It may be remarked that there is an excellent restaurant under the governor’s house in the fair. Some of the refreshment booths in the fair present a remarkable sight, and, we may fairly add, smell! The “Armenian kitchen” is one of the sights. Excellent horse-flesh may be had at the Tartar restaurants!
The passport system has been abolished as to persons attending the fair, the governor finding it impossible to examine, or indeed even to open the 40,000 documents per day that were formerly sent in. Besides, identification is out of the question; and the pick-pocket fraternity use to purchase, or more appropriately steal, the authorization they required under the old system.
Sanitary Arrangements.—The sanitary arrangements of the fair constitute by no means an unimportant feature. To a sometimes tropical heat there is the usual accompaniment of clouds of finely pulverised dust. The Easterns assembled are not proverbial for habits of personal cleanliness. There is indeed an aroma unmistakable. The sewers are flushed several times a day by means of water drawn from Lake Mestcherski, giving a fall of six yards into the river Oka. Round the central bazaar is a small canal, provided in case of outbreak of fire, and found valuable on many occasions. Smoking is prohibited within the limits of the fair under a fine of twenty-five roubles. The fair is guarded by a special service of Cossacks and police.
Amongst the amusements are a theatre with a very good ballet, for which latter Russia is famous.
There is a belief that the glory of the fair is departing. Wallace, in his “Russia,” 1877 (ii. 196-7), says:—“I went to the great fair—and was disappointed. All the descriptions of it which I have read are much too highly coloured. ‘The motley crowds of Orientals, representing every country in the East,’ is not visible to the naked eye of a prosaic observer. A few Georgians, Persians, and Bokhariots may be seen sitting at their booths or strolling about; but they are neither very picturesque nor very interesting in any way. There is a ‘Chinese Row’ where tea is sold, and where the roofs of the booths show traces of the influence of pagoda architecture; but I find there no children of the Celestial Empire. As to the various kinds of merchandise, they may all be seen to much better advantage in the shops and bazaars of Moscow. Altogether, I should advise the traveller not to go very far out of his way to visit this great annual gathering, which is commonly spoken of by Russians—especially by those of them who have never seen it—as if it were one of the seven wonders of the world.” This is in conformity with the general depreciatory style of the entire work.
I ought not to omit mention of a little privately-printed book, “The Great Fair of Nijni Novogorod, and How we got there.” By William Forsyth, Q.C. (1865.) He too was disappointed with the fair.
Two smaller Fairs.—Beyond the great fair which I have now described as fully as space would permit, there are two other fairs at Nijni, which, however, are little visited by foreigners. The one held in January on the ice, at the mouth of the Oka, is devoted to the selling of wooden wares, such as boxes and toys. Great numbers of people come to this fair from the neighbouring villages. In January, 1864, the ice on which the booths and inns were constructed gave way, and a considerable number of men, women, children, and horses miserably perished by drowning. Since then this winter fair can hardly be said to have revived.
The other fair held on 6th July (N. S.) is for the sale of horses.