But I have talked enough. Now--good-bye, and may God be with you
here!"
"Good-bye," said Boris, and Fred repeated Ivan's wish in Russian. Ivan
seemed astonished.
"So your mother taught you her mother tongue!" he said. "Ah, but that is
splendid!"
Then he was off.
"Ivan might have been a great actor, I believe," said Boris. "See, isn't
he the German to the life as he goes, there? No wonder he can deceive
them so!"
"It's pretty dangerous work for him, though, I should think," said Fred.
"They wouldn't waste much time on him if they caught him, would they?"
"Only the time they needed for a drumhead court-martial. After that, if
he was lucky, he would be shot instead of being hung. But he is ready,
you see. It is his part. Oh, we Russians are all united now, if we never
were before! Germany has threatened us for years. She has set Austria
against us. This time we had to fight, and you will see that all Russia
will be behind the Czar. We learned our lessons against the Japanese.
That was not a popular war. It was not made by the people, but by a few
who forced the Czar's hand. Now we shall make the world see that though
Russia may be beaten, she has the power to rise from defeat.
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