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Ivan Turgenev — poem “Two Rich Men”

Russian Poetry

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Russian Literature – Russian Poetry – Children’s books – Ivan Turgenev  – Poems – Obsolete Russian Words and their meaning
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Two Rich Men

When men in my presence extol Rothschild, who out of his vast revenues allots whole thousands for the education of children, the cure of the sick, the care of the aged, I laud and melt in admiration.

But while I laud and melt I cannot refrain from recalling a poverty-stricken peasant’s family which received an orphaned niece into its wretched, tumble-down little hovel.

“If we take Kátka,” said the peasant-woman; “we shall spend our last kopéks on her, and there will be nothing left wherewith to buy salt for our porridge.”

“But we will take her … and unsalted porridge,” replied the peasant-man, her husband.

Rothschild is a long way behind that peasant-man!

July, 1878.

Pushkin's farewell to the sea. 1877 painted by Repin

Translated from the Russian by Isabel F. Hapgood


< < < Two Four-Line Stanzas
What Shall I Think?… > > >

Russian Literature – Russian Poetry – Children’s books – Ivan Turgenev  – Poems – Obsolete Russian Words and their meaning

Copyright holders –  Public Domain

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