Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1874-04-16
GALLIPOLIS, OHIO, THURSDAY, APRIL f6, 1874.
ia. It's of no use to try to describe

eia- ~ IN vi no Use 10 Try 70 descrlbt
the scene
"a week afterward there was small
, and select ball given there to IOC
guests. At this time the supper wa.
laid in the large hall. which is about
100 BY $50 feet, and 40 feet high. For.
ty palm trees. twenty to thirty feel
high. hsd been brought from the green.
house; round each was built a table
for ten or twenty guests; 5000 candles
lighted this room. so we sat down to
supper in real palm grove 1t was
magnificent beyond description. This
is latitude sixty, the same as that Of
Greenland
"Spelking of green houses. we visit
ed one the other day for trees and
shrubs, ferns and cacti only, not flow
ers, which has $4,000 varieties in it,
and 10000 pots or specimens. All the
corps diplonsoti9ue are invited every
winter. There appears to be no end to
the money this court spends on such
an occasion. This. of course, is sell
dom done. The Emperor is splendid
man, very polite. and for that matter,
SO are they all to US. The few live
like princes The many work and live
like slaves. Very fine and handsome
people are the nobility; very low and
degraded are the working classes But
it is vastly improved under this En-
peror, who is really just and good
man. Russia has its own code of
morals | suppose, which the people
live upto. From our peint of view,
there are no morals here They all
cross themselves on going past a
church or shrine There is shrine
in every house. in the presence of
which. no one can wear his hat, not
even he Emperor. So inside Rus
sian door hats off-a carpenters shop,
saloon. or palace-its all the same
They keep Lent rigidly. Circuses and
thea,ers are full Sundays except in
Lent,
There are over sixty 'proswicks' or
fete days in the year on which no one
will work Sunday is less cared for,
though generally no work is done on
that day. Drunkenness is more COM
mon than in any country in the world.
Common people drink all the "bodka"
they can get. Their food is a black,
sour, rye bread and cabbage soup
mostly
"But they are good natured. laugh
ing race of beings. There is but little
social life here, though in fact not
much visiting, as we do it evenings
So much social intercourse comes from
our schools and religious affinities,
which are entirely lacking in this
country, that it makes the difference
very marked to an American. The
French language is almost as much
used as the Russian, more 80 in fact 10
the higher eirHlas- Most of the gov
ernment officers speak English also.
and more than halt the Russians
meet. All the young ladies speak it,
as they all have English govern
esses. English and American books
are in all first class libraries, Russia
having but comparatively little litera-
ture of its own. Law and order
here are as much respected as with
us. While the Emperor appoints
and everybody. and can
do exactly as he likes. still be gov
erns by and through law. The
knout is long since sbolished, and
trial by jury is regular and safe. 1t
is no heather country by long ways,
but the Greek or orthodox church is
strict in its discipline, and thorough
in its organization.
divorce is almost impossible
Prisons are few. Capital punish
nent is unknown except for attempts
on the Emperor's life. All convicts
are sent to Siberia, the worst to work
10 the mines, and others on the land
rheir families can go with them il
hey like, so that country is now full
,f pretty good people of this kind
This nation is growing rapidly in all
he directions of national greatness.
Education is being pushed slowly
,ut steadily. Most of the people l
zee can already read and write. But
he rich being so rich, and the poor
70 very poor makes progress so very
low. The police regulations are
perfect. though people drive through
he streets as fast as ever they can
20. Those on foot have no rights 3
which the carriages are bound to re
'pect. Handsome black Tartar Q
lorses go past one like the wind,
With little light harness, no blinders,
md low, light sleighs. or sledges as !
hey call them. Nobody goes out a G
minute here without being fully rap e
bed up in fur, and no one sits a min I
tie in The house with them on. In
he halls are servants to take off and 8
,are br these wrappers In this :
way they never appear to take cold. i
IN no other way could they live in C
his very changeable climate. Not q
me Of us had a cold this winter. Il
30 all he stories about this being 80 I
,ad climate appear to be hum C
,ug. But great care is necessary, and n
hat everybody takes of himself. So I
n this way we get along, and on the a
Whole find the climate not bad. Do z
like il? Well some. Don't believe
should want to spend my life here 9
hougi. 1t is a great thing to see .
or lime, and l 6nd my colleagues II
pleasant people, and the social life of u
ndoo.s was enjoyed for time. In a
IL tie elements of strength and G
,reatiess America is so far ahead of r
europe that the contrast is painful. |
10 mi eyes constantly turn toward p
1artfrd after all. But read q o
,reat deal of politics and write Q
many letters, and hear from home +
Iaily almost" q
EEA correspondent writing from 7
)o,e cave that an Enolia hman uae d