The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1899-11-06

ed By the reading OF several criticisms.
In rs said that for years scarcely a
poem has called forth such storm Of
praise and censure as This great liter
any work. INSPIRED from Millet's i'm.
mortal painting. The Angelus"
| Following the discussion of the poem
a ouarter of an hour was devoted to
the mysteries Of the question box. The
next meeting OF the club will be an
omen one when Mrs. John g. Wyman
OF the Pawtucket Woman's club Will
give her lecture on
Dido and virg-l's Relation to Modern
| Thought"
A thoroughly well arranged and most
| Instructive program was presented at
| the last meeting of the Read
and Learn club held on Monday. Octo-
ber 80. The general subject was Rus
! sa." which was divided into topics as
! follows; Various races. 2-Physical
features. 3-Religion. 4-Gover.
! and rulers. b--Amusements 6-Wars.
/ st Petersburg. S-Moscow. 9-Si-
IBERIA. Bright and brief papers were
given upon each OF these secondary
subjects. the first being by Miss Flea
nor > Briggs. describing briefly the
many tribes and races that have oc-
cupled Russia and showing how from
the fusion of many races and tribes,
sprang the Russian people OF today.
The second paper. by Miss A. c..
cummings, in outlining the physical
features OF Russia described Its situl-
ton, its climate. rivers. etc, and the
interesting fact was brought out that
"A great part OF Russian territory is to-
tally unfit for cultivation, CONSISTING
of frozen wastes. sandy deserts and
dense forests. with a woodland area
occupying about five hundred million
acres.
In a third paper Miss Skff interest
ingly described THE GoNernme
Russia and Its Ruler" THE govern
ment Of Russia" she said. us an abso-
lutte hereditary monarchy. The whole
legislative. executive and judicial pow
er is united in the czar, or emperor
whose will alone is law The admin
strauon Of the empire Is entrusted
four great boards or councils but the
final decision i'm all questions rests with
the emperor. He is assisted by a cabi-
net OF ministers. each OF whom has
charge OF an executive department: by
a council Of state which examines and
passes upon projects OF law submitted
by the ministers; by a ruling senate
which watches over the general ad-
ministraton and superintends the iu-
dietary; and by holy synod, which
directs ecclesiastical offices"
MRS. Anson Rice i'm fourth paper de-
scrtbed the amusements of the Russian
people. In this connection the amuse-
ments common TO winter and summer
were mentioned. The winters of Rus
sia were referred to as "vsry long and
severe" and hunting, therefore. the
one great amusement common to all
classes OF people"
The Russian summer WAS descrihed
as a brief one hut the people make the
most OF its pleasures. "m June ard
ha= =nsV laas a Il
his light never" The paper continues
This is the time for gardens, for ex-
cursions on the Neva. for parties to the
Islands, for visits to Peterhof. The
famous meeting place is at st. Peters
burg the Point" Here society may be
seen in it's elegant equipages. drawn up
at the waters edge. Superb horses.
gaily caparisoned. bring mobiles and their
blond wives and daughters in gay ap-
parel to the Point, and officers i'm gilt
tering uniforms on horseback, gather
here. The carriages stand i'm rows along
the waters edge while the promenades
are fun OF people chatting and laugh
ing"
Mrs. Jenckes, in a fifth paper briefly
touched upon the wars of Russia telling
the story In an original and happy man
ner.
sixth paper by Mrs. Fanny Ashley
McAuslan, was more at length, and
most interestingly described the city of
st. Petersburg, the capital of the Rus
stan empire-named for that mighty
man, Peter the Geat We quote inter
esting portions of the paper as follows:
viz. "As one approaches st. Petersburg,
from a distance, the broad domes gilt
tering with silver stars, and tall pyra-
mids of gold, make the stranger feel
-
er than a European city. A closer view
is disappointing and YOU wonder here
st. Petersburg can have hid itself be-
hind these mud islands; these rude
struggling wood yards and these red
barIack looking structures that lie so
desolate on the flats. The ci.y would
look better III there were some heights
i'm or near IL; there is not one as high
as a candlestick i'm the whole region.
est Petersburg is laid on vast
plain-so vast that the rapidly increas-
ing population is yet wholly insufficient
TO fiji 1t and give the city the air OF
the capital of a great empire"
THE streets Of st. Petersburg are
surprise 90 the stranger because OF
their rrr1rtfnessy tfU- ftuTfs WIT UprU
squares in which at times he beholds
but q single droshki. He sees spacious
streets bOrdered by rows of palaces
with only here and there human fig
ure towering about Nike a freebooter
among waste OF rocks. The popull
tion of 81. Petersburg is the most va
rded and motley that one can imagine
The garrison seldom amounts TO less
than 5000 men and constitutes one tenth
OF the population. We find every nation
OF Europe and almost every nation OF
Asia repres nted In the streets OF st. !
Petersburg"
From this point the paper describes I
more In detail the chief charac teriSdcs /
OF st. Petersburg
Mrs. Moore followed with paper on !
the city OF Moscow. She called atten-
tion 10 the beauty of this city. with its
countless towers an7 domes OF gold. as
Seems under beautiful sunset An in
teresting description OF the Nremrn ar
fortified HIM Gin which are situated AM
the important buildings " Moscow was
given, and the fact was mentioned that
the number OF churches or buildings
designed for divine services was almost
countless.
The final paper Of the afternoon was |
| hy MISS Bertha Smth and described |
The Exile system anl Penal Scrvitude !
in East Siberia"