Summary “The Deaf Leaf Down”
Police agent Yablonskaya visits St. Petersburg, where he meets with the Inspector of the secret police Sudeikin. Yablonsky’s career went sky high, he recently issued to the authorities a revolutionary, Vera Figner. This happened in Kharkov, and now the prisoner was in the grip of the all-powerful director of the police department V. K. Plehve, the commander of the detachment of gendarmes Orzhevsky and the Minister of Internal Affairs DA Tolstoy. Yablonsky wants to meet with the minister and sovereign, and Sudeikin looks forward to new honors and awards.
Meanwhile, Sergei Degayev is already in Moscow. His memory is filled with memories of his own brother Volodya, who now lives in Saratov. It is no less sad to think of Liza’s sweet sister, now a student conservatory, and wife Luba. In the house of the sister Degayev gets acquainted with the student of the Mining Institute Nikolai Blinov. Blinov advises Degayev to use in his work “pigeon” – a non-commissioned
The director of the police department, VK Plehve, talks with Yablonsky, and behind the curtains KP Pobedonostsev, who was overly interested in Yablonsky’s personality, was lurking behind the curtain. Plehve speaks of concerns about the upcoming coronation of the sovereign, where security must be respected at a high level. Yablonsky does not talk about concrete measures – how this can be done. Plehve and the agent say goodbye to each other.
In Moscow, Sudeikin cares about the security of the coronation. Meanwhile, in Moscow, Liza Degaeva is trying to find Neil Sizov, for whom she has a note from her brother
Neil Sizov lives in the vicinity of Moscow – in the house of his father’s bride Sasha. Sizov was a good turner and a fitter. Together with his brother Dmitry they worked in the railway workshops. The brothers could not reconcile themselves to the humiliated position of the workers, and often on this occasion acted in their defense. For this they were arrested. Neil managed to escape from the police, and Dmitry, the head of the Moscow police Skandrakov is trying to enlist as a spy. Dmitry is brought to despair, he tries to slaughter Skandrakova, injures him with a knife and then jumps out of the window. Skandrakov manages to survive, but Dmitry gets a serious spinal injury and some time later dies in the hospital. Neil Sizov can not find shelter for a long time, wanders around familiar and, at last, settles in the house of Fyodor – the father of his bride Sasha.
Vladimir Degaev works in Saratov, but the police do not lose sight of the agent. In Saratov, Vladimir meets Blinov. Then Degayev comes abroad, where he gets acquainted with the revolutionaries of old views – Tikhomirov and Oshanina. Oshanina suspects something wrong in Degayev and shares his fears with other revolutionaries. At first no one believes her, but the confrontation between Oshanina and Degayev confirmed all fears. Herman Lopatin visits St. Petersburg under the name of the Englishman Norris. He finds out that wherever Blinov, Degayev’s accomplice in the revolutionary field, visited, there are always round-ups and arrests of revolutionaries. The conversation with Degayev opens Lopatin all the truth. Degayev and secret agent Yablonsky are the same person.
To regain the confidence of revolutionaries, Degayev – Yablonsky decides to organize the murder of Sudeikin. Then he leaves Russia, and the revolutionaries promise not to kill him. In London, Degayev meets with his brother Volodya, and they together sail to America. Suspicions of betrayal finally undermine Blinov’s morale. Unaware of Degayev’s exposure, Blinov rushes from the bridge to the Neva and dies.
The place of the murdered police inspector Sudeikin in Moscow is occupied by Skandrakov. He decides to investigate the murder of his former colleague. Again a series of arrests. The police seized Starodvorskiy, Konashevich and Stepan Rossi. In Moscow, Sizov and Flerov enter the prison. Skandrakov convinces Stepan Rossi to kill prosecutor Muravyov and even gives the revolutionary weapons. The prosecutor decides to organize the assault on his own behalf. Skandrakov persuades Russia to name the names of the two killers Sudeikina. Soon, Lopatin, who had returned to Russia, was already arrested. The same fate befell Peter Yakubovich.
Skandrakov gets a job from Plehve – to learn about the relationship between the former Minister of Internal Affairs MT Loris-Melikov and the wife of Alexander III Princess Yuryevskaya with the revolutionary underground abroad, and especially with Tikhomirov. The second task was that Tikhomirov should be lured to the German border, seized and handed over to the Russian government. Skandrakov comes to Paris and there he meets with agents Rachkovsky and Landesen.
Skandrakov carefully checks the letters of Tikhomirov. In these letters Tikhomirov is disappointed in revolutionary activity, asks the tsar to return to Russia. The petition of the former revolutionary was satisfied, and Tikhomirov returned to his homeland, even despite the five-year surveillance of the police. In Russia, Tikhomirov wrote a book “Why I stopped being a revolutionary.” Skandrakov understands how important Tikhomirov’s experience and train of thought are. However, Tikhomirov’s sincerity still arouses suspicion among the authorities.
The session of the military court ends, at which Lopatin utters the last word. Punishment is already understandable – the death penalty through hanging. To the death penalty also comrades Lopatin – Yakubovich, Starodvorsky and others are sentenced. But at the last moment Emperor Alexander III pardoned the convicts and replaced the death penalty with life imprisonment in the Shlisselburg Fortress.
Neil Sizov was sentenced to ten years of hard labor. To ensure that he is not badly influenced by political criminals, the authorities decide to put the prisoner to criminals, with whom he first goes to Odessa, then to Sakhalin. Near the coast of Sakhalin, the ship nearly sank, its “Stone of Salvation” saved, on which the ship was stuck tight. People on boats moved to shore. Soon Sizov is convinced that the orders for penal servitude are a reflection of the free world: all the same bribes, ranks, authorities.
Lopatin is first struck by the news of the abolition of the death penalty for him and his friends. In Shlisselburg reigned cruel prisoner orders. The inspector Sokolov, nicknamed Herod, not by necessity, but out of pleasure mocks prisoners. And, besides, he also has an instruction. Herods and instructions entangled Russia with an endless veil of arbitrariness. But the carefree splash of the waters of the Neva and Ladoga covers all hardships and torments. Natural elements are not dominated by insignificant orders of people.
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