Besides these public imperial institutions, there are, of course, in St. Petersburg, as elsewhere, a multitude of private schools in which business is carried on in a right manufacturing spirit. It is a common thing for a mother to place her daughters in one of these, on condition that their education is to be finished in two or three years ; that is, they must speak French, and play a symphony of Spontini. The more quickly the schoolmistress undertakes to despatch the business, the greater pecuniary advantages are afforded her.
The examinations in such establishments are the most showy spectacles that can be imagined. For a fortnight before, the house is cleaned and trimmed and adorned ; and for two months before, the practising and learning by heart goes on unweariedly, that all may go off smoothly on the great day. The mothers, sisters, and aunts go in state in their coaches and four. The scientific part of the examination is followed by a concert, at which the pupils perform ; and then a ballet, in which they display theii skill in the dance. After all this, the division of the prizes takes place amid the uproar of trumpets and kettle-drums ; and the whole concludes with a supper and a ball, whereupon the parents drive home again, enraptured with the intellectual improvement of their childi'cn.
The festival of Easter, a great one with all Christian communities, is particularly distinguished in the Russian Greek church ; so much so, indeed, both in reference to the time it lasts, as the pomp of its celebration, that all other holidays sink to nothing before it. Even as spring commonly sends many fine days as forerunners to announce its approach, so the Easter festival, "tlie festival," as a Russian calls it, is preceded by a whole series of smaller festivities, and succeeded again by a kind of epilogue ; and these holidays, taken all together, stretch over no inconsiderable portion of the year — over nearly two months. If we reflect that a Russian spends a sixth part of his hfe in keeping Easter, and that all the joys, sorrows, privations, business, work, and play of the whole Russian people, during so considerable a portion of time, are determined by the festive occasion, it must be worth while to take a nearer view of a festival of so important a character, and so wide an influence.
The Easter festival itself begins in the middle of the night of the Saturday in Passion-week, and its joys are loud and incessant through the eight following days. This centre of festivity is preceded by a seven weeks' fast as a preparation for the feast, and before the seven weeks' fast comes an eight days' feast as a preparation for the fast. All these spring merry-maldngs may be thus divided into three consecutive celebrations.
Firstly, Eight days drinking and carousing, called by the Russians Masslanitza (Butter-week).
Secondly, Seven weeks' fast, called, to distinguish it from the other fasts, " Velikoi posd" (the great fast).
And, thirdly, Easter itself, and its attendant train.
In the grea,t world of St. Petersburg, the approach of the great fast is announced by the balls and other carneval revels coming fast and furious, even as early as the beginning of February. For the mass of the people, the sports and pastimes with which they take leave of roast meat and other pleasures are all pressed into one week, the " butterweek," as it is called, which falls generally in the middle, or towards the end of February.
The butter-week contains the quintessence of all Russian festivity, and, except the Easterweek, there is no week in the whole year which offers to a St. Petersburger such an abundance of earthly enjoyment as this. Firstly, as its name implies, the week is one of butter ; butter is eaten instead of oil, which must be substituted during the fast-days. The Masslanitza may be literally said to be redolent of butter. The favourite dish of this season is composed of blinni, a kind of pancake baked in butter, served up with a sauce of melted butter, and eaten with caviare. The blinni belong peculiarly to the butter-week and are baked at no other time of the year, but at this season they are served up punctually at every breakfast. In St. Petersburg they are to be had in perfection at the Russian coffee-house kept by Mr. , — unfortunately, I have forgotten the name of this excellent person, but the taste of his blinni is fresh in my recollection.
After a butter-week breakfast of blinni, nothing is more agreeable than a walk to the " Katsheh," or swings, the usual amusement enjoyed between breakfast and dinner during the butter-week. It is the only one in which all classes of society partake in common, from the head of all, the enthroned summit of their Babylonian tower, down to the lowest and dirtiest of its base.