hat most men (here I am not speaking of the members
of the Imperial Government) had each his specialty, beyond which he
showed but a limited interest. There was one distinguished circle,
however, where the intellectual level of the conversation was as high as
I have ever found it anywhere, and where the only title to admission
prescribed by the noble host was the capacity to take part in it. In
that circle I heard not only the Polish Question discussed, but the
Unity or Diversity of Races, Modern and Classic Art, Strauss, Emerson,
and Victor Hugo, the ladies contributing their share. At a _soiree_
given by the Princess Lvoff, I met Richard Wagner, the composer,
Rubinstein, the pianist, and a number of artists and literary men.

A society the head of which is a court, and where externals, of
necessity, must be first considered, is not the place to seek for true
and lasting intimacies; but one may find what is next best, in a social
sense,--cheerful and cordial intercourse. The circle of agreeable and
friendly acquaintance continually enlarged; and I learned to know _one_
friend (and perhaps one should hardly expect more than that in any year)
whom I shall not forget, nor he me, though we never meet again. The
Russians have been unjustly accused of a lack of that steady, tender,
faithful depth of character upon which friendship must rest. Let us not
forget that one of Washington Irving's dearest friends was Prince
Dolgorouki.

Nevertheless, the constant succession of entertainments, agreeable as
they were, became in the end fatiguing to quiet persons like ourselves.
The routs and _soirees_, it is true, were more informal and
unceremonious: one was not obliged to spend more than an hour at each,
but then one was not expected to arrive before eleven o'clock. We fell,
perforce, into the habits of the place,--of sleeping two or three hours
after dinner, then rising, and, after a cup of strong tea, dressing for
the evening. After Carnival, the balls ceased; but there were still
frequent routs, until Easter Week closed the season.

I was indebted to Admiral Luettke, President of the Imperial Geographical
Society, for an invitation to attend its sessions, some of which were of
the most interesting character. My great regret was, that a very
imperfect knowledge of the language prevented me from understanding much
of the proceedings. On one occasion, while a paper on the survey of the
Caspian Sea was being read, a tall, stately