Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1891-03-21
RAILWAY TRAVELLING IN RUSSIA.

The railway stations In these great
cities are upon the outskirts, far away
from the central hotels, aud " u al
ways long drive to them. The rail-.
ways arr Of broad gague, with INST,
second aud third.cla-- carriages with
sleepIpg ears Of the "NIann boulder"
style and great Woodworking locomo'
tivcs. The wood burned In these loco.
motives IL light pine and birch, and
the cinders arr very dangerous to the
trains. We stopped once 10 put out a
flre caused by hug. bit " Eve .osi
from tns smoke-siack Of the engine,
aud the luggage Of some Of our trnvcl'
Ing coniIanions was badly burned by
n Dir. which consumed the whole lug.
gag. van and delayed tho train be.
tween Moscow and Warsaw.
The officials ARE attentive aud oblig-
Ing, hut the spirit Of enterprise and
progress IL absent from the direction.
A single officer Of the government or
a railway manager often travels In n
ppecially reserved carriage, while the
other passengers are uncOmfOrtnbly
crowded, aud the suggestion Of adding
another car 10 the tniin II treated M
an at-utdity. This Russian carries his
long railway journey, anu M we enter
the station AT ~. Petersburg u looked
like the wharf VI mn emignnt steamer
on tho day Of sailing. Pillows aud
blankets and feather beds and fur
coats aud rugs lay In great heaps on
the tables aud chairs, aud when the
doors were opened TO the train II
seemed like moving day on the lint OF
May In old times In New York. The
train moved slowly through tho sub
urt~, aud gradually the city sunk out
Of sight oven a. II does when sailing
away from the land. At last the
dones Of the Nevski monastery and
the golden points OF the Admiralty
aud the fortress were all that remain.
ell. These two disappeared and we
were out upon the steppe.
The train move steadily on at the
rate Of about % miles an hour through
the solemn foliage Of the fir trees aud
the rhimmerlng leaves and white
bodies Of the birch trees. Now and
then a cleared space showed the huts
and hamlets OF the peasants, rude
dwellings Of logs with roof Of boards
OF thatch and with q single window.
They are the poorest kind OF sheds,
anu have no evidence Of care and cul.
tivAtlOn about them. within there IN
only picture Of st. Nicholas with a
little lamp buming before IL, and n
few coarse aud clumsy articles ofnurni.
ture. These miserable huts contrast sad
ly with the decent wooden railway sta.
tons, each with lts brilliant little gar
den OF flowers. Al every mile or two
along the railway there stands man
or woman with green or yellow staff,
which IN presented IA the train passes,
aud Mt the stations the porters present
arms or assume military position Ms
the train enters or leaves. There are
numerous stations with excellent buff.
cts, often elabomiely constructed with
disht- Of caviare, raw behring's, sar-
dimes, sailed cucumbefs aud cold
viands m n foundation, and bottles OF
wine labeled TO suit the taste OF the
traveller, but all tasting much alike;
while Ia the middle, like monument
or dome, rises the samOyar OF shining
bras, beneath which u lamp burns
aud beeps the water hot for the tea
which Russians crave even more than
vJiki, In on corner Of every railway
Restaurant II the gilded icunasiOs with
the picture u u saint or OF the virgin
siaring out into the blue tobacco smoke
which flil- the room, Before II hangs
burning lamp, and sometimes there
II aoanll'.stani aud lighted tapers In
front. Every Russian lak,s Oh hls
hat 10 the icon hen he com,s In, aud
often when he goes out. The same Il
true In shops aud houses everywhere,
anu you eau offer no greater disrtspecl
W the owner OF either, than TO omit