Nikolaev Vladimir Efimych - the character of the story "Duel" by AI Kuprin, lieutenant, husband of Shurochka. Each officer in the story is endowed with a vivid personality and personal characteristic. If Osadchy is the embodiment of rudeness and inhumanity, Svetovidov is a wit and a sharper, Bek-Agamalov is a savage, then Nikolaev is a mediocre lieutenant with dull eyes and bullish stubbornness. This is the third time he takes the academy exam, and each time he fails. His wife, Alexandra Petrovna, she is Shurochka, is trying in every possible way to help him with admission, as she dreams of breaking out of the provincial garrison to the capital. She herself learned the exam program long ago, but Volodya couldn't do it.
He has an ambivalent attitude to Second Lieutenant Romashov. On the one hand, he does not object to his evening visits, on the other, he is unhappy with Romashov's increased attention to Shurochka. The relationship between these two officers completely went wrong after Nikolaev began to receive anonymous letters. At one of the Saturday officers 'meetings, they finally quarreled, and the officers' court ruled that the conflict can only be resolved by a duel. Shurochka was seriously worried about the state of affairs and came to ask Romashov not to kill her husband, because she had devoted so many years to his career. In return, she promised to warn Nikolayev not to kill Romochka either. At the end of the story, Romashov nevertheless died at the hands of Nikolaev.
Duel
The story is a reality.
The sun was going down. Filka, prodding the horses, looked at the narrow strip of unmown meadow grass.
- Today it is necessary to finish the mowing, - he reasoned in an adult way, - and tomorrow to move closer to the farm. In a day, the mown grass will dry up, and you can rake the hay. Eh! - he sighed, - women with a "green fire" in the garden brigade are at war, and time must not be wasted, the hay will dry out. Milk is on the cow's tongue. Correctly the mother says: "What you drown, so you burst."
He wearily reached for the soldier's flask, which was strapped to the metal seat of the mower, rocked it ...
-Damn it! The water is over, there is no time here anyway, you have to stomp on the water.
The teenager pulled on the reins. The chirping of the mower fell silent. There was silence. My ears were ringing. The chirping of birds, the chirping of cicadas, and the snorting of horses somehow suddenly merged into this ringing silence. And from the gully, densely overgrown with reeds, came the croaking of frogs. Philip knew that with the onset of dusk, the frogs would begin their concert, which would thunder more heavily when the darkness fell on the ground, and would announce the entire beam with ringing frog choruses.
The boy jumped to the ground. I felt a slight tingling sensation in my stiff legs and an unpleasant tremor, as if the earth was shaking. He stood there, listening to all this cacophony, and with an uncertain gait approached the horses. He freed them from the bit, patted their backs, shuddering from the pressing gnats, and said carefully:
-Relax.
He unfastened his flask and walked across the mown meadow to the reeds. They stretched like a green wall and went far, far along a small rivulet, occasionally retreating from the coast and forming quiet reaches. Philip loved to plunge into the clean coolness of the river water early in the morning with the farm children, reflecting the blueness of the sky. For this, they chose such quiet backwaters. But now there was no time for boyish fun.
Filka went down the cliff, washed out by floods, and walked along the dense grass, skirting the spreading dope bushes, and razor-sharp sedges, to a path barely visible in the reeds. She ran into the depths, wagging between the tender shoots of slender reeds and last year's dead wood. Somewhere nearby, the squeak of a reed was heard, and it seemed that just open this thicket of stems and you would see a small brisk birdie.
The trail led to a small island. Spreading willow grew here. Philip knew this place for a long time. Before the war, his father took him hunting with him.
At the foot of this well-worn willow, they even then dug a hole and surrounded it with a stone. Here my father loved to relax. And, perhaps, nowhere else was this water cleaner and colder.
The reeds became less frequent, and Philip saw the dug, torn soil. The boy, perplexed, stopped. Thoughts swirled in his mind: “Who could turn the soil around like this? Pigs? But how can they get on this island? " He listened. From the many-voiced noise of the inhabitants of these reeds, he caught a grunt that came from the direction of the willow. Curiosity overcame the shock, and he began to sneak up to the source of such familiar sounds. In the shade of an old tree, sprawling, a huge pig was grunting peacefully.
-Blimey! - Philip almost shouted, - enough for the whole farm!
But, knowing the temper of stray animals or, as they were now called "ownerless", he, freezing and hardly breathing, began to back away. Philip had no doubt that only the "ownerless" could get so far from the farm.
When the Nazis attacked, the animals were evacuated. They were driven in herds past their farm to the rear. The enemy often bombed the retreating Soviet troops. Frightened by howling and exploding bombs, the animals scattered across the steppes, wandering into reeds, thickets and gullies. They gradually ran wild. The harmless animal woke up bestial instincts.
Philip took a pitchfork from the chaise, unfastened the reins from the horses and ran back to the island. On the way, he made a lasso. Carefully, trying not to rustle, he began to sneak up on the animal. The wind, short in one gust, ran over the reeds, creaked a broken willow branch as it went, and died down. Philip froze. An old, gnarled, hollow tree was nearby, and he did not want to break the measured grunt in advance.
- Just not to frighten, just not to frighten, - flashed through the excited brain.
He tightened his grip on the pitchfork handle, to the tip of which he fastened a loop. With a dying breath, he leaned against a tree. He tied one end of the reins to a sturdy bitch and began to loop under the pig's head and foreleg. The animal, sensing danger, jumped up. Taking advantage of the moment, Philip swept the noose and backed away. The pig jumped, frightened, and the reins were taut. The loop, hitting between the front and hind legs, trailed tightly around the body.
-Yeah! Gotcha! he shouted, boyishly.
Stretching, the reins knocked the pig to one side, but it deftly jumped to its feet, jerked and again fell on its side. She screeched wildly, torn, fell, but jumped up again, trying to free herself. And, apparently, the tiredness became quiet. She lowered her head, her long ears, almost covering her small eyes, swaying as she awkwardly looked around the clearing. The lower jaw dropped, exposing rather powerful fangs, small, bloodshot eyes, stared at Philip. After standing, she suddenly rushed at the teenager. The boy deftly hit her with a pitchfork on the fat body and jumped to the side, the reins pulled tight, the front legs gave way, and she again crashed to the ground, but immediately jumped up.
-Wow, you are my beauty, you scared, oh, how scared, you fool, - holding a pitchfork at the ready, Philip began to slowly approach the "Ownerless". She, head down, backed away.
- So we agreed, so long ago, tired, jumped, - chasing her, the boy said. You will go, you will go, my dear, you will not go anywhere, and you are not so scary.
The pig retreated. When he was level with the tree, Philip untied the reins and began to push the "Ownerless" to the path with the pitchfork. The pig reluctantly, but retreating, walked where the boy was directing it, and he drove it to the chaise. Here he tied the reins, harnessed the horses to the chaise, and slowly led the strange procession by the bridle towards the farm.
Philip returned to the farm after dark. Tired by the long walk, the pig barely moved its legs. The brothers and sister who ran out of the dugout made a noise:
- Mom, mom, Ilka little pig, - shouted the smallest.
Anna, the mother of these little ones, came out of the dugout. She grabbed the boy, hugged him to her chest.
-What are you doing, Nikolka, made a noise, - kissing the boy, Anna said, heading to the elder.
- Where are you late?
-Yes, I brought the farm.
-A stray again?
- I caught it on the island.
He had already boldly dealt with the feral animal. He walked up to the pig in a businesslike manner, scratching it, saying:
-Tired, was today, well, nothing until the weekend sit on the chain, and then it will be seen. - And, already addressing the kids, he added sternly, - And you look at me, do not meddle with her, the beast - he is the beast.
