Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1874-12-02

into a monastery, made himself abbot
and his rascally followers monks. He
vigorously enforced monastic observ-
ances, of the severest sort, and no
doubt became a saint, III his own esti-
nation. He spent most Oh his time at
prayers, allowing himself no recreation
except daily sight of the torture of
the prisoners who were confined in the
dungeons of the fortress. His guards
were allowed rather larger share of
amusement, and they wandered from
street to street during the day, punish
ing, with their hatchets, such disloyal
people as they encountered They
were moderate in their indulgences,
however, in imitation of their SOY
ereign, doubtless, and it is recorded to
their credit, that, at this time, they
! rarely ever killed more than twenty
people in one day, while sometimes the
number was as low as five. a..
But a quiet life of this kind could
not always content the Czar Natur-
ally, he grew tired of individual kill
ings, and began to long for some more
exciting sport. When one day quar-
rel arose between some of his guards
and few of the people of Terjek, Ivan
saw at glance that all the inhabitants
of Torjek were mutinous rebels, and of
course it became his duty to put them
all to death, which he straightway did
Up to this time the genius of Ivan
seems to have been cautiously feeling it's
way, and SO the part of his history al
ready sketched may be regarded as a
mere preliminary to his real career
His extraordinary capacity forruliug an
empire on the principles taught him by
the Prince Gluisky was now about to
show itself III all It's greatness. A Grim
inal of Novgorod, feeling himself ag-
| grleved by the authorities of that city,
who had lncarcerated him for a time,
wrote a letter offering TO place the city
under Polish protection. This letter he
signed, not with his own name, but with
that of the Archbishop, and, instead OF
sending it to the King of Poland, to
whom 1t was addressed, he secreted it
in the church of st. Sophia. Then
going to Alexandrovsky, he told Ivan
that treason was contemplated by the
Novgorodians, and that the reasonable
letter wot Id be found behind the statue
OF the Virgin i'll the church. Ivan sent
a messenger to find the letter, and upon
his return the Gear began his march
upon the doomed city. Happening to
pass through the town Of kbur on his
way to Novgorod, he put all it's inhab.
itants to death, with the purpose, doubt
less, OF training his troops in the art Of
wholesale massacre, before requiring
them to practice it upon the people of
Novgorod. Finding this system of drill
an agreeable pastime, he repeated it
upon his arrival at the city of liver, and
then, in order that the other towns
along his route might have no reason to
complain of Partially, he bestowed upon
all of them a like manifestation of his
imperial regard.
1t is not my purpose to describe in
detail the elaborate and ingenious
cruelty practiced in the massacre of the
Novgorodians. The story is sickening.
Ivan first heard mass, and then began
the butchery, which lasted for many
days, was conducted with the utmost
deliberation and most ingenious cruelty,
and ended in the slaughter of CO., 900
people. Ivan had selected certain
prominent citizens. to the number of
several hundred, whom he reserved for
public and particularly cruel execution
at Moscow. Summonlng the small and
wretched remnant Of the population to
his presence, he besought their prayers
for the continuance and prosperity of
his reign, and, with gracious words of
farewell, took his departure from the
murdered city.
| The execution in Moscow of the re-
served victims was scene too horrible
to be described In these pages. Indeed,
the half OF VANS enormities may not be
told here at all, and even the historians
content themselves with the barest out
lines Of many parts of his career He
thought himself in some sense a deity,
and blasphemously asserted that his
throne was surrounded by archangels,
precisely as Gods is. Identifying him
self with the Almighty, he claimed ex-
emption from the observance of God',,
laws, and, In defiance of the fundamen
tai principles Of the Greek Church, of
which he was the head, he married seven
wives. Believing that he might with
equally impunity insult the moral sense
OF other nations, he actually sought to
add England's Queen Elizabeth, to the
list of his spouses. And be was SO far
right in his estimate Of his power to do
as he pleased, that the Virgin Queen,
head Of the English Church, while she
would not herself become one of his
wives, consented to assist him, and Sc
lected for his eighth consort Mary
Hastings, the daughter of the Earl Of
/ Huntington. She came near bringing
about marriage between the two, in
face of the fact that the two churches of
which heand she were respectively head
agreed in condemning polygamy as
henious crime.
For one only Of all his crimes Ivan
showed regret, if not remorse. His
Oldest and favoVte son, when the city
Of Pskof was besieged by the Poles,
asked tina the might be intrusted with
the command of a body of troops with
which to assist the beleaguered place.
Ivan was SO great coward that he
burst not trust the affection and loyalty
of avp,e b3c ow,, favo1,ito child o,,I -,