CHAPTER XV

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SOME ODD THINGS IN RUSSIA
I
IN his own country the Czar is almost worshipped by the people, and when his coronation takes place, crowds of loyal Russians flock to Moscow, the former in hopes of obtaining a glimpse of their beloved ruler, or at least of seeing portions of the grand procession, the beautiful decorations and the gay festivities which always form part of the jubilant occasion.

For centuries the great white Czars have been crowned in the

Cathedral of the Assumption,
which, though not large, is magnificent, and is the most important building in all Russia. The structure stands, surrounded by many other sacred edifices, in an enclosure known as the Kremlin, situated in the centre of the city of Moscow. Its white walls support a vaulted roof of soft, dull green crowned with golden cupolas, each cupola surmounted by a shining golden cross. The interior is resplendent almost beyond description with its rich coloring, its jewel-framed paintings, its sculptures, its gold, silver, and precious stones, its priceless robes and holy relics.
drawing Fig. 299.—Miniature Cathedral of the Assumption.

To give a true conception of the wonderful interior of the sacred cathedral to one who has never seen it, is impossible, but we can gain an idea of the general appearance of the exterior by making a miniature Cathedral of the Assumption (Fig. 299). Find, or make, a firm white pasteboard box seven inches long, five and one-quarter inches wide, and four and one-half inches high; this is for the body of the building. Fold a strip of paper seven inches in length, crosswise, through the centre, and bring the ends together, making another fold crosswise through the centre of the doubled strip, which will give four layers of paper of equal length. Cut this into a scallop three-quarters of an inch deep, open out the strip and you will have four scallops, each one and three-quarters inch wide, at its base. Lay the strip in turn along each of the top edges of the sides of the box, and mark the box around the edges of the scallops, drawing four scallops on the two long sides of the box, and three on each of the short sides. Cut out the scallops on top of the box; then take the cover of the box, which must form the roof of the structure, and remove the bent-down sides; trim off with scissors the extreme edge of one long side and one short side, until the cover forms a tight fit in the top of the box, but may, with gentle pressure, be made to slide down one inch. Fasten the roof in place at each corner by running a strong pin from the outside wall through into the roof, until the pin is embedded its full length in the roof.

drawing Fig. 300.—The Door-way.
drawing Fig. 301. The door.
drawing Fig. 302.—Door window.
drawing Fig. 303.—Upper window.
drawing Fig. 304.—Lower front windows.
drawing Fig. 305.—Lower side windows

Now cut the

Door-way
(Fig. 300) of light reddish-brown paper; make it three inches high and one and one-half inch wide. Let the door proper (Fig. 301) be of inked paper an inch and a half high by an inch and a quarter wide, the door-window (Fig. 302) one inch and a quarter high by three-quarters of an inch wide. Cut the upper row of windows like Fig. 303 and the lower front windows according to Fig. 304. Make the lower side windows double (Fig. 305). The door-arch (Fig. 306) must be a trifle over two and one-quarter inches long. Curve the arch by drawing it across a blade of the scissors, paint it green on both sides, bend down the slashed portion, and paste the arch over the door-way, as in Fig. 299.
drawing Fig. 306.—The door-arch.
drawing Fig. 307.—The paper cross.
drawing Fig. 308.—A cross on the top of each cupola.

Make five

Cupolas
of white writing-paper. For each cupola, cut a piece of paper five inches long. Let the first be three inches wide and the remaining four two and one-quarter inches wide; slash up the bottom edge of each cupola one-quarter of an inch; then half an inch below the top edge of each cupola paste a row of narrow, three-quarter-inch high windows cut from inked paper (Fig. 303). When the windows are on, paste the two ends of each cupola together, lapping them one-quarter of an inch. Bend out the lower slashed edge and glue the highest cupola on top of the centre of the roof; fasten the other four on the roof near the corners and at equal distances from the centre (Fig. 299). Have ready five half egg-shells and glue one on the top of each cupola. Then cut five paper crosses (Fig. 307), each measuring about two inches in height, including the lower slashed portion. Fasten a cross on top of each egg-shell (Fig. 308). Gild all the crosses and shells, bringing the gilt down into a narrow band on the paper below the shells. On the edge of each shell paste a narrow black-painted paper strip (Fig. 309), adjusting it so that the gilt on the white paper will show below the points.
drawing Fig. 309.—A narrow black strip.
drawing Fig. 310.—Fasten a strip of paper along the edge.
To Make the Roof
fasten a five-eighths-inch wide strip of paper along and over the scalloped top edge of the four sides of the building, using strong paste or glue for the purpose (Fig. 310); be sure that the strip is on even and firm; then let it dry. Paint the entire flat roof and flat top surface of the scallops green, using the same paint selected for the door-arch. Oil paint is best. Be careful not to spatter green on the white and gold cupolas.

