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ADVENTURES 
 
 MICHAILOW, 
 
 S&ug^ian CQ^aptibe; 
 
 AMONG THB 
 
 KALMUCS, KIRGHIZ, AND KIWENSES. (J^t^ 
 
 WRITTEN BY HIMSELF, 
 
 LONDON t 
 
 1PRINTED FOR SIR RICHARD PHILLIPS & (Jd* 
 BRIDE COURT, BRIDGE STREET. 
 
 1822. 
 
?^ofi!^HSZU/ 
 
 LOAN STACX 
 
 SHACKKLL AMD AnR0W8MITH, JOHNSOK'S-COURT^ FLBRT-«TRBBT. 
 

 ADVENTURES 
 
 OF 
 
 MICHAILOW, A RUSSIAN CAPTIVE, 
 
 AMONG THE 
 
 KALMUCS, KIRGHIZ, AND KIWENSES ; 
 
 WRITTEN BY HIMSELF. 
 
 I was bom in the reign of Shah Nadik, in the little town ou 
 Suzchaas, several days journey South of the Caspian Sea. My 
 parents lived in a mean hut, and supported themselves, like other 
 indigent Persians, by agriculture. Three children, a daughtei 
 and two sons, were the only fruit of their conjugal love. 
 
 The devastations of the last Turkish war, and a scanty harvest, 
 distinguished the year of Shah Nadir'*s decease, 1747. The 
 scantiness of this harvest occasioned a famine in Persia. A 
 great pai't of the people fell a sacrifice to this calamity, and 
 otliers sought a support in the towns near the Caspian Sea. My 
 parents too were compelled to leave their native place, and set 
 out for Ratch, a flourisliing commercial town^ on the southern 
 coast of the Caspian Sea. 
 
 My father, and his whole family, left their hut in the most 
 wretched condition. My brother, who was but five years old, 
 and myself, who was only six, followed our ragged parents as 
 naked as when we were born. Our only sustenance during the 
 journey was fruit ; and we slept in the open air. While we 
 were travelling, some Caucasian robbers took away my brother, 
 and I have never since heard what became of him. The rest 
 of us reached Ratch in safety. Here my parents sought employ- 
 ment as day labourers ; but the number of poor that had flocked 
 to this neighbourhood was very considerable and the wages were 
 consequently very low. An Armenian soon became acquainted 
 with my sister and married her, and thus eased the cares of my 
 parents. But what could they do with me, who was then but 
 six years of age ! My uncle advised my father either to sell me, 
 or to give me away. Paternal affection in vain objected to this 
 proposal. The reasonable representations of my uncle at length 
 succeeded, and preparations were made to send me away, f 
 
 \ , 
 
 223 
 
4 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 accidentally overheard these consultations. I wept bitterly, and 
 resisted as much as I could, but in vain. In our way we passed 
 by the residence of the Russian Consul, Iwan Bakunin. My 
 father and I were here met by an Armenian groom, in the ser- 
 vice of the Consul, who said to my father, " Whither are you 
 taking this boy .?"" My father replied, " Poverty compels me to 
 lead my only son to market for sale l*" The Armenian expressed 
 a wish to purchase me for ^himself, atid calling my father into 
 the stable, soon concluded a bargain. I received a buttered 
 ChureJc'CaJce*, and my father half a ruble and three Churek- 
 cakes. I eat my cake with cries and tears, and my father left me 
 for ever. 
 
 There was at that time in the house of the Consul a Pop (or 
 Russian Priest) named Iwan Afanassich. This Ecclesiastic 
 saw me that very evening, and, becoming fond of me, wished 
 to adopt me as his son. The Armenian resisted his solicitations 
 for some time, but the Consul supported the priest, and at last 
 obliged the Armenian to give me up. The priest then renewed 
 his promises, and received from the Consul a written document, 
 which secured to him a legal claim to my person. 
 
 Iwan Afanassich conducted me to his house, ordered me Sl 
 bath, caused a clean shirt and a silk jacket to be given me, 
 and treated me in every respect as his own son. After some 
 days he conducted me to a large stone building, which, I was 
 informed afterwards, was a church, when he gave me his bene-- 
 diction, and named me Wassilij. My Persian name was Buy. 
 
 The generous Iwan Afanassich did not officiate constantly 
 at the residence of the Consul, but performed the clerical duties 
 alternately with another priest on board the merchant vessels 
 trading from Ratch. After a few weeks the other priest returned 
 from a voyage, and Iwan Afanassich was obliged to embark 
 on board another vessel, while the former remained at the Con- 
 suPs. Afanassich left me with his colleague, to whom he 
 strongly recommended me. But the new priest was a man of 
 low, vulgar ideas, destitute of humanity, and addicted to drink- 
 ing. A few days after the departure of my second father, my 
 mother, for the first time, paid me a visit. Our joy on meeting 
 each other again was inexpressible, and our tears flowed abun- 
 dantly. The hard-hearted priest, however, paid no regard to 
 these tender emotions, but tore me away from the arms of this 
 affectionate mother, and with a torrent of abuse pushed her out 
 
 * These cakes are very common among the Tartars, Kalmucs, and Southern 
 Russians. They are composed of wheat flour and water, are made into the 
 fonn of a plate, and are about the thickness of a finger. 
 
in Tartary. 5 
 
 of the house. But this was not the only mortification I had 
 to endure from this cruel man. One day during Lent, when I had 
 fasted for a whole day, I drew secretly from the drawer of the 
 table, some fragments of a fast-meal^ in order to satisfy my 
 hunger. The curate unfortunately found me eating, and, for 
 this trifling offence, flogged me most unmercifully. At length, 
 to my great joy, my benefactor, the good Afanassich, return- 
 ed, and not only allowed me to see, and speak to, my mother, 
 but even enabled me to make her several trifling presents. 
 
 Not long after this the Consul left Ratch, for Astracan, to 
 which place we accompanied him. Some time after our arrival in 
 that city, I was baptized in one of the churches, and received the 
 name of Mkhailow, from a merchant of the name of Michailow 
 Chlebnikow, who stood as sponsor. Afanassich, after the 
 lapse of six months, was appointed Proto-Pop (chief-priest), and 
 was called first to Ichornoijar^ and afterwards to Tzaritzyn. 
 This worthy man took me with him wherever he went, and, 
 intending me for the church, caused me to learn to read and , 
 write. But, alas ! I had lived only five years with Afanas- 
 sich, when death tore him from me. 
 
 After the death of this Proto-Pop^ I became the property of 
 his widow, who, soon after the decease of her husband, left 
 Tzaritzyn, and went to live at Saratow with her son, who 
 held some clerical office there. She, however, soon exchanged 
 this new residence for Jenatajewsk, having been invited by her 
 daughter, who had there married the Kalmuc interpreter, 
 KiRiLLiJ Makaritch Weseloff, and who was also a widow. 
 Several years passed away, and the mother and her daughter 
 died. I then entered into the service of Lieutenant Sawa 
 Spiridomitch Weseloff, half brother to the aforesaid 
 Weseloff. 
 
 My new master was at this time with a Company of Kalmuc 
 Dragoons, who always lived in the neighbourhood of the Kal- 
 mucs, and were obliged to accompany them in all their warlike 
 excursions. I served with my master in two Kalmuc campaigns, 
 and was at the great battle of the Kalaus, where above five thou- 
 sand of the enemy were slain. 
 
 After having faithfully served my master for several years, a 
 particular incident occasioned a separation, to which I attribute 
 all the misfortunes that afterwards befel me. 
 
 I immediately enlisted into the service of the Cossacks, agreed 
 for an annual pay of eighty rubles, and received thirty rubles 
 bounty. 
 
 I entered into the Cossack service the latter end of December, 
 1770, just when the Kalmucs were preparing to flee to China. 
 Elbasha Chan, who was on the opposite side of the Volga, 
 
(5 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 between Ichornoijar and Jenatajewsk, endeavoured to lull 
 into security the Russian commander Kishinskoj, by pretending 
 there were signs of commotion among the Kirghiz, which he 
 wished to suppress. Kishinskoj immediately sent him a Ssotnik 
 (or commander of a hundred Cossacks) with seventeen Cos- 
 sacks and an Interpreter, to be employed against the Kirghiz, 
 under the command of Alexander Michailowitch Dud ye, 
 Captain of Dragoons, who was at that time in the Kahnuc head- 
 quarters. I was one of these seventeen Cossacks. 
 
 At Kalmuc a bondman of my master was conducting a cow 
 into the town for sale, and meeting me in the street, requested me 
 to sell it for him. I asked the man why he would not sell it 
 himself. He made numerous excuses, and was so very im- 
 portunate, that at last I conducted the cow to the market and 
 sold it. Although I never once suspected it, it afterwards turned 
 out, that the Kalmuc slave had stolen the cow. The owner saw 
 the cow, and claimed it from the purchaser as his property. They 
 both went to my master, who questioned me about it. I imme- 
 diately named the Kalmuc of whom I had received the cow. 
 The Kalmuc, however, denied it so obstinately, that my master 
 considered me to be the guilty person, and caused me to undress 
 to be flogged with a Plette (a cat-o'-nine-tails). I had received 
 two or three stripes when the wife of my master entered, and 
 insisted upon my release, being convinced of my innocence. I 
 was accordingly released, but was so exasperated at this un- 
 merited punishment, that I did not remain another moment in 
 the house. 
 
 We left Jenatajewsk on the second of January, 1771. We 
 went twenty-seven versts up the Volga in barges, and then 
 crossing the river, landed opposite the Wkoponow Sitinitza. 
 We continued our march as far as the river Achtuba, which is 
 in reality an arm of the Volga, branching from that river not 
 far from Tzaritzin, and again running into it near Jenatajewsk. 
 The Achtuba being at that time so much swollen, we could not 
 find any ford ; we therefore made a raft, upon which we placed 
 our saddles and baggage, and we ourselves swam over on the 
 backs of our horses. We passed the night on the opposite bank, 
 and next morning continued our march towards the camp of the 
 Chan. We had yet two days journey before us, and having but 
 little provision with us, we took: on the first day a couple of sheep 
 and on the second a Camel, which served us for food. 
 
 During our march the Vice- Chan had made known to all the 
 Kalmucs assembled in the Steppe (sandy desert) Nryn, his in- 
 tention of fleeing to China, and had sent them back to their 
 habitations, that they might make the necessary preparations for 
 their journey. We met several troops, each consisting of from 
 
in Tai'tary. 7 
 
 ten to twenty armed Kalmucs, who were returning towards the 
 Volga. We enquired, " Why do you return ? Are the 
 Kirghiz already vanquished P""* The Kalmucs replied, "Our 
 preparations have quieted them : the Vice-Chan has dismissed 
 us, and will himself reach the Volga to-morrow. We Cossacks, 
 not suspecting they would deceive us, cheerfully continued our 
 march, reckoning on the near approach of winter quarters. 
 Towards evening we arrived in the neighbourhood of the Kal- 
 muc camp, and immediately sent forward our Interpreter to 
 order quarters for us. Our horses, which had not left the 
 Kuban till late in the Autumn, were so much fatigued, that it was 
 with the utmost difficulty they dragged themselves along, and 
 as we sensibly felt the increasing cold weather, we were very 
 impatient for warm huts. I followed the Interpreter somewhat 
 quicker than the other Cossacks, and had not rode far, when 
 I heard at a distance a warm altercation, and soon after distin- 
 guished the voice of our Interpreter. I at last perceived a 
 Kalmuc hut, from which they were just turning out the Inter- 
 
 { ureter. I addressed a Kalmuc Durchaitch priest, (fortune-tel- 
 er), whose name was Gabun Sharap, and who belonged to the 
 suit of the Lama, and said to him. " What is the meaning of 
 this noise ?" Sharap made no reply, but with a mild voice, 
 said, " what is your name T^ I answered in an angry 
 tone, " my name is Wasska." " Wasska," replied the priest, 
 " this is a fast day with us : we do not slaughter to day, and 
 therefore cannot entertain you. But not far hence are the 
 quarters of the Truchmenzes ;* pass the night with them, 
 and return to-morrow, and I will have some meat cooked for 
 you." 
 
 In the meantime our comrades had arrived, and I called out 
 to them, " alight, comrades, take the saddles from your 
 horses : they will not admit us ; but we will soon find an en- 
 trance.'*' We were just preparing to make ourselves masters of 
 a hut, when the priest invited the Ssotnik, the Interpreter, and 
 myself into his own. 
 
 Having entered, we seated ourselves after the Kalmuc fashion, 
 along the side wall of the hut. The priest immediately ordered 
 a cup of tea for each of us, and said, " drink, my lads, that 
 your wishes may be fulfilled." After the tea, some mare's 
 milk was warmed for us, and while we Avere drinking it, the 
 
 * Whoever has read in the Mogul News of the Counsellor of State Pallas, 
 the history of the Kalmuc flight, wUl know that about a hundred Truchmen- 
 zes were sent to assist the Kalmucs against the Kirghiz. 
 
8 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 priest said, " a happy journey to you." The Interpreter and I 
 myself smiled, and sai^, " All is not right with him.'' 
 
 The priest was silent for some moments, and then asked 
 Who was the better warrior, the Kalmuc, or the Russian? 
 We replied angrily, " Gallung, (thus the priests of rank are 
 called by the Kalmucs), thou art either drunk or mad !"" The 
 Kalmucs who were present, without attending to our reply, 
 gave it as their opinion, that in the plain the Kalmucs were 
 superior to the Russians, but that in the woods, the Russians 
 had the superiority. 
 
 Soon after the Gallung said, " Do any of you know how 
 to read ?"" The Interpreter pointing to me, said, «' he knows 
 how to read."" I, however, replied, " I am not a proficient in 
 reading, but I can read so as to understand."" The priest then 
 said, " it is written in our books, that after forty-six years the 
 Kalmucs will reign over the Russians.""" 
 
 We had now heard enough. We arose in a passion, left the 
 hut, and went to an acquaintance of the Interpreter, in order to 
 pass the night there. We perceived at the entrance a slaughtered 
 cow, and requested they would give us some of it. The host 
 answered us rudely, and said the cow had not been killed for 
 us ; but we were not intimidated at this reply, and, having cut 
 off a piece of meat, we entered the hut, and boiled it for our 
 supper. They gave us some of the sticks of which the hut 
 was built for fuel: " have you no other fuel,"" we asked, 
 " than the wood of your huts ?" They replied, " this wood is 
 decayed ; where we are to pass the winter, we shall find plenty 
 of wood, with which we can build new huts." This answer 
 appeared to us very reasonable at that time, but we afterwards 
 found that the Kalmucs burned the wood of their huts, that 
 they might the more easily effect their flight. 
 
 After we had eaten our supper, we laid ourselves down to 
 rest, but our host did not appear to be at all inclined to sleep. 
 His wife asked him, why he did not lie down ? He replied, 
 " do you not know that it is my turn to-night to guard the sheep ?*' 
 So saying he went away, and my comrades soon fell asleep. 
 
 Soon after I heard a loud cry on the outside of the hut, and 
 got up to see what was the matter. I found a number of 
 people at the entrance who opposed my going out. I told 
 them I was obliged to go out. I was answered, " make an 
 effort to restrain your wants, and go back into the hut.*" I 
 then asked, " what is the meaning of that noise ?" They an- 
 swered, " that is nothing to you. Two Truchmenses have 
 stolen some of our horses : our people have pursued the robbers 
 and have caught one of them. You and your comrades will 
 be called upon to-morrow as witnesses, but if you do not 
 
in Tartary. 9 
 
 remain in the hut, your testimony will not be received : sucJi is 
 our custom.'' I found that these people v/ere mocking me, but 
 I obeyed, and determined to complain of this treatment. 
 
 When I returned to my place of rest I awoke the Inter- 
 preter, and related to him what had happened. A new cry 
 presently reached our ears, and we distinctly heard a person 
 call out in the Russian language, " Good father, have mercy !" 
 We knew it to be the voice of one of our Cossacks, who, for want 
 of warm clothes, had laid himself down within a neighbouring 
 hut, and not like the other Cossacks out of doors. We imme- 
 diately jumped up, and hastily put on our clothes. Three Kal- 
 mucs then entered the hut and lighted a fire. While they were 
 thus employed, I drew my knife from its case, and called out 
 to them in a loud voice, " You shall not take us alive ! We 
 will sell our lives dearly !" When the three Kalmucs perceived 
 my naked knife they took to their heels, and we fastened the 
 door with ropes that nobody might enter. 
 
 We now kept up the fire with sticks which we tore from the 
 hut, and prepared to defend ourselves as well as v/e could. The 
 Kalmucs, who now assembled ai'ound our hut to the number of 
 from fifty to sixty, called to us to surrender, assuring us that 
 if we refused v/e should die. We ainswered boldly, " do what 
 you please, but we will not leave the hut." They now thrust 
 their pikes at us through the openings of the hut, but we 
 placed the landlady with her sucking child before usj and thus 
 guarded off the pikes. 
 
 At break of day the Kalmucs renewed their threats, and 
 again called upon us to surrender. Not daring to trust to these 
 people, we asked for the Gallung, Sharap, who on the former 
 t^vening, as we now perceived, had indirectly warned us of our 
 danger. Sharap soon made his appearance. We said, that 
 we put in nobody a greater confidence than in him, and wished 
 to know of him the reason of the tumult The priest answered, 
 " you would not believe me yesterday, how will you believe 
 what I tell you now ?" We replied, we had caused him to be call- 
 ed because we put entire confidence in (his integrity. The priest 
 then informed us that Elbasha with all the Kalmucs were fleeing 
 to China, that they had already made prisoner our captain of 
 cavalry, and that we were destined to slavery. 
 
 Although this account appeared to us rather improbable, we 
 found it necessary to surrender to the assailants. The other 
 huts were already packed upon camels, and they were just be- 
 ginning to break up our hut, when we rushed out, ana throw- 
 ing ourselves at the feet of the priest, implored his protection 
 against our enemies. The honest Sharap raised us up, and en- 
 deavoured to comfort us ; and when the others attempted to 
 Voyages and Travels, Vd. VII. c 
 
10 Adventures of Michailozv 
 
 drag lis away by force, our benefactor said to them, " hear 
 what I am about to say I These people have clothes, good 
 guns, and horses ; divide every thing they have among your- 
 selves ; but leave me their persons. I will give them fI^e sheep, 
 and to each of them a warm pelt, and will conduct them to a 
 distant part of the Steppe, that they may thence return to their 
 liomes. Do but consider that some of them have left behind 
 them unhappy fathers and mothers, others have left their wives 
 and children !"" 
 
 They replied, " how shall we allow them to go ? Dost thou 
 not know the command of the Chan ? That, ' whoever re- 
 turns, whether he be a Russian or a Kalmuc, shall be put to 
 death f" 
 
 At these words, the priest embracing all three of us, said to 
 them, " if you will kill these kill me first ! As long as I live no 
 harm shall happen to them." 
 
 The Kalmucs now retreated, and commenced their march. 
 The Sharap also mounted his horse, and commanded us to fol- 
 low him. Being fearful of losing our protector we laid hold 
 of the tail of his horse, and followed him with a melancholy 
 joy. AVhen we had proceeded some paces, the priest looked 
 around, and perceiving his brother, who was driving a herd of 
 mares, he immediately rode up to him, and said, " What! I 
 suppose you think to milk your herd as far as China. Do you 
 not see these poor people who go on foot ? You will do a 
 good work if you give them commodious horses for riding." The 
 brother without the least objection immediately gave us three 
 horses ; and putting a cord into their mouths instead of a bit, 
 we mounted and rode at the side of the priest. 
 
 Not far from the place where we had reposed the preceding 
 night we saw the dead body of a Cossack, who had belonged to 
 our troop, lying on the ground with his head cloven. Deeply 
 affected by this sight we alighted, covered the corpse of the un- 
 fortunate Cossack with a mat which lay near it, and then 
 hastened after the priest, lest we should lose him. 
 
 At our next resting place, the priest caused supper to be 
 dressed for me and my two comrades, and endeavoured to com- 
 fort us by his encouraging conversation. " Of what use is it," 
 said he, "to be melancholy ? Nobody, it is true, can escape 
 his destiny ; but be assured, that, as long as I live, you have 
 nothing to fear."*^ We were supplied with plenty of food and 
 some tobacco, but neither the one nor the other afforded us any 
 real pleasure. After supper the priest caused pelts to be spread 
 for us at the side of his resting-place, but we were too restless lo 
 think of sleep. " Sleep !'"* said the old man, " and be not 
 concerned : no harm shall happen to you while I live."' Thus 
 
in Tartary. 11 
 
 spoke tlic generous priest without venturing to sleep himself, 
 lest any one should attempt to injure us. 
 
 The Kahnucs proceeded on their march the following morn- 
 ing, and we kept close to our priest the whole of the day. In 
 the evening a Gatzul, (an under priest,) and three other Kal- 
 mucs came into our hut and attempted to take us away by 
 force, and drag us before the Chan, who was two or three days 
 journey in advance ; our protector, however, would not permit 
 them to take us, but desired the Kalmucs to go to the Chan, 
 and return with his orders. As to ourselves, we were quite 
 willing to be brought before the Chan, for the Interpreter and I 
 had several friends at his court, on whose protection we could 
 imphcity rely. 
 
 Six days had now elapsed, and we had by continued marches 
 already reached the Jaik, without hearing of the return of the 
 messengers. In the meantime I met with an old Kalmuc ac- 
 quaintance, a niece of the Gallung, who lived with her mother 
 in a neighbouring hut. This female and her husband formerly 
 guarded the cattle of my late master ; and having been aban- 
 doned by her husband, had returned to her own country. On 
 the evening of the sixth day, our benevolent priest sent us to 
 this acquaintance, saying to us, " go thither, ask for some 
 meat and pottage, and eat ; you have now nothing to fear from 
 any thing but hunger.**' We were, however, afraid of leaving 
 our benefactor, and he caused the provisions to be brought ; to 
 his hut. Our fears were not without foundation ; for at mid- 
 night seven Kalmucs stole into our hut, in order to drag us 
 away, but Sharap watched over us so diligently that he frus- 
 trated their intentions. 
 
 It was reported the next day, that the messengers had re- 
 turned, and would conduct us to the Chan." The good priest 
 endeavoured by encouraging words Xo heighten the joy we felt 
 at this intelligence, and again wished to send us to the hut of 
 his niece ; but we even now resisted his solicitations, and were 
 very reluctantly conducted thither by one of his Manji (boy 
 priests.) 
 
 On our arrival at the hut, they gave us some victuals and 
 tobacco, and having finished our meal, the niece said to her 
 mother, " pray tell these poor people what we have just heard."" 
 The mother then said to us, " do not go with those Kalmucs. 
 They pretend that they come from the Chan, but they intend to 
 take you away in order to kill you." Our feelings were over- 
 whelmed at this intelligence, and we left the hut in order to 
 seek the protection of our benefactor. Not long after the vil- 
 lains arrived with their lying message, but they were immediately 
 sent away. 
 
li ' Adventures of Michailow 
 
 Several days had passed after this incident, and we had 
 already left the river Jemba behind us, when, as we were pro- 
 ceeding with our loaded camels, three Kalmucs unexpectedly 
 attacked the Interpreter and myself, seized our horses, and 
 galloped off with us at full speed. I was seized first and 
 conducted to a great distance in the Steppe (desert). Already 
 the marching Kalmucs were out of sight, when from the top of 
 a hill I perceived a number of people, some on foot, others on 
 horseback, towards whom w& gradually approached. On our 
 coming up to them, I soon recognized two of our Cossacks, one 
 of whom they were cutting to pieces ; the other either because he 
 had irritated them by a too long resistance, or had by his conduct 
 brought upon himself a greater punishment, had been bound 
 to the tail of a wild horse, and was thus dragged about until lie 
 expired, when he was also cut in pieces. During this bloody 
 spectacle we arrived on the spot : they immediately pushed me 
 from my horse, and dragged me forward. 
 
 Fortunately for me, at this moment a Saissang (comman- 
 der) of rank in the service of the Chan, came riding by us 
 with his Tushimell (privy counsellor). The former knew me, 
 and said to the ruffians, " this man is one of those whom the 
 Chan has demanded ; give him vip immediately.'"* They re- 
 plied, " the Chan has not demanded him, and we will not give 
 him up, but will kill him." Some old Kalmucs, however, 
 among the rest had more compassion. " What advantage," 
 said tney, " can the death of this man be to you ? Be satis- 
 fied with the blood of those already slain, and let this man go." 
 
 The Tushimell then said to these ferocious savages, " you 
 disobey the command of the Chan ; you shall see what will be 
 the consequence." I'hese words had such an effect upon them, 
 that) I was immediately delivered up to the Tushimell, that he 
 might do with me as he pleased. At this moment the honest 
 Sharap arrived at full gallop, and rescued the Interpreter. 
 
 The Tushimell ordered me to mount behind him, and then 
 hastened away with me in order to overtake those who had 
 marched forward. When we had proceeded a few versts, we 
 were met by a Gatzul, who had scarcely seen me, when he 
 demanded me of the Tushimell, saying, " I have an only 
 brother ; this man shall be my second brother. I will solicit 
 the Chan for him at the end of our march." The Tushimell 
 immediately gave me up to the Gatzull, and continued his 
 march. 
 
 When I found myself alone with the Gatzul, he explained to 
 me why they had killed the two Cossacks, and said that they 
 intended to have treated me in the same way. The Interpreter 
 and I knew these two Cossacks : they had not been treated so 
 
in Tartary. 15 
 
 well as ourselves, having been dragged away on foot. We had 
 not seen them since our captivity, until the evening before their 
 death, when one of them seeing us, called aloud. " Welcome, 
 comrades ; we are now four in number, and may venture to 
 return home." The other Cossack, however, whom we after- 
 wards saw dragged about by the horse, said to his companions, 
 " We need not be in a hurry, comrades, let us rather wait for a 
 more convenient opportunity ; we will then violate the Kalmuc 
 women, take away from the Kalmucs their best horses and 
 arms, and return with our booty."" A Kalmuc who overheard 
 us, contrary to our expectation, understood the Russian lan- 
 guage, and secretly reported this conversation to his countrymen, 
 and it was on this account that they attacked us. 
 
 Towards evening my new benefactor conducted me to his hut, 
 and having introduced me to his mother, who was seventy years 
 of age, and to his brother who had been married but a few 
 months, he said to them — " I have adopted this man as my 
 brother." Then addressing himself to me, he said, " live here in 
 the hut of our mother." A few moments after he left us in order 
 to overtake the Chan, who was in advance with the armed 
 Kalmucs. 
 
 The brother resembled the Gatzul in goodness of disposition, 
 but the wife was the very reverse. The husband was, with very 
 little intermission, engaged night and day in attending to the 
 herds, and whenever he returned for a short time to the hut, he 
 enquired whether I was contented. Although I was not treated 
 in a friendly way, and had very little to eat, yet I did not 
 complain. The good Loosang, however, so my host was called, 
 suffered me to want nothing while he was in the hut. 
 
 I had lived in this manner for some time, when the honest 
 Gatzul returned: his first words to me were, " how fares it 
 with you T"^ I answered, " very well."" The Gatzul, however, 
 enquired of his neighbours how I was treated, and learned 
 the truth. He immediately called his brother to him, and 
 said, " thy wife is a vile creature, and thou art no better, since 
 thou dost not tame her. I introduced this man to thee as my 
 brother, but since thy wife has treated him so ill, I will no 
 longer have any thing to do with thee ; let our effects be divided .'"* 
 
 The representations and entreaties of the brother at length 
 reconciled the Gatzul, who then delivered me up to the care of 
 his aged mother, while he himself returned to the Chan. 
 Loosang, however, was so enraged at his wife for having excited 
 the anger of his brother, that he discarded her, and would have 
 nothing more to say to her. Her relations endeavoured to per- 
 suade him to alter his determination, by saying, that under the 
 present circumstances people ought to conciliate friends, and 
 
14 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 not dismiss them. This reasoning had the desired effect : the 
 brother of the Gatzul again received his discarded wife into 
 his hut. 
 
 I had now passed a month with my new host, marching daily 
 through the Kirghiz Steppes (desert) : the cattle were much 
 fatigued ; for the incessant attacks of the Kirghiz compelled the 
 Kalmucs to fly as speedily as possible. When we arrived at the 
 river Irzich, every one expected that the horde would rest, in 
 order to negociate with the Russians. The Kalmucs themselves 
 were rejoicing at the prospect of returning to Russia, when 
 suddenly a report was spread, that the hordes, which had re- 
 mained on the other side of the Volga, had put themselves in mo- 
 tion, and, having destroyed a number of cities, were likewise 
 fleeing to China. 
 
 " Prince Donderkow," it was reported, " had destroyed Je- 
 natajewsk and Chornoijar, and had already arrived on the Jaik. 
 The Derbatisch Uluss had destroyed Dubowsk, Tzaritzin and 
 Sareptish Colony. Jandyk, the uncle of the Chan, had reduced 
 Astrachan to a heap of ashes, and was approaching with valuable 
 booty. No stanitze (village) on the Volga remains entire.''' 
 This report deprived us of all hopes of returning, and also 
 accelerated our march. I was now too intimidated to make an 
 attempt to escape, being fearful of falhng into the hands of the 
 Kalmucs who were approaching us in the rear. I therefore re- 
 mained with my host. 
 
 It is true I was not so badly treated as at first, but still I was 
 a prisoner, and I longed to return to Russia. Being no longer 
 in fear for my life, I frequently strolled about in the neighbour- 
 hood. In one of these excursions, I went into the ChuruU 
 (convent) of the Lama, and there found two of my former com- 
 rades, who were slaves, one of whom had lost an eye. 
 
 The winter had now passed away, and the days became gra- 
 dually more pleasant, as the spring advanced^ so that I felt 
 very anxious to return to the Volga. The barbarous treat- 
 ment which I endured of two Kalmucs increased my wishes. 
 I was one day, as usual, driving the herd before me, whilst my 
 vile hostess was attending to the laden camels at some distance 
 behind me, when a couple of Kalmucs seeing me, one of them 
 said to the other, " What will you bet, that I do not strike that 
 slave from his horse with a single stroke of my platte ?'''' The 
 other replied, " Nonsense : you cannot do it." The former un- 
 willing to have boasted in vain, immediately struck me so forci- 
 bly over the face, that my eyes appeared to strike fire. " There," 
 said the other, " you see he did not fall. But now you shall see, 
 that I -will have him down." So saying, he took aim with his 
 platte^ and gave me so powerful a blow, that it quite stunned me. 
 
in Tartar^/. 15 
 
 The two Kalmucs then galloped away, and my cruel hostess 
 approaching me, began to scold me, and said, " You worthless 
 fellow, why do you not drive on the sheep ? Do you not sec 
 that the horde have already halted?" I was so enraged at this 
 abusive language, that, could I have procured a gun or a knife, 
 I should probably have laid violent hands on myself. I however 
 resolved to escape, whatever might be the consequence. 
 
 We had already proceeded ten days' journey beyond the 
 Torjai rivers, and expected to rest there for some months, when 
 it was reported that the Russians were approaching. The 
 march was instantly renewed, and we had to traverse for three 
 days a dreary desert, where the water was so foul, that even the 
 cattle refused to drink it. When we had passed this frightful 
 place, we were attacked by the Kirghiz, from whose hands we 
 with difficulty delivered ourselves. This happened in the be- 
 ginning of April, and two days after, I effected my escape in the 
 following manner. 
 
 The nights having already become mild and pleasant, my 
 masters slept in the open air, in order to guard a couple of 
 young camels which had been recently foaled. This circum- 
 stance was to me very favourable, as it gave me an opportunity 
 of providing myself in the hut with necessaries for my journey. 
 I accordingly furnished myself with half a pud of flour, a dozen 
 parcels of tobacco leaves, two legs of mutton, a fat sheep's tail, 
 together with a field kettle to boil the meat in. Besides these I 
 t(X)k seventeen silver rubles, and a dress with silver buttons, 
 which belonged to my hostess. I put them all into a bundle, 
 which I fastened with a rope of camePs hair. Being thus pre- 
 pared, I slung across my shoulders the musket of my host, stole 
 softly out of the hut with the bundle under my arms, and having 
 saddled a bro^vn mare, which was fastened to the outside of the 
 hut, I mounted, and, invoking the protection of heaven, rode 
 slowly from the place. 
 
 The day already began to dawn, and here and there I could 
 perceive people loading their camels, and placing kettles over 
 the fire for tea, but fortunately no one observed me. Not far 
 from the huts I caught a grey mare, and then with my two 
 horses, I galloped at full speecf till I reached the summit of a 
 hill, which was a few versts distant from the camp. I secured 
 the horses at the top of the hill, and then prepared my break- 
 fast. By means of the lock of my gun I procured some fire, 
 which I kept up by Jcob^l grass ; (Stepa pennata) ; I then 
 mixed some flour and water together, and of the dough I formed 
 Churek-cakes, Avhich I baked in the kobyl ashes. While I was 
 thus engaged, I frequently looked towards the camp, and, to my 
 
16 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 great joy, found that the Kalmucs were gradually disappearing, 
 till at length they were entirely out of sight. 
 
 After I had finished my breakfast, which consisted of twelve 
 Churek-cakes, I again mounted my horse, and rode westward. 
 Towards evening I perceived before me, at a great distance, two 
 horsemen, who were evidently approaching me, and, in order to 
 avoid meeting them, I went southward, and made my horses go 
 as fast as they could. AVhen it became dark, I halted, laid my- 
 self down, and slept till day-break. I continued my journey 
 without breakfasting, and about noon again perceived some peo- 
 ple approaching towards me. It was now in vain to avoid them, for 
 they had seen me, and I was persuaded their horses were better 
 than mine. I soon found myself surrounded by seven horsemen, 
 though they were yet at some distance. I at first imagined they 
 w^ere Russians, but I soon perceived by their red dress, and 
 round caps, that I had to contend with Kirghiz. On coming 
 near they gave me to understand by signs that I must throw 
 away my gun. I immediately alighted from my horse, laid 
 down my gun, and retired a few paces. The Kirghiz now 
 alighted also, and took from me every thing I had. They even 
 stripped me of my clothes, and in the room of them gave me a 
 ragged garment which had been thrown away by the Kalmucs. 
 After I had put on this ragged frock, they ordered me to ascend 
 a hill, which was at a short distance, and, having first examined 
 my bundle, they followed me. 
 
 When I reached the top of the hill, I observed a number of huts, 
 and saw many of the Kirghiz, who were collecting their herds ; 
 others were engaged in milking and other employments. The 
 Kirghiz, who had taken me, now made afire, and placed a kettle 
 over it in order to cook some victuals. I was not a little anxious 
 to eat, since I had not taken a morsel since the preceding morn- 
 ing : but how great was my disappointment, when I saw them 
 put but five small sheep's ribs into the kettle, and yet there were 
 more than five persons present who were to partake of this meal. 
 How, thought I, can this sufiice for all of us .^ But, perhaps, 
 there is a sick person in the hut, for whom they are making 
 broth of this meat, surely a second kettle will be placed on the 
 fire. At length the meat being boiled was put into a dish, and, 
 as is also customary with the Kalmucs, was cut into small pieces. 
 They then washed their hands, offered up a prayer according to 
 the Mahometan rites, and then divided the meat among them- 
 selses. Each of them received his little share in a cup, which 
 contained little more than a spoonful, and I had the mortification 
 of viewing them. During the meal, however, they endeavoured 
 to comfort me, promising to take me to Oremburgh, and there 
 
in Tartar y, 17 
 
 deliver me up to a Kirghiz interpreter. Two of them threw me 
 a few morsels of meat : if they had given me the whole meal, 
 it would not have satisfied my hunger. 
 
 I was still expecting to see another kettle, till at last they pre- 
 pared to go to sleep. My feet were now put in irons, and my 
 hands fastened to my neck with ropes, which were drawn so tight, 
 " that I was totally unable to move them. They then obliged me 
 to lie down in the hut, and one of the large felt coverlets, with 
 which their huts are usually covered, was spread over me so as 
 to expose only my head. The seven Kirghiz then laid them- 
 selves around me on the borders of this large covering, to pre- 
 vent my escape during the night. 
 
 I endured indescribable torments during the whole night, 
 owing partly to my fetters^ and partly to the vermin with 
 wliich my covering swarmed, and there was no possibility of rub- 
 bing myself. No one ever wished for day more than I did. In 
 the morning they untied my hands, and divided among them the 
 prece<ling day's booty. I became the share of the chieftain of 
 this banditti ; whose name was Isbossar. The horses, the gun, 
 and the other articles were divided among the rest. I endea- 
 voured to make my master understand by signs, and by using 
 some Russian and Kalmuc words, that he would do well if he 
 would take me to Oremburgh, where he, might be sure of obtain- 
 ing a good ransom for me : but the old man was too cunning to 
 trust to my assertions, and pretended not to know what I meant. 
 
