planks. Upon these icy rail-roads, sledges of corresponding | firm foundation. A few only of the wooden dwellings of size are placed; and the amusement consists in walking up the stairs to the top of the tower, and then getting into the sledge, which, gliding down the hill, acquires such a velocity in the descent, as to carry its inmates to the further end of the course. The amusement is rather a dangerous one, and to an unskilful person, attended with a considerable risk of breaking his bones, if not his neck. "A young English friend," says a late traveller, "offered to procure me a ticket for some private Russian mountains, but as I had not the opportunity of becoming practically acquainted with the sensation which a descent from them produces, in consequence of my being on the eve of departure for the south, I requested him to endeavour to describe it to me. He hesitated for a few moments, and then said, If you can form any idea of what the sensation must be while descending into the street, upon being suddenly flung out of a two-pair-of-stairs window, you will know how one feels in descending the Russian mountains.' The writer adds, that he felt no wish to try the correctness of the description. STREETS AND SQUARES. Peter's days now remain; and these are confined to the more ancient and less-frequented parts of the city. The greater part of the houses are built of brick, and faced with stucco, so as to resemble stone; but the durability of this composition is materially affected by the extremes of heat and cold which characterize the climate of this metropolis, and it generally requires repairing at the end of two years. The fronts are usually decorated in a gay style, being coloured with yellow, and having their roofs formed of thin iron or copper plates, which are painted of a black, a red, or, as is more frequently the case, a green hue. 66 As the winter of St. Petersburgh is extremely rigorous, the dispositions which the inhabitants are obliged to make, for keeping the interior of their houses warm, constitute a very important feature in their domestic arrangements. A Russian seldom waits later than the month of September, before he begins his preparations for this purpose. The windows of his house are fitted with double sashes, which are rendered almost air-tight by means of tow, putty, paste, and paper; the door at the principal entrance to the apartments is also made double, and thus the air contained in them is nearly cut off from all communication with the external atmosphere. The practice is very common for the basement of private mansions to be converted into shops; otherwise, this portion of the building is appropriated to the residence of the servants: for its small elevation above the level of the pavement, renders it unfit for the use of the master. The interior is generally arranged on a grand scale, but has not an air of much comfort; nor is its furniture characterized by that solid magnificence which we are accustomed to look for in the houses of the great and the opulent in our own country. The rooms,' says Mr. Morton, "are almost universally destitute of carpets; and when this is THE streets and squares of St. Petersburgh are on a scale not completely the case, one room alone can boast of that of magnificence unknown to European cities of greater distinction. The furniture is rude indeed, when compared antiquity; and the large space which they occupy, con- with the elegant articles to be procured in London; and tributes much to increase the surface occupied by this instead of the beautiful lustres of this country, you genemetropolis. The streets are generally broad, their width rally find in the mansions of the nobility at St. Petersburgh, varying from 60 to 200 feet; and some of them are of an a lamp of tin, japanned or painted, and gilt, suspended immense length. They are very regular, running, for the from the ceiling even the apartments of the Imperial most part, in straight lines; but, as they intersect each Palace, which the public are allowed to see, although they other at different kinds of angles, their appearance is contain many valuable articles, appear unfinished, from the devoid of all formality. The three sides of the Admiralty, want of carpets and draperies." which front the land, open into large clear spaces, bounded by noble edifices; from one of these squares issue the three principal streets. These are called, in common with several other thoroughfares, Perspectives, "because," says Captain Jones, "from all points of view they afford a prospect of the Admiralty's gilded spire, from the square before which they branch off as from one common centre, much in the fashion of the sticks of a fan." Dr. Granville says it is not on that account that they are so called, for there is more than one street, bearing the same name, which is not situated so as to present that great edifice at either of its extremities, but from their analogy to those extensive avenues, which lead to the country residences of the great in Italy, and each of which is called Vista, or Prospettiva. The favourite of these three streets is that called the Nevskoi Perspective, which is