264 A SUMMER ON THE YENESEI 



courses, with a dessert of nuts and chocolate creams. 

 We had stchee and macaroni pudding, and lastly a blanc- 

 mange made of fruit juice. The feast was notable, 

 because nobody was expected to speak. Unless he 

 really had something to say, he could keep silence, 

 and was under no obligation to manufacture such 

 small talk as passes current at European dinner- 

 parties. We were very grateful for this custom, for 

 Madame Anton off was too busy for conversation, the 

 exiled student was painfully shy, and none of us dared 

 to open a discussion with the pope, whose cassock and 

 spectacles were both rather awe-inspiring. However, 

 towards the end of the meal, the latter leaned forward 

 and inquired whether we came from London. We 

 answered that we did, whereupon he wanted to know 

 how^ large London was. Was it, for instance, larger than 

 Ostend ? He had heard so, but could scarcely believe 

 it, and was it really built on both banks of the Thames ? 



We told him that London was rather larger than 

 Ostend, and drew an elaborate diagram on the table- 

 cloth to show its exact relation to the Thames. The 

 pope seemed agreeably surprised, and remarked : "I 

 have always understood that the English nation was 

 very cold and stiff, but these women surpass even the 

 French in vivacity ! " 



On the following day, which was Sunday, the pope 

 held a service in the church. Gerasim Androvitch 

 made it his business to collect a congregation. Early 

 in the morning he went over to the remaining chooms, 

 and by dint of bribes and threats, he gathered together 

 about a dozen natives of all ages, and drove them off 



