velocity. It is similar to the coasting in New England. The following cut represents one of these slides used at St Petersburg. There are swings

used of various sorts, some turning in a perpendicular and others in a horizontal manner. On certain festivals all these are placed in the public squares, and the people mingle in the amusements with much animation and without distinction of rank.

It may be remarked that in despotic countries the extreme ranks are on more familiar terms than under free governments. There is no jealousy between them. At some masquerades all persons have free admittance who can pay a small sum for a ticket, and the laborer comes in contact with the emperor. This kind of familiarity is exemplified in the national mode of salutation, which is by kissing. Peasants kiss each other, and the rank of a princess does not shield her from a salute on the cheek by the lowest boor, that presents her an egg at Easter. Boxing and wrestling are not uncommon, and billiards and cards are general amusements. The chief game as in Sweden is a kind of whist called boston. All classes frequent the baths, which are numerous. Some of them are similar to those of Finland. The bathing is also nearly as promiscuous.

26. STATE OF THE ARTS, SCIENCES, AND LITERATURE. No native Russian has produced great works of art; but many have successfully imitated them. The embellishments of cities and palaces, are chiefly executed by foreigners. There is some taste for music; and the national instruments are the balalaika, a guitar with two strings, the gussla, a kind of harp, flutes, and bagpipes. The national ballads are from the 11th to the 13th centuries. Vladimer and his knights, are celebrated in them, as much as Charlemagne and his peers were celebrated by southern minstrels. Nestor a monk, wrote the annals of Russia at the close of the 10th century. Russia has however little national literature; what there is, is principally poetry and history. The mathematics are favorite studies. A recent traveller relates that he was present at a party, where the conversation of the ladies was chiefly upon the polarity of the rays of light.' It is probable that there was more affectation than knowledge in this, though the female studies are not well selected.

27. RELIGION. The religion is that of the Greek church, though all sects are tolerated, and these amount to about seventy. The clergy are generally little more enlightened than those whom they aspire to instruct. Every house has a painting of a saint, or of the virgin, before which the inmates offer prayers, and follow many ceremonies. The clergy generally are permitted to marry once. There are many fasts, and several festivals are kept with great rejoicing. There are many pagan and other superstitions. A great reverence is held for the mystic number 40, which a Russian seeks every occasion to use; to express 20 shillings he would say 40 six-pences. Daves are

1

not eaten, as they are considered sanctified, or emblematic of what is holy. The marriages of the nobility are solemnized nearly as in other parts of Europe, but the courtship of the peasants is singular. The suitor applies to the mother, saying, 'produce your merchandize, we have money for it.' Should the bargain be concluded, the bride at the wedding is crowned with a chaplet of wormwood, not an inapt emblem for the wife of a Russian boor. Hops are thrown over her head, with the wish that she may prove as fruitful as the plant. Second marriages are tolerated: the third are considered scandalous, and the fourth absolutely unlawful.

The dead are buried with a paper in the hand, as a passport. It is signed by the bishop or other dignitaries.

28. GOVERNMENT. The emperor of Russia assumes to himself the title of Autocrat, and the government is a despotism as absolute as any in Asia. The measure of justice dealt out to the people, must be graduated on the personal character of the prince. If the Emperor should resemble Trajan, all may go well; if he be like Nero, his subjects may be oppressed without redress. The personal character of the Russian sovereigns, has not been of a kind to mitigate the evils of a despotic government. The mildest was Alexander, and he banished to Siberia, a poet, the 'Byron of Russia,' for writ ing an Ode to Liberty.' The Emperor is frequently called the Czar.

29. LAWS. The laws are voluminous: but the Emperor Nicholas has promulgated a digest in 16 volumes. Torture is abolished, and the common punishment is fine, the knout, and banishment to Siberia. The punishment of death is also nominally abolished. But torture may be inflicted without the rack, and death without the scaffold. Justice is in Russia more uncertain than fortune. It is a common saying, founded on suffering, 'God is high, and the emperor is far away.' When the emperor is near, it is not always as the minister of justice, or the angel of mercy. The trial of those who have ene mies in power, may be long delayed, or it may be suddenly and unjustly held. Dr Morton relates that in the prison visited by him, among several prisoners, whose trial had been delayed, one had waited 12 years. An order of the em peror is stronger, and more sudden in its operation than a sentence of court: for the delays of testimony are avoided. The victim, who has offended the emperor or his informers, is taken, if in the depth of a polar winter, to Siberia, where he is made to change his name, to hunt in the arctic forests, or delve in the mines, with every species of malefactor. No tidings of him reach home; there is no transmission of letters, and the tracks point only towards Siberia, as they pointed to the den of Cacus. Many an exile dies on the road, or if he survives, it is better that he had so died.

Alas! nor wife, nor children more shall he behold,
Nor friends, nor sacred home.'

