on the Jewish question.[45] Professor Milyukov, the leader of the Constitutional Democrats, declared on July 19 (August 1), 1915: “The strongest factor in the disruption of our national unity was the government’s policy toward our alien subjects. =The foul play upon the obscure racial prejudices of the masses, with the customary weapon of this kind of strife—anti-Semitism and the persecution of all dissenting nationalities or religions—has been exercised with unparalleled effrontery. Under the mask of military precaution, measures worse than credible are taken against crimes that are imaginary.... At a time when nations are struggling for the liberties and rights of small peoples, such terrible deeds embitter our friends and evoke joy among our enemies.”= (Loud applause from the left.) =Deputy Kerensky.= “We are fighting this war in a territory occupied by non-Russian nationalities. But =did not our government, this very year, cause these peoples to doubt the wisdom of the path they took a year ago, when they linked their destiny with ours?”= =Deputy Tchkheidze.= Aug. 3 (16), 1915: “It is well known to you that the Government régime has been based on Jewish oppression and that at all critical moments =it aimed its blows first of all at the Jews, because they were in the line of least resistance....=