PAN HALIPPA

I would like to share with our Romanian readers a few remarks explaining, at least in part, why the proposal submitted by the Bessarabian deputy Gulikin in the Imperial Duma failed to materialize. The proposal referred to certain amendments to the draft law on primary school education, whereby our fellow Moldovans in Bessarabia could be included among the nationalities being granted the right and privilege to send their children to national schools, where they could study in their respective national language. The procedures unfolded as follows. Upon debating the article on the ancient Slavonic language used in church, which even present-day Russians no longer understand, a Bessarabian deputy – priest Gepetski, of Moldovan origin – ventured to assert: “I must avow, fellow deputies, that our Moldovans in Bessarabia rejoice and take great pride in their children who can read in Slavonic. Therefore, the Imperial Duma has no right to deny the Moldovans’ right to teach their children in Slavonic; otherwise, our country would be dissatisfied with the Duma’s decision, because – honestly I tell you – this is the wish of the people of Bessarabia...” [...] Except for Gulikin, all the other [Bessarabian deputies] preferred to remain silent and hence acquiesce to Gepetski’s opinion [...]
Thus, the votes of these serpents that had been fed at the bosom of Bessarabia itself shattered the first illusion, the first step towards guiding the Moldavian people in Russia out of the dark. The magnanimous, veliko-Russian Gulikin had listened to his conscience both as a man and a citizen. The failure of his proposal is yet another stain of eternal shame on those who so easily jeopardize the fate of a people, who happens to be their own people!... These unworthy men were the only ones accountable for what happened then, because here is what Gulikin was writing in the Besarabeţ newspaper edited by our friend Alexis Nour: “I am deeply saddened and outraged... My proposal was rejected on account of merely three votes, whereas Bessarabian deputies make up eight votes; had they at least abstained from voting, my proposal would have passed. God will be the judge of us all and the upcoming generations will have their say in this, but I know my conscience is clean.”
Deputy Gulikin is outraged by the behavior of his fellow Bessarabians in the Russian Parliament! He is wondering why are the Bessarabian deputies of Moldavian origin so anxious to see Bessarabia russified? We are equally outraged, although we have understood for some time now where the Bessarabian boyars and some of our priests are taking us [...] It is precisely the current state of affairs – with the Russian school that does not benefit Moldavians themselves, except for a little bit of Slavonic – which serves best the interests of boyars and priests in Bessarabia, in their attempt at exploiting the mute and blind flock made up of two million industrious and unpretentious Moldovans!... However, what the Moldovan deputies – the three boyars and priest Gepetski – said in the Duma are blatant lies, whereby they managed to reject the proposal submitted by a disinterested Russian, deputy Gulikin.

(Viaţa Românească issue 1, 1911, in Publicistică, Museum Publishing House, Chişinău, Fundaţia Culturală Română, Bucharest, 2001)