Show froni from front biart noida moida magazine magarine 1 revelations OF RUSSIA lif lii liff livic F IN rne THE rhe INTERIOR OF olp RUSSIA one but nobles noblee have the right to possess serfs thu ihu it does not follow that all nobles possess them for there is a very large class of or poor nobles in who possess posse 3 nothing not hine hinL never did possess posies anything and are never akely to possess any thing and these are the most mise miserable raule raLle of all lle ile lie ilia others for they are nothing no thino neither peas anis ants nor gentlemen it will naturally be asked how they b became came 1 possessed posse sed of 0 F their nobility they are for the most part sons of ambitious clerks of churches ac whose fathoms fath gath rs or nr friends have taught them to n read ad or write and through the inderst int erst of I 1 some great man mm got them admitted into some gome govern government men ofhie as coniing they receive a rank after a certain cert un number of years and become noble and of course their children too who do as their fathers have done before them leading a wrt wn ached existence without any prospect of advancement upon a miserable pittance unless they have great abilities for alun der when by dint of accepting bribes they get a small sum together 1 there here is no sum scum so small tha that they will not accept you may even offer them articles of wearing apparel any anything and this latter litter is is too ton to frequently done when the tile poor suitor sailor has noth ino ing in moie more to t offer I 1 myself have given such smail sums as asad ad and arid ad for trifling services services j which winch they have llave seemed reluctant tr to perform which ha has always had hid the tile desired effect of ac cele ratna their movements movement and saved me th the e I 1 annin e nf wait walt waiting irim half an hour houn for them to perform their duty omy some again of this clasi live by goin gomz froin from house bouse ouse in n hoube in in the country they stav stay stay at a houe house till the master gets tired fired of them then than he lie sends them to ills his nearest neighbor who ho does the like 1 the russians in general rire are very ble bie j and in in the country country where they lead elid a very zol zoi so i gitary monotonous monotonous life are glad to see ree any one who can procure them thein a little variety as they have no sources of amusement anin ement whatever except shooting or coursing mit hut when a inin is not a sportsman even these fail him I 1 for books are very rare rare rate very expensive and not lot tot very inter I 1 1 e esting on account of the tile extreme severity of 0 the ceng cens ure that is exercised exerciser A really bood work is a great luxury and beldom ft be as with within in a russian country V tiey lly tier are glad to see anybody u mho rho I 0 itan tun gile give little news beit belt be it ever so stale but I 1 must musi give the rusian russians their due they are from front llie tile highest to the ilie loert lo weh wrt very kieft table a general there aiwas yf in town that you yog are expected to drop in loo too t three times meek week a about dinner bitne and without being asked tale take your beat beut at lable table like one of the family decline dec I 1 ine lne staying they will wiil ill feel quite hurt even the very servants vill will pra pres isyou you to remain and take dinner with the llie family when whirl i you are asked to go to the country you ari ara are arb nev ier ler er expected to give any previous pre vinus notice of intended visit but to go at any time you feel ia inclined n and you are sure to meet with a warm w arta arla reception and are expected to remain jus just t ai as iong long as it may uit amit your own convenience sume same of tiie the smaller proprietor proprietors from lead ing in such a solitary life get into habits of beast ly intoxication in which they con consume days and nights while their property goes to ruin ruins fri 1 have even known instances where they have kept casks of spirits in their bedroom and arid ben bea in the habit of crawling on all ail tours fours from tw the bed to the cask seldom being in a state slate to wall wait drinking out of the lap and then crawling lm im 12 tack lack again to bed to oe fie p till they fliey should be r ready i elid I 1 to take another slight refreshment in the surlie manner this must seem very much like exaggeration but I 1 can call assure my readers that I 1 a advance nothing but tile the pure trinh truth and wl what at fel fell under my own on personal observation without drutt doull such are exceptional cases tind rind are soon brought to a ion lon by death but some me ca cen can n support this life lire for two or three icara years i the relation between the peasant and hia hf master when hen looked n on its fairest side J I 1 does not present a anything very shocking either to I 1 the h e mind or feelings for or nith with ith a kind master the position of the serf is anything but in the southern districts ot of russia where ta ih e soil is vory very thinly peopled S the serfs are obliged to give hair half their theirl time til me to heir their master masler and to do any work he ma may y r quire of them of course the tye cultivation 1 I the land is their chief