20 POEESTEY in eastern RUSSIA. 



sculptor went abroad in search of a model, he went to 

 discover beauty, and not to search out defects, and he 

 often found the eye, or mouth, or nose, of beauty, in faces 

 otherwise homely enough. Unlike the Greek sculptor, 

 the modern critic (and traveller too, for that matter) very 

 often goes about in search of something to find fault with. 

 So far as we are concerned, we have not a single atom of 

 sympathy with this sort of thing. With all the homeli- 

 ness, then, and rudeness of the .outUne of the Russian 

 peasant's countenance, the idea you get from it is that of 

 "rest" and "gentleness," things most beautiful and 

 excellent in themselves, upon which, no doubt, the educa- 

 tion his children are sure to receive will improve. They 

 are a quiet and soft-speaking people, taking an occasional 

 turn at the " tantrums," in way of relief, just as quiet and 

 soft-speaking people in other countries sometimes do. 



' Here are also a number of soldiers, bound for some 

 remote military station, and having charge of a number 

 of huge bales, with the Red Cross badge sewed on them, 

 belonging to that beneficent guild. Poor fellows ! they 

 are poorly clad, and miserably nourished ; if they were 

 only meat-fed like their English confreres, they would be 

 a little less high in the bone, and upon the whole good- 

 looking men. We spoke to two of them, and asked a few 

 questions. When engaged on extra duty, like the 

 present, they received ten kopecks a day, just about two- 

 pence-halfpenny, and on that they had to live, or rather, 

 let us say, exist. We gave one of them some silver 

 money, and his gratitude was profuse. Captain Rickard 

 asked him what he would do with it. " Oh," said he, " I 

 shall go first and have ' Tchi,' " — that is, a few glasses of 

 tea. I gave another soldier half-a-dozen apples ; he 

 received them with open arms, went to his haversack and 

 pulled out a piece of black bread, and having sprinkled a 

 pinch of salt over it, sat down, crossed himself thrice, 

 saying grace, and had, what was to him, and indeed to 

 any unfastidious person, a hearty meal. When all was 

 consumed he crossed himself again, thus giving thanks. 



