The Sun.
London, England, 1855-08-31 00:00:00

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eiSaTtOit;:ljtaHosot
kmLOre,eiNatienDegOyfe.N,swtetFrhdLeasyoe,lataslnoendUowLfatTsh,Uisi
fRi
pmA,Lops6:osooii
btai
11,,Itnt..aNsVasonsrtt'
successful than the last.
;11' osh nae
beautiful
oteinva:itilyert oef of
variety
the 3
anenafldtrohr ce ulei necessarilylxctatcreyi
ms toe'si
Fulnessecaornefie bs ihit thatf4olir:vp,otr:t portion up
wailwr
colour, wag apparent throughout the rust and second
olasees.
The hollyhock, a flower till lately thrown aside, used
only to fill up a blank corner or hide an old wall, were
magnificent, many of the stalks covering six feet in
one mass of blossom ; the spikes shown by Mesas,.
Gaunt and Benningfield being particularly remarkable
fur depth of colour and richness of hue. Of the
dahlias, it may be said they abounded in all the qua-
lities necessary for a prize show ; and so general was
the merit, that it was a very difficult task to give
a just preference. A few seedlings were shown which
appeared to excite a good deal of interest among the
growers. In roses, as usual, the Messrs. Paul, of Ches-
hunt, shone in the first tank ; nor were their hollyhocks,
in our estimation, inferior to the best, though the first
prize was not awarded them.
At a very early hour the lovers of Flora began to as-
semble, and up to seven o'clock continued to increase, so
that by this hour, not only was the tbe.itre, which was
beautifully fitted for the show, crowded to excess, but
the gardens throughout were lined with visitors.
Before the leading attraction of the day had passed
away it was evident there was some feature expected
which proved to be the leading feature of the night--
this was the Ashburnhatu Military Spectacle—the Storm-
ing of the Mamelon Vert and Capture of the Rifle Pits,
which was repeated with all its characteristic incidents
and pyrotechnic effects. To give an idea of the crush
to gain reserved seats is
,simply impossible. Not only
was every one secured the moment an opportunity
offered, but many urgent applications were necessarily
refused for want of room. Dancing was resumed and
continued till a late hour, closing a floricultural season
with entire success.
Among the most successful competitors in the First
Clasi fa; Dahlias' and to whom prizes were awarded,
were the Rev. C. Fellowes, Messrs. Robinson' Mahar,
Sladden, Holmes, Pope, Shriinpton, Castles, and Cooke.
Second Class.—Messrs. Turner, J. Keynes, Legg, J.
Walker, E. C. Allen, Pope, and Gaines.
For First Class Hollyhocks.—Messrs. Grant, Ben-
ningfield, Bowler, Dyson, T. Roake, J. Long, and C.
Grant.