The roads to Siberia have of late been crowded with the brave and devoted Poles, of all ranks, and of each sex. Victory could not allay the exasperation of the conquerer. At Varna, the capitulation of which was bought, while it was vaunted as a victory, an English surgeon was taken. The particular resentment of the emperor was directed to him, on the plea that he was an engineer, though it would have occurred to a just prince, to be certain of the fact. The surgeon was in spite of the remonstrance of the English at Odessa, sent to Siberia in the depth of winter, so ill in health, and so thinly clad, that he could hardly have survived.

on

The peasants are by law subjected to the cudgel of the proprietor, and this 'image of authority' is seldom at rest. The use of it is universal, and it is related that when a gentleman asked his slave why he always persisted folding a newspaper with the title inwards, his answer was 'Please, Sir, be cause you never beat me. The emperors formerly held the same instrument over the nobility, but this has given place to harder punishment: to banish

ments, confiscations, and imprisonment. The knout is the peculiar punishment in Russia. It is torture in the highest degree. To be 'knouted without mercy' is to suffer the extremity of human torture, applied in the most brutal manner. The sufferer is tied to a post by the neck, arms, and knees. His only covering is a pair of loose drawers. The executioner brandishes a whip with a flat, hardened lash of dried hide, and every blow smites the flesh from the bones. In the first ten or twelve lashes, the sufferer shrieks miserably, but he soon becomes weak and utters only faint groans, and in a few moments nothing is heard but the bloody splash of the knout on the senseless body. A full hour is occupied in giving the greatest number of blows (upwards of 200) and the body is taken lifeless from the post. But Russian justice is not yet satisfied: an instrument like a comb with iron teeth, is struck forcibly into the temple, and the marks rubbed with gunpowder, as a perpetual mark of shame, should the sufferer survive. Then a pair of pinchers, like curling irons, are fixed upon the nostrils, and each is cut or torn away for the whole length. This is so painful, that it affords a momentary life to the body in the last stage of exhaustion. The wretched man is then put into a cart, and removed immediately to Siberia. In the execution here described which took place at St Petersburg, he died on the second post of the journey. 30. ANTIQUITIES. Russia has no antiquities, except the tumuli or barrows that extend nearly all over the country, though they are the most numerous in the eastern part. They are the same with the barrows in England, and the Indian graves in North America. Some that have been opened were found to contain human remains.

31. AGRICULTURE. The staple articles of culture are corn, hemp, and flax. Millet, barley, and hops are raised extensively. Madder, saffron and woad grow wild. Tobacco, maize and rice are raised in the south. The Crimea produces wine. Various kinds of fruit are raised in the south.

32. COMMERCE. The exports consist almost entirely of raw produce, as hemp, flax, iron, tallow, potash, hides, corn and timber. The manufactured articles exported are duck, linen, and leather. The Baltic trade is transacted at Petersburg and Riga, and there is some commerce at Archangel on the White Sea. There is considerable traffic with Persia by the Caspian Sea, and with Turkey by the Black Sea. The Baltic trade is the most active. In 1829, the imports of St Petersburg amounted to 149,135,403 rubles, and the exports to 107,428,928 rubles.

33. MANUFACTURES. The chief manufactures are duck, linen, leather, soap, and isinglass. There are also fabrics of silk, woolen, cotton, hats, iron, and fire-arms. The distillation of brandy, and the refining of sugar are carried on largely. The manufactured articles in 1824, were valued at 117,616,734 rubles.

34. FISHERIES. The inland fishes upon the Ural, Volga, and other streams of the Caspian, are considerable. They furnish the materials for the manufacture of caviar and isinglass.

35. POPULATION, REVENUE, &c. No regular census was taken of the inhabitants of this country, previous to 1829, when the population of the European part of Russia, was found to be 43,700,000.* The revenue of the whole Russian Empire is 52,000,000 dollars, the debt 200,000,000 dollars. 36. ARMY AND NAVY. Russia maintains a peace establishment of 600,000 men; and in war the army exceeds 1,000,000. The army is maintained by conscription: the legal time of service is 25 years. The navy is inconsiderable, hardly exceeding a dozen large ships.

37. HISTORY. Russia did not acquire importance as an independent state, till the 15th century. Before this period its sovereigns were often in a state of vassalage to the Tartan Khans. Peter the Great laid the first permanent foundation of the Russian power, and introduced civilization and military disci

* The population of the whole Russian Empire was estimated in 1823, at 59,263,700.

pline early in the 18th century, Catherine augmented the empire by the partition of Poland, and the acquisition of territory from the Turks. The limits of the empire were farther extended at the close of the 18th century, and Russia became one of the chief military powers of Europe. She joined the coalition against revolutionary France, but the victories of Napoleon for a while checked her power. The sovereignty of the continent was divided between France and Russia. Napoleon attempted to crush his rival, and the disastrous issue of the Russian campaign shook the foundation of his own empire. The decline of the French power brought the armies of Russia into the west of Europe, extended her territorial limits, and developed her military strength. Russia is at the present day the most powerful empire of the world.

CHAPTER LXXXVIII. - GENERAL VIEW OF EUROPE.

