plates hanging from it, one before and the other behind; the whole apparatus weighing between seven and eight pounds. It was riveted on, and had in some places eaten into the flesh. He had put it on by way of penance for having deserted his family, and he begged earnestly that it might not be taken off. This, however, was done; and when he was afterwards asked if he should wish it to be given back to him, he said, “No; that there would be no merit in wearing it now, since everybody knew of it." As he was not permitted to become a monk, his next request was, that he might be appointed to tend the cattle and sheep in the field, in order that he might not be shocked by the language and profane songs of the other peasants. This request was complied with, but I cannot say whether he has become reconciled to his situation. He is a singular, but at the same time evidently a very sincere enthusiast. The conversation about this poor man has naturally produced a variety of stories bearing a resemblance more or less to his case. The following is one of these anecdotes. Some years ago a peasant named Peter ran away from Krasnoe, and was not heard of for three years, when one day a man was brought to the village by the police as the runaway. Some doubt was expressed by various people as to the identity of the new comer, but he insisted that he was Peter. The fact was confirmed by his wife and his father, as well as by others who had known him formerly, and the point was at last admitted. The man lived at home with his wife for about a fortnight, but he behaved so ill, that it was determined to make a soldier of him,—a most terrible punishment in the eyes of a Russian peasant. Before, however, the threat could be carried into effect, the man again absconded, and was not seen for about a month, when he had the impudence to appear at Krasnoe at a village feast, to share in the amusements of the day. In the mean time his real character had been discovered, namely, that he was a deserter from the army, who had become acquainted with a brother of the runaway peasant in prison, where he had learned some particulars of his history, with the addition that he was in person somewhat like himself; on the strength of which information he had grounded his imposture. When, therefore, he appeared at the feast he was immediately apprehended, and the next morning sent off to prison. He, however, said he had escaped out of gaol a dozen times before, and should do so again, Whether he kept his word I do not know; but it is a singular fact that the true Peter returned home the same night that the impostor was conveyed to prison. How far he was pleased to hear of the temporary usurpation of his conjugal and domestic rights I have not been told. Ꭰ LETTER V. The blessing of the waters-Visit to Grouzine - Visit to Velmogie Greyhounds and harriers — Wolf-hunting — Hare-hunt - Russian sporting Varieties of the hare Overturn in a gig - Hay harvest - Corn harvest Agricultural implements - Anecdotes of Souvaroff. Krasnoe, September 1st, 1837. SINCE I wrote to you last we have been paying some visits, of which you will probably like to have an account. I will, however, begin my letter by relating a curious ceremony, that of blessing the waters, which we witnessed here, and which is performed everywhere in Russia on the 13th (or, according to their style, the 1st) of August and the 18th (or, as they consider it, the 6th) of January. The ceremony on the 1st of August is in commemoration of the death of the Virgin Mary, and a fast of fourteen days commences with the month. About ten o'clock in the morning, at the conclusion of mass in the church, the priest, followed by the congregation, came down to the piece of water below the garden. He himself bore the cross, while two banners belonging to the church, adorned with sacred devices, were also carried at the head of the procession. A service was then performed: that part of the fifth chapter of St. John which relates to the pool of Bethesda, being read as a lesson; and the priest, standing upon a small platform, reverentially dipped the cross three times in the lake, after which he sprinkled the people around with the water thus consecrated, and the procession then returned to the church. The greater part of the people, however, remained at the edge of the water, which, from their proceedings, might have been supposed to be now endowed with the miraculous virtues of the pool of Bethesda. Horses were brought down from every side, and compelled to swim in the lake. Women dipped their babies in the water. Young men, girls, and boys dashed in, and swam about in every direction, all, except a few little children, retaining their clothes. The girls appeared to swim quite as well as the boys. The day was luckily bright and fine for the exhibition of this singular scene. On the 14th we went to spend two or three days at Grouzine, a place some thirty miles hence, belonging to an uncle of M-'s, General Constantine Poltoratzky, from a second visit to whom we only returned two days ago. Constantine Markitch-as he is called-is one of the most agreeable men I ever met with, and I can readily believe he is universally popular. His lady and his son were old acquaintances, as we had dined with them in Petersburg a few days after our arrival. The former was a Princess Galitzin, and is descended, through her mother, from the kings of Georgia, her greatgrandfather having been the last who sat upon the throne from which he was driven by the Russians. His son, Madame Poltoratzky's grandfather, attempted to regain his crown, but was overcome and thrown into prison, where he died, and his grandson, her uncle, enjoys the empty title of Prince of Georgia, with large estates in Russia, given to the family in lieu of their lost dominions.* The house is large and handsome, and the garden upon which it looks is extensive and well laid out, with a piece of water running through it. Here we spent two days much as they might have been spent in a large English country-house, except that we dined at four and supped at eleven. The whole establishment is on a very handsome footing, with all appliances for making a visit in the house agreeable. Nothing could exceed the kindness of our reception; we repeated our visit the following week, and before we came away we promised our host and hostess, after we leave Krasnoe, to spend a short time with them at Yaroslav, of which province the General is Governor. * (Note to Second Edition.)-"No other princely family can trace back its genealogy to the ninth century of our era; the Bagratides occupied the Georgian throne, in one unbroken line, from the sixth century. . . . At the beginning of this century they resigned the throne in favour of Russia, and now reside chiefly at Moscow or St. Petersburg, where they retain the semblance of royal honours."-Baron von Haxthausen's Transcaucasia,' chap. iv. On the 23rd we went to visit another uncle, about sixty miles hence, at a place called Velmogie. We travelled all the way with the same horses. The road was exceedingly bad, and when we reached our journey's end we found we had, from ignorance of the route, made a détour of seven or eight miles. That we had done so was not wonderful, as villages were few and far between, and our road was, in some places, a mere turf track through brushwood. At one spot, where we had to cross a small river, we found the bridge out of repair, no parapets, and only a road over it just wide enough for the wheels to pass. Russian coachmen, however, manage to drive heavy carriages through roads and over places which we in England should consider impracticable for wheels, and we met with no disasters. Being obliged to bait the horses on the road, we stopped at a village about half-way, and in default of an inn we put our horses in the priest's stable, and bought from him hay and corn. Our luncheon, which we had brought with us, we ate in the carriage, to avoid taking meat into a priest's house during a fast. The morning after our arrival at Velmogie we found our windows looking out upon ornamental ground, laid out in excellent taste. The garden was pretty, the trees and shrubs judiciously planted, and there was a handsome piece of water which had the effect of a river. The chief fault was the error common in this country of having more grass than can be kept neat and well mown. The great beauty of the place, however, arose from the ornamental ground extending beyond the garden, which in Russia is rarely seen. The view from the house is bounded by a natural bank, which lies covered with wood in a very happy position, so as to shut out a bare and ugly tract of country, while it encloses between itself and the garden a very pretty sweep of cultivated land. This bank is laid out in walks, and at the end of it, on a small elevation above the water, is built, among the trees, a small Grecian temple, which contains a family monument, and which forms a very handsome point of view from the house. The kitchen-garden and hot-house abounded in fruit; gooseberries and currants, of which the crop was enormous, raspberries and strawberries, besides cherries, which were very fine, grapes, melons, and |