The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1892-01-28
The Neva Blessed Again.

The solemn state and religious festival
patch from ST. Petersburg says, took
place yesterday with the usual pomp
and ceremonials. The Czarina, who has
fully recovered from her recent attack
OF influenza, attended with her husband
the Gar. All over Russia the ancient
custom was observed. And it is very
ancient one, dating back to Prince Ma
dimir and his shaggy spearman of Kieff,
who, 800 years ago, dipped themselves
in the Dniepper at the call of Father
| Sylvester, and swore to be true to Christ
and His law. The ceremony is styled
the 'Kreshtchenie Vod,'' or christening
of the waters, and takes place in Russia's
9th of January, the Greek calendar being
twelve days behind the Catholic. For
one day the peasants strive to forget
misery and hunger, and crowd to witness
the great ceremonial.
The cermony as witnessed at st. Pc
tersburg assumes the proportions of
national pageant and has been thus de-
scribed: 'Close to the chief entrance of
the Winter Palace small platform is
run out from the granite quay of the
Neva, supporting tiny pavilion with
blue dome-shaped roof, whence plank
stair leads down to the frozen river. A
narrow passage is kept open between
this pavilion and the palace gate by two
gray walls topped wit steel, formed by
the soldiers of the Imperial Guard in
their long frieze overcoats. All around
it the forest of yellowish brown turrets
and pinnacles surmounting the Winter
Palace and the golden lance of the Adj
miralty Tower beyond the boulevard
and the granite Tower of Alexander in
the great square between them look
down upon sea of closely packed heads
and shoulders. The great pontoon
bridge leading to the island of Vasili
Ostroff is crowded to the very balus-
trades, and the gaunt whiteness of the
silent Neva itself is blackening with
creeping swarms of spectators.
LAS the sharp bang of the midday gun
peals on the frosty air the great mass
trembles with culver and hum of ex-
pectation. Then the palace gate is seen
to swing slowly back, and forth steps a
single figure. 1t may be the Gar HIM
self. But the mighty shout that rolls
along the frozen Neva and echoes back
from the walls of the Petropaulovsk
citadel like a peal of distant thunder
shows that the spell of imperialism has
not yet lost its power in Russia. Then
the high priest descends the stair to an
opening previously cut in the ice, and,
dipping the cross in the dark waters be-
meath, pronounces the words of conse-
Grafton. And as they are spoken the
pale CLEAN of sunlight, that is if the sun
does shine, falling through the cold gray
skv upon the gorgeous robes and flowing
hair of the solitary figure that utters
them, seems like the fading glory of
Russia's past throwing it's last rays
into the deepening darkness of her
present"
According to ancient custom the Gar
drinks some of the river water out of a
goblet furnished for the occasion by the
city In return the Gar was supposed
to return the goblet to the chief magis>
trate of st. Petersburg filled to the brim
with gold pieces. But the custom had
it's Inconvenience. That drink used to
cost more to the Emperor than Cleopa>
tra's celebrated toast to Marc Antony.
Each year the goblet grew till it attained
huge proportions. 1t became every year
more and more a burden on the Little
Father to fill the goblet with money, and
at last it was decided that the Gear
should pay specific sum instead as a
yearly present to the chief magistrate.