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About The Oregon daily journal. (Portland, Or.) 1902-1972 | View Entire Issue (March 5, 1905)
v jsutitau Portland, sunday korotno.; uahc:i . . I v - ' J '.,i- ! Isft Perekc la tli worst possible mod WS wars M ' hungry aa wolves u4 as-ry with the whole world. or more than half a day we had uaa unesss fully applied all eat tslsnta sad efforts to steal or earn something, and wbea w at laat convinced ourselves that 1 we would fall la both atten-ots. we decided to moro on. Whither T lhat waa a w tor of Indifference, aa long aa .wo moved on.' Thla was our uouimou resolution, aa wo had expressed K to oaoh other, bat wo wora ready to proceed in every re aneet iimd tha path of our actions upon .which wo had been traveling quit a while that had boon suswuy agreed. w .by vry one of no aa. tnougn It waa not spoken of in tho hearing of ail. It , sparkled dearly In. tho grim luster Of our hungry ayes. . Thoro were throo of oa; wo bad hot lately, snad each other- eaqualatanee, having mti t Kherson, la a saloon oa tha bank of tha Dnieper. " One of Ka had been a soldier of a railroad battalion, later, aa ho prwseaeo, a readoMurte r with one of tho Pollah rallwaya; ho waa a red-haired, m secular nan, with cold,' array eyasi he eould apeak' Oermsn. and poaaoaaod a, very de tailed knowledge of prison life. -r , People 'of our class don't like to talk much about their past generally baring 'more or loaa good roaaono for not men tioning it; eonooquoaUy wo all believed each other, at least outwardly, for In wardly wo hardly believed euraelvoe. ' When our second companion, a small wizened man with thin Ilpe. that were all tha time akeptleally compressed, aald of htaaaelf that bo had boon a atudent at the Moscow nnlyorolty tho soldier and I accepted thla assertion aa a tact. In reality. It was absolutely tho earn to oa whether ho bad ever neon a " . dent, a detective, or ono of tho "Orleans" the only Important point waa that at tho time of oor acquaintanceship ho waa our equal ho waa starving, he enjoyed In towns tho especial attention of tho police, and In tho country tho suspleioas ' attitude of tha peasants; bo hated -both with tho hatred of a pusjnrlaaa, Perse cuted and hungry animal, and dreamt of a universal revenge upon everybody and vnthing In abort, by his pool . tion amidst tho kings of nature aad tho potentates of Irror and sV his ineltnn tlons, ho was a bird of ovf feather. Mta for tune Is tho boat oomont to unite even -the most .contradictory na turae, and we were all oonvtneed of- our -rirht to rofSTd ouroelyes as nnfortna ates. ' a j- I was tho third. Out of modosty, ' which has been my cbafwetortotl. orer slneo. my nails were grown. I will not aay a word about ray worth, and, not wthlnf to appear naive to-yon, t will : keep ailent about my faolts. However, to furnish yon material for my charno terliatton. I will say that I always re card myself better than others, and that I still sueoeasfully maintain- this opinion. 80 wo left Porekop and moved oa. de pending for that day upon tho shepherds, whom ono may always ask for a plooo of broad and , who , never refuse It to pedestrians. . ' V ", ' I walked by tho side of tho soldier, tho "student" marched behind us. Over his shoulders hun aomothlnc that some what reminded us of a frock-ooati oa his sharp-pointed, ansular.and elean haven head rested tho remnant of a broad-brimmed hat; gray trousers with Tmany colored patches fitted tlhUy to his thin leg, and to tho solos of his feet ho bad fastened parts of a boot lr, which he had picked up on his way; he held them In place by moans of ropes which ho had wound eot of tho lining of his costume, and this affair ho called sandals; ho marched silently, raising a ' great deal of duat and blinking with his amall greenish eyes. j , ' v ; I was similsrly ' dressed, and -also barefooted. v '..- '' ' . We ro arched eh, and all about na ox tended tho steppe with a heroio swoop and, being covered" with tho blue, burn ing cupola of a cloudless summer sky. ley before us like aa enormous black dish, Tha gray, dusty road cut a broad swath - across it, and- burned our foot. Hers and there wo saw bristly st re tehee of harvested gralrl Melds that bore a Striking: resemblaneo. to the long neglected cheeks of tho soldier. .. Tho soldier walked and sang with a hoarse yoloo: ' . ', '..- "And we sing and praise thy holy Bunder" ' - .... - During Ms military service he hs4 been something like a sexton la the battalion church, and ho knew an end leas number of hymns' and chants, which knowledge ho misused every time our conversation did not flow exactly right - , I , V : , . - .r: - Ahead -of us, on tho horlson, rose some forms of soft contours and gentle sbadva. from lllao to light pink. "That's evidently tho Crimean range," aid ths student dryly.