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Show OUR YOUNG READERS. AN ICE-PALACE. You have made ice-houses and snow forts and snow men, and perhaps constructed temporary skating rinks, by pouring water upon a level and letting it freeze, but an ice-palace-none of you ever made anything like that. Of course not. Only a very wealthy person, and a very foolish one, would waste time and money in this manner. I am quite sure the pleasure-loving Queen Anne could have employed her time much better than by erecting such a useless, transient and costly toy. Queen Anne reigned in Russia, where the winters are so long and severe, a long time ago, before your great-grandmothers were born. She was the grand daughter of the great and hare-brained Peter, who combined some of the worst qualities of the man with the grandest virtues of a sovereign. Of course, no one ever thought of calling Anne a great ruler. A woman whose most notable exploit was the construction of a holiday plaything like this could never hope to win a lofty title. But the ice-palace, what of that? The winter of 1789 and 10 was very severe all over Europe. Snow fell many feet in depth, and the rivers froze nearly solid. Communication was cut off between distant villages by huge drifts. Wolves roamed the country, and many of the scattered hamlets were depopulated by the ravages of these fierce animals, who, deprived of their customary food in the forest, became unusually bold in their habits. It was a cold, dark, dreary time. In St. Petersburg, however, all was gaiety and festivity. Despite the freezing cold, Anne and her court made the season one of festal cheer. Every day and every night the River Neva gleamed with brilliant spectacles. To-day it was a military review. Two hundred thousand men, infantry, artillery, cavalry and wild hordes of the fierce Cossack of the Don marched and countermarched, performed evolutions, and engaged in mimic battles upon the glittering ice. At another time a fortress of ice and snow would be attacked and defended according to all the rules of war, and taken, at last, sword in hand. In the night, great fires were kindled along the shore, and maskers and skating parties celebrated their sports upon the frozen river. When these pageants had grown commonplace, Queen Anne thought of the ice-palace. She consulted with her architect, Alexis Dandovitch ??, a design was drawn up and forthwith executed. The site selected was between the fortress of the admiralty and the Queen's new winter residence, on the broad public grounds which were engaged upon the building for nearly one month. The manner of building was simple enough. The purest and most transparent ice was selected. It was out from the Neva in large blocks, which were then squared with rule and compass, and carved with all the regular architectural embellishments. When each block was ready, it was raised to its destined place by cranes and pulleys and an instant before letting it down upon the block which was to support it a little water was thrown between the two, the upper block was immediately lowered, the water froze, and the two were cemented together. The whole structure, in fact, appeared to be, and really was, all of one single piece, "producing, without contradiction, an effect infinitely more beautiful than if it had been built of the most costly marble, its transparency and blush tint giving it rather the appearance of a precious stone." The building, when completed, was fifty-six feet long, twenty feet wide and twenty-two feet high. The apparent dimensions of the palace seemed larger, by reason of the palisading surrounding it-eighty-seven feet in length and thirty-six feet in width. The actual length of the front view, including the pyramids at the corners, was one hundred and fourteen feet. The facade of the building was plain, being merely divided into compartments by pilasters. In each division there was a window, the frame-work of which was painted to represent green marble. The panes were formed of slabs of ice, as transparent and smooth as plate-glass. At night these windows were generally lighted. The effect of this illumination is said to have been peculiarly fine, as the light appeared not only at the windows, but, from the transparency of the material, the whole palace was filled with a delicate, pearly light. There was no door in front-what seemed a door being, in fact, a large window. In the rear there were two entrances, with gates handsomely ornamented with orange trees in leaf and flower, with birds perched on the branches, all of ice. The roof was sloping, after the usual style of Russian architecture. At either end there was a chimney. The interior of this great plaything was divided into three rooms. A spacious and handsome vestibule, fifteen feet wide, extended through the middle. One each side of this room was a square room sufficiently spacious, and, as there was no ceiling under the roof, also sufficiently lofty. One of these rooms was "called the Queen's bedroom. In one end of the room was a bedstead, with be, pillows and counterpane, finely wrought curtains and other furniture. At the opposite side there was a dressing-table, fully set out with a looking-glass and all sorts of powder and essence boxes, jars, bottles, a watch and a pair of candlesticks and candles, all of ice. The candles were sometimes smeared with naphtha and set in a blaze without being melted. On the right there was a fireplace, elegantly carved, and within were logs of ice, which were occasionally smeared with naphtha and set fire to, making a brilliant show. The other apartment was the Queen's drawing-room. It was fitted up with a table and settees and sofas, handsomely carved from the glistening material. In opposite corners of the room were placed two large statues, and on the table was a handsome time-piece, provided with wheels of ice and all the requisite machinery, which were visible through the transparent case. All the other parts of the room were fitted up in a corresponding manner. In the front yard of the palace stood an ice elephant of the size of life, and on his back was a Persian, holding a battle-axe in his hand, before the animal were two other Persians, one of whom held a spear in his hand. The elephant was hollow, and was made to throw water, through his trunk, to the height of twenty-four feet. This was done by means of tubes leading from the fosse of the admiralty, near which it stood. At night, burning naptha [naphtha] was substituted for water, and the effect is said to have been very singular, the appearance being that of a stream of fire. To make this part of the exhibition more remarkable, a man was placed within the figure, who occasionally blew through certain pipes, so as to make a noise like the roaring of an elephant. On each side of the ice-elephant were placed three cannons, regularly bored and turned, and with wheels and carriages. These were of the caliber of such as usually receive three pounds of powder, but being of so fragile a material, it was not considered prudent to put in more than a quarter of a pound; the ball was of hard iron, well rammed in. On several occasions iron balls were fired from these cannons without bursting them. The experiment was tried in the presence of the court, and the ball pierced a strong plank, two inches thick, at a distance of sixty paces. By this description, you have some idea of the cost and magnificence of Queen Anne's ice-palace. It was a work of art as well as of royal splendor. But it was "transient in its nature, as in show ‘twas durable." The immense toy vanished like a dream at last. As long as the excessive cold lasted-that is, from the last of December to the last of March-so long did this remarkable edifice stand. It then began to give way toward the southern side, and soon it gradually melted away. It was not altogether useless in its destruction, for the large blocks of the walls were taken to fill the ice cellars of the imperial palace-a very inadequate return for an enormous outlay.-Colder Days |