The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1877-12-15
Ghinas Sbroad.
Russian Streets.


The streets Of Russian city are pictur-
esqne, for sign-boards abound and shop
fronts are painted in staring colors-light
blue, yellow and apple green. There are
no posters on boardings, for advertising
constitutes a monopoly in the hands of
company, who have hitherto confined them
selves to the newspaper branch Of putting,
and have not mustered enterprise enough
to dis6gure public thoroughfares. At the
corner Of almost every street you come
upon a Byzantine-looking shrine Of the
Virgin, with number Of Russians signing
themselves bareheaded in front. You
meet the Virgin in various other unexpect-
ed places--in railway stations, in post
Offices, with little oil lamp Pickering at
her feet---eyen in the frowsy lock-ups,
where tipsy mujicks can be heard all day
and night.
The behavior Of the people in the streets
is quiet aud civil. Ii Russian knocks
against you he begs your pardon with
sincere show Of contrition; if he sees your
nose turning white in the cold weather, he
picks up handful Of snow and rubs it
with brotherly oficiousness till the circu-
lation il restored All along the populous
streets peddlers saunter selling dried mush-
rooms, cotton handkerchief, religious prints,
white bread and vareniches Cheese frit-
ters;) but none Of them shout except the
Greeks, who each make noise enough for
dozen.
Pigeons infest the roadways with impu-
nifty, for they are held sacred Even if
Russian were starving it would not occur
to him to knock one Of these birds on the
head and cook it. Dancing bears are also
to be seen in great numbers, and though
not sacred, arc great favcrites, and always
draw crowds, who laugh at their antics like
children.
There is no man SO easy TO amuse as
Russian. In the popular theatres, which
stand on about the same level as the Lon
don ''penny gaffs, he testi6es his merri-
ment by shrieks till the tears run down his
cheeks, and it is not rare to see him in the
streets roaring before some farcical French
print exposed in a shop window. Russians
are also fanatically fond Of music, and all
the tea-houses are provided with some kind
Of organ on the musical-box system. These
instruments are manufactured at Moscow,
and are accounted better than those Of
Switzerland, the larger ones, such as en-
liven the big tea-houses, playing as many
as hundred tunes aud costing many
hundreds Of pounds An organ Of this
sort makes as much noise as full orches-
ira.
; In the smaller ea-houses the organ
tunes are frequently varied Of an evening
by the performance Of some strolling min.
strel in Caucasian costume, who strums Oh
triangular guitar the melodies Of Lithu
. MIA and Little Russia. Very sweet melo.
dies these are, and Chopin introduced many
Of them into his waltzes. The Caucasian
,, minstrel, dressed in black velvet tunic
adorned on either breast with rows Of sill
, vered cartridge-tubes Unto which he put
tobacco in time Of peace generally begin
/ with the plaintiye airs which the roussalka
! water fairies) are supposed to sing as the,
lure their admirers into deep water; h
4 goes on by-and-by to tho twanging wa
songs which console men for broken heads
but as evening advances he is always calle
7 upon for vritska or dance, and, the te
tables being pushed aside, the natives pre-
pare for hop Of the widest kind Il j
a veritable French can-cau, more unbridlet
if anything than that Of the Quarter Lat
in; and when Joined in by Russian servan
girls, with big boots and stolid faces, it il
irresistibly comic.