Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-09-17

The following account of an incident
of the tour of the Gar and CZarina to
Moscow and Mini NOvgorod is given by
a correspondent accompanying the i'm
perial party: GAS we were going along
the Volga the boys young princes)
had been promised run on shore, and
so at a spot where all seemed to promise
privacy the Empress, Miss o., a lady of
honor; Nicholai Alexandrovitch, and
George, his younger brother; Count ",
Mr.. s. and Prince S. started on an ex-
cursion. | was kindly invited to join
the party. We clambered up a steep
precipice of sand and loose gravel, and
after some difficulty reached the summit
What grand view we hadl The Volga
at our feet. and beyond a wide expanse
of plain, forest and fields-a view as ex.
tensive as that from the summit of the
Devils Dyke, near Brighton, or from
the Round Tower at Windsor Castle
We crossed ploughed field and came
to some cottages, the log huts of the
country. At the door of one of these
there stood an old woman with one eye
The Empress approached her and asked
if she could have a little milk,
for she was thirsty. "Milk?" says
will you kindly let me have some?"
''But-milk2" was the only answer to
be got. We all thought the old woman
was crazed, so the Empress entered the
hut, and there sat pale listless-loOking
woman, with two children-one child
of three years, the other baby, hung
up in piece of sacking by cord at
tached to the rafters. While her Mai
aofu Oho ffaI I,o
mother, the old woman came in with a
bowl of very dirty looking milk and one
spoon for the whole company. Haven't
you got better spoon, good woman?"
A new one was fOund-painted in red
and gold. The Empress, for forms sake,
tasted the repulsive looking beverage;
and, after some conversation, Mr. S.
asked the old woman what she wanted
for it. "Want for it?" she replied,
thOughtfully. Il want five kopecks
silver" That's too dear" he said,
with a serious air. ''The price is ruin
Gus. Three" "It's five kopecks silver"
and the old woman drew the bowl
nearer to her. "Three." "No, five;
it's shame for gentlefolks to haggle
about few kopecks." He is only
joking" said the Empress, coming to the
rescue; ''here are ten roubles for you"
''But, interposed Count ", 'you must
give us nine roubles and ninety five ko-
pecks change" ''Nine roubles and
nnety-ive kopecksl Where am to get
it from?" she replied. "But they are
joking, tell you," said the Empress;
''the ten rOubles are yours, don't you un-
derstand?" "The milk is five kopecks
silver" she insisted amid general laugh
ter, "You greedy old woman, you've
got ten roubles, and now you want five
kopecks more; you ought to be ashamed
of yourself" ''The milk's five kOpecks
silver" she repeated doggedly. Prince
s.. 'Do you know who the lady is who
has given you the ten roubles2" mo, l
DON'T" she answered. "It's the Cos 90
darina." Oh, yesl very likely" she
sneered. The joke was a good
one, and the old woman enjoyed
it. every likely" cit really is
the Empress; don't you know that the
Car is on the river and that all the
people are gone to the town to see him2"
1t was no use. The old woman only
laughed and patted the Empress arm.
Things were getting desperate. There
was tall fellow in the corner of the
room. He was appealed to. He had
heard that the Gar was on the river, but
he heard lot of things that wern't true;
but he'd had bad leg for nine months
that he knew for sure. What was to be
done2 s. as a last resource takes out |
his image. "You see l am a Christian |
man. swear on this image kissing it) |
thst this lady is really our Empress"
The woman was only half convinced, |
but she had far too little time to realize |
the fact 30 Matushka (mother)," she |
saye. ffei o,a H~t>.shI-eV e.=d T,e.ts more
emphatically. The heat was suffocating, |
not breath of air; the Empress rose to
go, wished the good.people good bye, and |
thanked them for their hospitality
We had not proceeded far when q /
small group of women and one or two
men were observed following us. 'Let
us wait for them" said her Majesty; 81
like to talk with these good people"
Glow many are you in the village p
Fifty" replied the person addressed.
Many other questions were put and an
swered, but it was not until she gave
them100 roubles that they believed it was
really their "Matushka, their dear little
mother" and they fell on their knees
and kissed her feet. She could not es- /
CdRC. bnClA nOb W AlcS NY I6Cb.
she said Il don't like It," They were. /
however, all around her; they crossed |
themselves and her; they Kissed the very |
ground on which she trod, But who ID
that hobbling sosesgerly toward US 7 1t |
is our old friend of the cottage. She has
had time now to realize the fact that the |
kind stranger really was the real
Matushka; that she whom all the world |
had gone so far TO see-she the Empress
of All the Russias, the wife of the
!'White Gzar. had actually been in her
poor hut-had spoken so kindly to her,
and that she herself, poor old woman,
had actually joked with her and patted
her arm; that she had eaten out of the |
old bowl--she felt it now-and she came |
and threw herself on the ground and |
kissed the hem of her garment and |
sobbed like a child. The Empress raised |
the old woman and said ali sorts of com. |
forting words 10 her, and with such sue
eess that hobbling old age took active
youth under her arm and helped her
carefully over the rough places across
the ploughed field till we came to the
ravine again. We reached the steamer
at last, and as we left, among the group
on shore we saw our old friend; but how
she got there and how she got back again
4 49, -