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Our family was so prosperous that my parents could afford to hire a French tutor for me, their only son. I still remember the poems and proverbs that she taught me. I am fluent in reading French even now, although I am not so good at speaking it due to a lack of practice: my French tutor moved out of Russia immediately after the Revolution because of “those barbarians,” as she called the new power.
Then I had a nursery governess, who cared for a group of children all about the same age. I can not remember the names of the children or the governess now. She went for a walk with children from our area. All of us had approximately the same level of knowledge and education. She spent all morning outside with us, then we went over to her house, had breakfast and some of the children even went to bed.
All the children were certainly from prosperous families. The governess taught me to read and write and with this, I could enter the third grade of United Labor School # 79 at once, skipping the first two forms.
Then I had a nursery governess, who cared for a group of children all about the same age. I can not remember the names of the children or the governess now. She went for a walk with children from our area. All of us had approximately the same level of knowledge and education. She spent all morning outside with us, then we went over to her house, had breakfast and some of the children even went to bed.
All the children were certainly from prosperous families. The governess taught me to read and write and with this, I could enter the third grade of United Labor School # 79 at once, skipping the first two forms.
Interview
Alfred Liberman