The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-12-28
LIFE IN THE CARS CAPITAL.
Bonfires in the Streets at Night to Keep
Wayfarers from Freezing.
st. Petersburg Letter.

st. Petersburg Letter.
1t is very cold here. Frost is reigning here
supreme. The other day saw Alexander Alex
androvitch driving in a sleigh, and his Majesty's
nose was red as that of any of his lowest sub
jects. Last night, having put on heavy fur
wrappines, l started out to see the sights. 1t
was little like the night of election day in New
York Big piles Of wood were brightly burning
in every street. Boisterous Young America,
however, absent, and l did not notice any
trace of Young Russia either The fires were
built not for the boys amusement, but for the
protection Of those whose duty keeps them out
doors through the night. Recently some
dvorniks Janitors) and drivers have been frozen
to death and So to frighten King Frost Gen.
dresser, the City Chief has permitted fires to be
kept through the night in some streets. l ap-
preached group. Two dvorniks half a dozen
Of the Ivan drivers and policeman were warm
ing themselves and clapping their hands.
Say. boys" remarked an Ivan. mo wonder
our ancestors worshipped fire. If our Andrukha
could have warmed himself as we do he would
still be alive. But he was frozen to death, poor
fellow
There are in this capital 40 900 drivers and as
many dvornlks; thousands Of policemen, detect
ives gendarmes. and Cossacks patrol the town
day and night, and all of them now bless the
City Chief for his innovation
The people in high life hero now have merry
time. Fast sleighing to-day. skating tomorrow,
and dancing every night They are dancing to
Bulgarians and Servians They have raised
s. 0c0 already, which will be equally divided be-
tween the fighting Slav nations, Metropolitan
Kliment will look after the proper disbursement
of the fund on the Bulgarian side, and the Serb
patriot Ivan Ristich on the Servian.
The st. Petersburg people try to get joke
out of nearly everything. When the Female
University was opened here they INDUCED in a
pun. Now the blue stocking shall be in rage"
A school for female assistant surgeons has been
opened here, and the testers say, Our women
were sharp enough before. and now they will cut
us in a scientific manner" A school for female
druggists is to be opened here next year and
the men exclaim. ''Woe to husbands of the fe-
male druggists" A Finn undertook to preach
and practise Mormonism not far away from this
city, and the court fined him 595 marks and
sent him to prison for month. 1--WE are not
Americanzed enough to practice Mormonism
openly" remark the Russians.
Gloomy Siberia has furnished joke OF her
own that has made all the Russas laugh. Ivan
Cork. of the Tomsk province. died while ago.
The citizens raised 200 roubles to procure a
painting of the dead mayor. They sent the
money to Mr. Skott the well-known painter, of
Moscow, asking him to make portrait of tho
mayor. They did not inclose any photograph,
but gave this description:
Age, fifty two years and six months; stature,
five feet six inches hair and eyebrows. auburn;
eyes, gray; nose, mouth. and chin, ordinary;
face, clean. He had no special traits except
stammering.
The artist laughed, and gave the curious order
to one of his young pupils, Astrakhoff, who in
a few days painted the portrait of the stammer
ing mayor and sent it to Siberia. In few
weeks Skotti received letter from the Cor
kians, saying: The relatives of the late Mr. Pc
troff and the rest Of the citizens believe that no
better likeness could have been made"