-.. . -Mountains r exclaimed tho soldier. "Its mighty early, my friend, you see them, ' -Those are clouds. Just clouds. Ton se what they 'look llket riuit like cranberry sauce with milk." 5'. I remarked thet It would bo exceed ingly agreeable If the clouds rosily con sisted of cranberry aaucev This at ones roused our hunger tho great Question of tha day. i The "student" grew silent and com pressed his lips. 1 Tho sun . was going down, and the clouds In v. tha horlson displayed a variety of Intangible colors. The sir emailed of land and salt. . This dry nd appetising odor only increased our hunger. ' There was a gnawing sensation in onr .stomarha. It was a strange and dis agreeable sensation; It felt as though V;,;',"-'; ?: ; ,'. L. , From the New Tork World. ' MR. WARREN, who arranged James It Hyde's 110.009 ball, ' did not attempt to carry out - - the general schema of any par ticular salon in th palace at Versailles, where Louis XI . gloried aad reveled. Instead, ths entire general scheme of the decoration st Versailles had been ap plied to Sherry's ball room. . It - was , i, brilliant scene when the last of the 1st comer had settled them selves In. their golden chairs to await the word that the t fete was to begin. The beat known women of New Tork so ciety were there In the court dresses of the dsys when ths French court wss the marvel of the world. The best known and most representative ma ot New Tank In sit walks of Ufa In f 1 nance, in art, in th military, la club dom, in soclsl life all were there, some In court drees, others in- hunting attire, coaching drees, military uniform - or vsnlng clothes, - Lights, music, flowers, small talk, ths srpertant buss of antici pation then a fanfare of trumpets! Ths ftte began. . Lackeys distributed beautifully de signed programs, done in brown ink on haeVy -parchment Th orchestra struck a--vaunuet of th olden days, aad from ' - '-- i v' .; ,. '' the sip were flowing oat of all the msaelee of tho body, aa though it s ven erated, and the muscles lost their vital dryaea f -.led the avtty of tbo mouth and the throat; tho head waa diasy, and dark spots arose and flitted before the eyes. At times they assumed the form of steaming pieces of meat, of blf el toes of bread; reminiscence furnished tbos "visions-of the past, silent vis ions, . with their appropriate aromas, sad' then it felt as though a knife wort turning around In tb stomach. We kept on marching, communicat ing to each other the description of our sensations and being oa a sharp look out on both sides hoping to discover somewhere a flock of sheep, or to hear tho sharp crashing of a Tartar's cart taking fruit to aa Armenian market. , But tho steppe waa deserted . and speechless. ... V . - On the .previous day we had eaten be tween us four pounds of rye bread and some five melons, after having marched about 4 verats there was a discrep ancy between assets sad liabilities and, having fallen asleep on tho mar kst place of rerefcop,,we swoks' from hunevr. ';, . 'Tho student" had Just advised us not to He down to sleep, but to go to work in tho night It is not consid ered proper In decent eoolety to speak aloud of tho plans for trespassing en prtvata property, and so I shall keep silent. 1 1 only, want to bo truthful, and not vulgar, as regards my own In terest. I , know that ' people are get ting moro snd moro -Jc lad-hearted la theso, our highly cultured days, and that when they take their neighbor by tho throat with tho evident purpose of choking him they try to do so with tho utmost politeness . and with tha observe noe of all tho proprieties suited to tho - case. Kkperlenca of ray own threat - oompela me to notice ; this progress of manners, and I affirm with a pleaeant ' fearing of conviction ; that everything la this world Is being de veloped and perfected, Thla remark able . progress ht, in particular, sufft elantly proved by the. annual inereass la prisons, saloons and "houses of to! sratloa: . ...-.' i 00, awallowing ear hanger splttls and attempting by a friendly eonversation to- suppress the pain In our stomach, wo marched across the deserted and speechless steppe, marched la the blood red rays of the declining sun, full of a dim hope of something. la front of us the sun was going down, gently descend lag Into the soft clouds. which were lavishly painted by Its rays, and be hind us and at ear aides a bluish mist rising from tha steppe toward heaven, narrowed down Inhospitable " horlsoa around us. -. 4 . "friends, eoTlaet material for a nre." said the aoldlor, aa he lifted a stick by the wayside. "We will have to sleep out on a steppe, and there Is a dsw falling: Pick up. dung chips and all kinds of dry stalks." . - -, . ? We scattered on both sides of the road and togan to collect dry weeds and everything else that would burn. Kvery time I had to bond down a powerful de sire to fall down upon the ground took possession of my body, a desire to lis Immovably and eat the rich, black earth, to eat a great deal of It to exhaustion, and then to fail asleep, even If it were to fall asleep forever, as long aa thars would bo something to eat, and I could chew-and feel the thick, warm food slowly passing from the mouth over the dried an oesophagus Into tho hungry and compressed stomach that was burning with the desire of sucking something In. - - "If wo eould only find some roots," sighed the soldier. "There are some edible roots." But there' were ' ao roots whatsoever In the black, plewod-up earth. The southern night came upon as suddenly, and the last sunbeam bed not yet gone out when the stars began to glisten In the dark blue volt, and the dark ahadows grew thicker around us, narrowing down the endless extent, of tho steppe that held ua , ' - . ' "Friend a," said . ths "student" half aloud, "there la a man lying to the left of ua" ' ." -. 