Page:Maud, Renée - One year at the Russian court 1904-1905.djvu/125

Rh it would have been delightful and full of interest.

We bore the journey very well in spite of the three days and four nights in the train, during which time I found myself again much admiring three things: the banks of the Don, the country of the Cossacks; the Caucasus range; and the shores of the Caspian Sea, especially by moonlight.

The love of liberty, of war, of rapine are the chief characteristics of the Cossacks. They are excellent warriors and believe themselves superior to all other races. The power of Russia only makes itself felt in their country by troops which are quartered there. They look upon these soldiers as so many intruders, and despise the Russian peasant, whom they consider coarse and savage.

The Cossack does not work at home; the young girl is allowed to do nothing, but may amuse herself to her heart's content; a married woman must work very hard up to even the most advanced age. She must be submissive and laborious, like the woman of the East.

Apparently resigned, the Cossack woman has nevertheless in her home more real authority than the woman of the West.

The Cossack would not like to treat her familiarly in the presence of strangers, but tête-à-tête he acknowledges her supremacy and realizes that it is to her that he owes all that goes towards making the home comfortable. Thanks to this severe regime, the Cossack woman develops both morally and physically; she possesses