1. BOUNDARIES AND EXTENT. Europe is bounded north by the Arctic or Frozen Ocean, east by Asia, south by the Caspian and Black Seas, the Archipelago, and the Mediterranean, and west by the Atlantic Ocean. It extends from 36° 23' to 71° 11' N. lat., and from 30 8' east to 9° 18′ W. lon. It is estimated to contain 3,387,019 square miles.

2. SEAS AND GULFS. The Mediterranean, which separates Europe from Africa, is nearly 2,000 miles in length from east to west, with a breadth vary ing from 80 to 800. It communicates with the Atlantic, by the Straits of Gibraltar which are 8 miles in width. The Adriatic and Archipelago are branches of the Mediterranean. The Black Sea forms part of the boundary between Europe and Asia. It is 932 miles in length, and 380 in width and communicates with the Mediterranean through the Sea of Marmora and the Archipelago. Its shores are low. The Sea of Azof is a branch of the Black Sea. The Caspian touches upon the southeastern limit of Europe. The North Sea or German Ocean, lies between the eastern coast of Great Britain and the continent. The Baltic separates Sweden from Russia and Prussia; it is above 600 miles in length, and from 75 to 150 miles wide, and communicates with the German Ocean by the Sound, Scagerack, and Cattegat. The Gulf of Bothnia is an arm of the Baltic, extending northerly between

Sweden and Finland 350 miles, with a breadth of 50 to 140. It is frozen so hard during winter, that travellers cross it from Sweden to Finland in rein

deer sledges. The Gulf of Finland is a smaller arm of the Baltic. The White Sea communicates with the Frozen Ocean, and lies for the most part within the Arctic circle.

3. MOUNTAINS. The most elevated districts are Switzerland and Savoy. In the more level countries in the east, the mountains rise in insulated groups, while in the southern and central parts, from Ætna to the Hartz, and Gibraltar to the Black Sea, all the mountains belong to one great connected system. 4. CLIMATE. The greater part of Europe is within the northern temperate One twelfth of its surface extends within the Arctic circle. In respect to temperature it may be divided into 4 zones; the Arctic, Cold, Temperate and Warm. The Arctic district lies north of 65°. The Cold district lies between 650 and 55°. The Temperate between 55° and 45°, and the Warm district south of 45.

Zone.

5. FACE OF THE COUNTRY. The greater part of Europe is mountainous, but the mountains of the south far exceed those of the north, both in number and height. A wide plain extends from the mouth of the Rhine over the whole of northern Germany, and the greater part of Poland, to the foot of the Uralian mountains. If the waters of the Atlantic Ocean were raised 1600 feet above their present level, the whole of northern Europe except the mountainous parts of Norway and Scotland, would be submerged, while southern Europe being higher than the level of the inundation, would form one or two large and lofty islands.

6. ANIMALS.* The Wild Bull is chiefly to be met with in the extensive forests of Lithuania. It is black and of great size; the eyes are red and fiery; the horns thick and short and the forehead covered with a quantity of curled hair. This animal greatly resembles the tame kind.

The Mouflon is considered as a link between the sheep and goat, resembling both of them. It is found in Greece, Sardinia, Corsica, and Tartary. It is strong and muscular, and runs with great agility over the most dangerous precipices. It is very timid and seldom taken alive.

The Goat is very abundant in Great Britain; and the north of England and Scotland are much resorted to for the purpose of drinking the milk, which is of great benefit to invalids. In the mountainous parts of Europe the goat supplies the natives with many of the necessaries of life.

The Iber inhabits the highest Alps, and is found also in Candia, it is very wild and the chase of it is attended with great danger.

The Chamois is very abundant in the mountainous parts of Europe, where it is found in flocks among the rocks. The hunting of this animal is very laborious and difficult, but followed with great ardor by the hunters, who frequently lose their lives in the pursuit.

The Elk is the largest and most formidable of the deer kind of Europe. It inhabits the northern parts. It is seven or eight feet high, and its horns are of a large size. It is timid and inoffensive, and runs with great swiftness in a high shambling kind of trot.

The Reindeer, inhabits the northern regions of Europe, and is of the greatest importance to the inhabitants, particularly to the Laplanders, who derive from it all the necessaries of life.

* The native animals of Europe are not very numerous nor greatly varied in their kinds; many, however, have been introduced from other countries. The horse which was brought from Arabia, has by cultivation and education been here carried to its greatest refinement. In England more attention has been paid to the subject than elsewhere. The three kinds of horses best known in this country are the Race horse, the Hunter andthe Carriage horse. It is a curious circumstance, that in the mixture of all these races, the influence of the Arab blood is observable. The Persian, Barbary and Turkish horses are those which come nearest to the Arabian in conformation, and qualities, and the Spanish horses long enjoyed a high character in Europe, probably from the breed being kept up by the intermixture of horses from Barbary. In France are numerous varieties, and most of them are serviceable animals. The other European races it would be impossible to enumerate.