The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-12-30
A Russian Idea
of Hospitality.

Oondon Cor New York Times-)
An Englishman who has just returned
from some years in St. Petersburg de-
cIares that Russian hospitality demands
more from it's recipients, in some ways
at least, than any other. The demand
would seem to be mainly of a liquid ma
ture. Here is his description of the way
you spend the evening in Russian
house ''YCu no sooner make your ap-
pearance than your host drags you TO his
den and makes you take a drink You
find all the other men there taking their
pick of the bottles ranged along the hosts
private sideboard and helping themselves
to a stiff one every few minutes. II you
are wise and diplomatic you Will dodge
as many of the ante-prandiai drinks as
possible, with a view to your comfort later
on. But you have got to be very skilful
about this. Most Russian hosts have
way of regarding it as a sort of reflection
upon their stock of liquors, if not, indeed,
on their own drinking habits, If their
non-Russian guests begin to fight shy.
1t doesn't spoil their hunger as it does
ours The more a Russian drinks the
more he wants to eat. That and the eli
mate are, l take it, the salvation of that
nation of heavy drinkers.
''You sit down TO dinner at O'Clock and
it lasts till 9. The array of courses IS
seem, for every dish, let alone every
course Men ana women drink cham
payne like water, and the air IS Sucn
that il does them as little harm. Be
tween every two or three courses the Gig
arettes are passed round, to the women
as well as to the men, and everybody
smokes and chatters- After dinner you
go to the theatre, where boxes have Deen
engaged. That's part of spending the
evening" You may smoke all you want
to in the boxes, and by 10 O'Clock the
drinking business begins again. Your
hosts cabinet of liquors. portable al
fair designed for theatre uSe-has preced-
ed him to the box, with ice tank ana
SYMPTOMS complete. The women as 4 rule
take champagne, but the men choose the
liqueurs Thus smoking and drinking
pretty necessarily, you watch the per-
Torrance, walking about the boxes and
midnight when the show comes TO an
end.
'sDoes that end the evening? Not at
all You return with your host and host
ess to their home, when you flnd an elab-
crate supper served and waiting. You
do your best to do justice to 1t, AND to-
ward a m. an adjournment Is mssde TO
the drawing room for an hour or so OF
music. The Russian women play and
sing naSnifcently, but you are expected
to keep on drinking while listening 10
them. BY this time you are about ready
to go home. But that would be dis
courteous Spending the evening is by
no means over yet Card tables are
brought out, and every oooy play fehen
games for the most part, perhaps eou-
pie of Russian ones, and once ~ while
poker-and everybody CANDLES You
drink necessarily while playing and
MUNICH caviare sandwiches. At last-it
is now about a. m.-Jhe evening is spent.
You may 90 home if you wish. If not
YOU signify your desire TO sleep at your
hosts house. He is hOnored by your
preference. but when you come TO some
hours later you feel that all you did in
your college days was child play by the
side of a quiet evening with Russian
household. -