Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-02-24

privilege l shall ever esteem as
priceless. She not only laid bare
before me every detail of her amaz-
ing life that memory could resur-
rect, but also allowed me to ex-
plore the hooks and of her
heart to a degree that no friend of
hers ever did. Maintaining a criti-
cal attitude from the beginning of
our association, l was gradually
overwhelmed by the %largeness Of her
soul.
Wherein does the greatness of
Botchkareva lie? Mrs. Emmeline
Pankhurst called her the greatest
of the century. 1.-THE woman
that saved France was Joan of Arc
"a peasant girl" wrote a CORE
spondent in July, 1917; maria
Botchkareva is her modern paral-
lel." Indeed, in the annals of his
tory since the days of the Maid of
Orleans we encounter no feminine
figure equal to Botchkareva. Like
Joan of Arc, this Russian peasant
girl dedicated her life to her
try's cause. If Botchkareva failed
and this is yet problematical, for
who will dare forecast the future
of Russia?-it would not lessen her
greatness. Success in our material
istic age is no measure of true
genius.
Like Joan of Arc, Botchkareva is
the symbol of her country. Can
there be a more striking incarnation
of France than that conveyed by the
image of Joan of Arc? Botchkareva
is an astounding Implication of peas
ant Russia, with all her virtues and
vices. Educated to the extent of
being able to scribble her own name
with difficulty, she is endowed with
the genius of logic. Ignorant of his
tory and literature, the natural lu-
cidity of her mind is such as to
lead her directly to the very few
fundamental truths of life. Religious
with all the fervor of her primitive
soul, she is tolerant in a fashion
behoving a philosopher. Devoted
to her country with every fiber of
her being, she is free of impassioned
~partisanship and selfish patriotism.
Overlooking with gentility and kind
ness, she is yet capable of savage
outbursts and brutal acts. Credu-
lous and trustful as a child, she can
be easily melted against people and
things. Intrepid and rash as a
fighter, her desire to live on occa-
sions was indescribably pathetic. In
a word, Botchkareva embodies all
those paradoxical characteristics of
Russian nature that have made Rus
STA a puzzle to the world. These
traits are illustrated in almost every
page of this book. Take away from
Russia the veneer of western civil
ization and you behold her incarna-
ton in Botchkareva. Know Botch-
kareva and you shall know Russia,
that inchoate, invincible, agonized,
striving, rising Colossus, in all its
depth and breadth.
1t must be made Enthusiastically
clear here that the motives respon-
sible for this book were purely per-
sonal. In it's origin this work is
exclusively a human document, a rec
ord Of eXuberant life. 1t was the
purpose of Botchkareva and the
writer to keep the narrative down
to a strict recital of facts. 1t is
really incidental that this record is
valuable not only as a biography of
startling personality, but as a rev.
citation Of certain phases of a mo-
mentous period in human history;
not only as a human document, but
as a historical document as well.
Because Botchkareva always has
been and still is strictly nonpartisan
and because she does not pretend to
pass judgment upon events and men,
her revelations are of prime impor-
tance. The reader gets a picture Of
Kerensky in action that completely
effaces all that has hitherto been
said of this tragic but typical prod
uct of the Russian intelligentsia.
Kornilov, Rodzianko, Lenine and
Trotsky and some other outstanding
personalities of the Russian revolu-
ton appear in these pages exactly
as they are in reality.
Not a single book, so far as
know, has appeared yet giving an
account of how the Russian army at
the front reacted to the revolution,
What was the state of mind of the
Russian soldier in the trenches
which was after all the decisive fac
tor in the developments that follow
ed, during the first eight months of
1917? No history of unshackled
Russia will be complete without an
answer to this vital question. This