TO RUSSIA AND BACK, 5 
by a cross, which may serve the newly-arrived stranger as 
a landmark from all parts of the city. Pigeons make it 
their home, semi-wild ones of domestic origin, like those 
which in London frequent the British Museum, the Houses 
of Parliament, and Somerset House. Crowds of House 
Martins had gathered on the Winter Palace. The pert 
Jackdaw was also there, and the ever-present Sparrow, the 
same as in England. 
Those who are not pressed for time when they have done 
the principal sights, not forgetting the Hermitage and 
Peter the Great’s House, ought to take steamer to Peterhof 
Palace. One of the rooms is panelled from skirting-board 
to ceiling with 368 portraits of girls, all selected for their 
beauty; besides this singular collection there are other 
things in the palace worth seeing. A fire had just taken 
place at this suburb when IJ was there, and nearly two 
acres of houses had been burnt down, but the Russians are 
too much accustomed to this sort of thing to think much 
of two acres of wooden houses. Great precautions are 
taken in the city by building lofty watch-towers, from 
which, by means of a.system of hoisting balls, alarm can 
be given in case of fire. 
The, streets are spacious but badly paved; they are 
covered with snow half the year, and I suppose the in- 
habitants do not think it worth while paving them any 
better. Many of them are of wood, which is delightfully 
easy to drive on in your “droski” when new, but wears out 
very soon, without an upper coating of asphalt. They are 
well lighted with gas, and there is nothing prettier than to 
lean on the parapet of St. Nicholas’ Bridge, and look up 
the river at the two long rows of lamps reflected in the 
water. 
There is a garden on the Vassili Ostrof which is used in 
summer as a market for live birds, rabbits, snakes, lizards, 
tortoises, shells, etc. Here I saw, besides sundry birds 