4 -y -i ' "Man T" ' doubted the soldier. fWhy should hs be lying there T) " . "Oo and ask him. No doubt he. has some bread, or hs would not be camp ing out In the steppe." exp rained ths "student" . The soldier looked aside, where the man waa lying, and, spitting out assertively, he said: ( r "Lot us go to him." ' v ' Only the "student's" sharp green syes could .hsve discovered that the dark mass that rose some hand red and fifty feet to ths left of the road waa a man. Ws started In-that direction, swiftly striding ever clods of earth, and we felt the pang of hunger getting more acute In the germinating hope of finding Some thing to eat We were near the place, but the man did not move. , "Maybe that Is not a man.' gloomily said ths aoldlor, giving expression to our common thought But ear doubt was Immediately dis persed, for the mass on the ground moved, raised Itself, and we saw that it waa a real, live man. who was stand-, Ing on hla kneea and atretchtng out his hand toward ua. - - . He spoke to aa with a dull and trem bling voice i - . ; .rv . IL "Not a step nearer, or m ahoet 'A dry. short dick was heard in the musky sir, '- Wa. stopped aa commanded and kept sDsnt for a few seconds, being daaed by sueti an- Inhospitable reception. "wnst a rasoai," mutterea tne soiaiar, deliberately, , i - : "Tee." thoughtfully said the "student." "He wanders about with a revolver; evi dently the Bah la full or spawn." - 232 behind the rose screens walked In stately procession eight of the prettiest, girl In society, tricked eat In powder, paint patches and satin, attended by eight of the beat known young gallant in New Torn.-.". -.. v . f"-.- - Ths II were the atlases Gladys Ven der but, Annah C Ripley, Anita Stewart Gwendolyn Burden, Helen T. Barney. Nora Iaelln. Charlotte Warren, Natlca Rives and Katharine Barney, with th Messrs, Gillespie. John Clinton Omy. Jr., Monson Morris, Harry Polhsm Bobbins, John Rogers. W. F. Whltehouse. Worth. Ington Whltehous and Lucius Wllmer-dlng.- - 4,t .. ... K . , u It was a beautiful dance gracefully dona '- The young girls wore costumes of soft tsfTeta "a la Carmargo," four in pale blue and four In ths palest' of pink, trimmed with garlands ot roses. Thsy carried basksts of roses and wore wreaths f rosebud la their powdered eolffurea. Ths picture waa a charming onethe pleased faces of ths audience, ths lights, the roses everywhere, ths lovely young women and th courtly wain who attended- them aa Pierrots, clad In whit satin costumes set off with blsck buttons, their faoea chalked tlks th poor clowns of the pantomime. The vtolina played old-fashioned muslo L "Ci thTf cl:ed out tSs soldier, having mads p his nuns xor some-th-1.- . - ' - , .''-. . Ine man did not change hla position and kept s!'tt - "Oh. there! v wCl not Vuch you. Olve as b"j0 bread, if you ave any; for Christ s s":t give ua aoms, friend, Penan you, 'i " . Ths last words the aaldlsr spoke an dar his breath, ,- . , ..,-,4 -,: . The man kept silent., "po you hesrr again spoke the sol dlsr. with a tremor of anger and de spair. . "Civs aa aoms bread, I say. Ws will not come near you. ; Throw some to usr '.,-'.; "AU right!" said the man, abruptly. He might have aald to us "My dear brethren." and If he had poured all his holiest and purest sen time ats Into those three Christian words thsy would not have roused ua so, and would not have mads ua ao basaan at thla dull sad aborts , c, : : . "All rtghtr ,., " "Don't fear ua. good maar said the aoldlor, aoftly, and with a sweet smile upon hla face, thongs, the man eould not see his smile, for he waa separated from us at least IS raaeea. ' t , "We're peaoeable people, and "..are- walking from Russia into the Kuaaa country) we have spent our pennies oa ths wsy, have eaten up oor provisions, and haven't had a bite for two. dare." , '-Catch it" saM the good man. flour ishing so me thing In ths air. A black place flashed by us and fall not far from us on the plowed field. The "student" threw himself upon It ' When ' the "student" collected ' this original gift It appeared that' we' had about four pounds of stale wheat bread. It waa al, roiled In dirt and very stale. The first did not detain oar attention, tha second pleased us very much. bread Is more noa risk lag than fresh bread, becaose there la loaa - moisture In It -. - : The Tc owyright laog. by Wl ft, Beatat) . -sHO is .Maxima Oorkyr . "A Russian writer." - '. "What has ha written r "The moat Urrlblt sto ries in all the world." -- These have been the questions aaksd of ma half a doaen times during the peat few days, and these have been my rspliea. . :ir.l.-, , .v It is-not atrange that American reaoV era should know ao ittUa of tho really famous Russian author, or, la fact of any of tbo wonderful Slav writers. Rus sian literature, even when well trans lated, which it rarely ta, presents great difficulties to the average American reader, ir there Is on quality mora than another that la needed In the study of this strange, half-uncouth and alto gether foreign -writing, -it la oatlenos. Ruaslaa writers, Including the best of them, show great crudity ,la their fic tion, which Is ths work by which thsy are beet known. This crudity ta evl- dsnoed in - a nogUgsnoo, a-dUfaseness and a trick of repetition which i is per vaatva of. the whole cult Whatever other faults English UteraAsre has. tt- la Clean cut 'and, in the work or its Bast authors. It Is finished pencraft Ac customed ss ws are to thla sort of writ ing, we find Tolstoi, Turgenlsf and Oor ky very hard ta break Into. ' But those who hsve had sufficient patience to tackle the Job systematically and peg away at it have not gone unrewarded. It waa harder for me to Interest myself In Tolstoi's "Karenlna". than It waa ia