And still, the thought of taking away estates without compensation is quite objectionable. Imagine a large-scale landowner. As the owner of such a large quantity of land, he is a rich man. But he is rich only so long as no one takes away that land. As soon as the land is seized without compensation, he will become destitute.
True, he may have money in the bank. Then he won’t lose everything… as long as there’s a good deal of that money. And if there is no money, he will inevitably fall into poverty. And so it will be with the vast majority of other private landowners. And now tell me: is it in your interest to breed destitution in Rus’? I don’t think so.
Sometime, maybe in 35 years, my son will sit in a train wagon, crack open a book he bought on the road, and read unsettling and frightening words about our time, which some will call great and others will call bloody: See more
Living in the country has become repulsive. The muzhiks are entirely childlike and loathsome in the extreme. Anarchy reigns supreme in the countryside, and headstrong imbecility, and idiotic incomprehension not only of “slogans” but of simple human words—it’s shocking. Oh, our intelligentsia—that despicable tribe that has completely lost its instinct for life and has begun to lie relentlessly about this class of people entirely unknown to it—our intelligentsia will still remember my “Village” and all the rest! See more