 The Kirghiz fire with lighted tow, and are entirely unac- 
 quainted with the nature of gun-locks ; the Kirghiz, therefore, 
 who had received my musket, was quite amazed at the lock ; I 
 immediately explained to him its use, but he considered his mode 
 of shooting so convenient, that he would not hear of this inno- 
 vation ; he therefore took off the lock, and put it in his wallet. I 
 discovered in this wallet among other things a steel, and I re- 
 solved to take it whenever an opportunity presented itself, as it 
 was indespensably necessary, if, at any future period, I should 
 succeed in making my escape from the Kirghiz. 
 
 These robbers went out daily to plunder, leaving one behind, 
 ill turns, to watch me and to guard the herds. After some days 
 had passed, the Kirghiz who possessed my gun remained at 
 home to watch. I took advantage of a few moments absence of 
 my guard, and opening the wallet, took out the steel, I then- 
 replaced the wallet as before to avoid suspicion, and for want 
 of a better place concealed the steel under one of the patches of 
 my garment. 
 
 A few days after, the Kirghiz wanted something from his 
 wallet, and while he was examining its contents, he said to his 
 companions, " I think there was a steel in my wallet." They 
 
 Voyages and Tr:a.vej.s, Vol. VII. d 
 
18 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 replied, " If such a thing has been in it, it must be there still." 
 The Kirghiz at last yielded, and I congratulated myself that 
 my theft had brought upon me no bad consequences. 
 
 The Kirghiz, whom I had robbed of the steel, had frequent 
 occasion to cut tobacco for his own use, and being myself accus- 
 tomed to tobacco, I always contrived to be near him during this 
 operation, in order to obtain the stalks of the tobacco which he 
 threw away. I was once engaged in picking up the stalks, when 
 suddenly the Kirghiz seized my garment in the very part where 
 the steel was concealed, and tearing off the patch, discovered the 
 theft. " Look," cried he, " you see I was right : I knew that 
 my steel was in the wallet.". Upon this my master came into 
 the hut, and, as my theft was apparent, he immediately seized 
 a piece of wood, and beat me most unmercifully.* Not considering 
 this a sufficient punishment, he took his bow, put an arrow on it, 
 and intending to kill me, aimed directly at my breast. At this in- 
 stant another Kirghiz, with the intention of saving me, laid hold 
 of the bow, when the arrow flew off, and struck me in the left 
 leg just below the knee, where the scar may be seen to this day: 
 From this time I was more narrowly watched than before. They 
 continued also to fasten my hands every night. In the day-time, 
 however, they merely left the irons on my feet. 
 
 Isbossar had three daughters, and two daughters-in-law. 
 According to the custom of the Kirghiz, these females lived 
 in separate huts ; in the day-time, however, they occasionally visit- 
 ed the huts of the men. They repeatedly entreated their father 
 to let me sleep without my hands being tied. " You know,**' said 
 they, " he has irons on his feet ; how is it possible for him to 
 escape .?" The father, however, paid no attention to their /entrea- 
 ties, but continued to tie my hands every night. 
 
 A few weeks after I had suffered such ill-treatment from my 
 master, one of his grand-children, a boy about seven years of age, 
 fell ill. His complaint was the asthma. My master took me 
 to the hut to visit the sick boy, where I found a female Kalmuc 
 seventy years of age, who carried on among the Kirghiz the 
 profession of a sorceress. The Kalmucs themselves are friendly 
 to sorcerers, but the Kirghiz are still more so. Through the 
 medium of this Kalmuc my master addressed me thus : " Thou 
 hast lived among the Russians and Kalmucs ; they have skilful 
 physicians ; thou, therefore, must know a remedy for the disease 
 of my grandson." 
 
 • This barbarous act, together with daily observation, proves the truth of 
 this axiom, namely, that men punish others most severely for those vices 
 and foibles of which they themselves are guilty. The Kirghiz, for instance, 
 punish theft in others although thieving is their profession. 
 
i?i Tartary. 19 
 
 I replied, " Ah ! my good father, I know nothing of the art 
 of heaUng, and if I have formerly known anything of it, my 
 misfortunes have caused me to forget it."*"* The old man upon 
 this pressed me still more, and said, " Do me this only favour : 
 if you recover the health of my grandson, I will then take you to 
 Oremburgh, and give you your liberty." 
 
 This discourse operated on me very powerfully. I at once 
 became a physician, approached the sick bed, felt the pulse of 
 my patient, and desired him to shew me his tongue. I then 
 pretended to reflect on the child's disease, and at last said to the 
 old man, " It is not likely that the remedies which will restore 
 the boy's health can be found here : In Oremburgh there are 
 certainly many remedies to be had, but if you ride there your- 
 self you will not be able to find them, unless you take me with 
 you." The old man, however, was of opinion that Oremburgh 
 was very far, and that several days would elapse before one 
 could possibly return. 
 
 My artifice being unsuccessful, I next ventured to advise 
 a remedy, which at all events could do him no harm. I 
 said therefore to the old man ; " Do not, on any account, allow 
 your grandson the use of milk, but make him some good mutton- 
 broth." I had scarcely uttered these words, when the father of 
 the boy hastened out of the hut, brought in a sheep three years 
 old, and slaughtered it : so that knowledge of medicine procured 
 me at least a good meal. My patient soon began to grow better, 
 and the parents and grandfatner loaded me with caresses. 
 
 Two or three days afterwards I again visited my patient, and 
 found him alone in the hut at the side of a large vessel of sour 
 sheeps' cream, which he was drinking most greedily. I called 
 the mother, and with oaths and curses said to her, " Did I not 
 desire you not to give the boy any milk ? Since you have not 
 obeyed my directions, you will see what will be the consequence." 
 I immediately left the hut, and returned to my own home. 
 
 The next morning I went out as usual with my leathern bag, 
 in order to collect dung for fuel, and presently saw my master 
 riding after me on a camel, " Wassilij," said he, on overtaking 
 me, " have pity ! come along with me ; my grandson is again 
 dangerously ill." I answered, " I assure you I can render him 
 no farther assistance."' The old man, however, would not listen 
 to this, and said, " we have taken from the Truchmenzers three 
 bladders filled with different kinds of medicine ; there may be 
 something amongst them that may be of use in this disease." 
 
 We then went into the hut where the sick child lay. The 
 sorceress, who was then praying with her rosary, sat near the 
 boy, and I witli my fettered legs sat down opposite to her. The 
 
20 Jdventu7'esof Michaihuf 
 
 bladders were brought, and I pretended carefully to examine 
 the medicines. In order to give them a proof of my knowledge 
 of medicine, I took out a drug from amongst the rest which I 
 imagined was bear's gall, and licked it with my tongue. " Why 
 did you Hck that ?" said the sorceress, "it is human gall." I 
 replied as if I did not know it. " In my country people not 
 only lick human gall, but they also dissolve it in brandy and 
 then drink it. But as for this sick boy, neither gall nor any 
 other drug will be of service to him. It is not likely he wall live 
 much longer. They may, however, give him some mare's milk." 
 
 A herd of mares was immediately collected in order to pro- 
 cure for my patient the milk I had ordered for him. While 
 this was doing, the sorceress asked me, " How long do you 
 think the patient has yet to live .?" I immediately asked her, 
 " How long do you think he will live ?" The old woman 
 answered in a low tone of voice, " I think he will live a month, 
 or longer."" I replied in a loud voice, " If he does not die this 
 evening, he will die to-morrow morning."" 
 
 In less than an hour my prediction was fulfilled. I was sit- 
 ting at the entrance of the hut, when my old master came totter- 
 ing along with great lamentations, supported by two of his 
 children. In order to shew him my sympathy, I secretly wetted 
 my eyes with spittle, and then rose up and approached him. 
 They brought with them a copper kettle with some warm water 
 in it, and having washed the body of the child, they enveloped it 
 in a white frock. Having done this, they immediately carried 
 the corpse to the burying place, which was about twenty versts 
 distant from our huts. 
 
 It was dark when they returned from the funeral; and all 
 prepared for sleep. Isbossar, who, during the illness of his 
 grandson, had treated me more humanely than before, now tied 
 my hands again so tightly, that I could hardly endure the pain. 
 " Why do you do so, Isbossar?" said I. The old man an- 
 swered, " 1 miss a saddle girdle, and I suspect you." This 
 however, was an idle pretext. He thought, probably, that I had 
 neglected his grandson, or that I was meditating my escape. 
 
 The following day was appointed for the funeral feast, which 
 was extremely welcome to me, because I could reckon on satis- 
 fying my hungry stomach. Several sheep were slaughtered on 
 the occasion, and the guests had full dishes placed before them. 
 Although I was shut up in the hut, lest I should escape during 
 the feast, yet the inmates and the guests gave me so much cut 
 meat, that I had not only enough for the present, but saved a 
 whole dish for the following day, which I carefully concealed in 
 a corner of the hut. 
 
%n Tartar y, 21 
 
 In order to provide myself in future with as good meals as I 
 had had for the last two days, I hit upon a stratagem, which 
 completely succeeded. It is the custom of the Kirghiz to sepa- 
 rate the lambs from their dams during the night, and to fasten 
 the former to the huts, where they remain until the sheep are 
 milked in the morning. (They drank more sheeps' milk than 
 that of any other animal.) Without going outside the hut, I 
 every night strangled a lamb, or killed it by pushing it forcibly 
 against the wall of the hut, which I readily accompHshed by 
 thursting out my hands through the openings of the hut. The 
 Kirghiz on going out found every morning a dead lamb at the 
 side of the hut, and as they, like the Kalmucs, never eat the flesh 
 of animals that have died a natural death, they left these dead 
 lambs for me, and gave me a separate kettle, that I might cook 
 in it this impure meat, as they conceived it to be. 
 
 They all thought a disease had befallen the herd, and resorted 
 to sorcery and other means to guard against the calamity. 
 
 As I had now no longer occasion to complain of hunger, and 
 having in the course of one year, which I had passed with 
 the Kirghiz, become accustomed to my chains, my fate appeared 
 to me more tolerable than at first My only fear now was lest 
 my master should sell me to some other Kirghiz, with whom I 
 might not be so well off' as with him. For this reason I requested 
 the old Kalmuc sorceress to let me know, if ever my master 
 should intimate to her that he intended to sell me. The old 
 woman always replied, " Ah ! there is no question about it : and 
 if he should have such a design, I will let you know.'' 
 
 In spite of these assurances, however, this cursed woman was 
 not sincere, for she daily encouraged my master to get rid of me 
 as soon as possible. " For what pui-pose," said she one day to 
 him, " do you keep this man .? your grandson is dead ; your 
 Jambs diminish every day ; he evidently brings nothing but mis- 
 fortune into the house : rather sell him." By this discourse she 
 prevailed upon the old man to send his two sons to find a buyer. 
 
 In the meantime I became acquainted with another female 
 Kalmuc, who made boots : I frequently visited her in order to 
 drink a cup of mare's milk, or to have a little chat with her. 
 The day on which my master's sons rode away, I called upon 
 this acquaintance with my leathern bag filled with dung, and 
 putting down my load seated myself at her side. " Do you not 
 know," said she, " where the two sons of your master are gone ?" 
 I anwered, " How should I know .?" " Poor fellow,*' said she, 
 " Why do you not endeavour to escape from this place "^ 
 Women undertake it, and you will not." I replied, " How 
 can I accomplish it, since my feet are fettered T' " As if," said 
 
^{J . Adventures of Miclbailow 
 
 she, " the fetters could not be loosened : there," continued she, 
 " t^ke this pike head, and force the lock of your fetters with 
 it; but conceal it carefully, lest it should be discovered. If, 
 however, you do not make your escape very soon, you will 
 be carried away ; for your master''s sons are gone to procure a 
 purchaser."" 
 
 I immediately returned home with the iron, and had I been 
 inclined to doubt the truth of the intelligence given me by this 
 good Kalmuc, I had now an opportunity of convincing myself of 
 her honesty. The old sorceress came sneaking to my master, while 
 I was lying at the side of the hut, pretending to sleep. I had 
 learned sufficient of the Kirghiz language to enable me to un- 
 derstand that I was the object of their conversation. I therefore 
 listened the more attentively, and was perfectly convinced of the 
 faithlessness of the old woman, and the integrity of the other. I 
 therefore determined this very night to try every expedient, in 
 order, if possible, to effect my escape. 
 
 We all laid ourselves down for the night. I lay in a corner 
 with fettered feet, and my hands fastened as usual, and thought 
 of nothing but flight. When the Kirghiz had fallen asleep, 1 
 untied the string with which my hands were fastened, and took 
 hold of the iron which I had received, in order to force open the 
 padlock of my fetters. I had already begun to work when the 
 sheep on the outside of the hut became very unquiet, and the 
 young people ran out to see what was the matter. After their 
 return no one thought any longer of sleep. What could I do .'* 
 I now contrived, but with the greatest difficulty, to fasten my 
 hands again with the help of my teeth, that in the morning no 
 one might perceive that they had been loosened. Morning at 
 length came and every one went to his customary occupation, and 
 I also went to mine. Towards evening the old man's sons re- 
 turned, and immediately held a secret conversation with their 
 father, the purport of which I could easily guess. 
 
 On the following morning I took my leathern bag as usual in 
 order to gather dung. The old man had already risen and was 
 sitting before his hut. He addressed me in a more friendly tone 
 than usual saying, '* Wassilij, why do you go out so early ^ Do 
 you not perceive that the hoar frost is still lying on the dung .? 
 Drink a cup of Arjan,* before you go out." 
 
 I knew very well what this civility meant ; and I merely s^d, 
 *' It is likely to get very warm at a later hour, and I shall then 
 find it more difficult to walk about in my irons."" 
 
 * The Kirghiz Tartarish name of a sour milk beverage. 
 
in Tartary. 2S 
 
 *' Never mind,^' said the old man ; " stay a little longer." I 
 accordingly threw down my bag and went into the hut ; I had not 
 long been there, when a strange Kalmuc arrived on horseback, 
 who, I afterwards learned, had been carried off in his youth by 
 the Kirghiz, and, though he had at first lived as a slave among 
 them, had now obtained his freedom from his rich master, with 
 whom, however, he still lived. 
 
 My Master now said to me, " Wassilij, I have a brother, who 
 is much richer than I am, possessing perhaps 5000 sheep. One 
 of his labourers is ill, and as I can do without thee for some time, 
 I will send you to my brother, and you may remain with him 
 until the health of the labourer is re-established. His illness is not 
 dangerous, and in ten days you will probably be here again.'' I 
 replied, " Why dost thou lie, Isbossar ? I can guess thy in- 
 tention. Thou hast sold me. Is it not so .?" 
 
 Instead of returning any answer, they took the irons from my 
 feet, placed me on a horse, and having fastened my feet under 
 the belly of the horse, drove me away. I was so enraged at Is- 
 bossar and the old sorceress, that I could have murdered them 
 both ; and I assailed them with abuse and curses as long as they 
 could hear me. 
 
 The two sons of the old man accompanied me and the strange 
 Kalmuc, until towards noon, when we stopped at a Kirghiz hut to 
 rest. The walls of the hut were hung with hides of wolves 
 and foxes, by which one could judge of the landlord's predilection 
 for hunting. After we had remained here for two hours, our 
 two companions returned, and I was compelled to mount the 
 horse again and follow the stranger. 
 
 Towards evening we reached the hut where we were expected. 
 The master came out half dressed, with a pointed cap on his 
 head, and gazing at me for some time, said to my conductor, 
 " What black devil of a fellow is this ? Is this the appearance of 
 a Russian ?" 
 
 My conductor, who had, in the meantime taken off the saddles 
 from the horses, replied, " With whom do you quarrel ? Did 
 you not make the bargain yourself .^^ Another time look before 
 you buy." 
 
 Kinshall (which was the name of my new master) then led me 
 into the hut, and asked me, " Of what country are you T^ I an- 
 swered him impertinently, " Why do you ask .? You believed 
 the other people before you saw me, believe now that I came 
 from the country they named to you. Had you asked me before, 
 I should most likely have given you a different answer." The 
 Kirghiz then asked how old I was.? Although I had but just 
 attained my thirtieth year, I purposely added fifteen years to my 
 age. The Kirghiz was so eni'aged when he discovered, as he 
 
^ Adventures of MkJtailotP 
 
 thought, that they had cheated him, that he appeared to be 
 beside himself. 
 
 That very evening my master assembled some Kirghiz of rank, 
 related to them the particulars of this fradulent bargain, and 
 asked them whether he could not oblige Isbossar to take back 
 his slave ? They maintained unanimously that the bargain, having 
 been once concluded, could not be made void ; but they gave it 
 as their opinion, that as Isbossar had cheated him, he might now 
 try to cheat some one else. The assembly hg^ving dispersed, 
 Kinshall put me in irons, took one of his three wives, and lay 
 down to rest. 
 
 On the following morning my master began to make prepa^ 
 rations for a long journey, and the young women and girls, who 
 were in his service, treated me with some sour sheep-cream. 
 " Poor fellow !" said they, " he will now be carried far away." 
 The journey, however, did not take place this day. But the 
 next morning my master ordered me to mount a horse, under the 
 belly of which he fastened my feet, and immediately began his 
 journey. We were accompanied by two Karakalpaks. For 
 nine days we rode southward, and on the tenth we reached 
 the Sea of Aral, where we halted for the remainder of the day, 
 and regaled ourselves with some cheese made of sheeps' milk. 
 This had been our only food during the journey ; sometimes we 
 eat it in a dry state, at other times we dissolved it in water. 
 
 At the place where we halted were three or four bushes, a few 
 yards distant from each other, and under these we rested. But 
 I was unable to sleep and thought only of escaping to Russia. 
 The Karakalpaks, however, slept ; and my master lay down and 
 closed his eyes. I considered this the most favourable opportu- 
 nity for making my escape, and resolved to take advantage of it 
 immediately, should I even be under the necessity of committing 
 murder. My master's girdle, to which the key of my fetters was 
 attached, was laid under his head : as I could not draw away the 
 girdle without awakening my master, I considered it most safe to 
 cut his throat. I then intended to take our horses and escape to 
 the Russian frontiers. I had already crept softly to my master, 
 and with one hand had seized the handle of the knife which was 
 fastened to his girdle, and held the sheath in the other, when the 
 pretended sleeper suddenly seized my hands, and cried with a 
 loud voice, "Help! help!" The Karakalpaks hastened to the 
 spot, and having torn off my rags, they all three covered my 
 whole body with the repeated stripes of their plattes, so that not 
 a spot about me remained untouched. They then mounted 
 their horses, and obliged me to run before them naked and on 
 foot. The country about the lake of Aral is a barren heath. 
 The heat of the sun was excessive, and the ground so intensely 
 
in Tartary. S(5 
 
 hot, that my feet were absolutely scorched. I at last fell down 
 upon my knees overcome with extreme pain, but was again com- 
 pelled to walk by the whips of my conductors. The pain which 
 I endured was indescribable. I prayed to God that he would by 
 death put an end to my sufferings : but my prayers w^ere not 
 answered. The following morning, however, I obtained my 
 horse again. 
 
 After eleven days journey along the lake of Aral, which was 
 on our left, we reached the mouth of the river Darja, which runs 
 into it, and here again we halted. On the following day we 
 passed a large wall, built of red bricks. At regular distances 
 there were turrets which projected from the walls, and which 
 were painted with a variety of colours. The dimensions of this 
 wall, which formed a square, within which were several buildings, 
 amounted in appearance to about half a verst. I enquired of the 
 Karakalpaks to whom the building belonged, and they said it 
 was so old that they knew nothing of it. 
 
 The banks of the Darja are inhabited by Karakalpaks, who, 
 like the Kirghiz and Kalmucs, lead a wandering life. Two days 
 journey from the mouth of the Darja was the hut of the two 
 Karakalpaks who accompanied us, where we alighted. My 
 master remained here and sent me forward with the other tAvo to 
 a neighbouring Karakalpak village, where they hoped to sell me. 
 
 The next morning a fat Karakalpak came to our hut on liorse- 
 back to look at me, and if I suited him to purchase me. After 
 having examined me, he said, " How can this black fellow be a 
 Russian .?' The others rephed, " All the Russians on the Volga 
 are black. The white Russians live near the Yaik."" 
 
 I then rose from my place, approached the Karakalpak, and 
 stroking his horse, admired its beauty. " I have many such,^' 
 said the Karapalkak. '' In my country," I replied, " people are 
 contented with few horses ; I am of Truchmenz origin, and ray 
 relations live in Persia." 
 
 I had scarcely uttered these words, when the Karakalpak 
 stared at me, and after looking at me for some time, without 
 saying a word, he turned his horse and galloped away. 
 
 I conceived that I had acted very wisely, and did not suspect 
 what would be the consequence. I imagined that when these 
 people knew that I was a Russian, the Kirghiz would take me 
 back again, and that when I was once more with the Kirghiz, it 
 would not be difficult at a future period to make my escape. 
 But it will soon appear how much I had been deceived in my 
 expectations. 
 
 The Karakalpaks returned with me to their habitation, and 
 whilst I went into the hut, they conversed with my master in a 
 low tone of voice. I had not been in the hut long, when my 
 
 Voyages and Teavels, Vol. VII. e 
 
S6 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 master entered as furious as a madman, and struck me with a pair 
 of iron horse-fetters, as if he intended to kill me. I was exposed 
 to his ill-treatment the whole of the day, and in the evening he 
 fettered me by binding my hands to my back, and fastening me to 
 a railed wall, so that I was unable to move. I then said to him 
 " Have you no fear of God, since you thus treat me ?" But the 
 barbarian struck me so violently on my face with his platte, that 
 he knocked out one of my teeth. If at that moment I had had a 
 knife in my hands, I should most certainly have put an end to 
 my existence. The Karakalpaks, men, women, and children, 
 who sat around me, all laughed at my wretched condition. 
 This behaviour hurt my feelings more than all the rest. 
 
 After passing the night in this painful situation, I was the next 
 morning again beaten by my cruel master. The Karakalpaks at 
 length advised him to take me to Kizoa for sale : he and the two 
 Karakalpaks therefore mounted their horses, and I was obliged 
 to accompany them on foot. 
 
 We passed the night in the Steppe, and the next day crossed 
 the Darja. My master now ordered me to mount the horse, and 
 said to me, " Wassilij, I will either sell you or exchange you, but 
 when you are questioned, say you are a Russian and but twenty- 
 five years of age." I replied, " I will tell the truth ; I will say 
 that I am a Persian, and that I am forty- five years of age." My 
 master then said very coolly, " Do as you please : but do not 
 think I shall take you back again. If you persist in your obsti- 
 nacy, I will cut you in pieces. I shall only lose four camels, and 
 two tabunes* of mares. You now know my resolution.*" 
 
 There being no market-day at Kiwa, my master alighted at 
 the house of an acquaintance, whom he had by chance met in 
 the street. During summer and autumn the Kiwenses, like the 
 Kalmucs and Kirghiz, live in temporary huts, which they 
 usually erect near their corn-fields and meadows : the other part 
 of the year they live in houses of brick. The town itself is 
 surrounded by walls of brick. 
 
 In the house at which we alighted, we were hospitably re- 
 ceived and treated with Churek-cakes. For some time my mas- 
 ter and his friend conversed in a low tone of voice. The two 
 Karakalpaks soon after arose, and mounting their horses, left 
 my master with our host, whose name was Ishmjas, and whose 
 two brothers lived with him, the youngest of whom was not 
 married. As I was not wanted in the hut, I went out ; took 
 my saddle and placed it under a tree, and slept there till sun- 
 set. When I awoke, the wives and sisters of the household 
 
 A tabune contains from ten to twelve mares. 
 
in Tartary. J87 
 
 came to see me, pitied and endeavoured to comfort me, and 
 gave me some Churek-cakes, which I ate with avidity. 
 
 My master passed the night in the house, and on the follow- 
 ing day he said to me, " I shall exchange you in this house for 
 another slave : you have no doubt seen in our way, not far 
 hence, near the little river Atalik, a grove : I v\ ill there wait 
 for you. Try to escape as soon as possible, and then we will 
 return together, and at some future period I will take you to 
 Oremburgh."" I made no reply to this proposition, but merely 
 spit on the ground. 
 
 In Kiwa the Russian slaves are considered more valuable than 
 the Persians. For this reason our landlord gave in exchange 
 for me a young Persian named Safor and two Bucharian dresses. 
 In order to terminate the exchange according to the Kiwa cus- 
 tom, the most respectable people of the town were invited to a 
 feast, which consisted of mutton and Plow.* " This Russian," 
 said my new master, " I have received from Kinshal in exchange 
 for Safor, and I have invited you, that you may all know it."''* 
 
 One of the company wondered at my brown complexion, but 
 Kinshal quickly replied, that this was the appearance of all 
 the Russians on the Volga, and the upright Kiwcnses by no 
 means doubted the truth of this assertion. I said nothing, and 
 Kinshal was so satisfied with me, that he gave me his whole 
 dish of Plow. He soon after saddled his horses, and returned 
 home with his new slave, 
 
 I had now the most humane master in the world : he con- 
 ducted me about his house, and made me acquainted with every 
 new object. The Kiwenses support themselves partly by manu- 
 factures and commerce, and partly by cultivatmg their fields, 
 which furnish them with rice, millet, and wheat. IVly master 
 and his family were employed in all these branches. A small 
 piece of ground provided them abundantly with rice and com. 
 The women spun yarn, of which they made linen. Whatever they 
 acquired by their industry was exchanged for cattle and dif- 
 ferent kinds of merchandize, and these again were bartered for 
 other necessary articles. I had only some trifling domestic work to 
 do, except that I occasionally assisted my master and his bro- 
 thers in cultivating the land. In short I could not have desired 
 to live more comfortably, but nevertheless I longed to go to 
 Russia. During night I dreamed of nothing but the Jriends I 
 had left there, that I conversed with them on the most agreeable 
 subjects, walked with them through the town, and was enter- 
 
 • A well known Asiatic dish, made of rice and butter, or grease. The 
 Europeans spell it Pilau : bull follow the Tartarian pronunciation and write 
 it Plow. 
 
28 Adventures of Michaihw 
 
 tained by them at their houses. But when I awoke, and found 
 myself in a Kiwense hut, my sorrow was very great. 
 
 My master had two horses, some cows and sheep, which were 
 sent to pasture in common with the cattle of the neighbours, 
 and each of the owners alternately provided a person to guard 
 them. I had lived three months with my new master, when the 
 boy, who used to guard our cattle, fell sick, so that another was 
 to be sent in his stead. " Wassilij,'' said my master, " our herds- 
 man is ill : if he should not be better in eight or ten days, I will 
 provide another herdsman : however, to-morrow you will drive 
 our cattle to the pasture." 
 
 Having received from my hostess three Churek-cakes, I 
 mounted one of the horses, and leading the other by the hand, 
 drove the herd into the field. Not far from the town, I unex- 
 pectedly met another herdsman whom I knew, and who was 
 driving his sheep to the pasture : we agreed to guard our herds 
 together, and as he was on foot, I gave up my other horse to 
 him. About a verst and a half beyond us I perceived a lake, 
 and, being very thirsty, I left the whole of the herd to the 
 care of my companion, and rode to the lake: When I had 
 reached it, I alighted, took some water in my hands and drank, 
 and then wetted one of my Churek-cakes and ate it. The 
 herdsman remaining much longer behind than I expected, I 
 was riding back to meet him, when 1 was met by two Tartars. 
 I enquired if they had seen a boy upon a grey horse. The 
 Tartars replied; " We have seen a boy not far off whose horse 
 has run away." While the Tartars were speaking, the boy 
 came running to me almost breathless, and related to me the 
 accident. His horse, he said, had become shy, and, having 
 neither saddle nor bridle, he was unable to manage it and had 
 been thrown off. I left the boy to take care of the herd, and 
 rode away in search of the horse. Supposing it had run back 
 to the stable, I galloped home, but the horse was not there. I 
 then suspected it had returned to its former owner, a Karakal- 
 pak, of whom my master had lately purchased it, and as he did 
 not hve far from the town, I hastened there to make enquiries 
 for it. 
 
 As the Karakalpaks lived towards the west, and I must take 
 that direction, if I returned to Russia, the thought suddenly 
 occurred to me, that it was now possible to make my escape. 
 Without much reflection, I hastened forwards, and rode about 
 thirty versts without halting, till at length I reached the river 
 Ataltk^ and the grove which had been pointed out to me by my 
 late Kirghiz master. I rested here till towards evening, and was 
 preparing to continue my journey, when I saw before me three 
 Karakalpaks, who were leading two loaded horses. These Ka- 
 
in Tartars/. 99 
 
 rakalpaks, I had no doubt, carried merchandize, which they 
 intended to sell to the Kirghiz. " If you tell them," thought I, 
 " that you have escaped from your master to seek the service of 
 another, they will take you with them, and will sell you to the 
 Kirghiz, from whom you can easily make your escape." Ac- 
 cordingly, when I overtook the Karakalpaks, I pretended that I 
 Jiad been compelled to leave my master, because he was a miser, 
 and would not allow his servants enough to eat. 
 
 The Karalcalpaks listened to me without making any reply. 
 At last one of them desired me to alight, and having himself 
 mounted my horse, he rode towards a distant Karakalpak vil- 
 lage, and the other two made me follow on foot. We slept in 
 the Steppe during the night, and on the following day about 
 noon we arrived at the Karakalpak village, where the other Ka- 
 rakalpak was waiting for us. The three Karakalpaks, who in- 
 tended to rest here for the day, said to each other, "If we take 
 this slave farther with us, \^e may pay dearly for it : we had 
 better deliver him up to the magistrate of the village, that he 
 may be restored to his master.'' 
 
 I had scarcely heard these words when I devised a plan, by 
 which I might extricate myself from this dilemma. I hastened 
 to the magistrate of the place, and told him as well as I was 
 able, that I was a Russian slave, and that my master lived at 
 Kiwa, and was called Ishnijas : I added, that I had the day 
 before lost a grey horse, which my master had lately bought, 
 and that while I was searching for the horse, I overtook three 
 Karakalpaks, and asked them if they had seen my horse ? who 
 replied, " What do we care about your horse, come along with 
 us ; we will sell you to the Kirghiz." That they then dragged me 
 from my horse and beat me most unmercifully : that then one 
 of them mounted my horse and rode forwards to this place, 
 while I followed with his two comrades on foot : and that I was 
 now come before him to make my complaint. 
 
 The judge was well pleased with my behaviour, said he knew 
 my master, and that he would send to Kiwa to acquaint him 
 w^ith what had happened. He fulfilled his promise, and on the 
 following day towards evening, my master amved with his 
 second brother : the brother proceeded immediately to the Karar- 
 kalpak judge, in whose house I then was, and when he saw 
 me, he said, " Wassilij, how have you come hither .^" I related to 
 him circumstantially my invented narrative, and having con- 
 cluded it, he took me to his brother, who was in a neighbour- 
 ing hut He had slaughtered a sheep, and was just preparing 
 supper when we arrived. He caused me to relate my story once 
 more : the good man sincerely pitied me, and said in a concilia- 
 tory manner, " You simpleton, why did you not return home .'* 
 
30 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 the accident could not be remedied : Why were you afraid ? If 
 the Usbecks, who you know live by plunder, had found you, 
 they would certainly have carried you ofF.*" He then took from 
 his Wallet two cakes, which he gave me to eat, while the supper 
 was preparing. 
 
 The next morning, before we returned home, my master sum- 
 moned the three Karakalpaks before the magistrate : the magis- 
 trate reproached them with their crime, which he said was 
 punishable. Although the Karakalpaks declared their inno- 
 cence, yet my report seemed so probable, nobody would believe 
 them. When they found that all their asseverations were un- 
 availing, they promised to appear at Kiwa at the next sitting of 
 the judges, in order to clear themselves of the accusation. 
 
 It had already grown dark when we reached home. Our 
 hostesses came to meet us on the road. They rejoicecj at 
 my return, and said in an endearing manner, " O you poor 
 Wassilij ; surely you must have suffered hunger with the Kara- 
 kalpaks." The eldest then took me by the hand, and con- 
 ducted me to the hut, where supper was now ready. 
 
 The sessions of the magistrates happening two days after- 
 wards, the Karakalpaks did not fail to make their appearance. 
 They related the occurrence to the magistrates, and swore by 
 heaven and hell they had told the truth : but my deposition, 
 being supported by my master, prevailed. The Karakalpaks 
 were accordingly ordered to pay a fine of one sheep and four 
 pieces of gold each worth about 2^ silver rubles. 
 
 The summer months had nearly passed away, and autumn 
 approached, without my having had another opportunity of 
 escaping, when, one day, in the month of September, my mas- 
 ter's wives came running to me, and said, " Wassilij, Wassilij, 
 the Kirghiz have brought hither a countryman of yours : come 
 quickly !" I at first thought they were mocking me ; neverthe- 
 less, I went out, but did not expect to see a Russian. A man 
 with a long black beard, and wearing a round Tartarian cap, 
 was then shewn to me : he appeared to me to be a Kirghiz, or 
 some other Tartar. They desired me to address him in the 
 Russian language, and in compliance with their request, I ap- 
 proached the man, and said in Russian, " Welcome, brother !'' 
 The supposed Tartar immediately took off his cap, and replied, 
 " Welcome, brother !"*' I was now convinced he was a Russian, 
 and had so many questions to put to him, that I knew not with 
 which to begin. 
 
 He at last told me his name was Fedor Chimodanow^ and 
 that he had been a kettle-drummer in the Dragoon regiment at 
 Oremburgh. " One Saturday," he said, " I ordered the land- 
 lord to make a fire, in order to heat some broth, ^vhile I went 
 
iu Tartary. 3 1 
 
 some versts from the town, to examine a field of carrots, and 
 to mow some grass; while I was thus employed two Kirghiz 
 attacked me and carried me off." I enquired if he had left any 
 children behind him. He replied with a flood of tears, " I 
 have left a son of fourteen years of age behind me."" At this 
 intelligence I burst into tears myself. 
 
 Our hostess now called me to supper, and I left the Russian 
 with these words, " Would to God you were sold here ! We 
 would then visit each other daily, and try if we could not de- 
 vise some plan for our escape.'" My wish was in part fulfilled, 
 for Chimodanow was sold to a soap-boiler in Kiwa. We often 
 visited each other, and spoke of our intended flight. But alas ! I 
 soon perceived that my new friend belonged to that class of men, 
 who are not deficient in words, but who want abilities and energy 
 of mind to put their plan into execution. When T represented 
 to him the difficulty of wandering through a barren Steppe 
 without water and without food, he answered, " Oh, as to that, 
 I can content myself with some dry groats, and we can find 
 water every second or third day, as I remarked on my way 
 hither." I replied, " But shall you be able to find the road again, by 
 which you came hither .?" He assured me that nothing was easier. 
 
 However absurd Chimodanow's speeches were, my wish to 
 escape engrossed my attention so much that I was determined to 
 make the attempt, even with such an unsafe companion. We 
 therefore agreed to make our escape as soon as possible. 
 
 While I was occupied with these schemes, it was my master's 
 principal aim to secure my affection by his kindness. He treated 
 me as his friend ; left me alone in his warehouses night and day, 
 without, in the slightest degree, doubting my honesty. He 
 xlressed me decently, and gave me plenty of food, yet I was 
 determined to leave him as soon as possible. Towards the end 
 of autumn, he proposed my marrying a Kiwense woman. " I will 
 give you,"" said he, " sixty sheep ; and you may either sell them, 
 or allow them to breed : I will, moreover, give you ten pieces of 
 gold, on condition that you take a wife and continue among us." 
 
 In order to get rid of the importunities of my master, I re- 
 quested he would allow me to wait two or three years longer, 
 that I might have time to become better acquainted with the 
 language of the country. " If a Kiwense wife is given me now, 
 I shall not understand what she says, nor will she understand 
 me. Like dumb people, we shall be obliged to converse with 
 our fingers."" My master yielded to my entreaties ; but I was so 
 much alarmed at the thoughts of marrying a Kiwense, that 
 I immediately went to Chimodanow, and having agreed to escape 
 with him that very evening, I promised to call for him at a 
 certain hour. 
 
32 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 On my return home, some companions, with whom I used al- 
 ternately to guard the workshops of our master at night, invited 
 me to eat some Plow with them ; but I excused myself by pre- 
 tending I had a violent head-ache, went into my little clay-hut, 
 which was in the yard, and prepared for the journey. I took 
 some victuals, which I rolled in a felt mantle, fastened it with a 
 string, and about midnight went to Chimodanow. I knocked at 
 his hut, which was at a short distance from the habitation of his 
 master ; but alas ! my knocking was in vain ; for nothing was to 
 be heard or seen of Chimodanow. At length the day approached, 
 and I was obliged to return home. 
 
 The next morning I was asked whether I felt better, and 
 assuring them, with a " Thank God," that I was, I was sent to 
 the pasture with sixty sheep, that had been purchased the evening 
 before. I guarded these sheep till the evening, and when I was 
 driving them home, it occurred to me, that I might reserve one of 
 them for myself, as it would serve us for provision on our journey. 
 Having no knife with me, I strangled one, and hid it in a heap of 
 straw, adjoining the place. The rest of the sheep I drove home, 
 and folded in the yard, and the next morning, they were ex- 
 changed for merchandize. On exchanging them, it was naturally 
 discovered, that one of the sheep was wanting, but so far was my 
 master from suspecting my dishonesty, that he concluded the 
 sheep must have been stolen from the yard during the night : 
 consequently, I was not censured, nor even questioned about it. 
 