Businesslike, as it happened, the father did, he fastened the chain, which he passed under the belly of the animal, took the stake. He took the pig to a green lawn near the house and drove a stake into the ground. He fixed the reins on the horses again, took Nikolka from his mother and said:
- We, mom, will drive the horses away. We'll take a ride at the same time, ”Philip ordered in a businesslike manner, putting the younger in the chaise on fresh hay. There was no need to invite Peter and Liza, they were already sitting in the chaise. “Let's go,” he said, tugging at the reins. - We will quickly, mom, just give the horses to the horses, let them have some food, otherwise tomorrow we have to leave early, there is a little left to finish the mowing.
-Do not linger, dinner will cool down, - already after her mother shouted.
The week was drawing to a close. The pig was not yet accustomed to people and, when they approached, opened its mouth threateningly. Philip left early in the day for the field. Anna went to the farm to milk the cows. A small, slender, but always mobile woman had time for everything; milk the cows, feed the children, clean up the house. In addition to her children, she, together with grandmother Glasha, looked after all the children of the farm. On these July days, all the inhabitants of the farm were already in the field from early morning. Mainly women and teenagers worked, but old men, men fought.
Good news came from the front. Our troops went on the offensive and are now liberating one city after another. Somewhere out there, Anna's husband is also at war. She has not received a single word from her husband in recent months. Furtively, Anna brushed away a tear from her weary eyes, and at night she often cried so that the children would not see: “You cannot help grief with tears,” she said.
On this clear, sunny day, having managed the lunch milking on the farm, Anna fussed around the hot stove, preparing dinner for the children. They, under the supervision of Baba Glasha, played not far from the rivulet that ran through their farm and divided it by sex.
Weary in the midday heat, the old woman settled down in the shade under a briar bush. From here she could clearly see how the children were frolicking around the huge hole left by the explosion of an aerial bomb. At a distance, on a hillock, there was a barn, half-destroyed by shells, around it lush greenery grew. This is where Philip brought his booty. He drove a rather large rod into the ground, having passed it first into the link of the chain so that the pig grazed on the fresh juicy grass. The pig, having eaten, buried itself in the cool ground and dozed.
The children were playing hide and seek. At the bottom of the funnel, covering her face with her hands, lay Nikolka's older sister Liza. She counted loudly:
-One, two, three, four, five. Those who did not hide, I am not to blame.
All the players scattered in different directions to hide. Two guys took refuge in the ruins of a barn. The pig felt strangers, stood up lazily, grunting, greedily sucked in air through its nostrils.
Having calculated, as agreed, twice, Lisa got out of the pit. Nikolka hid right there. The sister immediately noticed the fair-haired head protruding from the breastwork of the funnel, but walked past, pretending not to notice her brother. Nikolka jumped up, ran, stumbled and tumbled to the bottom of the funnel. He hurt himself, but, not noticing the pain, he shouted joyfully, clapping his small hand on the ground compacted in one place.
-Knock, knock, for itself! For myself!
Liza walked quite far from the crater, and suddenly one of the guys hiding in the ruins of the shed rushed headlong towards the pit. The pig rushed after the runner. She tore at the chain with such force that the rod almost jumped out of the ground. Liza got ahead of the runner, literally, slipped into the hole and was the first to touch the rammed place with her hand, shouting:
-Knock, knock Petya! Knock, knock, Petya!
- Hey, Petka, you couldn’t do it for yourself, - Nikolka reproached his brother, - but I will both run, and run away.
-You are Kolya, you are the fastest, - Petro said, breathing heavily. He knew that now he would have to squint, in the next round he would look for his hiding playmates.
Liza, having caught the first, now boldly began to move further and further from the pit, looking for the rest. Another boy escaped from the ruins of the barn and, headlong, rushed to the pit. He did not run in, but literally slid off on his ass, which delighted Nikolka. He clapped his hands and, laughing, shouted without uttering a word.
-Moyades, mydes Vitka, the payy had time.
One of the children shouted with horror in his voice: - Pig! Pig!
She, rattling with a chain, rolled the funnels over the parapet. The kids poured out of the hole like peas. Nikolka rushed after him. His fair-haired head had already appeared above the parapet, but the edge of the pit under his feet was crumbling, and he slid back. He did not roar, but with all his childish consciousness he understood the impending danger and tried with all his might to get out of the hole into which a huge pig had slipped.
She sniffed the soil trampled by the children, sniffed at it, picking it once more - another, and rushed after the child. Nikolka at that time was crossing the parapet. The pig climbed out of the hole and rushed after the fleeing one. Despite the huge carcass, the pig rather briskly rushed after the baby. Nikolka, hearing the ringing of the chain, looked around. The pig was almost there, the baby stumbled from fear and fell. A huge carcass from dispersal swept through a small slender body.
A child's cry echoed far away. Grandma Glasha, who was dozing off, jumped up. Looking around in bewilderment, she could not understand what was the matter, and when she figured it out, she rushed to the rescue of the child. Nikolka jumped up, trying to run, but was cut by a chain and fell to the ground again. The pig stopped, returned to the prostrate calf, nodded at it and grabbed the slender baby breast with its teeth.
The grandmother who came to the rescue rushed to the rescue of the child. But the pig, smelling the blood, bared its bloody fangs, rushed to meet. The grandmother and the emboldened children screamed, ran into the pig, but each time they scattered in horror.
Anna cut a cabbage with a large knife. She decided to cook borscht for dinner. The noise of the street did not reach her ears, but her mother's heart instinctively felt some
danger. She went out into the street. There, by the stream, not far from the bomb crater, she saw children scurrying about, a grandmother yelling and waving her hands. Anna did not yet understand what had happened, but she was already running to the children. Out of breath, she burst into the crowd and for a moment was numb.
A piercing, heartbreaking cry from his mother broke the silence for a moment. Her eyes widened, she rushed to her son, convulsively writhing on the ground next to the open mouth of the beast. The pig darted towards her. Little slender Anna dodged, this saved her from a direct blow of fangs. In her hands Anna was gripping a kitchen knife with which she had just chopped cabbage. The pig, having missed, screeched wildly, and, despite its huge carcass, spun so dexterously that Anna barely had time to dodge. She saw how the chain, like a snake, crawled over the body of her son. The bloody little body fluttered. A sharp pain shot through her mother's heart. The brain worked feverishly. At this moment, she did not think about the danger that threatened her herself. She feverishly figured out how to be able to take this vile creature away from the child's body.
In the next moment, the pig again rushed to her side. Anna dodged and ran a little. The maddened animal rushed towards her, Anna, as if stumbling, ran back to the side. The children, along with their grandmother Glasha, amazed by this terrible sight, yelled and shouted to her:
- Save yourself! Save yourself!
But Anna did not save herself, she again rushed to the pig and immediately recoiled back. She, furious, darted after her. Anna ran, stumbled and fell. There was a loud, piercing cry of children. Baba Glasha covered her face with her hands. She already imagined the trampled, torn apart Anna and helplessly settled down. But Anna did not stumble, she deliberately fell, rolling to the side, letting go of the pig, like a torpedo rushing on its heels. In an instant, the chain, crawling behind the pig, was in her hands. With all her small body, Anna seemed to have grown into the ground. A violent jerk knocked her over, but tensioned chain, hooked the pig's hind legs, and it fell to the ground. Fractions of a second and both on my feet. The beastly sparkling, bloodshot eyes of the pig and the eyes of the mother, exhausted by the terrible vision, met. Paw-eared, recollecting herself, shook her head and rushed at the woman. Anna, dodging, stepped aside, and finding herself
from the side of the pig, clutching her huge ears. She screamed, jumped, shook her head, trying to throw off this not heavy burden. But Anna seemed to be attached to this fat, hateful carcass. Everything was silent. Only the clinking of the chain and the yelling of the "lop-eared" broke the silence.
