would ordinarily call
in America the "mob," and it certainly does not constitute one per
cent. of the population in Russia or in any other country. Gorky
refers to it as "the populace": "In addition to the people, there is
also the 'populace,' something standing outside of social classes and
outside of civilisation, and united by the dark sense of hatred
against all that surpasses its understanding and is defenceless
against brute force. I speak of the populace which thus defines itself
in the words of Pushkin:

"'We are insidious and shameless,
Ungrateful, faint-hearted and wicked;
At heart we are cold, sterile eunuchs,
Traducers, born to slavery.'"

The refusal of the Russian people to be either bribed or deceived into
hostility to the Jews is clearly enough demonstrated by the feeling
of affection on the part of most intelligent Jews towards the Russian
people. The only exceptions are those Jews which come from the Polish
cities far within the Jewish Pale and do not know the Russian people
except by hearsay. Unfortunately, this is a considerable portion of
the total of the Jews in Russia, and it is from these cities and towns
in the heart of the Pale that most of our immigrants come. But all the
more educated Jews--and a very large part are educated--all those who
know Russia either by a travel or through Russian literature and
newspapers, feel a deep affection for their country, for in spite of
all, Russia belongs to them just as much as it does to other Russians.
One of the editors of the present volume, Fyodor Sologub, says:

"Whenever I met Russian Jews abroad, I always marvelled at the
strangely tenacious love for Russia which they preserve. They speak of
Russia with the same longing and the same tenderness as the Russian
emigrants; they are equally eager to return and equally saddened, if
the return is impossible. Wherefore should they love Russia, who is
so harsh and inhospitable toward them?"

It is useless for Americans to deceive themselves into thinking that
the Russian Jewish question is either unimportant or incomprehensible
from the point of view of our progress and democracy. Do we not have
our negro and Asiatic problems? Do not the English have their Irish
and Indian questions? I do not suggest that the parallel is complete,
but it is clear that the Russian writers in the present volume are
perfectly correct in referring both to our negro question and our
question of yellow labou