The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1875-01-30 00:00:00

A RUSSIAN FETE.

An Occasional Correspondent of The Times, under date
St. Petersburg, Jan. 19, *rites :

"Yesterday was a great day in the Russian Empire.
It was the 6th of January according to the Old Style,
the Feast of Epiphany, and the waters were blessed in
every place where 'Orthodox' Christians reside. From
the frontiers of Prussia to Kamtchatka, and from
Arkangel to Tastkend, the whole of Russia was occu-
pied yesterday in an open-air ceremony, which is, per-
haps, the most picturesque of those customary in the
Eastern Church. In St. Petersburg, the presence of
the Emperor and of the Imperial Family naturally
adds much to the grandeur of the proceedings, and it
is no exaggeration to say that one-half of the popula-
tion of the city had crowded together on the quays,
the bridges, and the frozen river, to have even a dis-
tant sight of the imposing ceremonial.
_ .

"Workmen had been busy for the last week erect-
ing a wooden temple on the ice of the Neva, just in
front of the principal entrance of the Winter Palace;
the dome had been painted a lovely blue, and golden
stars were to be seen on it at first, but snow again
covered it, and yesterday only that side on which the
sun shone showed its bright colours. The cold was
great-20 below zero, Centigrade—and many people
thought with dismay of the Emperor exposing himself
to it, with bared head, during the consecration of the
water. The advice of wise physicians prevailed; a
portion of the service was performed in the church of
the Palace and on the ice itself His Majesty was
represented by the Cesarewitch and the other Grand
Dukes of the Imperial Family. The church inside
the Winter Palace is of considerable size ; it ranks
as a cathedral among Russian churches, and a
numerous Chapter and staff of priests are attached to
it. When I entered it yesterday the service had
already commenced, the sun was shining brilliantly
on the golden arches and pillars, and the whole space
was filled by a crowd of officers in full dress and
Court officials in most gorgeous costumes. The sing-
ing was really lovely; in no other Russian church can
the harmony of the Greek Liturgy be heard to such
perfection as here—the best tenors and bass voices in
the Empire are selected for this choir, and the training
is under the direction of eminent musicians. From
the church we proceeded through several halls, where
troops were drawn up ready to be reviewed by
the Emperor to a side saloon, where we waited till
the procession had formed and was ready to leave
the Palace and proceed to the shrine on the
Neva. As we were shown from this room to the
Nicholas-hall, which looks on the river, we again
passed through the different detachments of the
Regiments of the Guard ranged along the walls of the
immense balls of 'St. George's,' of the 'Marshals,'
and of 'Arms.' These were all, of course, picked
men, but still the number was large, and, except
among our own Guards, I know of no other European
army where such an array of giants could be found.
From the windows of the Nicholas-hail a capital view
could be obtained of the ceremony on the Neva. The
Cesarewitch, the Grand Dukes, thousands of officers,
all bareheaded and without cloaks or furs hiding their
full-dress uniforms, filled the temple on the ice and
the surrounding platforms. The Metropolitan, assisted
by a numerous staff of priests in glittering robes, blessed
the colours of the Regiments of the Guard and the
water of the Neva, and, under salvoes of Artillery,
the procession returned to the Palace.
"In the meantime the doors of adjoining saloons
had been opened and crowds of servants were seen
busily arranging tables for a de:leaner. Somebody
whispered to me not to go away on any account till
after luncheon, as there would be some of the cele-
brated caviare of the Don Cossacks. This caviare
is made especially for this occasion by the Cossacks
of the Don from the roe of the sterlet, not, like
other caviare from that of the sturgeon. It is made
with extreme care, and then sent to the Emperor
for this feast as the choicest production of the Don.
Before the guests sat down, the Emperor himself
appeared, spoke a few words to the Ambassadors,
and then passed on, followed by the Grand Dukes
and a numerous Staff. The caviare deserves its re-
putation, and the d6cllner which followed was
worthy of the Palace. But among all those thou-
sands of officers there were only three ladies—the
wives of two Ambassadors and the daughter of a
third. How the scene would have been improved
if there had been a proper admixture of the fair
sex ! "