The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-06-30
ST. PETERSBURG.
Melancholy Character Of Life ia the Russian
Capital.
tC.----- a. 49,. = H.. r.Y..-..A

Correspondence London Telegraph
You may asCribe the sadness, the mo-
notony and silence of metropolitan life
in Russia to the merCiless asperity of the
climate; still, would venture to point
out that what is known as a "Cold snap"
in New York city, although it does not
last 80 long as Russian winter, rivals
the intensity of that winter in it's nip
ping and eager keenness; and yet there
are very few cpen.air spectaCles to be
seen in this working world buster and
more joyous than Broadway between A.
T. Stewards dry goods store and Ti6a.
ny's, on Union Square, at about p. m.
during very cold Christmss.tide. Alsl
you may urge that st. Petersburg must
needs be melancholy just now, under
the dire bereavement which has lallen
on its loyal population; and that all the
fashionable world being in mourning
they can not be expected to go shopping
in the Nevoskoi or the Great Morskaia;
in short, that for season, all che ,ry
life and sociality has been crushed out
of the great city. But to this would
reply that l was in st. Petersburg not
only four and twenty, but five years ago,
that it was the winter, and in the miLst
Of the fashionable season, and that I
found it externally very dull and mel.
anCholy city. 1t will not cease to remain
80, should say, at all times, 90 long as
it remains what it is-His Imperial Maj.
esty's Jail. 1t is nothing more nor lees
than huge prison, with about hun,
dred and fifty thousand jsilers in civil
and military uniform to look after the
five hundred thousand prisoners, Il
whom 1.-THE perhaps may be legally r
illegally desirous Of having q free Con
stitution established, while the remain.
ing nine-tenths do not know what free
Constitution is; are not able to enjoy it's
privileges; would not know what to do
with Constitution if they got one, be
yond setting forth much more swiftly
than their own trOikas, tarantasses or
kibitkaS ever travelled post.haste to the
devil, mundanely speaking. That was a
very striking act of horsemanship at
Astley's IN the olden time, the courier
of St. Petersburg riding six horses at
once; but it is enough to maky one shud.
der to think of Ivan IvanoVich's riding,
as he can ride at present, even one b hort
of the constitutional breed. But is {
capital of Russia to remain a Jail? If
you doubt it's being one, go there and
see things for yourself. Try how you
like having your letters opened in the
PostotfiCe, and your kilograms subjected
to the revision of the official censor. See
what effect ls produced on your tempe
by being continually subjected to sur
veillanCe and espionage, or by being
worried in your hotel bed room by the
passport clerk attached to the establish.
ment, who is continually wanting to
know how you effected an entrance into
Russia, and how many days longer you
intend to stay in that agreeable country;
whether you have ever been there be.
fore, and what reasons brought you
there the last time of your coming; and
why the Foreign Office passport you
brought with you was issued by Lord
Derby instead of Lord Granville. tested
the stupidity of gendsrme of the from
tier by showing him very old passport
signed by Lord Clarendon four d
twenty years ago, and he was perfectly
satisfied. Finally, should be anxious
to know how you would like to live in
city Into which it is prohibited to intro
duCe two of the most important daily
newspapers published in London, and
where your Punch, illustrated London
News and your Graphic-when you are
permitted to receive those journals--are
found to have passed through the Off
cial censor's dirty paws, and to have
been mutilated by him--now by the en-.
tire exCision Of q portrait or cartoon,
now by the blocking or stamping out
with some filthy black compound Of
some article or parsgra phi which has
been found obnoxious in the eyes Of cen.
serious and inqHisitOrial authority. Yep,
st. Petersburg is his Imperial Majesty's
Jail, With a vengeance, When Peter
the Great created this essentially srtifi
Cial city, and which will 90 by the board
some day, with its more rotten system
of tyranny, stupidity and corruption,
built on piles in the middle of morass
he did 30 with the avowed intention of |
having "a window looking into Europe" |
But his successors, in the insanity of |
their selfish dsspotism, took good care |
to bar the window with q triple row Of |
bars, The innocent pigeons which !
make the streets Of st. Petersburg beau
teous even at the ugliest cf times, have |
thus much in common with Stesrne's
starling-tbat they might be Continu-
ously repeating the complaint Of that
memorable feathered biped. "We can't
get outP the Metropolitan pigeons, un-
ieathered as we'll as feathered might |
doleiullS city. ~ ..' '' -.1 'l'.' '""7