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pubOne.info present you this new edition. Books which are prohibited by the Russian Censor are not always inaccessible. An enterprising publishing-house in Geneva makes a specialty of supplying the natural craving of man for forbidden fruit, under which heading some of Count L. N. Tolstoi's essays belong. These essays circulate in Russia in manuscript; and it is from one of these manuscripts, which fell into the hands of the Geneva firm, that the first half of the present translation has been made. It is thus that the Censor's omissions have been noted, even in cases where such omissions are in no way indicated in the twelfth volume of Count Tolstoi's collected works, published in Moscow. As an interesting detail in this connection, I may mention that this twelfth volume contains all that the censor allows of "My Religion, " amounting to a very much abridged scrap of Chapter X. in the last-named volume as known to the public outside of Russia. The last half of the present book has not been published by the Geneva house, and omissions cannot be marked

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Publié par	Pub One Info
Date de parution	06 novembre 2010
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9782819949473
Langue	English

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WHAT TO DO?
THOUGHTS EVOKED BY THE CENSUS
OF MOSCOW
by
COUNT LYOF N. TOLSTOÏ
translated from the russian
By ISABEL F. HAPGOOD
TRANSLATOR’S NOTE.
Books which are prohibited by the Russian Censor arenot always inaccessible. An enterprising publishing-house in Genevamakes a specialty of supplying the natural craving of man forforbidden fruit, under which heading some of Count L. N. Tolstoi’sessays belong. These essays circulate in Russia in manuscript; andit is from one of these manuscripts, which fell into the hands ofthe Geneva firm, that the first half of the present translation hasbeen made. It is thus that the Censor’s omissions have been noted,even in cases where such omissions are in no way indicated in thetwelfth volume of Count Tolstoi’s collected works, published inMoscow. As an interesting detail in this connection, I may mentionthat this twelfth volume contains all that the censor allows of “MyReligion, ” amounting to a very much abridged scrap of Chapter X.in the last-named volume as known to the public outside of Russia.The last half of the present book has not been published by theGeneva house, and omissions cannot be marked.
ISABEL F. HAPGOOD
Boston, Sept. 1, 1887
ARTICLE ON THE CENSUS IN MOSCOW. [1882.]
The object of a census is scientific. A census is asociological investigation. And the object of the science ofsociology is the happiness of the people. This science and itsmethods differ sharply from all other sciences.
Its peculiarity lies in this, that sociologicalinvestigations are not conducted by learned men in their cabinets,observatories and laboratories, but by two thousand people from thecommunity. A second peculiarity is this, that the investigations ofother sciences are not conducted on living people, but here livingpeople are the subjects. A third peculiarity is, that the aim ofevery other science is simply knowledge, while here it is the goodof the people. One man may investigate a nebula, but for theinvestigation of Moscow, two thousand persons are necessary. Theobject of the study of nebulæ is merely that we may know aboutnebulæ; the object of the study of inhabitants is that sociologicallaws may be deduced, and that, on the foundation of these laws, abetter life for the people may be established. It makes nodifference to the nebula whether it is studied or not, and it haswaited long, and is ready to wait a great while longer; but it isnot a matter of indifference to the inhabitants of Moscow,especially to those unfortunates who constitute the mostinteresting subjects of the science of sociology.
The census-taker enters a night lodging-house; inthe basement he finds a man dying of hunger, and he politelyinquires his profession, his name, his native place, the characterof his occupation, and after a little hesitation as to whether heis to be entered in the list as alive, he writes him in and goeshis way.
And thus will the two thousand young men proceed.This is not as it should be.
Science does its work, and the community, summonedin the persons of these two thousand young men to aid science, mustdo its work. A statistician drawing his deductions from figures mayfeel indifferent towards people, but we census-takers, who seethese people and who have no scientific prepossessions, cannotconduct ourselves towards them in an inhuman manner. Sciencefulfils its task, and its work is for its objects and in thedistant future, both useful and necessary to us. For men ofscience, we can calmly say, that in 1882 there were so manybeggars, so many prostitutes, and so many uncared-for children.Science may say this with composure and with pride, because itknows that the confirmation of this fact conduces to theelucidation of the laws of sociology, and that the elucidation ofthe laws of sociology leads to a better constitution of society.But what if we, the unscientific people, say: “You are perishing invice, you are dying of hunger, you are pining away, and killingeach other; so do not grieve about this; when you shall have allperished, and hundreds of thousands more like you, then, possibly,science may be able to arrange everything in an excellent manner. ”For men of science, the census has its interest; and for us also,it possesses an interest of a wholly different significance. Theinterest and significance of the census for the community lie inthis, that it furnishes it with a mirror into which, willy nilly,the whole community, and each one of us, gaze.
