| Show THE STORY Russian Teacher Given Post at Model School INSTALLMENT 0 o oBy By Oksana S. S Edited b by Isaac Isane Don LevIne Upon my arrival in Moscow I went straight from the railroad station to the office of the department of education for forthe forthe the province of Moscow where I Iwas Iwas was received with open arms by bythe bythe bythe I the veteran educator l He had b been en see seeking Icing an experienced experienced experienced instructor in m na natural tural sciences to fill a sudden vacancy y I was left to guess what had caused aused it but during the great purge even a shrug of the shoulders shoulders shoulders ders told a n familiar story Editors Editor's note nate In today's in installment installment in- in of her stor story Mrs Kas Kas- tells of her mission to Moscow to get a job teaching at ata a model school what she found there and a heart-breaking heart talo tale of the great purge My chief worry was how to deal with the inevitable question of my marital status I decided to answer answer answer an an- it with the simple statement statement statement state state- ment that I was a widow To my great relief there was no further probing by who was delighted delighted de de- de- de lighted with all my diplomas and documents as there were not many qualified natural science teachers to be found Youre just the one we need ho said We Ve have here in the district district district dis dis- dis- dis of Ruza quite a school a amodel amodel amodel model Institution with a natural history museum a meteorological station for children and a prized library of some volumes Owner Dispossessed I got the position The school located at some 50 miles west of Moscow occupied the former former for tor- mer estate of Dubrovina vina with a a. mansion having gilded mirrors murals and fine mosaic decora decora- The former owner had long long- since been dispossessed Included in the Ute institution attended by nearly students from the surrounding surrounding surrounding sur sur- rounding countryside was a two two- story brick brick- building by the the the liberal social welfare welfare welfare wel wel- fare body which under the Czar had built up a national network of ot schools and hospitals There was a aframe aframe aframe frame annex of Soviet construction construction construe construe- tion used as a dormitory Here indeed was an institution the Ute Sovi Soviet t government could with Sec Seo Page 4 Column 2 Russ Russian ian Teacher Given Post host at Model School Continued from One pride exhibit to distinguished foreign foreign for tor- eign visitors I was curious to learn fearn who had developed eloped i it IL But there was a strange hush whenever whenever whenever when when- ever that question was raised I had an n inkling when I discovered that the mother of my predecessor a sorrowful and lonely little old woman was living on the estate Soon enough the mystery was wa cleared up by the new director Anatoli a militant Communist of or the Central Asiatic I tribe who took me around the place He even spoke Russian with a thick accent The subject he taught in the school was the history of the Communist party Tour Fascinating Fascinating- With your rich experience you youcan youcan youcan can d dd big things here he observed observed observed ob ob- ob- ob served on the tour clinging to me all day and until late into the night I was fascinated by the specimens in the museum by the order in the herbarium and the the library li library library li- li which boasted a truly valuable val val- liable collection o of books on as as- Everything had its proper label felt my admiration and soon satisfied my curiosity He took some volumes off oU th the shelves and sarcastically read to tome tome tome me verses on religious themes theme which had been tucked away in certain volumes The author it appeared appeared ap ap- ap- ap was his predecessor Ivanov Ivanov Iva Iva- nov whose specialty was natural natura science and meteorology With relish cited this and other things as evidence of oC Ivanov's Ivanovs Ivanovs Ivanov's Ivanovs Ivanov's Iva Iva- nov's counterrevolutionary activity ity Well Ve 11 this enemy of the people peo peo- pie pIc had been well taken care of he intimated Ivanov had been packed or off to a pol polar r camp to serve as a meteorologist Own Grief Secret The old mother I ascertained later would go off to Moscow now and then trying to find out where per her son had been exiled and the term of his sentence She would conic come back empty My own grief had to be a deep secret No sign of ot life reached me from my myown myown myown own Demyan In Moscow I r ran into a woman from our town to o of whose tragedy brought my own home to me Natasha Klimenko was the mother of a former pupil o of mine whose father was a common common common com com- mon blacksmith was an outstandingly ly handsome and talented talented tal tal- tal- tal lad I can st still 11 see his classical classical classical classi classi- cal features his winsome smile and remember how v popular he was with the girls His father Cather was a nonpolitical proletarian The boy boyas was as his parents' parents joy joined the and decided to study medicine He attended the therapy institute graduated and was appointed to the city hospital of He married and by 1936 was the thc father of a child At t the end of oC that year there was an epidemic o of scarlet fever ever everand and diphtheria in the region Several children of Communist Communist Communist Com Com- officials died in the hospi hospi- tal The young doctor was seized and was accused of having ing had with contact contact with wreckers He vanished Haunted Bureaus His mother after taking taking- in her herons heron's herson's herson's sons son's young wife and child would not give sive up tr trying Ing to rescue her She would scrape up her last savings and come to Moscow bringing bacon butter or other precious produce to officials in the various departments she haunted in search arch of ot Information about her son They would take her gifts pass her from one bureau to another another another an an- other make promises to conduct I an inquiry an and tell her to come back She would return with more I offerings offering all the time desperately praying that one would take pity on her and give her some definite new news But It was all In vain and finally even the mother had to give up her quest Eight years ears later before my departure departure departure de de- de- de from Moscow for or the United States I ran Into Natasha again and asked her I if she ever found out what had happened to Yes she answered with resi nation A letter came through recently He is in a camp some some- where at the worlds world's edge he married married married mar mar- ried there and has has' four Cour children After a pause she added And do you know what they told my law in Go and get married yourself Abandoned Hope This was no surprise to me The TheN TheN TheN N K V D authorities in their syn- syn Icbm did not even bother to advise advise advise ad ad- vise the wives whom they robbed of ot their husbands to get a divorce To the Soviet government those seized in the great purge were like persons who had departed from this world I found this out early and abandoned all hope o of ever seeing Demyan again But I did think that the hurricane hurricane hurricane hurri hurri- cane was behind me and that nothing nothing nothing noth noth- ing ing- ingmore more could happen to us So 1 brought Oleg from and made a new home In the thc former quarters of oC my predecessor Ivanov Iva Iva- nov 1 I planned to build a secure future for my boy Little did 1 dream that the long IonS vindictive arm of ot the terror which had struck down my husband would reach out for tor my son Continued Tomorrow Copyright 1918 King Features Syndicate |
