The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1911-03-12
I olstoy' s Children
BY FELlN SALTEN.

Leo To!stoy. once the Cars page,
officer in the oodyguard and man Of
the world. is now a saint He was
raised into heavcn-was carried away
IN chariot OF fire. almost like Elijah
the prophet. What drama was the
death OF this extraordinary man, who
closed his eyes alone with his own
greatness, his tragical fate, his soul
and his God! Never has the Western
world been SO ovcrawed BY Tolstoys
Ereatnes as at his death
That is why it is now so painful to
rs 10 hear and read that Tolstoys
children hetray the faith Of their
tather; that they refused TO give up
wealth and riches, as his pious mind
ordered them TO do: that they are quar-
relins among themselves, that the
daughter hands into court complaint
against her mother because OF a man
uscriDt, and that the brothers turn
against their sister and mother
Tne ugly dust of scandal is whrled
hlSn INTO the air: greed and seGshness
raise their shrill voices, and the great
man rests In his grave, misunderstood
scorned and unregretted by his nearest
relatives. and the happy, bucolic fam
ilS lie of 1asnuia Poljana about which
so much was written and sung bv no
cts, has all its ugly Skeletons revealed
to the gaping crowd
During all the Social gaicty that sur.
rounded the temporal life Of Tolstoy
ne struggled with his God had hours
which belonged TO Him alone, during
which he debated questions with him
sell with all'the fervor OF a true Rus
sian soui--hours when the poet within
aWoks, when the seeker OF truth rulod
supreme. and during these hours Of bis
work OF his mental telnpests and sur.
lcrings, ne was utterly alone miles
away from his family and his guests
" nat poet, artist or thinker does not
know such hours? Talstny let his wife
his children and The crowd Of his
guests do as they pleased, suddenly 10
cniet&e from MS work and his strug-
giles 70 take part III the games.
During this time he wrote book
enont his personal belief and faith. IN
Whlch he explained his religion md
confessed publicly. There exists let
YER written during these very DAYS b.,
f. SOPHIE Andrejevna, Tolstoy's wife 10
hcr sister. IN which She writes:
so,, i.eo !? NerJ quiet: he is working on
nm IN which he blanes city life and
MI ~, fiI o. men IN general. II is always
b PAN to me. but know he cannot
hsip Y, lie is a leader; he goes ahead
OF others showing the path which men
ought to follow. 1 however am Of the
~. ! I've among the crowd and.
y oiiS eiSe III the crowd, see
he light of the lantern every leader i
CARVING Leo. like The others, ana I
know that what ! see is light: hut +
cannot walk faster: am held hack III.
me crowd, by my SURROUNDINGS nv
own habits and desires" n -
ROW modestly this wife acknowl.
Edges the lmmeasurable distance that
lies between herself and her"hushanG
now simply. humbly and tactfully she
speaks about i'll ] know PLENTY or
wives who. in their jealousy nsotism
ehq concelt, would rage against such
distance. end try to make their hus-
6 hands opt e. be.tranks; or wives Who,
urlvcn by the vanity Of their hearts,
would make It appear as If they We're
walking by the side OF their husband
Inspiring him to his noble thoughts.
ms wife SAYS with humility: ii am
one of the crowd" And she adds. ~
cannot walk any faster" She believes
Leo Nicholaievitch is working on some
article while he was actually writ
ms MS confession. orc OF the noblest
And his children. 1t may he said
ct them as 1t was said of samuei's
children. that they did not follow ir,
their fathers footsteps, and became
addicted TO greed
We must remember the contrast
which always exists between fathers
and the new. Without the cnmity OF
Ideas among those in whose veins flows
the same blood. there would he no
evolution, no falls Of the curtain. and
no new acts. The eXtravagant ana gay
rather begets an ascetic and stern Son.
an absolute contrast, and still moro
often natural continuation and per-
lection of his character. The ascctit.
father may bcget an cXtravagant sol,