PRICE 4D. STAMPED SD•

But the finest sight of all the fair is what is called krcts-
niriad , or the street of the finery, which is usually die-
played on temporary shelves and covered in with coarse
canvas, each merchant adding his piece to form a long
covered avenue ; and here you will generally find con-
gregated all the belles of the country, in yellow and red
boots, with streamers flying, or flowers on their heads,
buying ornaments in order to touch the hearts of the ,
swains with love, or those of their companions with envy ; ;
or perhaps you may find some rustic lover purchasing pre-
sents
for his lady-love. In all this assemblage of rude un-
cultivated
people—l have seen as many as four or five
thousand of them congregated together -there are never 1
any serious disturbances ; all is order and quiet ; they
seem pleased and amused with the rude gaity of the scene,
and enjoy it till it becomes dark, when some go to their
homes, others to the brandy shop ; while those who have
goods lie down and go to sleep under them, no matter how
inclement the weather. These fairs in winter generally
last a week, but in summer rarely more than one or two
days, as time is very valuable during haymaking and har-
vest. If it were not for these institutions, there would be
no possibility of the peasant procuring anything besides
what was produced in his own village, where he would
lead the life of a kind of Robinson Crusoe in the society
of others like himself.
The serfs, in general, have very limited ideas on the sub-
ject of religion, as they, for the greater part, can neither
read nor write ; they go to church, where they repeat,
with great devotion, a certain number of Ayes and Pater-
nosters in their own language, or rather Slavonic, and cross
themselves while the priest is celebrating mass, which is
done with more or less pomp according to the occasion or
the riches of the church. If you ask a peasant where is God,
be will generally point to the corner of the room where
there are hanging one or more coarse, badly-executed
paintings, representing some of their saints, and which he
is firmly persuaded are so many gods This will, perhaps,
- le -(este x stn,essf pity ill England, MR it is -the-naturarfe:
suit of their uneducated state, which precludes them from
un,lerstanding allabstrac' ideas. They must have something
corporeal—something they can see and feel ; consequently,
to abolish these would be to do away with all religion in
their eyes. In their way they are very religious. I have
ven known some of them who, when they are about to
commit a sin, will cover carefully their images, that God
may not see what they are about. They are very strict
in their fasts, which are eery severe, as neither
milk, butter, eggs, nor anything that is produced by ani
mass is permitted ; and, of course, animal food is forbid-
'ten. The principal and longest fast is, of course, Lent,
when they do not even eat fish during the first and last
weeks, nor on Wednesdays and Fridays; from Good Fri-
-lay till after mass on Easter Day, many of them eat no-
thing, but spend their time in watching, fasting, and pray-
ing, being firmly persuaded that Christ dies and rises
again every year at this time. But when the mass is over
on Easter Day (generally about 4 a.m.), ample amends is
made for the long fast, by stufflog to a degree that is really
disgusting to look at and think of. Nor is the brandy cep
forgotten ; for, during the three days that Easter lasts, it,
is almost a sin not to be drunk, nor are the priests back-
ward in setting the example both in eating and drinking.
There is another custom, which is universal throughout
the empire—that of kissing. You frequently see two men,
who can hardly keep their legs, stop and uncover in the
streets, one saying " Christos vcskres," the other answer-
ing " Vi-istino vcskres;" they kiss each other three times
on alternate cheeks, and then walk on to perform the same
ceremony with the next acquaintance they may happen to
meet. They are blindly attached to their religion ; and
this has been the means employed to arouse their enthusi-
asm for the present war, which, I am told, has been very
successful in Russia Proper; but in Southern Russia it his
only Met with partial success, for there the people are not
strongly attached to the paternal government of the Czar,
and still have many traditions of their former freedom,
be!'ore the hated Mazeppa. They think themselves the
only orthodox nation in the world, and all others they call
Bussernian, or infidel. They have very curious notions
of the rest of the world, and regard all foreign countries as
so many provinces belonging to the Czar. I have fre-
quently been told that the Turks, incited by the French
and English, had revolted, and that the latter, finding
that the
.Turks were not able to do anything against
1 the White Czar alone, had revolted too, although they,
the peasants, could not understand why the French
and English should revolt, since, by all accounts,
they were much better off than the Russian peasants, who
were the Czar's own- particular people.. That is their idea
of the present war, and, of course, the rebels are to be
utterly destroyed by the power of the Czar;; for they rea-
son that, if they were to revolt, they, who are a great
people, would soon be annihilated ; what must it then be
for those whom they esteem insignificant in proportion to
their knoivledge of them ?
The priests are objects of great veneration, although
many of them are not far removed, in point.of education,
from their flock. I have met with those who could
scarcely read, except their church books, which they had
learned by rote. There are, however, many who are well
educated, and oven learned, but these are chiefly in towns.
These era the two extremes,, whereas the great body of
theta c ,u read and write, and understand enough of the
dogmas of the Russo-Greek Church to keep the people in
their present state. Here also we find the same system of
feeing going on as elsewhere ; for if they take a fancy to
anything that a peasant. passeeses, the-owner knows that
it is no longer his property, or he will not receive abso-
lution when he goes to confession ; or the priest may re-
fuse to bury any of his family that may die, or to baptise
his, children, or may even excommunicate him. All classes

Second Clase.—Messre. Chester, Buean, Paul, and
Turn.-r.
Op n Clas4, for the beet Twelve Stove and Greenhouse
Plants.— Itleasre. E. A Hamp au4 Rhodes.
Second beet.—Mr. Young.
For the beet Collection of Roam—Mews. Paul and
Sop.

Seco; d best.—Mr, Ponsford.
For the best Verbenas.—Messrs. G. Smith and Au

gue..
For the best Fuschias.—Mr. Games. Seoond ditto.
—Mr. George.
For the beet Cut Flowers.—M. E. A. Ramp Second
ditto.—Mr. Rhodes. Third, ditto.—Mr. Si oung. Fourth,
ditto.—Messrs. Fraser and Co.
Prizes offered by Members for First Class Dahlias
(Lord Bath).—Mr. Keynes. Second, ditto.—Mt.
Turner.
Certificates for Dahlias (the Bessy, yellow).—Messrs.
Alexander, Wheeler, and Keynes.
Certificates for Hollyhocks, broke.—Messrs,
and Bu..an.
Certificates for Verbenas.—Messrs. Weatherell (3
and Gaines.
Certificate for Phlox.—Mr. Bum).
Recommended for Roses.--August ; ditto, cut
blooms, A. Young ; ditto, baL.aine, Wakeman ; ditto,
verbenas, in pots, Weatherell and G. Smith ; ditto,
phlox, Salter. •
Members' Prizes.—For best of (Lord Bath) dahlias,
Mr. Keynes ; for 2d ditto, Mr. Turner ; for the best
six sorts of fruit, Mr. Hamp ; second ditto, Mr.
Young ; third ditto. Mr. Salter.

