" Ya Inostranez (I am a foreigner), off with your hat, Russian," says the German, and " I beg your pardon, honourable sir," answers the Russian, and takes his hat off. It is natural enough that an " Inostranez" should seek to retain, as long as possible, a predicate which entitles him to such distinctions. The Russian as naturally seeks to incorporate the inostranzi with the subjects of the empire. Now and then there appears an edict that all foreigners who have been settled for a certain period in any part of the empire, shall without ceremony swear allegiance to the Russian flag, which puts them all in a fright. As a merchant or an
In this sense, a Russian, speaking of a certain professor, a native of Hungary, said to me " You must know him very well, he is from your side.""
artisan who has not obtained any particular rank (" Tsliin") by any service to the state, could not register himself in any other class than that of merchant or citizen, and as such would be liable to military service, the discipline of the stick, and other pleasures of the same kind, every device of course is tried to avoid the sentence. On the appearance of such edicts, some leave the empire for a time, and come back with new passports as newly arrived foreigners ; others contrive to procure these passports without leaving the country, or sHp through in some other way, and so manage to transmit their privileges to their children, who are also registered as foreigners.
An "^ Inostranez," if he be only in some degree a man " comme il faut^^ if he can lay aside his German bashfulness, dress well, play at cards, talk nonsense in the right tone, or make a fool of himself in any other decent fashion, may reckon upon being half classed among the nobles throughout Russia, and invited to parties from which in any other country liis calling would exclude him. In the interior it is not uncommon to meet the German apothecary's assistants among the dancers at the balls and assemblies of the nobility, and even in St. Petersburg it happens sometimes that a foreign knight of the yard may lead out his partner to the dance in the very same gown which he himself measured out for her some days before. It would be strange if these people did not assume a little upon the strength of these advantages ! 1 hey drive out with as many horses as the law allows, furnish their cellars with champagne, give balls and card parties which are graced by the presence of court and state counsellors ; their daughters aim at the epaiilets of colonels and majorgenerals, and their sons sigh for the daughters of officials and landed pro^ prietors.
Formerly all productions of foreign art or invention were imported ; in later years the extraordinary dexterity of the Russian of the lower class, and the very moderate price of his services, have induced the establishment of many Russian manufactures, wliich the government has sought to protect by many severe prohibitive measures against foreign productions. These new branches of activity are pai'tly the work of foreigners settled in Russia, and favoured by the government, partly of the gi'eat landowTiers, and partly of the immediate influence of the crown.
The landholders have thus turned to account their large imemployed capital of money — and serfs, and established manufactories on their own ground, under the management of their own slaves. Many branches of industry have become so much practised in the villages of the greater landholders, that many merely corn -producing hamlets have been changed into large manufactories. Some of the peasants, not content to work only in their lord's manufactory, carry on spinning, weaving, grinding, and pressing on their own account, and have thus grown into persons of property. The well-known iron-forging villages belonging to the family of Shcremetieff, Avhere some of the artisan peasants have become millionaires, are not alone in this respect. All the fairs and markets of interior Russia are flooded with paper, iron goods, cups, tea-pots, &c. of the Demidoffs, Jakowsleffs, Karpzoffs, tic. The wares are, however, below mediocrity in quality, although in outward appearance, particidarly where show and gilding are required, they are close imitations of foreign workmanship. Those who understand tlie articles know these RnssoEuropean manufactures at once by their plausible exterior, coupled witli their utter worthlessness in essential points. Their imitation of oriental workmanship on the other hand, is extraordinarily good of its kind.