more than two miles and a half in length, and about twice as broad as Regent Street in London. It is, however, far inferior in its general appearance, to that celebrated thoroughfare; its shops will not bear a comparison with those of its English rival, and the little trees which have been recently planted at its sides, and which one of our countrymen likens to " rows of mops," must greatly disfigure its beauty. One convenience it has, which an Englishman will duly appreciate, from its rarity in the streets of continental cities, namely, a good pavement for foot-passengers. This is an improvement which originated with the late Emperor Alexander, who was so much struck with the accommodation afforded by the pavements in London, that, on his return to Russia, he issued an order for introducing them, in what we may call the "court end" of his own capital. The inhabitants were commanded, each to pave the space before his house, within a stated time; and those who were remiss in their obedience, and neglected to perform this piece of work, had it done for them by the police, of course with some increase of expense. There are several bazaars at St. Petersburgh; the chief of them is in the Nevskoi Perspective. It consists of an extensive pile of building, in the shape of an irregular triangle, furnished with a court inside, and having an inner and an outer range of shops two stories high. An arcade runs before those which are exposed to the open air, and affords a convenient shelter in unfavourable weather. The shops are 340 in number; and those in which the same description of articles is sold, are placed together. The tradesmen have no residence here; at night they lock up their goods, and leave them under the care of dogs, who well discharge the trust reposed in them. HOUSES, AND MODE OF WARMING THEM. THE houses of this capital, like those of Amsterdam, are mostly built on piles, for the soil is too marshy to afford a But his principal resource is the peetch, or stove, which is highly praised by some travellers, as an admirable contrivance for keeping the atmosphere of a room at an uniform temperature. There is one allotted to each apartment; or if there be two rooms contiguous, it is so disposed as to warm both, by being fixed in the wall of partition. This stove is built of brick or stone, cased with white porcelain; it is of considerable size, rising to the top of the room, and thus presenting a very extensive surface for giving off the heat. The internal structure is very simple. It consists of a fire-chamber, in which the wood is burnt; this occupies, of course, the lower part, and is closed by an iron door. A system of tubes leads from this chamber, one of which, when open, serves to carry off the smoke and soot of the burning wood, while the others convey heated air all round the interior of the stove, after the combustion is completed, and the former tube closed. The air in these tubes communicates with that in the apartment, by means of a small door. One supply of fuel, when the fire is lighted in the morning, furnishes sufficient heat for the whole day, and even during the night. PALACES THE royal palaces of St. Petersburgh are very numerous dimensions, than the beauty of their architecture. At the but they are more remarkable for the magnitude of their head of them is the Winter Palace, which is the usual residence of the emperor. It is an immense structure, the front opposite to the Neva being no less than 721 feet in length; and its appearance is very heavy, though its immense size necessarily gives it an imposing effect. One of its most magnificent apartments is the great hall of St. George, which is a hundred and fifty feet long, and sixty in breadth. It is surrounded by forty fluted Corinthian columns, having their capitals and bases of bronze richly gilt, and supporting a gallery decorated in a similar style The Russian servants have no regular beds found for them: they have a shoob, or sheep-skin wrapper, and this serves them for clothing in the day and for a bed by night. At the opposite extremity to the great entrance is placed the throne, which is raised on a platform of eight steps, covered with embroidered velvet. It is here that the emperor receives the foreign ambassadors in state; and the chapter of the military order of St. George is held in this room also. Contiguous to this palace, and communicating with it and with each other by covered ways raised on arches, are two smaller buildings called respectively the great and little Hermitage. These constituted the favourite retirement of Catherine the Second, who lavished on them the treasures of imperial magnificence. Here she used to receive in private the principal members of her court. At these entertainments all ceremony was laid aside, and the empress enjoyed the freedom of private life; the attendance of servants was altogether dispensed with, one of the rooms being furnished with dumb waiters and tables, which ascended and descended through the floor by means of springs. Catherine even drew up with her own hand regulations for the guidance of those whom she honoured with invitations; these were fixed in the galleries