The struggle lasted a long time, but, having contrived, Anna plunged a knife into the neck of the brutal creature. A wild squeal of a pig echoed around. She darted to the side with incredible force, wheezed, jumped up, shaking off the fragile woman. Anna could not resist and flew far to the side.
The pig, in spite of the clumsiness, as the panther rushed to its prey, but, entangled in the chains, fell. Anna, exhausted in an unequal fight, got up, she did not jump, but rather fell on the fat carcass and managed to inflict several more stabs in the neck of the creature entangled in the chain. With a kick, the pig tore apart her skirt and, leaving a bloody mark on Anna's thigh, threw it aside. Anna at that moment did not feel pain, she again rushed to the lying and wriggling carcass. And no longer remembering herself, she stabbed and stabbed her with a knife until she died down.
Anna got up and staggered towards the bloody little body of the child. Her dress was tattered. The exposed parts of the body gaped with crimson abrasions, bleeding in many places. She knelt down, carefully lifted the lifeless body of her son, and, holding it in her outstretched arms, went to her dugout. Her blond hair turned white. Tears rolled uncontrollably down her slender, sunken cheeks. She walked, looking somewhere ahead.
Her bitten lips whispered softly:
-Sorry, forgive my dear, I didn’t save you ...
Who were these words for? Either Nikolka, lying lifeless in her arms, or a front-line soldier-husband.
Upon learning of what had happened, Philip somehow grew haggard and gloomy. He walked heartbroken, cursing the war and himself for bringing and not killing this beast.
A few days later, Nikolka woke up. As if in a fog, he saw the face of his mother bending over him. When the son opened his eyes, Anna smiled, and tears rolled down her cheeks. Barely audible the boy whispered:
-Don't get drunk, mom ...
Anna, wiping away the uncontrollably flowing tears, smiling, and whispered in response:
- Nothing, nothing son, tears of joy that you are alive. You are strong for me. Soon the folder will beat the Nazis and return home, and you will tell him: "This is how strong I am, how I grew up!"
Duel. Issue 2
The collection opens with the story "Under the Hooves of a Centaur", which tells about the early days and prehistory of the revolt of the fascist ultras in Chile. The story "Missing in Action" is dedicated to Soviet sailors and takes place during the Great Patriotic War. The hero of A. Golubev's story "Seal" is the Criminal Investigation Officer Voronov.
The book contains five stories by V. Osipov, B. Vorobyov, E. Markin, E. Khrutsky, M. Baryshev.
TALK
Nikolay AGAYANTS, Valentin MASHKIN
UNDER THE HOOF OF CENTAUR
Chilean Democrats and Patriots are dedicated to this book by the authors
SANTIAGO. PRESIDENT SALVADOR ALIENDE WILL ANNOUNCEMENT TODAY OF AN IMPORTANT GOVERNMENT PLAN FOR POLITICAL RECOVERY IN THIS TROUBLE LATIN AMERICAN REPUBLIC. PLAN DETAILS UNKNOWN YET.
Frank gave a telegram to the battle:
Hurry up, kid! Send it at the press rate.
He glanced at the clock at the head of the bed. A quarter past one. Damn it, it's already 9/11. Nothing, in the daytime edition of the newspaper the message is still in time.
He is tired.
From. the hustle and bustle of the last weeks.
From my profession.
From myself.
He was tired and, as sometimes happens, that is why he could not sleep for a long time. Tossing and turning from side to side. Smoked. And in the end he took a sleeping pill. Shortly before dawn, through a viscous half-nap, he fancied - or didn’t he? - that in the rustle of the spring rain, the grinding and clanking of caterpillars burst.
The phone rang:
Good morning, senor. You asked to call at eight o'clock. “At the American-owned Carrera Hilton, all the employees were superbly well-trained and punctual.
Thank you, senorita, - thanked Frank.
I ordered breakfast in my room. While they bring him, he will have time to take a shower and shave.
The cold water cheered me up a bit. Trimming his sleek beard, Frank winked quite calmly at his own reflection in the mirror. You're not that old, Francis O'Toole, an experienced reporter for several reputable newspapers and magazines! And female attention is not bypassed. Only forty-three, after all!
The waiter rolled a table into the room: the ice in a glass of juice clinked softly. He removed the lid from the silver platter on which rested a sumptuous fried egg, framed by slices of ruddy bacon. He poured coffee into a cup and left, thanking him with a slight bow for the generous tip of today: a pack of Chesterfield.
But breakfast, started slowly and with pleasure, was not completed. Window panes rattled. Frank went out onto the balcony. Low over the Constitution Square, over the presidential palace "La Moneda", a flight of fighter-bombers with the insignia of the Chilean Air Force roared with a roar. Hawker Hunters, he noted mechanically to himself, were the kind that had just been bought in England. - And only then a guess flashed: - Has it really begun?
O'Toole returned to the room. Hastily switched on the receiver. Agriculture, the opposition station, broadcast a bravura march. Frank was about to grab the tuning knob to catch another program, but then the music stopped and the announcer announced:
"Attention attention! We repeat the message from Valparaiso. In this city this morning, patriotic soldiers and Marine Corps officers took power into their own hands. The Star of Freedom is rising over our long-suffering homeland again! "
And again the triumphant, jubilant sounds of the military band. The arrow has crept further up the scale. Some radio stations were silent for some reason. And suddenly - muffled by the crackle and rustle of interference - the well-known voice of Salvador Allende made its way into the room:
“... In Valparaiso, a mutiny has been raised in the navy. Combat aircraft circling over the presidential palace. The possibility is not excluded that we will be fired upon ... The working people must stand up, arms in hand, to defend their government! "
The interference has increased. Some words became barely audible:
“... Irresponsible elements demand my resignation. I declare that I will not leave my post and until my last breath I will defend the power given by the people ... In the face of the whole country, I denounce the betrayal of those military men who violated the oath ... "
The president's speech was cut short. At the same time, the echoes of a distant explosion echoed through the open balcony door. Another followed. Aircraft bombed relay towers on the outskirts of Santiago. But Frank O'Toole finds out about this much later. In the meantime, taking a reporter's wardrobe trunk with a voice recorder and a camera, he went to the elevator. Hurry to the city!
Downstairs, in the lobby, the hotel's guests and employees were thronging. Their alarming mood was strikingly inconsistent with the complacent sophistication of the hall with its winter garden, where rare birds chirped in cages, with abstract paintings on the walls and wooden sculptures, with exotic fish in aquariums.
At the wide glass doors, Frank ran into his fellow journalists. There were Frenchman Marcel Riveau from the Aoror, the nimble Spaniard Fernando Cruz, who worked for the EFE agency, two Englishmen from the BBC, several Americans and his compatriot, the diplomatic columnist for the newspaper La Presse, Jacques Lespert-Medoc.
Hi Frank! Where is it taking you?
Hi Jacques. To the La Moneda palace, of course ...
Can't you see these? Lesper-Medoc nodded irritably towards the soldiers at the entrance to the Carrera Hilton. The sun shone coldly on the bayonets of the carbines.
So a curfew has been imposed?
De facto, if you want ...
It is imperative, by all means, to get out of here. And what if? .. Without sharing the plan that suddenly emerged, Frank ran down the stairs to the underground garage. But there, too, there were sentries in gloomy gray-green uniforms of the Prussian model.
Back! The bayonet almost touched O'Toole's chest.
What's going on here, Sergeant? - I heard a commanding voice from the depths of the garage. Maneuvering between the cars, a short, obese officer approached them.
“It's Colonel Castellano! That's really lucky, so lucky! Looks like I was really born with a silver spoon in my mouth, O'Toole thought.
