ry9z- —=s— etter from Marlinspike. 68 
as fhe is on asummer cruise. We then edged away 
to the northward, and coasted along a fine hewn gra- 
nite quay, for two knots at least, then tacked from the 
riverto the south, and kept the fautalke canal on board, 
_ (lined with the same granite,) till we brought up 
in the Mechanfke ; (d—n their hard names !) where 
all hands went to work, and made up for our long 
run by full allowance in good moorings. 
In the evening watch we went to hear Facky Dob- 
ro* jaw and sing in a wondrous fine house, where 
there was a large empty birth kept for the Czarina, 
_drefsed out with gold bound velvet, and silk cur- 
_ tains with gold halliards, such as I never saw in my 
born days, not even on board the admiral ;—then 
_ the awning over head was so fringed and bespangled, 
that we could scarce see the play for looking at 
it. But there was the lefs lofs, as we did not un- 
derstand their lingo ;—they sung, though, a good 
stick, and hugged Moll and Sue by the glafs. But 
the best of all came at last, in what they called a 
ballet, when they footed it away in three tiers, and 
kicked up such a breeze, as did one’s heart good to 
see them ; but a couple of hands in the middle were 
the funniest of all, who rolled on their under works 
from side to side, like a fhip in a heavy sea, and 
‘then whirled round like a water spout to the music 
in the stern gallery. We saw here a number of 
smart looking frigates ; but they were all so devilith- 
ly painted, that we were afraid to hail them, 
® Jacky Dobro is the cant name of English sailors for the Rufsians. 