leading to the different apartments, and a copy of them is still preserved in one of the rooms. They are written in French, and some of them are curious; "Sit down, if you like, and where you please, without being told a hundred times," is one of the rules, and another requests the visiters to leave their dignity at the door, as well as their hats and their swords. given a view of it in page 209, exhibiting the front which looks into the Grande Millionne. Catherine gave it to one of her nobles, and, at his death, purchased it from his executor for two millions of rubles; it was afterwards bestowed by Paul on Stanislaus Poniatowsky, the dethroned king of Poland, who died in it. "The style of architecture," says Coxe "is magnificent, but heavy: the front is composed of polished granite and marble, and finished with such nicety, and in a style so superior to the contiguous buildings, that it seems to have been transported to the present spot like a palace in the Arabian tales, raised by the enchantment of Aladdin's lamp." The exterior is chiefly remarkable for the ornaments of richlygilt bronze, which are scattered with profusion over its surface, and for the number of pilasters which are placed around its stories. The basement is of granite; and the upper portion of the structure is cased with marble of a black-blue colour. The interior is splendidly fitted up, though it is now in a somewhat neglected state: the hall and staircase are lined with marble, as indeed are many of the apartments. The roof is covered with copper; and "so intense," says Mr. Barrow, "is the heat of the sun during the summer, that the man who accompanied us over the building asserted he had frequently cooked his victuals there without the aid of a fire,—a fact which we saw no reason to disbelieve." PUBLIC BUILDINGS. These buildings are now used as a depository for an ONE of the finest buildings in St. Petersburgh is the extensive and valuable collection of paintings, books, Admiralty, which, as we before observed, stands on the left and various other objects of interest. The pictures are bank of the Neva; its wings extend down to the river, and arranged in a long suite of apartments, each room being terminate in a noble flight of granite steps, leading to the appropriated exclusively to the works of one master or water's edge. This edifice presents a larger regular façade school. Among them is the celebrated Houghton collec- than any other building in Europe, for according to Dr. tion, which was purchased by Catherine for 20,000l., as a Granville, its principal front on the land side measures nucleus for the intended imperial gallery. "The Russians," considerably more than one-third of an English mile in says Mr. Barrow, "lose no opportunity of putting an Eng- length. The most remarkable ornament of this building is lishman in mind that they once belonged to his country, its gilt spire, from which an admirable view of the city is and that Russia paid well for them." Among the many obtained. The space enclosed between the three sides of curiosities contained in this palace, is an extraordinary this structure and the Neva, contains the dock-yard; and clock, known by the name of l'Horloge du Paon, which here the greater part of the ships in the navy are built. was purchased in England by Prince Potemkin, who pre- The chief station for the fleet is Cronstadt, an island sented it to Catherine. When the chimes begin to sound, about twenty-two miles from St. Petersburgh; and as the a peacock turns toward the spectators and spreads his channel leading to it is very shallow, the vessels are majestic tail; an owl rolls its eyes, and a cock crows; the floated down from the dock-yard on machines called cage turns round to the tinkling of small bells, and a camels. These are large wooden boxes, which, being filled winged insect marks the seconds by hopping on a mush- with water, are sunk down under the ship, and fixed so as room which contains the machinery of the clock. to embrace it between them; the water is then pumped out of them, and the ship, resting on this great empty vessel, is borne up by its buoyancy. The draught of water At a short distance from the Hermitage is the Marble Palace, which stands also on the Russian Quay; we have being thus considerably lessened, the whole mass is enabled to float, where the ship by itself would touch the bottom. The palace of the Etat Major, to which we have before alluded, is the building appropriated to the service of a branch of the military administration of Russia: it is in fact the palace of the Military Staff. It is an immense edifice; for the duties attached to this department are necessarily very extensive in a country where so vast an army is constantly kept on foot. It stands opposite to the Winter Palace, and presents the appearance of a crescent of lofty buildings, with an extensive wing projecting on one side, at right angles. The middle of the crescent is occupied by a colonnade of the Corinthian order; and in the centre of this is a lofty arch, reaching nearly to the upper part of the building, and sculptured with military trophies. One of the principal divisions of