Milton's "AreopagiOca." , &iu of all Kueelan writers at fiction Gorky Is perhaps the clearest ' If you have, never read his work it Is safe to say you will not like it for. as I said In ths first place, his are the most-terrible stories In all the world. Sola him self uttered nothing more revolting than "Orloff and Hla Wife," the tale ef a sodden drunkard and hla patlsat help meet The manner ta -'' which Orloff beats his wlfs and the anspeakable re sults of bis beatings, together with their after history In n hospital where grim disease threatens them at every atopr make pictures before which the brain reela. Vervstcbagln " himself, whose awfully brutal paintings were sickening in their vivid realism, did not preseut to my mind pictures moro brutally haunting than those of this grewsoms Qorfcy, who knocked me In the head with his stunning ef facte and dragged me Cut limp and unprotestlng at the end of bis chapter. - . ' - Tou see la all of hla wild-eyed work, however,- a strong compassion tor- the under dog, and the ander dog with him la generally the poor peasant whom he has presented to our sympathies In a manner that is not very pretty, to say ths least Like Tolstoi, be has managed to steer dear of the actual fact of sedi tion. "He has not In his stories said such bitterly revolutionary things ss Turgenlcf, who bad to flee before tho enraged srlstocrsta ' Another thing, be has bad,, like Tolstoi, a large following, and that following has been feared by tha Tory element Tot while not so outspoken as Turgenlcf, tb subtle Gor ky has managed by Indirection to point out the Very evils ef which Turgenlef complained and, to my way of think vv jas; h. hyde:s $100,000 ball aoftly from behind tha ' rose-latticed screen, v . . . .. Hardly had the dancers stepped their wsy from the room when the orchestra struck up ths ballet musl aelected by Mr. Hyde, and out on the stags flitted ths best of ths ballet from tha Conrlel company, led by. the , premiere, lime. Vsrsst 'hsrself. .... - - It was midnight then, and tha ' ax pectant chatter of the guests denoted that tha svent of the' fete was about to take place. The trumpets brayed and ths violins played, softly an old air sf other dsys and scenes. The host took bis place en the stage. .There wss a murmur at the outer door, snd then ths delighted applause sf th audience Mme. Rejans waa entering In her aedsa chair. Just as th cMrt favorites en tered lis ysra ag. - . : Lackeys bore th golden chair into the middle of the room; Mme. Rejan ateppedt out daintily and walked up the little flight of steps to th stage, where Mr. Hyde extended his right hand In courtly fashion and offered hla guest the honors of, ths stags. Then he 'de scended to the audlencs. while Mme. Rs jane disappeared behind tha lattice. In another moment the certain rose, and then came . tha splendid litUa comedy "Hers, and hare, and here!" the sol dier doled out the sharee wUn"onecn trated attention. ."Hold on, the pieces aren't equal. - We'll have to pinch off a piece of yours, learned man, or he will have too little." - i Tha "student" submitted , without grumbling to ths diminution of his piece of bread by aome .five ounces, I took it and put It, In my mouth. I began to chew it to chew It softly, barely repressing the cramp-like mo tion of my Jaws,' that were ready to crush atones. . - It gave me an acute pleasure to feel the palpitating cramps of my alimentary canalrnd to satisfy It slowly by small drops. Swallow after swallow. ' warm and Inexpressibly, in comprehensibly appetising, . penetrated into the burning stomach and seemed Immediately to . be transformed Into blood and brain,' Joy, such a. strange, aulet and vivifytng . Joy, warmed my heart in a measure aa my stomach filled up, and my general condition was not unlike a half -sleeping. I forgot those accursed days of my chronio hunger; I forgot my companions, being aH merged in the enjoyment by tho sensations through which I then passed. But when I throw from my palm ths last crumbs Into my mouth I felt that I was deadly hungry. -"That accursed one baa aome baeon or aome meat left I" grumbled the soldier sitting against ma on the ground and rubbing bis belly with his hands. "No doubt for the bread smelt of meat Tea, and he may have some bread left, too," aald the "atudent" , and softly added: .', - . ' "If it were hot fos the revolver" "Who Is he, anywayr J , ',.,.' , .'"Evidently one of our kind." '- : , "A dog!" declared the soldier. We were sitting closely together and kept looking askance at the place where our benefactor waa sitting with bis re volver. Not a sound or a sign of, Ufa proceeded from him, Night waa gathering around us her BAILEY MILLARD, ing, even more effectively. He has been known to be In closs communion with the most radical Socialists of Russia, and until now he has managed to main tain a front that was set Insufferably offensive to the nobles. - Now, to be aura, with Russia In a Stat of wide spread revolt hs Is able to ooms out and vent hla democratic rage and Impatience Of the rule of autocracy. Needless ta say, h has rejoiced the heart of social lam the world ovsr. , .. -. . , - Those who wish to study Oorky In bla a Implant work would better begin with his short stories. - Thsy are as terrible as any of bis writings, but and for this the American reader wlH thank me when I suggest them they sre the easiest of alt To one who regards Intellectual and spiritual growth as the essential faets of the