Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1896-07-08
DECAY IN RUSSIAN LITERATURE.
what Freedom Did, and what Fight
ing Against Talent Has since Done.

An anonymous writer who signs HIM
self "A Russian" has a paper in Lippin-
colts for July on The Decadence OF
Modern Russian Literature" IN which he
makes the following statements:
THE period Of revival, OF comparative
freedom OF the press. 1876. brought to
the surface an amazing number Of bril-
liant talents In all branches of literature,
are. ana science. Perhaps the greatest
mind produced was that Of y. Cher
rishcvsky. whose immortal novel, What
Is 10 BE Done?" was more than any
thing else the keynote 10 thosc remar6a-
bic times. But. even before his immense
powers were fully developed he was first
imprisoned. and aftcrward exlled 10 the
remotest parts Of Eastern Siberia, where
re was kept for over twenty years anG
whence he was allowed TO return 10
Southeastern Russia only to die. He was
never tried. and no charges Whatever
We're brought against him His only
crime was his immense influence over
the youth Of his time. In the field OF
critics and social sciences the foremost
names are those Of DobrOlubOy ana
Plsarey: both died very young. and, as
they expressed IT,, wrote with the blood
of their hearts. which We're permaturely
broken; the latter spent four years in
prison, and died there when only 2G
years old. Among the novelties, the
names Of TurgenieV Concharov Count
TOlst0i, D0tOycvsky. ana Pisemsky, ali
have won European fame Turgeniev was
practically driven from Russia, and spent
the last twenty-five years Of his lie
iu Paris, where he died. Count TolstOi
was banishcd 10 his estates. and Do
stoyevsky spent twenty years in Siberian
prisons.
During the seventies the fight against
talent was especially severe, ana cspeci-
ally Inconsistent When the eighties came
there was scarcely AN author OF note
left. None OF the ab0ve-named cele-
brities. except TO.stoi who is over eighty
years old to-day, survived that period.
Some had died: some were living IN for
eign lands. unable TO use their talents
for the benefit Of their fatheriani, ana
some were TOtting alive I'm remote SIDE
ri4n mines and villages. To-day In the
field of bellies lettrcs there is not pract-
cally "a SINCE noted name. except koro-
lcnko. who began his literary career I'D
Tine eighties, and VINO has already spent
about ten years in prison and cNi e.
Boborikin. third-rate writer of the SIX
tics ana seventies IN star Nemi-
rovltch Danchcnko. became witty
nothing. Potapenko is making up Tor
quality by quantity; ChehOv Is duihD'
Okla Shapr repeats herself In every new
work. Twenty-Five years Of persistent
persecution are bearing their gnasty
fruit The Russian literature OF to-day
is worse than none New periodicals. new
men. have taken the places Of the ola
ones. without having replaced them The
Russian Government has nobody TO fear
the field is Gear, the clarion notes OF
genius are dumb autOcracy has success
fully swept from its path all that was
honest gifted and mighty. 1t has only
pygmies to fight with, a dogenerated. de-
graded nation of mediocrity ana mental
poverty. The great minds of thirty years
s.,o are either I'm their graves, or behind
iron bars: they cannot trouble the White
car any more. The young man on the
throne can safely say TO his people, Lay
ali your senseless illusions aside; there
as no one 10 oppose him. lie rules ma
Non Of slaves. lust what his grandfather
and his father intended has come 10
Vass.'