Russia in 1839 -Empire of the Czar: A Journey Through Eternal Russia

only two days' abode here, what allowance should not be made for the men who are born, and who pass their life in the air of the Russian court!—that is in Russia; for it is the air of the court which is breathed from one end of the empire to the other. Even the serfs, through their relations with their lords, feel the in-fluence of that sovereign will which alone animates the country : the courtier who is their master, is for them the image of the emperor, and the court is present to the Russians wherever there is a man to command, and men to obey.

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Elsewhere the poor are either beggars, or unruly members of society; in Russia they are all courtiers. The courtier is found in every rank of society, and for this reason it is that I say, the court is everywhere. There is, between the sentiments of the Russian nobles and those of men of family in ancient Europe, the same difference that there is between the eom`tier and the aristocrat, or l)etween emotions of vanity and of pride ; — true pride, which is almost as rare as virtue — is virtue. Instead of abusing courtiers as Beaumarchais and so many others have done, these men, who, whatever may be said, are like other men, deserve pity. Poor unfortunate courtiers! they are not the monsters that our modern plays and romances, or our revolutionary journals describe ; they are merely weak creatures, corrupted and corrupting, as much as, but not more than, others who are less exposed to temptation. Ennui is the curse of riches, still it is not a crime : vanity and interest are more strongly excited, and therefore more eagerly sought in a court than on any other stage of action : and these passions abridge life. But if the hearts they agitate are more tormented, they are not more perverse than those of other men. Human wisdom would accomplish much if it could sueceed in showing to the multitude how much it ought to feel of pity instead of envy towards the possessors of a fancied good.

I saw them dancing in the very place where they had themselves nearly perished under blazing ruins, and where others had since actually died, in order that they might be amused on the day appointed by the emperor. This thought made me refleet in spite of myself, and shed (for me) a gloom over the entire

230COURT DANCES.

fete. Elsewhere liberty gives birth to a feeling of gladness which is favourable to illusion; here despotism suggests meditations which make it impossible to deceive one's self.

The kind of dance that is most common at the grand fetes of this country, does not disturb the course of ideas. The company promenade in a solemn step to the sound of music, each gentleman taking his partner by the hand. In the palace, hundreds of couples thus follow in procession, proceeding from one immense hall to another, winding through the galleries crossing the saloons, and traversing the whole building in such order or direction as the caprice of the individual who leads, may dictate. This is called dancing la Polonaise. It is amusing at first, but for those destined to dance it all their lives, balls must, I think, be a species of torture.

The Polonaise at Petersburg recalled to my memory the congress of Vienna, where I had danced it in 1814. No etiquette was observed in the European fetes celebrated on that occasion, every one's place in the dance was regulated by hazard, though in the midst of all the monarchs of the earth. My fate had placed me between the Emperor Alexander and his consort, who was a princess of Baden. All at once, the line of the dancing couples was stopped without our perceiving the reason, as the music continued playing. The emperor, growing impatient, put his head over my shoulder, and, addressing himself to the empress, told her in a very rude tone, to move on. The empress turned, and perceiving behind me the emperor, with a lady as his partner for whom he had for some days past manifested a violent passion,

THE GRAND GALLERY.231

she retorted, with an expression altogether indescribable, ' Toujours poli! ' The autocrat bit his lips as he caught my eye, and the line of dance again moved forward.

I was dazzled with the splendour of the great gallery: it is now entirely gilded, though before the fire it was only painted white. That disaster has served to minister to the taste which the emperor has for the magnificent.

All the ambassadors of Europe had been invited to admire the marvellous achievement of this government, a government which is so m;ich the more bitterly criticised by the vulgar, as it is admired and envied by political men, — minds essentially practical, and who, approve the simplicity of the machine of despotism. One of the largest palaces in the world built in a year ! what a subject of admiration for men accustomed to breathe the air of courts !

Great objects are never attained without great sacrifices. Unity, force, and authority in the direction of public affairs, are purchased here by the loss of liberty, while in France, j)olitical liberty and commercial wealth have been purchased at the cost of the ancient spirit of chivalry, and of that delicacy of feeling formerly called our national honour. This honour is replaced by other virtues less patriotic, but more universal -?- by humanity, religion and charity. Every one admits that in France there is more religion now than there was at a time when the clergy was all-powerful. A wish to embrace the advantages which do not belong to each situation, is to lose those which do belong to it. It is this which is not ad-

232POLITICAL REFLECTIONS.

mitted in France, where we expose ourselves to the danger of destroying everything by our very wish to preserve everything. Each nation is governed by its own law of necessity, to which it must submit, under penalty of national ruin.

We want to be commercial like the English, free like the Americans, at liberty to follow our caprices like the Poles in the times of their diets, and conquerors like the Russians; all which is tantamount to being nothing. The good sense of a nation consists in perceiving and choosing the object that suits its genius, and is indicated by nature and history, and then, in shrinking from no sacrifices necessary to attain it.

France wants good sense in her ideas, and moderation in her desires. She is generous, she is even resigned *; but she does not know how to employ and direct her powers. She acts by impulse and at random. A country where, from the time of Fenelon, they have done nothing but talk of politics, is, in the present day, neither governed nor served. There are plenty of men who see and deplore the evil; but as for the remedy, every one seeks it in his passion, and therefore no one finds it, for the passions persuade those only who are under their influence.

Nevertheless, it is at Paris that one still leads the most pleasant life. We there amuse ourselves with every thing by finding fault; at Petersburg people weary of every thing in bestowing praise ; pleasure, however, is not the end of existence, not even for individuals, and still less for nations.

* Elle est meme resignee.

THE QUEEN OP GEORGIA.233

What appeared to me more splendid even than the ball-room in the winter palace, was the gallery in which supper was served. It is not entirely finished, and the lights in temporary paper transparencies had a fantastic appearance which did not displease me. So unexpected an illumination in honour of the marriage-day, did not certainly correspond with the general decorations of the magical palace, but it produced a light clear as that of the sun, and this was enough for me. Thanks to the progress of commercial economy, we no longer see in France anything but tapers ; there seem to be yet in Russia real wax candles. The supper-table was splendid; in this fete every thing was colossal, every thing was also innumerable in its kind, and I scarcely knew which most to admire, the superb effect of the whole, or the magnificence and the quantity of the objects considered separately. A thousand persons were seated together at the table.