employment in ama the women take their part as well as the neb nea n the gerl geri general ral arrangement arrangement is that ti the e beasa 8 should work three days a week for his is master it ster ana a three days for himself during duong r which lorhe me tills his ins own plot of ground u and n d as land adeas is ver v rj y plentiful in those parts ke ie can abw always ays have 1 ti much as he cho chooses 0 ses to plow so that ari arl inducts ous oua man will always have a great adv au ant aut ap over one that is idle nore ro than in any 00 coul country itry t t I 1 have known instances of hard wor working kingA kings bor loving serfs who pose shed Ebed their 2000 20 CU 0 roubles coubles rou bles but these theise instances ees are ate rare bareg having worked tiie llie three lays days fur for his nette na siegi the serf effis is quite at liberty to w work ork for fortag wa wag ef eitl elti either elther r for his richer or more fortunate I 1 or for his bis master W aich is very frequently done doni dor doi as it is not every one that pos esres erves oxen or 1 means of tilling tilli nr gr glouid ruid on oil his own I 1 I 1 in case of a failure of the harvest every pi p inetor is s obliged to feed his own peasant a n nha a to provide davjd e a against that emergency piner einer geney genry there aee nee k I 1 i in every village what are called pro proy dent magazines of born corn in which anere ed to be kept a certain quantity of if rye and S a ley 1 I think it is three quarters for foreve but as only the males maies are taken in tile the ce esus course it will only give half that quantity tyl i head As it rarely eppens ahat the liar ilar harvest est is nw complete corn p lete failure thee stores are seldom dr drawe W upon upon more than two or three in tat uni worst of years altho in the he years 1818 IS 18 4 18 81 w an 1849 I 1 they were completely exhausted 0 on o a count oun t of the failure of the crops for sive sive years r 41 ir in fact act net in n the spring of 1849 some piam plan lags lass were rendel rendered ted led desert by gy the entire p ln dying from want and scurvy produced produce b by living m f f w to give a faint idea of what a russian r road a it li like ilke he in its worst state stale I 1 shall just relate what wh t curbed ia V I a friend of mine who was oblige obliged travel trave from to Kli ell Khar arkoff koft kolT in ilion month th of bl arch 1853 1833 the distance is is a about 1 out 1 0 or english miles and is a genen gener done none in twenty four hours orless in tile tin in e or summer lie HB was as quite alone without ser servant vanto j or iol lal lage except a email porta anteau in in the ordinary will altogether more mure than 3 ora cv cwi t had dived horses to it the usual number being th ilire alire il notwithstanding all this he lie was vias seven se veil vell irl iri dayse a y ant aft six six ni nights I 1 oits on the road traveling day and ind imm in as is the custom in russia there being no I 1 on oil the road where to stop slop sl 44 alu now if g by post pst is attended twit twill many miny difficulties in in the spring offee of he year yea r w must be the expense exi exl lense and trouble tro tible f trails of corn at that time it is utterly impossibly possie e its value would be doubled in about tweet miles X l 1 the r cuffe of the popie p ople opie during durina th theis theas tal and 1849 were really reilly dreadful ayr ayt A time tune I 1 wag was in the town of K anti ami lal ial as e are nt never ver any accounts abenti ants published foft of tit r illes ides that may befall the people of cour only afterwards that I 1 obtained my inor lnor ion lon from froin medical men ruen who were sent byj by ith ggS egy ety eminent efrin effin lent to inquire into the state of rif as aeri aerl to render such assistance ai ast the state 0 obby n quiren from f rom the stewards bf estat estates cs in laug lauh tb the proprietors thenis themselves ives who were resident properties at alche thib thie time i 1 there was one who I 1 remember told me that ilia t lie was obliged to leave his village which was a small one as all his peasants were dead and deonly made his escape witt wilt one man w who hol hoi wad wai was his cervant vervant that all the others were lying dead in their huts without anybody to bury hem them I 1 scurvy in its most malignant form lorm was the di disease 8 ease that carried them opt off which was no d doubt produced by improper tood food for in many instances straw was chopped up and mixed with flour to make bread which chat at the best of times I 1 r not very good being quite black and very course in appearance orthis of this the quantity was so small that it was insufficient to keep tile the body and soul together tiie tile the serfs in general have very limited ideas on the subject ot religion as they for the greater part can neither reid nor write they go to church where they repeat with creat great devotion a certain number of aves and paternosters in their own language or rather Slavonic and cross crabs themselves while the priest is celebrating mass which is done with more or less according iri g to the occasion or the riches of the eli ell church isyou ask a peasant where is god lie wi dine gine generally rally raily point to the corner of the room where there are hanging one