d not reach Moscow in time, and
therefore decided to travel across Russia by the next best route, _via_
Kiev, Rostoff, and the Caspian. The few hours I remained in Warsaw were
pleasantly spent in going about seeing the usual sights; the Palace and
lovely Lazienski gardens, laid out in the old bed of the Vistula; the
out-of-door theatre on a small island, the auditorium being separated by
water from the stage; the lakes, the Saski Ogrod, and the Krasinski
public gardens; the Jewish quarter of the town; the museums of ancient
and modern art.

There are few cities in Europe that are prettier, cleaner, and more
animated than Warsaw, and few women in the world that have a better claim
to good looks than the Warsaw fair sex. The majority of women one sees in
the streets are handsome, and carry themselves well, and their dress is
in good taste, never over-done as it is in Paris, for instance.

The whole city has a flourishing appearance, with its tramways, gay
omnibuses, electric light, telephones, and every modern convenience. The
streets are broad and cheerful. In the newer parts of the city there are
beautiful residences, several of which, I was told, belong to British
subjects settled there. The Russian military element is very strong, for
Poland's love for Russia is not yet very great. As we walk along the main
thoroughfares a long string of Cossacks, in their long black felt cloaks
and Astrakan caps, canter along. They are a remarkably picturesque and
business-like lot of soldiers.

Poles are civility itself, that is, of course, if one is civil to them.

Historically the place is of extreme interest, and the battlefields of
Novogeorgievsk, which played such an important part in the Polish
insurrection of 1831, and of Grochowo, where the Poles were defeated, are
well worth a visit. At Maciejowice, too, some fifty miles up the Vistula,
Kosciuzko was made prisoner by the conquering Russians.

Warsaw is the third largest city in the Russian Empire, and its
favourable geographical position makes it one of the great pivots of
Eastern Europe. With a navigable river and the great main railway lines
to important centres such as Berlin, Vienna, Moscow, St. Petersburg,
Dantzig, Kiev, and Odessa, with good climatic conditions, and fertile
soil; with the pick of natural talent in art and science, and the love
for enterprise that is innate in the Polish character, Warsaw cannot help
being a prosperous place.

The city has very e