for having spoken lightly of the amours of the Empress
Elizabeth. The Countess is represented to have been as lovely in
person as in mind, the very idol of the court, and surrounded by
admirers to the last moment. She struggled bravely with her fate,
mounting the scaffold in an elegant undress which heightened the
effect of her delicate charms; and when one of the executioners
pulled off a shawl which covered her bosom, her modesty was so
shocked that she turned pale and burst into tears. Her clothes were
soon stripped to her waist, and before the startled eyes of an
immense concourse of people she was whipped until not one inch of the
skin was left upon her back, from the neck downward. The poor lady of
course became insensible before this was entirely accomplished. But
her inhuman punishment did not end here. Her tongue was cut out, and
she was banished to Siberia!

The people of no city in Europe exhibit so much apparent religious
devotion as do the inhabitants of this Muscovite capital; and yet we
do not for a moment suppose that they are more deeply influenced in
their inner lives by sacred convictions than are other races. The
humblest artisan, the drosky driver, the man of business, the women
and children, all bow low and make the sign of the cross when passing
the churches, chapels, or any of the many religious shrines upon the
streets. No matter how often these are encountered, or in how much of
a hurry the passers may be, each one receives its due recognition of
devout humility. In the churches the people, men and women, not only
kneel, but they bow their bodies until the forehead touches the
marble floor, repeating this again and again during each service. It
was observed that children, seemingly far too young to understand the
purport of these signs of humility, were nevertheless sure to go
through with them precisely like their elders. As regards the
multiplicity of shrines, they are frequently set up in the private
houses of the common people, consisting of a picture of some saint
gaudily framed and set in gilt, before which a lamp is kept
constantly burning. Some of the shops also exhibit one of these
shrines, before which the customer on entering always takes off his
hat, bows low, and makes the sign of the cross. A custom almost
precisely similar was observed by the author as often occurring at
Hong Kong, Canton, and other parts of China, where images in private
houses abound, and before which there wa