 I went in the morning to see Chimodanow, and having re- 
 proached him for his negligence, desired him to be in readiness in 
 the evening, or I should no longer wait for him. I returned 
 home, andj towards evening, having filled an earthen jug with 
 groats, I went, unobserved, to Chimodanow. When I reached the 
 place, he was just in the act of throwing something heavy from the 
 roof of his hut, by which he overbalanced himself and fell with 
 it. Fortunately for Chimodanow the roof was not high, and he 
 escaped unhurt. " What do you mean to do,'*" said I, " with 
 this large piece of linen ? " " Don't you know, brother," said 
 Chimodanow, " that it sells for twenty-five copeks the arshin ? " 
 I could not help smiling at the simplicity of my companion, and 
 said to him, " Rather invoke heaven, that we may rescue our 
 bodies from captivity, and do not concern yourself about such 
 trifles." It was with the utmost difficulty, however, that I pre- 
 vailed upon the silly man to leave the linen behind him. When 
 he had packed up his other travelling requisites we commenced 
 our journey. The day began to dawn when we left the town. 
 We were, therefore, under the necessity of creeping under some 
 ruins near the town, and waiting there until it grew dark. We 
 had scarcely reached this place, when Chimodanow began to com- 
 
in Tartar^. 33 
 
 plain of hunger. I endeavoured to quiet him, but his complaints 
 became more and more tiresome. " If you have nothing else/' 
 he said, "give me, at least, some dry groats, to satisfy my 
 hunger." This murmuring was extremely unpleasant to me. It 
 seemed as if some evil genius had encumbered me with this 
 troublesome man : but what could I do ? The flight was be^un 
 and must be persevered in. I reached him the pot, and the 
 hungry glutton eat of the dry groats with the same appetite as a 
 horse eats his oats. 
 
 The sun set, and we left our retreat. When we had proceeded 
 two or three versts, we came to a deserted tile-kiln and hut, near 
 which was a small pit of rain-water. " Brother Wassilij," said 
 my companion, " let us rest here a little, and take something 
 warm." I replied, " Fedor, what strange ideas you have ! We 
 have scarcely left Kiwa, and you already require that we should 
 rest, and make a fire. Have you lost your senses." But all re- 
 monstrance was in vain . Chimodanow persisted in his request, 
 and I was obliged to yield to his obstinacy. 
 
 We entered the tiler's hut and made a fire. I then emptied 
 the groats out of the earthen pot, and filled it up with water, in 
 order to boil in it the intestines of our sheep, but the heat liad 
 scarcely raised a scum on the surface, when the bottom of the pot 
 cracked and fell to pieces, and left our meat in the ashes. In 
 order, however, to save some of the meat, I wished to roast it on 
 the ashes, but my companion maintained it would be eatable 
 without. " But the meat,"" said I, " is still raw.'*' Chimodanow, 
 however, was not inclined to wait ; and, quite unabashed, eat 
 greedily of it as it was, crying out, " Hot meat is never raw." 
 
 Having finished our repast, I packed up the remainder of 
 our sheep, and continued my journey with my troublesome 
 companion. We travelled till we came near the town of Kip- 
 chag, which is about twenty versts from Kiwa ; I then pro- 
 posed keeping on the left of the town, that none of the 
 inhabitants might sec us, but Chimodanow resisted my proposi- 
 tion. We might, I told him., get into the high road again, on 
 the other side of the town. " No, brother, no," said he, " that 
 will not do, for I am dying of thirst." " But where will you 
 procure water ? for there is none to be found here." " On my 
 journey," he replied, " I saw some behind yonder trees." *' Go 
 then," said I, ••' and guzzle away : surely Satan must have tied 
 me to such a fellow as you !" 
 
 We went to the water, and Chimodanow drank most greedily ; 
 but I merely wetted my mouth. I then urged my companion to 
 hasten forwards, fearing we might fall into the hands of Kipcha- 
 ghers. " At least," said I, " let us go on till we reach the river 
 Atalik : there we may conceal ovirselves in the wood for several 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII. p 
 
S4i Adventures of Mkhailow 
 
 days; but for the present, we must make all the haste we can."" 
 The lazy fellow replied, " I should like to sleep a little here :'' 
 so saying, he threw off his boots, spread his upper garment on 
 the ground, made a pillow of his bundles, and lay down. One 
 would have thought he had just returned from a long journey, 
 and had entered his warm room, there to forget the fatigues he 
 had endured. Chimodanow soon began to snore, while I, with 
 my head reclining on my arm, listened to the continued noise of 
 the neighbouring town, which was, at that time, involved in civil 
 war. However, being at last overpowered, I fell asleep. 
 
 On waking in the morning, I found myself surrounded by a 
 number of people ; and, looking about for Chimodanow, saw him 
 fettered. I too was immediately fettered and conducted with my 
 companion to Kipchag ; there we were thrown into prison, where 
 we were obliged to pass the night. Meanwhile, the elders of 
 Kipchag had sent to the neighbouring towns to make it known, 
 that having caught two run-away slaves, the owners might come 
 and claim them. The next day, in the afternoon, my master's 
 second brother and the soap-boiler arrived and claimed us. Chi- 
 modanow 's master conducted me, and my master's brother con- 
 ducted Chimodanow. I alighted before the habitation of my 
 master, and there sat down. An inhabitant of Kiwa, who had 
 paid a visit to my master, on his going away, entreated him to do 
 me no harm. " All slaves," said he, " wish to be free. Pardon, 
 therefore, his attempt to escape." 
 
 When this humane Kiwense was gone, my master came out of 
 his habitation, and taking from under his garment a small whip, 
 lifted it up to strike me. But the women came running out of 
 the house, tore the whip from him, and threw it into the yard. 
 My master then returned into the house, and desired his youngest 
 brother to go and procure foot-irons. The wom.en then conducted 
 me into the hut, and the oldest of them brought a large dish full 
 of Plow and meat, and set it before me. I pretended to be 
 ashamed, and refused to eat. The hostess then said to the others, 
 " He is ashamed, and will not eat ; let us go away :" she then 
 took away the light. Having eaten almost nothing for two days, 
 I immediately seized the dish, and not only emptied it, but even 
 licked it, and then placed it on the table. 
 
 A few moments afterwards, a Persian boy, in the service of my 
 master, brought a light, and the youngest brother of my master 
 followed him soon after with the fetters. " I do not know,'' said 
 he to me, " whether I must fetter you or not." The boy said, 
 ^' Why should you fetter him ? Surely he will not run away 
 to-night I ■" The other replied, " I am afraid of the anger of my 
 brother, if I neglect his orders." I then held out my feet to him, 
 and said, " Fetter me, then, lest your brother should be angry 
 with you." 
 
in Tartar?/, S5 
 
 While he was applying the irons, his second brother entered, 
 who began to reprove the younger, took off' my fetters, and then 
 running after him with the irons in his hands, threw them at him. 
 His Truchmenz brother-in-law had, in the mean time, arrived in 
 the house, and hearing of what I had been guilty, and being less 
 compassionate than the others, came to chastise me. He brought 
 with him a long pole, placed it across the floor of my room, and 
 fastened my arms to it. 15ut the women rescued me this time 
 also. The}?^ came in, seized the Truchmenzer by the collar, and 
 dragged him away. After this, they unbound me, and persuaded 
 me to go to sleep. 
 
 As I could still distinguish the voices of these v.'omen in the 
 yard, I went softly to the door of my hut, and heard the sisters 
 and the other women scolding the Truchmenzer for having tied 
 my hands so fast. " Every body,"" said one of them, " prefers 
 his own country to any other ; how can you find fault with him 
 for wishing to return home ? Abuse him no longer ; but rather 
 endeavour, in future, to gain his ajfeciions by kindness : hard 
 words make people sad."'"' 
 
 The next day my master convinced me by his behaviour, that 
 he intended to follow the advice of his sister. IMy flight was not 
 once mentioned to me, and I was at last treated by my master as 
 well as before. The kindness, however, which the women had 
 shown me the preceding day, excited hopes in me that far sur- 
 passed my condition. 
 
 One of my usual domestic employments was to grind corn in 
 the hand-mill with the women, for in Kiwa no ether mills are 
 used. This hand-mill was in a little hut in the yard. In this 
 employment I one day had to assist one of the voungest of the 
 women, when I felt inclined to put her conjugal fidelity to the 
 test. While we were grinding the corn, I intentionally trod upon 
 the foot of the fair Kiw enser : she, however, did not seem to 
 notice it, but continued her work Avith the utmost indifference. 
 I made a second attempt, but was rebuked in these words, — 
 " VVassilij, what ai*e you about ? Do you wish that I should 
 complain to your master .?" I now knew with whom I had to 
 do, and took care not to make another attempt. 
 
 Not long after this,- 1 was passing by the house of a Kiwenser, 
 and saw persons preparing a beverage from a kind of berries. I 
 was in the street, and the landlord observing that I was watching 
 the process, asked me if I wished to taste it ? As I made no 
 objection, they offered me some. I found it very pleasant, par- 
 ticularly as I had drank nothing but milk and water since I had 
 lived in Kiwa. When I returned to my master, I spoke of the 
 delicious liquor I had tasted. My master, glad of the opporr 
 tunity of a reconciliation, said, " Should you like me to buy 
 some of those berries, and have them boiled for you T' I joy. 
 
36 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 fully accepted his kind offer, and the good Kiwenser himself went 
 to market, bought about half a pud of berries, and sent for a 
 man who understood how to prepare them. Having boiled the 
 berries, and pressed out the kernels^ he filtered the juice, and 
 then presented it to me, observing that T ought not to drink of it 
 before the next morning. I rose very early in the morning, and 
 drank two cups of it, which inebriated me as much as if I had 
 drank brandy. The more I drank the more I felt inclined to 
 drink. When I had drank about six cups, I was no longer able 
 to stand upright ; I soon fell down, and was discovered on the 
 floor by the inmates, who were not a little merry at seeing me in 
 this condition. This drink is called bursa, and the berries are 
 called in that country psak.* 
 
 I mention this occurrence merely to show the obliging dis- 
 position of my master. Yet he obtained nothing by his friendly 
 treatment, for though I remained with him during the Avinter, 
 I was resolved to escape the next spring. In order to accomplish 
 this, I had only to take advantage of the opportunity which pre- 
 sented itself when the foreign merchants stopped at my master's, 
 as I might then take one of their Buccharian, Persian, or Awga- 
 rian horses, which they never failed to bring with them, and tlius 
 escape. But this plan appeared rather too hazardous, as my 
 flight would soon be discovered, and the foreign merchants would 
 use every means to recover their horses. 
 
 Spring had now commenced, and my master wished to culti- 
 vate his little field before he made a journey to the Karakalpaks 
 to sell his merchandize. He was to be assisted by myself and an 
 Uspek labourer, whom he had hired for the purpose ; but as the 
 churek-cakes, which were intended for our food during our 
 labour in the field, w^ere not 3^et provided, my master remained 
 at home, and sent me forwards with the Uspek, who was a man 
 of very little ingenuity or acuteness. I had a horse and rode to 
 the field, but the Uspek went on foot. My master had also given 
 me a gun, in order that I might kill some game, should I meet 
 with any. Although I hardly knew the use of a gun, yet con- 
 ceiving it would be useful to me during my flight, to which my 
 thoughts were now principally directed, I took it with me. 
 
 The field was about ten versts distant from the town. We 
 arrived there in the evening, and were to pass the night there. I 
 anxiously waited for the Uspek to fall asleep, but he rolled him- 
 self about, and did not seem even to think of sleeping. " Why," 
 I asked him, " do you not sleep, Jagub.?" He replied, " Why 
 do not you sleep .?" I said, ^' I had kept awake in order to 
 
 * The berries are said to resemble dates. Probably the bursa drink is the 
 ancient date wine, which was so celebrated on the Euphrates, and in other 
 parts of Asia, and perhaps is so still. 
 
m Tartary. 37 
 
 smoke a pipe." Some time passed in silence, but still the Uspek 
 continued awake. Day-break at Tength approaching, and being- 
 impatient to make my escape, I threw myself on the Uspek, sat 
 upon him, and tied together his hands and feet. The terrified 
 Uspek knew not what to think of me. " If you resist,'" said I, 
 " you must die.'' But, poor fellow, he had no thoughts of re- 
 sisting me, for he suffered me to do as I pleased, saying, " I 
 know what you intend to do : I wish you a prospei-ous journey."'"' 
 I replied, " You are mistaken : you will soon discover why I 
 am obliged to fetter you."" When I had bound the poor feUow 
 so tight that he was unable to move, I put a gag into his mouth, 
 and went to seek my horse. 
 
 Having saddled it, and fastened behind me my bundle of vic- 
 tuals, I implored the assistance of God, Nikolas, the worker of 
 miracles, and all the saints, beseeching them to conduct me in 
 safety to Russia. " Once more," thought I, " you have under- 
 taken, to escape from this country ; if you are not now successful, 
 you must never more think of returning to Russia, but end your 
 days here.'"* I then urged my horse forwards, and directecl my 
 course up the Darja. 
 
 As the labourers in the fields had begun to stir v. hen I com- 
 menced my flight, I should certainly have been pursued and 
 taken had I continued my journey on this side the Darja; this, 
 however, was not my intention. The banks of the Darja were 
 thickly covered with reeds, and here and there were little boats, 
 which were used for fishing, or for crossing the river. I intended 
 to keep my horse only until I should find a boat, in which I 
 meant to go down the river as far as the lake. I concluded no 
 one would see me on the other side the river, but that I should 
 easily be discovered along the left side of the Darja and Aral. 
 
 I had not proceeded far, when I saw a boat amongst the reeds, 
 and immediately advanced towards it. I with great difficulty 
 dragged my horse through the stiff clay, which covered the side 
 of the river, until we reached the boat, when I placed in it my 
 victuals, consisting of five churek-cakes and about ten pounds of 
 groats, and also my gun, a large pumpkin flask, and my saddle 
 and bridle. I then threw my horse down, and bound his legs 
 together with a rope, in order that no one might see him, and 
 that, consequently, nobody might know what road I had taken. 
 On the other side of the river I expected I should be able to take 
 other horses from the Karakalpaks. I found in the boat a board 
 about nine feet long, and a span in breadth, which served me in- 
 stead of a rudder, and by this means I crossed the river, without 
 being observed by any bodv. .' 
 
 When I reached the opposite side of the river, I drew the boat 
 as far as I could into the reeds, to prevent its being seen ; for I 
 feared nothing more than that the oWner should miss his boat?, 
 
88 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 and seek it on this side the river. For the sake of greater 
 security, therefore, I took all my things out of the boat, and 
 waited at a short distance from it until the approach of night. 
 In the day time it would have been impossible for me to go down 
 the river unobserved, because the western side was here and there 
 covered with Karakalpak huts. When it had grown sufficiently 
 dark, I put every thing into the boat again, and abandoned my- 
 self to the course of the river, which took me rapidly along. 
 When I had proceeded in this manner for two hours, I saw 
 before me, in the horizon, a long white streak, from which I con- 
 cluded that the lake Aral was not far distant. 
 
 In order to avoid being carried into the sea by the rapidity of 
 the river, I immediately steered toward the bank, landed with 
 my luggage, and then pushed my boat from me, that it might be 
 carried by the current into the sea. 
 
 Having loaded myself with the saddle and my other things, I 
 forced my way through the reeds, and proceeded without delay. 
 I left the Darja and Aral sea behind me, wandered about till the 
 sun had reached the meridian, and then sat down to rest in the 
 liigh grass, where nobody could see me. I here eat one of my 
 churek-cakesj drank from my pumpkin-flask, and then pursued 
 my journey. The sun was setting, when at a great distance I 
 perceived something, which, as I wished for nothing more 
 anxiously, I conceived to be a tabune of horses ; I was this time, 
 however, disappointed in my expectations, for instead of a tabune 
 of horses, I discovered, on a nearer approach, that it was a 
 mountain. But even this discovery was welcome to me, since, 
 from its summit, I might be able to see whether there were any 
 Karakalpak habitations in the neighbourhood, in which case I 
 expected to provide myself with horses. I had now emptied my 
 flask, and suffered much from thirst : at length, to my great joy, 
 I discovered some water, and immediately hastened to this place, 
 and passed the night there. 
 
 I travelled forwards till next day at noon, and yet I had not 
 reached the mountain that was before me, nor had I seen any 
 horses. Towards evening I ascended its summit, and perceived 
 at a short distance a few Karakalpak huts. My joy was so great, 
 that I instantly fell upon my knees, and thanked God and aU the 
 saints for this discovery. In the beginning of the night I went 
 toward the huts, with a rope in my hands. Before I reached 
 them, I saw a tabune of horses not far from me at pasture, but 
 although I took the greatest pains, I could not catch one of 
 them. I was therefore under the necessity of going to the huts, 
 to see if I could not find one tied. The dogs now began to bark, 
 but fortunately ceased almost immediately. I then stole so near 
 the ^huts that I distinctly heard a man cough ; then, in order to 
 avoid being discovered, I crept on my hands and feet to the en~ 
 
in Tartar^. 39 
 
 trance of a hut, where I found a horse tied. I immediately 
 loosed it, took a horse-catcher,* which lay by the side of the hut, 
 and then riding up to the tabune, caught two horses without dif- 
 ficulty. I now returned to the mountain for my saddle, &c., 
 mounted my horse again, and led the other two. 
 
 After having performed several days journey along the Aral 
 Sea, I began to be doubtful whether I should take a northward 
 or a westward direction. After some deliberation I conceived it 
 would be most prudent to proceed towards the North-west ; I 
 therefore left the Aral and went towards that point. I continued 
 in this direction above a week, when to my great joy, having 
 been two days without water, I discovered in a rock a deep well, 
 which appeared to have been made by human hands. I imme- 
 diately halted, fastened my pumpkin to a rope 18 yards long, 
 and let it down into the well, but before the flask would reach 
 tlie Avater, 1 was obliged to fasten to it another rope six yai'ds 
 long, and also a Trinoga.-f* 
 
 When I had drawn up my pumpkin, I put it immediately to 
 my mouth, without examining its contents, and took a hearty 
 draught, but the water having a very bad taste, I looked into 
 the vessel, and found in it the decayed remains of snakes, lizards^ 
 earth- mice, and other vermin. This discovery produced such a 
 sensation, that I instantly vomited up what I had taken. I then 
 poured the remainder of the water into the hollow part of a stone 
 which was near the well, and offered it to my horses, as they had 
 drank nothing for three days, but they merely smelt at it, and 
 refused to drink it. With a violent head-ache, occasioned 
 partly by thirst, and partly by the sickness produced by the 
 water, I again mounted my horse, and rode towards another hill, 
 which I perceived at some distance before me. When I reached 
 the top of the hill, I looked around me, but could discover no 
 water. I, however, perceived another hill towards the west, and 
 arrived at the foot of it in the evening, and to my great joy 
 found there were three lakes near it. I instantly jumped from 
 my horse, fell upon my knees, and thanked God that he had 
 given me the means oi quenching my thirst. 
 
 Nineteen days had now elapsed since I took the horses, and I 
 had long since consumed my five churek-cakes. When I had 
 finished my churek-cakes I satisfied my hunger with dry groats ; 
 but I was so unwell for the last three days that I had eaten nothing. 
 However when I had happily discovered the lakes, a handful of 
 
 • A rod four yards long, with a sling at tlie end of it, which is thrown 
 round the necks of the horses in order to catch them. 
 
 t In Southern Russia the legs of the horses are frequently tied together by 
 means of a Trinoga or three thongs, which are united together at the ends 
 by a rinj, the other ends being fastened to the legs of the horse, namely, one 
 to a hind leg, and the other two to each of the fore legs. 
 
40 Adventures of Michailow 
 
 that dry food seemed like honey to me. My horses rested here 
 until the noon of the following day, and I then mounted again and 
 went westward. At midnight I allowed my horses to rest again 
 and laid myself down to sleep. On the following day, when I 
 had rode about fifteen versts, I saw a broad river before me. I 
 rode from an acclivity on the side of this river into a valley, 
 where I found, what I did not wish, a number of Kirghiz huts. 
 To fly was in vain, for the Kirghiz had already observed me, 
 and my horses were tired. There therefore remained nothing 
 for me to do but to ride up to them, and invent some story that 
 my further escape might be facilitated. 
 
 Without hesitation I directed my horses towards five or six 
 Kirghiz, who were not far from me. When I approached them 
 they said, " whence do you come ? and what is your name ?" I 
 answered, " I am a Persian ; I have been a slave to the Trech- 
 menzers for a long time, and am called Bemhet. My master did 
 not give me enough to eat, I there escaped from him, and was 
 seeking service of the Kirghiz, when perceiving your huts, from 
 yonder hill, I came hither. '' 
 
 The Kirghiz immediately conducted me to their huts, caused 
 me to alight,^ and then divided among themselves my horses and 
 every thing I had. They even obliged me to take off my 
 clothes, instead of which they gave me a miserable skin for an 
 apron, that scarcely covered my nakedness. Thus I found my- 
 self suddenly bereft of my hopes, and a slave to the Kirghiz. 
 The river where this happened was called the Jemba. 
 
 My new Kirghiz master was not one of the richest of his tribe : 
 my occupation consisted chiefly in gathering dung and fetching 
 water ; I had fetters at night, but they were taken off in the 
 morning. 
 
 A few days after this new captivity, a young Kirghiz arrived 
 at our hut on a stately courser, and addressed my master thus : 
 ^' I am informed you have taken some valuable booty lately." 
 I could not hear any more of his conversation, for he took my 
 master away from the hut, for fear any one should overhear 
 him. 
 
 The next morning my master killed two sheep : I rejoiced at 
 the prospect of a feast, and thanked God I had now an opportu- 
 nity of satisfying my hunger, and afterwards, perhaps, to escape 
 with a valuable booty. My master said to me, "• Bembet, take 
 the dung bag, and gather some dung." I obeyed the command 
 and soon returned with a full bag. " That is not enough,"" said 
 my master, at the same time presenting me with a cup of milk ; 
 " I have a great deal to cook to day, and I want a great deal of 
 dung." I filled the bag once more, and having emptied it at the 
 side of the hearth, I lay down to repose myself. Towards even- 
 ing I was awakened, and again sent for dung. When I liad 
 
in Tartari/. 41 
 
 filled the bag a third time, I entered a neighbouring hut in order 
 to drink a cup of milk. The landlady, a Tartar, who, when a 
 child, had been stolen by the Kirghiz from the Jaik Cossacks, 
 was at home alone. I entered into conversation with her, and 
 said, how well I was satisfied with my new master, and that I 
 feared nothing more than being sold to another. " I would not 
 have a new master,"" I said, " even were I sure of receiving 
 daily enough to eat." The Tartar answered, " You simpleton ; 
 don't you know, then, the reason why so much meat is dressed 
 to-day at your master's ? Did you not yesterday see a strange 
 Kirghiz arrive at your hut ? He is a man of rank, who belongs 
 to the Sultan Ablai : his younger brother is on the point of 
 marrying, and he wants to procure a slave for him ; your master 
 has sold you to him, and to-day gives the purchase dinner." 
 
 I was so alarmed at this intelligence, that I was not able to 
 finish drinking my milk, but was obliged to put it down and 
 go away. While taking up the bag, I reflected upon my com- 
 fortable situation when I was with my Kiwense master, who 
 loved me, and treated me like a brother ! I said to myself, " You 
 have done him great injury by your flight : you will now be 
 carried away to a great distance into the Kirghiz steppe, whence 
 perhaps you will never be able to return to Russia. It is better 
 to die, than to live any longer in such misery !'*'' 
 
 Having returned home and emptied the bag, my master ofi*er- 
 ed me a bone that had been already gnawed, and said, " There ; 
 take this bone and gnaw it.'"* I took the bone, and said, " I can- 
 not eat, but I will drink." Upon which my master replied, 
 *' There is milk enough in yonder hut, go and. drink as much as 
 you please."" Before the hut which my master pointed out to me 
 a saddled horse was tied, and it immediately occurred to me, that 
 I might as well take advantage of this opportunity of escaping, 
 and ride off* naked as I was. I therefore put the bone, from 
 which nothing more could be gnawed, behind one of the poles w^hich 
 supported the roof of the hut, and hastened to the hut to which 
 my master had directed me. When I had entered it, instead of 
 eating or drinking, I looked through the holes of the felt to see 
 whether any body was about. Observing no one, I was out of 
 the hut in an instant, untied the horse, and rode away. It had 
 already began to grow dark, and the cattle around were being 
 led to water ; but nobody observed me, or if they did, could not 
 suspect that a naked slave would ride ofl", for I had nothing but 
 a skin girded round my waist. 
 
 There was a high hill not far from the huts, and when I had 
 arrived on its summit I made my horse run as fast as it could, 
 and about midnight I reached the river Saigass, where I held 
 my horse by a leading rope the whole night, saddled and bridled, 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VH. & 
 
42 Adventures of Michailoiv 
 
 in order that I might mount it instantly in case I should observe 
 any pursuers. During the night the gadflies and gnats were 
 intolerable. At sun-rise I mounted my horse ag£cin, rode on 
 until evening, and passed part of the second night on a sand 
 hill, near which were several large ditches. After my horse had 
 rested a few hours I rode as far as the river Karakal, which 
 crossed my way : its banks were covered on both sides with reeds ; 
 but before day-break I discovered a path through the reeds, 
 leading to a path on the other side of the river, where I ob- 
 served some Kirghiz huts, and the inhabitants had already began 
 to light their fires. It appeared to me too hazardous to cross the 
 river near the huts, particularly as I could distinguish human 
 voices. I therefore went higher up the river to seek another ford. 
 But here also I met with Kirghi:^ huts, at one of which I saw a horse 
 tied, and wishing to have a fresh horse, that I might be able to 
 reach the Jaik as soon as possible, I untied it, but had scarcely 
 gone many paces with it, when it got into a clay pool, whence it 
 was not possible to extricate it. I with great difficulty took off 
 the saddle, and having put it on my former horse, continued my 
 journey along the Uksal river. 
 
 I rode on till noon without finding a passage through the 
 reeds, so that nothing but reeds, water, and sky presented them- 
 selves to my view. As I had eaten nothing since the preceding 
 day at noon, and even before that had eaten but very sparingly 
 with the Kirghiz, I became apprehensive of my life. I already 
 began to repent having left the Kirghiz, when not far from me 
 I perceived a hill. 
 
 When I had secured my horse, I reconnoitred the country 
 more closely, and found that I was near a Kirghiz winter camp. 
 I observed here and there some huts of reed, in which some 
 swine were rummaging, and which run away as I approached. 
 
 Perceiving at the same time a narrow path, I mounted my 
 horse again, and took this path, by which I arrived at the ex- 
 tremity of the reeds. Here I allowed my horse to rest, whilst 
 I myself ascended a hill in order to survey the surrounding 
 country. 
 
 How great was my joy, when looking westward from the sum- 
 mit of this hill, I observed the plain of Jaik, the extent of which 
 is but one day's journey. When I had fully convinced mj^self 
 of this fact, I returned to the reeds, and waited there till evening. 
 This I did because, being now near the end of my journey, it 
 seemed to me more safe to travel by night. 
 
 I was obliged to pass several hours in the reeds, where the 
 gnats and other insects stung me still more than before. At last 
 the sun set^ and having mounted my horse, I ascended the 
 hill, but I had scarcely reached the summit, when I perceived 
 three horsemen, who were rapidly pursuing me. They were 
 
171 Tartary. 43 
 
 already so near to nie, that I could hear their voices, and it 
 seemed to me, as if they called in Kalmuc, " Sokso ! Sokso V^ 
 (stop ! stop !) They approached nearer and nearer, till I could 
 at length distinctly hear the words, " Tokto! Tokto!" (the Kir- 
 ghiz word for stop !) By which I was now convinced that I 
 was pursued by Kirghiz. Though I intended at first to stop 
 my horse, yet in order to try if there were not a possibility of 
 escaping my pursuers, I determined to make it gallop as fast as 
 it could. 
 
 Although I had at first considered my horse as a bad runner, 
 being little more than skin and bone, I now found to my great 
 astonishment, that in speed it was equal to the best. I had 
 scarcely impelled it to go forwards, when it went almost as 
 swift as an arrow shot from a bow. Two of my pursuers were 
 very soon left behind, but the third was once so near me, that 
 he had almost seized my horse by the tail ; but I again im- 
 pelled him forward, and this Kirghiz also soon remained behind. 
 
 As the race had lasted some time, I was now obliged to 
 alight, in order to arrange the saddle-cloth : I now looked be- 
 hind me, but saw nothing more than a cloud of dust at a dis- 
 tance, raised probably by the trampling of my own horse, so 
 well had he performed his task. I had now arrived in the 
 country which the Russians call Ssoltshdlci (the salt lakes). I 
 was at first undetermined whether I should finish the last twenty 
 versts quickly or slowly : but finding my horse as fresh as if it 
 had not run at all, and considering that my pursuers might 
 probably take another direction and so gain the advance upon 
 me, I resolved to hasten to the Jaik at full gallop. 
 
 The day begun to dawn, and a dark cloud, which I had ob- 
 served just before, proved to be the thick forest which covered 
 the east side of the Jaik. No one was happier now than myself. 
 In a short time I found myself on the banks of the Jaik. [ 
 made the sign of the cross, and then looked up and down in 
 order to discover some one. I at last saw a boat in which were 
 several people. I called out to them with all my might, but ni - 
 one heard me, although I could distinguish the voices of the 
 Cossack fishermen. I now rode by the side of the river, but 
 its banks being low and composed chiefly of clay^ which the 
 spring inundation had rendered very wet, I tied my horse in 
 a dxy place, and with great difficulty went on foot, higher up 
 the river. I proceeded in this way for some time, and at length 
 on turning a winding part of the river, I perceived on the op- 
 posite side a Stanitza (village) with its Church. With tears in 
 my eyes I threw myself on my knees, and fervently addressing 
 God, and the holy Martyrs, thanked them with a grateful 
 heart, for having delivered me from captivity ; though I could 
 
44 Adventures of Mldhaihw 
 
 hardly trust to my eyes, and was ready to conclude that all I 
 saw was a dream. 
 
 On approaching nearer the Stanitza I perceived a Cossack 
 fisherman, sitting in a boat and employed in catching salmon. 
 I called out to him, " Mr, Cossack, take me over quickly in 
 your boat."" The Cossack knew not what to think at seeing on 
 this side of the river a naked man, who addressed him in the 
 Russian language, and hesitated to come to my assistance. 
 " Whence do you come ?" he enquired- Impatient to be safely 
 landed on the opposite side, I replied, " Why do you ask a 
 man such a question who is almost dead ? Take me over and 
 you shall hear every thing." 
 
 The Cossack immediately steered his boat towards me, and 
 took me over. When we had landed and entered the Stanitza, 
 the men and women of the village ran to meet us, surrounded 
 us on all sides, and wondered to see a man in such a condition. 
 The Ataman (chief, or elder) of the Stanitza at length came to 
 us, and addressing himself to me, said, " Who are you F^ 
 
 A venerable Cossack, with a long grey beard, who stood near 
 the Ataman, said impatiently to the latter, " You are a fine 
 Ataman :* first give him meat and drink, and then ask him who 
 he is .?" 
 
 The old man then conducted me to his habitation, and, on 
 entering, said to his aged wife, " Provide something immedi- 
 ately for this poor captive to eat."" He then ordered me to sit 
 down on a bench, gave me a piece of bread, and said to his 
 wife, " Pray give him some sour milk : for although it is now 
 the Whitsun fast-time, no prayer has yet been offered up for 
 him.-f- But my lad," said he, addressing me, " do not eat so 
 eagerly : eat not too much at a time ; it may hurt you !" I fol- 
 lowed his advice, eat as moderately as I could, and then thanked 
 my honest host for " bread and saWX 
 
 When I had finished my meal, my host condvicted me to his 
 stable, that I might take some rest. I slept soundly until the 
 next morning, and after having had somethmg to eat, I related 
 to my host circumstantially all my adventures. When I had 
 concluded, I said to him, " Good father, do you think your 
 Ataman will indulge me with a boat, that I may cross the river 
 and fetch my horse i''^ The good old man said, "It will be a 
 
 * The siiicerity and energy of this address is much more strongly ex- 
 pressed in the original: " Gowyio aicanam'shkaJ''' 
 
 • t The Rasholniks, by whom the country about the Aral and Jaik is prin- 
 cipally inhabited, believe, that, as long as the fast prayer has not been 
 offered up, nobody is obliged to hold the fast. 
 
 I The phrase " bread and salt"' is very common in Southern Russia, 
 and particularly among the Cossacl^s, both when they request to be en- 
 tertained, and after having received an entertainment. 
 
in Tartary. 4fi 
 
 useless undertaking ; for the insects have no doubt killed your 
 horse by this time, they are so numerous and formidable in 
 that forest ; however we will see what can be done."'' 
 
 The old man immediately conducted me to the Ataman, 
 who, when I had related to him my adventures, caused a boat 
 to be given to me. We found the poor animal alive indeed, but, 
 alas ! weltering in blood, and so extremely faint, that he could 
 not even move his tail. We brought him over the river, and 
 the good old man gave orders that proper care should be taken 
 of it for me. 
 
 My host next caused a priest to be called, who gave me his 
 benediction. I was then provided by the old man with shirts, 
 trowsers, and a coat ; and having rested a few days, I was fur- 
 nished with post-horses and conducted from the Stanitza Kal- 
 MYKowsK (the name of the village I had first seen on my return) 
 to the town of Jaik (Ural). My horse, Avhich the Ataman of 
 Kalmykowsk would gladly have purchased, was fastened to the 
 pole of the carriage that it might run by the side of the post- 
 horses. 
 
 When I arrived at Jaik, I was conducted by a coraoral, who 
 had accompanied me from Kalmykowsk, to the office of the 
 Chancellor, and my conductor delivered to an officer of the 
 staff, a written document concerning me, which he had brought 
 with him. The officer looked at me several times, while he was 
 perusing the paper, and when he had finished it, he approached 
 me, and asked, " Do you not know me .^" I answered, " If I 
 have ever seen you, I cannot now remember it.*" The Colonel 
 replied, " You were with Ssawa Spiridonitch Weseloff, 
 when I bought forty horses of him on the Volga island. My 
 name is Iwan Donilich Ssimonoff.'"' While he was speak- 
 ing to me I recollected him. The Colonel then gave me 
 three silver rubles, and ordered the ruling Ataman to ap- 
 point me quarters, and to send my horse to the Cossack ta- 
 t)une : then addressing himself to me, he said, '* If you do 
 not wish to remain here, I will send you to Astrachan, whence 
 you may return to Jenatajewsk." The Ataman afterwards 
 gave me a silver ruble, and several Cossack Officers also 
 
 E resented me with money, some with a ruble, others with 
 alf a ruble, so that in a short time I had collected about 
 fifteen silver rubles. 
 
 As it was now hay-harvest in the Jaik country, and eighty co- 
 pecks were the daily wages given to the labourers, I mtended 
 to stay here some time longer, in order to earn as much money 
 as would be requisite to defray the expences of a public thanks- 
 giving : for I thus wished to evince my gratitude to the Su- 
 preme Being for my delivery from captivity. But I had no 
 
46 Adventurer of Michmhw in Tartar y. 
 
 occasion to work in order to accomplish this, for I soon got, 
 by various contributions, as much money as enabled me to per- 
 form these religious duties. 
 
 I sojourned above a month at Jaik, waiting for Astrachan 
 Tartars, who were expected from Oremburgh with sheep, and 
 whom I intended to assist in driving their sheep for a moderate 
 remuneration. But the Pugacheff rebellion breaking out, in 
 Avhich the Jaik Cossacks also took an active part, a Kalmuc 
 Cossack advised me to sell my horse, intimating at the same time 
 it would not get fatter. I followed his advice, and accordingly 
 led my horse to the market. I certainly expected I should be 
 able to get three rubles for it, but I sportingly asked twenty 
 rubles for it of a Cossack, who presented himself as a pur- 
 chaser. The Cossack, to my astonishment, offered me seven 
 rubles ; other buyers, however, who either understood the value 
 of a horse from its outward appearance, or who had heard of 
 the race he had run, advanced the price higher and higher, un- 
 til at last I sold it for seventeen rubles. 
 
 When I had sold my horse, I went to Colonel SsimonofF, and 
 requested my passport. The Colonel gave me a letter to the 
 Astrachan-govemor BeketofF, and I then proceeded, first to 
 Gurjew (or the mouth of the Jaik), and thence by water to 
 Astrachan. I was here conducted to the Chancelry of the 
 Governor, who then resided in the town of Sarepta. Colonel 
 Murawjew, who transacted the business of the Governor dur- 
 ing his absence, read the letter, and ordered me to be conveyed 
 to Jenatajewsk. I now referred the Colonel to the Imperial 
 Ukase, which orders, " That those who return from captivity^ 
 and particularly natives of Asia, sliall receive a reward of one 
 hundred rubles.'''' The Colonel replied, " You must wait pa- 
 tiently until the return of the General, and in the mean time 
 you may proceed to Jenatajewsk.'" 
 