Clutter

fall upon the poor peasant ! Their greatest oppressors are
the rural police, who exact from them to their last shirt
when they can. I knew ono very intelligent man among
the crown peasants, who said that his position would be
very welt for an uneduc ,ted man like himself, if it were
not for the cruel and unjust exactions of these locusts
These were hi, very words. He was always glad when I
talked of England, and the people there, which I did but
very circumspectly : he made frequent an 3 very shrewd
compatisons between the two countries, but could not
understand how the upper classes could exist if there
were mo serfdom, or how we could get soldiers if we had
not the same system as that existing its Russia. When I
told him how our soldiers were paid and treated, he only
wondered how it was that every man was not a soldier.
That the law was alike for rich and poor he could under-
stand, and remarked that it was the wish of the Emperor
that it should be so in Russia. but that those who were
charged with the execution of it there had all the power in
their own hands ; that there was no redress for the poor
peasa,,t, who must suffer till the change came that would
sweep away all their oppressors. He could not explain
what change was to take place, but was fully persuaded
that it must come ; and if it were not for the question of
religion mixed up in the present war, I am fully convinced
that. this would be looked upon as the time for effecting
that change.
The peasantry have to endure great hardships when
troops pass through their district. The passage of troops
in Russia presents many singular and striking feature.
Every Russ'an regiment is composed of four battalions,
each a thousand strung. On the march, two of these
battalions are sent on, followed by the other two, at the
interval of a day or two. These battalions are broken up
into companies of 200 men each, under a captain, and di-
rected to hold a parallel course. These companies are
again subdivided in detachments of about 50, and take their
way among the villages, only concentrating before enter-
ing a large town, so that they generally march over about
double the actual distance by the road. It is a curious
sight to meet one of these detachments on the march. In
front of erch party generally marches a man singing mili•
tary snatches, with a tambourine, or some instrument, to
keep up the spirit of his comrades, while the others join
him in the chorus. The effect of this is very strange, sur-
rounded as one is by the dreary landscape of a Russian
winter, without tree, house, or human being in sight—
nothing but snow above and below, for the atmosphere
seems impregnated with it, as the air of London is with
smoke—there, in the midst of such a wilderness, to meet
a body of armed men, with one of them at their head, sing-
ing, and perhaps dancing some war dance.

VENE:

UELAN BONDHOLDERS.

A meeting of Venezuelan bondholders was held yes-
terday, Mr. J. D. Fowles presiding, at which it was
unanimously agreed to reject proposalthaevpeabrdeenn
who
in
hmenaodmreempburyensietchnael
the .
commissioners for the settlement of that debt. It ap-
pears
Venezuelanthat
s rservai
a and
Government, have
tion with the Committee of Spanish-American Bond.
holders, but the terms are regarded as so inadequate as
to be wholly unworthy of consideration. The basis of
the proposal is the payment of 2 per cent. interest on
the active debt and arrears, and of 1 per cent. on the
deferred, and it is stated that the commissioners cannot
improve them in any shape. They profess, however, to
be prepared to use their influence with the Government
to obtain, if possible, one-quarter of the Customs' reve-
nue for the benefit of the foreign creditor, to be divided
in proportion to the class of represented debt. With a
revenue which has increesed from $1,721,000 in 1839 to
$3,444,000in ithlBs3a,ve
is
beenm
urgedad thate,and it is
aless objectionablecontended
proposal should
that the exertions of the agent of the bondholders in
Caraccas (Mr. Carnancho) will probably produce a more
satisfactory arrangement. Annexed are the resolutions
adopted :
" Resolved—That the proposal made by Mr. F. Corvaia
and Mr. M. Pardo, jun., dated Paris, the 2d of July, in
relation to the foreign debt of Venezuela, cannot be ent•r-
taineil by this meeting.
" Resolved—That, for the convenience of the Venezue-
lan Government, this meeting will consent to receive p=!3"-
ment of the arrears of interest on the debt,Venezuelau
active and deferred, in a stock to be created for that
annum,
pur-
pose bearing interest at the rate of 5 per cent. p
providedwit
with
the satisfactoryGtohvaetrnament of
v ene z arrangementu e lVenezuela
fo
of the accruing interest on the foreign deb
t that in any
" Resolved—That this meeting
is
ofopinion of Vona-
arrangement to be made with the Government
Wrest upon the
the In •
zuela for the future payment
of the duties of Cus-
toms debt an adequate assignmentGvernment, the amount
toms should be made by that
Custom houses of Venezuela
thereof to be received in the the Committee of Spanish-
by agents to be appointed by
American Bondholders.
Th t the Committee of Spanish-American
" Resolved— ,aineerpabeynamaednet
t an immediate adjustment
of the Venezuelanto
foreign debtthe best manner that circumstance
may
r t the future
bring about
inbe requestede. to continue their exertions