Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1919-11-17

EarisAt. And. Ia fhs astsaappt rs put his bsli,ss INTO
Ipsacsics hs chose the socisty ana assumed ths 5oocupA-
ton. Tie sarbs ana tho habitsS ot ths peasantas hheoldtnx5
,l1 1tt witch = connnoniy regarded = the culture 81 etvli-s
'S,tion TO- besa useless and injurious veneer.
character so rugged and courageous. ana = ngufs,
90 picturesque. could not fail TO- attract attention and
1olstoyf was set upon = pinnacle - the apostle Of ! new
gdispensation which was to regenerate the earth. Today.
only q few years after his ~activties have ceased 4yfolstoyy,l
lives, not AZ the social philosopher, not as thevrelsious
teacher. but. as the man Of letters. the writer s,of#books.
His philosophy and his religion have had. and stu have
their influence. especially among the peasants Of his own.
country whom he knew so we'll and loved so deeply,
but in the great world Of living and growing men. and.
women. these things have passed with the eccentricities
which once directed attention to them
Tolstoy knew the people OF his country and. time,
princes and peasants. rich and poor. strong and weak
for he had lived the lives OF All of thorn, and In his own
berson had passed through many Of their most profound
expertences. And It Is because he had this varied and.
wonderful knowledge. and because he had the power to
make his readers share it, to make his pages pulse With
the heartbeats Of humanity, that he remains sthe great
figure In the worlds history that he Is. His philosophy
aims at a state OF equality which could be achieved only
through a process of degradation, a>rcduction5 OF ali. TO
the lowest levels instead of the of all to greater
heights and broader opportunities. His religious. system
Is based on an exsEgeration' Of the purity Of the simpler
AottnS ot n ana q denial oE,gr0wth in~the things per-
tanning to the spirit. Yet his has been a valuable con.
tribution to human progress because he has been able
to present. a faithful Interpretation Of phases Of life
which needed an interpreter. 4
Count Ilya Tolstoy, who has Just been with u.s. was
subjected to the influence OF this remarkable father at
the most impressonable period of his youth. The
spiritual struggles through which the elder man passed
were very real things, Ito, him and to the members Of his
family. The youth grew up in an atmosphere Of his
fathers creation, and he gives evidence today in his
public expressions that he shareslhis fathers philosophy
cal and religious beliefs. Still more, there is apparent
In him much of the mysticism, which is not only a
family, but a racial characteristic. and which is so often
associated with genius. . -
let, the younger mar, like his father. is performing
a valuable service. In a different way from that IN
which his father excelled. he b giving an Interpretation
Of life He enables us to see the Russian peasant I'M
his hovsl. surrounded by ! little group Of neixhbors,
almost shut OF from communication with their kind.
He shows us the harshness and hareneas of the peasants
hte. He shows us the industrial. worker in the city,
driven by hunger from his little village. herded together
with others like cattle. ragged, dirty. without. knowledge
Of the ordinary decenctes Of life, and often reduced to
such straits that any act that gives promise Of food and
creature comforts will readily be performed.
He shows US how this great raw mass is ready for
any ferment that may be injected into 1t, and how. In
til blind effort TO rid itself Of ono set OF oppressors, It
and more destructive, because less intelligent. He makes
q nvtns picture Of this because he speaks out Of the
experiences Of hs own lite. |