literary life Oorky will perhaps be found disappointing. He sacrifices everything jjto his srtlitle conscience to the deslr to pressnt life aa be really finds it The color of the soil Is in his pages, and the blood and bono and vis cera ef humanity all painted' with tha moat ' painstaking fidelity - and with crude. Startling afreets SuoFree r.hsve SI reedy hinted at ,1 remember one f ketch that will haunt me forever that hlcb. T ihitik ha -3alli "Expiation." or some such title. - It presents the fire limned pioture of a finely formed young peasant woman who had committed the unpardonable sin, snd who is hitched naked- beside a horse and driven along a country road, while her husband sits up in a cart and lashes hsr frbm bead to foot with a heavy whip, while the peas antry gather along the way and hoot and Jeer the poor woman. In another story we have the repellent picture of a chol era plague and are made to see the vio tlms writhe and turn color before our eyes. Poo never wrote anything halt ao grew some. i But while no -American magaslne wouia dare to print Oorky at his strong est it Is nsoessary to the student ef world literature that he know Oorky and that he have acquaintance with Turge nief ' and TolsteL Not until our own literature has been Imbued with some thing of the freedom ot these intense, earth-gripping European models shall we reeogntse In it the saiiency, tha color, the ! virility of human life. Not until then shall be escape from the Just criti cism: aimed at- ua by that acute and liberated mind among us which declared in public print not long ago thst Amsrl can literature was of bourgeois origin and written to fit the bourgeois Intelli gence, The real name ef Maxima Oorky la Alexet Maximovltoh Pyeshkoff. Hs was born on March St. llt, In the city of Nljnl Novgorod. An unluckier boy has never been known. The unhappy boy hood of that other atrange genius, Jean Jacques Rousseau,, waa blissful In com parison with thst of young AlsxsL At ths age of 4 he was attacked by ebol-' era and communicated the disease to his father, to whom It was fatal. The boy's mother soon took anothsr hus band, and aa she did not love hes son, hs wss Isft to ths care of a miserly grandfather, who Is said to have been a Scrooge. ; After six months ot school at tendance the lad . contracted smallpox, and on hla recovery was not permitted to go pack to schools, and hs waa sys tematically neglected. , It wss not there fore, . strange that he ran away from such a home at the sge of II. which M. Dario Nlccodemt her a rep resentative of Figaro, Paris, wrote for Mr. Hyde. It went oft briskly. The play lasted but a half hour, but it held the delighted audience to the end. . Ths litis waa "Bntre Deux fortes" ('Between Two Doors")., As ths pro gram read: .. , v "F.NTRB DETJX 'pORTM." . , Par M. Dnrlo NtocodemL. ' Personages. ' La Marquis ............ .Mme. Rejtns Le Marquis ....,..,.....M, Oorieux L'Abbe .....,. M. Berthier Madelon Mile. Avrli ', - Le Mardl, 11 January, 0S. ; These characters wars ths members f Mm. Rejane's company, Ths sewn showed two rooms, with a hallway be tween, the- doors to the rooms being open. - The decorations were - in ' the sty Is of tha Istsr Rsnslsssnoe, historic aj and artistically correct Th plot wa an Ingenious ana, - Tb marquji Mme, Rejane snd her hus band were supposed to have had a little domestic tiff, and each had laid a plan to make th other, Jealous. Th abb had corns, upon the marqulae'a Invita tion, ta pay her a sorisi call, . At the. am tlm Madelon waa there upon In vlteUoaot the-marquis, rThs husband dark powers. There was a dead silence in the steppe.' and we could hear each other a ' breathing. Now and then the melancholy whistling of a gophsr reaches our ears. The alar a living flowers of heaven gleamed above us. We wanted something to eat. :,.' I say it proudly-! was not worse nor better than my casual oesipanjona In that somewhat strange night 1 pro posed to them that wo should get P and make for that man. We - would not teueh blm, but we would sat up any thing be might have.' He would shoot let hunt He could hit but one of.ua three. If he hits us at all; and, even If he did, a bullet from a revolver would hardly kill.. - " V ' "tat ua got", said tha soldier, Jumping to his feet i , -. The "student" was slower in rising. W started we almost ran. The Student" kept toward one side and be hind ua -. Partner!" called the soldier to him. reproachfully. ' - We wore met with a aul) grumbling and a sharp sound of a clicking ham mar.. There waa a flash sf fire, and the dry sound of a shot was heard. . "Missed r Joyfully exclaimed the sol dier, reaching the man with one bound. "Well, dovfl. I'll give it to you now!'