him
for days? I never see a gang of these helpless little creatures
driven to the shambles without thinking of that touching picture, the
Murder of the Innocents.

In vain I tried to escape this veal passion in Russia. Nay, even in
Finland and Sweden it pursued me. I actually began to feel flabby, and
felt ashamed to look the poor cows in the face. It was a marvel how
the cattle, of which there seemed to be no lack, ever arrived at
maturity. If the people kill all the calves, as appeared to be the
case, in the name of wonder, where do the cows come from? This
question puzzled me exceedingly for some time, and was only solved
when I asked a Russian to explain it. "Oh," said he, smiling at my
simplicity, "they only kill the male calves. They allow the cow calves
to grow up!"

Still, when I came to reflect upon the reason given, it occurred to me
that they must be a very singular race of cows. Perhaps they were
Amazonian cows.

This leads me by an easy and not ungraceful transition to the
Foundling Asylum of Moscow, one of the largest and most remarkable
institutions of the kind in the world. In other public places
throughout Europe, especially in picture-galleries and museums, the
visitor is required to deliver up his walking-stick at the door, in
return for which he receives a ticket corresponding with one fastened
upon the article itself--as in baggage-cars upon the railway, so that
he may redeem it when he thinks proper. But I had little thought, in
my experience of foreign travel, that a similar system should prevail
in regard to the deposit of living beings, as in the foundling
establishment of Moscow. Here, any body with a surplus baby can carry
it and have it labeled around the neck, receive a ticket in return
corresponding in number with the deposit, and call for it at any
future time, certain that it will be delivered up--if alive. The
building is of immense extent, and is situated on the banks of the
Moskwa River, near the lower part of the town. The grounds around it
are tastefully laid out, and must occupy twenty or thirty acres, the
whole being surrounded by a high wall, and comprising numerous and
substantial outhouses, workshops, etc., for the use of the
establishment. Many thousand children are annually taken in and nursed
at this institution, no restriction being imposed upon the parents,
who may be either married or single, to suit their own taste or
condition. The regular force of wet-nurses employ