 I accordingly returned to Jenatajewsk, and entered into the 
 service of Michailo Ssawich Weseloff, who then occupied 
 the post of Pristaw over the Darbat Kalmuc hordes. Thirty 
 years I have served this excellent master, partly in the horde, 
 and partly at Jenatajewsk. I am still in his service, and I hope 
 to end my days with him. But let it be recollected that " the 
 hundred ruhles to which I am entitled has not yet been paid 
 to me:' 
 
VOYAGE 
 
 TO 
 
 St. PETERSBURG 
 
 FN 
 
 1814, 
 
 WITH REMARKS 
 
 ON 
 
 THE IMPERIAIi RUSSIAN NAVY. 
 
 BY 
 
 A SURGEON IN THE BRITISH NAVY. 
 
 LONDON: 
 PUBLISHED BY SIR RICHARD PHILLIPS & Co. 
 
 BRIDE COURT, BRIDGE STREET. 
 1822. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 AS the subject of the power of Russia has lately 
 attracted considerable attention, as well as excited 
 some, perhaps, imaginary fears among us -a< ; and, 
 as this power can be directed against England, in 
 case of any misunderstanding, only by means of her 
 navy, it may not be uninteresting to give some idea 
 of what materials this mighty engine is composed, 
 and how far it is likely to be wielded against us, 
 with effect. 
 
 This information I was enabled to gain in the 
 very bosom of the supposed danger, — that is, on 
 board one of their eighty-gun ships, during a six 
 weeks' stay and voyage, not merely as a spectator, 
 but as an active officer, in discharge of my profeS" 
 sional functions. The occasion it will be Jieicessary 
 to mention. When the Russian fleet quitted Sheer- 
 ness, in 1814, the Commander-in-Chief, Admiral 
 Tate, was directed to embark the Imperial Guards, 
 then in France, for conveyance home ; but the 
 Emperor, or some one about him, recollecting the 
 mortality frequently prevailing in their fleet, and 
 that this might be increased by crowding together so 
 many additional men, requested, through the medium 
 of the Russian Ambassador, that a certain number 
 of the medical officers of the British Navy might 
 proceed in the squadron, in order, by their more 
 extensive experience, to obviate this danger, 
 
 * Written in 1817, shortly after the appearance of Sir Rohert 
 Wilsoris Fani'phlet on this subject. 
 
VOYAGE, 
 
 In the beginning of June I joined the S , a noble ship, 
 
 mounting nearly 90 guns, and bearing the flag of Rear Admi- 
 ral O -, at Sheerness, or rather at the great Nore, where 
 
 seven or eight sail were at anchor. The Admiral, who was a 
 North Briton, received me very politely. He was decorated 
 with the cross of St George, if not the highest, as high as 
 any honorary distinction in the country, and granted, I am 
 told, to those only who have distinguished themselves by a 
 very eminent degree of personal bravery in battle. The occa- 
 sion, it seems, was against the Swedes, when being in command 
 of a small vessel as lieutenant, he resolutely attacked a ship of 
 that nation more than double his own force, and after a long 
 and desperate engagement, succeeded in carrying her into 
 Cronstadt, his own vessel sinking immediately after tlie battle. 
 
 He is married in Russia, and has been above twenty-five 
 years in the service. Like all the other English officers belong- 
 ing to it, he was ordered to reside at Moscow during the war 
 with England ; four or five of their ships were commanded on 
 this occasion by our countrymen. I know not whether profes- 
 sional views and long estrangement from his native land may 
 not, in some degree, have blunted the more delicate feehngs of 
 national glory : for, on mentioning accidentally in conversation, 
 the attack and capture of some Russian gun-boats in the gulph 
 of Finland, a few years ago, by Captain (now Admiral) Sir Byam 
 Martin, he did not seem to recollect the circumstance ; he ex- 
 pressed a doubt whether English seamen could ever, on equal 
 terms, conquer those of Russia. This, however, is an excusable 
 feeling, naturally arising from regard to the honour of the service 
 to which he belongs. Let me add also, that he is a very correct 
 officer and a worthy man. 
 
 Captain R , second in command, was a Russian, and was 
 
 likewise attentive to me, so far as an irritable temper, added to a 
 nervous, anxious, hypochondriacal turn of mind, would permit. 
 He was one of the strangest characters I ever met with, being a 
 compound of extremes : sometimes very active and very indolent, 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII. b 
 
4 Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 very good-humoured and very peevish, very communicative, 
 and. very reserved ; now quarrelling with his superior from 
 perverseness, now courting him with more than due obsequi- 
 ousness. He had lived in England for two or three years pre- 
 vious to the present time, and spoke our language nearly as well 
 as myself. All our peculiarities were familiar to him, but the 
 faults infinitely more so than the virtues. Sometimes he admired 
 us, and at others thought there was no just ground for admira- 
 tion : the most opposite opinions came out every moment. There 
 was no knowing what sentence would follow from what preceded 
 it, as keen invective always accompanied the warmest approval ; 
 his mind, like the vane at his ship's mast head, was never for an 
 instant steady, but wavering with inconceivable rapidity. With 
 all this, he was a man of considerable talents, much reading, and 
 extensive information. There was only one thing in which he 
 was constant — an immoderate partiality for physic. He was 
 scarcely ever, according to his own account, well, though I could 
 not once discover his disease ; but this proved of no consequence, 
 so long as a constant supply of potions promised to attack it in 
 some way or other. For several minutes he would descant elo- 
 quently on the advantages to their service from the presence of 
 the British medical officers ; then turn round, with an expression 
 of wonder, how the Emperor, or the people about him, could so 
 grossly insult their own. In a moment more, he would say that 
 the latter knew nothing, being only fit to physic horses ; and in 
 the same breath add, that our services were by no means neces- 
 sary. He was, in short, quite a character for the stage — the 
 very essence of odd fellows, among whom he would have been 
 hailed as the prince of their craft. 
 
 The officers were, in general, very gentleman-like young men, 
 nearly all of the first families, and most of whom, as well as Captain 
 
 R , spoke correct English. A much greater pleasure was, 
 
 to find in the ward-room mess a Mr. S , an English naval 
 
 officer, whose society proved not a little gratifying among so 
 many persons to whose language, manners, habits, and feelings, 
 I was an utter stranger. 
 
 In a few days we reached the Downs, and in another week 
 cast anchor in the port of Cherburg, a harbour formed rather by 
 art than by nature, but to which France has always attached 
 much importance, from lying directly opposite to Portsmouth. 
 It is an open bay, exposed to much of the violence of the ocean, 
 till an artificial barricade, similar to our breakwater at Plymouth, 
 was thrown across two-thirds of its mouth, to form a refuge for 
 their men of war. This stupendous undertaking was perhaps 
 the greatest public work ever undertaken by that country. The 
 idea was magnificent, but the execution has proved far inferior 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 5 
 
 to the conception; for, after exercising the ingenuity of the 
 ablest men of tlie nation, and draining the country of enormous 
 sums, it in a great measure failed. In 1791, a new plan was 
 adopted of casing over the old dike formed of small stones, with 
 large blocks of stone for the distance of 1950 fathoms, intending 
 batteries to be erected on the summit. In 1803, the centre of 
 this embankment had been carried above high water mark, where 
 a fortification being built, soldiers were stationed : but in 1809, 
 a terrible storm carried away works, soldiers, artisans, and la- 
 bourers, to the bottom of the sea ; dashing two or three vessels, 
 lying in the roads, to pieces on the beach, and leaving scarcely a 
 trace of the breakwater to be seen at high water. Since that 
 time, nothing more has been attempted with it ; the dike, such 
 as it is, protecting the roads pretty well, but at low water, pre- 
 senting only a shapeless mass of ruins. Two or three works in- 
 sulated by the sea guard the entrance. These, it has been sup- 
 posed by some of our dashing naval characters, would not be 
 difficult to carry by assault, by a determined commander, who 
 should at once run alongside them. On the n^iin, however, at 
 the bottom of the harbour, are one or two heavy works, mount- 
 ing two or three tier of guns, which would probably render the 
 possession of the others nugatory. 
 
 A canal from the bottom of the bay runs to a capacious wet 
 dock in the heart of the town, where lay a great number of fine 
 merchant vessels, principally, I was informed. West Indiamen ; 
 which, on account of the war with England, had not been at sea 
 for many years. 
 
 Cherburg is a very ancient place ; the houses of all shapes, 
 proportions, and sizes, from quite modern, to the reign, I should 
 conjecture, of Charlemagne. I never saw anything more ruinous 
 than in some of the streets near the market. The style of build- 
 ing also is peculiar, consisting of bows projecting from the upper 
 stories, and fearfully overhanging the base in a line which has 
 long forsaken the perpendicular, and many of which momentarily 
 threatened to tumble to pieces. 
 
 The streets, which are commonly narrow, were crowded with 
 Russian soldiers, the companions of our intended voyage, loung- 
 ing leisurely along in great coats, offering, in the steadiness of 
 their gait, a striking contrast to the activity and bustle of the 
 French. All the shops were crowded, as well as the lower class 
 of wine-houses, retailing the " veritable eau de vie" to their 
 northern conquerors : while the better sort were nearly as well 
 filled by their officers, and not a few of our countrymen, eagerly 
 gulping champaign at six francs the bottle. The bargains be- 
 tween the natives and the soldiers were frequently amusing. 
 The Russian usually offered one-fourth of what was demanded. 
 
6 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814, 
 
 upon which the seller, commonly a female, fell into a rage, 
 abusing him and his country with great volubility, not a word of 
 which he understood, though the meaning was obviously intelli- 
 
 fible to him. Careless of this, he commonly seized the article, 
 alf jocularly, half seriously ; when, after another storm of words, 
 a little advance being made upon the first offer, he walked off in 
 triumph with the prize. So profitable has this intercourse been 
 to the natives, that though their national pride seemed sorely 
 galled by the presence of the Russians, I question whether many 
 more of them would not be very quietly received for the sake of 
 the pecuniary advantages. 
 
 The troops to be embarked in the fleet consist of some light 
 troops, artillery, and the three principal regiments of guards, 
 namely, the Paeobraginsky, Ismaelofisky, and Semenowsky, ori- 
 ginally formed, by Peter the Great, of young noblemen, in lieu 
 of the turbulent Strelitzes. The former takes precedence of all 
 others in the service, being raised and particularly favoured for 
 its services in a trying situation, and of course forms an object of 
 ambition to all the young men of family. The IsmaeloffsKV, at 
 the battle of Borodino, went into action 2,200 strong ; of whom, 
 one of the officers informed me, there came out no more than 130 
 alive and unhurt ! 
 
 To these regiments the Emperor, it seems, pays unremitting 
 attention ; all the official reports relative to them, whether from 
 the commanding officers, adjutants, surgeons, or others, being 
 made to him in person. He can, likewise, call nearly all the 
 privates by name. A gigantic Pole, a private, something exceed- 
 ing seven feet high, belonging to the Paeobraginsky, is said to be 
 a great favourite. He had served all the campaigns since the re- 
 giment quitted Petersburg, and had more than once been pub- 
 licly commended for his conduct by the Emperor himself. Judg- 
 ing from appearances, he had not forgotten more substantial 
 rewards ; for, in going on shore with me at Deal, some time 
 afterwards, he exhibited his pockets literally stuffed with gold 
 rings, seals, chains, and necklaces, to barter for English goods, 
 gleaned from a jeweller'^s shop, no doubt, during the campaign. 
 
 These regiments are fine looking men, — not only soldiers for 
 show, if this be any recommendation, but as effective in the field 
 as handsome on the parade. Being selected from a whole nation 
 on account of personal stature, they form a contrast to the other 
 soldiers and sailors of the country, who are commonly under 
 what we consider the middle size, though strong active men. On 
 the parade every evening in Cherburg, they extracted admiration 
 even from the French, who crowded in great numbers to hear 
 their bands, which were equal to the finest I ever heard. 
 
 On the fifth day after anchoring, 600 men of the Paeobraginsky 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 7 
 
 embarked with us, along with their band, which frequently 
 cheered many an hour of the subsequent voyage by " discoursing 
 most eloquent music.""' Along with them, likewise, came the 
 Commander-in-Chief, General Baron Rosen, an accomplished 
 and rather handsome man : and if honours be a proof of merit, 
 a brave and distinguished soldier, his breast being covered almost 
 two deep with stars and orders, Russian, Prussian, Austrian, and 
 Bavarian, gained in the field since the commencement of the war 
 with France. He was still but a young man, not more perhaps 
 than thirty-six, of such gentleman-like demeanour and prepos- 
 sessing manners, that both officers and men seemed not merely 
 to love but to idolize him. The regard too seemed mutual : an 
 instance of it may be mentioned. The officers of course, on em- 
 barking, joined the naval mess in the ward-room, preparations 
 being made at the admiraPs table for the reception of the general, 
 who, however, politely declined the invitation, in order to con- 
 tinue with his old companions in arms — " I have marched and 
 lived with my officers from Petersburg to Paris ; and though 
 obliged by your kind offer. Admiral, I cannot think of separating 
 from them now." 
 
 We remarked the majority of the officers to be very young 
 men, several not more than twenty years old ; and, with three or 
 four exceptions, none exceeding six or eight and twenty. These 
 we could not consider the veterans who had worsted Napoleon ; 
 but soon heard an explanation of the reason, in the losses sus- 
 tained during the campaigns, which were necessarily supplied by 
 more inexperienced levies. They were, however, as well as most 
 of the naval officers, perfect gentlemen. Several were perfecting 
 themselves in French, and possessed a large stock of the literature 
 of that nation. Two only spoke English, and the only Enghsh 
 book I could find was Sir Robert Kerr Porter's account of the 
 campaign of 1812, which, however, belonged to one of the naval 
 officers. 
 
 From Deal, which we reached in about a week more, the General 
 and two or three others made a forty-eight hours' excursion to 
 London, the report of which was by no means so gratifying as a 
 sanguine Briton commonly expects. The charges were uncon- 
 scionable — the cookery not to their taste — the post-boys insolent 
 — the towns inferior to the French — ^and London dirty and 
 smoky. But then, some of the buildings were certainly fine — the 
 Horse-Guards seemed fine soldiers — and the English were, un- 
 questionably, an opulent and spirited people. The size, the 
 brilliant audience, and magnificence of Drury-lane Theatre, as- 
 tonished them. Above all, the frail and loquacious tenants of 
 the lobbies created the greatest surprise ; for Paris, the devout 
 
8 Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 object of all their affection, they willingly admitted, possessed no 
 such scene as this. 
 
 It is remarkable, however, how much higher every thing 
 French stands in their estimation than almost any thing English. 
 I am at a loss to account for this, except it be that happy talent, 
 possessed by our lively neighbours in an eminent degree, of 
 raising admn-ers out of professed and conquering enemies. But 
 the praise of superiority was not awarded in their favour without 
 many long arguments on the side of our country by some of the 
 naval officers. A few of these, who had resided in England, 
 took a more favourable view of our manners, institutions, and 
 national character ; yet, even they, were strongly prejudiced in 
 favour of France. I more than once regretted to some of the 
 parties, that these debates being carried on in Russian, I had not 
 the opportunity of explaining or defending what might seem to 
 them peculiar in our habits. The reply was, that the circum- 
 stance was very fortunate, for I should be Httle pleased with the 
 opinions expressed of my country. 
 
 The difference of the esprit du corps between the army and 
 navy is obvious. The former know and feel the value, not only 
 of theii' late services, but of their usual weight in the country : 
 the latter appear to labour under a feeling of inferiority, as if 
 aware they were only a lower link in the chain of national power. 
 Several of the lieutenants regretted they had no means of ac- 
 quiring distinction, compared with the army ; and two even 
 thought of relinquishing the service of Neptune for that of Mars 
 — of surrendering the spy-glass and speaking-trumpet (the usual 
 insignia of their office) for the sash and feather. Yet their con- 
 tests with the Turks and Swedes were often referred to with 
 pride, as a proof of what they could do when put to the trial. 
 Even the English navy, it was hinted, possessed no superiority 
 which might not be hazarded by a contest with that of Russia. 
 You will smile — but a httle vanity on points of national distinc- 
 tion is excusable. Nay, Captain R once asked me, what 
 
 other motive was it, if not fear, which prevented Lord Colling- 
 wood attacking the Russian fleet, going from Corfu to Venice, 
 in 1807? The only reply was, — how came their fleet, not 
 merely to run away, but to allow a seventy -four to be destroyed 
 before their eyes by two English ships of the same force, under 
 Sir Samuel Hood ? He was so enraged as not to speak to me 
 for two or three days after. 
 
 The '' Guards," I soon found, were every thing on board ; 
 the comforts of the seamen, the rules of the service, and all pre- 
 vious arrangements, being — nothing. Their name, their services, 
 their wishes, and the magical word " Emperor," was an excuse 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 9 
 
 for every thing; even Captain R forgot his usual per- 
 
 verseness when they were in question. — " We manage these 
 things better in England." 
 
 On first joining the ship, a spacious cabin, the ward-room, was 
 assigned me ; but when the all-important " Guards" made their 
 appearance, the Captain, after more than usual politeness, and a 
 hundred apologies, said, that as the officers were of the first con- 
 sequence, being noblemen, and enjoying the particular favour of 
 the Emperor, it would be necessary for me to share my cabin 
 with two, as the other officers would be equally burthened. This 
 honour a novice in sea affairs must have submitted to. I, how- 
 ever, was too old a sailor, being well aware of the nuisance of 
 having a raw landsman or two so near me in case of boisterovis 
 weather, added to another reason to be mentioned presently. I 
 therefore parried the blow, by requesting to have the honour of 
 resigning it to them altogether, on condition of having a screen 
 cabin fitted up for me on the main deck. This settled, Mr. 
 
 S , who had been hitherto indifferently accommodated, and 
 
 I, took possession of our new sleeping-room, hving of course still 
 at the ward-room mess ; and during the passage, which lasted 
 about three weeks, from Deal to Cronstadt, enjoyed all the air, 
 comfort, and cleanliness, so necessary to Englishmen ; but which, 
 as I had conjectured, did not seem absolutely essential to my in- 
 tended messmates of the "' Guards.'^ 
 
 The other circumstance to which I allude, is not merely the 
 general neglect of personal cleanliness common to most foreigners, 
 but a peculiar characteristic of it, namely, the presence of certain 
 creeping things, which with us are considered to be confined to 
 the lowest and idlest objects of the most squalid poverty. I had 
 suspected something of this kind before, when, one day at dinner, 
 my servant pointed out two large and thriving members, crawling 
 up the shoulder of a naval officer who sat next me. This, how- 
 ever, might have been supposed the effect of accident, had not a 
 similar occurrence taken place more than once afterwards ; and 
 matted and uncombed heads were obvious every morning in all 
 classes, from the highest to the lowest. Among the seamen this 
 nuisance prevails to an extent surprising and disgusting in the 
 extreme, arising from the utter disregard of the officers to their 
 comforts and cleanliness. I did not observe it to the same extent 
 among the troops, though, on board at least, they were not more 
 looked after than the seamen. It may be perhaps from their 
 servants, who necessarily mix with the crew, that the officers de- 
 rive their obnoxious live stock ; but even in this way the fact is 
 disgraceful to their system, or rather no system, of discipline. 
 
 Another occurrence, accidental indeed, but happening nearly 
 about the same time as the former, spoiled my dinner a second 
 
10 Voyage to St. Peter jfburg, in 1814. 
 
 time, and would have given a stranger, though erroneously, a 
 very unfavourable impression of the decorum of the table. A 
 young military officer, adorned with several orders, as most of 
 them were, came on board at Deal from another ship, to see a be- 
 loved friend, when having taken rather large potations of cogniac, 
 his head and stomach both seemed to feel the effects ; for, on 
 rising before our repast was concluded, to take farewell of his 
 friend by kissing him, as is customary, in inclining his head over 
 his shoulder, the stomach dislodged its contents, which came 
 streaming over dishes, plates, and persons, for nearly a yard 
 in every direction. Fortunately, I was out of reach of this shot. 
 The poor offender, covered with confusion, quickly made his 
 escape ; the other officers were extremely annoyed by the effect 
 such an event would have in our eyes, ana made numberless apo- 
 logies for it, which, however, were scarcely necessary, as it was 
 mere accident, and could not detract from their general manners, 
 which were not only decorous, but characterized by great free- 
 dom from the vice of drunkenness. 
 
 In justice also to their finer feelings I must confess I never 
 saw men possess stronger mutual regards or warmer friendships. 
 They always met with enthusiasm, and often parted with tears. 
 Sometimes it almost reminded me of a tragedy scene, except in 
 not being fictitious. Many of the stripHngs of the army had 
 their relations in the fleet whom they had not seen since the com- 
 mencement of the war, and among these the extravagance of joy 
 seemed so blended with the " luxury of woe," that it was difficult 
 to tell which predominated. The custom of kissing when meet- 
 ing or separating, is universal. It is the cheek however that is 
 saluted ; but nothing can reconcile it to an Englishman among 
 persons of the same sex. The Swedes, Danes, French, and 
 others, partially practice the same custom ; and it is another 
 proof of our dissimilarity from most other nations, in minute as 
 well as in great points, that this peculiarity has never existed 
 among us. 
 
 While lying in the Downs, I had a proof that the skill of their 
 
 medical men was not a great deal underrated by Captain R . 
 
 The Russian surgeon, I should premise, was by no means de- 
 ficient in intelligence, though young and inexperienced ; abound- 
 ing in theory, but utterly deficient in practical knowledge ; and 
 a favourite dogma strongly imbibed ana retained was, that all eva- 
 cuations were hurtful. A seaman, during my temporary ab- 
 sence on shore, fell overboard into a boat, and pitching on his 
 head, experienced concussion of the brain. On returning some 
 hours afterwards, the first insensibility had gone off, and inflam- 
 mation threatened rapid progress. I recommended him to be 
 bled, when, after much persuasion, a small quantity was taken 
 
Voyage to St, Petersburg, in 1814. 11 
 
 from the arm. This, however, was evidently of Uttle use, and 
 the danger seeming imminent, I insisted on the temporal artery 
 being opened. He had already made sad work of the simple 
 operation of opening a vein ; but attempting an artery proved so 
 alarming, that after an effort or two he fairly gave it up to me ; 
 and when the blood had issued a moment or two in its usual 
 jerking manner, actually went off to report to the captain that I 
 should inevitably kill the man, who sent down a lieutenant to 
 see whether I was not committing murder ! The man's hfe, 
 however, was saved by this measure ; but had he chanced to die, 
 I sliould unquestionably have been considered a homicide. The 
 circumstances attending this case are only one specimen of several 
 similar scenes. 
 
 A singular circumstance, characteristic of the hardy nature of 
 Russian seamen, occurred nearly about the same time. A 
 man complained, at nine o'clock in the morning, of being unwell, 
 and at three was dead — not from any sudden cause, as might be 
 supposed, but from the regular progress of disease. He was 
 affected with scurvy, and proved also in the last stage of inflam- 
 mation of the lungs, having, it was ascertained by inquiry, la- 
 boured under the latter ten days, without making his complaint 
 known to any one. During this time he continued doing his 
 duty, occasionally suffering taunts from his companions for being 
 lazy ; nor was it till almost the very instant m which life was 
 preparing to quit her tenement for ever, the unfortunate man 
 applied for medical assistance, — an instance perhaps of unex- 
 ampled fortitude under acute disease. 
 
 Besides my other duties I had a new office to perform, con- 
 nected, in their opinions probably, with my profession. It was 
 that of carver-general to the mess. For having on first coming on 
 board displayed some skill, unwittingly, in this respect, my 
 services were afterwards put in constant requisition. You will 
 judge this was no ordinary labour, when I state, that after the 
 military came on board, we sat down to table thirty-five persons, 
 not one of whom, singular as it may appear, could dissect poultry 
 secundum artem ; but, when accidentally before them, haggled it 
 most cruelly into (]^uarters, or rather sixths, as some ancient 
 tyrants punished their victims, by tearing the unfortunate sub- 
 ject to pieces by main strength. But it was not poultry alone — 
 beef, mutton, hams, in short, every thing that came to table was 
 ordered under the operation of my knife. One day's work will 
 give you some idea of my labours. First came a huge round of 
 beef, which, in order to supply so many hungry mouths, I found 
 it necessary to slice from top to bottom ; next, a tremendous ham, 
 every cut of which excited regret that people made their pigs- of 
 such a size ; afterwards, two couple of fowls, or ducks, the sight 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII. i 
 
13 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 of which made my hand involuntarily tremble ; and lastly a 
 goose which, particularly when characterized by the honours of 
 age, fairly made me groan in spirit. 
 
 Without the least exaggeration I may say that the skin was 
 more than once grazed from my fingers (not very hard at any 
 time) by this more than due share of tabular dissection. Innu- 
 merable compliments were paid to my skill, though not one to 
 my patience, which, of the two, I fancied deserved it infinitely 
 the most. But even praise could no longer stimulate exertion. 
 My fame was estabhshed ; and in imitation of other great men, I 
 thought it no longer necessary to labour for superiority where 
 there was no rival. I therefore laid down quietly, what few 
 illustrious characters do, the sceptre of power, i. e. the carving- 
 knife much to the regret of my admiring subjects, content to 
 eat a lump of a fowl, for a joint was out of the question, rather 
 than that the announcement of dinner should any longer give me 
 a fit of the spleen. 
 
 It will naturally be asked, how it was possible to eat where 
 there was so much v/ork. This is easily explained, in the 
 words of a certain Cornish parson, according to the story, who, 
 when a wreck on the coast was announced to his congregation 
 during divine service, and they were slyly moving off to secure 
 the prize, bolted out of the pulpit with — " no foul play, gentle- 
 men : let us all start fairly." In short, the meat being all cut 
 before any one sat down, according to the Russian fashion, " we 
 started fairly," Ihe dishes being carried round by a servant, 
 beginning at the head of the table, each person helps himself to 
 what he likes best ; those at the bottom, of course, seldom get 
 the dainty bits, but the seats being commonly arranged according 
 to rank, this does not produce so much grumbling as it would in 
 an assembly of John Bulls. 
 
 The order of the dishes was likewise curious. First came the 
 boiled beef ; then a kind of salmagundi, formed of corned meat 
 cut small, with abundance of pepper, mustard, vinegar, and other 
 things, and served up cold. This, from making its appearance 
 every day, I concluded to be a national dish, but there was always 
 some admixture in it not at all to my taste. The third article 
 was soup, thus forming the middle, instead of, as with us, the 
 beginning of dinner. Afterwards came the poultry, followed by 
 the best pastry I ever ate any where, being light and extremely 
 pleasant, instead of the heavy doughy masses of England, which 
 tie in the stomach like so many grape-shot. 
 
 On the 5th July, quitted the Downs attended by an English 
 hospital ship, with a physician to the fleet (Dr. Burnett) in order 
 to secure the squadrons against the effects of contagious diseases, 
 by removing the infected. These it appears were common on 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 13 
 
 board, even while the ships remained in the river Medway, re- 
 quiring the constant inspection of EngHsh naval surgeons to 
 guard against their spreading. What is more extraordinary, 
 many of the crew, though living constantly on fresh meat and 
 vegetables, were suffering from scurvy. This throws a new 
 light, or rather confirms an old one, on the origin of the disease ; 
 showing that the neglect of personal cleanliness, damp air, and 
 want of exercise, will produce it, totally independent of diet, 
 though this is doubtless the strongest exciting cause. 
 
 Favoured by the alarm created by the sudden death of the 
 poor man before mentioned, I succeeded in procuring permission 
 
 from Captain R to muster the ship's company. This in 
 
 their opinion seemed a novel and extraordinary proceeding, 
 though practised daily in the British fleet. As I expected thirty 
 men were found affected with symptoms of the scurvy; in 
 another ship more than double the number suffered under similar 
 complaints ; others likewise experienced the disease in a greater 
 or less degree, which but for this examination might have gone 
 on to the last stage with impunity. Not one of the officers at- 
 tended this inspection ; such a thing in our navy would be con- 
 sidered the grossest neglect of duty, but in this is never thought 
 of. The captain complained of being unable to walk from a 
 pain in his knee, and no one else seemed to think it their con- 
 cern. A single week only had elapsed at sea when these cases 
 were discovered. What would become of such a fleet blockading 
 an enemy's fort for ten or twelve months, or even jiroceeding on 
 a moderate cruize ? 
 
 My success in this measure encouraged another attempt for 
 the twentieth time, to persuade the captain to a regular periodi- 
 cal examination of the crew twice or three times a week, which 
 was followed as usual by a refusal, on account of its being con- 
 trary to the system of their service. A request to examine the 
 guards, made him tremble at my temerity, the regimental sur- 
 geon, or surgeon-major as he was called, being on board. A hint 
 of the propriety of the measure was however dropped to the 
 general, who settled the affair by saying at once the health of the 
 men was their affair alone and no other person's. Naval discipline 
 therefore, affecting the welfare of a whole service, soldiers as well 
 as sailors, was nothing against the ^vill of a single military officer. 
 
 Hitherto I had tried by all my powers of argument and insi- 
 nuation to point out, according to the spirit and letter of my 
 instructions, a variety of minor measures, not merely of tempo- 
 rary but permanent benefit to the service in points connected 
 with its general health. These were not very well received ; on 
 the contrary considered almost impertinent ; and I began to be 
 looked upon with an eye of suspicion, if not dislike, when my 
 
1:4 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 wishes reaching the Admiral's ears, he sent for me, examined liiy 
 instructions, and observed that however good in themselves, they 
 were totally inapplicable to the Russian service. His advice was 
 extremely friendly. " The people here are averse to innova- 
 tion," said he, " take my advice ; interfere as little as possible if 
 you wish to be comfortable ; give your assistance if requested 
 but not otherwise ; — I myself should wish to introduce many 
 things, but I find it impossible. At the same time you are right 
 in endeavouring to comply with the orders you received, but 
 here they cannot be executed.*" 
 
 Our passage across the North Sea was perfectly tropical ; — 
 a fair gentle breeze, a glassy sea seldom ruffled, the ship with 
 little motion, the heavens cloudless, the nights clear, the men 
 basking in the sun during the day, the ports open for the ad- 
 mission of air day and night, and the band frequently sending 
 forth their " concord of sweet sounds." — On the 11th of July 
 rounded the extreme point of Jutland called the Scaw, and en- 
 tered the Kattegat, or Scaggerac Sea, dividing the former from 
 the coast of Sweden, and near the latter coast abounding in 
 small islands. From the Scaw to Zealand it forms a remarkable 
 elbow and preserves the same appellation. Above that island it 
 takes the name of the Baltic, communicating together by the 
 famous passage of the Sound, and the Great and Little Belts, in 
 all of which channels our shipping were much damaged by the 
 Danes during the war. 
 
 The weather still continued fine, the wind veering round in 
 our favour, in the various and almost opposite points necessary to 
 steer through this confined and dangerous sea, except once near 
 the island of Anholt, under which we anchored. This island is 
 the largest in the Kattegat, and belongs to Denmark, lying not 
 more than nine miles from the coast of Jutland. It is dangerous 
 to mariners, but contains a light house distinguishable fifteen miles 
 off. During the war the light was extinguished by the Danes, in 
 order to annoy our shipping, when it became necessary to reduce 
 the island, which was occupied by a small British garrison. A 
 desperate attempt to retake it was made from the coast of Jutland 
 in 1811. The invaders however, after a sanguinary contest, were 
 repulsed by a handful of men under Captain Maurice of the 
 Navy, taking prisoners more than their own numbers, and the 
 rest escaping with difficulty. Since that time, though often 
 threatened, it continued quietly in our hands till the cessation of 
 hostilities. It is however poor, not very populous, and only use- 
 ful for the time, from its hght-house and position. 
 
 The day after quitting Anholt we passed through the channel 
 called the Greater Belt, Admiral Tate, the commander-in-chief, 
 leading the way in a three-decker ; Admiral Crown having pro- 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 15 
 
 ceeded the same way with another division of the fleet a week or 
 two before. Entering the Gulph of Finland a few days afterwards, 
 no event of consequence occurred till on the 29th of July the 
 squadron cast anchor in the outer road of Cronstadt. Nothing 
 unfavourable to health had occurred since the cases of scurvy. 
 The sick list, considering the number of men on board, was not per- 
 haps more than half what it would have been in an English ship 
 of the same force. This arises from the crew seldom applying for 
 medical assistance till seriously in want of it. Englishmen are 
 not only more careful of themselves, and very properly so, but 
 more tender in constitution. They could scarcely have existed at 
 all under the general neglect, and personal filtn, characterising 
 these men, of which some idea may be formed when I state that, 
 during my six weeks stay on board, many, I felt satisfied, had 
 not once washed themselves, and not fifty out of the whole crew 
 had beds to lie in, but strewed themselves round the decks to 
 sleep, choosing, in the sea phrase, the softest plank they could 
 find. Yet the ship herself was by no means dirty ; the decks 
 were constantly well cleaned, scraped and ventilated. Of a Rus- 
 sian sailor, therefore, it may be said as of a Dutchman, that he is 
 the only dirty thing in his house. 
 
 Of the general nature of their service, and what probable dan- 
 ger we have to fear from it, a few words may not be unacceptable, 
 particularly as the subject in the detail is little known in England. 
 
 Russia has ever hai a longing inchnation to become a first rate 
 naval power, principally perhaps from considering herself too far 
 removed from the centre of European politics to become imposing 
 by land. It was this desire that actuated Peter in building St. 
 Petersburg, and in forming Cronstadt into an arsenal for his 
 navy, at a prodigious sacrifice of human life and treasure. The 
 same spirit continued to influence his successors till lately ; but 
 from all appearances it is rapidly declining, from finding that 
 by a series of extraordinary and unexpected events, Russa has 
 acquired a preponderance by land among her more southern 
 neighbours, never dreamt of even by the ambitious Catherine. 
 There is another reason, no doubt, in the derangement of her 
 finances, which will not admit of supporting a large naval as well 
 as a large military establishment. A third reason is, that nature 
 denies maritime pre-eminence by locking up her fleets nearly six 
 months of the year by the ice. A fourth, and the greatest of all, 
 is the difficulty of creating seamen, to which constant practice 
 and experience are indispensable ; for though a tolerable soldier 
 may be made when out of the actual presence of an enemy, yet a 
 sailor can learn his profession only by constantly grappling in 
 person with the elements of sea and wind. 
 
 For the construction of shipping no country possesses more re- 
 
16 Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 sources within herself. Wood, workmen, hemp, iron, pitch, and 
 tar she possesses in abundance and of the best description ; while 
 the ports of Cronstadt, Revel, Riga, and Archangel offer every 
 facility for their equipment. The number of ships of the line 
 does not amount to more than thirty, not more than half of which 
 could proceed to sea for active service, and I saw several rotting 
 on the stocks at Cronstadt. Of frigates and smaller vessels, as 
 brigs and cutters, there are about the same number ; while of 
 gun-boats, carrying one or two twenty-four pounders and twenty 
 or twenty-five men, intended to act in shoal water, and particu- 
 larly useful against the Swedes, they can muster in the different 
 ports and inlets of the Gulf of Finland one hundred and fifty. 
 These vessels being either able to row or sail also become ex- 
 tremely annoying to the largest ships in a calm, where the latter 
 cannot manoeuvre. The Danes used them against us in the Belt, 
 with great effect ; and in the south of Europe, (viz. Algesiras) 
 the Spaniards used them, to the frequent obstruction of our men- 
 of-war, and loss of our merchant vessels. 
 
 But when all the materials which the country undoubtedly pos- 
 sesses are put together — when the wooden castle is constructed and 
 sent into her element, the soul by which this mass requires to be 
 animated is wanting. The want of clever seamen is a leading objec- 
 tion ; but a still more vital deficiency, and one which Russia never 
 can supply, whatever be her zeal or exertions, is the want of able 
 officers. This deprivation presents greater obstacles to her naval 
 greatness than even the other; for seamen by embarking in 
 merchant vessels may acquire skill and experience ; while young 
 men of a certain rank in life would not submit to this drudgery, 
 nor would their friends, for what they might deem a problema- 
 tical advantage, permit it at the hazard of certain hardship, and 
 probable loss of gentleman-like acquirements and manners. 
 
 At present the young aspirant after naval renown is placed in a 
 kind of college, appropriated to the reception of this class at Cron- 
 stadt, or in another at St. Petersburg, at the age of seven or eight. 
 Here he is taught the elements of navigation, and as the summer 
 opens, is sent out for a few weeks cruize in the Baltic. During 
 this time the weather is fine, no difficulty offers in the contention 
 of the elements to call forth the powers of his mind. He visits a 
 few ports for the purpose of amusement, and he returns again 
 scarcely recovered from sea sickness, to Cronstadt or Revel, to be 
 locked up by the ice for the winter, till the ensuing summer re- 
 quires the same routine, with his illness to reconquer, and all his 
 little knowledge to re-learn. In two or three years he becomes 
 garde-marine, and afterwards midshipman; pursuing the same 
 round of duty, gaining some insight into practical navigation, 
 but scarcely any into the more important science of seamanship ; 
 
Voyage to St. Petershui'g^ in 1814.^ 17- 
 
 and while on shore in the winter, by a late r^ulation, officiating 
 alternately as soldier and sailor. 
 
