The Sun.
London, England, 1842-01-29 00:00:00

RUSSIAN T YRANNY-A ROMAN.

TIC STORY.

(From L' A udiace.)

At a recent sitting of the Criminal Court of
Tambof, a province of Russia, 283 peasants were
tried on a charge of putting to death a Russian
noble, under circumstances of a shocking but ro-
mantic character, of which the following are the
details •
On the evening in question all was merriment
ip the,.chateau of Sokolin-Slaw. Gaiety and fes-
tivity were the order of the day. Around a table
richly and plentifully supplied with the choicest
viands sat twelve young officers wearing the costume
of the Straroduburo regiment. The owner of the
chateau (M. Meerzcloff), aged about 22, had
assembled his comrades to celebrate, in a manner
worthy the occasion, a piece of good fortune which
had happened to him, and to co-ntnence with
gaiety the enjoyment of an immense patrimony, of
which he had just conic into possession. An-
other glass of champagne," said Mcerzeloff, tak-
ing up the bottle, and pouring forth its Rark!ing
contents.
_ _ _

---;:iothe health of the child of fortune," cried
all around, as they followed his example is filling
their glasses. "In good faith," said one of the
guests, ".good cheer is a good thing, but we are
Wanting at this moment in the greatest charm of
human life." " What is that ?" demanded the
aniphytrion. " The ladies," was the reply. "
the ladies !" re-echoed all around, " They are not.
wanting," said the host. " Behold those young
beauties. They shall be to you as the houris of
this teirestriai paradise." He pointed as he spoke,
and twelve young females were seen entering the
chamber, singing in chorus the favourite airs of the
country. The little of reason which remained to
the host and his guests now disappeared entirely.
At the dessert the male attendants were dismissed,
and Slteizeleff, who declared that he was deter-
mined to make his old comrades happy, directed
each of his guests to choose the one of the band of
singers is hich was most to his taste.
Accustomed from the cradle to a blind obe-
dience, awl well assured that they should find nei-
ther protection nor defence among the serfs of
Sokolin-Slaw, the poor girls upon whoni the choice
of the officers fell quietly submitted to their fate,
with one single exception, namely, that of Maryna,
the most beautiful of them all, who, taking advan-
tage of the moment, fled from the castle, and di-
rected her steps towards the country. " What is
this ?" cried Meerzeloff, on hearing the rumour of
her flight, " what savage dare shake off' my yoke ?
kej-Ivan ! Alexis ! fly in pursuit of Maryna, and
let her be brought back without delay." One of
the men to whom this order was given was the bro-
ther of Maryna, end the other her affianced hus-
band. They obeyed his commands, however, as
they were compelled to do, and went after the fu-
gitive like dogs in pursuit of game, and ten minutes
had scareely elapsed before poor Maryna was
brought back pale, trembling, and bedewed with
teats. But as soon as she was restored to the
castle Marynr and the other damsels were arrayed
in gorgeous dresses, and decorated with a profu-
sion of gems and flowers ; and, night having ar-
rived, commenced in a saloon refulgent with light
one of those brutal orgies which the Russian
nobles, with their half savage ideas, call a " Supper
of Eden."
By midnight the sound of music had ceased in
the chateau. Time of the serfs whose duties did
not keep ahem at theit p had dispersed in the
village. Kej-Ivan and Alexis, the brother and
lover of Marvna, had retired to a cabaret, where,
to chase; away the thoughts that disturbed them,
they were drinking freely.
During this time Maffa, the favourite of Meer-
zeloff, was btirning with jealousy. 11cr master had
not allowed her to go down to the banquet, lest
her beauty should have attracted the attention of
the other officers. Site had, however, notwith-
standing this, been a witness of the " drama of
love," and, enraged beyond measure at what she
beheld, resolved to be revenged upon her faithless
lord and lover. She accordingly went to the
cabaret where Kej-Ivan and Alexis were drinking,
and reproached them with their want of spirit,
saying, " Base wretches ! you sit here drinking
while robbed of your sister and your wife !" They
denied that they were the base connivers at their
own dishonour. They were rather the victims
their tyrannical lord. Mafia continued to taunt:
them until they became greatly incensed, and were
on the point of ill treating her ; hut she said, " For
shame ! rather be the avengers of sour own wrongs
than the assassins of a helpless woman," and con-
tinued to work upon their fetlings until she at
length made them swear that they would take no
rest until Meerzeloff had fallen under their aven-
ging hands. " Vengeance I" now became the cry,
and in less than half an hour that cry was repeated
by a band of 400 peasants who had been assembled
by Kej-Ivan and his friend.
In about three hours after this, and just before
the dawn of day, while the occupants of the chateau
were locked in the first embrace of sleep, a band of
nearly 400 peasants, each bearing a truss of straw,
surrounded the mansion, which, like most of th,e
residences of the province of Tambof, was built
of, wood. At a given signal they set file to the
fence which surrounded the chateau, and then re-
tiring to a distance, armed with muskets, axe.e
pitchforks, and scythes, they waited until the Seig-
neur of Sokolin-Slaw and his guests should be
aroused from their slumbers by the conflagration.
Meerzeloff, the first alarmed by the light, rushed
out and tried to clear the gate ; but the contents of
a musket, which extended him upon the ground,
told him what his guests had to expect. The lat-
ter presently appeared, sword in hand, resolved, if
possible, to surmount the two-fold obstacle opposed
to their escape by the flames and the infuriated
band of peasants. A terrible and bloody encounter
farm took place, in which the officers were fortunate
enough to lose but one of their number, Captain
ra!xiselg, and ultimately effected a retreat into a
amatl wood, overcome with fatigue, their hair partly
lwritt from theirleads, anti their clothes torn to
flatters in the deadly encounter with the peasants.
Four of their number were dangerously wounded.
As soon as the officers had fled, the peasants
ran to the rescue of the females, and then returned
to gratify their feelings of revenge in the most
savage manner. They made a tremendous fire of
fir-wood, and as soon as it had become clear and
bright threw the living body of the unhappy Meer-
zeloff into the midst of the glowing furnace.
M.affa, repenting too late of her jealousy, in vain
ssupplicated there to spare the yet breathing suf-.
-ferer ; and in reply to het troublesome entreaties
they actually took her and threw her into the flue
after hint. They next proceeded to burn down
the chateau, and to destroy every thing that had
belosiged to its unfortunate owner.
As soon as the occurrence reached the ears of
the Emperor Nicholas, his Majesty ordered that a
judicial inquiry should take place into the _circum-
stances of the case, and the result was the appre-
hension and trial of 283 of the peasants.
The above facts haVing been detailed in evidence,
the Tribunal condemned the prisoners in the first
place to receive 100 blows of the knout—a punish-.
meta almost equal to a sentence of death, since del_
dow does more than one in ten -survive and,
secondly, that all tire survivors should
labour for life in the mines of Siberi-, .0e sent to
The Emperor, in consideratior, of the cause and
provocation of their offence, 7.ats commuted the sen-
tence to banishment in tf..4 Caucasus ; and those
capable of bearing arras
are to be enrolled in the
Cossack regiment- or
the line.
A

