Russkii strannik (Kochetov, E.L.): Christmas at Uncle Paul’s. Memories of a Stay in Pretoria, the Capital of the Boers

Title

Na rozhdestve u diadi Pavla. Iz vospominanii o prebyvanii v stolitse burov Pretorii, Sankt-Peterburg 1900

Christmas at Uncle Paul’s. Memories of a Stay in Pretoria, the Capital of the Boers

Keywords

Summary

The narration begins with the author’s arrival in Cape Town, of which he praises the beauty, linking it to the civilisation introduced by the Europeans. Proceeding to Transvaal and then to Pretoria by train, he observes the dominance of Boers and senses hostility between them and the “uitlanders”. Mr. Goldsmith, the narrator’s friend, expresses his dislike of the Boers. A pastor of the Marienburg church overhears their conversation, introduces himself, and befriends the narrator. He shares his experience with the English being avid and causing difficulties for the locals. Upon reaching Pretoria, the narrator stops at the best local hotel and takes a walk. He sees a sad old man and engages in a conversation. The man tells him about a past Zulu attack on their community during Christmas eve, which has resulted in the loss of his daughter, whose whereabouts remain unknown. He also shares the story of “uncle Paul”, their former priest, now the head of the Boers community. The author is invited to attend his Christmas sermon, which is reported as a wise and interesting speech, intertwining Christian teachings with the socio-political situation in South Africa. The narrator listens attentively and shakes Uncle Paul’s hand at the end. Returning to the hotel, he thinks nostalgically about Russian Christmas with its snowy winters.

Bio

Evgenii Kochetov was a Russian author and journalist. He served in the Guards Cavalry in the 1860s, and took part in settling the Polish rebellion. He later became an employee of “Moskovskie vedomosti”, and, in the 1880s, he contributed to “Novoe vremia” by undertaking numerous travels on its behalf, both in Russia and abroad. Kochetov often published under the pseudonyms “Evgenii L’vov” and “Russkii strannik”. Among his works: To Siberia for Penal Servitude (1876); True Stories (1888); Bulgaria in the Period of Terror and Anarchy. From Personal Recollections (1888).

Sources

V. Kartsev, “Kochetov, Evgenii L’vovich”, in Entsiklopedicheskii slovar’ Brokgauza i Efrona v 86 t., t. 16,  Sankt-Peterburg 1890-1907, p. 463;

A. Nosov, “Kochetov, Evgenii L’vovich”, in Russkie pisateli, 1800-1917: Biograficheskii slovar’, ed. by P. Nikolaev, Moskva 1994, p. 115-116.

M.E.