The Steel Flea

Translated from the Russian of
Nikolai Semyonovitch Lyeskoff
ISABEL F. HAPGOOD
Privately printed for the Company of Gentlemen Adventurers at The Merrymount Press, Boston 1916

Copyright, November 22, 1890, by Isabel F. Hapgood

I cannot tell precisely where the first germ of the Legend concerning the Steel Flea had its birth—that is to say, whether it originated in Tula, the Izhma, or Sestroryetzk; but, evidently, it came from one of these places.
In any case, the tale of the Steel Flea is a legend which distinctly belongs to the Armorers' Guild and expresses the pride of Russian gunsmiths. It depicts a contest between our workmen and English workmen, from which our artisans emerged the victors, having utterly routed and humiliated the Englishmen.
Herein, also, is explained a certain secret cause of military disasters in the Crimea.