Page:The Boy Travellers in the Russian Empire.djvu/343

Rh There were only two or three houses at the landing-place, the town which it supplied lying a little back from the river, upon ground higher than the bank.

It happened to be a holiday, and there was quite a group at the landing-place. The peasants were in their best clothes, and several games were in progress. Frank and Fred hardly knew which way to turn, as there were several things they wished to see all at once.

Some girls were in a circle, with their hands joined; they were singing songs which had a good deal of melody, and the whole performance

reminded the youths of the "round-a-ring-a-rosy" game of their native land. Close by this group were two girls playing a game which was called skakiet in Russian. They had a board balanced on its centre, and a girl stood on each end of the board. The maidens jumped alternately into the air, and the descent of one caused her companion to go higher each time. Mr. Hegeman said it was a favorite amusement in the Russian villages. It required a little practice, as the successful performer must maintain a perfectly upright position. Two girls who are skilled at the game will sometimes keep up this motion for fifteen or twenty minutes without apparent fatigue.

Among the men there were wrestling-matches, which were conducted with a good deal of vigor. Frank observed that some of the wrestlers received very ugly falls, but did not seem to mind them in the least. The Russian peasantry are capable of rough handling. They are accustomed 22