MURRAY'S HANDBOOK FOR RUSSIA.* Two books may be said without
exaggeration to form the English- man's library,—the Peerage when he is at home, Murray when he travels. But though our weekly and even our daily-and-monthly satirists tell us that the red book has brought the travelling Eng- lish into general disrepute, we believe the sarcasm is rather far- fetched, and the rule has many exceptions. Other nations that travel are equally thrown on their guides. The German Baedeker is even redder than Murray. Indeed German caricaturists repre- sent their travelling countryman as turning to the pages of his handbook at every new picture, or statue, or waterfall, and exclaim- ing, "Has it a star (*) in Baedeker? because if not, I shall not look at it." The French are equally attached to Joanne, and enliven the tedium of a journey through splendid scenery by reading him aloud. "Comment, Monsieur, comprenez-vous Joanne ?" asked a Gaul incredulously, when we offered to find him the place we were passing ; and when the index enabled us to put our finger at once upon the place, in spite of its being our first introduction to Joanne, the Frenchman was struck with astonishment at our mastering so difficult a book at sight.
There are some features in this Handbook for Russia which are to be much commended. We confess that the author's name makes the book more trustworthy, and the assistance of various gentlemen is openly acknowledged in the preface. Albert Smith's story of the man who used to enter his name in the book of each hotel as "John Murray," and found that it ensured him the best of everything at the lowest charges, would not have the same chance of applying if each handbook had its responsible author, or the whole series its responsible editor. It is also, in some sense, a good idea to entrust the composition of a hand- book to a member of the diplomatic service. The celebrated passage in Bacon's Essay on Travel tells us that, "as for the acquaintance which is to be sought, that which is most of all profitable is acquaintance with the secretaries and employed men of ambassadors, for so in travelling in one country he shall suck the experience of many." The diplomatist has no doubt more opportunities than the common traveller, he is leas liable to be hoodwinked, and he has always a chance of checking his own im- pressions by reference to his companions. His only danger is pro- fessional arrogance. He is apt to look down on every-day travellers, for whom a Murray ought to be written, and to consult the tastes of his own branch of the public service, to the entire ex- clusion of the public. Knowing all the ways of a place, without
• Handbook for Traveufrs in Russia, Poland, and Finland. New Edition. London. Murray. leC5.
any regard for its people, he warns off travellers from what may be interesting ground to every one but himself. The attaché in Italy who is devoted to French music will tell your musical traveller that there is nothing to be heard at the opera, because the stupid impresario gives Rossini instead of Boieldieu. But even when no personal prejudices interfere, the traditions of the service may stand in their stead. One of our ambassadors used to commend. an hotel by stating that Lord Malmesbury had stopped at it, as if any man with a regard for his own style and powers of perception would not carefully avoid an atmosphere which might still be charged with the noble Lord's despatches. We notice one or two similar phrases in this Handbook, where the author tells us that the Queen's messengers alight at a certain hotel, or where he indulges in good-humoured chaff about "soup-tickets." This is just the chaff it would be most easy to retort, as we have known cases where these tickets did not lead to admittance. But after a careful perusal of the book, we believe these two expressions are the sole evidences of its diplomatic origin, and it is written in the largest sense for the general public.
In his preface Mr. Michell complains of the difficulty of collect- ing the materials for the Handbook, and we cannot justly blame him if on many points his information is rather scanty. A guide- book, as a rule, ought not to be pleasant reading, for if it is the traveller is tempted not to see things for himself, but to trust to second-hand description. One of the reasons why so few impres- sions of Switzerland are genuine is, that a man's enthusiasm is mapped out beforehand ; he knows just what he has to see, and he sees it without surprise or freshness of sensation. If a curious letter is fully described and quoted in the guide-book, a man who is visiting the library where it is kept does not look at it half as long as he otherwise would, because he can read it in print and at his leisure. On the other hand, it may be said that but for the guide-book he would not look at it at all, and probably but for the full account in the guide-book he could give no idea of it to his friends at home. This may be true with some travellers, and of course it is true as regards anything that needs translation. The following passage will be equally acceptable to the stranger on the spot, the friends to whom he recounts his journey, the intending visitor, and the fireside reader :—
" At the door of this gallery, to the right on entering, observe a green curtain drawn over a tablet. It conceals the rules which Catherina enforced at her oonversazioni in the Hermitage, which begins here. The following is a translation of those rules :-1. Leave your rank outside, as well as your hat, and especially your sword-2. Leave your right of precedence, your pride, and any similar feeling, outside the door.-3. Be gay, but do not spoil anything ; do not break or gnaw anything.-4. Sit, stand, walk as you will, without reference to anybody.-6. Talk mode- rately and not very loud, so as not to make the ears and heads of others ache.-6. Argue without anger and without excitement.-7. Neither sigh nor yawn, nor make anybody dull or heavy.-8. In all innocent games, whatever one proposes, let all join.-9. Eat whatever is sweet and savoury, but drink with moderation, so that each may find his legs on leaving the room.-10. Tell no tales out of school ; whatever goes in at one ear must go out at the other before leaving the room.—A trans- gressor against these rules shall, on the testimony of two witnesses, for every offence drink a glass of cold water, not excepting the ladies, and further read a page of the Telemaohiade* aloud.—Whoever breaks any three of these rules during the same evening shall commit six lines of the Tekmachiade to memory.—And whoever offends against the tenth rule shall not again be admitted."