! Tho "student' msde a rush for his wallet -' ' V ' . '" The devil fell from his kneea ea4 anon hla back. and. stretching out hla. hands, began to .anore, -.,' -,yV ' - . . . "Wlnvtthe douosr ,-ibndersd the soldier, who had already' -aised hla foot to. give the man a kick, "It is lm pessibls h bss filled himself up with lead? OB. there, get up. Say. did you kltlrournarf, ehr ' "thera la some bread, and some cakes, and bacon lota of It friends t" waa heard the Jubilant voice of the "student" "Well, the douce take you. Let us eat friends r or ted the soldier. I took the revolver out of the hand ef the man, who had stopped snoring, and lay -notion- 1 For nearly 11 years he was a wander er, much of the time eenaortlng with tramps and criminals. Ha belonged to the barefoot brigade. This waa really hla sduoatlon. and out of the streak ea psrieneea of these years of physios! and moral suffering these developed one of the greatest literary artists of the times. At first he tried to support hlm sslf by honest toil, and he was en gaged oa a Volga boat as ssslatant tj ths cook, who had a collection ef books, and delighted to read them with the young boy. Next- be waa a bakera as Blatant and worked in a vile cellar un der the most frightful conditions. - It waa hero that ha began to seek out the tramp - and try to understand them. Thirsting for knowledge, be longed to take a university course, hut found that It would be Impossible for him. . I Reaching- the sg of military servloe. he waa obliged to return to his native town to submit to an examination, but fortunately he was rejected, A lawye or ainaiy impulses toon a isncy to mm. and gavo him aome office work and an opportunity to study. The future nov elist took . advantage of thla for two Xpara, and then deliberately turned hla back oaths jcomf orta oflelviilaatlon, For two yearsl he was one of the most miserable tramps la Russia, and wan dered all over the steppes, his ' com panions being thieves and murderers. Finally, however b went to work for wages and soon - had a Uttl leisure, which he devoted to writing. Hla first manuscript waa taken - to a newspaper office and waa at once accepted and published. "Thar Is no nam oa It" said ths ' editor- - "Ton can put down Maxhn Oorky replied the young author. "Is that your name r -"No, but It will do." '-"Oorky" la' Ruaslaa means "bit ter." .. ., V i ' -r Other authors have' to work- many years t gain recognition Oorky jumped into fame. By !. he was one ot the most popular man la Ruasla, and, strange aa it may seem, ths aristocracy took up ths product of ths "Barefoot Brigade." It is not strange that he waa bitter towards everything conven tional and that he had come to hate the existing order, yet la aplts of ths bit terness of his writings and ths artistic kill with Which he laid bare the sores on the body politic, he' waa eagerly sought by all classes ia society. -The various . schools' of political thought have tried to wla Oorkys pea to their cause, snd ths Marxian Social ists seem to have had the greatest suc cess. Thsy are said to bars "harnessed him to their plow" by securing bis ser vices for one of their re views. But Oorky cannot be aald to be a clean-out stats Socialist when other schools of economic thought aad even the aristo cratic class, draw. Inspiration from his work. -j . According to Dr. H. 3. Dillon, Oorky waa soon Invited everywhere snd "lion ised." His portraits were sold by the ten thousand, slrculated. almost wor shipped, his picturesque phrssss and chance expression were religiously in terpreted and ' unctuously preached as part of a new aad saving. revelation to man. - Svry party in tha state found In hla. moral and social tendencies ths reflex ot Its own favorite tendencies, and lauded him. accordingly as Its prophet ,! ,.' j. ; and wife each left th room door open fthat there might be no suspicion. .Ths situation developed that each waa try ing to keep up a seemingly dewpeTate flirtation, while meaning to watch the other.. .'.-'.' ji ' . ,? This sfforded an .opportunity for some very clever) acting, of whlqh Re Jane took every advantage. ( When at last the wife dismissed her abbe,, and the husband Mile. Madelon. and rushed Into- each other's arms ltk,i newly married couple, the applause, wss aa hearty aa It was deserved. It wss time for Supper. The orches tra struck up a brilliant march. Headed by plpea aad drums.' Mr. Hyde led tha way downatslrsr-snother surprissl -. Ths gueata ssw ths conventions! supper-room transformed. InStesd of (.four walla and a parquet floor, they found themselves .within a marquee upon the emerald lawns of Versatile. . The room Itself hsd been hung with a essopy, snd under the edges penpe rose bush r.d greenery. . Through th thousands ' of blooms ' peeped Innumerable electric lights. In all the colors ot ths rainbow. Sixty tables were eet-about, and ever each a rose bush in full bloom reared Itself. - It wss a fairyland even mora beautiful than th oaa usatalra. less.- One bsrrsl had a cartridge in it We ate again, and ate la silence. The man lay sliest, without moving a limb. Wa paid no attention to mm. 1 It really so, friends, that you did it all for the bread oalyT suddenly ws heard the hoarss and quivering voice, . We all shuddered. The "atudent" even atarted up, - and. ' bending to , the ground, began to cough.- Tbo soldier finished chawing and be gan to cursing. ' v "Tou soul of a dog,, may you burst like a dry plank! What do you want ua to doT Take. Off your hldeT What good would it do ua? Tou stupid snout damned soul! I declare! carrying arms and shooting at people! Tou anathema! "Just wait; when we are through eat ing we'll square up with you," ominously threatsned ths "student" , Then we heard, in tbo quiet of the night howling sobs that frightened us. "Friends, how eould I know? 