New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-04-22
A VISIT TO TOLSTOI.
A woMAys PICTURE OF THE NOVELIST

| LADY whose clever description Of q ball at the
T., Russian Court appeared in THE TRIBUNE lsss
Sunday:
Moscow is q wonderful cty-so qualno
and poetic; yet somehow ii fails to charm me 40
did ST. Petersburg We again sailed forth wltS
| the valet de place and visited the old and new
Palaces and tho Tritzakof picture gallery OF
modern Russian art Fine works by VeIscn-
tshagfne lonely Christ on the Mountain py
| Kramsl<oi very impressive; exquisite LANDSCAPES
| by Kronitche. Scenes OF Siberian exhe py
Sourltof, most interesting; among these many
daubs Style chiefly realistic, often 70 pa'nfuness
The private apartments Of the palace and tho
conseryatories filed US with delights as to the srea'
bathrooms and halls-splendor unsurpassed
| In the Assumption Church one shrine alone is
| worth 100000 roubles. We enjoyed oeauUfui
scighride all the city, and bought lew tnig'
| at the out-of-door fair. Moscow Is principally
| inhabited by rich merchants, and Is much less
arstocratc az to society than PETERSBURG aitnouRh
a few old families keep up their ESTABLISHMENTS
You will be surprised to hear that we spent our
| Arst evening in Moscow at the Tolstois. lmmed1-
atelv after dinner attacked Mrs. g., who was
| more or less fatigued from the journey, got her
| and myself into our shubas, and started In q
brougham with Rene on the box, in search OF
Genius It was too bitterly cold to face the night
| In q sleigh We seemed TO drive very, very lar
| Finally we drew up under On arch, ana AFTER
some volubility Of Russian expletives between
| our driver and porter, Rene rang the bell, armed
| with nv letter Of introduction and our cards
| These were sent in and in few minutes man
| servant begged US to alight. We were being un-
furled from our furs and still in the low ground
| floor ante-chamber when the great man came
down the stairs with outstretched hands to receive
u.s. His picturesque peasant dress, In its absolute
| simplicity seemed to give added nobility to bis
| fine leonine head, ana to his easy grace, that Of
| the man of the world. He ushered US into
| long room with low ceiling where a large table
was set with samovar and little cakes, and where
q lady, who spoke perfect English, was introduced
| Ia US as were two pretty little boys Of nine and
eleven. Little Michael seemed his fathers especial
pride.
| Count Tostoi entered at once with me into
conversation SO burning with earnestnesS AID SYM
pathy that 1 concluded that he was the hrst
| celebrity had met who was not disap-
pointmeEt He had none Of the perfunctory, weary
listlessness of the average lion,' so dispirting
to q visitor but kind benignity, displaying gen.
| uine interest as well as courtesy. l avoided all
illusions to his novels, speaking at once OF " My
| Religion and his later works. ! told him what
| we thought Of him In America and how ardent
| was the admiration he there inspired. He warmed
| only lately learned to appreciate, He had long
been blind, erring In thinking we had no literature
| no philosophy, no poetry, no art.
When Emerson came into his hands the scales
| fell from his eyes, Now he said
| lnow-I read lie places Emerson and Thoreau
and Theodore Parker very high, because they are
apostles of new ideas. lie particularly delights
In Emerson's essay Sef-Reliance,' has had trans
ations put into a Russian review, but they were
not appreciated, TO his immense regret.
Hawthorne he considers less Amercan-more
tinged by the Old World He SAID want no
copies" he prefers idea to form. lie turned sud-
denly and asked me- What are your religious
convictionsP l said: 81 am attached TO the
Anglican Church. in which 1 was brought up
but have had many doubts" :" /, too" he said,
have doubted, but all that is over" asked
him II he was ardent in his desire OF proselyting
lie replied, Not in the least; 1t is only weak
convictions that are anxious about that; mine
are so strong that am calm. In five years, ten
years a thousand years, what matter Pail will
be of my opinion; this thought ills me with re-
pose"
lie slipped from English into French, which he
said was much easier for him. And arc you
not afraid of death p he asked. NO think
not 1 said. Perhaps" he said, you don't
think OF it.
| / said: Yes, often"
He smiled well" he said, " I was terribly
afraid of death; now l know death is only
superstition. / began my last book, entitled
DE la Vie de La Mort but l erased the last
part of the NAME for found death does not ex-
list, and you will read my wJrk under the title
only De la Vie"
{" And YOU" he said, " are you married. You
| look extremely youthful" / am not AS young
rs l look" l answered. ." have been married q
| He
| heartily.
THAT would be hard to believe" he said. He
| questioned me as to our Russian journey; why
| came When / replied 1t was your works
| which gave me the intense desire to see your
country" he said gravely: That is very datter-
| ingD He is so thoroughly homme du monde; but
oh, impresses one with such sagacity and WISDOM
such gentle dignity CrazyP What nonsense.
have met few saner people.
| His son had been married that day, and when
suggested that visit was inopportune, he said
| Oh, not at ALL the parents Of the young girl
| were emotiennes but my wife and / were only
| very happy. 1t is so different
He added that it was such marriage as should
be. His son, mere boy, had never looked at
another woman perfect purity on both sides,
and this was what he approved.
son and two daughters then came down and
tea was served. The girls are about eighteen
and twenty; the youngest pretty blonde maiden,
seemed pleased TO chat with us in excellent
| English.
| When said I'VE are making little tournee
through Europe" she thought it astonishing to
call such a trip" q little tournee."
Tolstoi was amazed to hear that we had left
| New-YorlS on the 3lst of December, and reached
st. Petersburg on the 18th of January,
and said, "oh, it makes me long to
go but with a wife, nine children, and
these ideas working in my head, which I must
give to the world, cannot find time"
He said much moro which will tel, but which
cannot undertake to write.
When 1 took up the cudgels for Hawthorne,
said: " His genius is dear to Americans Just be-