 During the cruize he scarcely ever deigns to superintend the 
 immediate work of the seamen, or carry into effect the orders of 
 the lieutenant ; and seldom goes into a boat on duty, except 
 when proceeding to the ship of the commander-in-chief. He 
 simply walks the deck in his watch, and heaves the log to dis- 
 cover the rate of sailing. Below, he messes in the Ward Room 
 with the lieutenants on his table money which, while in England, 
 was £Q lOi*. per month, instead of fighting his way through the 
 hardships of a cock-pit, like the English midshipman ; and struts 
 to and fro with a segar in his mouth, till the routine of duty re- 
 turns. In due time the theory of a ship is learnt, the names 
 of the ropes acquired, along with the words of command for 
 setting and reefing and furling sails, but he understands little of 
 the practice of either. When a difficulty occurs therefore he can 
 rarely put the men right, though even exalted to the rank of 
 lieutenant ; for it is one thing to give orders, and another to know 
 how they should be executed. 
 
 It is impossible that men brought up in this manner can ever 
 command ships or fleets opposed to good seamen, without sus- 
 taining certain defeat. Personal courage, of which they undoubt- 
 edly possess their full share, can do little at sea, (less even than 
 on land,) against superior skill. The mode of educating the 
 officers of the British navy is, in every respect, different ; and 
 perhaps a stronger condemnation cannot be passed on the Russian. 
 We have indeed a naval college also, but few of the midshipmen 
 comparatively have been educated there ; — those who have, it is 
 remarkable, seldom make good seamen, on account of passing two 
 or three years, out of the six, which it is necessary to serve, in 
 the school, instead of being at sea fighting their way amid the 
 rough preceptorship of winds and waves. 
 
 The want of good officers has always been so far felt and acknow- 
 ledged, that allurements to foreigners, particularly the English, 
 have been constantly held out to enter into the Russian navy. 
 Two thirds of the admirals and captains sent to England in this 
 fleet, were Scotchmen. These are good officers, and clever seamen, 
 but the nature of the service, or the genius of the people is such, 
 they are unable, with their utmost exertions, to introduce a single 
 regulation of any kind, for its amelioration or improvement. 
 Several accepted Russian commissions, red-hot with purposes of 
 imparting to its navy all the advantages and new lights breaking 
 in upon us in England ; but to their mortification found they 
 had been all attempted by their predecessors in vain. The in- 
 tention indeed brings down such odium and abuse from the na- 
 tive officers, who consider any proposed alteration an insult to 
 
18 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 their discipline or talents, that none can persist in the design, 
 however high in rank, without being recalled from com- 
 mand, or receiving an order to conform to established usages 
 from the court, where, as in all arbitrary governments, intrigue 
 and favour often supersede the true interests of a country. 
 
 The jealousy entertained of the British officers is extremely 
 great; so that though they have mainly contributed to, if not 
 entirely gained, nearly all the sea victories of the country, they 
 do not find much favour in the eyes of their Russian brethren. On 
 
 inquiring the characters of some. Admiral T was represented 
 
 a tyrant, without a single good quality out of his profession; 
 Admiral E a fool and dotard ; Admiral C a good sea- 
 man, but an arbitrary, vulgar man, fit only for a collier ; and all 
 the others with various deductions from their professional merits. 
 Admirl O , while I was on board, behaved to them with ex- 
 treme reserve, rarely exchanging a word with any one but the 
 Captain or Captain-Lieutenant. Neither did he ever ask them to 
 dine as is customary in the English service. On this account he 
 ^ did not invite me, assigning as an apology to me for this seem- 
 ing neglect, the jealousy likely to be produced from paying that 
 attention to a countryman, which was not given to his own officers. 
 For the same reason, he did not often enter into conversation. 
 His situation seemed to be one where every action was 
 examuied for the purposes of invidious misrepresentation, or he 
 thought so ; most of his countrymen have indeed found it so, 
 for it is but the natural result of exercising authority in a foreign 
 service. 
 
 However severe the junior officers abused the British, it must 
 be confessed they never pretended to exalt the qualifications of 
 their own, all with the single exception of A dmiral Siniavin, being 
 represented to my repeated enquiries as possessing little or no ac- 
 quaintance with their profession. Among these was Admiral 
 
 T , who commanded a division of the army on the retreat of 
 
 the French, where he did not retrieve in a military capacity that 
 credit which he was believed to want in naval matters. He pos- 
 sesses however, great address, it is said, and what is of more con- 
 sequence, powerful interest ; but the people have not yet for- 
 given him the escape of Napoleon. 
 
 Were it not for the protection of the government which, in 
 this point, exercises a sound wisdom and discretion in opposition 
 to national prejudice, few Englishmen would enter their service, 
 and if the unpleasantness of the situation were fully known, per- 
 haps none. — Many repent it, but having given up their prospects 
 otherwise, find it too late to return. In 1805, proposals were 
 made to English medical men, to enter the Russian fleet then in 
 some of our ports. Several . accepted the offer, but became so 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 19 
 
 disgusted widi their situation, as to quit it after some years ser- 
 vice, and not one now remains. Others who have tried their 
 fortune, by setthng in the country, even under the auspices and 
 protection of government, soon found their prospects by no 
 means equal to their expectations, and in general do not remain. 
 Russia is too poor for an EngUshman. A moderate exercise of 
 talents and industry in his own country, will always gain him as 
 much as perhaps great labour and anxiety there; a remark 
 which holds good with respect to adventurers of every class to 
 " All the Russias.'' 
 
 The Russian sailors possess all the requisites for becoming 
 the first among their profession — courage, fortitude, patience, 
 obedience, hardihood, and activity. A little experience makes 
 them very smart in doing duty aloft in fine weather, as I 
 witnessed; but they dread beyond almost any other place (the 
 officers at least) the stormy and boisterous channel of England. 
 No men can be better behaved ; punishments are, strange to say ! 
 
 almost unknown, scarcely one having occurred in the S for 
 
 two years; while in an English ship of the same size, there 
 would probably have been, on a moderate computation, two hun- 
 dred. And this orderly conduct seems entirely spontaneous, as 
 they are in a great measure left to themselves, the officers seldom 
 or never looking after their condition or comforts. They are like- 
 wise, contrary to what might be expected, commonly sober; during 
 my stay on board, I saw only one man in a state of intoxication. 
 The fortitude of the Russian under privations and disease, is 
 extremely great ; of the latter, I have already given an instance, 
 but others were by no means uncommon. Of the former, num- 
 berless instances are on record, in serving for years without pay, 
 promotion, honours, comforts, and almost without clothing, or 
 wholesome food, and yet not uttering a murmur. The officers 
 particularly boasted of their sacrifices m these respects, on many 
 occasions during the wars of their country which, they said, 
 Englishmen would never have submitted to. 
 
 The courage of the Russian seaman against an enemjr is un- 
 questionable, being of that description which rarely thinks of 
 retreating or submitting, while able to act offensively ; and it is 
 this insensibility to danger, as we perhaps may term it, which 
 gave the contests at sea with the Swedes frequently the character 
 of the most desperate obstinacy. He will always fight while he can 
 stand ; the English system therefore of broadside and broadside 
 fighting, commonly adopted against the French, would not perhaps 
 answer so well against the Russians, though unquestionably our 
 superior discipline, experience at sea, greater quickness in the 
 management of the great guns, added to the entire interior ar- 
 rangements of Britisli men of war for battle, would secure the 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII. k 
 
so Voyage to St. Pe/ershurg, in 1814. 
 
 victory even in this mode of engaging. It was however Lord 
 Nelson's opinion they should be out-manoeuvred. That great 
 man saw their weak point in a moment, aware apparently that 
 sheer hard blows would not be the speediest means of subduing 
 them. At the same time it may be observed, their courage 
 seems more of a passive than active character ; it wants that fire 
 and animal vivacity, capable of striking out new plans for de- 
 stroying an enemy, or meeting the chances and accidents of naval 
 warfare, which characterises the English, and even the French 
 sailor. He has not in fact sufficient resources within himself for 
 the exigencies of his situation, for much must often depend on 
 the men, independent of all the skill of the officer. Experience 
 alone, in situations of danger and difficulty, can at once point out 
 wants and the best mode of sup}:)lying them. 
 
 Many of those embarked lately in the men of war consisted of 
 raw levies, the national navy having declined much since the war 
 with England, and many seamen being drafted to serve with the 
 army in the late campaigns. Of marines, constituting so pow- 
 erful and effective a part of our navy, they have none. — A certain 
 number of seamen perform their duties, such as sentinels, guards, 
 &c. ; and in the winter the whole of the crews are lodged in bar- 
 racks, drilled, paraded, numbered into battalions, and in every 
 respect considered as soldiers, than which no more effectual plan 
 could be devised for stifling any feeling of the esprit du corps ; 
 yet without this spirit no military service ever did, or ever can 
 become distinguished. A thorough-bred English sailor is an 
 animal of quite another cast. He is, perhaps, the proudest of 
 men; for however laughable it may seem, he cannot believe 
 there is another profession in the world equal, in any point of 
 view, to his own ; and above all things detests being assimilated 
 to the situation of a soldiej-, so much so indeed, that it is utterly 
 impracticable to train a body to act together in that capacity, and 
 difficult even to teach them the manual exercise. The attempt 
 always produces dissatisfaction, and frequently desertion from 
 our ships, where it is much practised. 
 
 But the chief defect in Russian discipline is the want of proper 
 superintendence by the officers, who while they survey the decks 
 minutely, totally neglect the men. An English officer will be as- 
 tonished when told they are never mustered for examination; they 
 may shave or not shave, wash or not wash, change or not change 
 their linen, as they please ; and the shirt that goes on new, does m 
 fact occasionally never come off till in rags ! What is no less extraor- 
 dinary, he is permitted to sleep about the decks, wet or dry, cold or 
 warm, naked if he pleases, or wrapped in a great coat, without 
 any other covering. Frequently he has neither hammock nor 
 bedding, and, if he had, would probably not take the trouble of 
 
Voyage to St. Petershurg, in 1814. 21 
 
 suspending them; as all sailors'* beds swing from the deck over- 
 head: but strewing both any where, will throw himself carelessly 
 down for the night ; while his superiors, seem to have no more 
 to do with him off duty, than if his existence was unknown. 
 
 The consequences of this singular neglect are the production of 
 filth and vermin, to a disgusting degree ; these added to cold, and 
 exposure in sleeping, soon generate typhus fever, scurvy, and 
 other disorders, which occasion great ravages, and in a long- 
 cruize would unman the fleet. To these peculiarities, may be 
 added another destructive one, that of idleness when oflp duty in 
 harbour, or during their watch below at sea. Instead of dancing, 
 or amusing themselves by the rough but manly sports of English 
 and French seamen, they are found squatting on the decks, 
 playing at cards, or tearing thousands of living inhabitants from 
 each others heads. Indolence is a Avell known exciting cause of 
 scurvy, and this inaction, added to personal filth, no doubt caused 
 the cases of that chsease found in Sheerness harbour, thougli 
 hving, as before remarked, on fresh meat and vegetables. Be- 
 sides these, there are a variety of other points, which require 
 amendment, such as a better supply of clothing, more shirts and 
 stockings, and stated days for washing them, when taken off; in- 
 stead of which, there was not one appropriated to this purpose 
 during my stay on board ! Yet all seamen, if not naturally dirty, 
 are extremely careless, and therefore require looking after more than 
 most other men. Unfortunately, however, the Russian officer, 
 though extremely mild in deportment, believes he has nothing 
 more to do with those placed under him, than to issue the words 
 of command in nautical evolutions, leaving every thing else to 
 themselves. This is a fatal, but seemingly a fixed error, in their 
 system of discipline. He ought to be more among his men, more 
 identified with them ; he should not merely wish them to do 
 right, but shew them how to do it ; and if necessary compel 
 them to follow his directions ; for it is unquestionable that it re- 
 quires a stronger stimulus than his own inclination, to make a 
 sailor take proper care of himself; and he is too valuable a de- 
 fender of his country, to be either slighted or neglected by his 
 superiors. The virtues of the Russian, are all his own ; his 
 faults those of his officers, or at least of their mode of discipline. 
 
 A stronger reflection upon the latter cannot, perhaps, be ad- 
 duced, than to hint at that adopted in our own service, which, 
 without any extraordinary vanity, may be considered among the 
 best, if not the very best, in Europe, and followed also in every 
 essential point, by the Americans. In the three great public du- 
 ties of watching, fighting, and working the ship, every man 
 knows his place widi such precision, that though called up in the 
 dead of mght, he finds his station and his arms, even in the 
 
22 Voyage to St Petersburg^ m 1814. 
 
 largest ships in a moment. Bills, as they are called on board, or 
 plans drawn up expressly for this purpose, on a large sheet, 
 pasted on boards, and containing the names and duties of every 
 individual seaman, are hung up round the decks, continually in 
 view, so that the most stupid, or inattentive, can scarcely ever err 
 through mistake ; while the officers, for immediate reference, 
 must each possess a copy. General orders direct that the crew 
 shall be mustered for inspection, twice a week, in three or more 
 divisions, according to the size of the vessel, under a lieutenant 
 and several midshipmen. When the drum rolls therefore on 
 Sundays and Thursdays, each repairs to the place allotted for his 
 division, where drawn up in a line, he undergoes, not only a close 
 examination in person and dress, but is compelled to bring his 
 bag of spare clothing to be likewise inspected in detail, in order 
 that none may be put by, either dirty or damp, deficient in num- 
 ber, or in want of repairs, or of being replaced. Twice a^week, 
 consequently a sailor, in the Royal Navy must be clean, under pain 
 of certain punishment. Nor is it scarcely possible for him to be 
 otherwise at any time, so many eyes are upon him, such constant 
 vigilance exerted by all classes of the officers. His bedding also, 
 is subjected occasionally to a similar scrutiny ; he has washing and 
 airing as well as mustering days; he is never permitted to lie 
 about the decks ; the latter are cleaned and aired daily, with a 
 degree of minuteness and nicety almost excessive, and which it 
 may be safely affirmed, the most zealous housewife does not 
 bestow upon her parlour. And besides these, there are a 
 hundred other minute regulations tending to cleanliness, sobriety, 
 and good order ; while m the Russian Navy, scarcely one of 
 these essential particulars is deemed a point of convenience, 
 much less a necessary duty. 
 
 The grades in rank are principally taken from the French 
 service ; they are aspirant or volunteer, midshipman, lieutenant, 
 captain-lieutenant, acquired after twelve or thirteen years service 
 as lieutenant, but unknown in the British navy, captains of the 
 first and second classes, commodore, rear, vice, and fuU admiral. 
 
 The actual pay of a lieutenant is about £50 per annum ; but 
 when in active service, he receives a certain sum as table money 
 according to the station he is on ; in England it was £6 10s. ; on 
 the coast of Sweden about ^4 10*. per mensem, besides £4^ Os. 
 monthly for two servants ; so that his income is considerably 
 more than that of the English lieutenant. When not at sea, 
 or actively employed, the table and servants money ceases. A 
 midshipman, as he messes with the lieutenants, receives the same 
 sum for his table, but with smaller pay, and no allowance for ser- 
 vants. Captain-lieutenants have pay for three servants, captains 
 for four and ^ix, according to rank, and admirals in the same 
 proportion. 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. S3 
 
 The surgeons are very deficient in the essential qualifications 
 of their profession ; and some, it must be confessed, extremely ig- 
 norant, both of the powers and application of medicine, and of 
 the operations of surgery. In the former, they seldom venture 
 beyond the administration of simples, except upon extraordinary 
 occasions, and then in an unscientific manner ; in the latter case, 
 I was assured by the officers, that in all their great battles with 
 the Swedes, the greater part of the amputated, from the unskil- 
 ful manner in which they were performed, or from neglect, died ; 
 while slighter wounds, from the same causes, mortified and also 
 terminated fatally. In their army human life was equally disre- 
 garded, at least, in those who had unfortunately lost their limbs ; 
 for Sir Robert Wilson records, in one of his works, an observation 
 of a Russian general officer, " that the best doctor for a man 
 without his leg was a cannon ball !"" Purgatives and blood-letting, 
 which constitute v/hat may be termed the eyes of physic, are dis- 
 esteemed among them; and thus, a complaint often at first 
 simple and easily manageable, becomes in time, dangerous or in- 
 curable. There is not, however, sufficient encouragement in this 
 service for men of real talent. Inexperienced men come here for 
 a time, as probably they could not succeed in other situations ; but 
 when more mature in years, and improved in practice, they very 
 naturally seek a more profitable mart for their exertions. There 
 is no surer proof of a body of professional men wanting favour, 
 patronage, and emolument, than being generally deficient in 
 knowledge and skill. In the army, it is remarkable, they take 
 rank according to periods of services ; the surgeon of the guards, 
 on board, after twenty-five years service, bore the rank of a full 
 colonel. Most of the hospitals and public establishments are 
 supplied with physicians from Great Britain and Germany : the 
 Emperor'^s favorite and confidential surgeon. Sir James Wylie, is 
 a native of Scotland. v 
 
 Masters, though commonly good theoretical navigators, are 
 seldom, as in the English service, expert sailors or tolerable pilots, 
 and therefore, bear little of the responsibility attached to the ship's 
 safety or course when at sea. The captain sustains nearly the 
 whole ; he is therefore timid in approaching a coast, or in explor- 
 ing the gulphs, even near their own shores, and necessarily would 
 be very inefficient in blockading or closely inspecting those of aij 
 enemy. The boldness of the English, in this respect, has fre- 
 quently excited their surprise and admiration ; but clever seamen, 
 much experience, and accurate charts, are essential in this arduous 
 species of duty. 
 
 There is no officer answering to the name of Purser, the Cap- 
 tain taking charge of the provisions, clothing, and other stores of 
 a similar kind for the use of the crew, which are distributed when 
 
^ Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 wanted, by a steward under the superintendence of a lieutenant, 
 who takes tlie name of Revisor, does Uttle or no duty besides, 
 and receives a certain sum for his trouble, in addition to his other 
 emoluments. 
 
 The warrant officers, as they are termed in the English ser- 
 vice, or the Gunner^ Boatszmin^ and Carpefiter, are in the, 
 Russian upon a different establishment, particularly the former, 
 who is scientifically acquainted with the practice of the artillery, 
 which is never the case with us, the office being commonly con- 
 ferred on an old deserving seaman, Avell acquainted, probably, 
 with every department in a ship, but the very one he is called 
 upon to fill. This, therefore, would seem an improvement upon 
 our system, if it was not found that nautical experience and 
 skill counterbalance science in English naval engagements, from 
 the practice of closing directly with the enemy. Where the 
 latter, from calms or other causes cannot be eftected, or he is 
 enabled to keep at long-shot distance, it is unquestionable that 
 we are always worsted by superior precision of aim, particularly 
 by the French, who invariably employ artillery officers in their 
 ships. This was one cause why many of our battles with that 
 nation, previous to the last thirty years, were either indecisive 
 or disadvantageous from the distance at which the hostile fleets 
 often engaged, and the superior gunnery of the enemy. 
 
 The Ward-room Mess comprises all the principal officers and 
 midshipmen; while in an Enghsh ship the latter live by them- 
 selves. A tacit agreement seems to exist, to sit in some degree 
 according to rank, though without any formal arrangement on 
 the subject ; the mode of helping and the order of the dishes 
 have been already mentioned. During the first ten days of my 
 residence on board, we had two public repasts daily, dinner and 
 supper, the former at twelve o'clock, the latter between four 
 and five in the evening ; a cup of coffee taken by each in his pri- 
 vate cabin, previous to the one, and after the other, served as 
 breakfast, and as a substitute for that sociable evening refresh-, 
 ment, whether composed of tea or coffee, which commonly passes 
 by the former name. After the guards joined, there was only 
 dinner, but served up an hour later. In an English ship, on 
 the contrary, all the repasts are taken by the officers together, 
 with the regularity of a family. 
 
 None of their messes drink wine when by themselves; weak spi- 
 rits and water, or quass, a weak and somewhat sour liquor, made of 
 plain malt and water well shook together, form their only bever- 
 age. Along with a large stock of other things laid in to do 
 honour to the " Guards,'** was a plentiful supply of claret, ' 
 which, though no person sat at table according to the French 
 custom, after the cloth was removed, failed er£ we reached 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814 25 
 
 Cronstadt. The evening was commonly devoted to cards, in 
 which betting went high. The crew Kkewise have two pubhc 
 meals daily at the liours of twelve and four ; English seamen, in 
 addition to these, have breakfast at eight ; the rations were of 
 course the same as those supplied to the latter, from being pro- 
 cured in England, but their own, I understand, are much infe- 
 rior in quality, though not in quantity. A most execrable dish 
 often given them, and sometimes brought to the officers' table, 
 is salt beef soup. They all seem to relish it, though nauseating 
 to my palate in a high degree ; but a more serious objection is 
 its powerful tendency to produce scurvy, containing, as it does, 
 the very essence of that disease in its composition ; for I have no 
 doubt that this preparation will produce it in one half the time 
 required by the use of the meat itself, and perhaps the occa- 
 sional use of this article may account for what seemed otherwise 
 inexplicable, the presence of so much scurvy among the crew&, 
 though lying for months together in the Medway, and of course 
 constantly supplied with fresh meat, vegetables, and all the usual 
 an ti- scorbutics. 
 
 Their opinions of England, as already hinted, were of a mixed 
 character; but so difficult is it for a foreigner to judge even tole- 
 rably of our manners, character, or institutions, that I had rea- 
 son to believe the unfavourable side prevailed. Nor is this sur- 
 prising. Strangers, even of acknowledged talents, assiduity and 
 impartiality, after residing for years in England, cannot, with 
 the exertion of all their industry, understand us. We do not, 
 perhaps, fully know ourselves. Our constitution, an admirable 
 and complicated machine in itself, re-acting on our national feel- 
 ings and independence, gives a tinge of singularity to many of 
 our habits, and almost all our opinions are unintelligible to others. 
 We are unquestionably a great, but perhaps not a pleasing peo- 
 ple. We are too proud to stoop to conciliate, because we think 
 our merits entitled to command admiration ; and conscious of 
 superior freedom and intelhgence, treat with undisguised con- 
 tempt the want of them in others. We are, to other nations, 
 subjects more of wonder than of love. 
 
 The endless variety of our character seemed to amuse and 
 surprise my new companions. Some, in the course of their stay 
 in England, had met with great civility, and others with occa- 
 sional rudeness from people in the same condition of life, with- 
 out their giving any particular cause for either. No two of us 
 they said were alike ; while, on the contrary,, in other countries, 
 a sample or two from one class of society formed a pretty good 
 criterion of the whole. The higher ranks, they observed, were 
 powerful in their influence in the country, and distant in their 
 manners: the middling class commonly rich, independent and 
 
80 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814, 
 
 spirited; the shop-keeepers either very ^percilious, or on the 
 contrary obsequious ; the inn-keepers insolent and exorbitant in 
 their charges ; but more especially the lower orders insuffer- 
 ably rude and insulting to their superiors, whether natives 
 or foreigners. This spirit, they could not reconcile with 
 the existence of good government or of public tranquility ; and 
 could not be persuaded but that in time it would destroy both. 
 Pride, in all classes, it was observed, formed one of the chief 
 characteristics of our nation. It might be a right feeling, it 
 was by no means impolitic to promote it ; but to foreigners it 
 was often offensive and repulsive, depriving even our good qua- 
 lities of half their due value. 
 
 Conversing with some officers one evening, at the usual ward- 
 room lounging place, the rudder-head, I experienced a sudden 
 and most unexpected attack on the merits or rather demerits of my 
 
 country, from Captain R , who managed the business so 
 
 adroitly, that I had not an opportunity of uttering three words in 
 reply. The purport is, perhaps, scarcely worth repeating, ex- 
 cept as being a summary of the opinions, or prejudices, of a 
 man really of considerable reading and information ; but whose 
 ideas were squared solely by the practices of a despotic govern- 
 ment, and that jealousy which individually and collectively the 
 continental nations are so prone to feel of England. 
 
 Rushing out of his cabin, with symptoms of impatience, as if 
 primed and loaded with arguments from the perusal of a French 
 philippic against us, he began without preface or delay, by ol)- 
 serving that it was extraordinary that England should claim so 
 much merit from recent events, when so little was really due to her. 
 She was a small state, and in herself unimportant ; but raised to 
 eminence by fortuitous circumstances. The jealousies of the powers 
 of the continent had given her a footing there some centuries ago, 
 and their quarrels and losses since had been the source of her gain. 
 By their own folly she had become, from being their inferior, their 
 equal ; and not contented with this, even aimed, with airs of arro- 
 gant superiority, at taking the lead as their master. It was, how- 
 ever, the pride of a dwarf straining to reach the magnitude of a 
 giant. This must soon cease ; she had overstrained herself by 
 attempting too much, and would soon discover her weakness, 
 and sink back into that insignificance from which she had only 
 emerged by some skill in commerce and a powerful navy raised 
 upon the wreck of that of the other maritime powers. But 
 ships could not last for ever. Commerce would in time change 
 its seat as it had always done since the world began, and then 
 what would become of her ? Could she exist afterwards as an 
 independent state ? Probably not. — At all events only a second- 
 rate power, who must receive the law from her stronger neigh- 
 
Voyage to Si. Petershurg, hi 1814. 27 
 
 bours. Her resources, even now, were exhausted. For some 
 years past they liad in fact been more fictitious than real. Credit, 
 not capita], had been lier support ; and hke all desperate spend- 
 thrifts, M'ho anticipate their revenues, she had gone on conti- 
 nually boi-rowinty;, till the mortgage exceeded the value of the 
 estate. Her public debt was a burthen vrhich must drag her to 
 the earth. It could not be paid honestly ; and if otherwise got 
 rid of, would not only ruin her subjects, but blast her credit and 
 consequence irretrievably in the eyes of all foreigners. 
 
 The selfishness of England was disgusting ; — it was more — 
 it was both galling and insulting. Money seemed to be the god 
 of the country. Individuals, indeed, were both liberal and ho- 
 nourable in their transactions ; but the nation was at all times 
 ready to sacrifice either friend or foe for some paltry extension 
 of commerce. She had excluded from her shores half the pro- 
 duce of Europe, and taxed the other half by exorbitant duties. 
 Foreign enterprise seemed to her a crime, and foreign colonies, 
 standing eyc-sorcs. Sooner than see a foot of ground subject to 
 another flag, she would gladly garrison, at an enormous expence, 
 and with no possible profit, all the barren rocks of Europe, and 
 of both Indies. Even her assistance was not disinterested. Her 
 money had been scattered throughout Europe, solely to annoy 
 France; and in fighting the battles of Spain and Portugal, 
 she merely defended herself. For Russia she had done nothing. 
 
 As to English liberty it was but a name, which, without in- 
 spiring the government, served merely to amuse the people. The 
 Ministers could carry any question they pleased. Parliament 
 was notoriously bought and sold, or, at least, half the seats in it 
 had a fixed price. All the liberty he had seen in England, more 
 than in other countries, was that of a lawless mob parading the 
 streets of Portsmouth, breaking the windows, and otherwise de- 
 stroying the property of the more respectable inhabitants — a 
 species of liberty which he was thankful Russia did not possess ; 
 for there a party of soldiers would have been ordered out to 
 protect the vv^ell-disposed. Scenes of this description, though 
 disgraceful to a savage, much more a civilized country, were 
 common in England, and often caused not merely terror and 
 anxiety, but absolute ruin to many peaceable individuals. In- 
 stances of this were numerous in London in the riots of 1780, 
 and in Birmingham in 1794, besides many occasional occur- 
 rences of a similar kind. Laws, indeed, might exist to punish 
 these excesses — and our punishments were certainly numerous 
 and severe — ^but there were seldom any precautions taken to 
 prevent them. 
 
 Our police was so miserable as to afford little or no protection, 
 even in tlie most public places, from thieves ; for a friend of his 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII. l 
 
58 Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 had been robbed by violenee at noon-day in the streets of London; 
 and such instances he was welhnformed were not uncommon. In 
 no other streets of Europe were respectable persons so hable to be 
 aggrieved and insulted by the most despicable portion of the popu- 
 lation. And this too without redress. Was this system wise, or 
 likely to promote order in society, or general obedience to the 
 laws.^ Was liberty inconsistent with adequate protection to person 
 and property ? If so, he for one gladly preferred what was called 
 slavery in Russia, to the licentious liberty of England. Our laws, 
 he understood, prevented oppression from the powerful or the 
 rich ; but left all classes at the mercy of the mob — the worst, 
 the basest, the most ignorant, a^ the most violent of mankind. 
 Of such vicious and ferocious characters there were more in 
 London than in any other capital of Europe. In Petersburg, 
 at least, the worst part of the population was civil ; but in Lon- 
 don a fellow detected in robbing, would, probably, add to his 
 insolence by also beating you. 
 
 In fine, England, though no doubt a rich country, possessed 
 so little liberality of spirit, as to aim at making the rest of Europe 
 subservient to her plans of draining the whole of its wealth into 
 her own coffers. Her system was selfish, her views contracted — 
 her principles of trade, those of a mere shopkeeper. Though 
 calling herself the benefactor of the continent, all the powers of 
 it disliked her ; — some were influenced by fear, some by interest, 
 but none by love. — Blessed as we were with an acknowledged 
 fine country, no foreigner, unconnected with business, would live 
 in it. Our habits were unlike those of any other people ; and 
 our society, though unquestionably not deficient in talent, cold, 
 formal and repulsive. Every thing, even the common necessa- 
 ries of life, were at an enormous price. And notwithstanding 
 the boasted equality of the laws, the avenues to public justice 
 were so impeded by heavy charges, as to be rarely accessible to a 
 poor man, when opposed to the rich. — The nation, however, 
 might eventually be good, and happy, and respectable, did it pos- 
 sess a wise or effective system of government; but he was convinced 
 — and he had heard many persons of rank and fortune in the 
 country say the same— that w^hile the monarchy continued 
 limited, and an opposition existed in parhament to thwart all 
 the measures of the ministers, good or t^d, it never could attain 
 permanent power or prosperity. 
 
 The earnestness and fluency, added to the rhetorical gestures, 
 with which the captain disdiarged his blunderbuss of censure 
 against poor England, had already drawn all the officers around 
 us, anxious to hear the discussion. Dreading a subject, how- 
 r^er, which I had always carefully avoided, because it was 
 unlikely I could cxmvince, and yet impossible to remain silent 
 
Voyage to SU Petersburg^ in 1814. 91^ 
 
 d attacked, I tried in vain to get away. The zealous orator 
 had jammed me in a corner, whence, without rudeness, I could 
 not escape. Disappointed in this, I endeavoured, by interrup- 
 tion, more than once to break the thread of this red-hot phi- 
 lippic; but the captain only elevated his voice and gave still 
 more animation to his gestures; replies of every kind, apology, 
 justification, or attack in return, were ovei-powered by his 
 breathless volubility. The peroration at length arriving, my 
 time seemed at hand. But the slippery orator again foiled me ; 
 for the last enlightened dictum was no sooner uttered, than turn- 
 ing quickly round, he fled from the scene of debate, running 
 out of the ward-room with still more precipitation than he en- 
 tered it, though not without receiving from me a volley of ex- 
 postulation in his rear, which had something of the effect, at 
 least, if not the reality of victory. For the officers, who en- 
 joyed the scene not a little— as indeed all the argument was 
 carried on in good humour — admitted that this ruse seemed as if 
 the speaker were in doubt whether his objections might not be 
 satisfactorily answered. 
 
 This tirade, a sprinkling of truth amid a mass of contradic- 
 tions, which, however, contained several straggling comphments 
 that I have not repeated, forms a pretty good abstract of the 
 general opinions of foreigners respecting England, the peculiari- 
 ties of which, because they cannot understand, they commonly 
 take care to misrepresent ; and it is astonishing with what 
 avidity these misrepresentations are received. All the eyes and 
 ears of the continent are open to any thing defamatory of us ; 
 because the people cannot possibly conceive by what fair and. 
 honest means so small a country should have become so rich and 
 so formidable. England is to them literally a Terra Incognita. 
 Few comparatively visit it ; and these cannot look below the sur- 
 face of public affairs, where the ebullition of a little popular 
 spirit seems to indicate nothing but confusion and insubordina- 
 tion. They know nothing of a government of public opinion ; 
 physical force is their only substitute, ignorant, as it seems, o£ 
 the ten-fold powers of the former great moral machinery of a 
 free nation, for putting its resources and rulers into action. 
 
 The captain, thereiore, who had resided two years in Eng- 
 land, besides several occasional visits, with the advantage of 
 speaking the language nearly as fluently as myself, could not 
 trace our pecuharities to their proper origin, no more than others 
 whose pursuits and studies have been exclusively directed to the 
 subject. But in censuring oiu* commercial views, and depreci- 
 ating our manufactures, he forgot the preference shewn to the 
 latter by the officers of the fleet around us, many of whom, I 
 was informed, carried large assortments of hard-ware, black and 
 
so Ventage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 freen woollen cloths, refined sugars, and other articles bearing a 
 igh price in Russia. Some of these were doubtless to oblige 
 their friends, and others, it was said, intended as commercial 
 adventures. For this I do not vouch. Some, however, omitted 
 to settle with the custom-house — which bears the character of 
 being excessively strict — and the ingenuity of one in evading it^ 
 excited considerable laughter. His prmcipal valuables were 
 packed together, something in the shaj)e of a man, placed on a 
 small platform used for removing the sick, covered with a flag 
 as is customary, and in this way safely conveyed, on the shoul- 
 ders of a boats' crew, through the midst of the revenue myrmi- 
 dons, as an invalid on his way to the hospital ! 
 
 Before concluding with the Russian officers, another opinion 
 of theirs may be mentioned. This was, that war would proba^ 
 bly soon take place between England and their coimtry. The 
 reasan I did not learn, but such seemed the general belief. Should 
 this at any future time be unavoidable — and it never can be jus- 
 tifiable, except from the direst necessity — we shall have little to 
 fear. Even the captain admitted this, when on another occa- 
 sion, in a half-bitter spirit he exclaimed — " England is strong 
 by accident; — she is secure in spite of herself; — ^her empire is 
 insular. — But placed in the heart of Germany, how long would 
 she have retamed her boasted freedom, wealth, or indepen^ 
 dence ?'''' 
 
 Notwithstanding these little ebullitions of envy, I could plainly 
 perceive the speaker admired us much more than he was willing 
 to acknowledge. Strong hints of this kind slipped out conti- 
 nually. — " England was a most extraordinary country — quite 
 unintelligible to a plain understanding. Every thing he saw, 
 taken individually, was highly defective; but conjointly, their 
 effect was wonderful."" — We parted good friends. With a hearty 
 shake of the hand, he said, should the chances of service call 
 an English officer on board again, there was none he would 
 meet with so much pleasure as myself. 
 
 As we approached the harbour of Cronstadt, it presented a very 
 magnificent and imposing appearance, even to an English nautical 
 eye, accustomed as it is to ships, boats, docks, canals, moles, fortifi- 
 cations, commercial bustle, and all the other usual accompani- 
 ments of maritime life. It is, however, where the men of war 
 commonly lie, at least more of a roadstead than harbour, pre- 
 senting a great and open expanse of water, though sufficiently 
 protected from any extraordinary violence of wind or sea. The 
 general depth of water is not very considerable. Sand-banks 
 exist here and there, rising in some places nearly to the level of 
 the water, in others above it, on two of three of which, deno- 
 minated islands, are erected some very strong works, sufficient 
 
Voyage to St Petersburg^ in 1814. Si 
 
 to prevent the approach of a hostile fleet, their guns seeming 
 not more than two feet above the water-Hne. These were prin- 
 cipally thrown up under the influence of no small terror immedi- 
 ately on hearing of Lord Nelson's attack on Copenhagen, which 
 severed the Northern Confederacy. His approach subsequently 
 to this place, communicated a panic even to St. Petersburg, 
 which even now seems to be remembered by the shyness displayed 
 on trifling nautical points to English naval officers. In coming 
 in, they did not heave the lead in our ship, nor in any others 
 that we observed, in order, as it is supposed, that the soundings 
 should not be known. I'he channel of approach was repre- 
 sented, I know not how truly, as narrow ; the depth of water 
 in no place exceeding six fathoms, and commonly not more than 
 four and a half ; this is little more than sufficient to float a first 
 rate. 
 
