DMITRIEV, IVAN IVANOVITCH, was born in 1760, in the government of Simbirek, where his father, who was himself a men of superior information, possessed an estate. After being educated at Kazan until his twelfth year, he was pursuing his studies at Sim birsk, when that part of the empire was thrown into an unsettled state by Pugatchev'e rebellion, in consequence of which his family deter. mined to leave it, and ha was sent to St. Petersburg, where he was entered in the Setnenovsky regiment of guards, and within a short time put on active service, in which he continued until the reign of the emperor Paul, when an appointment in the civil service was bestowed upon him. After the accession of Alexander ho was made successively minister of justice and privy councillor, and filially retired from public life with a pension and the order of St. Vladimir of the first class. Although a life passed in such occupations was little favourable to literary pursuits, particularly the miller part of it, a strong natural attachment to them led him to devote himself to them es sedulously as circumstances would permit, and with such success, that, after Karsmzin, he was, among contemporary writers, the one who most contributed to polish the Ituenian language, impart ing to it more ease and gracefulness of style and elegance of diction.
His poems, which have passed through many editions, and are deser vedly popular, consist principally of odes, epistles, satires, tales, and fables, in which last-mentioned species of composition—n very favourite one with his countrymen—he particularly excelled; and if we except Krilov, ha occupies the first rank among the Russian fabulist.. By some he has been styled the Lafontaine of Russia, ns well on account of the refined tone of his subjects as the studied simplicity of his language. In his poetical tales he is unrivalled among his country men, not less for the playfulness and shrewdness of his satire than for the peculiar happiness and finish of his style. His odes likewise possess considerable merit ; but as a lyric poet he falls short of Lomonosov, Derzhnvin, and Petrov.