New-York tribune., 1886-03-28
SUNDAY EDITION.
MARCH 2s, 1885.
A MODERN BARBARIAN.
HIS EFFORTS FOR A RETURN To THE
MEDIEVAL.

HIS EFFORTS FOR A RETURN I'D Iib
MEDIEVAL.
rrRON An OCc IsroN.L CORRESPONDENT TRIBUNE.I
ST. PEIEEs BURG, March =.
The sudden death Of the great Russian patriot
and Slavophil, Ivan AXakoif, has made strong
impression even upon persons unable to Sympathlze
with the eccentric views of this writer. whose ln'
cOntcstablc talents noble character aud deep SIN
cority. no one ever yenturcd TO deny. l;s death s
considered as National loss and has shaken all
ranks Of society almost as strongly did that OF
Skobeeh. and the Nation rendered TO his remains
and to his memory as marNcd tokens OF mourning
and regret. The Russian press Is unanimous IN i's
rather exaggerated encOminms upon the decea|d'
On the other hand, the German pr'ss u un"ilhhs
TO ronier this fallen opponent common JnStIoe. ~
must be admitted that the Germans have pretty
strong reasons for disking the celebrated NIaNo-
phil for he never lost opportunity Of giving vent
to the strong antipathy he nourl>hed for Az Tor
egncrs. and for the Germans in particular. Inc
SlavophiS consider Peter the Great next door but
one to Anti Christ for having opened iOly RUsSIa
to French and German influences. ana for having
flied the land with infdels' They tnrn Their
backs most perseverngly upon the greater part Oh
the reforms made by that great NAB ana Oy oh
successors, and especially view with AN evIi eye
the work of the liberatOr Alexander ii. AXakoh
edited several papers in which these Ideas were
propagated with great energy and ability. lhey
were epheneial. because going against The New'
Of the Government. The first was Inc DdE thel
the MosIro, the Moskritch. and lately the Roas.
There is no denying the great influence these organs
have bad in Russia Although they have cue
ceeded in converting few people to the views OF
Axakoh they have greatly contributed to the diiin-
sion of that exaggerated nationalisn now preYa-
lent and the gradual isolation of Russia from other
civilized nations. French and German are no more
spoken in society: nothing but Russian Is beard
Italian and French music has gono out ot lash'oh'
The National costume has been readopled III the
army and among functonarles, and more attention
than ever ia paid to purely exterior tormaltIes.
especially in church matters.
Concerning his activity as publicist II is impos-
slble to ignore the passion and party spirit Whlch
peryade all that AXakOh wrote lie attacked MS
adversares with the utmost yruIence am an
energy of language original aud powerful hnt by no
means agreeable. He systematically declined
refuting the reasonable opposition made to his
extravagaut ideas and opinions. All he asserted lie
expected to he received as Gospel truth useless TO
prove and that only adopts of the rotten Western
pseudo-culture could venture to doubt. During
the last year. however the Editor of the ROnS was
fan to acknowledge that he was losing ground
every dav and that his IDEAS were met more ana
more coldly. Notwithstanding the distinguished
writer's he invited OllaboratorS 70 ms organ tue
subscribers began to fall OF considerably I'D number
and especially in quality. The EOGs was read rather
by the Russian merchants anu the Clergy thah ny
the more intelligent part of the Nation and % %Wncn
more in Moscow than in st. Petersburg. Nben
AXakoi saw that Ills violent recrlmlnationS against
the Nation and the Administration, his dlte pro
phetic utterances, and criticism OF every ho" teiim
attempted made impression neither upon soC!ely'
nor the Government, nor upon Prince Battenbe;S,
nor upon Milan, and only served to make deauY
enemies of the Germans, he fell INTO a state OF dis
pnu arpnp
of the Emperor with Prince Battenberg caiSed nIm
such blow that 1t appears h.ghly p'0pao'r tm1ls m
event was the cause OF his death. The loss oi the
Russian influence in Bulgaria has swrl away tne
dreams of the SavophIs and It Is likely that this
party will soon fall 10 the ground.
SlaYOphilsm has done more serious hafnl 10 tho
interior culture of this country than wOros can
express Tie disdain and anlmoslty WIN shlch
this party considered European cuituse the heIee
hatred thoy nourlshed for everything imported
from abroad have done much toward stopping the
country on the general high road to pr9Gress as
have also the insane efforts to resusctatc Odd prnci-
pies and customs belonging 10 stage OF CIVILIZATION
which Peter the Great aud Catherine ii. made 1t
the work of their lives to annlhllatc. The iew
ardent SlavopEils that have survived their ilius-
trious leader will it is to he hoped JON some other
party and cease to consider as ideals most desirable
to attain the worn-out institutions OF tic seven
teenth century.
Haskon's National party, now so powerful, is
likely TO do to separate Russia from the resi- OF
Europe than the SavCphils have ever been able 10
do for the KaskOvsts have the sympathy oi the
Government and of Moscow and the Proylnces,
though not oil Il Petersburg ihIs parry - s.o"-
ing rapidly. to the almost entire extinction 0i the
liberal and progressive European party. When
employ the word A" party it is for want of better
one for in this country there of course eAsi no
party in the usual sense OF the word, political lie
being almost absolutely null.
There is not one particle of truth IN tic scnsa-
tional articles that appeared in some foreign
fhc victim of German intrigues The same was
said on the occasion OF Skobeletfs death and there
is not a shadow of a pretcXt for such suppos!-
tion in either case. Every one knows by th!s tihe
where and how that hero came by his tragic end;
and as to Axakoh. he died of heart disease; lie
knew he seriously i'll. for the very day before
s death hc found It necessary to consult his plN--
,iclan. Dr. Salnrn one of the Russian medical
celebrities ana though the end was sudden there
was nothing extraordinary in man suffering from
lcart disease being taken OIL in that way. Ivan
Axakoff must not be cOufounded with his cousin
Alexander AXakoit tae Russ. an savJnt and Spirit
laiist who works so hard to place Sprltuali IN upon
solid scientific basis