The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1880-08-06
ROYhL RUSSIAN LIFE.
The Imperial Residences - The Cars
Income, &c.

The Imperial Residences - The Cars
Income, &c.
The imperial family is scattered i'll
various palaces The Winter palace
was the residence of the emperor and
empress. The hereditary grand duke
holds his court at Anitchkinc palace.
The grand duke Constantine dwells in
the Marble palace, one of the finest in
the CITY The grand duke Cladimir oc-
cupies mansion distinguished by his
name Other members of the family are
similarly CHARTERED. The Winter palace
is really one Of the worlds wonders.
All the various styles of architecture are
blended in Il puzzling and most attrac-
tive way. II is said 10 have room for
5000 people. The palace was destroyed
by fire in 1881, and WAS rebuilt by the
Emperor Nicholas, on more magnIti-
cent scale, in less than fifteen months.
The accumulation of such mass Of
marble in SO short IA period smacks
adds to the visitors surprise.
He is carried away with its
splendoTs, The private apartments of
the emperor and empress, and the bed
room in which Nicholas died, contrast
strangely with all this luxury. The
bedroom resembles the cell of Il fanati-
cal monk of The middle ages, unmind-
fil Of anything but penauce- Its chief
ornament is a narrow iron camp bed
stead. Everything is exactly rs
Nicholas left it. Handkerchiefs are
number is any criterion, the imperial
head must have been unpleasantly at
facled. The eyes of the visitor however,
are dazzlcd by the magnificence of the
state apartments. The throne room of
| Peter l.. the White hail, the hall of St.
George, and the gallery of the field mar
| slals glistcn with gold. Their grandeur,
/ to be appreciated, must be seen on a tete
| day Night Examinations are nowhere
| so well understood as in St. Petersburg.
! Gauticr's Winter in Russia" contains a
magical description of fctc at tie
/ Winter palace, under the light of five
! thousand colossal chandeliers.
The court stands on a footing worthy
| of u sovereign Teigning over eighty mil
! lion of millIOnaires, and not over eighty
million of paupers. In the first year of
| the reign of the present emperor $500
persons were attached to il. Their num-
Der has not decreased. These parasites
are divided into seven corps, headed by
two grand chamberlalns, two grand mar
| shals, two great equerics, two chicfhunt.
ers, two chief stewards, Il grand master
of ceremonies, and grand mistress OF
the robes. Up TO within few years The
chamberlains in actual service number
cd 100 Almost every prominent geneT
ii in the army is aidc-de-camp TO the
emperor or 10 somebody of imperial
blood. Maids of honor, gentlemen il
waiting, pages, Wallets, and the like arr
so numerous that you would fancy thu
whole city OF ST. Petersburgh were en-
gagged as servants either to the Gar OF
to some member OF his his family. Dress
ornamental with an infinite variety o
crosses, and orders set in gold and pre-
ciOus stones, minglc with them an army
of beautiful ladies with dazzling dia
mond dladems and necklaces, paradinl
scuIptural shoulders and TObed in lace
, silk and velvet of all colors and shades
: each looking like an empress, and yOl
have a fair conception ola state reception
at the Winter Palace.
The cars income is not exactly
known. 1t certainly suTpasses that o
!. any other sovereign in Europe. Hi
majesty stands too high to have the or
= binary ideas as regards meum anC
: tuum. He considers the crown domain
I; the private property OF his family
= There l. no reference 10 the actua
, amount OF his revenue in the finance &C
} counts of the state. He is too shrewC
; for that. The exact figure is, therefore
! unknown to any one but himself and tn
! ministry of the crown domains and Tia
imperial household. The crown dc
= mains consist of about 100000 squar
: miles OF cultivated land and forests, BE-
sides many gold and other mines il
Siberia The first estimate of Tn
: imperial revenue appeared in
! British consular report for 1861
5 it WAS TcckOned at %, $1,000
= sterling. n gentleman long connecteo
with the ministry of the imperial house
hold tells me that the report is .incorrec
by half. He bases his calculations up
}, on Its yearly expenditures, which ppl
| ting them, as hc says, at "A low figure
absorb nearly double that sum. As tn
: car has no private debts, it may be safe
: | " inferred that he has at least 100 600
: 900 francs year. Ten per cent. of tn
: | amount he dcvotcs to charitable Pun
l poses ! large share of this charitable
i fund is absorbed in subsidies 10 thcatcr
: and presents 10 actresses. When III
: emperor hoEoTs an artist with "A gift tia
recipient may keep the glittering baubl'
c or il may he taken confidentially 10 ia
| treasury Of the Hermitage, where th
a jewels are exchanged for cash at a moo
! crate commission.