The figures and deductions will be the mirror. It ispossible to refrain from reading them, as it is possible to turnaway from the looking-glass. It is possible to glance cursorily atboth figures and mirror, and it is also possible to scrutinize themnarrowly. To go about in connection with the census as thousands ofpeople are now about to do, is to scrutinize one’s self closely inthe mirror.
What does this census, that is about to be made,mean for us people of Moscow, who are not men of science? It meanstwo things. In the first place, this, that we may learn withcertainty, that among us tens of thousands who live in ease, theredwell tens of thousands of people who lack bread, clothing andshelter; in the second place, this, that our brothers and sons willgo and view this and will calmly set down according to theschedules, how many have died of hunger and cold.
And both these things are very bad.
All cry out upon the instability of our socialorganization, about the exceptional situation, about revolutionarytendencies. Where lies the root of all this? To what do therevolutionists point? To poverty, to inequality in the distributionof wealth. To what do the conservatives point? To the decline inmoral principle. If the opinion of the revolutionists is correct,what must be done? Poverty and the inequality of wealth must belessened. How is this to be effected? The rich must share with thepoor. If the opinion of the conservatives is correct, that thewhole evil arises from the decline in moral principle, what can bemore immoral and vicious than the consciously indifferent survey ofpopular sufferings, with the sole object of cataloguing them? Whatmust be done? To the census we must add the work of affectionateintercourse of the idle and cultivated rich, with the oppressed andunenlightened poor.
Science will do its work, let us perform ours also.Let us do this. In the first place, let all of us who are occupiedwith the census, superintendents and census-takers, make itperfectly clear to ourselves what we are to investigate and why. Itis the people, and the object is that they may be happy. Whatevermay be one’s view of life, every one will agree that there isnothing more important than human life, and that there is no moreweighty task than to remove the obstacles to the development ofthis life, and to assist it.
This idea, that the relations of men to poverty areat the foundation of all popular suffering, is expressed in theGospels with striking harshness, but at the same time, withdecision and clearness for all.
“He who has clothed the naked, fed the hungry,visited the prisoner, that man has clothed Me, fed Me, visited Me,” that is, has done the deed for that which is the most importantthing in the world.
However a man may look upon things, every one knowsthat this is more important than all else on earth.
And this must not be forgotten, and we must notpermit any other consideration to veil from us the most weightyfact of our existence. Let us inscribe, and reckon, but let us notforget that if we encounter a man who is hungry and withoutclothes, it is of more moment to succor him than to make allpossible investigations, than to discover all possible sciences.Perish the whole census if we may but feed an old woman. The censuswill be longer and more difficult, but we cannot pass by people inthe poorer quarters and merely note them down without taking anyheed of them and without endeavoring, according to the measure ofour strength and moral sensitiveness, to aid them. This in thefirst place. In the second, this is what must be done: All of us,who are to take part in the census, must refrain from irritationbecause we are annoyed; let us understand that this census is veryuseful for us; that if this is not cure, it is at least an effortto study the disease, for which we should be thankful; that we mustseize this occasion, and, in connection with it, we must seek torecover our health, in some small degree. Let all of us, then, whoare connected with the census, endeavor to take advantage of thissolitary opportunity in ten years to purify ourselves somewhat; letus not strive against, but assist the census, and assist itespecially in this sense, that it may not have merely the harshcharacter of the investigation of a hopelessly sick person, but mayhave the character of healing and restoration to health. For theoccasion is unique: eighty energetic, cultivated men, having undertheir orders two thousand young men of the same stamp, are to maketheir way over the whole of Moscow, and not leave a single man inMoscow with whom they have not entered into personal relations. Allthe wounds of society, the wounds of poverty, of vice, ofignorance— all will be laid bare. Is there not somethingre-assuring in this? The census-takers will go about Moscow, theywill set down in their lists, without distinction, those insolentwith prosperity, the satisfied, the calm, those who are on the wayto ruin, and those who are ruined, and the curtain will fall. Thecensus-takers, our sons and brothers, these young men will beholdall this. They will say: “Yes, our life is very terrible andincurable, ” and with this admission they will live on like therest of us, awaiting a remedy for the evil from this or thatextraneous force. But those who are perishing will go on dying, intheir ruin, and those on the road to ruin will continue in theircourse. No, let us rather grasp the idea that science has its task,and that we, on the occasion of this census, have our t