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i9i7] CONVERSATION WITH M. KESKULA 489
the speaker. " During the hundred odd years that
Esthonia and Livonia were under Swedish domination
the people, who up till then had been shamefully
oppressed by the German conquerors, their lords and
masters, knew for the first time what justice, order,
humanity, and good administration were. At that time
—the period of Gustavus Adolphus, of the Oxenstjernas,
of Charles X. and Charles XI.—Sweden was the best
governed State of the whole of Europe, and justice in
particular was studied and respected. In extending
their power to the domain of the Knights—Brothers
of the Sword, the Swedish laws no longer tolerated the
crying abuses of these knights. The Lett and the
Esthonian, even the serfs amongst them, found
protection from the Royal authorities. Schools were
founded, roads made, proprietors who abused their
power too much were judged and punished. Later on,
under Russian domination the oppression of serfdom
began again. Then the spirit of the age brought its
own remedy. Amongst the Baltic nobility itself there
were humane and just men to be found who wished to
march with the times, and who advocated extensive
reforms granted by Catherine II., and subsequently by
Alexander I. Serfdom was abolished in the Provinces
long before it was in Russia. Nevertheless, the
recollection of the benefits of Swedish domination had
never been effaced from the memory of the people
of the Provinces, and even now the Swedish name is
very popular amongst them—among Esthonians
particularly."
" You are perfectly right, Monsieur; that is exactly
the case."
"Well, then, have you succeeded this time in your
work of binding Esthonia, Finland, and Sweden into one
sheaf? " I asked.
" Not in the least! In the first place, Sweden does
not really understand these matters. And then I have
come to the conclusion that Finland has but one policy
only—German policy."
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