or more coi cot corse co arse badly executed paintings representing some of their saints aad which lie he is firmly persuaded peram ded are so many flany gods athis will perhaps create a smile of pity in england but it is the natural result of their un educated state stale which precludes them from understanding der standing all abs abb abstract tract ideas they must have something omet liing corporeal something they can see and avid eel feel consequently to abil abolish lisl I 1 these would be to do away with all religion in in their eyes i 1 in their way way wag they are very religious I 1 have even known some ol 01 them who when they are boutto commit a sin sill will cover carefully their ani Ini images ages hat that god may not see what they are about they are very strict in their fasts fasl which are very severe as neither milk butter eggs or anything that is produced by animals is per witted and of course animal food is is forbidden the principal and lon ion longest gest fast is of course lent when they do not even eat fish during the first and last weeks nor on wednesdays and frid fridays ays from good friday till afler after mass on easter easier day many of them eat nothing but ip spend upend erid erld their time lime in fasting ailing and praying being firmly persuaded that christ dies and rises rise again every year at this time V but when hen the mass is over on easterday easter day generally rne rally raily jabout bout four a m ample amend is alade for the long fast by stuffing to a degree that is really disgusting to iok lok look at and think of nor oi is the brandy cup forgotten forgot ten len for during P the ilithe ali ree days that easter lasts it is almost a sin sin not tobe lobe be drunk nor are the priests backward in inset set lieff ihrig til the example in both eating and drinking there is another curious custom which i is w universal j ni 1 ermai ermal throughout the empire that of kiss Is ing yott you frequently see two men who can hard 1 jy y keep their legs stop and uncovering unc uncover in ts nesai ne sav say tile llie other answering g vi 1 stino vos kres they kiss each other inree times timer on fin alternate alter aller nate cheeks and tilen walk tn tit to perform bie bhe the tee fie same ceremony with the next acquaintance they may happen to meet they ore blindly attached to their religion and band this lias been the means employed to arouse mouse enthusiasm for lor lle ile the fie present war at which I 1 am told has been very successful in russia proper 1 but in southern russia it iles has only met with partial success bun tur cess for there the deorle people are tire not strongly stron atron gly attached lo 10 the paternal government of the ezar czar Czaran ano 4 still have many traditions of their normer former freedom before tile the hated mazeppa aia Ala zeppa they think themselves the univ only orthodox nation aion tion in the world and all others they call ilus bus ai ermann or it fidel they have very curious notions of HIP nip rea red of ile lle the fie world and regard repard all f foreign countries as so many provinces belong il inato inthe the czar I 1 I 1 have frequently been told that the turks incited by the tiie french and english rad iid llad lid revolted level ted led and abd that the latter ilg jig that the turks were notable ot able to do anything against the white czar alone had revolted too bil nl though chev the peasants could not understand why the french and daglish 11 should revolt since by all accounts they much better off than the russian n peasants who were the czars azars own particular people that ii the idea iden of tile the present war and slid of curse curge vourse tila ilia he rebels are to lw be uttel utterly ly destroyed by ille idle idio power of the czar for they reason that if it they shey werd to revolt they who are tire a great people would soon be annihilated what must it then be isa fla for foz those chont they tiley esteem insignificant in III proportion I 1 I 1 par portion lihr to their knowledge know ledga ledge of them bithe me are objects of great veneration miny many mans of thein are not fr far removed it in jouit lit of ed ed uca aca tion from their flock I 1 have met ath th those who could sz arcely scarcely read ex except ept their iii 4 aira ili nii nil it books book which they had llad learned by ty rote are however many who are w e 11 edica 4 ta and even learned but these are chiefly in these are the two extremes whereas aia attic greit great body of nall call read and anil write and enough of the dogmas of or the russo jr r eek rek church to kee kec keep the tho people in their present A tt 1 it passage of or troops in lit russia 4 inana 4 all nil and d striking klim every ruflin nui rui hin lin is coni d of or four hatt batt dious each eacil a 4 shou I 1 thou faud raud a u d strong oil on tile tho march two twi of or these fiall hion are sent on oil followed bv the tile other two W 1 64 ine inn iru ira interval erval of a diy day or two flipse battalions wol web Wel rolten ill ap into companies of men each adai a cap captain tain fain and directed to hold it pirl iti ill illi ll I coarse course these are argain subdivided inlo info detachments of about 50 and take their way among the villages only concentrating before en ell rings ter te luga |