34 FIRST TRIP TO RUSSIA 



to have a bath. Even a last -joined subaltern is saluted 

 by every policeman he meets, and is superior to many 

 rules and regulations that annoy men in mufti. I remember 

 on one occasion that a dog belonging to the special 

 correspondent of The Times, got severely bitten by another 

 dog, because it was unable to defend itself, owing to the 

 fact that it was muzzled, agreeably to the municipal orders 

 of St. Petersburg, although its opponent had no muzzle. 

 The Times man complained to the authorities, but could get 

 no redress, because the aggressor was an officer's tyke, and 

 was consequently a privileged personage. Talking of dogs 

 reminds me of Russian greyhounds, a beautiful specimen of 

 which breed is shown in Fig. 10. 



Russian tradesmen, with the fear of getting themselves 

 disliked, are very loath to take proceedings for the recovery 

 of debt against gentlemen in uniform, whose long-windedness 

 would astonish even the most patient of West End tailors. 

 Besides, Russian military authorities view with lenient eyes 

 indebtedness among their officers. In the German army, on 

 the contrary, the principle that an officer should pay his way 

 is maintained as strictly as it is in our service. In Russia, 

 uniform is worth a lot of money. There, the great ambition 

 of officers after they leave the service is to be allowed to wear 

 their uniform, without which, as a rule, they would be unable 

 to maintain the position of a gentleman. In fact, official rank 

 is practically the only recognised claim to social standing. 

 The only Russian title of nobility is knyaz, which would best 

 be translated into English by the word "lord." Its accepted 

 translation of "prince" is absolutely incorrect; because its 

 possession implies no connection with royalty. The proper 

 synonym for our word "prince" is Valiki Knyaz or Grand 

 Duke. In Russia, ordinary princes are cheap. They tell 

 me that in the Caucasus the ownership of five sheep confers 

 the title of knyaz. 