 The town is situated on the eastern extremity of an island of 
 the same name, about five miles long, though very narrow. 
 The distance is lietween three andfour miles from where the men 
 of war, in readiness for sea, commonly anchor. The pull in 
 an open boat is tedious ; but the prospect, when you arrive, of 
 the mighty labours of man in shaping enormous masses of gra- 
 nite into facings of basins, canals, and docks, into fortifica- 
 tions and quays without number, amply compensate the trou- 
 ble. Every thing we see is on the grandest scale, and every 
 thing, be it remembered, is artificial ; nature has done almost 
 nothing, but labour and expence every thing ; and though many 
 projects are incomplete, or only little more than begun, yet the 
 scale on which they are planned, is at once a proof of the great 
 designs and the nnghty means of this nation, though even now 
 almost in its infancy. 
 
 A particular description of the various works will not be ne- 
 cessary here, .and indeed without ocular inspection, would be 
 scarcely intelligible. Nothing has been neglected which can 
 facilitate the instruction, equipment, and repairs of the Impe- 
 rial navy, with which great point nearly every thing we see is 
 more or less immediately connected. What is more surprising, 
 the credit of almost the whole is due to Peter the Great , the 
 idea, the execution, and nearly the completion are his. Born 
 at once an Emperor and an extraordinary genius, every thing 
 seems to have been not only within his reach, but within the 
 scope of his ambition, from the government of a kingdom to 
 the planing of a board or the manufacture of a nail. Not con- 
 tent with a theoretical knowledge of these among a hundred 
 other arts, he would execute them himself, and in general ex- 
 tremely well. He used to say, " he paid many thousands of 
 worse workmen."" It was also one of his occasional occupations 
 
9a Voyage to St. Petersburg y m 1814. 
 
 to labour among the stone-cutters employed on the works of thi» 
 place. 
 
 The great basin or wet-dock for the reception of merchant- 
 men, is unequalled by any thing of the kind in Europe, except 
 our own docks at Blackwall, which are, however, of recent date 
 compared to that of Cronstadt. It affords infinite facility to 
 commerce, by carrying vessels nearly into the heart of the town, 
 and may contain, perhaps, three or four hundred sail. At this 
 time it was so well filled that I could scarcely discover a vacancy. 
 Never, even in the Thames, did I observe a more extensive or 
 denser forest of masts. It was gratifying to find that they were 
 nearly all belonging to our country, and of course so many 
 practical testimonies to our wealth, reputation and enterprise. 
 Besides the crews of these vessels, every second person we saw 
 was English ; the beach, quays, streets, and taverns (their 
 keepers and servants also of the same nation) were crowded with 
 them, bustling to and fro with the characteristic hurry of com- 
 mercial business, and occasionally, it must be confessed, deal- 
 ing out to each other, or to strangers unluckily in their way, 
 some of the choicest flowers of nautical eloquence. This is not 
 an occasional, but on the contrary, a constant scene all the 
 months in which, from the absence of the ice, the Gulph of 
 Finland is open to traders ; so that the place might be taken for 
 an English colony. For so exclusively is the trade of this port 
 in our hands^ that of a thousand foreign vessels which enter, it 
 is calculated 930 are British. What a pity that two nations so 
 useful, and almost necessary, to each other, and whose real in- 
 terests in all ordinary conditions of the world, present so little 
 chance of interfering, should ever have been inconsiderate enough 
 to go to war ! 
 
 The Public buildings are not very numerous, with the excep- 
 tion of the government and mercantile storehouses, hospital for 
 the reception of seamen of the Imperial navy, the barracks, cus- 
 tom-house, and a few others of minor consequence, some in good 
 order, and others, it must be confessed, bearing evident testimony 
 tliat the attention of the people in power has been of late directed 
 more to other objects. The arsenal is in tolerably fine condition, its 
 interior regulations good, and as far as the finances of the country 
 have lately permitted, pretty well supplied with stores and work- 
 men. It is remarkable, however, how many ships there are here, 
 old, in want of repair, or from some other cause totally unser- 
 viceable; even two or three new ones have had their backs broke, 
 as the builders say, in launching, and are therefore, though still 
 perfect to the eye, unfit for service. Altogether, counted upon pa- 
 per, as sovereigns and statesmen most frequently reckon their 
 forces, the navy is strong, but the efFective force is not considers^ 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 38 
 
 ble. Even the majority of those in service are old and much in 
 want of repairs. 
 
 The town occupies a considerable extent of ground, the streets 
 irregular and often dirty, and the houses straggling. Many of the 
 latter seem much neglected and going to decay, the access to some 
 being quite ruinous or filthy ; others again are not merely of an 
 opposite description, but really elegant, among which may be 
 ranked all those owned or occupied by our countrymen, who 
 carry their characteristic comforts and neatness every where with 
 them, though they seldom make proselytes to their practice. 
 Besides two or three Russian Churches, is an English one with 
 a resident Clergyman, supported by contributions from the mer- 
 chants. There is another officiating minister also at St. Peters- 
 burg ; a situation which has been almost always filled by able 
 and pious men, from whom we have at different times derived no 
 little information respecting this extraordinary empire. 
 
 Two very tolerable inns, kept by Englishmen, afford pretty 
 good entertainment, when not crowded so much as they were at 
 this moment. Scarcely a vacant corner — nay not even, as they 
 say at the London theatres, " standing room,'"* could be pro- 
 cured without some difficulty during the day, from the influx of 
 masters of merchantmen, full of bustle and business, cargoes, 
 freights, and insurances, profits and losses from their private ad- 
 ventures, quarrels with their seamen, and appointments to din- 
 ner with the merchants, interlarded with jokes and bantering 
 anecdotes, arguments and seceding, loud laughter and occasional 
 swearing, the whole washed down by copious libations of bottled 
 swipes (porter) and grog. Such a Babel I never saw before. 
 When the evening called these hardy sons of Neptune on board 
 their vessels, we found both room to breathe as well as very 
 good beds, and when not chusing to dine alone, a very tolerable 
 dinner at the table d'hote, for the moderate sum of two and a half 
 rubles, which at the then rate of exchange was about half a 
 crown. 
 
 Groups of unfortunate convicts are to be seen labouring on 
 the public works, and traversing the streets on various duties, 
 heavily ironed ; yet probably from the desperation characteristic 
 of such a condition, rather than indifference, singing their natio- 
 nal airs, and clanking their chains in " rude harmony.'" Their 
 allowance is little more than bread and water, with a very small 
 sum of money dailv. Russia is very sparing, and rightly so, of 
 human life. She does not ^vTite her criminal laws in the blood of 
 the victims, as we do in humane and enlightened England. No 
 crimes, I believe, but murder and treason, and very frequently 
 not even these, are punished with death. The people, besides 
 a superstitious feeling on the subject, dislike such exhibitions ; 
 
S4 Voyages iJt Petershurghy 1814. 
 
 and succeeding sovereigns find their account in substituting in 
 their place the knout and exile to Siberia. The barbarities for- 
 merly practised in cutting off hands, arms, and ears, and slitting 
 the nostrils, are now seldom executed except for atrocious 
 offences. Branding in the forehead is sometimes the substitute 
 for these. 
 
 The resident natives and population are commonly calculated 
 at 40,000, a number, I have some reason to think, e;xaggerated. 
 In summer the influx of strangers is reckoned at 10,000 ; but mi- 
 grations between this and Petersburg are frequent with all classes, 
 particularly servants, tradesmen, clerks, labourers and others. The 
 English form a numerous and important body, highly respected by 
 the natives and visitors of all nations, for their attention and 
 hospitality. Nearly the whole, are of course, mercantile men, 
 and several are reputed very rich. 
 
 But the most singular looking objects are the natives, distin- 
 guished by sallow, sun-burnt faces, long beards like Jews in 
 mourning, a loose outside garment something like a wide great 
 coat without cape or collar, large trowsers, each leg of which 
 may contain a man's body, and stuffed into boots which seem to 
 have been formed in the infancy of cordwaining. The face, 
 were it not for a certain expression of low cunning, sedate, and 
 plodding, not arch or vivacious, is not displeasing. The hair 
 hangs down to the shoulders, as strait as a pound of candles, and 
 is there cut off all round with great regularity, leaving little more 
 than the mere front of the face uncovered by greasy uncombed 
 locks, commonly tenanted by a numerous brood. When combed 
 and clean, this fashion, though rude, is not altogether displeasing. 
 It gives the wearer an air of vulgar simplicity, strongly remind- 
 ing us of one of our country bumpkins whose hair has been cut, 
 as the phrase is, round the rim of a trencher. 
 
 In the summer time amusements are few ; winter is the season for 
 shev/ing off, when each tries to excel his neighbour in the elegance 
 and richness of his sledge and the spirit and beauty of his horses. 
 The walks near the town are few, walking not being in fashion 
 in Russia. We strolled out about a mile to a kind of tea and 
 coffee house, surrounded by gardens poorly laid out. The house 
 was filled by some scores of the officers oi the fleet, presenting a 
 scene of confusion worse, if possible, than the inn in town, and 
 therefore did not detain us long. The English are pretty socia- 
 ble among themselves. Hospitality is a leading virtue with the 
 Russians, and he who is respectably introduced has a general 
 invitation on the days on which they see company ; this he is ex- 
 pected to accept without the formality of further pressing. 
 
 X)f all the national recreations of a people, that of the bath, as 
 used here, is the most singular. Men and women, totally, or 
 
Yoyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 35 
 
 almost totally, denuded of clothing, mingle together without im- 
 proper motives or feelings of violated decency, and pass through 
 the ordeal of cleanliness, as if mankind were still in the state of 
 innocence of our iirst parents in the garden of Eden. Europe 
 has no similar exhibition ; and it is difficult to conceive how it 
 originated or was tolerated here. What seems no less extraordi.- 
 nary is the mode in which this purgation of the person is effected ; 
 for the bather rushes from the hot or vapour bath streaming with 
 perspiration into a tank of cold water, or into the river, if at 
 hand, or in the \s inter rolls in the snow, by way of bracing up 
 after the previous relaxation. Some of our party strolling 
 through the town, intruded accidentally on this exti*aordinary 
 iscene. Struck with astonishment they merely looked round and 
 hastily retreated ; but the impression of wonder and disgust was 
 not soon eradicated. People here consider it as nothing out of 
 llie way ; and the fact is a singula* instance of the force of 
 custom. 
 
 It should be remarked, however, that it is confined to the 
 second, or lower class of people, as in this country there are only 
 masters and slaves, no middle class being yet formed, except a 
 few merchants in the large towns. Saturday is the principal day 
 for this recreation ; the admission is but three or four copecs, 
 about two-pence English ; and almost every village in the empire 
 possesses its bath. The inner, or vapour room, is prepai'ed by 
 water being thrown on stones heated red-hot; and perspira- 
 tion is promoted by washing and switching each other with birch 
 rods. When satisfied with this, they proceed to the cold bath, 
 or have pails of cold water poured over their heads. 
 
 Cronstadt, or Crown town, offering nothing more worthy of 
 notice, we prepared to set off for the Capital by water; but, English 
 like, had nearly forgotten that passports are necessary credentials for 
 travelling all over the Continent. These were procured without 
 much trouble. A few questions of name and profession served 
 to fill up the blanks in a sheet of substantial paper, and shew that 
 we were, " good men and true."" A pretty large, and not un- 
 handsome boat, received our pg-rty ; and the master calling on 
 board a guard ship, stationed at a little distance from the shore, 
 in order to shew that the passports were " all right," no further 
 interruption occuiTed. 
 
 The passage, which commonly occupies four hours or more, 
 is by no means unpleasant. The boat has usually an awning, as a 
 defence from the sun,^ and the crew are clean, if not well dressed. 
 The Neva here is of considerable breadth, expanding as it ap- 
 proaches the gulph of Finland over a low tract of ground, which, 
 on the ebb-tide, becomes visible, shewing that the navigable line 
 of tlie river is far from considerable. At a distance its banks do 
 
 Voyages an(i Travels, Fo/. VII. m 
 
96 Voyage to St. Pekrshurg^ in 1814. 
 
 not shew to much advantage ; but when nearer, several of the 
 merchants'* country houses are seen to great advantage. 
 
 If the mind finds, at the first approacli to St. Petersburg, but 
 little to admire, this feeling gradually gives way as we approach 
 the city. Buildings of solid granite, as extensive as they are ele- 
 gant, bridges, palaces, quays, churches v/ith gilt domes, and 
 turrets glittering in the sun, the banks of the river faced with 
 the solid rock, and a succession, for a mile or two, of splendid 
 and costly mansions, which it requires some persuasion to believe 
 are the residences of private individuals, all strike upon the eye 
 with irresistible grandevir and a decided feeling in the mind that 
 there is nothing equal to it in Europe. Every thing we see has 
 an air of magnificence ; perhaps the size of some, the materials 
 of which they are constructed, and the idea of the labour necessary 
 to give them their present form, may almost impart sensations of 
 the sublime. The Imperial Academy of Arts, the Marine Cadet 
 Institution, and other noble edifices on the left, with the long line 
 of the Great and English Quays, on the right, added to the 
 gigantic facings of the Neva on both sides, are alone sufficient 
 to confer celebrity on any city. But when we disembark near 
 the bridge, rush into Isaac''s Place, contemplate the admirable 
 statue of Peter the Great, run our eyes over the Admiralty, up 
 the grand Perspective street, along the Hermitage, Winter, and 
 Marble Palaces, examine the hundreds of other mansions equal 
 to palaces rising on every side, and enter the new Metropolitan 
 Church, dedicated to the mother of the God of Kazan, all other 
 faculties are absorbed in those of unfeigned admiration and 
 astonishment. Other capitals may be larger or richer, but in 
 beauty none for a moment can come in competition with this 
 Queen of the North. Hers is the triumph of Architecture.* In 
 this respect she not only is, but ever must be the first in Europe, 
 or indeed in the world, because the plan and much of the execu- 
 tion were the work of one extraordinary man, whom no future 
 Sovereign, however superior in ability, can equal in the means of 
 accomplishing his designs. llegularity pervades the whole ; 
 the parts are so well fitted and adapted to each other that we can 
 scarcely find any thing to jcondemn. It is a city of palaces 
 rising in the miast of marshes. 
 
 The site of the city lies in the Province of Ingria, on the 
 banks of the Neva, a rapid river issuing from the Lake of Ladoga, 
 sixty miles distant. Expanding here in its way to the gulph of Fin- 
 land several islands are formed, on some of which portions of the town 
 
 -r— -; — — — • X ' ~ ■ — ' — — — 
 
 • The Style of building in the Russian Capital resembles that of Waterloo 
 Place; and throughout that city, very little inferior to it— in all the pullie 
 works much superior. 
 
Voyage lo St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 87 
 
 are situated. One of these, named VassiliOstrof, isthemost remarka- 
 ble ; united to the south or Admiralty quarter of the city by a long 
 and ingenious bridge of boats or barges, on which is raised a broad 
 and convenient thoroughfare for every description of vehicle. Peter 
 began his new city in 1703, and it is said to have cost the lives 
 of 100,000 men in building. It ought therefore to be a magnifi- 
 cent place, considering the magnitude of the sacrifice made to 
 found it. Formerly it was exposed to inundations from the 
 rising of the river during strong south-west winds, occas oning 
 much distress and many losses ; and though less frequent now, 
 are always dreaded. When it blows from this quarter the inha- 
 bitants are put on their guard by guns from the Fortress, and at 
 night by lights ; autumn is the season of danger ; the highest 
 flood which is remembered rose to ten feet six inches above the 
 usual level of the stream. The great height of the siu'rounding 
 ground, caused by continual building, is one reason of their pre- 
 sent security ; but the bridges over the smaller arms of the river 
 ai'e sometimes destroyed by the accumulation of water. Those 
 formed of pontoons, being much elevated in the centre by the 
 rising flood, offer a considerable acclivity to horses and carriages. 
 These approach nearly at a gallop ; and by the impetus, aided 
 by the police stationed there to prevent accidents, commonly suc- 
 ceed in gaining the summit. The surrounding country is low 
 and damp ; formerly it was uninhabitable, but the presence of 
 man, united to his wants, have now rendered it pretty healthy. 
 
 Disembarking near the principal bridge, the first considera- 
 tion after the gaze of wonder and delight had subsided, was the 
 choice of a house of entertainment. One, whose name ( do not 
 recollect, coidd not accommodate our party. The hotel de 
 L 'Europe, as some of them had a week before experienced, possess- 
 ed very poor accommodations, though with charges as extrava- 
 gant as any house upon the continent from which its name is 
 taken. In this emergency a kind of boarding house, kept by 
 one of our countrymen, who however had at this time no other 
 inmates, was recommended, and we had no reason to regret the 
 choice. The table was daily well covered, and the beds clean, 
 at a moderate charge. Besides, the house formed a kind of 
 human menagerie, fit for a philosopher to study national charac- 
 ter. Our host was an officious, good natured Hibernian, who 
 knew every thing and every body, and moreover somewhat partial 
 to strong waters ; his wife a German, his waiter a Frenchman, his 
 maid-servants Russ ; varied occasionally by the presence of some 
 of his friends: viz. Danes, Swedes, Dutch, Italians, Americans, and 
 two or tliree straggling Spaniards. Forty years ago there was 
 no such thing as an inn in this city. 
 
 The equestrian statue of Peter I. as being one of the greatest and 
 most conspicuous ornaments of the city, usually claims the first 
 
08 Voyage to St. Petersburg, hi 1814. 
 
 attention of travellers. It is indeed a magnificent object, va^t 
 in its proportions, admirable in its execution, honorable to the 
 extraordinary personage represented, to the extraordinary woman 
 who orderea, and to the eminent artist who designed it, and not 
 less happy as a rare occurrence in works of art — in its situation, 
 standing in St. Isaac's Place, one of the finest squares or open 
 areas in Europe, 
 
 It was opened to the public in its present situation the 27th 
 August, 1 782, by almost as solemn a ceremony as the proclamation 
 of a real Emperor, Catharine and all her court viewed the ceremony 
 from a platform ^ a cordon of troops surrounded the scaffolding ; 
 without were all the population of the city, who rent the air with 
 acclamations, when, on a signal being given, the inclosure, which 
 had hitherto concealed it, disappeared. On this occasion all 
 criminals, condemned to death, >\'ere pardoned, all deserters for- 
 given, and all convicts sentenced to hard labour, except those 
 guiky of murder, released. 
 
 Walking, I have remarked, is an exercise not in fashion in 
 this country. The English have tried to introduce it in vain. 
 Few genteel people are seen on their feet in the streets .; and 
 some years ago it would have been reckoned the height of vul- 
 garity. Every body, even the barber who comes to shave you, 
 rides, or is expected to ride, however short the distance or unfur- 
 nished the pocket, though the charge it is true is not considera^ 
 ble. The common medium of conveyance is a Drojeka, or, as it 
 is pronounced, Drosky ; a machine which, as well as many other 
 things here, is unlike any thing else of the kind I have seen in 
 the world, though it has been my fortune to have visited almost 
 all parts of it. 
 
 The plainest of those in the streets for hire may in a few 
 words be described, as a short, oblong, uncovered bench, 
 variously ornamented, hung on springs, and running on four low 
 wheels behind one horse, ^vno goes at a pace something between a 
 hard trot and a gallop. Close to his tail sits the driver, or Ivats- 
 chic, bearing his number on his back. On each side, with their 
 backs to eacli other, and riding side- ways, may sit a passenger, 
 the seats cushioned, and the feet on a rest elevated only twelve or 
 fourteen inches from the ground. No covering defends the tra- 
 veller from the rain above, or mud beneath, sun and dust out 
 of the question. What purpose in nature, except swift loco- 
 motion, the Drosky is intended to answer, I cannot conjecture. 
 Comfort and cleanliness, should the weather be the least unfa- 
 vourable, are impossible ; and as to convenience, it is, as an honest 
 countryman of ours remarked, just no convenience at all. Yet, 
 these are the only substitutes for our hackney coaches. In 
 winter they give place to the sledge. 
 
 The sledge is a machine equally as singular as ihc drosky, by 
 
Voyage la St. Pete rshurg, in 1 8 1 4. S9 
 
 means of which the communication is kept up in winter between all 
 j)arts of this vast empire, carrying commodities and persons from 
 Kamtschatka to Petersburg when no other mode of conveyance 
 would be practicable. It isformedof two longitudinal piecesof timber 
 about five feet long, shod with iron, and united by cross pieces, upon 
 which is erected accommodation according to the pocket or con- 
 dition of the owner, and yoked to the horse by a pair of shafts. 
 This is the general form, though in some portions of the Em- 
 pire slight variations are seen, adapted to local circumstances. 
 Those of the peasants are often merely logs of wood joined together, 
 to a sailor's eye simply forming what he would call a land-raft. 
 When owned by the nobility they are, on the contrary, very ele- 
 gant vehicles, highly and expensively decorated. Great pride in 
 their horses is a distinguishing feature among the young men of 
 fortune. 'Jliose kept for the sledge are peculiarly beautiful, high 
 spirited, and of the Arabian breed. One goes in the shafts ; the 
 other prances, curvets, and displays all his points of figure and 
 action by the side of his companion. Their manes and tails are 
 never cut, and some attain an enormous length. So essential is 
 this beauty to a Russian horse, that those who are deficient in 
 either, from accident or the poverty of nature, are supplied by 
 their owners with false appendages of this kind cut off from the 
 dead. The harness is likewise gaudy ; ornaments of brass and 
 silver, party-coloured tassels and embossed leather, are thickly 
 spread over it, not always with taste or regard to effect. 
 
 Numbers of coaches in the English fashion are frequently seen 
 in the streets with four horses, driving nearly at a gallop ; this in 
 fact is the pace of every vehicle in the place ; pedestrians, how- 
 ever, are seldom endangered, because the streets are wide, and the 
 population, compared with the extent of the place, thin. In ad- 
 dition, the postillion, always a lad riding on the off horse, and 
 habited in a long brown coat tied round his middle by a red-sash, 
 is often bawling out to those in the way to take care. His skill 
 and care are remarkable ; and the leaders being widely traced 
 from the shaft horse, he must often in turning a corner exert 
 both. The coachman has the addition of a venerable beard to 
 his countenance ; the footman military boots, spurs, and some- 
 times shewy liveries. 
 
 A coach or chariot is an absolutely necessary appendage to 
 every stranger who would visit or be visited, or otherwise be con- 
 sidered a person of respectability. Without this he is nothing. 
 A walking Englishman, indeed, straying to the shores of the Neva 
 to dissipate his constitutional spleen, or indulge his curiosity, is 
 occasionally tolerated ; but any other foreigner so situated would 
 soon find himself in Coventry. The hire of one of these vehicles 
 for a month, at the present rate of exchange, would amount to 
 about .£^15 sterUng; they remain in attendance the whole of the 
 
40 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 day, the men seeming to eat, drink and sleep, pertinaciously on 
 their respective posts. 
 
 The expences of living certainly are considerable, more so by a 
 great deal than in Stockholm, though perhaps not much more than 
 in Copenliagen. Yet the necessaries of life are cheap, though 
 the aggregate of expence is otherwise ; I mean comparatively, for 
 out of England no man would square his ideas of living by the heavy 
 claims upon his purse incident to London. The hotels' certainly 
 are as dear ; but a single man can always manage at much less 
 comparative charges than a family. To the latter, house rent is 
 dear, education is dear, dress is dear, wine is dear, all other luxu- 
 ries are dear, while the equipage is not cheap. Men servants, 
 finding themselves with food, may be hired for £S0 a year. 
 Exclusive of the Opera and other amusements, a small family, 
 I was told, with economy, may live pretty well on dS'QOO per 
 annum. This, though comparatively httle in England, is high 
 for the Continent. 
 
 The streets are wide, straight, and some of great length, particu- 
 larly the Grand Perspective, which extends nearly to four miles. 
 They are all, with perliaps some exceptions, paved ; but few have 
 foot-paths for pedestrians. The Perspective, indeed, originally 
 possessed this distinction, till the unfortunate Paul substituted for 
 them a broad walk in the centre, planted with linden trees, which 
 has by no means an unpleasant effect. The English Quay, 
 with its splendid mansions and bank, and facings of hewn granite, 
 nearly two miles long, is a magnificent place. And it is almost 
 a source of pride to a true-born Briton, to know that, even in a 
 foreign land, his countrymen are sufficiently wealthy and impor- 
 tant to retain, in a great degree, this noble pile of buildings for 
 their residence. Except upon this, and one or two other 
 streets, walking is certainly more unpleasant and fatiguing than 
 any other place I have been in. These, being flagged or 
 gravelled, present a flat surface to the feet ; but in the others, 
 the prominent points of the pavement become so uneasy after an 
 hour or two's walk, as to remind me frequently of the facetious 
 Peter Pindar's story of the " Pilgrims and the Peas." Drosky- 
 riding is therefore, perhaps, more necessary to the ease of the in- 
 habitants than at first sight may appear. 
 
 The style of building houses is light, shewy, and agreeable; some- 
 thing between the Grecian and Italian. The houses are com- 
 monly large, three and four stories high, with frequently a gate- way 
 in tlie centre, leading sometimes to an inner open area, not always 
 very clean and characteristic of what we expect in the entrance 
 to a rich and powerful nobleman's palace. Amid many edifices 
 of marbl eand other stone, the general materials for building are 
 brick, stuccoed, or stained, to imitate the former. The resem- 
 blance is sometimes perfect, for the Russian workmen are, pro- 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. M 
 
 bably, the most skilful in Europe ; and every house, when com- 
 pleted, is subject to the revision of persons in power. The shops 
 make but little external show ; but within are both elegant and 
 spacious. Many of these are kept by natives of France. The 
 number of Marchandes des modes particularly attract the notice of 
 a stranger. 
 
 Within these few years, the great majority of houses in the 
 outskirts of the city, and in the more private streets, were built of 
 wood. These, as they fall to pieces, or require considerable re- 
 pairs, must be replaced by the more substantial fabrics now in 
 use, pursuant to standing orders of the police, which, by order of 
 the Emperor, is furnished with plans for that purpose. Every 
 thing indeed is done which can contribute to the embellishment 
 or convenience of this City of Palaces. And if the means be 
 sometimes arbitrary, which an Englishman can scarcely forgive, 
 they may, in this instance be excused, on account of the superior 
 claims which the capital of a great nation always possesses, to the 
 improving hand, the taste, designs, liberality, and revision of her 
 sovereigns. London is miserably deficient in aJl the more noble 
 and striking features of architecture. 
 
 The fine river Neva, during the summer months, presents a lioble 
 appearance ; the stream broad, deep, and rapid, being covered 
 with boats bearing gay pendants, and streamers floating in the 
 breeze. It is well known, that Peter, among other extraordinary 
 projects to bend the minds of his people to his own mode of 
 thinking, interdicted the passage by bridges for some time, in 
 order to promote that by boats. The nautical mania, however, 
 never raged very strongly among the Russians. To a people so 
 generally continental, as scarcely ever to see the ocean, it is, in 
 fact, unnatural. And in any country, where a large standing 
 army admits of choice in the military profession, it is unques- 
 tionable, that the land-service will always be chosen, both by offi- 
 cers and privates, in preference to that of the sea. This is the 
 general feeling of the Russian nobility. 
 
 During the winter the surface of this river offers a singular 
 sj)ectacle in the number of sledges and skaiters flying to-and-fro 
 with incredible swiftness. Towards the end of September the frost 
 commonly sets in, and breaks up in April or May. The bridges, 
 formed upon pontoons, and^of course moveable, are opened to 
 admit the passage of large masses of floating ice, which would 
 otherwise destroy them. Bridges, such as ours, would not stand 
 here, from the pressure of the ice against the piers of the arches ; 
 and the width is much too considerable for the span of one arch. 
 Plans of this kind have frequently been proposed, and models 
 submitted for approval ; but the present structures are, perhaps, 
 the best suited to local circumstances. 
 
4S Voyage io St. Petersburg^ m 1814. 
 
 Canals are another noble feature of this seat of the Czars ; faced 
 like the river with the solid rock. The principal are those of Moi- 
 ka, Fontanka, Katarina, and Nikolai, which variously intersect it, 
 crowned by various small bridges, and presenting a resemblance 
 to some of the cities of Holland. It cannot but be a matter of 
 surprise that London has nothing of this kind, so well supphed 
 as it is with the means. On the Surry side of the river it would 
 be easily practicable, and form a new, useful, and beautiful addi- 
 tion to our own metropolis. 
 
 One of the first things which meets the eye of the stranger in 
 approaching this city is the gilded cupolas and spires of the 
 churches. This is done, it is said, with ducat gold. The effect 
 under a fervid sun is singular; and were there not abundant 
 other uses for gold in Russia, though the expence was not, 
 perhaps, vast, it would be a proof of magnificence. Numbers of 
 these edifices rise in every quarter, monuments of the religious 
 devotion of the people, and not unworthy of the sacred cause to 
 which they are appropriated ; whose sublime truths, though they 
 cannot be improved by the pomp of the place in which they are 
 uttered, deserve, at least, as suitable a receptacle as things of little 
 or no moment. 
 
 Kazan Church, or the great metropolitan temple, situated on 
 the right hand in proceeding up the Grand Perspective, is the 
 most magnificent edifice of the kind in Europe, after St. Peter"'s 
 at Rome, and St. PauPs in London. It is on the site of an old 
 church of the same name, and held in high veneration, on account 
 of containing a sacred figure of the Virgin. Here the Emperor 
 and Imperial Family frequently bowed the knee, in humble sub- 
 mission to divine power. Here also, each passing native paid his 
 obeisance to the patron Saint within, by taking off his hat, bowing, 
 and crossing the hand on the breast. It was begun in 1802. At 
 present, it may be called all but finished ; after the expenditure 
 of an immense sum, though in some parts, I understand, con- 
 tracted from the original design, which was grounded upon that 
 ofSt.PeterV 
 
 Within, the extent is amazing, presenting at least one source 
 of the sublime, — space. The decorations, it is almost needless to 
 say, are neat, handsome, and highly finished ; but what struck 
 me with considerable surprise and pleasure, they were also plain. 
 This I did not calculate upon ; for the Roman churches offend 
 so much in the contrary excess, that in the Greek, which in other 
 respects so much resemble them, no material difference could be 
 expected. 
 
 In the exclusion of frippery to the superior claims of chaste 
 and unassuming simplicity, there is, however, one object so truly 
 beautiful, and yet so splendidly grand, that neither St. Peter^s 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814 43 
 
 nor St. Paul's, nor any other building in the world, can produce 
 any thing similar. This is a wood of pillars of Finland granite, 
 each formed of only one solid, unbroken piece, about (perhaps) 
 forty feet high, and polished by extraordinary care and labour 
 to the smoothness of glass ! Compared with this, some of the 
 wonders of the fairy palaces are nothing. And though quarrying, 
 conveying, erecting, and polishing such mighty masses of matter 
 unbroken, might seem a labour fit only for their genii ; yet the 
 wliole was performed by simple, uneducated, half-clothed, half- 
 civilized Russian boors, without assistance from foreign talent. 
 The diameter of each pillar may be about forty-eight or fifty-eight 
 inches ; and the total number is, or was intended to be, (for 
 I omitted at the moment to count) eighty-four. The effect of the 
 whole is no less handsome than magnificent; the granite is of a 
 greenish colour, and in some, shades of light sparkle brilliantly. 
 
 The architect of this imperial structure, which will immortalize 
 him as much as its patron and promoter, (the munificent Alexan- 
 der) was a slave ; or, in other words, born on the estate of a 
 powerful nobleman. Count StrogonofF, to whom his services for 
 life, according to the laws of this country, were thenceforth due. 
 His education was necessarily confined; but displaying, at an 
 early period, strong traits of superior genius, his noble owner had 
 him instructed first, and convinced of his talents, at length gave 
 him liberty. 
 
 I had almost forgotten to say that the remains of the celebrated 
 General Suwarroff lie here. The inscription, in Russian, on 
 the tomb is short but pithy, and admirably suited to the character 
 of the man : — 
 
 HERE LIES SUWARROFF! 
 
 The removal of this warrior to his present abode is but recent, 
 having formerly lain in the church and monastery of St. Alexan- 
 der Newsky. 
 
 These, which are moated round, cover an extensive patch of 
 ground, at the very extremity of the Grand Perspective, and were 
 built by Peter the Great, over the shrine of a former Prince and 
 Saint of tliis name, who had been successful in defending his 
 country ; but like many other patriots, prematurely lost his life 
 by domestic treachery. An ordei* of knighthood, if I mistake 
 not, has been likewise instituted to his memory. 
 
 The brethren of tlie monastery, sixty in number, are of the 
 order of St. Basil, a favorite saint in the Greek Church. Their 
 costume is truly dismal, being black from head to foot; their 
 
 Eersons stout, 'their countenances sallow, disfigured by long 
 eards, which in men of the middle period of life always gives ^ 
 ferocious appearance. 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol, VII. n 
 
44 Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 Within the walls of the establishment is a place of interment, 
 adorned by several monuments, pretty well executed ; a kind of 
 vaulted way is used for the same purpose, commonly occupied by 
 persons of consequence. Round the cloisters are double wmdows 
 to obviate the piercing cold of winter, and during this season 
 stoves in every part disseminate an agreeable warmth, without 
 which the place would be scarcely habitable. 
 
 Returning through the Perspective from the monastery, we 
 stopped to examine the mart of industry, Gostinnoi Dvor, situate 
 on the left, not far from the Kazan Church. It is a vast building 
 of two stories, defended from the weather by piazzas, filled with 
 small shops and stores, provided with every native article of use 
 or ornament, for biped or quadruped. The solicitations for our 
 custom were equally incessant and innumerable, resembling the 
 teazing importunities of the Israelites of rag fair, London, whom 
 they resemble in more respects than one. 
 
 The Russian tradesmen are perhaps the keenest of their craft 
 in Europe. In skill, perseverance, assiduity, and due obsequi- 
 ousness, none can exceed them ; but strict regard to character 
 must not be reckoned among their merits, for few will cheat with 
 so little ceremony, heedless, as it seems, whether their future 
 interests may not suffer by their unfair dealings. It is remark- 
 able, however, that this characteristic is common to all people 
 unacquainted with the more extended principles of commerce, or 
 imperfectly civilized ; they only look to the present, leaving the 
 future to take care of itself. He commonly demands twice the 
 sum he will take for an article, and if he meets with a novice in 
 the art of dealing in his country, may make a good day's work 
 out of a single bargain. Not content with this, he will occa- 
 sionally take the liberty of substituting an inferior for a better 
 article, smiling all the time most ' good-naturedly in your face, 
 with the dexterity of a professor of legerdemain. 
 
 Several well-dressed women paraded this walk, though not in 
 such numbers as might be expected, or as the place of recreation 
 deserves, were the exercise more in fashion. Nor were they 
 handsome. Female beauty is not a flower of Russian growth, 
 yet exceptions, of course, occur ; generally speaking, however, 
 their features are not agreeable, partaking something of the Tar- 
 tar cast ; few have any colour, owing, perhaps, to mdolence, to 
 diet, to over-heated rooms in the winter, and to seldom courting 
 the fresh air, at least so much as they ought in summer, ana 
 scarcely at all during the reign of the frost. Their dress, is 
 commonly in the French style, almost all the milliners and dress- 
 makers being of that nation. 
 
 A very favourite resort of the citizens in summer, is the 
 domains and gardens of the nobility, situate on some of the 
 islands of the Neva. A few of these display much care and 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg , in 1814. 45 
 
 taste in the arrangement, as ^vell as in tlie works of art, with 
 which they are occasionally ornamented. To these they are per- 
 mitted to resort, to enjoy the fresh air, and the green and flowery 
 parterres, adding a zest to the rural repast which forms a feature 
 m the excursion. Alexander, as much, perhaps, from good 
 nature as policy, frequently treats the citizens with parties of 
 pleasure ; in the summer to fire- works, music, and dancing at 
 Peterhoff ; in the winter to a masc^uerade, in the spacious saloons 
 of the winter palace. The nobility, in degree, imitate the ex- 
 ample, by granting every indulgence in their power. 
 
 The summer gardens are a work of Catharine's, the walks 
 extensive, the parterres regularly laid out, the company fre- 
 quently fashionable, and the balustrade lining the banks of the 
 river tasteful and grand. 
 
 The fortress, raised by Peter for the defence of his new capital, 
 but for many years used only as a state prison, stands on one of 
 the islands, containing also several good streets, to reach which 
 we had to cross two bridges. The work itself is pretty exten- 
 sive, and formed or faced with granite. Within it is the church 
 of St. Peter and St. Paul, remarkable for its lofty spire, gilt with 
 ducat gold, and for being the earthly resting place of the sove- 
 reigns of Russia, since the days of Peter the Great. They are 
 entombed in stone, covered by richly embroidered velvet palls. 
 I could not look on that of Paul, standing alone, without some 
 feelings of pity, enemy as he was to our country at his death. 
 But midnight assassination is so horrible in itself, so treacherous 
 in principle, so revolting to every feeling of men, and to every 
 institution of society, that perpetrated on whom it may, it is sus- 
 ceptible of only one emotion— unqualified horror and detestation. 
 Even in Turkey, murder does not always accompany deposition 
 from the throne ; and for a madman, surely there is some other 
 treatment than strangling. 
 
 Within the fortress is likewise the mint. England, I under- 
 stand, for we were not permitted to enter, supplied the apparatus 
 for coining; but there is little use for it, the precious metals 
 being scarce. Siberia, however, along with her furs, has fur- 
 nished a little both of gold and silver. 
 