The present visitor at the Hermitage will be not a little grateful to the Handbook for the news that morning dress suffices. For- merly the picture gallery had to be honoured by evening costume, just as Mr. Sala tells us that morning calls had to be paid in the execrable tail-coat. Other improvements in Russia are casually mentioned. One of no small signifibance to an Englishman is that "the Handbook need no longer be concealed." So far from concealment being necessary, you are requested to show it, for on visiting the palace at Moscow "the exhibition of this Handbook will be a sufficient introduction to the porter in scarlet, who will detach one of the imperial servants on the duty of showing the palace." But in describing this palace, Mr. Michell has omitted to state that when Nicholas received bread and salt from the people, according to Russian custom, in the new palace, the number of those it contained at one time amounted to more than 20,000. He has overlooked the litter in which Charles XIL was carried at the battle of Pultowa in his account of the arsenal. While dwelling on the red staircase he has not told us that Demetrius the Impostor was slain there by the populace, and he has forgotten one curious fact which connects the same place with Ivan the Terrible. A prince who had been sentenced to death by that Czar had fled to Poland, and from thence had written to the Sovereign, setting forth all the crimes and atrocities of his reign. Ivan received the messenger on • By Tretiakolsicy, an unfortunate natire poet, whom muse was thus reviled.
the red staircase, and held him there while he listened to the letter bfboring a hole through the man's foot with his pointed staff, which is still preserved in the armoury. The Czar's reply to the fugitive prince is equally curious :—" Why dost thou, wretched man," he wrote, "rush into perdition of soul to save thy perish- able body ? Why wilt thou not suffer death from me, thy severe ruler, and earn the crown of martyrdom? What is life, what the wealth and fame of this world ?" Apparently Ivan the Terrible thought martyrdom, like mercy, blessing him that gives and him that takes. Mr. Michell has another story about him, which may be placed by the side of this :—
"Alongside of this tomb is that of 'the sainted Nicholas Sales the Idiot,' who saved Pskof from the fury of John the Terrible in the following manner:—Having persuaded the citizens to present bread and salt to the angry Tsar immediately after mass, he rode about on a stick like a child, constantly repeating, 'Johnny, Johnny, eat the bread and salt, and not the blood of Christians.' The Tsar ordered him tote seized, but the saint suddenly vanished. John the Terrible, struck with awe, entered the cathedral with all meekness, where he was met by the clergy carrying the holy crosses. Another version is that Nicholas offered the Tsar a piece of raw meat. I am a Christian,' said John the Terrible, and do not eat meat in Lent.'—' But thou drinkest the blood of Christians,' replied the saint."
About the most interesting parts of the Handbook are the sketches of the Fair at Nijni Novgorod, the Foundling Hospital at Moscow, and the Russia Company, with the history of inter- course between England and Russia. The Russian cuisine has of course a full and honourable mention. After the appetite has been excited by caviare, raw herrings, smoked salmon, and radishes, washed down by a nip of raw spirits, you sit down to a cold iced soup of kvas (a beverage made of fermented rye), with pieces of herring, cucumber, and :neat floating in it, or a very good cabbage soup, with sour cream. Next come patties of the isinglass and flesh of the sturgeon, very much like muffins with fish ; then a dish of fish and cabbage, then cold boiled sucking-pig, with horse- radish sauce, and roast mutton stuffed with buck-wheat. In the matter of drinks let us hear Mr. Michell :— " With reference to wines and drinks, it is indispensable, for the sake of harmony and comparison, to order nothing but what is produced on Russian soil. The sherry of the Crimea is a very tolerable brown sherry ; the imitations of Bordeaux and Champagne are better than many inferior marks of the genuine article. Prince Woronzoff's wines are highly recommended. The wine of the Caucasus comes in very appropriately as a Burgundy. Be sure to ask for Kahetinsk* a very sound and pure wine. The ladies will be pleased with Gumbrinskod, a pleasant sweet wine, grown in the Gumbri district of the Caucasus. The Champagne of the Don, Donskoe Champansko6, very often appears on Russian tables disguised as Clicquot and is really a very potable wine ; all the sparkling wines of the Crimea have a slight taste of apples, and the others have the goat du terroir. But besides the wines, there are several delicious beverages, under the denomination of kvas. Order Iablochni kvas, or cider ; Grushevoi kvas, or perry ; Malinovoi, or raspberry kvas. The best, however, of all, is perhaps the goblet of cool Lompopo, the recipe of which is supposed to have travelled from the Baltic provinces. There is excellent beer to be had at St. Peters- burg. Cazalet's pale ale is almost equal to English draught ale. At Moscow Danielson's ' beer is alone drunk. Mead is likewise very pleasant to the taste. All these drinks are served in old silver tankards and mugs of German work."
Perhaps there is a slight amount of pro-Russianism in some of these statements. It is difficult for an outsider to believe that the climate of Russia is as delightful as Mr. Michell tells us, or that 25 deg,s. below zero of Reaumur (24 degs. below zero of Fahrenheit) is very pleasant and exhilarating, when unaccompanied by wind. If we were hardy enough to put up with this degree of cold, we should agree with Mr. Michell that winter is the most appropriate season for travelling in Russia, especially as we have met with that sentiment before in Rousseau's Emile. We con- fess that the accounts of sport in Russia and Finland are very tempting. There is not only abundance of small game, but bears are found in considerable numbers, and have been on the increase for some years. Bears, elks, and wolves are often shot within forty miles of St. Petersburg, and hares are so plentiful near the capital as scarcely to afford any sport. In Finland the fishing is very good; trout abound, and being powerful fish, with a strong current to back them, need a long line and strong gut. Up to the
middle of July, says the guide-book, 20 and 30 lb. maybe killed in a day.
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