The Grave of the Princess Maksoutoff.
The chief managers entertained lavishly, and the dinners in the Castle were events long to be remembered. They were well worthy the representatives of a rich and powerful company, a corporation with a domain that was greater than the realm of many a royal ruler. Into the sumptuously furnished and richly decorated dining-room came the bishop and priests, resplendent in the official robes, the naval officers glittering in their gold laced uniforms, the secretaries, accountants, storekeepers, all in the uniform of the Ministry of Finance, the masters and mates of the ships in the harbor; the guests in their best apparel; all gathered around the hospitable board of the chief manager. At times a hundred sat at the table and back of them dined the cadets of the naval school. After the dinner came dancing and until morning the gayety went merrily on, for Russian cheer is proverbial, and their hospitality is lavish.
Usually the Captain of the port, the secretaries, three public and two private, two masters in the navy, the commercial agent, two doctors, and the Lutheran clergyman, dined with the chief manager by general invitation, Sir George Simpson tells us. The civilian masters of vessels, accountants, engineers, clerks, and bookkeepers, dined at a club which was organized by Mr. Etolin, and they lived at the old club house a little to the east of the church.
A wedding was an elaborate affair, a bridal cake which figured in many mystic signs, tea, coffee, chocolate and champagne; the ladies attired in muslin dresses, white satin shoes, silk stockings, kid gloves, fans, and other necessary appurtances. After the ceremony of an hour and a half was consummated, the ball was opened by the bride and the highest officer present, and the dancing lasted until three in the morning.
Easter was an event of much hilarity after the close of Lent, which was strictly observed by all. From morning to night everyone ran a gauntlet of kisses; when two persons met, one said, “Christ has risen,” while the other replied, “He has risen, indeed,” and then followed the salutations. These seemed not to have been distasteful to visitors, although one remarks that most of the dames had been more liberal with other liquids than of pure water. Throughout it all was a continuous peal of bells, for the Russian is fond of bell-ringing. All carried eggs, boiled into stones, and dyed, gilded or painted, which they presented to their friends.
CHAPTER VII
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Sitka, under the Muscovite, existed because of the fur trade, and every energy and interest centered on the gathering of peltries from every available quarter. Sailing ships moved in and out of the harbor, taken to their moorings or out to sea by the harbor tug; some from Michaelovsk with the beaver and martin from the Yukon, others en route to California or to the Sandwich Islands; the supply ships from Kronstadt around Cape Horn or returning via Canton and the Cape of Good Hope laden with furs; still others bound for the Kuril Islands or Okhotsk. The steamer “Nikolai” plied along the passages of the Alexander Archipelago, exploring the inlets, surveying the bays and rivers, gathering furs, always furs, for that was the reason for their living on this distant shore.[[15]]
