Page:Leskov - The Sentry and other Stories.djvu/13

 Rh Lady Macbeth of the Mzinsk District," a fine example of searching sincerity, one is struck again by the impartial objectivity of the narrative. Lyeskov's qualities and his limitations are here broadly outlined. We have only to compare the portrait of Sergei with that of Naum in Turgenev's story "The Inn" to see how the great master surpasses the lesser in the expression of those delicate shades of feeling and manner in which the secret of personality, no less than the charm of style, resides. Apart from this, however, "The Lady Macbeth of the Mzinsk District" is a splendid example of psychological truth and breadth of vision, qualities in which the Russians always beat us hollow. Equally broad in its humanity is the last story "On the Edge of the World." Although the opening is too leisurely and some of the details are superfluous, how unforgettable is this picture of the worthy Russian bishop and his perplexities in his half-savage Siberian diocese. We are really, here, taken into the heart of ecclesiastical rule, with its unavailing struggle to reconcile the spirit of Christ's teaching with actual Christian practice. Good Father Kiriak's touchstone of conduct is simplicity itself. "Can I do this for the glory of Christ?" What a disconcerting test for Christendom which has "drenched the little Dove with blood." The