In April of this year, President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych approved the regulation on the State Inspection of Agriculture of Ukraine (Gosselkhozinspektsiya). The corresponding Decree of the President of Ukraine was published on the official website of the head of state. According to this Decree, the State Agricultural Inspection of Ukraine has now become the central body of executive power, the activities of which are directed and coordinated by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine through the Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine.
In addition, the State Agricultural Inspection is included in the system of executive authorities and ensures the implementation of state policy in the field of supervision (control) in the agro-industrial complex.
Nikolai Sergeevich Poedinok was appointed head of the new department.
So, according to some experts in the domestic alcohol industry, the State Agricultural Inspectorate should become the body that has been talked about so much on the wine market - it will carry out all inspections of viticulture and wine-making enterprises. True, earlier winemakers were patiently awaiting the appearance of the State Inspection for Winemaking and Viticulture (State Wine Inspection) - a body that was provided for by the Law "On Grapes and Grape Wine". Well, the Inspection has appeared. On a larger scale and with a different name.
The head of the State Inspection of Agriculture of Ukraine Mykola Poedinok told the industry publication "Excise" about the priorities in work, goals and objectives, the significance of a new structure for the alcohol market of Ukraine:
"Excise": Why was the State Agricultural Inspectorate created?
Nikolay Duel: In order to fulfill the norms of the Law of Ukraine dated 01.07.2010 No. 2399 "On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine" On the Basic Principles of State Supervision (Control) in the Sphere of Economic Activity ", which provides for the introduction of a single supervisory (control) body in the system of ministries. In the agro-industrial complex, such a state body is the State Inspection of Agriculture of Ukraine.
The inspectorate is created with the aim of ensuring that a Ukrainian citizen ultimately consumes a product that a priori cannot harm health, and domestic manufacturers of a quality product could, in cooperation with the state, improve the quality of goods by clearing the market from unscrupulous manufacturers. As for the immediate front of work and the sphere of responsibility of the State Inspectorate for Agriculture, its powers will apply to the entire process of agricultural production, starting from the land on which it is grown (its use), including all stages of the cultivation process, production of the final product, and directly until the finished product is packaged.
АZ: Is it just a project today or a real organization?
N.P .: This is an operating state organization created by the Decree of the President of Ukraine dated 09.12.2O1O, No. 1085 "On Optimization of the System of Central Executive Bodies" and registered with state bodies. Today, the draft regulation on the State Agricultural Inspection is being approved by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, and after the signing of the regulation by the President of Ukraine, the State Agricultural Inspection will begin full-fledged activity in accordance with its jurisdictional powers.
АZ: What functions are assigned to the State Inspectorate?
N.P .: The main tasks of the State Inspectorate for Agriculture should include the implementation of state policy in the field of state control in the agro-industrial complex of Ukraine for: use and protection of land of all categories and forms of ownership; seed production; quality and safety of agricultural products; compliance with biological and genetic safety measures for agricultural plants; safety of seeds and seed material, grain and products of its processing; soil fertility; technical condition of tractors, self-propelled chassis, self-propelled agricultural, road-building and reclamation machines, trailed and mounted agricultural equipment, implements, agricultural machinery, and other mechanisms; labor protection in the agricultural sector, the introduction of measures aimed at the production of radiologically safe agricultural products, control of the content of radionuclides in it, as well as compliance with the rules for the production of wine products.
In addition, in the course of our work, we will submit for the Minister's consideration proposals on the formation of state policy in the above-mentioned areas of the agro-industrial complex and production, processing of agricultural products.
AZ: Are issues related to winemaking and viticulture included in the scope of the inspection?
N.P .: Yes, as I have already noted, this is one of the main tasks in the activities of the inspection. We will control the entire process of production of wine products, from the production of seedlings, planting and caring for them in the vineyard, the production of wine materials at primary winemaking enterprises to the production of fortified, dry wines (both still and sparkling), cognac spirits, cognacs, brandy and other alcoholic beverages of grape origin. In addition, the inspectorate will organize and exercise control and supervision in terms of compliance with the rules for the production of wine products. It is on supervision and control over high-quality and professional cultivation of grapes in vineyards, on the production of wines and other wine-making products. The inspectorate will carefully monitor compliance with state standards and requirements that are in force today in the production, sale, export and import of products in the field of viticulture and winemaking.
AZ: In Ukraine, the question of creating a state inspection for winemaking and viticulture has been raised more than once, but it was never created. Will your inspection be able to become the regulator and guarantor of quality that the market is waiting for?
N.P .: The issue of creating an authoritative professional inspection for viticulture and winemaking has been discussed for over 10 years. Earlier this issue was raised by the Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine Mykola Prysyazhnyuk. However, to come to a consensus before today failed. Today we are working to ensure that this issue is finally approved within the framework of the State Agricultural Inspectorate. It is planned to create several expert laboratories in the most developed wine-growing regions of the country - Odessa, Crimean, Transcarpathian. The central laboratory will be located, as now, in Kiev. I want to note that the laboratories will install the latest equipment, in which only professionals will work. These "control points" will be able to analyze wine products by 18-21 parameters, and not by 3-5, as it is now, which will make it possible to more closely monitor the quality of wine products at all stages. Indeed, by analyzing, for example, grapes, it is possible to determine whether permitted protection means were used during its cultivation, what substances they were, whether they were certified in Ukraine, whether they have negative consequences for the health of consumers. In wine-making products, we will be able to determine the presence of hazardous or non-technological impurities, dyes, stabilizers. It will also affect the use of seedlings, such as cuttings, which may be modified or belong to unpromising grape varieties. All this will allow us to identify and identify low-quality products even before they reach store shelves, and prevent their further production.
АZ: Earlier, some large domestic manufacturers have already raised the issue of creating a reputable laboratory, but not under the patronage of the state. What accreditation will the laboratories be?
N.P .: We have consulted with a number of large Ukrainian manufacturers. As a result of these meetings, our interlocutors expressed a desire to participate in the creation of such laboratories, sharing their knowledge and experience. They want to help the state with all their might and are ready to provide all possible assistance in the creation of laboratories. A consensus has been found here, since for the majority of domestic producers of high-quality wine products, the issue of combating counterfeit is very acute, which significantly affects both the image of domestic winemaking and damages the health of citizens. With regard to accreditation, the central laboratory is accredited and has international certificates from world and European organizations, and the laboratories created will also be accredited.
АZ: In the list of inspection tasks, there is a clause that indicates the functions of an arbitrator in disputes between subjects of the agricultural market regarding product quality. What powers does the inspectorate have in this matter?
N.P .: Such a function is assumed. After all, the state should act as an arbiter in controversial issues? I have been working in the grain market for many years, where controversy arose quite often. For example, a producer has grown grain, transferred it for storage to an elevator. At some point, he may have questions about the characteristics and indicators of his products, which the custodian provided to him. A specialist inspector who is an employee of the State Inspectorate for Agriculture will be able to resolve such a dispute. As an arbiter, he will have sufficient authority to deliver a verdict that will be final, based on authoritative laboratory research. Naturally, it may also happen that the problem turns into the plane of litigation, and then it is definitely impossible to do without experts. The inspectorate will definitely perform the functions of arbitration.
AZ: Will the inspection be carried out to check the wine on store shelves (points of sale)?
N.P .: Checking products on store shelves is the duty of Derzhspozhivstandart. And the State Agricultural Inspectorate will only control the stages of wine production. The responsibility of the inspection ends at the ripening stage of the grapes and the bottling of the wine.
AZ: There is an opinion among experts of the alcohol market in Ukraine that the consumer should choose and “cleanse” the market from a low-quality product. What is your opinion, as the head of the State Agricultural Inspection of the country, on this matter?
N.P .: The consumer is not always able to independently determine the quality and safety of products, and producing quality products is the direct responsibility of the manufacturer. In the case of the presence of state control, the requirements for the production of products become more controllable.
