Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1899-11-09
LESSONS In HISTORY.


"but let me see what one it was to be. You
know there are so many stories about that
mysterious land that | have most forgotten
just which one it was TO be-
Il know" said Tom, ut was about Ivan
the Terrible king | told my teacher about
the story you told us the other evening and
she said she never heard of that story be-
fore, but she knew all about the one you
said you would tell us, but don't believe
she did for she wouldn't tell us the story"
Maybe she does know it, Tom, maybe
she does, said grandpa. at amt such very
common story but guess it's been told lots
OF times before.
1T ISN'T about n terrible king, however,
but about a terrible czar, which is much the
same thing after all, for czar and king
are good deal alike. This cars name was
Ivan, and because there had been other
czars of the same name before him, he was
called Ivan the Fourth, just as his father
had been known as Nassi the Third, be-
cause there had been other Vassils
ole was only q little boy, nothing but
baby, when his father died and left him
to rule nation. That was in 1888, less than
80 years after Columbus had discovered
America. OF course, at first hc I'd not know
iluNil dDoub BltuA ll'tt'lls anu llh
had number Of wiser men for cuunselors,
who really governed the nation in the baby
cars name.
"The little Russian boys and girls who
know all about this little car would tel you
that he was very sweet little boy when
his father died, and that everybody loved
him. Then when he was only eight years
old his mother died also and the great fam
1t,a ,,FD -, ,,1 H. ,,.lS
should be the little cars counselors.
These quarres were kept up until he be-
came only old enough TO understand them
little, and all the time his sweet boy nature
was changing to one that would make all
Russia trembe.
"He was only l3 years old when he be.
came so tired of the constant quarrels that
he asserted his authority, took the power
of governing from the men who had been
his counselors, and became the ruler of
Russia i'll earnest. In those days the boy
ruler was not known as Ivan the Terrible,
but was rather looked upon as one of the
kindest and most consderate of all the mon
archs the then unhappy country had ever
had. a few years later he married a good
woman, and with her help, although his edu-
cation while boy had been neglected by his
ambitious counselors, he became the most
learned man of his country. He defeated
in battle the Tartars old enemies of the Rus.
slams and who had held them in practical
bondage for many years. For all of these
things he was hailed everywhere through
out his empire as a gracious, able and kind
ruler
And then all of this was changed almost
in day, and the way in which it was
changed teaches US, even at this late day,
noble lesson to beware of deceit and how
we practice it. Ivan was taken sick, and
it was thought that he had but very few
hours to live. Calling to him the men whom
he trusted, and to whom he had given high
places in his government, he requested that
they swear allegiance to his son, whom he
wished to reign after him. They readily did
this while they were beside their sick mon
arch, but just as soon as they could get
into the next room they began quarreling.
and proclaimed their unwillingness to accept
Ivan son as the heir to the throne You
see the trouble was that these mobiles all
claimed their descent from the great family
OF Ruric, which had at one time been the
ruling family of Russia, while Ivan had
married outside of this family, and his wife,
and the mother of the son whom he wished
w lSIbA uANCl HtllI, NbS " tIlG Idlllly OF no
manotfs, and the naughty mobiles did not
wish this new family to secure any influence
in the land.
While these treacherous mobiles were
planning the downfall and ruin of the young
prince, whose father had been such a good
and kind ruler, the father was hearing every.
thing they said. The mobiles did not care if
lie did hear it, for they thought that he
would be dead in a little while, and could
do nothing to oppose them. But Ivan did
not die then; instead he got well again, and
when he did his whole nature was changed.
Instead OF the kind and g1acious monarch
OF the past, he became suspicious of every.
body. He punished the unfaithfu mobiles
for whom he had done so much in the past,
and dismissed them from the offices which
they held
''All through his life he had been trying
to forget the bitter things which had crept
into his nature while he was but little boy
without either father or mother to guide
him, and with no one but selfish counselors
to go to for advice, but this experience at
such time aroused all this suspicion, hatred
and cruelty again, and for this his nation was
TO suffer.
80 great did his suspicion of his former
friends become that he finally left his capital
city, Moscow, and went to live at Alcxan.
drofskN, and here it was that he organized
Il body Of dreaded guardians, who rode about
the streets of his new capital with a dogs
head and broom attached to their saddles,
to signify that they were to sweep the coun.
try Of treason. These dreaded men forsook
every person they had ever loved for the
car. They would not even protect their
fathers and mothers or their sisters and
brothers, but took an oath TO obey only the
car in everything that he wisEod, no mat.
ter whom it affected In return for this
service the car turned over to them whole
streets Of the city of Moscow, from which
he had felt obliged to move If the ear felt
that some one of his people was plotting
against him he would not order his arrest,
but would simply intimate to these dreaded
men that it was best that such a man should
be done away with, and almost instantly the
man would disappear. Hundreds of just
such cases were happening all the time, and
no one in all the great Russian empire felt
safe from the raids Of these dreaded guard
ians Of the czar.
"As the once popular ruler grew older he
grew more passionate and cruel. Even his
own family felt the weight Of his terrible
cruelty, and at one time he struck his Oldest
son with an iron rod such cruel and ter,
rible blow that the boy died. The prosperity
that his country had known during his
earlier years was almost all lost, and he
finished his long reign amid series of disas.
ters, When he died, in 1884, nearly every
one in all his great empire was glad that he
was gone, and yet had it not been for his
deceitiul counselors he might have contin.
ued TO be the wise and kind ruler which he
started in to be-"
That's enough for tonight, grandpa.
The little folks must go to bed now," said