524
PARTISAN REVIEW
• •
•
In the compartment air- so thick you could cut it with a
knife-three words sound: bourgeois, junkers, bloodsuckers.
• •
•
"So their business will be better!"
•
•
•
"Our revolution's young, but in France theirs is old, stale ."
• • •
"A peasant, a prince, what's the difference - their hides are the
same! (I, thinking to myself: but some are only out to save their
own-that's the whole point).
• • •
"The officer, comrades, is the number one bastard. In my opin–
ion, he's of the very lowest education."
• •
•
Across from me, on the bench, sleeps a downcast, emaciated,
prudent Vikzhel.
4
"God, comrades, was the first revolutionary!"
•
• •
"You're from Moscow, right? We don't have any of those types
in the south."
(An ensign from Kerch)
• • •
An argument about tobacco.
"A lady, and she smokes! Everybody's equal, sure enough, only
it don't do for a lady to smoke. Her voice gets rough from the to–
bacco, and her mouth smells like a man's. A lady should suck can–
dies, spray herself with perfumes so she'll have a sweet fragrance. Or
else a young gent'll pay his compliments - and there you are breath–
ing the same man's smell-ugh!
If
there's anything the masculine sex can't stand to abide, it's a
man's smell. What do you say Miss?"
I:
"Of course you're right, a bad habit!"
Another soldier: "But I think, er I mean comrades: the female
sex ain't got nothing to do with it. I mean, the smoke goes in your
throat-and everybody's throat's the same. Tobacco-bread, what's
the difference. So what if young gentlemen won't love them, maybe
it's better-lot of brothers run around wagging their tails. LOO-ove!
4. Acronym of the All-Russian Aministrative Committee of The Railroad Workers
Union formed in August 1917, which did not support the October Revolution and
was disbanded for counter-revolutionary activities in January 1918.