AZ: Will you exercise control over imported alcoholic beverages imported into Ukraine?
N.P .: Yes, together with Derzhspozhivstandart of Ukraine. Since the conscientiousness of some foreign producers regarding the quality of wine products, especially from neighboring countries, can be questioned. To assess the quality of such products, the State Agricultural Inspection with laboratories is needed.
On July 12, a conference with Mr. Poedinok took place on the Internet portal of the same name "Excise". The topic was devoted exclusively to issues and problems of domestic winemaking:
Good afternoon, Nikolai! I would like to ask, to begin with, does your structure have the authority to control winemaking and viticulture? Second: You probably read the comments to the article in the "Wine" section. What do you think should be done with pseudovinas from pomace and alcohol with water? Do you plan to fight this dirty trick? How?
knowing
Kiev
06.07.2011 13:57
Nikolay Duel:
First of all, I want to tell you about the power supply, but I want to say in a different way that the State Inspection of the Ukrainian State Inspectorate is more important to the provisions, as approved by the Decree of the President of Ukraine dated April 13, 2011 No. 459/2011. In the form of new approvals, the central body of the viconau power, which prevents the implementation of the state policy in the sphere of visibility (control) in the agroindustrial complex, in that number of products, in part And even more precisely, it is due to the management of vineyards and grapes, wines and other products of wine making, to the state standards and vimog to wine production, implementation, export and import of commercial products in the production of wine , cognacs of Ukraine and brands.
Well, if you are afraid of "pseudo", then I may mean that it is a ganeful manifestation in the state with such a great wine-making potential, like Ukraine. In addition, there is a real threat to the image of Ukrainian winemaking on the market, and it is not legitimate to deceive people who buy products in stores, the word “wine” is written on the etiquette of what the product is written, and it’s wrong to blame. you can help your health.
To that, as I have already shown, with a tsim ganebny apparition, it is necessary to fight and win the winery.
Shanovniy Mykola Sergiyovich, I congratulate you on your appointment on such a temple. Rozkazhіt, be affection about svіy professional dosvіd. De vie people, your education, admission of robots at virobnistva, nautsi, who recommending you for qiu posadu (are you not Donetsk?), Who will your team control viticulture, gardening and wine-making (їkh fakh ta dosvіd)? Will you be able to drive great virobniks, who are malikh? How will you be able to survive before we have more than 70% of wine materials and 90% of cognac spirits of total consumption to be imported without control from the side of the state? As you are referred to the laboratory as ordered by Pan Agafonov M.F. - what is it about "actively assessing the winemaking?" Who is your boss? Can I come before you at the reception, or by phone directly - without a secretary?
Volodymyr
Kiev
07.07.2011 09:12
Nikolay Duel:
Dyakuyu, Volodymyra, for the power supply. Razpovіm about his work path, which I rode in Іlіchіvsky district, m. Odessa, at the Sevastopol combine of hlіboproductіv, de proyshov wіth way from the aparator of the arboriculture, to the head of the shop.
Also, having borrowed a kernel plant in the DP DAK "Khlib Ukraine" and in. Before speaking, I graduated from the Odessa Technological Institute of Kharchovo Industrialism. Lomonosov, to that, like Vy rosumite, nutrition of products of the Silskoy government is not new for me. Besides, I am a larger part of my life, I have lived in our own state, one of the most advanced galuzei є the winemaking itself. That in the food of wine-growing and viticulture of knowledge is even better.
One hundred percent of your power supply, I can say that the State Department of State Inspection has transferred podrozdil, the main function of which will be control over the rules for keeping vineyards and wine production. This structural podrozdili will have a great success in viticulture and viticulture. At the same time, when I wanted bi vidmitity, Kadri found the best food in the wine industry. Infected є a number of primary mortgages, which are ready for a given right. That is why I think for rakhunok to the advice of the older generation and the young, it is possible to formulate the qualifications and the general team. But if you have to pay a salary, then the salary will not be taken from the salary paid by the state services in the absence of the experience of the robot and the qualification of the special legislation.
One of the main functions of the State Department of State Inspection in the direct line of winemaking is the fight against counterfeit products in our country. Along with the Sovereign Mitny Service of Ukraine, we have broken up a number of entries, which would change the number of necessary wines to Ukraine, wine materials, and cognac spirits, which, in addition, could help others.
The Central Laboratory of Wine Industry has already been ordered to us. A number of thermal nutrition is displayed at once, and if you look at some of the laboratories, you will be able to improve it effectively.
Also, I can say that the State Department of State Inspection of Ukraine will seize the interest of all wine products, in the absence of any factors.
Besides, I am waiting for the test before the decision. I will be radiant with dermal products, who will benefit from the nutrition of the reduced quality of wine-growing products, viticulture and wine-growing and agricultural products in general. I, too, ready to listen to the specific propositions of our robots.
Good day! This Vladimir is an egoist, he asked all the questions !!)) But he left one. What have you already done for Ukrainian winemaking today, specifically? thanks
Nikolay
Kiev
07.07.2011 12:33
Nikolay Duel:
Dyakuyu. State Department of State Inspection, as a new establishment by the central body of the viconavcha power, a number of Laws of Ukraine have been worked out for the current year and have been prepared and filed before them. Zokrema, tse such Laws of Ukraine, yak "About grapes and grape wine", "About viluchennya s obigu, recycling, disposal, business, for more "," About the zakist of the rights of the survivors "and" About the safety and quality of food products. "
We have also proponated a number of changes before the Resolutions of the Cabinet of the Ministries of Ukraine, in which it is necessary to control the control over the grapes, wines and other products of the wine industry. In addition, I value, an effective result can be deprived for the clever spivpratsi of all organs of power. It is also gratifying to be able to do so with the Sovereign Mitnoy Service of Ukraine in the food supplying the hope for the territory of our state of unpalatable wine and counterfeit cognac alcohol.
I knew in the mines of the Apk one Pan Nikityuk A, who destroyed the Khreschatyk GKTP and then Agrospetsservice. He was kicked out twice for his skillful leadership, but this rascal with a military veterinary education runs the Institute of Alcohol. There is a lot of talk about counterfeiting and it needs to be tracked and not allowed on the market, but many ducks are allowed by vodkans who sleep and see how to remove winemakers from the market and are ready to trample everyone in the mud. I would like you to support small wineries as abroad, produce wine from your own raw materials, sell instead of paying 500 thousand for a license. Large bottlers and so they will survive and the manufacturer is being pressured, for example, Inkerman buys wine material from all over the world, pours it out and passes it off as his own without having a single bush of grapes. What kind of education do you have from your subordinates, but if you work as the DAAK department that issues licenses, then you can hang winemaking in Ukraine .And why licenses are issued for 5 years to enterprises that have been producing wine for decades. I have been walking around for 3 months humiliating myself and spending a lot of money, it's like stoicosmotrism - just zadolbatelstvo. Good luck, but we will follow your deeds.
dock
Crimea
07.07.2011 19:43
Nikolay Duel:
Dyakuyu for pobazhannya. I can sing you, the State Inspection of the Silk State Gift of Ukraine, with the head mark that the products of the Silk State Gift are safe on the Ukrainian market, if you will help the citizens, and not solve the problems.
Good day! Does your structure have anything to do with monitoring compliance with the requirements when it has already received 1.5% of the levy for the development of winemaking and horticulture in Ukraine? Or do you not control this area?
Stas Turkov
Winemaker
08.07.2011 11:46
Nikolay Duel:
Dyakuyu. So, with the whole process of control, through the reconciliation on the readiness of the newsletter bagatories, in the form of the readiness to the prepared design documentation.
Nikolay, are you just inspecting, or are you proposing changes to the laws, to Gosty? Maybe we should change some of our winemaking standards - how do you see it?
