488 R U S 
their property, and invent a thousand excuses. But it is 
chiefly the vassals of the poor nobles, whose case calls for 
sympathy and commiseration. The necessities of their lords, 
when combined with avarice or rapacity, reduce humanity 
to the most abject condition. It is not merely in respect of 
money that the peasants are oppressed. The time fixed by 
law which they ought to have for tilling their own land, 
and managing their own affairs, is directly encroached 
upon, or almost altogether taken up with their master’s work. 
Themselves, their wives, their children, and their horses, 
are continually occupied in labouring for their lords, or in 
advancing some favourite scheme. These oppressions are 
sometimes contrary to the laws of their country; but the 
laws generally are a dead letter, since a peasant cannot quit 
the estate without his master’s permission. And if he had 
reached the courts of justice, and complained of his lord, his 
attorney would obtain a present or a bribe from the latter 
and thus the affair would terminate. The peasants, when 
dreadfully oppressed, sometimes become exasperated, and 
sacrifice their tyrannical masters, in the the same way as 
the nobles sacrifice their sovereigns. More frequently, 
however, this is the lot of cruel stewards. The irritated 
boors unite in a body; the oppressor is murdered, and no 
single individual is responsible. 
At the time of Porter’s residence in Russia, a gentleman, 
having by some severities incurred the hatred of his slaves, 
who were employed in a distillery, they seized him one day 
and threw him into a large boiler of hot spirits. The mur¬ 
der was not discovered for some days; ten or fifteen of the 
perpetrators were knouted and banished for life to Siberia. 
Some of the lords also make unjust demands upon the 
sheep, the calves, the hens, the chickens, the eggs, the milk, 
the cream, and the vegetables of their peasants ; and at times 
they contrive that their people shall make presents of these 
articles to them The starost, or elder of the village, know¬ 
ing the wants of his master, counsels the vassals to offer of 
their own accord what they know may be taken from them. 
Sometimes less ceremony is used, and an order is sent to 
each peasant of a village to produce forty or fifty eggs, that 
his lord may have abundance to prepare for the grand 
festival at Easter; when, according to the custom of the 
country, boiled and stained eggs are presented to friends. 
Even the coarse linen, which is made by most of the females 
in the village, is sometimes shamefully pillaged, or asked un¬ 
der various pretences. The lot of the peasants of the richer 
nobles, as those of most of the Sheremetefs, the Galitzins, 
the Dolgorukis, the Orlofs, &c. seems to be much envied 
by common people. If the nobleman is benevolent, his 
slaves are happy ; for by him they are fed, clothed, and 
lodged. In sickness they are attended, and in old age are 
supported at his expense. 
Authors who have considered the Russian people under the 
natural division of races, have adopted the following classifi¬ 
cation :— 
1st. Sclavonians. These, comprehending the inhabi¬ 
tants of Russia, Poland, Lithuania, and Courland, are esti¬ 
mated at 44,930,000. 
2d. Fins. These consist of the chief residents of Finland, 
Livonia, Lapland, and some other tribes, which together 
amount to about 2,360,000. 
3d. Tartars. They comprehend several tribes, and a 
great number of sub-divisions of tribes. The Tartars proper 
are divided into fourteen different branches; the Noggiers 
into six ; besides which are the Kirgusiens, the Aralians, the 
Chewensens, the Bucharens, the Bashirs, the Teleutes, and 
the Jakutes, who are taken together at 1,800,000. 
4th. The Caucasians, which comprehend the Ischer- 
kessens, the Aucheses, the Lesghies, the Ossetts, and Kis- 
tenses, estimated at 1,300,000. 
5th. Monguls. Under this head are comprehended the 
Monguls proper, the Kalmucks, the Buritens, and the Kuri¬ 
les,. supposed to amount to 350,000 only. 
6th. The Mandshurs, in two branches, viz. Tungusens 
and Lamutes, whose numbers do not exceed 80,000. 
SI A. 
7th. Polar People, comprehending Samoiedes, Koijacks, 
Ostjacks, Kamschats, and some smaller tribes, whose whole 
numbers are not more than 300,000. 
8th. The Colonists. These include the various foreigners 
established in the empire with peculiar rights. The Jews 
amount to about 500,000; the Germans to 250,000; and 
the other Europeans and Asiatics to about 750,000; making 
together, under this head, 1,500,000. 
Of the foregoing divisions the first four only are worthy of 
particular notice. Of the Sclavonians , the Russians, Malo- 
Russians, and Poles, are the most remarkable. The pecu¬ 
liarities of the Russians have received all the consideration 
our limits allow. Of the Poles we have spoken fully under 
Poland. It may be remarked, that in Moscow, Petersburgh, 
and the large cities of the empire, the distinction of races is 
scarcely apparent; it is only in the country that original 
distinctions are forcibly marked. 
The governments of Kiew, Novgorod, Peversky and some 
parts of Polish Ukraine formerly constituted Little Russia. 
Though sprung from the same race as the other Russians, the 
inhabitants of Little Russia had not much intercourse with 
their countrymen. They long formed a distinct republic, 
and were divided into regiments and companies, each com¬ 
pany having its chief place and its captain. They called 
themselves Tciierkasses or Kozaks. When, after a separa¬ 
tion of three centuries, they were reunited to Russia, they 
formed a very different people by their manners, language, 
and constitution. This difference still exists. In 1784, the’ 
Malo-Russians lost their military organization, and were 
taxed like the Russian peasants. 
They are not, however, attached to the soil, like the latter, 
but are strangers to servitude. No other cause need be 
sought for their manifest superiority in every thing that can 
exalt one set of men above another. They are cleaner, more 
industrious, more honest, more generous, more polite, more 
courageous, more hospitable, more truly pious, and of course 
less superstitious. They are of taller stature, have ruddier 
complexions, a more serious disposition, and are less ad¬ 
dicted to intoxication than the other Russians. Their 
language only differs from the Russian as the dialect of the 
southern provinces of France does from that spoken in Paris. 
These people in their features resemble Kozaks, and both 
bear a similitude to the Poles, being doubtless all derived 
from one common stock. 
The Malo-Russian women wear a petticoat, sometimes of 
one piece of cloth fastened round the waist; at others, par¬ 
ticularly among more aged females, this petticoat consists of 
two pieces, like aprons, fastened on before and behind. It is 
chequered like the Scotch plaid, and answers to the kelt worn 
in certain parts of Scotland to this day. 
The men shave the beard, leaving the mustaches; they 
also shave the head with the exception of a tuft of hair on 
the crown. They wear caps in the Polish fashion, bordered 
with lambskin, and go with the breast constantly bare. The 
upper garment is a caftan of very coarse cloth, with a hood. 
Brown is the colour which they prefer. A girdle is fastened 
over this caftan, the seams of which are generally em¬ 
broidered and somtimes laced. Pantaloons and boots either 
black or of some other colour, complete their dress. 
The Malo-Russians, when they dwell on the domains of 
nobles, are but their farmers, and are then called sosedi, 
which signifies neighbours. An art in which they excel is 
the making of cider and wines from different sorts of fruit, 
good specimens of which are to be found in the meanest 
cottages. 
The musical instruments of these people are the bagpipe 
and double pipes of reed. The former, like those used in 
North Britain and Finland, is common to the Kozaks as 
well as to the Malo-Russians. The latter are six inches in 
length, and not thicker than a goose-quill: both are played 
at once. This method of playing on the pipe is very ancient, 
as may.be seen in many antique basso-relievos, and in the 
monuments of Herculaneum. 
The Finnish race was formerly one of the most consider¬ 
able 
