The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-11-27
COUNTRY LIFE IN RUSSIA
 AS IS SEEN BY TOURISTS

 our breakfast in our rooms. substantial meal such as a traveller would need after a long drive at F we were ready for the enee; but at 12 we were ready for the family breakfast It was such one as you would get in rrance-of many courses with numerous sgseet dishes, and served with ceremony. a servant for each per son at table.
 The library was the rendezvous for the afternoon, and there we lonnged or read in the midst of books in many languages Russian Italian, French, English, Ger man-wonderful old manuscripts on the shelves and bronze figures Of Catherine and her friend, the general, of Russian warriors, poets. musicians looking boldly down upon us.
 We had tea in the library at 5-Eng- fish afternoon tea. with the difference of a samovar instead of the steaming kettle. lemon for the tea, and sweets again. candied peaches and pears, strawberries. every fruit almost preserves so rich and withal so pretty that they seemed too good to eat.
 To the left of the library lay the pie ture gallery, where Catherine figured again resplendent in her imperial robes. and generations of family portraits hung quite as in an English ancestral hall. Glass doors opened out from the library upon a portioo supported by marble col- umns; the steps took one down to the ter- race, and beyond there was a tiny path along the river and a romantic little moving bridge pulled across by a rope French 'bac." in fact.
 It was a quiet unconventional visit we were making, and each person fol- lowed his own sweet will We never saw our hostess before F, but we knew she got up early, attended to her house. hold duties. and had an hour or two in her studio in the morning, being devoted to art.
 In the afternoon we would drive through the forest-somewhat mysterious and gloomy it was, and we were glad not to be alone, although the horses were as swift as Arabs. Or we would go row ing on the river and then gather mush- rooms in the woods, favorite pastime in the Russian country, coming home laden with big baskets overf1owing.
 Strange faces often appeared at the table, Russian guests who came unin- vited but were nevertheless welcome, rel atives or friends of the master or mis- tress, but sometimes merely acuuaint- ances passing that way and unable to obtain lodging elsewhere. It seemed like a glimpse of the middle ages, when the modern hotel was undreamed of even f1,a faring man was refreshed at cottage or castle, as he willed.
 The dinner hour was at and the din- ner was cosmopolitan meal with few Russian dishes. But at 10 o'clock there was tea again, typically Russian meal with cold meat, cheese, tea, of course, and sweets in abundance
 Russians are especially fond of cards, and in many fashionable houses in town and country there Is reckless playing. with high stakes, and such promiscuous borrowing that foreigners may regret having accepted the hospitality
 But this was not a fashionable home and we played cards quietly in the even- ing or sat out on the terrace, when the peasants in picturesque garb came tim idly up to the master and asked for cer- tain favors or advice. But we always contrived to lead our Russian friends to talk about their country and of Rus sian people.
 In the daytime you might imagine for a while that you were in Italy, in France, even in England. The home life was that of people who have visited many lands. become acquainted with various national customs, able to give to any traveller a touch of his native life-a breath from his native land, as 1t were. Out of doors one saw always the Russian peasant dress, and Russia was everywhere. p-e-%-~ %-~~-<-~-~ee-~S-<4-~-<-s- power of describing the beauty of out of doors. All this is, of course, waste mate rial so far as the stage is concerned
 The story as a story has some dramatic possibilities, but they are not many. It Is an astute remark of the Frenchman that the one essential to a drama is a struggle of vitally opposed forces which clash in the crisis, the stronger conquer ing. In Audrey there is no struggle; Marmaduke drifts from chapter to chap ter weakly vacillating between two wo- men who both confess that they love him; there is no real clash, and he ends by choosing the one who on any but very sentimental and romantic judgment is the less worthy of him.
 There still remained, however, several dramatic incidents. Audrey's unwilling entrance at the ball, her humiliation there and her public disgrace the next day at Bruton church. If these had been ham died with any sincere feeling for dramatic effect they might have saved the evening. But in this as in so many other novel; dramas, there had been no care taken to build up in the audience sympathetic in- terest in the people on the stage. no pains In constructing the climaxes so as to pro- duoe the wireless thrill of dramatic feel ing. The real protagonist of the perform ance was tho paste pot and the shears. 5cene after scene. and these the most im- portant of all, were walked through with only the bare speeches from the pages of tho book to tell what was happening In the case of a novel of literary atmosphere this is to present Hamlet without the prince.
 Mss Eleanor Robson's personality was as pleasing as ever, her voice as rich and vibrant, her profile as strikingly pure, But whether tumbllng awkwardly a la Mime. Sans Gene in unnccustomed dnery, or dancing e Virginia country dance in