Anastasia
Lviv
08.07.2011 12:11
Nikolay Duel:
Dyakuyu Anastasin, for the power supply. State Inspection of the State Government of Ukraine, for the sake of its own "Provision", besides that, in order to prevent the state visibility (control) in the agro-industrial complex, including in part of the adoption of the rules for the production of wine, such products її competence, the common practice of storing legislation for nutrition, well, I know, the same, it must be up to the її competence, that is the development of the proposition of how much it is thoroughly understood. As I have already shown, we have opted for the low Laws of Ukraine and the other normative legal acts and introduced our own propositions and changes in them.
Nikolay, good afternoon! Please tell me where you can get acquainted with the practical results of the state's activities to control the winemaker. products? Are there any data, reports on the work done? What are the general mechanisms of state control in this area?
Oleg
Pervomaisk
08.07.2011 12:20
Nikolay Duel:
Dyakuyu Olezha. The State Department of State Inspection has its own official website, on which there is a wide range of information about the activity and materials. In addition, in the nearest hour on the website there will be a new heading in which legislative efforts, regulatory and legal regulations and materials of state control over the management of vineyards and virgin grapes, wines and wine products will be changed. At the same time, all information about viticulture and wine-growing can be reviewed on the official website of the State Statistics Service of Ukraine.
Nikolay Sergeevich, a legal question. Imagine that Ukraine has already adopted the provisions of the Concept of Reforming Land Relations. What legal consequences will arise for legal entities that are leaseholders of agricultural land from those individuals who received these lands in ownership as a share?
Lawyer
12.07.2011 11:50
Nikolay Duel:
Thanks for the question. Apparently, it was caused by a discussion that is sharpening in society around the draft Law of Ukraine "On the Land Market" and is being prepared for submission and consideration in the Verkhovna Rada. It should be noted that the above draft law does not provide for the suspension or cancellation of existing (duly executed) contractual relations between land owners and tenants. But, after the expiration of the contractual relationship, the owner has the right to decide the fate of his property at his own discretion - to use it independently, sell it or lease it. Naturally, on favorable terms.
Dear Nikolai, as a statesman, give an answer, what are the prospects for Ukrainian winemaking in connection with the possible adoption of new land legislation? Will it take into account the interests of creators - owners of perennial plantations, in particular, legal entities whose plantations grow on leased land owned by individuals?
Anton
12.07.2011 11:50
Nikolay Duel:
Thank you, Anton. But your question is not very correct, since these points are already regulated by law. The placement of perennial plantings, as well as real estate on a land plot that is leased, without the permission (drawn up in accordance with the established procedure) of the owner of the land plot is unacceptable. This is the intended use of the site.
Nikolai Sergeevich, land reform is underway. There is a fear that it will destroy our industry. Your opinion?
Skeptic winemaker
12.07.2011 11:50
Nikolay Duel:
Thanks. Rather, on the contrary, the introduction of a land market will provide an opportunity to balance the relationship between land owners, tenants and the state, which in turn will have a positive effect on the implementation of viticulture and winemaking programs.
So, in the media everyone talks and writes about protecting the interests of tenants growing grapes. They say they invest money and energy in their business. But, is it not necessary to protect the rights of landlords - landowners, on whose land perennial plantations of tenants grow? Property is property ...
Owner
12.07.2011 11:51
Nikolay Duel:
Thanks. The main task of introducing a land market is precisely to ensure the guarantee of ownership of land and its intended use.
DID KUPRIN WRITE ABOUT HIMSELF, THE DEATH OF ROMASHOV "KILLING" HIS YOUTH DREAMS?
A.P. Apsit Portrait of A. I. Kuprin 1928
Photo by A.I.Kuprin 1900s
Kuprin was a lieutenant of the White Army, a brilliant rider who, on a bet, could mount a horse to the second floor of a restaurant, drink half a glass of cognac without leaving the saddle, and return to earth in the same manner.
Kuprin spent his childhood in the Orphanage School (Moscow, Kazakova St., 18), where, for his delirium that he was General Skobelev, Napoleon himself, he would be put on a pointed cap with the inscription “Liar” in bold print.
As a twelve-year-old boy with a haircut, Kuprin studied at the Cadet School (Moscow, 1st Krasnokursantsky Prospect, 3-5), then at the Junkers' School (Moscow, corner of Znamenka and Gogolevsky Boulevard), where he sat in a punishment cell for a peasant girl Dunyasha (he looked after her instead of classes on topography) and for the first printed story - “paper-making”.
Yesterday, he, a cadet, raced in a troika to a ball at a women's institute, declared his love at a purely skating rink and secretly kept a stranger's scarf picked up in the theater, and today he is an officer of the 46th Dnieper Infantry Regiment. He jumps from the second floor, when some garrison lady promised a kiss for this, for the sake of one more love, abandoning poetry and prose, trying to enter the Academy of the General Staff.
I would have entered - I passed the exams brilliantly! - if on the way to St. Petersburg he had not met friends in the cadet corps in Kiev and, having taken a spree, had not thrown the police bailiff either from the ferry or from the float restaurant. According to one version, for the fact that he did not yield to them, the officers, the ordered table, according to another, more romantic, for impudent molesting to some girl.
There were no duels in his life. But, isn't it, there is something in common in the description of the writer's youth with Romashov - the hero of his story "The Duel"?
The title of the story by A. I. Kuprin - "The Duel", correctly conveys the meaning of the drama played out in it. A duel means not only the duel described at the end of the story, but also all the events that take place with the main characters.
The book takes place at a time when fights between officers have just been officially allowed. Naturally, this topic is vividly discussed in the garrison. First
it is seriously touched upon in the conversation between Shurochka Nikolaeva and Romashov.
Shurochka, a beautiful, charming, intelligent, educated woman, speaks of duels as a necessary phenomenon. The officer, she argues, is obliged to risk himself. An insult can only be washed away with blood. It is not only Shurochka, the officer's wife, who talks about duels with such fervor. This is the opinion of the majority of the men in the garrison.
Romashov's life in the regiment is an eternal duel with himself and with the officer's prejudices. He is not like his comrades, he has other life aspirations. Arriving in the regiment, Romashov dreamed of "valor, exploits, glory." He idealized the officers, believing that these people are noble, generous, honest. But in the garrison, the officers lead a gray, hopeless existence, they take revenge on the soldiers who are not considered people, in the evenings, not knowing what to do, the officers gather, play cards and arrange senseless revelry.
The whole story is a series of small collisions between Romashov and the people around him.
All these minor skirmishes lead to one main thing - a duel between Romashov and Nikolaev.
In general, the duel was predetermined from the very beginning. Romashov loves Nikolaev's wife, in addition, and she answered him if not with love, but at least with sympathy, affection. Affectionately calling the officer "Romochka", Shurochka spends with him free time"From nothing to do." Romashov refuses an affair with the regimental lady Raisa Aleksandrovna Peterson, with whom they dirty and boring (and for quite some time already) deceived her husband. Wanting to take revenge on her "mustached Zhorzhik", she begins to throw anonymous letters at her husband Shurochka.
Nikolaev himself does not accept Romashov from the very beginning. Consequently, sooner or later the duel had to take place.
The word "duel" in relation to the event that happened may not be entirely appropriate, since it was not a fair fight between two officers.
Shurochka, so dearly beloved by Romashov, assured him that everything was agreed in advance and no one would be injured. At the same time, she made a reservation that she was saying goodbye to him forever, but he, like all lovers, did not hear this.
Could a gullible, romantic second lieutenant assume that the woman he loved was so cold, calculating and treacherous?
He died, not knowing happy love, not fulfilling the cherished dream of quitting the service and devoting himself to a more worthy occupation. The duel between Romashov and the world around him was not in favor of the dreamy second lieutenant.