 The cells for state prisoners, situated mostly in the bastions, are 
 said to be numerous, but, happily for humanity, have been of late 
 years little tenanted. Few that once entered them ever emerged 
 again to the light of day. Siberia and the Knout were much less 
 terrible then perpetual enthralment here ; and accordingly, they 
 have been, with comparative humanity, substituted during the 
 last twenty-five years, even by the jealous Catharine. It was 
 in one of these cells that the beautiful and accomplished woman, 
 already alluded to, the reputed daughter of the Empress Eliza- 
 beth, entrapped by the matchless villainy of OrlofF, terminated 
 
46 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 her existence; whether by the dagger, poison, strangUng, or 
 drowning, is still matter of dovibt ; though in the eye of the faith- 
 ful narrator of history, and of a still higher judge, the mode is 
 of little consequence. 
 
 From the summit of the church may be obtained the best 
 view, both in its principal parts and as a whole, that can be had 
 of a city, whose outline, if filled up in every part, would embrace 
 a circumference of twenty English miles. 
 
 Returning from this temple of durance, which had excited some 
 melancholy th oughts, and which is regarded by the populace 
 with no little awe, our driver, who had fixed his eye with a 
 chuckle of welcome recognition, on a passing female of his ac- 
 quaintance, to the momentary neglect of his horse^s head, ran so 
 close to a Cossack of the guard, as to disturb the economy of his 
 trappings. The latter, turning his horse round v/ith a furious 
 expression of countenance, seemed as if he would strike him to 
 the ground ; from my position I was half afraid of coming in 
 for a share of his vengeance ; but curbing his passion with what 
 we afterwards understood to be uncommon forbearance, merely 
 uttered a few maledictions, accompanied by very intelligible 
 threats, and permitted the offender to proceed. Had there been 
 any of the police at hand, and few streets are without them, Mr. 
 Jehu would, probably, have received several thwacks from their 
 batons over his shoulders, and perhaps mulcted into the bargain. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to describe these strange-looking troops, 
 the Cossacks, who have already gratified the eyes of the gazing 
 multitudes in London. If not soldiers for show, however, they 
 are at least admirable for service, in the light parts of an army, 
 as videttes, scouts, or foragers^ and in a pursuit few can equal 
 them ; their natural love of enterprise, and capacity for enduring 
 fatigue, being quickened by the hope of plunder. I was fre- 
 quently assured by the officers of the guards that, but for this 
 uncouth looking force, the French retreating army would have 
 got off with much more ease, and perhaps a third less loss than 
 it actually experienced. The hardiliood of their horses is per- 
 haps of equal value with the spirit of the men. What the latter 
 is able to endure the former seems always willing to second — 
 both in their way are unequalled; the horses require neither 
 groom, stable nor litter and the smallest portions of water and 
 food; the man, in emergencies, is, if possible, still more abstemious. 
 There are three distinct nations or tribes of these people, which 
 take the names of the Donsky, Uralsky, and Baschkir Cossacks, 
 differing only in minor points, and some, particularly the latter, . 
 in variation of dialect, which is a corrupt Russian. Their qua- 
 lities, arms, equipments, regulations, and services are however 
 nearly the same. A considerable number are always on duty in 
 Petersburg, jmrticularly about the palaces and the grand parade. 
 
Vdyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 47 
 
 Sbmewliat in doubt respecting the professional skill of our Dros- 
 ky-d river, we discharged him, and proceeded on foot to view the 
 Academy of Arts, a large pile of building, situated in the Vas- 
 sili-OstrofF. In one of the principal rooms were a number of 
 casts from the antient statues, including all, I believe, " known 
 to fame,^' among artists and connoisseurs. The paintings were 
 few, some unexplained cause having occasioned their temporary 
 removal ; and native productions of merit are unknown in Rus- 
 sia. Several architectural models are to be seen here, both of 
 home and foreign erections. None of the students were at work 
 during our visit; and on the whole we felt somewhat disappointed. 
 
 The Academy of Sciences is a noble erection, situated in the 
 Vassili-OstrofF, but not so far down the bank of the river. It is 
 another testimony to the comprehensive capacity of Peter the Great, 
 who having done for his subjects all that was possible for man to 
 do in the more useful and necessary, but perhaps humbler arts of 
 life, finished his career by opening a door to native talent in the 
 higher departments of science. In fact it was one of the last acts 
 of his life, having himself drawn the plan, and signed it on the 
 10th of February, 1724. Catharine I. faithfully fulfilled the 
 design of her great predecessor and husband. On the 27th 
 December, 1725, the society, composed of some natives, and 
 many illustrious foreigners, assembled for the first time, and the 
 1st of August folio wmg, to give still greater eclat to the infant 
 seat of learning, she honoured it with her presence, when Bul- 
 finger. Professor of Natural History, delivered a suitable oration 
 on the occasion. 
 
 Since the first institution it has experienced some vicissitudes, 
 being neglected by some of the sovereigns, and encouraged by 
 others ; its members occasionally of greater or less character, its 
 transactions and publications displaying more or less activity and 
 talent. Among the professors are reckoned the illustrious names 
 of Wolff, Hermand, two BernouUis, two De Lisles, Bulfinger, 
 Gmelin, Guldenstaedt, Lomonosof, Rumovsky, Pallas, and that 
 extraordinary prodigy of memory and mathematics, the celebrated 
 Euler, to whom the volumes of transactions were so frequently 
 indebted for their ablest and most ingenious articles. The first 
 volume appeared in 1728 ; for some years they came out pretty 
 regularly, but of late have diminished m frequency. Mathematics 
 constituted the favourite subject at first, as of our own Royal 
 Society ; like our own also, this study has been latterly neglected 
 for natural history, under the encouragement and example of the 
 famous Pallas. The total number of volumes published is 
 between seventy and eighty. Nothing can be more modest, 
 or truly characteristic of such a society, in such a country, 
 than tlW motto, Paulatvm. 
 
48 Vo^dge to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 Besides a president and director, fifteen professors fill various 
 chairs, with salaries from £\B0 to ^700, besides a residence and 
 some other advantages. The vacancies, however, I was told 
 were not always regularly filled up. The annual sum set apart 
 for its maintenance by Catharine was nearly £14^^000^ and I 
 believe this has not been increased, her j^boundless expenditure 
 in every way, and on every object that gratified the whim of the 
 moment or promised applause from strangers, and from poste- 
 rity, having caused financial derangements, which the prudential 
 economy of the present amiable monarch has not yet been able 
 to remove. 
 
 The Museum forms a principal object of the curiosity of 
 strangers. Here, after two or three hours examination, we were 
 gratified with monsters of all kinds, biped, quadruped, bird, fish, 
 and reptile ; wonders, natural, and, I had almost said, super- 
 natural ; ingenious mechanical inventions, upon which the 
 inventors spent the best part of their lives, and Catharine some 
 of her money ; metals, minerals, and fossils ; specimens and 
 varieties in natural history ; and not only an abundance of the 
 manual works, models, and amusements in wood, of Peter the 
 Great, but the very hero himself, that is a wax-work figure of 
 him, said to be a great likeness, clothed in a full suit of his iden- 
 tical garments, in pretty good order, with the sword he usually 
 wore. Besides these, there are various other samples of his 
 common working dress, worn thread-bare, for every one knows 
 Peter was nothing of the beau, and a hat, shot through, I think, 
 at the battle of Pultowa. 
 
 Several of the more distant parts of the empire contribute to 
 the collection of curiosities in various specimens of their produce, 
 animal and mineral, the dress, implements, and ornaments of the 
 natives ; among others are several sledges and the figure of a 
 Kamschatkan Soothsayer from the life. The South Sea Islands 
 and North West coast of America have likewise contributed to 
 the embellishment of the museum, some things being the gift of 
 English cu'cumnavigators, and others of their own, Kruesenstern 
 and Lisiansky, who went out in 1803 and returned in 1806, 
 thus accomplishing, in the first days of Alexander, a feat of 
 science which Catharine during her long reign did not attempt. 
 There are likewise several models of bridges, some by men of 
 science, others by unlettered boors, which display wonderful 
 genius ; they are principally meant for the Neva, in lieu of the 
 present structures, and would certainly be more elegant, though 
 perhaps not more useful. 
 
 Remounting our droskies, and seizing fast hold of the sash of 
 the driver, which to a novice in this species of riding is almost 
 necessary to prevent measuring his length on the pavement 
 
Voyage to St Pet&rsburg, in 1814. 49 
 
 should a rough stone be in the way, we set off as usual at a 
 half-gallop to examine the exterior of the vast pile of building, 
 called the Winter-Palace. Strangers, at this time, were not ad- 
 mitted to view the apartments ; nor is there indeed much to see, 
 except large rooms, galleries, corridors, and stair-cases, presenting 
 nothing remarkable but their numbers and a few fine chandeliers. 
 Occasionally a favoured few find access to the private apartments, 
 which display some handsome and costly furniture, native and 
 foreign. 
 
 The architecture of this mighty edifice, which stands on the 
 bank of the Neva, is complained of as heavy, but there is never- 
 theless an air of grandeur and magnificence about it, arising per- 
 haps partly from its extent, which is not a little imposing. It is 
 built of brick stuccoed, and consists of a basement and two stories, 
 supported by columns, and set oiF with balustrades. Several 
 statues of merit ornament the exterior in many parts; some 
 however are so elevated, or placed in regard to position, as to be 
 little, if at^l, distinguishable from the ground. In this capa- 
 cious erection of the Empress Elizabeth reside the Imperial 
 family during that frigid season whence its name is derived ; and 
 here are given those splendid but suffocating entertainments to 
 the Bourgeois, whom all wise monarchs, restricted or despotic, 
 make it their business occasionally to court. Here, it was told us, 
 two thousand persons have been sometimes stuffed into these 
 apartments on such occasions. The sight of so many happy and 
 gratified faces, bedizened with finery, which we should think 
 adapted only to half-savage characters in theatrical representation, 
 must be no doubt pleasing to every lover of his species ; but on 
 account of the heat of the rooms, and the concatenation of unsa- 
 vory odours from the intermixture of so numerous an assemblage 
 not of the most delicate class, we were told it was much better to 
 be a spectator than partaker of the evening's amusement. The 
 number of stoves constantly in use here in winter is stated to 
 be enormous, — so many, if I mistake not, as eleven or twelve 
 hundred, of all descriptions. 
 
 Pretty well satisfied with the exterior of this, we found little 
 difficulty in becoming better acquainted with the inside of the 
 Hermitage, an adjoining palace, as much adapted for show as 
 the other is for use, built by Catharine, and her favourite retreat, 
 when temporarily chai-med by a new swain, from the noise and 
 bustle of politics and the court From this circumstance does 
 this splendid temple of luxury, as little appropriate in extent, 
 simplicity, and innocence to its name-sake, as can well be ima- 
 gined, take its title. It forms in fact a wing of the winter palace, 
 there being a communication between them over an archway, 
 which separates the bases of the two structures. Into the inniost 
 recesses of this enchanted mansion, few but the personal favourites 
 
50 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 of the Empress were permitted to penetrate, during much ^ 
 her time. It formed a kind of sanctuary to her privacies. All 
 that money could purchase, and ingenuity contrive, to render it 
 not only beautiful in itself, and admirable in the works of art, as 
 well as in some of the riches of nature, but the very first for con- 
 trivances, comforts, and conveniences, of every description, were 
 unsparingly procured. Several marvellous stories are told of it in 
 her reign. By stamping on the floors of some apartments, 
 couches of down would arise in a moment ; in others bouquets 
 of flowers in all seasons, and the most rare and costly perfumes. 
 Springs touched in certain places would produce the sweetest 
 music ; and when tlie presence of attendants was not agreeable, 
 sumptuous repasts were introduced by invisible means. In all 
 these mechanical contrivances she took particular delight, and 
 paid for them handsomely ; national taste had, perhaps, some- 
 thing to do with them, as the inventors were commonly Ger- 
 mans. Mere likewise she meditated some of her greatest pro- 
 jects ; and with Potemkin arranged the political machinery for 
 carrying them into execution, in which, perhaps, no sovereign 
 was ever more successful, as it is doubtful whether she gained 
 more by her intrigues or by her arms. 
 
 Ascending a capacious stair-case a minute carried us into an 
 immense suite of rooms, occupied by paintings of the first mas- 
 ters. Among these are works of Rembrandt, Teniers, Wou- 
 vermans, Berghem, Vandyke, Snyders, Rubens, Guido, Sal- 
 vator Rosa, two Poussins, Murillo, Claude Lorraine, Gior- 
 dano, and at least fifty others, many being from the Houghton 
 collection, purchased in England. Numbers of the best produc- 
 tions of those eminent men adorn these walls, and also, perhaps, 
 though I do not pretend to be a connoisseur, a few of the worst. 
 Each master has, as far as is practicable, a room to himself; 
 but three or four in the same style and subject may be seen 
 quietly together, where the rival and jealous painters, if alive, 
 would, scarcely let them inhabit the same city. 
 
 Taken altogether, notwithstanding many undoubted de- 
 ductions on account of bad taste, the assemblage at the Her- 
 mitage is superior in numbers, and, what is more, not in- 
 ferior in excellence to any other in Europe, not excepting even 
 that which the Louvre boasted, as the spoils of plundered 
 Europe. To an artist the contemplation of so much excellence 
 must be a great source of enjoyment. Admission is not diffi- 
 cult, and those who desire it have permission to copy what they 
 please. The art^ however, has not yet taken root in the coun- 
 try, at least the fruits are not evident. Sculpture, architecture, 
 engraving and medaling have had better success, and seem more 
 adapted to the genius oi the people. Painting, it may be as- 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 51 
 
 serted, is the last of the line arts which attains perfection in all 
 countries. Two copiers, an elderly man and a youth, were 
 busily occupied during our visit upon a head — not of Guido 
 or ilembrandt — but an indifferent one of the Emperor; one 
 of which, we understood, was by his own orders, and intended 
 for a present. 
 
 The collection of curiosities is not only extensive, but sub- 
 stantially valuable, embracing a variety of precious stones of 
 considerable size and the finest water, large pearls, masses of 
 silver and gold from various countries, numerous specimens of 
 mineral ores, all the coins of the world, cameos, intaglios, a large 
 assortment of medals, of which study, it is said, the Empress 
 Dowager is very fond, moon-stones, as they are called, fine spe- 
 cimens of the verd-antique, rare and valuable gems, rare sam- 
 ples of mechanical ingenuity, a few curious models in wax, 
 some works in ivory of Peter the Great, and a thousand other 
 things, the bare catalogue of which would fill a volume. 
 
 The garden, situated upon the same floor, and of course 
 elevated to a considerable height from the ground, probably be- 
 tween thirty and forty feet, is not one of the least curiosities of 
 the Hermitage. Here, suspended as it were in air, the visitor, 
 to his amazement, treads on gravel walks, sees the green turf 
 vivid around him, and finds shrubs, and even trees thicker 
 than his leg, growing in luxuriance, under the shelter of which 
 he may take refuge on a couch, and contemplate the execution 
 and proportions of some favourite statue, several of which are at 
 hand. Within a short distance he may distinguish an orangery 
 covered in ; and be treated by the vocal exertions of an aviary, 
 collected from other climates, the httle choristers flying to and 
 fro without restraint, and resting upon what are considered 
 their favourite trees, which have been brought and planted in 
 this aerial situation expressly for their enjoyment. The novelty 
 of the whole scene, and the recollection where it was situated, 
 not on the ground, but on (or neai-) the top of a palace, added 
 to the ovei-powering influence of the boundless riches of na- 
 ture and art which we had just examined, produced an effect 
 that for some minutes kept me tongue-tied, and induced an 
 opinion that the wonders of " The Hermitage'' alone are 
 almost worth a voyage to St. Petersburg. 
 
 The theatre, to which we next proceeded, offers nothing re- 
 markable, and so far disappointed expectation. Magnificence 
 is so obvious in every thing else, that we likewise expected 
 a more than ordinary share here. It is, however, very small, 
 so much so as in my opinion nearly to destroy the illusion of the 
 acting ; the seats are semi-circularly arranged before the cur- 
 tain, rising one above another, covered with crimson cushions 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII. o 
 
5^ Voyage to St. Petcr&hurg^ in 1814. 
 
 and without backs, as in England. But a private theatre 
 always appears to me a selfisli, if not an unsociable place ; for 
 half the amusement arises from observing the uncontrolled plea^ 
 sure and happy faces of those around us, which the decorum 
 necessary to be observed before Imperial Personages has a ten- 
 dency to restrain. 
 
 The scenery, which we did not see, is said to be very fine, 
 being the work of the best artists the country can boast, with 
 the addition of several Frenchmen and Italians. Balls and 
 court-suppers are frequently given here, the pit being then 
 boarded over level with the stage. The display, on these occasions, 
 is represented as gorgeous and magnificent in the extreme, far 
 beyond any thing else of the kind in Europe, representing 
 more the fabled scenes of fairy palaces than the actual abode 
 of mortals, no expence being spared, and all the taste and skill 
 of the empire put in requisition for the occasion. We stopped 
 some time to examine it ; while the Catharines and Potemkms, 
 and OrlofFs and Panins, and Bestuchefts, all the famous and 
 infamous characters, which at once distinguished and disgraced 
 this court, passed in review before the " mind''s eye,''"* ^nd com- 
 pelled us, in some measure, to acknowledge that, notwithstand- 
 mg the crimes of some, there was a brilliancy about others 
 admirably adapted to impose on the understandings of the great 
 mob of mankind. 
 
 The Marble Palace and Church are, perhaps, two of the 
 most costly and least elegant edifices in Petersburg, both under- 
 taken by the orders of Catharine. The former stands in the vi- 
 cinity of the Hermitage, and was raised for her favourite, Grego- 
 ry Orloff, some short time before she presented him with an im- 
 mense estate — not of so many thousand acres — but of 6000 pea- 
 sants. It is of Siberian marble, of grey, brown, and copper co- 
 lours, but neither within nor without offers any thing remarka,- 
 ble, but splendid furniture and some remarkable fine tapestry. 
 For a short time it became the residence of the weak and unfor- 
 tunate Stanislaus, the last of the Polish Kings, the favourite, 
 lover, minion, and victim of Catharine, who pulled him down, 
 as she set him up, without sufficient reason; but who, had he pos- 
 sessed the firmness of a patriot, or the independence of a man, 
 would have been popular with his subjects, and thus might have 
 retained the distmguished scat to which he had been exalted. 
 This palace, after having been some years in the occupation of 
 «ome attendants on the court, has been an occasional residence 
 for the Grand Duke Constantine. 
 
 The Church, standing on one side of the area, in which a}> 
 pears the statue of- Peter, not being finished at Catharine's 
 death, was completed by Paul, his share of the work being 
 
V(yyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 53 
 
 partly brick, his mother's^ marble and porphyry ; but the aver- 
 sion to her crimes and favourites extended even to her works 
 of art. The interior is extensive, and the dome seemingly im- 
 mense. Flags of different nations, bearing evident tokens of 
 age or hard service, were suspended from the walls, as from 
 those of all other places of worship we saw. Among others, 
 was an English Union Jack, the only one of our nation, though 
 those of others were abundant, which, from its size and make, 
 had, probably, belonged to some boat of the Baltic fleet, driven 
 on shore, perhaps, by stress of weather ; for nothing larger of 
 ours ever fell into the hands of the Russians. Though a solitary 
 trophy, it* excited some national feelings, so that we contem- 
 plated the practicability of its removal ; and had the least o^ 
 portunity offered would certainly have made the attempt. The 
 exterior of the Church has a d.ull and heavy look, from which 
 the inside is not exempted. 
 
 St. MichaePs Palace, the last, as well as favourite, residence of the 
 unfortimate Paul, stands near the summer garden. It is a vast 
 quadrangular fabric, built by an Italian architect, of red brick, 
 upon a basement of Finland rock, displaying little taste, but 
 many spacious apartments, and numberless windows. Only 
 two years and a Iialf were occupied in the erection ; by dint of 
 incessant labour, and the almost daily superintendance of the 
 Emperor himself, who looked forward to its completion with 
 an eagerness, now considered by his superstitious subjects, omi- 
 nous of his own fate ; for here the unhappy monarch was soon 
 after put to death. What induced him to construct a new 
 palace, while so many were unoccupied, is difficult to say, ex- 
 cept it were whim, or an aversion to his mother''s memory. The 
 latter is commonly beheved ; and among his people, at least 
 his nobility, it constituted one of his deadly sins. She had prac- 
 tised that system of favouritism, of loose principles, and of osten- 
 tatious profusion, so congenial to minds only half enlightened ; 
 she had extended at once their fame and their arms, and grati- 
 fied their love of barbarous aggression abroad, and useless shew at 
 hoiTie. They in return believed all she did to be right, and that 
 any deviation from her system was improper. Even Alexander, 
 on his accession, had to assure the nation that he would tread 
 in her steps. None of the Imperial family have resided in this 
 palace since the horrible catastrophe alluded to. 
 
 Taurida Palace, was once the residence and property of Prince 
 Potemkin, though paid for, I believe, when erected, by the prodi- 
 gal munificence, seldom backward in rewarding services, of Ca- 
 tharine, with whom he was a long-cherished favourite; in the first 
 instance as a lover, and latterly as a general and minister. It 
 stands towards the east end of the city, and is of brick stuc- 
 
54; Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 coed, the exterior much less striking, as well as lower than any 
 other of the palaces, but making up in extent what it is deficient in 
 height. A minute description of this celebrated place, so famous 
 throughout Europe for the Arctbiaiir-niglit-like entertainment, (for 
 nothing else ever approached it in boundless magnificence and 
 expence) given to Catharine and her court, would be needless. 
 It embraces everj thing which the wealth of Potemkin could 
 purchase, and this is all that need be said. The celebrated 
 hall for which it is remarkable, and where the entertainment 
 in question was given, is, in space at least, one of the architec- 
 tural wonders of Europe. Report says it was his own design ; 
 this is not improbable, as he was a man of much native talent 
 and ingenuity, little improved by education, and in many re- 
 spects, perhaps, an absolute barbarian, though certainly a mag- 
 nificent one. 
 
 A double range of handsome, though plain, columns, rising 
 to an amazing height, support the roof of this extraordinary 
 apaitment, built to all appearance more for giants than for men, 
 but the execution of the whole is unquestionably' tasteful in the 
 liighest degree. To add to its interest several statues of an- 
 tiquity and merit stand betv/een the columns. Opening from 
 it is the winter garden of the Emperor, an immense pavilion 
 filled with orange trees, flowers, and shrubs, blooming nearly 
 all the year round, interspersed with charming walks, and pre- 
 senting a scene of delightful recreation at all seasons, particu- 
 larly in the winter; when without all is frost and snow and 
 intense cold ; while within 
 
 Soft zephyrs move, eternal summers reign. 
 And sbow'rs prolific bless the soil, 
 not indeed from the heavens, but from reservoirs abundantly 
 supplied for that purpose. At this time it must present a sin- 
 gular spectacle of the triumph of art over natural difficulties, 
 the climates of the pole and of the tropics separated only by a 
 few yards ! 
 
 On the other side of the hall, facing the winter-garden, is a 
 saloon occupied by a few works of art. The pleasure, fruit, 
 kitchen-gardens, and hot-houses, enjoy every advantage wliich 
 Imperial wealth and scientific taste can bestow. Their extent 
 is very great, laid out principally in the English style, and 
 well watered by small canals. Here, during the short summer 
 season of this country, the Imperial Catharine, in the last six 
 years of her life, when the hand of age began to press upon 
 her frame, though it could not damp her spirit, spent much 
 of her time. I did not see the Theatre. The remaining apart- 
 ments in Potemkin's time were, I understand, remarkable for 
 their almost unjustifiable costliness ; at present they are plain. 
 
Voyage to SI. Petersburg, in 1814. 55 
 
 displaying nothing paltry, but nothing very remarkable, except 
 immense quantities of glass, cut and plain, in chandeliers and 
 mirrors. 
 
 Returning from this quarter of the city, I remarked a number 
 of Russian workmen employed on a house of considerable mag- 
 nitude, which, on enquiry, was said to be raising for a merchant, 
 who, though born a slave, was now reputed worth £1 00,000. The 
 workmen seem the most rude and uncouth creature* imaginable; 
 many with long beards, and wrapped in sheep-skins, looked 
 like so many Orsons just issued from the woods. They are, in 
 fact, all from the country. Brought up to an out-door trade, 
 they gain permission from their lord to seek out the best mar- 
 ket for its exercise, usually Petersburg, Novgorod, Moscow, 
 or some of the other largest cities, by paying him an extra sum 
 for the indulgence, but before their departure frequently marry, 
 and leave the wife behind, in the care of their father, who ex- 
 ercising all the marital rights, cohabits, without reproach, with 
 his charge, and, perhaps, rears a family of beings, at once bro- 
 thers and sisters or children to his absent son ! 'I'his detestable 
 custom, though checked of late years, still exists in a shameful 
 degree. It seems so unnatural, that it must have originated from 
 |he recommendation of the lords, who count heads instead of acres, 
 rather than from any natural perversity of proper feelings in the 
 people : from whatever cause, however, it is an unquestionable 
 proof of barbarism ; scarcely any thing worse can be found among 
 the untutored natives of the South Sea islands. 
 
 The most remarkable thing in the common workman or pea- 
 sant, is his ingenuity. His powers of ivention are far from 
 despicable, ana his capacity for imitation altogether extraor- 
 dinary. Whatever he sees in the mechanical arts he can al- 
 most to a certainty copy, though to a person in the same class 
 of life in any other country of Euro{>e, it would offer insu- 
 perable obstacles; the faculty is, perhaps, Asiatic, for it also 
 belongs in an eminent degree to the Chinese. No other man 
 within our pale of civilization executes so much and so well 
 with such inadequate means. The Russian is ignorant, in a 
 great degree, of all those scientific inventions among us cal- 
 culated to supersede or to expedite human labour ; yet in the 
 most trying difficulties he is rarely at a loss, and ultimately 
 is sure to conquer them. The model of a flying-bridge of one 
 arch, intended to cross the Neva, and the conveyance of the 
 rock upon which the statue of Peter stands to the capital, be- 
 sides numberless other examples of ingenuity, ai'e proud tro- 
 phies to the capacity of the most illiterate boors. The cai'pen- 
 ter's only implement is his axe, with which he performs, with 
 
56 Voyage to ^t. Petersburg, m 1814, 
 
 admirable neatness and precision, all the delicate and compli- 
 cated operations of his trade. 
 
 The Stone Theatre is a spacious edifice; it stands in a large con-^ 
 venient open area, — where all theatres ought to stand, instead 
 of being screwed up in some obscure, intricate corner, requir- 
 ing a day's search to find out, as is commonly the case in Eng- 
 land — contiguous to the Nicolai Canal, over which is a bridge 
 nearly opposite. The entrance is under a grand portico, sup- 
 ported by eight or ten handsome columns; the length of the 
 sides of the building about 200 feet. Operas, French, Ger- 
 man, and Russian plays are occasionally performed here, parti- 
 cularly the first and last, for which there are regular com- 
 panies, under the direction, as is frequently the case on the 
 continent, of government. The others receive assistance from 
 amateurs and private performers belonging to the nobility, many 
 of whom residing at a distance from the capital, have their 
 own theatres and companies. In the area, the visitor"'s atten- 
 tion is attracted by four small circular iron structures, intended 
 for large wood fires, kept here during severe frost for the 
 warmth of the servants in waiting, who, previous to this hu- 
 mane measure, were sometimes frozen to death, and frequently 
 mutilated in their extremities by froft-bites and subsequent 
 mortification. 
 
 No performance taking place during our stay, I did not see 
 the interior, but some of my friends who had been more for- 
 tunate, represented it as equal in size to the Opera House in 
 London, somewhat elliptical in shape, containing four tiers of 
 boxes, and on the whole handsomely decorated. The Em- 
 peror's box, as in all foreign theatres, is in the centre. Part 
 of the pit is furnished with several rows of seats, off'ering the 
 luxury of backs, the want of which, both in the boxes and 
 pit of an English theatre, is a severe tax on the bodily com- 
 fort of the spectator, and has often induced a wish that I could 
 transport myself for the evening to some more accommodating 
 receptacle abroad. With us, where new comforts form a kind 
 of study to much of our population, it is surprising this con- 
 venient innovation has never been attempted. The reason, 
 doubtless, is that it would interfere with private avarice, by 
 reducing (a little) the number of seats. Even this would be 
 a trifling sacrifice; but I think it very practicable to be done 
 without. A striking peculiarity is the general gloom before the 
 curtain, from the want of sufficient lights, whether arising from 
 penury or taste I cannot say, but suspect the latter, as I re- 
 marked the same thing some years ago in the Swedish theatres. 
 The brilliancy thrown over the house by the contrary prac- 
 tice in England, was probably one reason why some of my late 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 5t 
 
 t^ompanioTis " of the guards" were so much struck with the 
 imposing splendour of Drury Lane. 
 
 The Carriage Mart is situated in the Grand Perspective, and 
 called by the natives Yemskay. It presents a very large and 
 varied assemblage of machines of all shapes, qualities, and sizes, 
 either for the resident or traveller. Much capital and inge- 
 nuity, as well as numbers of workmen, are employed in this 
 trade, from the prevailing rage for equipages : but the latter, 
 though highly finished and fashionably shaped, are extremely 
 deficient in durability. From this cause English carriages were 
 frequently imported, by those who could afford the expence, 
 which was thrice that of the native article. At present the prac- 
 tice is less common, as a heavy duty protects the Petersburg 
 manufacturer. One of the best home-made chariots costs about 
 800 rubles. 
 
 The Foundling Hospital is a noble edifice, containing, proba- 
 bly, fifty or sixty wards, in which each of the little deserted crea- 
 tures has a bed to itself, with the name, supposed age, and time 
 of its admission appended. Here all that are brought are re- 
 ceived without enquiry, difficulty, or examination; the mother 
 sometimes leaves a name or no name, a trinket or token of re- 
 membrance, as she pleases, but they are scarcely ever publicly 
 reclaimed, though private recognitions, I was assured, were not 
 unfrequent. It will be seen, therefore, that the system is totally 
 at variance with ours. Whether it tends to immorality, is a very 
 doubtful point, in which, as Sir Roger de Coverley observes, 
 much may be said on both sides ; but the number of children 
 annually received, amounting sometimes to twelve or fifteen 
 hundred, argues little for general morals. On the other hand, 
 few instances of child-murder are known. Human nature also, 
 it must be observed, in the indulgence of its passions seldom 
 looks to remote consequences; and probably the last thing a 
 young woman thinks of, when overcome by criminal love, is the 
 resource of the foundling hospital for her probable offspring. 
 
 The boys are brought up to various trades, and are generally 
 remarked for industry and sobriety, many being the best work- 
 men in the city, in time acquiring wealth and respectability. 
 The same thing I believe is common in London, as if provi- 
 dence made up by its protection for the neglect of the unnatural 
 parents. For the girls it is more difficult to find employment. 
 All the usual resources, however, for female skill and talent are 
 put in requisition, zealously and effectually supported by their 
 " good mother,""* as she is continually termed, the Empress Dow- 
 ager, who bears the character of bemg one of the best women in 
 her son's dominions. 
 
 Another establishment of her's which may be termed a national 
 
58 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 blessing to the sex of her country, is the Convent for Young 
 Gentlewomen, situated towards the east end of the city, an old 
 (if any thing can be called old here which can count little more 
 than a century) and capacious building, or collection of build- 
 ings, once occuped by a monastic order. Into the interior of 
 this institution, of v/hich the Empress herself occasionally con- 
 descends to become lady abbess in propria persona, I did not 
 enter, application for this purpose being made too late to wait 
 for the necessary permission, consistent with other engagements. 
 A friend, however, who had been there ten days before, fur* 
 nished me with the following particulars. 
 
 The Convent des Demoiselles offers to young women the ad- 
 vantages of any other convent, without its unnatural restrictions; 
 that is, they are well educated, and may quit it and marry when 
 they please. About four hundred of the young female nobility 
 of the less opulent sort are received here, whose friends partly 
 contribute to their support, besides about half the number of 
 the daughters of citizens, both receiving that portion of instruc- 
 tion and accomplishments suited to their respective spheres. 
 
 The Admiralty begins at one end of Isaac's Place on the 
 bank of the river, and extends- over a considerable space of 
 ground, die church facing the end of the Grand Perspective. 
 Formerly this front was somewhat neglected and mean ; at pre- 
 sent, though not quite finished, it is grand and imposing in the 
 extreme, fit for the first, instead of the fourth, maritime state 
 in Europe, and altogether worthy of a city of palaces and splen- 
 did public works. This whole division of Petersburg takes the 
 name of the Admiralty quarter. 
 
 Here are arranged houses of all kinds for the reception of 
 each species of stores. Here, likewise, ships are built nearly of 
 the largest size, excepting, I believe, three-deckers, which, the 
 Neva being otherwise too shallow, are obliged to be floated down 
 to Cronstadt by means of enormous wooden machines named 
 camels. To do this successfully is the ne plus ultra of scientific 
 knowledge and practical maritime skill. We have nothing of 
 the kind in England. A Frenchman, I think, suggested the 
 scheme to Peter the Great. The camels being brought to the 
 sides of the vessel intended to be removed, are by artificial 
 means depressed in the water, and placed under her bottom, 
 when the pressure being removed, their natural buoyancy acting 
 on the frame of the ship, raises her along with themselves suffi- 
 ciently high to pass over the shallows of the river. This opera- 
 tion is one of great labour in addition to its skill. 
 
 Crossing the water to the Vassili-Ostroff quarter, we plunged 
 
 at once into the region of traffic, the custom-house, exchange, and 
 
 , hard by, the warehouses for receiving the principal native com- 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 59 
 
 modities previous to being shipped oif for more southern shores. 
 On the other, or Admiralty side, scarcely any of the bustle of 
 commerce is observed; the merchants reside and have their 
 counting-houses there ; but a clerk, or two, transact the business 
 on the opposite shore, and whom they may almost overlook from 
 their parlour windows. 
 
 It IS remarkable, that the trade of this city is one almost en- 
 tirely, of commission. Commercial men are more factors than 
 what we commonly call merchants ; to whom the Russian traders 
 from all parts of the empire resort at stated seasons of the year, 
 purchasing principally on credit, and being often paid for their 
 own goods in advance, on some recommendation of established 
 character, or other security ; and this honorable compact is not 
 often violated. About seven-tenths of the principal foreign mer- 
 cantile houses, and the main trade, it must be observed, rests in 
 their hands, are English ; the others composed of all the nations 
 of Europe. The internal trade of the country is solely in the 
 hands of the native merchants, who, by means of sledges, water- 
 conveyance, and caravans, circulate our commodities to the fron- 
 tiers of China, 
 
 Some of the produce of the latter country, notwithstanding the 
 immense distance of land-carriage, is procured better and cheaper 
 in Petersburg than in any other capital of Europe. What will 
 particularly dehght an Englishman is the luxury of good tea, 
 that article of supreme enjoyment to the softer sex, to the sober, 
 and to the studious man, who is often, in the words of Samuel 
 Johnson, " in that article a hardened sinner, who has for years 
 diluted his meals with the infusion of that fascinating plant 
 whose tea-kettle has had no time to cool ; who has with tea 
 solaced the midnight hour, and with tea welcomed the 
 morning." Foreigners universally remark, that in no part of 
 Europe do they drink such bad tea as in London, though the 
 great emporium and second birth-place of the article. The price 
 given for that which is commonly consumed in most families in 
 the Russian Capital is about twelve shillings, English, per 
 pound. 
 
 For the protection and encouragement of trade and its pro- 
 fessors there are several guilds here, or incorporations for the 
 enrolment of those who choose to become members, by paying a 
 certain sum, and who have, in return, some pecuhar privileges. 
 There is likewise another regulation, rather more fettenng to the 
 freedom of commercial intercourse, though no doul>t easily sur- 
 mounted by that ingenuity which has so repeatedly overcome 
 obstacles of a much greater description. This is a species of 
 security, or obligation, required by the Government, that those 
 
 Voyages and Travels, Vol. VII, p 
 
60 Voyage to St. Petersburg^ in 1814. 
 
 who make fortunes in Russia, shall not remove to another coun- 
 try to spend them ; the particulars, however, I did not learn. 
 
 Provisions and some other articles of primary necessity, in the 
 markets, are moderate in price, though living is, on the whole, . 
 as already observed, dear. The Vassili-Ostroif has some very 
 good markets; in the winter, I understand, these are often a 
 place of resort for all classes of people, desirous to observe all the 
 fresh arrivals, devoted to the table, which this seascm exhibits. 
 The meat is particularly remarkable ; a bullock, perliaps, being 
 killed a thousand miles off, and brought hither, frozen as hard as 
 the pavement, to be sold, displaying, when cut up with the 
 hatchet, the brittleness of glass. Off the Perspective are like-, 
 wise several depots for game, poultry, fruit, and a variety of 
 other things, fitted for the immediate consumption of the table. 
 Some of the finest southern fruits particularly attracted our 
 attention. 
 
