"But this is premature among us, premature," he pronounced almost imploringly, pointing to the manifestoes.
"No, it's not premature; you see you're afraid, so it's not premature."
"But here, for instance, is an incitement to destroy churches."
"And why not?
You're a sensible man, and of course you don't believe in it yourself, but you know perfectly well that you need religion to brutalise the people.
Truth is honester than falsehood...."
"I agree, I agree, I quite agree with you, but it is premature, premature in this country..." said Von Lembke, frowning.
"And how can you be an official of the government after that, when you agree to demolishing churches, and marching on Petersburg armed with staves, and make it all simply a question of date?"
Lembke was greatly put out at being so crudely caught.
"It's not so, not so at all," he cried, carried away and more and more mortified in his amour-propre. "You're young, and know nothing of our aims, and that's why you're mistaken.
You see, my dear Pyotr Stepanovitch, you call us officials of the government, don't you?
Independent officials, don't you?
But let me ask you, how are we acting?
Ours is the responsibility, but in the long run we serve the cause of progress just as you do.
We only hold together what you are unsettling, and what, but for us, would go to pieces in all directions.
We are not your enemies, not a bit of it. We say to you, go forward, progress, you may even unsettle things, that is, things that are antiquated and in need of reform. But we will keep you, when need be, within necessary limits, and so save you from yourselves, for without us you would set Russia tottering, robbing her of all external decency, while our task is to preserve external decency.
Understand that we are mutually essential to one another.
In England the Whigs and Tories are in the same way mutually essential to one another.
Well, you're Whigs and we're Tories. That's how I look at it."
Andrey Antonovitch rose to positive eloquence.
He had been fond of talking in a Liberal and intellectual style even in Petersburg, and the great thing here was that there was no one to play the spy on him.
Pyotr Stepanovitch was silent, and maintained an unusually grave air.
This excited the orator more than ever.
"Do you know that I, the 'person responsible for the province,'" he went on, walking about the study, "do you know I have so many duties I can't perform one of them, and, on the other hand, I can say just as truly that there's nothing for me to do here.
The whole secret of it is, that everything depends upon the views of the government.
Suppose the government were ever to found a republic, from policy, or to pacify public excitement, and at the same time to increase the power of the governors, then we governors would swallow up the republic; and not the republic only. Anything you like we'll swallow up. I, at least, feel that I am ready. In one word, if the government dictates to me by telegram, activite devorante, I'll supply activite devorante.
I've told them here straight in their faces:
'Dear sirs, to maintain the equilibrium and to develop all the provincial institutions one thing is essential; the increase of the power of the governor.'
You see it's necessary that all these institutions, the zemstvos, the law-courts, should have a two-fold existence, that is, on the one hand, it's necessary they should exist (I agree that it is necessary), on the other hand, it's necessary that they shouldn't.
It's all according to the views of the government.
If the mood takes them so that institutions seem suddenly necessary, I shall have them at once in readiness.
The necessity passes and no one will find them under my rule.
That's what I understand by activite devorante, and you can't have it without an increase of the governor's power.
We're talking tete-a-tete.
You know I've already laid before the government in Petersburg the necessity of a special sentinel before the governor's house.
I'm awaiting an answer."
"You ought to have two," Pyotr Stepanovitch commented.
"Why two?" said Von Lembke, stopping short before him.
"One's not enough to create respect for you.
You certainly ought to have two."
Andrey Antonovitch made a wry face.
"You... there's no limit to the liberties you take, Pyotr Stepanovitch.
You take advantage of my good-nature, you say cutting things, and play the part of a bourru bienfaisant...."
"Well, that's as you please," muttered Pyotr Stepanovitch; "anyway you pave the way for us and prepare for our success."
"Now, who are 'we,' and what success?" said Von Lembke, staring at him in surprise. But he got no answer.
Yulia Mihailovna, receiving a report of the conversation, was greatly displeased.
"But I can't exercise my official authority upon your favourite," Andrey Antonovitch protested in self-defence, "especially when we're tete-a-tete.... I may say too much... in the goodness of my heart."
"From too much goodness of heart.
I didn't know you'd got a collection of manifestoes. Be so good as to show them to me."
"But... he asked to have them for one day."