which looked pretty. The cottage was surrounded by peasants in their picturesque dresses, who carried plates of wild fruits and flowers, which they offered for sale. The scene was very pretty, and the Empress commemorated the evening by making us all write our names in a book which she kept for that purpose. From Doudouroff we drove back to the camp, and to reach the Emperor's tent, we had to drive from one end of it to the other. The soldiers were in line, but in each regiment a group was singing, with one man in the middle of it dancing. The men's voices sounded very harmonious, as they were singing their national melodies in parts, and the effect was striking and good. When we arrived at the spot where the band was stationed, the Emperor left the Empress's carriage, and came to fetch me, saying, Ma femme vous prie de venir prendre ma place.' He then ordered our carriage to drive alongside the Empress's, in order that I might not wet my feet, opened the carriage door himself, and handed me out. I remained with the Empress till after the retreat, the Emperor leaning on the carriage door, talking to us most familiarly, and I drove back with Her Majesty to Krasnoe Selo, where she took a most kind and gracious leave of me, shook my hand, and wished me adieu. We

left the camp immediately, and reached home about two o'clock in the morning, our return having been delayed by the breaking of the axletree of our carriage. The accident happened about two versts from Mr. Anderson's country house, so we got assistance there, and he gave us the means of returning home.

General Count Berg, Aide-de-Camp General, and a distinguished officer, who had served in Turkey, told me that on one occasion he had been selected by the Emperor to command the army which was to be beaten at one of the sham fights, which take place at the manœuvres. Being an old and experienced officer, he determined to do his best to avoid this catastrophe, so, a few days before the fight, he went down and examined the ground carefully, and when the day arrived he made such a skilful retreat, that he and his men were not forthcoming, and could not be found. The Emperor was furious, and the next day he sent for General Count Berg, gave him a severe reprimand, and told him he should never be employed again, which was, in fact, exactly what the Count wished, as he was getting old, and did not care for the work. He, however, defended his case, told the Emperor that in real warfare it would have been the right course to

pursue, and he could not regret what, as a military man, he felt was right. The Empress had arranged a ball at Gatchina, which was a failure, owing to the lack of officers, and this perhaps had added to the Emperor's annoyance.

Once, at a review my husband attended, an officer in command made an egregious mistake, by leading his men up a hill in the face of a strong force of artillery, which was blazing away at them. The Emperor's quick eye speedily detected the error, and, in a perfect fury, he drew his sword and rode at the wretched officer in command, and my husband said he hardly knew what would happen, but thought the Emperor was going to cut off the culprit's épaulettes. After, however, giving him a severe reprimand, the Emperor turned round to the suite, and said 'Gentlemen, after the humiliating spectacle we have just witnessed, I think the review had better conclude, so adieu;' and he turned his horse's head, and galloped off the field.

Finland-Moscow

CHAPTER X.

Churches - Imperial Palace-The Sparrow Hills-Foundling Hospital - Troitzka - Archangliska-Melnitza-Novgorod.

August 14-26, 1847.-We left the islands at 6 P.M. for an expedition into Finland. Soon after eleven we reached the frontier; the road so far was badly paved and execrable, and where this was not the case there was no road at all, but deep sand. The moment we crossed into Finland the change was most remarkable, and the roads, though hilly, were very good. We stopped at Pampela, the second station in Finland, where we lunched at a clean post house upon provisions we had brought with us, for one could get little besides milk and eggs. The post houses generally were very small, and would have afforded but bad accommodation. The rope harness was very primitive, the horses were small but active, and the drivers looked very wild, but drove a tremendous pace. The road was hilly, and the speed with which we descended the hills fortunately carried us up them with a swing, as

otherwise the little horses, which looked almost like cats harnessed to our heavy chariot, would inevitably have jibbed. The country was wooded, but monotonous, as the vegetation is almost entirely birch and fir, but after the flat roads in Russia the mere undulation was agreeable.

upon

The first view of Viborg, which we reached a little past seven P.M., struck me as picturesque. The sun was setting behind the towers of the old town, and the hill from which we looked down it was covered, like the rest of Finland, with huge boulder stones. An inlet from the gulf of Finland runs up past Viborg. The fortifications erected by the Swedes were much as they were when the Russians took the place, except that the moats were dry, and the place looked neglected, though Viborg is a garrison town. There was a curious picturesque old tower, formerly a fort, now a prison. We drove through the town to Baron Nicolay's place, Mon Repos,' situated about one mile and a half from the town. Our host was for thirty years Russian Minister at Copenhagen, and had only lately retired from the Diplomatic Service to end his days at 'Mon Repos.' The house was clean and comfortable, and the garden well kept. The grounds were prettily undulated and rocky, bounded on one side by the sea. Baron