The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1901-10-12
RAILROAD TRAVEL IN RUSSIA.

This train in which an travelling
would compare wei with trains in En-
gland and America.
There are two engines. black and
greasy. and they have huge funnel
shaped chimleys. They consume an enor-
nous quantity OF Wood. BIs there is ne
scarcity 81 il. for al every station there
are stacks OF II sawed into convenient
chunks
At one end Of the train is the post
wagon, with two brass horns ornament
ing rs outer panels and green painted
letter-bOx. bearing a picture OF a sealed
letter hanging outside II the other END
IS what apprcximates 10 our guards van.
where the conductor stout. mayoral
gentleman III black military kind OF frock
coat with white and purple tassle on
the snouider-occupies much of his time
drinking tea, though twice a day he
makes promenade of the entire train
with Q couple Of super nureraries. thin
ner men, TO open and shut the doors
for him.
All the other cars are for passengers
There is one car painted blue for first
class passengers two painted yellow for
seconc-class passengers. and seven paint
ed green for third-class passengers. The
ears are al built on the corridor plan.
and as the gauge of the line is wide, they
are Toory.
The ''swagger' people like generals
and their wives, Siberian nIiliionaires
wealthy merchants. and English journal
lists. travel frst class; second class is IA
fored by lesser military officers wives
and daughters going out OF Siberia 10
join the head OF the family. who has his
eye on becoming a millionaire. and also
by men whom 1 take 10 be German com
mercial travellers.
But the majority are third-cias a hig-
ing artisans and their wives. and hOrdes
OF children wandering east 10 settle. and
a fair sprinSiing of haruE-scarum young
fellows, always smoking cigarettes and
diving into every buffet and shouting for
pevO (beer), and having mock attempts
10 pitch one another out Of the window.
The mass, however, OF my felloW-travei-
ers. are moujiSs. shaggy men With big
sheepskin hats that give them a fero-
cious air wearing rough-spuH cloaks, and
often with sacking tied around their feet
instead of boots. The women are fat and
plain and bare-footed, though the colors
Of their dresses are sometimes startling
in brilliancy; gaudy orange is popular.
They. too. have hOrdes Of youngsters, lit
tie bundles of unwashed rags. bat plump
and happy most of them.
The hrst-class car is divided into COM
partments, where, II you are alone, you
maintain privacy by turning the key
There are plush seats on either side. but
as this is summertime, they are covered
with red-striped cotton. At night the car
attendant comes in. touches a lever, ard
the back OF the seat swings UP and makes
an upper berth. And the bottom seat
turns on A pivot, comes bottom upward.
and pull at a cord reveals a soft mat
tress and pillow. The ideal way is TO
have a compartment TO yourself, and
you get this in exactly the same way as
8
English train. Railway attendants having
the same weakness all over the world, 1
have Travelled the ideal way.
The lighting OF the car in the evening
is bad. a single candle is stuck il a case
over the door, and this has not only 10
illuminate your compartment but con-
tribute 10 lighting part OF the corridor
on the other side. 1t is impossible TO
read. The lavatory accommodation is
limited, and as il is for the joint use Of
both sexes. it is a cause Of frequent en-
barrassments Additions have 70 be per
formed singly. For two hours each morn !
ing there is q little crowd Of unwashed. I
uncombed. and semi-dressed men and wo-
men standing about the corridor. all I
smoking cigarettes, women as well as
men, and each cycling their ncighbor with I
side glances Of distrust. lest there will be 4
some underhand move to get possession /
of the lavatory first.
Among the provoking things of life is 4
the way Russian hotels and lavatories .
on Russian trains supply you with water .
to cleanse yourself. There is no tap 10 I
turn on the water, but there IS a button,
which, on pressing with your hand re- \
leases a trickle- The moment you cease 4
pressing the button the supply is cut OF. 4
When you are actually pressing the water
trails along your elbow and sOaks your /
shirt sleeves. or dOuses your clothes and .
boots. The only refuge is selfishness. So 4
plug the basin outlet with a cork and
hold the button up with lead pencil till /
the basin is full. Then I wash. Thus the
water supply soon gives out. and I pick
up several expletives IN Russian from
my fellows.
The second-class cars seem almost as
good as the first. Ladies or husbands and
wives Of travellers who understand the
weak side Of railway attendants can. II
there is not too much traffic, get q com
1artment. Otherwise the seats and beds
are arranged without any cubicle divis-
ION. On hot nights-and though Russia
in winter can be colder than the North
Pole, II can IN summer be more torTid
han the equator-it is better 10 travel
second-class than first.
All the third-class cars are grimy; there
are sections reserved for women and
children The woodwork is painted drab
on. 1 spent hours among these emf
grants. find them interesting. They
are horribly dirty, and as they like 70
nave the windows closed, despite the tenn
)erature. the cars reek with Odor They
AIRY all their worldly possessions with
hem. some foul sleeping-rugs and some
bundles of more foul clothing. These are
spread out on the hard seats 20 make
hem q little less hard Bread, tea and
Melons seem their chief fare There are
yreat chunks Of sour black bread. and az
very halt kettles are seized, and a
scramble made to the platform, whore
he local peasant women have steaming
"a movars. and sell kettle OF boiling wa
er for q halfpenny and a watermelon
IS big as your head for a penny.
Besides bread-eating, and scattering
lalf If Il on the noor. and munching
Melons. and making d mess Tith the
ind. and splashiuE the water about when
ea-making. there is the constant srlok-
ng of cigarettes. A peasant may not BE
BILE 10 afford hunk az bread. but be has
supply Of cigarettes. They are tiuy. I
usatisfyiug things half cardboard tube.
rovide three modest puts. and are then
o be thrown away You could smoke a
hundred a day and reserve no lecture on
eng sl-Te 70 tohacco.-R Russian Cores
ondenoe London Daily News
The Real Virgin Of the Rocks.
The Authenticity " one cf the most
ighly priced pictures in the national gall
sry is being seriously questioned ir Paris
lst now The picture in question 81
leonardo d. Fincls Virgin ~ the
locks" There ROW exists tao pictures,
a ~ 81. =