Page 811 - ANNA KARENINA

Anna Karenina

of the adherence of certain tribes to their ancient beliefs,
etc.— questions which, but for the convenient
intervention of the official machine, are not, and cannot
be solved for ages— received full, unhesitating solution.

And this solution was in favor of Alexey Alexandrovitch’s
contention. But Stremov, who had felt stung to the quick
at the last sitting, had, on the reception of the
commission’s report, resorted to tactics which Alexey
Alexandrovitch had not anticipated. Stremov, carrying
with him several members, went over to Alexey
Alexandrovitch’s side, and not contenting himself with
warmly defending the measure proposed by Karenin,
proposed other more extreme measures in the same
direction. These measures, still further exaggerated in
opposition to what was Alexey Alexandrovitch’s
fundamental idea, were passed by the commission, and
then the aim of Stremov’s tactics became apparent.
Carried to an extreme, the measures seemed at once to be
so absurd that the highest authorities, and public opinion,
and intellectual ladies, and the newspapers, all at the same
time fell foul of them, expressing their indignation both
with the measures and their nominal father, Alexey
Alexandrovitch. Stremov drew back, affecting to have
blindly followed Karenin, and to be astounded and

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