 With respect to the police, I must confess there was some 
 
 room for Captain R ^"s remarks upon the superiority of this 
 
 department of internal government in this country to that of our 
 own. The city is divided into several quarters, each under 
 several chief officers, under w^hom again are from fifty to eighty 
 or ninety men, forming, in the whole, a nightly guard of about 
 600 armed men, supported by patrolling parties of Cossacks, in a 
 capital little more than a fourth part as populous as London. 
 Scarcely such a thing as a robbery by violence is known. The 
 presence of a stranger is soon public, for every house-keeper is 
 obliged to give an account of all new-comers who sleep at his 
 house ; Avhile those who reside here for some time are obliged 
 to advertise their departure in the gazette ; thus forming an ad- 
 mirable security to the trading part of the community against' 
 swindlers. 
 
 Whatever be the cause, whether from a naturally good dispo- 
 sition, from the fear of punishment, from an effective system of 
 prevention, or from being as yet ignorant of the baneful effects of 
 general luxury, the mass of people are remarkably free from 
 crime. 
 
 The Russians have a great aversion to the punishment of death ; 
 for which, the Empress Ehzabeth (I believe) introduced more 
 generally the practice of knouting. Even the appearance of 
 blood in two boors fighting, stops the combat immediately, and 
 he who shews this mark of his adversary''s prowess commonly 
 cpmes off victor before the police ; — a trait of character indicating 
 little of cruelty in their composition. The knout is a dreadful 
 instrument, with which any punishment, from simple abrasion 
 of the skin to removing pieces of fle^, and death may be in- . 
 
Voyage to Si. Petersburg^ in 181 4. ^1 
 
 flicted at the pleasure of the executioner. It is, in fact, severe, 
 flogging ; the mstrument being a thong of ox-hide, dry and hard, 
 made fast to a strong wooden nandle more than a foot long ; it is 
 said, that the executioner, if skilful, can penetrate at one blow 
 to the bone ; but the chief of police is present at all inflictions by 
 this weapon ; of course, the degree of severity is always propor- 
 tioned to the sentence or magnitude of the offence. If any pu- 
 nishment can deter men from offences, it is this; yet, with all its 
 severities, knouting is preferable to hanging. 
 
 A considerable number of minor offences are punished with fine, 
 some of which are in England death ; such as wounding and 
 maiming; others, of a more aggravated character, by imprison- 
 ment and labour ; by branding in the forehead or hand, and by 
 banishment to Siberia. Coiners and forgers are sometimes con^ 
 demned to the gold, silver, and iron-mines of the latter country 
 for a term of years, a singular and appropriate retributive judg- 
 inent for the offence. 
 
 Soon after our arrival, a grand entertainment was given at the 
 country palace of Peterhoff, to the nobility and public, in honour 
 of the Emperor's return. I had a ticket, but a temporary indis- 
 position prevented my witnessing this spectacle, of which a 
 friend, however, who was present, gave me an account. This 
 favorite residence, about twenty miles from the Capital, near the 
 gulph of Cronstadt, was built by a French architect for Peter the 
 Great, with whom, as with most of his successors, it has been an 
 admired retreat from the heat and dust of the city. Here Catha- 
 rine II. resided some time as the wife of Peter III. ; and from 
 hence, she set out to Petersburg, on the astonishing enterprise of 
 dethroning her husband. The road to it is pretty, presenting 
 many country houses and gardens of the English merchants, laid 
 out with taste, in the style of their country. 
 
 All the mercantile population of the Capital seemed to have 
 congregated at Peterhoff for the evening, as well as the nobility, 
 officers, and all foreigners of distinction, who filled the rooms to 
 suffocation, while the populace, (who are here, as well as at 
 home, somebody,) crowded the gardens to witness the illumina- 
 tions, water-works, and fire-works. These were all extraordinary 
 in their way, with which our Vauxhall, or any other public exhi- 
 bition of the kind, admit of no possible comparison. The dress 
 of the females was splendid, but remarkable, displaying a costume 
 more nearly allied to the Asiatic than European ; in addition to 
 lofty head-dresses, many shewy colours, and abundance of rouge. 
 A ball and splendid supper, distinguished by more, if possible, 
 than Imperial magnificence, completed the amusements of the 
 evening ; the supper is always select. Several dwarfs, who form 
 a species of play-thing in the houses of the principal nobility , 
 
C^ Voyage to St Petersburg, m 1814. 
 
 were in attendance upon their masters. The furniture of the 
 rooms, particularly the chandeliers and mirrors, for which Russia 
 is celebrated, was particularly rich and handsome, though not of 
 recent manufacture. 
 
 Besides Peterhoff, and the princely mansions of the " Re- 
 sidence,''' the other Imperial edifices are the country palaces of 
 Zarsko-Zelo, built by Catharine I., an immense edifice ; Gat- 
 china, erected by one of the OrlofFs, but now vested in the 
 Crown ; Pauvoloffsky, the work of Paul, and where he spent the 
 principal part of his time while Grand Duke, slighted, zealously 
 watched, denied the smallest portion of power, and the usual 
 privileges of his rank, by his fierce and suspicious mother ; Ora- 
 nienbaum, built in the time of Peter the Great, and where his 
 grandson Peter III. weakly surrendered himself to the same 
 ambitious woman ; and Strelna, on the Peterhoff road, built by 
 a nobleman about forty years ago. 
 
 Of religion, it is scarcely necessary to say that the Greek Church 
 constitutes the "Establishment" of Russia, of which faith the 
 Imperial Family, and all who marry into it, must be members ; 
 but all other persons have full license to follow what mode of 
 worship they please. Like the Roman Catholics, all classes are 
 strict in the performance of the ceremonies of religion. Festivals 
 are common, and Saints' Days numerous. Easter is the grand 
 period of rejoicing, when all ranks quit their customary employ- 
 ments to unite in a kind of national gala, in which sports, feast- 
 ing, and drinking, form the sole business of the lower orders. 
 During this period the commonest boor enjoys a singular privi- 
 lege ; it is that of kissing any woman he meets, not excepting the 
 Empress herself, provided he first presents an egg, which she is 
 expected to return. The custom is religious, but of its particular 
 origin I am not aware. 
 
 We had a Papa, (the name of the secular priests,) on board 
 the ship I was in, and service was frequently performed ; but 
 excepting, at these times, he was so constantly buried in the re- 
 cesses of the cock-pit that I scarcely saw him twice. His beard 
 was of no common length, a black close cap covered his head, 
 and a cloak of the same colour and materials, resembling coarse 
 calico, enveloped him from the neck to the ancles. 
 
 The fervency of devotion in all is particularly striking to a 
 Briton, who remembers the cold, unimpassioned manner charac- 
 terising public worship in his own country ; if the heart, how- 
 ever, be right, the manner is nothing. The responses were loud, 
 frequent, and general, accompanied by bov/ing, or partial pros- 
 tration, towards where the Papa officiated, behind whom hung a 
 figure of the Virgin, against the partition of the ward-room, which 
 was never removed during the voyage. In making the sign of 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, m 1814, M 
 
 the cross, they touch the forehead, breast, and right and left should 
 ders. Unhke the Roman Cathohcs, though so much resembhng 
 them in other points, the Papa is allowed to marry once, but not 
 oftener ; the monks, of course, never. 
 
 Unlike, also, the persecuting tenets and practice of the Roman 
 Catholics, all religions are tolerated, and permitted the free and 
 unmolested exercise of their rites. Many of the different chris- 
 tian sects have handsome places for public worship in some of the 
 principal streets, instead of resorting to holes and corners, or 
 being hunted like wild beasts, as in the bigoted countries of Spain, 
 Portugal, and Italy. A difference of religion forms no ground 
 here for exclusion from offices of trust and emolument. It is said, 
 that a Bishop, in the confidence of Peter the Great, once pro- 
 posed the contrary of this to his master, who, too wise to be 
 guilty of such an absurdity in an infant kingdom, only replied, 
 by the question, " Do you wish me to cut off my right arm .?'"* 
 
 A traveller returning from another country to his own, is 
 commonly anxious to bring a witness of the course of his travels^ 
 in a present to the " better sex" of his acquaintance, who are, 
 usually, not a little eager after any thing " from abroad."" Know- 
 ing this, from repeated experience, I bent my way to a repository 
 for furs, and was rather surprised to find in the chosen region of 
 this comfortable article of warm clothing they were compara- 
 tively high in price ; as dear indeed, in some respects, (as the 
 vender very honestly assured me,) as in London. The assortment, 
 however, was well worth looking at, for its beauty and variety, 
 nor could I quit it empty-handeo. 
 
 The immense distance which this valuable commodity has to 
 travel over land, the increasing difficulty of procuring it, the 
 .general taste for it as an article of dress, and the great demand 
 also by the Chinese, are the reasons assigned for the advance, in 
 some instances exorbitant, of value. Many of the young nobi- 
 lity, in winter, wear fur pelisses, valued at four and five hundred 
 pounds sterling. The famous Prince Potemkin is said to have 
 worn one worth £50Q0. This is what some of the anti-sumptua- 
 rists would term, " carrying a fortune on your back." A few 
 species of furs are so scarce as to be reserved for the use of the 
 Imperial Family. 
 
 The skins, for which this country is famous, form a very 
 beautiful article ; I never saw any thing of the kind finer ; the 
 favorite colours are red, green, purple, yellow ; and ladies, who 
 delight in forming their own various little nick-nacks, prize them 
 highly. Down, for making tippets, is likewise plentiful and 
 cheap. A friend of mine, somewhat of an epicure in the article of 
 ease, was provident enough to purchase sufficient to stuff a couch 
 of this luxurious produce; but, on examining it in England, 
 
64 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 found his bargain bore the usual traces of Russian ingenuity, the 
 packages being half filled with heterogeneous matters. 
 
 The usual mode of salutation among the natives is kissing, 
 which immediately strikes a stranger's attention ; the men em- 
 brace, and salute the cheek, as before observed, a custom shock- 
 ing in our eyes, particularly between two fellows with beards 
 half as long as my arm. All ranks and ages go through this 
 ceremony whenever they meet, after a short absence. Between 
 the sexes the same mode of recognition prevails. The gentle- 
 man commonly kisses the lady's hand, where they are acquainted ; 
 the lady salutes, in return, the gentleman's cheek ; and as the 
 operation requires both grace and dexterity to be done with due 
 delicacy, kissing, in this country, may be said to be reduced to 
 an art. 
 
 Beards are another striking feature in which the low Russian 
 differs from all the peasantry of Europe. But what is, perhaps,^ 
 still more remarkable, the higher class abhor the appendage, 
 while the boor prizes it above almost any thing else he is per- 
 mitted to enjoy, and would almost refuse personal freedom, if 
 purchased by the amputation of the beard. Such an utter vari- 
 ance of feeling, in the same country, is difficult to explain. On 
 entering the army, however, the boor must submit this long- 
 loved and valued ornament of his countenance to the scythe of 
 the barber, which is said to be one reason why this class have, in 
 general, an aversion to the army ; so that a levy for this purpose 
 upon the different estates is not always executed without some 
 confusion and ill-will. 
 
 Their pay, when compelled to desert their native village for 
 the life of a soldier, is extremely small, (about eighteen-pence, 
 English, per month,) besides rations and clothing ; and when 
 once drawn for this mode of life, they must serve twenty, or 
 twenty-five years, before being permitted to retire. Whether 
 their late advance towards the south of Europe, as it has made 
 them more knowing in the superior advantages enjoyed by most 
 other of the continental military, will better their condition, 
 I know not, but it is very probable. The pay of a colonel is about 
 £200 per annum ; of a captain, under £100, and the other 
 ranks in proportion. Foreigners, therefore, may enter this ser- 
 vice, for want of other employment, or for the sake of rank, but 
 it cannot be for the pecuniary advantages. Neither in the regi- 
 ments of the line, are the junior officers (lieutenants and ensigns) 
 always treated with that consideration they receive in other 
 services. 
 
 With respect to literature, Russia is a thorough Boeotia, being 
 far, very far behind her other European brethren, but it must 
 be confessed that the press is much restricted, and wherever 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, m 1814. 65 
 
 this is the case, thought itself must unavoidably be controlled. 
 Under Paul the restrictions were most rigorous, indeed altogether 
 unjustifiable, and at present are still severe. All books written 
 or imported become subjected to licensers, who are commonly 
 very ignorant, and who to make certain of excluding every 
 thing dangerous, scarcely admit any thing ! A native Russian 
 book is in fact a kind of wonder in literature. Captain Krusen- 
 stern's voyage round the world, though I believe published in 
 German, is very respectably written. So is Captain Lisiansky's, 
 his companion, who on arriving near the North West coast of 
 America, took a different route. Nicholas Karamsin's travels have 
 amused the Russians, but not much instructed them. His 
 account of England is a mass of errors and prejudices, one of 
 which is, that we are a nation of cannibals, who devour raw 
 meat like dogs, and that from this source is derived much of our 
 constitutional ferocity and melancholy ! Some of the officers 
 told me they were at first considerably influenced by his repre- 
 sentations. 
 
 The principal native poets and dramatic writers are Suma- 
 RAKOFF and LoMONOssoFF, besides some others of more recent 
 date, whose names I take shame to myself for not recollecting ; 
 but really where a language is so much at variance with all the 
 other tongues of Europe, as to preclude the possibility of un- 
 derstanding a single word, written or spoken, curiosity is mate- 
 rially damped if not destroyed. Besides the transactions of the 
 Academy of Sciences, and some few others, the principal work 
 of a scientific nature published of late years, is the catalogue 
 and description of all the curiosities of nature and art in the 
 Museum of the Academy, in several volumes quarto. Many 
 Russian manuscripts, it appears, enrich its library, so many 
 indeed as rather more than 3000, of whose subjects or qualities 
 very little is known. There are, likewise, several in the Chinese, 
 and. some in the Turkish character, collected principally on the 
 borders of the empire during the reign of Catharine II. She 
 likewise purchased the libraries and MSS. of Voltaire, Diderot, 
 La Harpe, Helvetius, and some others of the French literati, 
 whom affecting to admire while living, she thought it desirable 
 thus to honour when dead. But in securing their books, she wisely 
 took care to permit no importation of their principles, at least of 
 the political sort ; of their obscenity, blasphemy, and irrehgion 
 it is to be feared she was somewhat careless. 
 
 Since the accession of Alexander, two universities, one at Khar- 
 koff in Lithuania, the other at Dorpat in Livonia, have been 
 established, besides a variety of schools, lectureships, and insti- 
 tutions civil and military, for the instruction of youth ; but 
 these unfortunately are frequently deficient in good masters. 
 
66 Voyage to St, Petershwrg^ hi 1814. 
 
 the small public salaries given in Russia forming little induce- 
 ment to intelligent foreigners to settle in that country. Even 
 in St. Petersburg tolerable tutors are difficult to be procured for' 
 private families. Clerks acquainted only with writing and arith- 
 metic, and even cast-off travelling valets, French, German, 
 and English, are frequently seen in this situation. In an opu- 
 knt family about £150 sterling, with sometimes two or three 
 rubles per diem table money, constitute the customary annual 
 stipend. Many of the Courlanders, and those of other parts 
 of the empire, who understand or speak German, proceed for 
 education to Leipsic, Jena, and Gottingen. 
 
 Besides the blaze of palaces, mansions, churches, charitable 
 receptacles, and repositories for the labours of art and science, 
 there are two or three grand buildings appropriated to the 
 instruction of youth intended for the army and navy. These 
 are mostly of the inferior class of nobility, or in other words, 
 gentlemen's sons. They enter at an early age, eight or nine 
 years, and remain till arrived at fifteen or sixteen. Here the 
 best masters in every department are provided. The round of 
 studies embrace mathematics, military exercises, and all the 
 modern languages. The boys do every thing by military rule ; 
 rise, parade, march to dinner, mount guard, and proceed again 
 to rest by word of command, the drum, or the bugle. Those 
 brought up here, however, necessarily form not a four hun- 
 dredth part of the officers of the vast Russian army, the great 
 majority of whom are extremely ignorant in every point, but 
 their immediate duties, and even in the more scientific parts of 
 this. A friend well acquainted with both services, informs me 
 that the Prussian officers of all classes are exceedingly superior. 
 
 A Briton in looking round this city is involuntarily astonished 
 to find so much, in every way, done by the Sovereign and so 
 little by the people. If a monarch could at all exist without 
 subjects, it might well be supposed it was here, for he is ever in 
 the eye and in the ear, is the subject of all thoughts and the 
 theme of all tongues, while the community at large is never 
 heard of. Ask who projected this ? — the answer is, Peter.— 
 Who founded that ? Catharine. Continue the interrogatory all 
 day and the replies are the same. Peter and Catharine, and 
 Catharine and Peter, occasionally intermingled with the names 
 of Elizabeth, Paul, and Alexander. But inquire for some 
 memorial of public exertion, some splendid trace of individual 
 spirit, some noble erection, the fruit of voluntary association 
 and public subscription, nothing, or next to nothing, of the kind 
 is known. A species of tacit agreement would seem to exist in 
 the country, that the sovereign alone should have the merit of 
 doing all that is done^ and that no individual or body of men 
 
Voijaire to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 67 
 
 ought to think of XvrestiDg from him tlie honour and applause 
 of the measure. Or rather, perhapsj we may consider it merely 
 the effect of the want of that manly independence, entei-prize, 
 Hberality, and munificent public spirit, characteristic of countries 
 where constitutional freedom is enjoyed, and which exalting the 
 private man in his own estimation, persuades him that his in- 
 terest in liis native land is as strong, and his attachment to it 
 as powerful, as that of the monarch to whom his devotion and 
 allegiance are due. 
 
 Petersburg is likewise singularly deficient in that animating 
 moral bustle belonging to some other capitals, forming in Paris 
 the pursuit of pleasure, in London of commerce and politics. No 
 public feelings are elicited, no public assemblages encouraged, 
 except on religious festivals, no public discussion permitted or 
 thought of, even for the most harmless purposes. The de- 
 thronement of a sovereign or the overturning of a drosky are 
 equally matters on which a Russian is constitutionally silent, 
 well aware that silence is a virtue seldom injurious to him who 
 can practise it. An Englishman will very naturally think such 
 a place truly miserable; but a native has no such idea. He 
 contentedly follows his daily avocations, conceiving political 
 affairs to fall properly under other and higher cognizance, and 
 gives to the practice of the government the full weight of his 
 opinion ; for here, as in all other countries, the Sovereign rules 
 but by the general feeling, such as it is, from the controul of 
 which no despotism, however great, is exempted. In this point 
 we are continually liable to err; we habitually take our own as 
 the standard of other nations, and think them happy or otherwise 
 according as they come up to our guage, without remembering 
 that the throne of Constantmople itself is only supported by 
 the general approval of its subjects. 
 
 It would be presumption to judge of the several estimates of 
 the character of the people in minute and particular points from 
 the little time afforded me for observation. But there are general 
 outlines worth remarking, always more or less obvious in na- 
 tional peculiarities, which frequently convey considerable in- 
 formation. 
 
 The general polish of manners among the higher class, and a 
 certain attentive good breeding, not always common among our- 
 selves, immediately strike the notice of a stranger. It is true, 
 indeed, that people of rank are said to be the same in all coun- 
 tries ; and this may hold true in externals ; but in the essentials 
 of knowledge, in acquaintance with the world at large, in ex- 
 tended views, and sometimes even in common information, those 
 of Russia are very deficient. Like artificial diamonds the sur- 
 face is sufficiently brilliant, but there is a want of substance and 
 
 Voyages and Tuavels, Vol. VII, a 
 
6(S Vcyya^ io St. Pctcmhurg, in 1814. » 
 
 of intrinsic value beneath. They bear many of the leading feOr- 
 tures of the Asiatic ; — a certain courteovisness of manners and 
 occasional ardour of attaclnnent, blended with little stability of 
 temperament, a fondness for novelty, few fixed principles of 
 any kind, little decorum on the score of morals, and a want of 
 that strict and sensitive tie we denominate honour. iMany illus- 
 trious exceptions of course occur among the travelled class ; but 
 nine-tenths of the order never emerge beyond the atmospheres of 
 Moscow and St. Petersburg. 
 
 The barbaric splendour displayed in their style of living, in- 
 habiting mansions superior to oiu' palaces, filled with every 
 species of luxury, attended by hundreds of servants (or slaves), 
 amused by fools and dwarfs, administered to by dependants and 
 flatterers, and powerful almost as potty sovereigns, present other 
 Asiatic resemblances The yoimger and poorer branches deign 
 onl}^ to look up for employment to the army or the state ; and 
 the vast extent of both commonly offers them subsistence, but 
 seldom perhaps wealth. 
 
 The inferior orders are distinguished by a plodding industry 
 and acuteness in pecuniary matters, not exceeded by any people 
 in the world ; the spirit of extortion and accumulation is in fact 
 so general, as to he almost a national peculiarity, for even Po- 
 tenikin himself, with riches nearly boundless, was as often mean 
 as he was at other periods gorgeously magnificent. No people 
 seem better suited to the pursuits of commerce. Time, more 
 freedom of action, and greater general knowledge are necessary 
 to fit them for other callings. Patience, forbearance, and good:- 
 nature are virtues belonging to the lower Russian, of which he 
 rarely loses the sense except from extreme injustice or oppression. 
 Want of cleanliness and an irresistible desire for " strong pota- 
 tions" are equally characteristic of his nature. Ability to su|> 
 port privations under which any other man would sink, added 
 to implicit obedience and fidelity to his leader, will ever render 
 him infinitely the best soldier in Europe for hard service ; nor is 
 his courage less constitutional than his hardihood. Female honour 
 is not such a virtue among them as it ought to be ; but this and 
 other faults arise doubtless from their slaTery, which has always 
 -« a tendency to lower the standard of morals in this as well as in 
 other points. Escaped from barbansm, however, but one cen- 
 tury, and known to us only since the reign of our Elizabeth, a 
 proper national character can scarcely be said to be definitively 
 established ; but whenever the progress of knowledge, and some 
 alterations in the administration of the government and condition 
 of the people are permitted to take place, I have little doubt it 
 will be of the most favourable description. 
 
 On our return to Cronstadt, understanding the Emperor in- 
 tended to^ visit the fleet at that port, we did not wish to omit 
 
Voi^age to St. Petersburg, In 1814. GD' 
 
 seeing this ceremony, and therefore quitted Petersburg leaving 
 many objects of curiosity unvisited. — The Emperor, as the head 
 of a great mihtary nation should be, having nothing of the slug- 
 gard in his composition, " took the field'"' at an early hour. 
 A little before ten o'clock the guns of the batteries of Cron- 
 stadt and the fleet {touring peals through the deafened ear, and 
 a flotilla of boats being in motion, announced his approach. In a 
 few minutes more, attended by several naval and military officers, 
 lie came on board our frigate, previous to visiting his own ships, 
 a mark of distinction of which the Russian oflicers were not a 
 little jealous. — All tlie honours due to royalty were of course 
 duly paid; and the oflicers being drawn up in form on the quar- 
 ter-deck, we had the honour of being introduced to the magnani- 
 mous Autocrat of all the Russias, who had previously expressed 
 his satisfaction of the care and attention shewn to the health 
 and comforts of the crews of his fleet. He remained on board 
 about a quarter of an hour. 
 
 The person of Alexander is so well known from his stay 
 in London, that few in the metropolis at that time were ungrati- 
 fied with a view of the original. He is above the middle size, 
 of a somewhat plump and pleasing figure, his countenance rather 
 round and highly expressive of good nature, his manners of 
 course of the first polish, but with a winning natural aflability 
 which mere polish, without a natural bias of mind, could never 
 give. He is between thirty-eight and thirty-nine years of age, 
 his complexion fair, his ey^s to my ken, grey, or as some say, 
 blue, and though scarcely turned the corner of life, time has 
 somewhat " thinned his flowing hair,"" as often happens to those 
 of light complexion, the crown being slightly bald, though the 
 sides are bushy and matted, projecting over the ears, something 
 in the form of what is called the yeoman crown. This fashion, 
 copying after the Emperor, is general throughout the army and 
 navy. Those whose vertex is well furnished by nature, press it 
 so flatly down that scarce any is perceived here, while the sides 
 are frizzed out immoderately. A prevailing characteristic of the 
 Russian ofl[icers, some short time ago, was tight-bound waists, the 
 abdomen being drawn in, in a most unmerciful and vmcomfortable 
 manner, but experience has partly corrected this error. Among 
 the guards at least the practice was scarcely discernible. The 
 Emperor is no pattern for this fashion. 
 
 His mental characteristics are sufficiently intelligible to all 
 Europe. They consist not so much in extraordinary talents, 
 which indeed seldom make a nation happy, as in a sound, sober, 
 regular, well dii'ected judgment, aiming at nothing striking 
 merely because it is new ; displaying no imperial tricks, no shew- 
 off', no stage-effcctj no unbounded lust of conquest, no brutal 
 
70 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 domineering over his weaker neighbours, neither insulting hl^ 
 friends, nor ever behaving treacherously towards his foes. Mean- 
 ing well, and wishing to see his people happy, he wisely distrustiy 
 daring and dangerous innovations, without rejecting any practi- 
 cable amelioration in the laws or government of his empire. 
 
 Mild and moderate abroad, he is equally so at- home, holding 
 " the even tenor of his way," with a calmness, which would 
 seem indifference were not its wisdom evident in the daily in- 
 creasing influence and territory of Russia, without violence or 
 aggression, which though alarming to some of her neighbours, 
 vet gives them no just reason to quarrel with her. No sovereign 
 lias done so much for extending the power of his country with 
 so little bustle, or so few enemies. His habits are those of 
 a man of business. He commonly rises early, takes coffee soon 
 afterwards, inspects public documents set apart for his signature 
 or approval, and about ten o'clock proceeds to the parade, which 
 often occupies considerable time from the minuteness with which 
 he examines the men. After this, when business is to be trans- 
 acted, he repairs to the council, where no affair of importance is 
 debated or determined upon without his being present. An 
 early dinner, characterized by temperance, succeeds, followed 
 sometimes by an hour or twos repose. The evening is devoted 
 to a drive, to occasional promenading, to games of amusement, 
 conversation, and the society of particular friends. 
 
 His partialities, as might be expected from the head of a 
 military nation, are strongly military. He has been from infancy 
 accustomed to the review and parade, to the sash, sword, and 
 feather ; the army is at once his pride, and, from the nature of 
 the government, his chief dependence and support in case of 
 emergency. Without being the champion of unjust or unneces- 
 sary war, he delights in the " pride, pomp and circumstance*^ of 
 the camp, attending his large armies commonly in person, but 
 without the vanity of taking the command from more experienced 
 officers, though his talents in this way are unquestionably con- 
 siderable. Napoleon was once the idol of his admiration. He 
 confessed lately, that " he had been often deceived by his pro- 
 fessioxis, but seldom by his actions.' ' " Had the man possessed 
 a little more honour or principle," said his Majesty lately, "he 
 iWould, in spite of us, always have possessed Europe." On 
 another occasion he remarked, with that point which frequently 
 characterizes his conversation, " that Bonaparte was unques- 
 tionably a most extraordinary character — but he would have 
 been a much greater man had he only been something less." 
 
 Among the other characteristics of the Emperor is a total 
 neglect of ceremony, except on state occasions, in proceeding 
 through his capital. Frequently he has been ^eu driving about 
 
Voyage to St. Petershurgy in 1814. 71 
 
 in a plain English chariot, or .curricle, sometimes on a drosky, 
 little distinguished from the common class, and not unfrequentiy 
 on foot, attended only by a servant or two, or perhaps an officer. 
 In this way he is often recognized w^here least expected ; and 
 though not desirous of being noticed, the affections of the people, 
 with whom he is literally an idol, are too powerful to restrain 
 themselves in the usual tokens of respect. Before his person 
 became so well known in the capital, several whimsical adventures 
 occurred, scarcely less singular than some of those which are re- 
 lated of the Caliphs of Bagdad, or the Viziers of Constantinople, 
 displaying in all, an inexhaustible fund of good nature. More 
 than once, towards the dusk of the evening he has been in cus- 
 tody of the police, for not giving an account of himself. On one 
 occasion it is said, he was stopped on a bridge, over one of the 
 canals, by a refractory Isvctschik, or drosky-driver, who half- 
 tipsey, had placed his vehicle in such a position, as to obstruct 
 the passage, and the Emperor sat with exemplary patience for 
 half an hour, using only the rhetoric of persuasion, before the 
 son of the whip would permit him to pass. At another time 
 while on foot, with a military companion, a drunken boor stum- 
 bled against them so violently, as almost to destroy the equili- 
 brium of both, and in framing some apology, had nearly repeated 
 the offence. The officer thinking the insult intentional, drew 
 his sword ; — " Let him alone," said the Emperor, with his usual 
 jocular humour, " You see that he is just sober enough to know 
 that he"*s drunk."" — He frequently visits some of the principal 
 merchants to breakfast, with little or no ceremony. The English 
 are thus frequently honoured. His kindness and condescension 
 make him so universally beloved, by foreigners as well as 
 natives, that were he not a monarch, attachments to whom are 
 always suspicious in the eyes of the world, few men would have 
 more personal friends. 
 
 The morals of the court were so indifferent during the late 
 reigns, that we can scarcely feel surprised, when accusations of 
 indiscriminate gallantry are laid to his charge. Some of his 
 favourites are publicly mentioned, while many others are conjec- 
 tured ; and even scandal insinuates, that a few of his private 
 visits are not prompted by the purest motives, but these things 
 are always exaggerated. Whether this be or be not the case,* it 
 may be safely asserted, that few of his nobility preserve pub- 
 lic appearances, or are in fact so correct as himself. The 
 Empress is a charming woman, her features handsome and 
 
 • While in this country, the charms of English women had so powerful an 
 effect on His Imperial Majesty, that it is said an illustrious personage jocur 
 larly termed him the " Cytherean Dandy." 
 
72 Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. 
 
 regular, her figure somewhat below the middle size, and her 
 manners, it is said, highly attractive. The attachment of her 
 august partner, is undoubted, and has been repeatedly ex- 
 pressed in the tenderest manner. Towards the Empress Dow- 
 ager, his regard is ardent, devoted, and respectful in the highest 
 degree, as the acknowledged virtues and exemplaiy conduct of 
 this illustrious female and mother deserve ; and a good son is 
 seldom a bad husband. 
 
 Towards England and Englishmen he has always displayed 
 much partiality, having been accustomed to the society of several 
 of our nation from his youth. The war scarcely interrupted this 
 feeling, hated heartily as it was by the nation, and little relished 
 by himself. It was, in fact, but a burst of spleen at first, and 
 hardly ever amounted to anger. His late visit, it is understood, 
 has much increased the kinder feelings towards us, mixed with 
 admiration at the beauty of the country, much surprise at our 
 political system and institutions, great wonder at the spirit and 
 apparent importance of the lower order of people, and astonish- 
 ment at the practical proofs of general wealth. A handsome 
 equipage and liveries passing one day, he asked whose it was, 
 and expressed no little amazement when informed there were 
 thousands such in the streets of London, whom nobody knew 
 beyond the immediate circle of their friends. The number of 
 public buildings, charities, and noble oflfices of trading companies, 
 formed another suj^ject of great interest, — not for their architec- 
 ture, for this, compared with his own, is contemptible ; but for 
 the sums received and expended in their support, all proceeding, 
 not from the crown as in Russia, but from the purses of private 
 individuals. Much of this he already knew from description; 
 but the striking realities presented at once to the eye, made a 
 ten-fold impression ; and the contrast became greater on recol- 
 lecting, that in his own territories, the mercantile character was 
 utterly despised. Slaves, or the descendants of slaves, only 
 practised it ; and with such the nobility or their connections 
 would not associate, much less adopt any part of their calling. 
 Even the learned professions were nearly as despicable, while in 
 England they claimed wealth, honours, and precedence at court 
 over that military costume which alone gave the wearer a title 
 to the character of a gentleman in his own. War, he knew, 
 formed the sole destination of the higher class in his empire. In 
 England the pursuits of war, commerce, agriculture, manufac- 
 tures, science, and the arts, seemed so equally divided between 
 all, and each so superior in its way, as to be difficult to tell 
 which preponderates in importance. 
 
 Yet It was not in this visit he first became acquainted wtih the 
 fructuous qualities of commerce. Conscious of its tendency to 
 
Voyage to St. Petersburg, in 1814. tS 
 
 enrich and civilize every country where it takes root, it has occu- 
 pied much of his attention since the year 1805, and perhaps 
 few monarchs understand the subject better. Certainly no 
 Russian sovereign has done so much for its credit and increase ; 
 studying at the same time to throw the main branches from the 
 hands of foreigners into those of his own subjects, hitherto, 
 from the shackles imposed by the war, with indifferent success, 
 but eventually by skill and the continuance of peace, likely to 
 produce the fullest effect. With the same view he has tried to 
 remove the prejudices of the nobility against the trading charac- 
 ter, by associating with the merchants himself. So long ago 
 as thd commencement of the war with England, it is said that 
 he used to give them special dinners, as a mark of his high consi- 
 deration. His friendly visits are intended for the same purpose. 
 His notice and invitations to them are marked and distinguished. 
 His approbation and encouragement sure to any new and pro- 
 mising branch of traffic or manufacture. England will no doubt 
 in time suffer from this uncommon activity ; but where his own 
 subjects gain, who else, even while they lose, shall presume to 
 condemn. 
 
 The interior administration of his vast Empire is characterized 
 by the same prudence and caution conspicuous elsewhere. Mild- 
 ness and firnmess constitute the leading features. There is no 
 tyranny in the exercise of power, and no improper relaxation. 
 Suaviter in modo, sedjhrtifer in re, may be taken as the govern- 
 ment motto. If any thing could make us submit to arbitrary 
 authority, it would be when administered by such a man. Some 
 wild theorists, however, unacquainted with liuman nature and 
 with Russia, have presumed to condemn him, for not giving free- 
 dom to the people from the vassalage of their lords. The truth 
 however is, a decree to this eff'ect would be in itself not only 
 arbitrary in the extreme, and dangerous to his own authority 
 and perhaps existence, but utterly subversive of those rights, of 
 which we are so justly tenacious in England, the rights of pro- 
 perty, in addition to throwing the whole country into inextricable 
 confusion. It is true, a pecuniary interest in human beings, is 
 unquestionably at variance with religion, propriety, and morals, 
 besides being sure to bring down vehement animadversion on 
 the head of the possessor. Here, however, the practice has 
 existed beyond the aera of record or of tradition ; its authority 
 has never been questioned ; successive ages have sanctified the 
 right ; and time alone can produce an amelioration by gradual 
 and gviiet, not by sudden or violent means. Great and numer- 
 ous difficvilties, in the opinions of the wisest people here, envi- 
 ron the subject, and of these the Emperor is fully aware. His 
 regrets that he cannot do more are well known ; however all 
 
•y^ Voyage to St. Peters-burg, in 1814. 
 
 the estates which he can either influence or purchase have their 
 peasantry immediately clothed with the enviable distinction of 
 freemen. Serious and leading defects also in the general code of 
 laws of the country are equally striking, though perhaps more 
 easy of remedy ; yet where a certain system has borne prescrip- 
 tive sway since before the origin of Christianity itself, total altera- 
 tions must not be lightly or quickly made. Neither is every man, 
 though gifted with superior talents, born to be a legislator for 
 his country. 
 
 In promoting the substantial interests and happiness of his 
 people, it is perfectly understood that the Emperor is no admirer 
 of those theoretical schemes of political perfectibility an^ unli- 
 mited extension of popular rights, which characterize the age. 
 A considerable change of opinion in this point is attributed to 
 this august personage. Nor is it to be wondered at. Men less 
 interested than him in the preservation of public order, have 
 both in our own country and other parts of Europe experienced 
 and confessed similar variations of sentiment. But in a sove- 
 reign who must naturally lose what his subjects gain in the arti- 
 cle of authority, such changes are sufficiently excuseable, par- 
 ticularly where he is conscious of never exerting it to their in- 
 jury, but always for their advantage. In Russia the nation at 
 large may be safely pronounced unfit to receive any material por- 
 tion of political power. It has not, and (unlike most other nations 
 of Euro})ej never had, any constitutional rights. Society itself is 
 there but in its infancy ; and the horn-book of political know- 
 ledge remains yet to be learnt. Conscious of the dangers attend- 
 ing popular innovation in such a community, the Emperor is in- 
 duced to dread them among others, who are, perhaps, more en- 
 lightened, and certainly better prepared for the measure. 
 
 Quitting Cronstadt, three days carried the ship out of the 
 Gulph of Finland and a few more brought us opposite Copenha- 
 gen. Passing the Sound, Cronenburg Castle appeared on the 
 left, once formidable in idea, but no sooner touched by the 
 Ithuriel spear of a British man of war, than sinking into insig- 
 ficance. Nelson was an enchanter that broke all spells opposed 
 to him. Nothing particular occurred in the passage across the 
 North Sea ; and in about three weeks we again touched English 
 ground by disembarking at Deal. 
 
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