book feries o f animals, defcending gradually to the fmalleft, inter-
. . mixed with poultry and game hanging in feftoons, and garniihed
with heaps o f fiih, butter, and eggs.
I foon perceived that there were no laws for the prohibition
of felling game in this country, from the profuiion of
that article, particularly of partridges, pheafants, moorfowl,
and cocks of the wood. I obferved alfo the truth of what
has been frequently aflerted, that many of the birds, as well
as feveral animals, in thefe northern regions, become white in
winter, many hundred black cocks being changed to that
colour; and fome, which had been taken before they had
completed their metamorpbojis, exhibited a variegated mixture
of black and white plumage;
The moil diftant quarters helped to fupply this vaft flore
of provifions ; and the fineft veal had been fent by land-
carriage as far as from Archangel, which is fituated at the
diftance of 830 miles from Peterfburgh ; yet every fpecies
of food is furprizingly cheap: beef was fold at ifif. theRuffian
pound*, pork at five farthings, and mutton at \\d. ; a goofe
for 1 od. and a pig for 8d. and all other articles as cheap in
proportion. In order to render this frozen food fit for
dreiling, it is firft thawed in cold water.
* A Ruffian pound contains 14 ounces and
C H A P .
C H A P . IV.
Prefentation to the emprefs.— Court.— Balls.— Mafquerades.
— Publick entertainments.— Orders o f knighthood.— Account
o f the palace called the Hermitage.— Dijlribution of
the Bmprejfes time.— Ruffian nobility.— fheir hofpitality,
— Politenefs.— AJfemblies.— Englifh merchants.— Club.
ON the firft o f Odlober, in the morning, between eleven1 chap.
and twelve, we attended our minifter, Sir James Harris, IV-
to the drawing room, impatient to behold Catharine II. It
was luckily the name-day, or, as we term it, the birthday
of the Great-duke, in honour of whom a moft brilliant
court was aflembled. At the entrance into the drawing-O
room flood two centinels of the foot-guards : their uniform
was a green coat, with a red cuff and cape, and white waift-
coat and breeches ; they had filver helmets fattened under
the chin with filver clafps, and ornamented with an ample
plume of red, yellow, black, and white feathers. Within the
drawing room, at the doors of the paflage leading to her
majefty’s apartments, were two foldiers of the knights bodyguard
; a corps perhaps more fumptuoufly accoutred than
any in Europe. They wore cafques, like thofe of the antients,
with a rich plumage of black feathers, and their whole drefs
was in the fame ftyle : chains and broad plates of folid filver
were braided over their uniforms, fo as to bear the appearance
of a rich coat of mail; and their boots were richly ornamented
with the fame metal.