The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1877-12-24
RUSSTfN Liter TIRE.

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ia'or 'a'ler' "'o ueSiies ~ 'ou'" ','v manu- "a
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ploh toushhess. Ihereupoh ina t"hes par
oi HVn' haAcs " ivu'ho'' "nu on'rs II 10 INC
veteran VINO grasplng II 70 ughuy that he
forces SPARKS 10 hy III al u'rcc'oh rs cAVin'"'s'
lhou mast strong haNu anu ho' p'oou'
thou ar' true nero.
III we except pailad poetry whl'h continued 10
be composed down 10 lu''e recent times II may
DC aiilrheu on inc autH"r'y "l hus71dh 'rl'es
that from the reign OF 80 icirr To- the dawn Of
ule lres'n. century thoir country produced
scarcely n single writer Of marked literary
merit Iomonosof. whose turgid odes are still
committed to memory in educational establish
mcnt-, was versatile hut superficial writer.
Bogdanovltch was pleasing but mediocre
maker Of lyric verse. Denis Won Nlsln. on the
other hand. "a man Of German extraction, gave
Russians for the first time u taste OF national
comedy in his two plays. the Breadier" and
the Minor which eyinced onsidcrahle tai
ont So too, D'r'havn. tho laureate OF Catha-
rnc H.. is spoken OF by IFS countrymcn with
reverence not always undcseryed, but his full
some rnnegyr O. are not worth translatins.
With the beginning OF the nineteenth century
| there was a change for the better. Nicholas
Karanizin now published his history, which lisa
work OF extensive research. hut only brought
down TO the rcign 81 Michael Romanon A. It is
| known, moreover that the book was written In
| the interest OF the rcgning dynasty, exception
may be taken to is accuracy. We may add that
for the early history Of the Slayonic peoples the
great work is sull shafariks " Slayonic An
uquities" first printed in the Bohemian Ian
gunge and familiar To scholars in its German
vers ior. Nearly contemporary with karamzn
appeared the most considerable Of Russian
poets. Alexander Pushkin. who wrote number
~ love tales in verse in which the influence OF
| Byron is unmislakahlc lie also produced a
somewhat spirited play on the Shakospearean
model. bringing on the stage a striking figure
of Russian history-Bors Godunof-who seems
TO be a mixture Of Macbeth and Cromwell. We
believe Pushkins writings have been translated
into German. hut no one has thought II worth
while to reproduce Thorn in an English dress.
The only other poets deserving mention are
Lermontof. who has left some well-flnshed
lyrics. and whose short life. like Pushkin's was
ended by a duel; and koltzof. the peasant bard,
who wrote for the most part in blank verse, and
whom we should too much honor by calling
him the Burns Of Russia
As TO the transactions Of Russian learned So
cieues, II cannot with truth be said that they
are sought after with special avidty by the stu
dents of science In one department, how
ever. they have done tolerably good work-two
sound uhilologists may Ice mentioned, namely
S2ornovsI nna Hnferdinc Passing 10 his
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