Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1871-08-31
THE PEASANT HERO.
From Good Words for the Young.

From Good Words for the Young.
1t is pleasant place in summer, the
village of BogOrodskoe-to those, at
least, who are not above PLAIN living,
for neither hotel nor refreshment-roOm
has ever been heard of there. The
whole place is simply one of those
quaint little clusters of rough-hewn
log huts, clinging like limpets to either
side of the high road, which are no.
where seen TO such perfection as IN
Sweden or Russia, Some few of the
houses are of a grander sort actually
two stories high, with brightly painted
roofs and white.washed balconies in
front, that make them look as If they
had white ties on. These sre the
+" swell mansions of the place, and
look down upon the poor little shanties
around them IA a footman looks ut Il
beggar but, for the most part, our
village is made up of little cabins of
the regular Russian type, built with no
tool but short aXe-one stored,
matched with straw, containing two or
at most three rooms, and topped by
the cooked hat-shaped "Tckcrdak y or
garnet, in which the Russian peasant
slows his hay, piles his wood, stores
his provisions, dries his clean linen
(when he has any, and, in a word, be
slows everything that he cannot cram
into the little kennel below stairs,
where he. his wife, his children, and
very often likewise his OK and his ass,
his pig, and his poultry, and every
thing that is his, eat, drink, sleep, and
vegctate The beams of Mr. Ivan $
house fit into each other at the ends
like the corners of slate frame, his
door il fastened by stong wooden pegs,
beside his big stove hangs the rudely-
dauhcd picture of some Russian saint,
with a candle burning in front of it,
and in the corner OF the room stands a
huge sooudook N or wooden chest,
painted red, and clamped with iron
bands This chest is the peasant IS
greatest pride; he keeps his Sund Y
clothes m the aud his friends sit
upon it like n sofa, and whenever he
changes from place to place, he always
drags tins great heavy sentry-boX OF a
thing along with HIM.
But doubt whctherauy ofyou would
like 10 live IN Russian cottage. The
roof is Just mixture Of saphugs and
spiders the walls amish mash Of wood,
earth, and oarwlEs the floor paste
of straw and clay, dotted with black
beetles, like the plums IN Il Christmas
pudding
The hut lived in had only Just been
built. SO that had nothing 60 disturb
me worse than regiment of black ants
marching every now and then out OF the
cracks in my wln6ow-sill, or swarm
of mosquitoes coming "pugpinglug
through nay open window. And, what S
more, | had u little round table fixed I'm
front of my cottage, and q low bench
put beside il, aud there used 10 have
my breakfast and tea in the open air
and can tell you that when was SIT
ting there about seven o'clock ON q
glorious summer morning, fresh from
my early walk, with my cosy little tea.
urn steamlug in front of me, q fresh roll
ON one side, u couple of newlaid eggs
ON the other and the soft, dreamy,
sunny uplands stretching before me ion
miles, edged here and there with dark
patches of forest, like fur trimmings
upon velvet rube-l was as happy rs
could be One may be comfortable IN
Russia as welt as anywhere else and
when YOU come to travel there, YOU
soon find ont that it's not the cold dark
prison, full OF spies, wolves, aud frost
bites, that We used 10 imagine il that
there are other things 10 eat there be-
side soap and candles, anl,other thing,
to do beside sitting all day close 10 ,
stove with woolleu comforter round
your neck.
While the heat Of the day lasts yov
don't see much Of our villagers Her,
and there YOU may fall IN With i stra,
one creeping along the highway, on
Struggling about the fields. but. ms 4
rule the bulk Of the population don't
show up till towards evening Then
as il by magic, the whole place sudden
" becomes alive with an Kinds ofqutr,
figures bearded ahor1rs IN greasy re-,
shirts, with haEgN trousers stuffed int
their high boots shouting children
shaggy as bears aud brown as hazel
nuts. with nothing ON hut a pancake
colored night gown well lined with dirt
short-skrted women, with scarlet hand
kerCmtis round their heads, and round
flat. wide-mouthed faces, that look like
penny witt hole through it salloN
students with Struggling black hair, aut
an earthly, uuwashed look about them
oEhng the brown checked hasfooteo