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COXE’S TRAVELS IN RUSSIA. 62t
cation, threats, and promifes, was renewed. In this manner we continued wrangling
and proceeding from village to village, which were thickly fcattered in this part of the
country, until near midnight, when we found ourfelves at Klifma, only feventeen miles
from Mofcow, and’took up our lodging in a peafant’s cottage. Our Bohemian fervant
having fortunately devoted great part of the night in rambling to different houfes, and
adjufting the difficult negotiation for frefh horfes, we were able to depart almoft by day-
break, and had the {till farther fatisfaction to pafs over the immen/e /pace of feven miles
without either halt or delay ; fo that by eight in the morning we reached Bretoffhina,
half-way between Mofcow and the convent. Here we found a Ruffian ferjeant, whom
Prince Volkonfki had obligingly fent forwards to procure horfes, and accompany us dur-
ing the remainder of our journey ; the experience of the preceding day taught us the
value of this military attendant.
At Bretoffhina we viewed a palace built by Alexey Michaelovitch, in which he fre-
quently refided: it is a long wooden building, painted yellow, only one {tory in heighth,
containing a fuite of {mall and low rooms. This palace (if it deferves that name) has
long been uninhabited. ‘The Emprefs, pleafed with the beauty of the fituation, and re-
fpecting the favourite refidence of Peter the Great’s father, propofed to build a large
brick palace near the fite of the old mantion, and part of the materials were already col-
leted for that purpofe. On our return to the village we ordered the horfes, and were
pleafed to find our order obeyed almoft as foon as iffued : we had, indeed, a fuccefsful
agent in our friend the ferjeant ; for the peafants, who were beginning to wrangle, and
make their ufual altercations, were in{tantly difperfed by his cudgel, whofe eloquence was
more perfuafive than the moft pathetic remon{trances. ‘The boors were certainly accuf-
tomed to this fpecies of rhetoric; for they bore it patiently, and with perfect good hu-
mour; and, the moment they were feated on the box, began whittling and finging their
national fongs as ufual. We now continued our route, and arrived at the convent,
though diftant from Bretoffhina twenty miles, without once {topping to change horfes.
‘Troitfkoi Sergief Klofter, or the monaftery of the Holy Trinity, at a little diftance
bears the appearance of a fmall town; and, like many convents in this country, is
Jurrounded with high brick walls, {trengthened with battlements and towers. ‘The
parapet is roofed with wood, and the walls and towers are provided with embrafures
for mufkets and cannon: the whole is furrounded by a deep ditch. This place with-
{tood feveral fieges; and particularly baffled all the efforts of Ladiflaus Prince of
Poland, who attacked it at the head of a large army.
Befide the convent or habitation for the monks, the walls enclofe an imperial
palace, and nine large churches conftructed by different fovereigns. The convent is
a range of buildings encircling a court, and far too {pacious for the prefent inhabitants:
it formerly contained three hundred monks, together with a proportionate number of
{ftudents, and was the richeft ecclefiaftical eftablifhment in Ruflia. ‘Their eftates, as
well as all the other church lands, being annexed to the crown, the members receive
penfions. With the revenues the number of monks is greatly diminifhed, and they do
not amount to one hundred. ‘The habit is black, with a veil of the fame colour; they
eat no meat, and the difcipline of the order is very f{tri€t. Within the convent is a
feminary for the education of perfons intended for the church, which contained about
two hundred ftudents.
The imperial palace, which was much frequented when the fovereign refided at
Mofcow, is {mall ; one of the apartments is ornamented with reprefentations in ftucco
of the principal actions of Peter the Great. The nine churches are fplendid, and ex.
tremely rich in gold and filyer ornaments, and coftly veltments. ‘The principal church
14 has
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