"The Duel" came out with a dedication to M. Gorky, to whom at that time of his work Kuprin was close, and, in addition to high ratings from critics, deserved the praise of Leo Tolstoy.
And now the duelists:
YURI ALEKSEEVICH ROMASHOV
I. Glazunov Illustration for the story "Duel" ch. 16 (fragment)
He was of medium height, thin, and although rather strong for his build, he was awkward from great shyness. He did not know how to fence with espadrons even in school, and after a year and a half of service, he completely forgot this art.
In a young graduate of a cadet school, now a second lieutenant, serving in a regiment for the second year, stationed in a small Jewish town, weakness of will and fortitude are uniquely combined. Service in the army for Romashov is a difficult test: he cannot come to terms with the rudeness and vulgarity of the regimental life.
Romashov composes stories, although he is ashamed of his literary pursuits.
"Not for the first time in a year and a half of his officer service he experienced this agonizing consciousness of his loneliness and being lost among strangers, hostile or indifferent people - this is a dreary feeling of not knowing what to do with tonight." Out of boredom, he often goes to the station, where trains that stop briefly remind him of a different, festive life.
After a fight with Nikolayev, Romashov challenges him to a duel and within a day becomes "the city's fairy tale and the hero of the day." A meeting of the officers' court makes a decision on the inevitability of a duel between Romashov and Nikolaev.
The next day, Nikolaev kills Romashov in a duel.
VLADIMIR EFIMOVICH NIKOLAEV
For two years in a row he has been failing exams at the academy, and Alexandra Petrovna, Shurochka, is doing everything so that the last chance (she was allowed to enter only up to three times) was not missed.
And lastly, in 2007 a twelve-part television feature film "Juncker" was shot, based on the works of A. I. Kuprin. The script is based on the novel "Juncker", the novellas "The Duel", "At the Turning Point" ("Cadets"), many of the writer's stories and episodes of his biography. The time of action in the film, unlike Kuprin's novels, has been shifted from the end of the 19th century to the years preceding the start of the First World War.
It remains for us to reread the fragments of the original source!
The usual conversation, beloved by young officers, began about cases of unexpected massacres on the spot and how these cases went almost always with impunity. In one small town, a beardless drunken cornet with a saber hacked into a crowd of Jews, from whom he had previously "smashed an Easter heap." In Kiev, an infantry second lieutenant hacked to death a student in a dance hall for nudging him at the sideboard. In some big city- either in Moscow or in St. Petersburg - the officer shot, "like a dog," a civilian who, in a restaurant, made a remark to him that decent people do not bother unfamiliar ladies.
Romashov, who was still silent, suddenly, blushing with confusion, unnecessarily adjusting his glasses and clearing his throat, intervened in the conversation:
- And here, gentlemen, what will I say from my side. I suppose I don't consider a barman ... yes ... But if a civilian ... how can I put it? ... Yes ... Well, if he is a decent man, a nobleman, and so on ... why should I him, unarmed, to attack with a saber? Why can't I demand satisfaction from him? After all, we are cultured people, so to speak ... - Eh, you are talking nonsense, Romashov, - Vetkin interrupted him. - You will demand satisfaction, and he will say: "No ... uh-uh ... I, you know, web-site ... uh ... I do not recognize a duel. I am an opponent of bloodshed ... And besides , uh ... we have a magistrate ... "So then walk around with a bat muzzle all your life.
Have you read about the officer's duel in the newspapers? - asked Shurochka suddenly.
Romashov perked up and with difficulty looked away from her.
- No, I haven't. But I heard. And what?
- Of course, you, as usual, do not read anything. Indeed, Yuri Alekseevich, you are sinking. In my opinion, something ridiculous came out. I understand that fights between officers are a necessary and reasonable thing. - Shurochka convincingly pressed her knitting to her chest. - But why such tactlessness? Think: one lieutenant insulted another. The insult is grave, and the society of officers decides a duel. But then comes nonsense and stupidity. The conditions are just like the death penalty: fifteen paces of distance and fight to a serious wound ... If both opponents are on their feet, the shots are resumed. But this is a massacre, this is ... I don't know what! But wait, these are just flowers. All the officers of the regiment come to the place of the duel, almost even the regimental ladies, and even a photographer is placed somewhere in the bushes. After all, this is horror, Romochka! And the unfortunate second lieutenant, Fendrik, as Volodya says, is like you, and in addition, offended, and not an offender, after the third shot, he receives a terrible wound in the stomach and by evening he dies in agony. And he, it turns out, had an old mother and sister, an old young lady who lived with him, just like our Mikhin ... But listen: why, who needed to make such a bloody buffoonery out of a duel? And this, mind you, at the very first stages, right after the resolution of the fights. And now believe me, believe me! - exclaimed Shurochka, sparkling with glowing eyes, - now sentimental opponents of officer duels, - oh, I know these despicable liberal cowards! - now they will zagald: "Ah, barbarism! Ah, a relic of wild times! Ah, fratricide!"
- However, you are bloodthirsty, Alexandra Petrovna! - put in Romashov.
- Not bloodthirsty, - no! she objected sharply. - I'm compassionate. I’m a bug that tickles my neck, I’ll take it off and try not to hurt him. But try to understand, Romashov, there is simple logic here. What are the officers for? For the war. What is required for a war first of all? Courage, pride, the ability not to blink before death. Where are these qualities most clearly manifested in peacetime? In duels. That's all. It seems clear. It is not French officers who need fights - because the concept of honor, and even exaggerated, is in the blood of every Frenchman - not German - because from birth all Germans are decent and disciplined - but for us, for us, for us! Then we will not have among the officer's environment card-sharpers, like Archakovsky, or hopeless drunkards, like your Nazansky; then by itself will emerge amicosity, familiar scoffing in the assembly, in front of servants, this is your mutual foul language, throwing decanters at each other's heads, with the goal of not hitting, but missing. Then you will not abuse each other like that behind your backs. The officer's every word must be weighed. An officer is a model of correctness. And then, what a tenderness: fear of a shot! Your profession is to risk your life.
20
.........
In the evening that day he was again summoned to court, but this time together with Nikolayev. Both enemies stood almost side by side in front of the table. They never
looked at each other, but each of them felt at a distance
the mood of the other and was tensely agitated by this. Both are stubborn and
they looked at the chairman motionless as he read to them the decision of the court:
- "The Court of the Society of Officers of the N Infantry Regiment, in the composition - followed
ranks and names of judges - chaired by Lieutenant Colonel Migunov,
having examined the case of a collision in the premises of the officers' meeting of the lieutenant
Nikolaev and second lieutenant Romashov, found that due to the severity of mutual
insults, the quarrel of these chief officers cannot be ended with reconciliation and
that the duel between them is the only means of satisfaction
offended honor and officer's dignity. The court's opinion is approved
regiment commander ".
Having finished reading, Lieutenant Colonel Migunov took off his glasses and hid them in a case.
- It remains for you, gentlemen, - he said with stony solemnity, -
choose seconds for yourself, two on each side, and send them to nine
o'clock in the evening here, to the meeting, where they together with us will work out the conditions
duel. However, - he added, getting up and hiding the eyeglass case in his back pocket,
- however, the court ruling read now does not have for you
binding force. Each of you retains complete freedom to fight on
duel, or ... - he threw up his hands and paused, - or leave the service.
Then ... you are free, gentlemen ... Two more words. Not as chairman
court, but as a senior comrade, I would advise you, gentlemen officers,
refrain from attending the meeting until the fight. "This may lead to
complications. Goodbye.
Nikolaev turned abruptly and walked out of the hall with quick steps. Slowly
Romashov followed him. He was not afraid, but he suddenly felt
himself exceptionally lonely, strangely detached, as if cut off from
all over the world. Stepping out on the porch of the meeting, he, with a long, calm surprise
looked at the sky, at the trees, at the cow by the fence opposite, at the sparrows,
bathing in the dust in the middle of the road, and thought: "Here - everything lives, bustles,
fusses, grows and shines, but I no longer need anything and not interested.
