ST. PETERSBURG*. 



93 



such at has occurred, will probably decide the battle 

 against the capital of the Czars. But for more than a 

 century and a half Peter's plans have beat the Neva's 

 stream. 



Upwards of 600 streets cover the surface of the morass, 

 12,000 public and private conveyances drive over it, 

 11,000 shops and stalls adorn it, and half a million of 

 people live upon it. 



But, alas 1 the morass has so far its triumphs. If a 

 pit is dug in any part of the town, three feet deep, the 

 water oozes from its sides and bottom. This probably 

 affects the health of the population, as the deaths every 

 year exceed the births by 8,000. 



Knowing the admiration which most travellers have 

 expressed for St. Petersburg, I &in almost afraid to 

 acknowledge my great disappointment with it. It by 

 no means came up to what I expected irom the descrip- 

 tion I had read, or the " illustrations ' I had seen 

 of it. 



The finest view, I think, is from the centre of the 

 Admiralty, in that grand open space where 100,000 men 

 may be manoeuvred. In front is the Nevskoi Prospect, 

 one of the widest, streets in Europe, and stretching in a 

 straight line for three miles. To the left is the noble 

 Alexander column, flanked on one side by the Winter and 

 Hermitage Palaces, and on the other by the handsome 

 quadrant of public offices, opening by a large arch into 

 streets beyond, having on its summit a car of victory. 

 The extreme right of the view, and of the place, if 



