Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-10-04
THE WINTER PALACE.
Magnificence of the Home of the Gar
of All fhq RuSSiaS


A letter to the San Francisco Chronicle
from st. Petersburg says: "Scarce as
money is and poor as are the mass of the
people, there is enough to keep up GER
tain style, especially in the royal palaces
and public buildings. Thanks to the
courtesy of G.. NJ. Hutton, the United
States Nice-COnsul General, who was in
charge of the consulate, we obtained per-
mission to 20 over the Winter palace, a
favor not always granted to strangers.
1t is huge builSiug of brown stone and
covers large area. each of the sides lit
is nearly square, measuring some $50
feet: but it is not more than 90 feet high,
and the heavy cOrnice that forms an
almost unbrOken line round the top
still further detracts from the
height. Placed on this cOrnice
is a large number Of statues,
which it requires no great stretch of i'm
aginatiOn to conceive to be persons en-
deavOring to escape from destruction by
way of the roof, so jumbled up are they
with the chimneyS. The general effect of
the building, which only dates from 1899,
would be poor were it not for its size,
which, to some extent, makes up for want
Of architectural grandeur. The interior
is also devoid of any special architectural
features, and there is no grand staircase.
1t is simply a huge square box divided up
into rooms, but some of these are truly
magnificent, and when filled with the
flower of Russian society, as they are at
state receptions during the winter season,
must look grand indeed. Peters throne
room, with silver chandeliers, red
tinted walls, and highly decorated dome;
Union hall with gilded columns; the
thrOne-rOOm. with its massive iron pillars
and gold chandeliers and trophies of gold
and silver plate against the walls and
stands slOping up to the very ceilings are
all imperial apartments in every sense.
The succession of reception rooms and
corridors is also most imposing, although
the paintings of battle scenes, where car
mage and rapine are depicted in all their
horrors, with a mOnOtOny that becomes
almost nauSeating, seem to be hardly
adapted for the exclusive adOrnment Of
rooms intended for gay assemblages, and
they must form CHASTITY contrast to the
bright toilets and glittering jewels, and
fair wOmanly forms.
The visitor is escorted through hall
after hall decorated with almost barbaric
magnificence, and at each one is taken
under the charge of fresh attendant. at
tired in gorgeous imperial livery. The
palace, which at present is quite unOccu-
pied-as the Emperor resides at another
palace some distance up the Newski pros
pect-fairly swarms with servants, who
are well dressed and courteous and eX-
tremely idle, having apparently nothing
on earth to do except to stand or walk
about in the empty apartments, which
are seldom trOdden by any other feet.
Here and there is to be seen a superior
officer in full uniform, evidently in charge
of some part of the building, and at one
point we suddenly came upon two COssack
sentinels. armed to the teeth and standing
mOtionless on each side of a doorway.
This was the entrance to the room con-
1
ant inserted a key, two heavy iron doors
swung open, and we were ushered in.
The room was almost bare, with the eX-
ceptiOn Of some glass-tOpped cases, such
as are used at museums for manuscripts
/ and objects of interest, which stood near
the walls, and two central stands, but
when the cloths which covered them were
removed the sight was dazzling. In the
side cases was Il collection of tiaras and
aigrettes and pendants in brilliants and
rubies and pearls. The central stands
bore the crown regalia. The EmperOr's
crown, a huge mass of diamonds of the
purest water, surmOunted by an eX-
traOrdinary uncut ruby; the Empress
crown, somewhat smaller, If possible,
more brilliant, and the scepter, bear
ing on its top the celebrated Lazar-
6Of diamond, of which the story is
told that it was stolen from an
Indian temple, and carried off concealed
in a cut in the leg of its purloiner. Com
paired with these MuscOvite gems all
others that have ever locked on are dull
and small. ore thing in the picture gal
/ lery of the palace was remarkable, and
that is the absence of peculiarly Russian
worthless whose portraits covered the
wall. There were faces of strictly Eng
1 lish type, Swedish faces in small number,
and German faces in any quantity, but
Russian faces none, and no one could
/ guess that he was surrounded by the like
nesses of the men by whom the great
Northern power has been built up. 1t is
very much the same to-day. The leading
men here are quite different in appear
ance from the mass of the people, so diff
/ ferent that they might well belong to an
other race. They have, many of them, fine
features and noble forms.