I am sentenced. I'm alone".
Sluggishly, almost bored, he went to look for Bek-Agamalov and Vetkin,
which he decided to ask for seconds. Both readily agreed -
Bek-Agamalov with gloomy restraint, Vetkin with affectionate and
meaningful handshakes.
Romashov did not want to go home - it was terrible and boring there. In these
difficult moments of mental powerlessness, loneliness and a sluggish misunderstanding of life
he needed to see a close, sympathetic friend and at the same time subtle,
understanding, gentle-hearted person.
And suddenly he remembered about Nazansky.
21
........
Romashov told in detail the story of his collision with Nikolaev.
Nazansky listened to him thoughtfully, bowing his head and looking down at the water,
which in lazy thick streams, poured like liquid glass,
sounded far and wide from the bow of the boat.
- Tell the truth, are you not afraid, Romashov? Nazansky asked quietly.
- Duels? No, I'm not afraid, - Romashov answered quickly. But immediately he
fell silent and in one second vividly imagined how he would stand completely
close against Nikolaev and see in his outstretched hand a descending black
the barrel of a revolver. - No, no, - added Romashov hastily, - I won't
to lie that I'm not afraid. Of course it's scary. But I know that I will not frustrate, not
I will run away, I will not ask for forgiveness.
Nazansky dipped the ends of his fingers into a warm, evening, slightly murmuring
water and spoke slowly, in a weak voice, clearing his throat every minute:
- Oh, my dear, dear Romashov, why do you want to do this? Think:
if you know for sure that you will not be cowardly - if you know absolutely for sure - then
after all, how many times will then be bolder to take and refuse.
- He hit me ... in the face! - said stubbornly Romashov, and again burning
malice swayed heavily in him.
- Well, well, well, hit, - objected Nazansky affectionately and sad,
with gentle eyes he looked at Romashov. - Is that the case? Everything in the world
passes, your pain and your hate will pass. And you yourself will forget about
this. But you will never forget about the person you killed. He will be with
you in bed, at the table, alone and in the crowd. Windbags,
filtered fools, brass foreheads, colorful parrots claim that
killing in a duel is not killing. What nonsense! But they are sentimental
they believe that robbers dream of the brains and blood of their victims. No, murder -
always murder. And what matters here is not pain, not death, not violence, not
disgust for blood and corpse - no, the worst thing of all is that you
you take away from a person his joy of life. Great joy of life! - repeated
suddenly Nazansky loudly, with tears in his voice. - After all, no one - neither you nor me,
ah, but simply no one in the world believes in any afterlife.
That is why everyone fears death, but faint-hearted fools deceive themselves
perspectives of radiant gardens and sweet singing of castrates, and the strong -
silently step over the edge of necessity. We are not strong. When we think
what will happen after our death, then we imagine an empty cold and
dark cellar. No, my dear, it's all lies: the cellar would be happy
deception, joyful consolation. But imagine all the horror of the thought that
absolutely, absolutely nothing will happen, no darkness, no emptiness, no cold ... even
there will be no thought of it, even fear will not remain! At least fear!
Think!
......
- Yes, life is beautiful, - said Romashov.
- Beautiful! Nazansky repeated fervently. - And here are two people from behind
that one hit the other, or kissed his wife, or simply, passing
past him and twirling his mustache, looked at him impolitely - these two people
shoot each other, kill each other. Oh no, their wounds, their suffering,
their death is all to hell! Is he killing himself - a pathetic moving
a lump called a human? It kills the sun, hot, sweet
the sun, the bright sky, nature, - all the diverse beauty of life, kills
the greatest pleasure and pride is human thought! He kills what
never, never, never come back. Ah, fools, fools!
22
.......
- Well, do you want me to give up the fight tomorrow, apologize to him? Do it? he said sadly.
She was silent for a little. The alarm clock filled with its metal chatter
all corners of a dark room. Finally she spoke barely audibly, as if in
meditation, with an expression that Romashov could not catch:
- I knew that you would suggest it.
He raised his head and, although she held him by the neck with her hand, he straightened up on
beds.
- I'm not afraid! he said loudly and dully.
`` No, no, no, no, '' she said in a hot, hasty, pleading
in a whisper. - You did not understand me. Come closer to me ... as before ... Come! ..
She wrapped her arms around him and whispered, tickling his face with her
thin hair and hot breathing on his cheek:
- You did not understand me. I have something completely different. But I'm ashamed in front of you. You
so pure, kind, and I'm ashamed to tell you about it. I'm calculating
I'm ugly ...
- No, say everything. I love you.
“Listen,” she said, and he guessed her words rather than heard.
their. - If you refuse, then how many insults, shame and suffering will fall
at you. No, no, not that again. Oh my god, this minute I won't
lie to you. My dear, I have thought and weighed all this for a long time.
Let's say you refused. The husband's honor has been rehabilitated. But, understand, in a duel,
ending with reconciliation, there is always something ... how to say? .. Well,
perhaps, doubtful, something exciting bewilderment and disappointment ...
Do you understand me? - she asked with sad tenderness and carefully
kissed his hair.
- Yes. So what is it?
- The fact that in this case the husband will almost certainly not be allowed to take the exams.
Officer reputation general staff should be free of fluff. Meanwhile
if you actually shot, then there would be something heroic,
strong. To people who know how to behave with dignity under the shot,
they forgive a lot, a lot. Then ... after the duel ... you could, if
if you want, and apologize ... Well, that's your business.
......
Trying to hide an incomprehensible, dull irritation, he said dryly:
- For God's sake, explain yourself more directly. I promise you everything.
Ilya Glazunov Shurochka at Romashov's on the eve of the duel ch. 22
Then she spoke imperiously near his mouth, and her words were
like quick quivering kisses:
“You must certainly shoot yourself tomorrow. But none of you will
injured. Oh, understand me, don't judge me! I myself despise cowards, I
female. But do it for me, George! No, don't ask about your husband, he
knows. I did everything, everything, everything.
Now, with a stubborn movement of his head, he managed to free himself from her soft and
strong hands. He got out of bed and said firmly:
- Okay, so be it. I agree.
His Eminence, Commander of the N Infantry Regiment.
The head captain of the same regiment Diez.
I hereby have the honor to convey to your Excellency that this 2nd
June, according to the conditions reported to you yesterday, June 1,
a duel between Lieutenant Nikolayev and Second Lieutenant Romashov. Opponents
met at five minutes before 6 o'clock in the morning, in a grove called "Dubechnaya",
located 3 1/2 versts from the city. The duration of the fight,
including here and the time used for the signals was 1 min. 10 sec. Places,
occupied by the duelists were set by lot. On command "forward" both
enemy went to meet each other, with a shot fired
Lieutenant Nikolaev, second lieutenant Romashov was wounded in the upper right part
belly. For a shot, Lieutenant Nikolaev stopped, just like
remained standing, waiting for the return shot. After the set
half a minute for a return shot, it was found that Second Lieutenant Romashov
cannot answer to the enemy. As a result, the seconds of the second lieutenant
Romashov was offered to consider the fight over. By common consent, this
was done. When transferring second lieutenant Romashov to the carriage, the last
fell into a serious fainting state and died seven minutes later from
internal hemorrhage. Seconds from the side of Lieutenant Nikolaev
were: me and Lieutenant Vasin, on the part of Second Lieutenant Romashov: lieutenants
Bek-Agamalov and Vetkin. The order of the duel, by common consent, was
provided to me. The testimony of a junior doctor count. ac. Heat at this
I am attaching.
Head Captain Diez.
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