this vast institution is composed of officers of various ranks, who are constantly occupied in improving the general map of the empire, as well as the maps of the respective governments, both for civil and military purposes. These surveys are said to be extremely well executed; Captain Jones mentions one of St. Petersburgh and its environs, to the distance of five and twenty miles, in which every house, tree, gate, and wall, was correctly marked. The Exchange, of which we have given a view in page 213, is situated at the eastern extremity of the Vassileiostrow, or island of Vassilei. This building, which was completed in 1811, after the designs of a French architect, though it was not opened until the year 1816, is extensive, and has an elegant appearance; but the engraving will convey a more correct notion of its exterior, than any detailed description. It looks directly on the river; the semicircular space in its front being terminated by a granite quay; and on each side of it rises a tall column, ornamented with appropriate emblems. The interior consists of a single hall, one hundred and twenty six feet in length and sixty-six in breadth, in which the Russian and foreign merchants meet daily at three o'clock. It would be impossible for us to give a detailed account of all the public edifices in this metropolis; nor is it necessary that we should do so; for they are nearly of the same general character, presenting few distinctions worthy of notice. We may simply mention the buildings belonging to the Academies of Sciences and the Fine Arts, together with the Senate House (the side of which is represented in our engraving, fronting the commencement of the English Quay) the Citadel, and the Colleges of the Holy Synod, now forming part of the University, as among the most interesting, after those which we have described. STATUE OF PETER THE GREAT. ONE of the greatest ornaments of St. Petersburgh is the celebrated statue of its founder, which stands on a gigantic pedestal in the open space between the front of the Senate House and the side of the Admiralty. This monument is the work of the French artist Falconet: it has obtained a high reputation, and the Russians think it the finest of its kind in existence. The monarch is represented in the attitude of mounting a precipice, the summit of which he has nearly attained; his head is uncovered and crowned with laurel, while his right hand is stretched out, as in the act of giving benediction to his people. But the granite mass, which composes its pedestal, is unrivalled, and would have been still more remarkable, had the sculptor been content to leave it as he found it. It forms the remnant of a huge rock, which lay in a morass about four miles from the shore of the Gulf of Finland, and at the distance of about fourteen miles by water from St. Petersburgh. "I found the rock," says the engineer employed, "covered with moss; its length was forty-two feet, its breadth twenty-seven, and its height twenty-one feet." Moreover there was a convenient crack in one part of it which would enable the artist to break off a portion of the mass, so as to give the remainder the steepness of surface requisite for the position of the horse. "The expense and difficulty of transporting it," says Coxe, "were no ob stacles to Catherine the Second; the morass was drained, the forest cleared, and a road formed to the Gulf of Finland. It was set in motion on huge friction-balls, and grooves of metal, by means of pulleys and windlasses, worked by five hundred men. In this manner it was conveyed, with forty men seated on the top, twelve hundred feet a day, to the shore; then embarked on a nautical machine, transported by water to St. Petersburgh, and landed near the spot where it is now erected." Six months were consumed in | this undertaking, which was certainly laborious in the extreme; for the rock weighed fifteen hundred tons. In its natural state the stone would have been a magnificent support for the statue; but the artist, in his attempts to improve it, chiselled away half its grandeur. The inscription is very good, being characterized by a simplicity completely at variance with the monument itself. "To PETER THE FIRST: CATHERINE THE SECOND," is, together with the date of erection, all that is written; and this is marked on opposite sides of the pedestal, in Latin and Russian. THE established religion of Russia is that of the eastern or Greek church; but all other forms of worship are tolerated. Previous to the tenth century the inhabitants of this country were pagans; and the first person of distinction, converted to Christianity, was the grand princess Olga or Elga, who, in the year 953, was baptized at Constantinople, by the Greek patriarch. When her grandson, Vladomir, became ruler, he was strongly urged by the respective professors of various creeds to adopt their religion; he seems to have determined upon embracing Christianity, but, before deciding which form of it to introduce in his dominions, he sent certain deputies into different countries to examine into the subject. The "Report" of these "Commissioners" is a curious document. "The religion of the