~,,

coi re•- .
times the 4zondent wishes to inquire, " how many
of eve
~4 ! t'ofice of the count can be seen in the course
to if,as
s4l7,yeeek by the superintendents ?" In relation
et, though we cannot state how often the
ntl6-rl orl
3(l.llltyvv,a,re seen by their superintendents in the
csounty,
mfay leave our correspondent and our
readers to judge
ing from Seln rum the fact, that in a district extend-
miles east ; Stapieftowrcelive. miles west; to Gonalston, ten
six miles south ; to Oxton, nine
miles north, there are onlyten policemen, and a popula-
CAI of 70,000. One man has a circuit of at least twenty
Mlles.—Nottingham Review.
NOTTINGHAM DEPUTATION TO SIR ROBERT
from
PEEL.—We have obs2rved a report of
be-
tween Sir Robert Peel and a deputation interview
Notting-
ham, in which the latter are said to have recommended
a fixed duty, and even to have supplied some ehi'ldnts
ed
for making a shift with a sliding- scale. How far
the report in question may be true or otherwise we can
not pretend to say. We would guard ourselves in gene-
ral"from rifting too much faith in reports of interviews
with Sfr Robert Peel. We think it right;' to prevent
misapprehension, to state that the deputatitui was wholly
unconnected with‘the League, and that not only can no
person who sanctions a fixed duty or sliding- scale have
any right to take upon himself to represent its opinons,
but he cannot with consistency profess to belong to our
party.—Anti- Bread-Tax Circular.