The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-07-19
reetions Such books are private. but they

rections euch books are private. but the,
can be called for by order Of the court.
According to law a Russian clerk cannot
carry on any business of Ills own or that o.
any other person except his masters.
His employment is after special contracts
which must be written. and II he breaks
them he is responsible to his master for any
loss or injury through competition caused
| BY him.
The clerk can be fined to the amount Of $50
| and imprisoned for three months in such
| an event.
ANNUAL STATEMENTS
GIVEN OUT BY CLERKS.
| Every clerk must within a month after
the end of each year give an account of his
work to his employer and he is responsible
| for all damage premedtated or brought
about by carelessness during his service.
This includes bookkeepers, correspondents.
| statesmen and workmen
vast deal of Russian business Is done
| b. peddlers. who carry the goods from vii
| lage to village in wagons and trade them
for grain. eggs, flax. hemp and wool.
| There are many peddlers with packs on
| their backs both IN the cities and in the
country and there are open-air markets in
the cities every Sunday. where these ped
dlers congregate. selling all sorts of things.
l have attended some in st. Petersburg
and find large ones here in Moscow.
early and closes about . o'clock.
1t is held in a wide street not far from
some of the chief churches and extends
along this street for about a mile. The
street, with the exception of the car track,
is filled with tents and sheds and tables.
upon which the wares are spread Some
merchants lay their stock on the ground.
! visited this market the other day. There
must have been something like a thousand
merchants. each selling his own kind of
wares.
There were hundreds Of boot and shoe
stores The goods were homemade and
most of them cheap. They were hung from
racks or placed on low tables.
The shoe merchants were long-coated
high-booted men with caps.
They tried the shoes on their customers
out in the broiling sun and then dickered
with them as to the price
The most of the mems furnishing goods
were sold by women. 1 saw them selling
mems caps. shirts. coats and even trousers.
Women walked about with great loads OF
trousers on their shoulders and on their
arms, begging the peasants to buy.
The cap peddlers carried their wares In
four-bushel baskets.
They had brushes and kept brushing the
caps to call the attention Of the crowd.
The purchasers tried on the wares with
out the aid of a mirror. the only question
being that OF fit. for the same kind Of
cap is used all over Russia.
DRESS PECULIAR1TIES
OF THE PEASANTS.
About the only things I did not sec IN !
this market were corsets and underwear.
Only the ladies' of Russia wear corsets. |
and these markets are patronized chiefly |
by the peasants. whose women have waists |
of goodly proportions, unaffected by pres |
sure.
As to underwear. the poorer Russians do |
not 1t.
Many of them sleep In the same clothes |
that they wear in the daytime. and some
keep a suit on until 1t falls to pieces.
One of the queer features of Russian |
business is the use Of pictures for letters !
In making signboards.
A large percentage OF tho people cannot |
read or write, but all can understand pic |
lures
Every store has on its walls facing the |
street paintings representing the goods sold !
within.
If it is a shoe store, the wall will be
covered with painted boots and shoes; IL |
bakery. there will be loaves of bread |
and II butcher. all sorts of joints of |
meats and sausages.
The usual barber sign has q man shaving |
q customer and a dentist a representation |
of one pulling tooth. The dairy signs
are cows with milkmaids at work, and
the tea signs are gaudy Cinnamon slipping |
tea.
You can see pictures of graphophones and
sewing machines on the walls Of some of |
the stores, and the American bicycle and |
way.
The windows are filled with sampler of
the merchandise scld within, and some