hook tiiey continue pariih-priefts without the exprefs permiffion
t V‘ , o f a biihop. The children o f the fecular clergy are all free :
their fons are ufually brought up for orders, or employed
in the fervice o f the church.
All the clergy wear long beards, and are diftinguiihed
from the laity by fuffering their hair to ftream for a confider-
-able length over their fhoulders, without being tied or curled.
Their drefs is a fquare bonnet, and a long robe o f a black
or dark colour, reaching to their ankles ' the fecular and re*
gular priefts ufe, in fome inftances, a different habit; and
the dignitaries of the church are diflinguiihed by a more
coftly fpedes o f raiment ®.
I cannot omit mentioning, that, during the five months
-we paired at Peteriburgh, and the almoft conftant intercourfe
in which we were daily engaged with the nobility and gentry,
I never once faw in company a Angle perfon o f the fa-
cred profeffion. i t mult be allowed indeed, that the pariih-
priefts are for the moft part too low and ignorant to be qualified
for admiffion into genteel focieties; while the dignita-
aries, being afeparate order and reftrained by feveral ilridt regulations,
refide chiefly in their palaces within the monafte-
ries ; and contrail an averfion, perhaps an unfitnefs,'for
focial intercourfe. This general charaiter o f the Ruflian
hierarchy does by no means comprehend all the individuals;
as fome o f them with whom I occafionally converfed were
men of liberal manners and enlightened underftandings +.
III. The third divifion of Ruffian fubjeits comprehends
lhatintermediate clafs of,men between the nobles and. peath
e tables o f the n o b ility upon days o f g re a t
ceremorty, as on th a t o f S t . A le x an d e r
N e v ik i, when I met the a r c h b iih o p o f R o fto f
at .prince V ’Glk'ORlki’s. See v o l. I. p . 278.
¿ants,
* See prints o f th e feveral ec clefia ftica l
■ drefles in K in g ’ s S tate o f th e G re e k C h u r ch
✓jin Ruffia.
i f /The dignitaries occaiioHally dine at
M E R C H A N T S A N D B U R G H E R S .
fants, which is thus defined by the emprefs, in the 16th CIfAP-
chapter o f her inftrudtions for the new code o f laws. «— „— >
“ Cette clafle d’hommes dignes que nous en faffions meii-
“ tion, et dont l’etat peut fe promettre de grands avantages,
“ quand elle aura reçu une forme fiable et qui ait pour but
“ l’encouragement des bonnes moeurs et l’amour de travail,
« c’efl l’etat Mitoyen.
t£ Cet état compofé d’hommes libres n’appartient ni à la
“ clafle des nobles, ni à celle des payfans.
“ On doit ranger dans cette claflè tous ceux qui, fans être
“ ni gentilhommes ni payfans, s’occupent des arts, des fci-
“ ences, de la navigation, du commerce, ou exercent des
“ metiers.
“ On doit y placer encore tous ceux, qui nés de parens
<{ roturiers, fortiront des ecoles et maifons d’éducation, réli—
“ gieufes ou autres, fondées par nous ou par nos predecef-
Pi feurs.
“ De même les enfans des officiers et écrivains de chan-
‘ £ cellerie. Mais comme ce tiers-etât efl fufceptible de dif-
“ ferent degrés de prerogatives, dont nous ne voulons pas
“ traiter en detail, nous ne ferons que d’ouvrir ici le champ
“ à un plus ample examen 3-~.”
% Inftru&ion, & c . pou r le N o u v e a u C o d e “ naviga tion , commerce, o r e x e r c ife t ra d e s ,
des L o ix , p. 107 . “ are to be ranked in this c lafs .
“ T h is clafs o f men w o r th y to b e men - “ In this clafs iliou ld be p la c ed a ll thofe
“ tioned b y u s, and from whom the Hate “ w h o , b o rn o f p leb eian pa ren ts , (hall have
‘ maypromife it fe lf g rea t advantages, when “ been b ro u gh t up in fchools o r places of.
“ it iliall have received a liable form, and “ ed u cation , religiou s o r o th e r s , founded
‘ w h ich has fo r its end th e encoura g emen t “ b y u s , o r b y ou r predeceflbrs.
“ o f good morals and the love o f in d uftry , “ A lfo the ch ildren o f officers, an d o f th e
“ is the middle ftate. “ fecretàries to th e ch an ce ry . Bu t as this
“ T h is ftate, compofed o f freemen, b e - “ th ird eftate is fufceptib le o f different d e -
“ longs neither to th e clafs o f nobles n o r to “ g re e s o f p r iv ile g e s ,w h ich w e do not mean
11 ¡ ¡ p i ° f peafaiits. “ t o d e ta il in this p la c e , w e fhall o n ly here
“ A l l thofe w h o , b ein g neither g entlemen “ open th e w a y fo r a more amp le examina-
Jjj nor p eafants, follow th e arts and lc ien ces , “ t io n .”
V ol. II. p Although