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146
On the Volga.
came on board, proceeding’ as far as Nishni Novgorod. They
all sat round a table, conversing in their strangely soft
language; suddenly they would put their thumbs to their
ears to shut out the world while praying.
These Tatars are, as a rule, excellent people. They call the
orthodox "idolaters," because they worship the pictures of the
saints; the orthodox retort the term on the Tatars because
they do not worship Christ. In Kasan the Tatars have much
the best hotels, which are clean and ordei’ly. In the orthodox
hotels, on the other hand, are women of bad character,
drunkenness, dirt, and dishonesty.
Early on the fifth day we arrived at the
picturesquely-situated and interesting city of Nisbni Novgorod, the end of
the steamboat journey. We stayed for a few hours only,
walking through the streets, as it was the dull season; it is
during the great fair that the city wakes up to full activity and
life. Here and there we found traces of the frequent fires
that occur in the wood-built houses in spite of the ingenious
and far-sighted command said to be issued by the governor of
the place, that the inhabitants must always report to the police
at least two hours before the outbreak of fire !
On our way by train from Nishni Novgorod to Moscow we
fell in with a liberal professor of theology in one of the
southern universities, with whom we had a most interesting
conversation.
Speaking of the terrible famine and its causes, the Professor
remarked: " The priests, also, are a very heavy burden on th e
people’s shoulders, keeping them down by ignorance and
poverty. If I had the power, I would exterminate all this
miserable missionary work among the masses, which is only
intended to hinder the spread of light among our people. I
believe firmly in the principles of religious liberty, and no
progress can be made in our country before we have it."
My companion, an earnest evangelical Christian, remarked
that there was an essential difference between the Orthodox and
evangelical missions, to which he replied:
" May be, but so far I have not found, either in the Greek,
Roman, or Protestant Churches, any mission which has not more
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