Saturday, March 4:
R. did not have a very good night, and a few slight vexations in the morning lead to a chest spasm. I observe complete stillness and read a little in his vicinity, and soon our conversation takes a quiet, cheerful course. Our subject is the Russian novels, and R. remarks on the complete absence of dignity in Russian women. He chides Fidi severely for not noticing him at once when he goes to greet him. At lunch he talks about Kant’s physical geography, which he is reading with interest, and he says he is learning more from it than from all the specialized books. His preoccupation with it inspires him, however, with his idea concerning poets and scholars (in his Braunes Buch), and he says that Goethe compromised himself, as it were, as a poet because of his “childish preoccupation with natural science.” It makes people heartless, he says. Over coffee he tells me he read in the newspaper that the Jews in Palestine speak German. He says they seem to look upon Germany as the promised land - the defeat of Varus, the downfall of the Roman Empire, must have created the impression on the Jews that there was something to be done with Germany! It is a windy day, and R. humorously expresses his vexation over our stay here.
In the evening we continue Fathers and Sons with great interest, and are moved by the words of the nihilist’s mother to her husband on the sudden departure of their son. The news of the assassination attempt on the Queen of England produces the following remark from R.: “He was a completely destitute man; before throwing himself into the water he wanted to shoot down at least one of these fortunate people.” And we recall the case told us by Count Tasca, in which miners killed an estate owner (father of the Count’s daughter-in-law) before the eyes of his daughters. He said, “The people are taking revenge.”