The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1889-09-28
AMlARLE RARRARlANs.A
Anecdote of Toistoi, tho Russian Novelist,
and General MelikoH.

| Anecdote of Tolstoi, tho Russian Novelist,
| and General MeIikoff
From the Tsar down to the humblest
mujik, the Russians are more or less
barbarians, from the point of view of
the refined West, but certainly most
amiable barbarians, so far as foreign
| ers are concerned. Their hospitality
knows no limits; no trouble is too
great when 1t is question OF obliging
foreign visitor; but charming as they
are, you are constantly being reminded
OF the wildnrss of their real underly-
ing nature by the strange contrasts of
delicacy and brutality, of civilization
and barbarism, which their daily life
offers. To hear the Russians talk
about the unwritten contemporary
history of their social and national
life is like listening to the stories of
the Arabian Nights. The true nara.
tive of Skobeleff's career and death,
and the true narrative of the circum-
stances of the assassination of the late
Tsar, are far more thrilling and ex-
traordinary than print has ever told.
As an example of the strange con-
trasts of real Russia we will cite two
anecdotes that were related to us by a
distinguished official, whose intention
was certainly not to throw dust in our
eyes, or even to astonish us beyond
measure. The conversation happened
to turn upon General Loris Melikoff,
the famous chief of the dreaded third
section" The Emperor, we were told
by our informant, had given Lorin
Melikoff unbounded power to act
against the Nihilists, and had virtually
created him vice. Emperor, as Melikotf
himself used to say. Now, Melikoff
had discovered that one of the leading
Nihilist chiefs was in the habit of fire.
quently visiting Count Tolstoi, the
novelist, and one day he went out to
Tolstoi's country house. Before the
uisitor had announced himself, Tolstoi
recognized him, and said:
"You are Loris Melikoff, chief of the
third section. Do you come to see me
officially, or as private man? If you
come officially, here are my keys;
search, open every thing. You are
free"
81 come not officially" replied Nell.
koff.
VERY good" answered Tolstoi; and
calling two mujiks, he said to them,
Throw this man out of the house"
The mujiks obeyed Tolstoi to the
letter, and Loris Melikoff had TO accept
this treatment, for in his way Tolstoi
is a mightier man even than "our
father the Tsar." In the eyes of the
Russian people he is an exceptional
being, being more than a saint, and
almost Il savior.
The mention of Loris Melikoff
brought up another anecdote. Some
twelve years ago the Emperor sent for
Melikoff and announced to him that the
plague was raging in two villages of
the empire, and ordered him to do
whatever was needful with view to
stopping its ravages, at the same time
giving him unlimited powers.
Thereupon Loris Melikoff went first
of all to the Minister of Finance. in
formed him that he should perhaps re-
quire great deal of money in order to
carry out the Emperor's commands,
and demanded credit of fifty millions
of rubles. The Minister of Finance
made long face, but was unable to re-
fuse. Loris Melikoff then posted to the
villages in question, and having OBJ
served the situation, he telegraphed
for twenty fire-engines to be sent from
the neighboring towns, had the pumps
charged with petroleum, and ordered
the tiremen to approach the villages
by night, inundate the cottages with
petroleum, set them on fire and save
nobody. The order was executed; the
cottages and their few hundred inhab-
itants-men, women, children and cat
tle-were burned to ashes, and those
two villages disappeared from the map
of Russia and from the registers of
the empire. The measure was radical,
but it stamped out the plague effectu-
ally. Loris Melikoff thereupon re-
ported to the Emperor that his COM
mands had been executed, and then
called on the Minister of Finance to
tell him that out of the credit of fifty
millions of rubles granted to him he
had spent only two Hundred rubles to
buy petroleum, and that consequently
his Excellency the Minister could dis
poes of the balance.
In both OF these stories, which we
have reason to believe to be literally
exact, we find that curious mixture of
the grandiose, of ostentation and of
acteristic of the Russian temperament.
Theodore Child, in Harper's Maga-
zine.
INKS OF LONG AGO.