Page:Michael Farbman - Russia & the Struggle for Peace (1918).djvu/86

 74 Soldat otrezannyi lomot'.

A soldier is a slice of bread (i.e., lost, cut off).

Soldatu ni v raiu ni v adu miesta niet.

A soldier has no place in heaven or in hell.

There are many sayings referring to the very immoral life of a soldier. A soldier is always wild, pillages everything, steals whatever he can lay hands on, and never pays for what he takes. In fact in all respects he is a most ill-conditioned person.

Na to on i soldat, shtoby buianit'.

That's what he's a soldier for—for debauchery.

Soldat idiëtt selom i smotrit krugom.

A soldier goes through the village and looks round (what he can loot).

U soldata niet karmano'v, a vsio spriachetsia.

A soldier has no pockets, but he can put away anything.

Za soldatom pishi propalo.

If a soldier has taken it, then goodbye!

Soldat tol'ko na moroze da no ognie hrasneiet.

A soldier blushes only at frost or fire.

Soldat blizko, klaniaisia iemu nizko.

Bend low before an approaching soldier.

Soldat shto volk; shto popalo, to i rviot.

A soldier is like a wolf. He tears everything he meets.

''Soldat shto bagor. Zatsepil potashchil.''

A soldier is like a hook. What he fastens he takes away.

The word "Soldat"—soldier—is often used in contumely. "Soldafon" is a term of foul abuse. "Posoldatski," or "like a soldier" (which is a great compliment in this country), in Russia is an indication of something very low, rude, uneducated, and insulting. "Soldatiet," meaning to adopt soldier's manners, to behave like a soldier, is another term of contempt. Such were the feelings of the people towards the soldier, and such were their thoughts about a soldier's life. What about the feelings of the soldiers themselves?