Bulgarians" they say, "appeared to us extremely contemptible. They assemble in a shabby mosque, without deigning to put a girdle round their bodies. Having first made a slight nod, they seat themselves on the ground, and wag their heads from side to side like fools. Their religion fails to impress the heart, or to raise the soul towards God. The service is much better performed at Rome, but still with less order and magnificence than among the Greeks. On arriving at Constantinople, we were so struck with the magnificence of the church of Santa Sophia, which the great Justinian caused to be built in honour of the Eternal Wisdom,-with the perfume and the light which are shed by the tapers,-with the beauty of the prayers and the harmony of the chanting, that we thought ourselves transported into the celestial abode. Since we have seen this light, Sire, we know not how longer to remain in this present darkness; and we pray you to permit us to embrace the religion of the Greeks." This report was quite satisfactory to the grand duke, and he immediately ordered his subjects to embrace the religion of the Greek church. The clergy of the Russian church are divided into regular and secular; the former comprising the monks, and the latter the parochial clergy. The superior clergy are divided into metropolitans, archbishops, and bishops, who are indiscriminately styled archires, and who are appointed to their offices by the sovereign. There is some difference among the superior clergy in title, rank, and dress; yet it scarcely ever happens that one archirè is subordinate to another. The next in order of dignity are those called the black clergy; to this class belong the archimandrites, or chiefs of monasteries, from amongst whom the bishops are always chosen-the hegumins, or heads of small convents -the ieromonachs, or monks who are priests-the ierodiacons, or monks who are deacons, and lastly, the monks themselves. All the black clergy, as well as the archirès, are obliged, by the regulations of their church, to lead rigid and secluded lives; they are forbidden animal food, and are not permitted to marry after entering into this order. They consider themselves superior to the secular clergy both in rank and learning, and in them is vested the whole power of the Russian church. The secular priests are called the white clergy, and consist of protoirès, or, as they were formerly called protopopes,-priests, and deacons, together with the readers and sacristans. The first three must all have been educated in the spiritual schools, and must be married before they can be ordained to their offices. If their wives die they cannot marry again; "for which reason," says one of our countrymen who wrote in the time of Peter the Great, "it is remarked in this country, that the priests treat their wives better than other men." From this circumstance, probably, arises the Russian proverb-"to be as well cherished as a priest's wife.” CHURCHES AMONGST the many religious edifices of St. Petersburgh, the highest place belongs to the church of the Holy Virgin of Casan, which is sometimes called the cathedral of this metropolis. It certainly is a splendid structure; and its excellence is the more remarkable as being the work of a native artist, and one who was a slave. This humble individual was born on the estate of the late Count Strogonoff; his merit attracted the notice of his master, under whose patronage he was placed in the Imperial Academy. Here he gained a considerable reputation; and when the intention of erecting a new church was made known, he boldly stood forward as a candidate for the task. His competitors were many, and among them was a Scotch architect, of the name of Cameron, whose designs are said to have far surpassed those of his Russian rival in purity of taste. But the patriotism of the judges, or the influence of his master, secured a preference on behalf of Voronikhin (for such was the name of the serf); and the successful artist proceeded at once to the execution of his work. Fifteen years elapsed before the building was completed; and the cost of its erection amounted to 15,000,000 rubles. The plan of the edifice is a cross; and the point of intersection is surmounted by a large dome. It stands on one side of the Nevskoi Perspective, its length running in the same direction as the street (from east to west); and the front which opens upon that thoroughfare is approached by a circular colonnade, apparently in imitation of that added by Bernini to St. Peter's at Rome. Indeed the architect seems to have taken the general outline of his plan from that far-famed cathedral; and the Russians think that he has produced a work quite worthy of being placed by its side, or by the side of our own St. Paul's. Less partial judges, however, are scarcely disposed to sanction the comparison. The interior is arranged in a very magnificent style; for the service of the Greek church is characterized by great splendour, and owes, indeed, to its external pomp and show that power of impressing the beholder which the deputies of Vladomir felt so strongly in the tenth century. The body of the cathedral presents one open space, no