The bears (Garschin)
The bears ( Russian Медведи , Medvedi ) is a short story by the Russian writer Vsevolod Garschin , which appeared in the November issue of the Otetschestwennye Sapiski in Saint Petersburg in 1883 .
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Late summer 1875 in the south of the Russian Empire : In the vicinity of the city of Bjelsk, the gypsies have to shoot their dancing bears on the orders of the government administration. The owners had five years to part with their animals. Now the execution date has come. The gypsies camp with their families and bears in a meadow on the Rochlja bank. Onlookers from the nearby city crowd onto the square. The pharmacist Foma Fomitsch is interested in the bear fat. Bear fat can be used for ointments and is also good for hair loss. The merchant Rogachev wants to trade in bear ham. A delegation of elderly bear keepers wants to avert the accident at the last minute. They have an audience with the district chief in Bjelsk. The bear holders offer a wallet bulging with banknotes. The official proves to be incorruptible. An order from the government is an order.
The 89-year-old bear leader Iwan is the first to step forward with the rifle on the meadow mentioned above. Ivan lets his old, huge bear Potap off the chain and speaks to the long-time breadwinner. Ivan's entire family had been able to live on the income from Potap's performances. In addition, Ivan had bought two troikas with the money, built permanent winter quarters and bought his son free from military service. The old man wants to kill Potap, but can't do it. His son shoots.
Over a hundred bears are losing their lives. A still fairly young bear can tear itself away, flees into the Lycium bushes and is only hunted after hours under the command of the district chief. With their hits, the summoned soldiers perforated the fur of the frightened animal so that the peeled fur can no longer be used.
When the narrator comes to Bjelsk again, he is chatting with the pharmacist Foma Fomitsch. Although he made good money with his bear fat ointment, he condemns the "bear murder" because some now unemployed bear leaders are going back to their old profession - horse theft .
German-language editions
Output used:
- The bears . P. 193-214 in Vsevolod M. Garschin: The stories. Transferred and with afterword by Valerian Tornius . 464 pages. Dieterich'sche Verlagbuchhandlung, Leipzig 1956 (Dieterich Collection, Vol. 177)
Web links
- The text
- Wikisource Медведи (Гаршин) (Russian)
- online at Lib.ru / Classic (Russian)
- Entry in WorldCat
- Entry in the Laboratory of Fantastics (Russian)