When finished, place your little cathedral up high on a level with your eyes, turn it until you have the view which is given in Fig. 299, and you can very easily imagine just how the real Cathedral of the Assumption appears.

Thousands of girls, boys, and grown-up men and women in freezing, snowy Russia,

If you would know how the average Russian looks,

Dress a Doll Like a Russian
(Fig. 311). Cut two halves of a muslin cap (Fig. 312) and sew them together (Fig. 313). Sew in strands of tan-colored darning cotton on a line around the cap, midway from top and bottom (A-B, Fig. 312), and also sew a line of tan-colored strands on each side of the middle stitching of the white cap, until the lower fringe is reached. Fig. 314 shows the fringe of hair partially sewed on the cap. Glue this cap on the doll's head, smooth down the hair and cut it off straight around, making the hair a trifle shorter at the back than the front.
drawing Fig. 313.—The cap.
drawing Fig. 314.—The fringe of hair partially sewed on.

Cut another piece of cloth (Fig. 315), and sew in a fringe of the tan-colored cotton (Fig. 316); glue this on the doll to form the beard, and trim off the edges. Paint the moustache on the face, making it the color of the hair. Russians, as a rule, are blonds, having either red or lighter-colored hair.

drawing Fig. 315.—Another piece of cloth.
drawing Fig. 316.—The beard.

Make the trousers loose and bind them to the doll below the knees. The Russian leather boots which the natives wear always reach up over the trousers, and you can make such boots by painting the doll's feet black and sewing straight pieces of black material on the doll for boot-legs, allowing the cloth to be long enough to wrinkle around the ankle.

Try to make the boots appear as if laced up the front, for many wear them so in Russia. The blouse should be loose and belted in at the waist, hanging straight and square around the bottom. In case your doll has real hair, omit the wig and cut the real hair in Russian style.

These people never use their immense stove for heating a teakettle, though they drink tea upon all occasions. To make tea they resort to a samovar, which is a curious brass or copper vessel, shaped something like an urn. When the tea is ready, it is poured into tall glasses, a slice of lemon is put in each glass, and the tea drunk scalding hot. The beverage is called chai, and the Russians enjoy it so much that they often take twenty glasses in succession. When one desires sugar, it is not put in the tea, but held in one hand, and a portion bitten off from time to time between the swallows of tea.

drawing Fig. 317.—A little Russian samovar.

If you will empty an egg-shell of its contents and get a sheet of white writing-paper, a small square box, a piece of yellow sealing-wax, some liquid gilt, and five gilt beads, four about the size of large peas, and the fifth a trifle larger, we can manufacture

drawing Fig. 318. The handle.
drawing Fig. 319.—The faucet.
A Little Russian Samovar
like Fig. 317. Should you have no box, make one of pasteboard one inch square and half an inch high; if you cannot get the beads, use small, round buttons. The four beads or buttons are feet for the samovar. Fasten one on each corner of the bottom of the box with sealing-wax, then glue the broken centre of the large end of the egg-shell on the middle of the top of the box. Cut the handles from paper according to Fig. 318, making each handle one inch and a half long and half an inch wide. Run the half of one handle over the edge of a blade of the scissors; this will cause the paper to curl. Turn the handle over and curl the other half in the opposite direction; bend the handle at the dotted line, one-quarter of an inch from the lower edge, and paste it on one side of the samovar, midway between top and bottom. Make the other handle in the same way, and fasten it on the opposite side.
drawing Fig. 320.—The different parts of the samovar.

Cut the faucet (Fig. 319) of paper one inch wide; roll the paper up from the bottom, bringing the handle on top;[183]
[184]
bend the handle straight up, and bend the spout down in front of the handle. Glue the other end of the faucet to the front of the samovar with sealing-wax, placing it near the bottom, half-way between the two handles.

Make the top chimney of a roll of paper a generous inch in width. Paste the loose edge of the paper down on the roll, and pierce a hole in the roll one-quarter inch from the bottom, making it large enough to admit the end of a match. Glue a burned match in this hole, allowing the main part to extend out one-quarter of an inch from the chimney. Fasten a small, round, flat button on the end, and attach a round paper disk three-quarters of an inch in diameter to the top of the chimney, crowning the disk with the large bead.

Fig. 320 gives all the different parts of the samovar and shows as nearly as possible how they should be put together. When the samovar is finished, gild it all over, and you will have a unique little creation that would delight the heart of a Russian.


                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

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