seats being allowed in a Greek church: a lofty and richlydecorated screen encloses the sanctuary, where a part of the ceremonies is performed in private (or, as the phrase is, where the sacrifice is made) before the priest issues. Bishop James gives a lively picture of the scene presented by the interior of this cathedral, during the time of service. "As we advanced up the nave," he says, we 66 perceived the rites of the church were under celebration; the solemn chant of the priest was heard—Gospodi Pomilloui! Gospodi Pomilloui! (Lord have mercy upon us! Lord have mercy upon us!) On a sudden the doors of the sanctuary were thrown open, and the bearded bishop appeared, clad in raiment of purple and gold: the clouds of incense floated in the air, and the manly and sonorous voices of the priests again echoed through the dome. It was a striking and impressive sight; but far beyond all this show of parade, one's feelings were moved by the earnestness and enthusiasm that reigned over the face of the people; at one time the whole crowd were prostrated on the floor; at another they were seen scattered in different parts of the church, some paying their devotions to the picture, others carrying the lighted taper to fix it before the shrine of their patron saint; others kissing the hands, face, and feet of the holy paintings; others bowing their heads to the pavement, with an aspect of humility that seemed to shun the light of heaven; all alike, equally careless of one another, wholly wrapt up in their several acts of piety and adoration." Amongst the other churches of St. Petersburgh, the most remarkable, after the Cathedral, are those of Alexander Nevskoi, of Peter and Paul, and of St. Isaac; the last of which, if it be finished, will be one of the finest ecclesiastical buildings in Europe. POLICE. The police of St. Petersburgh is extremely strict and vigilant: in no capital of equal size is the security of life and property greater. In each of the twelve districts into which the city is divided, there is a regular police-station; in this resides an agent, who has an office, and several subordinate functionaries employed under him. His duties consist in preserving the order and tranquillity of his quarter, watching over the behaviour of its inhabitants, deciding petty quarrels, and acting judicially in several matters of slight importance. All these subordinate establishments are subject to the control of one principal office, the functions attached to which are very extensive. One of the duties of the police in this metropolis is to exercise a surveillance over all foreigners; and this traveilers complain of, as causing an extreme degree of annoyance and vexation. In all continental towns, a certain degree of espionnage is kept up over strangers; "but," "the pitch to which the inquisitorial says Mr. Morton, system is pursued in the Russian metropolis, is truly ridiculous, without, as it appears to me, any corresponding advantage being attained. Thus you cannot even pay a visit to any of the palaces, or other objects worthy of notice in the environs, without giving an account at the barrier of who you are and where you are going, though of what use such information can be to those who require it, I am wholly unable to conceive." The same system of espionnage is applied to the native inhabitants; yet it is said that, as far as respects facts of importance, the going on at St. Petersburgh, than does the English Russian government knows much less of what is actually government of what is passing in London, where no such vexatious regulations exist. THE RUSSIAN BATH. ONE of the greatest luxuries enjoyed by the inhabitants of St. Petersburgh is the Russian Bath, the frequent and general use of which contributes greatly to the health of Without it, indeed, the lower orders would all classes. scarcely be able to keep themselves free from disease; for they seldom change their clothes. Fortunately, however, the rites of the Greek religion enjoin upon its votaries the task of ablution before attending divine service; and as this attendance is exacted twice in the week, a habit of cleanliness is in some measure enforced. The usual hour of bathing is in the early part of the evening; and the nature of the operation will be correctly understood from the following description. "First, there is a dressing-room at a moderate tempe rature, with cushions and conveniences for the toilette. When undressed, a fellow presents himself stark-naked, and conducts you into the bath, a good-sized room, having a bench like a bedstead, with a slight rise for the head. At the opposite side are fitted up shelves like flower-stands, which terminate with a similar bench or bedstead to he subsequently used. The bath is at a high, but not oppressive temperature, and is furnished with several pipes communicating with water from the freezing to the boiling point. You first of all sit down on the bench, while he forms a lather, and scours your head well; after this he prepares a bundle of soft shavings with soap and hot water, when he obliges you to lie down at full length, and curries you all over on both sides. After this you stand