'X fired because I waa afraid. X am on my way from NW Afon to th government of Orel. O, Lord The fever Is undoing me sIbos th sua want down! . It waa the fever that made ma leave Afon I waa doing some carpentering there -I am a carpenter I have at home a wife and two daughUrs - haven't seen them thsae three years. Friends, eat very thing" , .. : . ;. " "Ws wttl; you needn't ask us," aald the -atudent . . "My Lord! If I knew that you were good, peaoeable people, do you suppose I would have 'tired at you? Tou see, my friends, it' ths steppe and night am I to be blamed, hT ; -.. - Aa be said that he wept or, to apeak more correctly, emitted a quivering, tlmoroua howL "Hear him whine!", contemptuously aald the aoidiar... "He must have money about him," declared the "student" . The soldier blinked, looked at him and amiled. . , : - v ., ', "Tou are a good gusssr. flay, let as make a fire and go to sleep!" "And hot" Inquired th "student" . - "Ths -deuce take him! What do yea want aa to do roast him?" -. "We ought tor" the "student", shook hla sharp pointed head.- . . We went for the snaterial -which tt had been gathering. . and which ws hsd thrown away where the carpenter had atopped ua with hla threatening call; we brought it back and soon w were sitting around a fire. It glowed softly la the wtldaess ot tho night and Illumi nated a amall apace which we were oc cupying, i .W were . feeling sleepy, though we could have supped again. "Friends!" cried the oerpenter. - He was -lying aome three paces from us, and at time it appeared to me that he was -muttering something. .. "Wslt"' aald the aoldlsr. . ' t ' "May I move up to you to th fire? My death is upon me; my hones are aching. Lord! I don't think I'll reach home." V - "Crawl up," decided the "student" The carpenter slowly crawled slong the ground toward the nre, as If tsarina to lose an arm or leg.- He was a tall and dreadfully dried up man; every thing hung dreadfully loose ' upon him. snd his large, dim eyes reflected the . pain that waa consuming him.' His face was bony, and even In the light of the fire n kind of s yellowish, earthy, deathly color. He wss all in a tremble and provoked n contemptuous pity.- He stretched out to the Are his long, lean hands, and rubbing his bony fingers. but their joints bennasiiy and slowly. In short' he wss a .horrible sight "How la It you are In ouch a fix, and afoot? ' Are you so stingy V gloomily asked ths soiaier. . . , . "They , advised ms not to go by see, but to walk through the Crimea on ac count ot ths air. .But I can't walk; I am dying.- brothers! I'll die alone in tha lappa the birds will peck at me, and nobody will know me my. wife aad daughters will be waiting I have writ tea to them but the rain ot the steppe will be bleaching my bones. My Lord, my Lord!" . - He whined with the melancholy whine at a wounded wolf.. "The devil." cried tha aoldlsr, ss he arose to his feet "Don't howl sol Why don't yoa give us people any rest? Are you dying? Ail right die; but keep quiet Who waste you? Shut up!" i "Kick him In the pater proposed th "atudant" "Let ua lie down 'to sleep," said 1 "And you. If you want to be near ths fire, don't howl, at least" "Did you hear?" sternly aald the sol dier. "Welt maks a nots of it Do you think w are going to look after you and pity you for hurling broad at as and firing on ua? Tou mean devil! Others pah " The soldier grew silent and stretched himself out on the ground. - The "student" bad lain down before, t lay down myself. Ths frightened oerpenter was all bent into a bait and moved by the Bra, and looked at it fix edly. I lay to the right of htm, and it seemed fell at ones . asleep, having rolled up Into a ball. The soldier put hla heads ovsr his head and lay, face upward, and looked at tha sky. "Whst a night! Xots . of stars warmth," hs turned to me after a time. "What a sky! It's a coverlet, not s sky. I do lovs this life of a tramp, my friend. Tou suffer cold snd bungsr, but it's a mighty free life. There is no superior over you you are master of yourself. Tou may chew off your head and nobody will say a word to you. . It's fine. I have starved enough these days. .. If tt-"- - Not a' detail had been omitted. Every guest wss seated Juat where each would be. Mr. Hyde's forethought had even provided that all the gueets st tbs varloua dinner psrtles which bad been given before the fete should be seated together. . . There Were two large tables i one for Mr. Hyde Snd one for Mrs. Ripley, Mra Stuyvessnt Fish's dinner gueats, Mra Clarence H, Mackay's. Mrs. Charles a Alexander's. Miss Elisabeth Msrbury's and Mr. Jamea Henry Smith's were all seated together for supper Juat ss they had been earlier in the evening at din ner. . i V At Mr. Hyde' right ..sat Mme, Re Jan. . Close st either side - wer Mr. Hyde's -own psrtlculnv,, party. The sup per was so carefully erred that It rose far above the average. At a tap of a bell a bosh' fell over ths merry com pany, end Mme. ' Re Jane arose. Then he recited 'Apropos" most delightfully. Esch guest Wss provided with sa en grossed copy of tbo dainty little poem. It was written by.Mi Robert do Flare snd Q. A. Calllvet. authors of "La Mon tonater." Iri which Mm. Rejans made uch a sensation laat year. After thla, the party) srsttered ' Into groups and, general dancing was Started. Thla la tha recital ot what took place and have had enough cause for nunc , f but now I am lying and looking at t i ky. The stars are twinkling It rt as if to say, 'Never mind, Lakstia. wander bout ever, the earth, and submit to nobody.' Tea and my heart feeU , light i Oh. there, what ddf they call you? Oh, there, carpenter, don't be angry with me, and have no fear! As to our hav ing eaten up your bread, that'a nothing, . Ton had some bread, and we had none, so wo t up yours. But you are a" savage; . you fired oil gun. . Don't you know that bullets may harm people? It msde mo dreadfully mad. - and If you had not fallen. down I would 'have thrashed yoa. my friend, for your impu dence. Hut as for the bread, yoa will reach Perekop tomorrow, and ao you will buy some 1 know, you nave money. . How long is It slneo you caught tha " ague?" . . ,. ''.: .