Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1878-01-09
st. Petersburg

On first view of st. Petersburg
stranger, looking upon the imposing
edifices and wide streets, asks where
all the poor people live. He will find
them in the cellars or in wretched bull
dings on the outskirts. IL is a city of
palaces, and stands on several islands.
carved out by streams that diverge
from the river Neva and by artificial
canals, Bridges are therefore numer-
Gus, spanning these streams in every
direction. The site of St. Petersburg
was originally swampy, but its found
er, Peter the Great, in the beginning
of the last century, seeing the CONNER
cial and political advantages of the To-
cation, ordered piles TO be driven for
the stone foundations of buildings. The
country around is fiat and the soil is
sandy.
st. Petersburg is in latitude 80 de-
grees, 56 minutes. At the same alti-
tude on the American continent snow
is almost perpetual, but at st. Peters
burg the warm or mild days of the year
average 1874. The thermometer during
July and the beginning of August often
rises eighty degrees above zero, and
sometimes ninety degrees. In winter
it sometimes falls thirty or forty de-
grees below zero, averaging about
twelve degrees below. Preparations
for winter, by means of double doors
and windows, are made toward the end
of September, although the double
doors and windows are only casually
needed before November. The gigan-
tic stoves of stone or brick, coated with
porcelain, and rising in various archi-
tectural devices nearly TO the ceiling,
are also put in order in September.
Fuel is cheap, and the dwellings have an
internal temperature of summer Great
care is taken in regard to winter cloth
ing and the air being clear and bracing,
colds are almost unknown. Consump-
ton of scrofulous nature is, however,
common.
Snow usually falls in the latter part
of October or early in November, and
May. The Neva and its branches are
usually frozen before the middle of No
vember. and the ice breaks up about
the middle of April. At this there is a
ceremony. The commandant of the
fortress, rowing i'm state across the riv-
er, under salyos of artillery, visits the
Emperor in his palace, and gives him
cup Of its water in token of restored
navigation. The ice disappears by the
beginning of May, and the vegetation
becomes rapid. During June and July
the days are very long, ane the sun is
only short time below the horizon.
selves to the island and villages of the
suburbs.
A feature of st. Petersburg is the
equestrian statue of Peter the Great,
erected in 1872. The horse, having
rushed up steep rock, is rearing at its
precipitous brink, with its fore feet in
the air. His height is seventeen feet.
and that of the Emperor eleven feet.
Falconet, the artist, told the Empress
Catharine that he could not properly
model horse and it, rider in that po-
sition without seeing models. General
MeliSSino, bold and expert rider, then
offered to ride horse upa steep mound
prepared for the purpose. He did so.
and accustomed the horse TO halt at the
brink and paw the air. After the horse
became trained the General rode up the
artist.
The Winter Palace, when occupied
by the Emperor, contains 5000 persons,
in different ways connected with either
his court or his household. The in
terror is filled with pictures and rare
ornaments. Connected with the palace
is the Hermitage, built by Catharine H.,
which contains picture galleries, mu-
scum of arms, statuary and curiOsities.
and a large theatre.
The principal street Is the Nevskt
Prospekt, four miles long and one hun
dred and fifty feet broad. In it is the
Cathedral of Our Lady of Kazan, richly
adorned in the interior with gold and
silver gems. Another Greek church is
similarly dOmed. The great bazaar,
with its 10,0 ,0O0merchants, is also in this
thorouhgfare; also the military head
quarters, the palace OF the Ahchduke,
that of the metropolitan of headquar-
h.,
ehael, that of the metropolitan or head
of the Greek Church, and the convent
and church of St. Alexander NevskOl,
the latter of which contains a sarcOpha-
gus of pure silver, in which the body
of the saint is preserved. In the cita-
del is the Church of St. Peter and st.
Paul, with tall, slender. richly gilt
spire, POS feet high, which towers above
its surroundings and is seen from every
part of the city. Ii contains the Rus
sian monarchs since Peter the Great
inclusive. The population of ST. Pc
tersburg is about 10000.
In Peters museum in the Academy
of Sciences is the effigy of Peter the
Great in wax, habited in court dress
that was worn by him and shoes made
by his own hands. The wig is from his
own dark hair, clipped after his death.
His eyes were black and his statue
about six feet three, according to a rod
shown, which is said to have been ex-
actly of his height. The stuffed skin
of his horse, ridden by him at the bat
tie of Pultowa, is also exhibited.