up and are rinsed with tepid water, when he prepares a bundle of birch-leaves, and obliges you to mount by the shelves, or steps, to the upper bench before described. He now throws water on a hot iron, which produces such a vapour or steam, that it is almost impossible to support the heat: he then obliges you to lie down, and with the birch-leaves performs the same operation he had previously done with the shavings, except that while you are roaring out with pain from the heat, and begging to be relieved, yet afraid to lift your head, because every inch in height, from the vapour ascending, causes some increase in the intensity of the heat, the fellow coldly affects indifference, and laughs at your request, or sings a few words of a song. At length he relieves you, when jumping down as hastily as possible, from a heat which really struck me as red hot, and, I thought, must have brought the skin off, the fellow adroitly seizes the moment you are on your legs, to pour buckets of cold water on your head. The first gives a violent and unexpected shock, which you instantly recover, and the second produces a most delightful glow, a perfect elysian feel which you would willingly continue: but fearful of checking the perspiration too long, the bath is brought to a higher temperature, and when the pores are again open, and perspiration appears, the Russian bath finishes, you return to your dressing-room, wrap warmly up, get into your carriage, drive home, lie down on your bed, much relaxed, for an hour, after which you feel quite restored, and are fit for any thing." In the baths of a commoner description, or those frequented by the lower classes, the individual bathers perform for each other those duties which, in the more expensive establishments, are assigned to attendants. The substitutes for the buckets of cold water, to which they sometimes resort, are of rather a startling nature; when the perspiration is most profuse, they will plunge into the cold waters of the Neva, or, if the snow be on the ground, roll their bodies in it. Habit inures them to the practice, and renders it hurtless to them: to an inexperienced stranger its effects would in all probability be more disastrous. COMMERCE. In a commercial point of view St. Petersburgh is a city of great importance, for it has a more extensive foreign trade than any other in the north of Europe. Its eminence in this respect arises from its being the only great maritime outlet in the Gulf of Finland, and from the extensive and various communications which it has with the interior of the Russian empire. By means of canals a connexion is effected between the Neva and the Wolga; and thus, a direct communication is opened between the capital and the Caspian Sea. The principal exports from St. Petersburgh are articles of native produce, such as tallow, hemp and flax, iron, leather, furs, fox, hare, and squirrel skins, and bristles; and the quantity of these which is annually carried from this city, is immense. Last year, the weight of hemp exported exceeded seventy millions of English pounds; that of tallow, which is an article of the greatest commercial importance, was more than double that number. Canvas, together with coarse linen of all kinds, and cordage, is likewise largely exported; for the manufacture of these articles is comparatively simple, and the raw materials are extremely abundant in Russia. The imports consist chiefly of raw sugar, cotton twist, (which is the principal commodity sent from England,) woollens, oils, spices, wine, and various other articles of luxury. The growth of the commerce of St. Petersburgh has been extremely rapid. In 1714, sixteen ships visited it; sixteen years afterwards the number was increased to one hundred and eighty, and at present it varies between twelve hundred and fifteen hundred. The principal part of this trade is, however, in the hands of foreigners, and especially of the British: of the twelve hundred and thirtynine ships which cleared out from St. Petersburgh, in the year 1833, no fewer than six hundred and ninety-six were British; sixty-two being American, and four hundred and eighty-one belonging to other nations. In former times, our countrymen used to enjoy peculiar privileges as merchants; they are now placed on the same footing as other foreigners, and are termed, in common with them, guests. The internal trade is by law secured to the natives, and every Russian engaged in it, or in the foreign trade, must have his name enrolled in the burghers' book,-in other words, must possess property within the city, or be a member of one of the three guilds. Those belonging to the first guild must possess from 10,000 to 50,000 rubles; they may engage in foreign trade, are not liable to corporal punishment, and may drive about the city in a carriage drawn by two horses. Those belonging to the second guild must have from 5000 to 10,000 rubles; and they are confined to inland trade. The third guild comprises shopkeepers and petty dealers, and to be a member of it, the possession of from 1000 to 5000 rubles is necessary. LONDON: Published by JOHN WILLIAM PARKER, WEST STRAND; and sold by all Booksellers. |