the use of the instruments himself, then practiced
his new art upon his followers.

At The Hague he endured the splendid public reception, then hurried off
his gold-trimmed coat, his wig and hat and white feathers, and was amid
grime and dust examining grist-mills, and ferry-boats, and irrigating
machines. To a lady he saw on the street at Amsterdam he shouted
"Stop!" then dragged out her enameled watch, examined it, and put it
back without a word. A nobleman's wig in similar unceremonious fashion
he snatched from his head, turned it inside out, and, not being pleased
with its make, threw it on the floor.

Perhaps Holland heard without regret that her guest was going to
England, where he was told the instruction was based upon the
principles of ship-building and he might learn more in a few weeks than
by a year's study elsewhere. King William III. placed a fleet at his
disposal, and also a palace upon his arrival in London. A violent
storm alarmed many on the way to England, but Peter enjoyed it and
humorously said, "Did you ever hear of a Tsar being lost in the North
Sea?" England was no less astonished than Holland at her guest, but
William III., the wisest sovereign in Europe, we learn was amazed at
the vigor and originality of his mind. The wise Bishop Burnet wrote of
him: "He is mechanically turned, and more fitted to be a carpenter than
a Prince. He told me he designed a great fleet for attacking the
Turkish Empire, but he does not seem to me capable of so great an
enterprise." This throws more light upon the limitations of Bishop
Burnet than those of Peter the Great, and fairly illustrates the
incompetency of contemporary estimates of genius; or, perhaps, the
inability of talent to take the full measure of genius at any time.
The good Bishop adds that he adores the wise Providence which "has
raised up such a furious man to reign over such a part of the world."
Louis XIV. "had procured the postponement of the honor of his visit";
so Peter prepared, after visiting Vienna, to go to Venice, but
receiving disturbing news of matters at home, this uncivilized
civilizer, this barbarian reformer of barbarism, turned his face toward
Moscow.

There was widespread dissatisfaction in the empire. The _Streltsui_
(militia) was rebellious, the heavily taxed landowners were angry, and
the people disgusted by the prevalence of German clothes and shaved
faces. Had not the wise Ivan IV. said: "To shave is a sin that th