- ;.- The bass of the soldier and ths quiv ering, voice ot the sick carpenter rV ounded for a while in my ears. - Dark . almost blsck descended more and mora upon th earth, and ths fresh, aromatic, , something, . soothing and purifying. "Uet up! Lively there! Lst us go." I opened my eyes with a feeling ot terror end' swiftly Jumped to my feet. being helped by the soldier, who Jerked me from the ground. . , . . "Lively there! Move onr - His face was stern and agitated. ' I looked around me. Tbo sun was rising snd its -rose-colored beam lay upon the ' immovable and blue face of. the car penter. . His mouth was open, his eyes atood far out of their sockets and stared ' with a glassy glance, expressive of ter ror.. His dross waa all torn over hla chest and he lay In an. unnatural po sition. The "student" was gone. Well, what are you tarrying for? X told you to go," aald tha soldier, per suasively, palling me all tha time by tha "Is he deed" asked I. shuddsrlng from the morning freshness. "Of .course. Ton would die. too. If thsy' choked you," explained the sol dier.' '.. , "What did the stadentr" cried L "Well, who else? Maybe you, or X. There you have a learned man. He get away with tbo man. and left hla com panions in a nice tlx. If I bad known that yesterday I would have killed that student' I would have killed htm with one stroke. I would have banged hla temple with my fist, aad there would have been a villain leas In the world. Do you understand what be did? Be cause they will find the oarpentei today, and thsy will discover that ha has been choked to death and robbed. - And they will be on the lookout for fellows of our kind. Where do you eocno from snd where do you pass your nights? Tea, and thsy will catch us though we haven't a thing of his yes, I havs hla revolver In my bosom. It's a alee fix wa are nr. -. 1 " "Throw ft away," I advised the aol dlsr. ',";". - W . . "Throw It away" said he. thought fully. "It's worth something. ' And then, maybe, thsy will aot catch us. No, I won t throw It away. Who knows that ths .carpenter had a . runt It'a worth three roubles.'. There is a bullet In It I tall you 1 would like to send It a-flymg into the ear of our dear companion! Anathema ' "Poor daughters of ths . carpenter P said L i ' - Ths daughters! what daughters? Oh. - well, they'll grew up, and they won't marry ua, so there is no u talking about them. Come, friend. It us be off. Where shall ws for "I don't knowanywhere," "I don't know, either, and X know that . It makes no di ft ere noa, Come, let us to tho right; there must be by the' sea." - - ' ' - - Ws wsnt to the right - I turned back. Far from aa rose a dark mound In tha steppe, and the sua shone over It - "Are you trying to sea It It has risen from ths desdt - Don't be afraid; he won't be up after' us. Ths learned fel low is evidently a men of experience; he bss done his Job thoroughly. Welt he's a fins partner! Ho has put as In a nice hole, friend I People are getting worse from yesr to year;-they are get ting worse!" said ths soldier, mourn fully. - . . ' . Ths deserted and speechless steppe- bathed by the bright morning sun and mingling in tha horlson with the sky. wss unfolded around us la such a bright gentle and abundant light thst every black and unrigtrteooa deal seemed impossibls amidst the great ex teat st this free plain that was covered -by the blue cupola of the sky. ' "I feel like having something to mX friend," aald my companion, as ha rolled himself a cigarette out of coarse tobacco. "Whst shall we eat today, and whr snd howT"- It was n problem! , . ' "e- ' Having told ms this, the story-tellau-, . who was mjr neighbor in tha boapitaL ended his narrative.' krhat's alt , Tha soldier and t gat ta be good friends, and : ws walked to gether to the Kara territory. He was a good and very experienced fellow, a typical barefoot tramp. - I respect htm. We walked together to Asia Minor, aad then I lost track of him." "As you see, or, as you heard.' . "Well, and-" ; ' "Whst am I to feel? It waa not my fault what happened to him, not any more than It is your fault what haa happened to ma Nobody Is to be blsmed for anything, because wa are all alike- beasts!" ;--..- ' ; at what la undoubtedly th most elab orate snd expensive prlvsta entertain ment ever given in New Tork. , Such ettentlon to detail had been pall by Mr, Hyde that his guests found even a fully, equipped photograph gall-ry managed by Byron, the flashlight pho togrspher, where five operators, by the aid of the new violet light took close to too photographs of th guests be fore they departed fer their home 'All sorts of groups were taken, a there waa much merriment over t r -suite ef some, of; the group'-- v Hyde Is is .present esch. gv . a i tograph ef himself .or he..lf aa souvenir of. the fete, - r - :-,' r,.TaB-m:tniitty. :" From Brown's Jr--.sl-. ' ". An ' Imaginary I; au-oo t . telescopes ef Vcbut i w. eled toward our rolling p: , a: ( we appeared fuller eves t t a- full moon to our sister plan 1 ths connivance, or the rhlv -. r sun, ws are hot able to She sees usi but if she In t Ilk nme of th fracture marble, that we bar I served, she Is not a gas oa aoept a.Jt l ;
