The Indianapolis journal., 1897-09-26
PICTURESQUE MOSCOW.
A Point of View from Which to study
and Admire Russian History.
Letter in New York Tribune.


cow-the Temple OF the Savior, built in
commemoration Of the deliverance from the
French invasion. 1t is hardly surpassed by
st. Isaac's in st. Petersburg in dignity and
simplicity of design. The colossal golden
dome is majestic in proportions, and the
materials without and within are rich and
costly. The walls are of white marble, and
each of the four belfries has a giIded cupo-
la; and there are noble porticos with eX
quisite sculpture. The interior is enriched
with frescos Illustrating Russian historical
scenes and Joshua's entrance into the Holy
Land Barak and Deborah, Davids combat
with Goliath and Solomon's coronation; and
the syenite marbles are richly decorated
with gold. In this church there the
same splendors of ritual as in ST. Isaac's,
and there are annual services of thanksgiv-
ing for the retreat of the French troops
from Moscow. Possibly these services will
be modified, since France is now a COM
panion-in-arms and a faithful ally of Rus
sia, but they have been since NaDoleon's
retreat a conspicuous feature of the re-
Iigious year in Moscow.
There is also the famous group of cathed-
rails in the center of the Kremlin, one of
which I have already described as the mau
soeum of the early Cars. The little An
domes, stands close to the palace and is re-
markable chiefly for its agate and jasper
pavement and its gilded decorations. 1t is
the church where the Cars are baptized
and buried. Back of it is the Coronation
Church of the Assumption which is also
small and crowned with five domes. The in
terror is as brilliant as profuse gliding can
render it, the walls are covered with fres-
cos; upon the screen are three of the most
sacred icons of the Russian Church, one of
them being attributed to St Luke and all
being heavily encrusted with magnificent
diamonds and emeralds; behind the altar is
a Mount Sinai Of solid gold; and in the
chapeIS are many sacred relics and tombS
of bishops and saints. Resplendent is the
church, with its golden decorations it is
small, unimpresSiVe and unworthy of its
fame as the scene of every coronation since
the time of Ivan the Terrible Outside the
kremlIn there are hundreds of fantastically
designed and strangely painted churches,
but most of them have a coarse and tawdry
aspect.
The visitor who has travelled thousands of
miles to see picturesque Moscow cannot be
put off with gimpses of antique dwellings
like the Romanotf mouse, nor with distant
views Of the city from so remote a point
the Sparrow Hills nor with aimless wan
derngs in the noisy quarters of kltai Gorod
and Beloi Gorod, with cobblestOne
excursions to the suburbs like the Petrofsh
Park with its tragic memories Of panic
Kremlin, and invariably finds it disappoint-
ing in detail. 1t is an Acropolis without
Parthenon-a great dusty area filled in the
main with unlmpresSive structures and
miniature churches, and without those
startling contrasts of form and combna-
tions of color which one expects to see. The
high walls are there, with their five gate
ways, but as the circuit is nearly two miles,
perspective is lacking and the Kremlin has
to be taken little by little. The treasury,
commandments offices, artillery house and
arsenal fill up one side, and are ordinary
barracks The Senate and the two monas-
terieS from an incCngruous group on an
other side. The palace, the three toy
cathedrals, the synod house and Ivans
Tower are in the center, with tiny chapel
among the trees close to the river. The last
is the main group of the Kremlin, and with
the exception of the somber palace every
structure is small and ineffective when seen
close at hand.
There is indeed, glorious view from the
stone bridge over the river, which does
much to redeem the reputation of the
Kremlin for picturesque beauty. With the
true perspective obtained, the unimport-
ant structures are hidden in the back
ground. The massive palace, the bulk of
which is modern and commonplace, be-
comes foil for the tumble OF Tartar domeS
and towers in the center, and Ivan's fam
Gus belfry looms UP with a dignity and
beauty which are lacking when one is
standing beside the broken bell. With blue
sky above and the high wall and fringe of
turf and trees below as a setting for the
picture, the golden dOmeS flash and sparkle
and the fantastic contrasts of red, yellow,
like harmonious color scheme The Krem-
lin with its minaretS and domeS, has a
radiant beauty OF coloring, when seen from
the bridge below even under the tull blaze
of the MONDAY sun; and with lengthening
shadows by moonlight there is enchant-
ment like that produced by distance. for the
miniature churches expand into dignity of
proportions, the strong colorS fade, and the
old fortress is like floating mirage of a
city with golden towers. This is the Su-
preme moment of the pilgrimage in quest of
the picturesque. With this beauteous vision
before the eyes. all that is repulsive in the
historical associations and religious prac-
tces of Moscow is momentarily forgotten,
and the Kremn becomes radiant memory
and a JOY forever.
There are certain associations which are
unique in interest, even in Moscow. One is
reminded of them at the treasury, in the
midst of the SplendorS of coronation robes
and coaches and the regalia and relies of
Russian sovereignty, for at the end of one
of the halls there is a statue of Napoleon.
1t is a poor bit of sculpture, but it fasci-
mates the visitor and diverts his attention
from the remainder of the stock in this old
curiosity shop. So also in the palace when
the visitor has seen the Alexander St.
George and st. Andrew halls and the inn
perial apartments, and has passed from the
modern structure into what remains of that
scene of tragedies the ancient Granite Pal
ace, and the Terem, he loiterS in the Golden
Room of Jonah and the Vladimir Hall, and,
halting on the Red Staircase, thinks of Ma
poleon. What matter it whether Ivan the
Terrible was frightened by a comet after
his reign of insane frenzy, or whether
usurping boyars murdered their wives and
children in the Tartar harem? The one fig
ure with which the Imagination conjures is
the Man of Destiny, whose sun set here
over the kremln after he had seen from
the Sparrow Hills Moscow with its thou
sand towers.
The guide. perceivino that tales of Ivan
are falling upon liStless ears. points out
bedstead above the Red Staircase, and as
serts that Napoleon slept upon it. Probably
this is a cheap invention. for the main por-
zion of the palace occupied by Napoleon
vas burned by the French, and has been
replaced by the modern structure. But,
whether the bed was or was not his. he
must have wearily paced these ancient
rooms with perturbed mind, seeking diver
sion from anxiety and disappointment.
From these narrow windows he may have
watched the spread of the flames which
doomed Moscow to destruction and brought
on the catastrophe of his own fate.
Here at last is the point of view from
which to admire Russian history. Napo-
Icons triumphant entry was the signal for
q most magnificent act of patriotic self
sacrifice. The Russians. loving Moscow as
they cherished and reverenced their most
sacred icons, surrendered ii. with all its
wealth and associations to the flames in
order to repel the foreign invader and TO
compel a disastrous defeat. No other nation
has ever performed a greater act of self
denial 1t is the only noble passage in Rus
atrocities and boodstains in the chronicles
of crime of the khans and boyars. II has
saving grace, like the glorious view from
the stone bridge, without which the Krem-
lin would not be the Kremln.
--N-0-p
She WOuIdn't Go.
ro cl,f