The herald., 1895-05-05
THE COUNTRY FAIR
Charles Won Falck

If il a fish story. But | will tell you
real adventure | had i'll Hamburg on my
last trip through Germany.
'.You all know that the old women who
sell fish in that city have the worldwlde
reputation of being blessed with Won
derful amount Of temper and volubility,
and when once excited will display
knowledge of invectives that is most as
ton,shing. Pure curiosity brought me
one morning down to the fish row, and as
| wanted TO hear one of those celebrities
in the full glory of her language, design
edly stumbled over d basket belonging
to one of the matrons, upsetting 1T and
completely scattering the fish in every
direction. At once shower of all the
possible and impossible attributes, names
and comparisons fell upon me, and L
stood waiting for the finale, as an idea
popped into my head that | made use OF
at once. The old woman had stopped
for an instant in the torrent of her abuse,
bet: Az, Bulky, Vedy. Glogel, Dopro,
etc. With her mouth wide open shc
looked at me, and before was nan
through she called; For COO $ sake;
stop! put them down! put them down! l
thought | knew them all. but those
never heard before; they are Just lovely.
Put them down.
The story was answered by the gene.
raj laughter of all present. IL company Oh
Young and old men. sitting IN the gen
tleman room of the tavern III beresowka.
who had come to attend the annual fair
and were either members OF the noblllty.
owning the neighboring estates, or their
representatives.
The annual fair of Russian village is
an event of the greatest Importance to all
classes living in the vicinity. The owner
of the large estate sells all his old stock
and buys younger animals. Ihe peasant
here disposes OF horses and cattle of his
own raising. The wife of the laborer
brings her geese, ducks or chickens to the
fair and finds a ready market. The city
merchant offers his out-of-date goods at
low prices and finds among the laboring
classes and the peasantry willing buyers.
The country fair is a necessity in Rus
sia,, as much so as are stock yards in an
American community
Beresowka had changed its appearance;
the generally quiet, unassuming little vii
lage had become the scene OF busy life.
On one side of the thoroughfare was
erected long row of roughly constructed
Sheds in which the city merchants had a
large display of cotton and woolen goods.
Before each was posted a young man
as caller.
This youth. displaying wonderful f1ow
of language, is dressed in high boots, the
pantaloons tucked into the legs and hang
ing over them, similar to new fashion,
able leg OF mutton SleeNc tuIHou up
side down in q red silk shirt. falling over
the top of the trousers and held around the
waist by green or blue silk rope with
large tassels; a kaftan or coat, with
tght-ftting waist, ornamented on both
sdes with small bright buttons and the
lower part that nearly reaches to the an
kles, attached to it in the manner of a
woman's skirt, but open i'll the front; a
black cap and the hair hanging down
nearly to tie neck and cut off in a fault
less straight line.
You can buy here everything your
heart Wishes he screeches; I'VE have
calico and silks; Turkish tobacco and
picked cucumbers: gowns, boots. crack
nels and fur coats; harness. tea, pipes.
candies and handkerchiefs: come IN it
costs you nothing to look at our goods
YOU get rich by buying from us; do not
90 to the fellow next door, his shelves are
but filled in the front; and his goods are
stale, V .e ours are breaking down un-
der the weight that Is piled upon them
and the goods as fresh as they can be.
Here beauty, addressing young lass
passing by you must have pair OF
earrings. come in, we have dandies.-
Say old man, your pipe is falling to
pieces, come in, we will sell you one tor 81
kopecks that will last long enough for
your grandson to smoke. All Z. Barishna!
he turns using the title of an unmarried
lady, to a chambermaid, dressed in the
general European style, 81 can sell you
the finest gloves for a mere song, and a
pair of shoes that will make your little
feet appear still smaller; just come in
anu bless our goods with look from your
beautiful eyes" And SO he keeps on
from the early morning until late at
night, the incarnation of a 'perpetuum
mobile.
Joining the low of sheds are tents where
old women sell ''blny,' buckwheat pal-
cakes, fried in the oil of suntiower seed
some cripples offer "utky' whistles in
the shape of ducks, the tail forming the
mouthpiece. and by closing with the
first finger either of the two holes on the
sides. where the imagination may pic
ture the beginning OF the wings, differ,
ent sounds are produced only appreciated
by Russian child. Then follow the
dealers in woodenware, having always a
great demand for their goods, as the peas
ant, with the excepting for tea, uses nc
chinaware at all, fferlng large stacks of
big and little dishes holding from tel
quarts to IA quarter of a pint, nearly all
of the same shap similar to the Ameri-
can soup bowl. turned from willow wood,
painted brown, decorated in a Turkish
pattern of bright colors and covered with
a varnish that is even able to withstand
the attack of heat from the fluid victuals
served in it. Big piles of wooden spoons
attract the attention of the passer-by.
They are all of one size, the shape of q
hollow ball cut in two. with short rodnd
handle ending IN llttle KNOB, painted
and decorated in the same style as the
dishes.
Scattered among all these sheds. tents
and open places are a great many stands
for sweetmeats, laden with candy made
of -four, water and little sugar, orna-
mented with small pictures in glaring
coors stick candy broken into equal
parts and wrapped in colored and frnged
paper. containing each a motto OF ques-
tionable value; dried carob beans; nuts,
and the inevitable suntlower seed. which
children women and men consume by
the quart, sitting for hours, breaking
the seed with their front teeth, extract
ing by an ingenious twist of the tongue
the Kernel, and blowing the hulls out
with celerity that might awaken envy
in squirrel. Near these stands is gem
orally a beggar, exposing some horrible
deformty of his limbs, singing monot-
onous tune. Often they are but children
used by gypsies to impose upon the kindly
feelings OF the public; stolen offspring Of
some poor peasant woman, manned be-
yond recognition and condemned to live
this horrible life for the purpose only OF
filing the pockets of these lazy and
worthless wild beasts of humanity.
On the other side of the thoroughfare
is first a long row of wagons laden with
apples, poultry, here and there a couple
of sheep a calf or a pig, roll of home
spun cloth or linen. tubs of melted butter
for the kitchen use during winter time