Some people in Russia have very queer cradles for their babies. One kind of cradle is a basket which hangs by ropes from the ceiling. Another kind of cradle is made of cloth sewed to a wooden frame. This cradle also hangs from the ceiling. In some places in Russia the nurses who take care of the babies wear dresses to show whether the baby is a girl or a boy. If it is a boy the nurse wears a blue dress. If it is a girl the nurse wears a pink dress.
There are not schools in all parts of Russia, but in some places there are good schools, and the children learn to read and write.
I must not forget to tell you of the great bell in Russia. It is the largest bell in the world. It is in Moscow, a very old city of Russia, and it is called the great bell of Moscow. But it has never been rung, for it was cracked in the side when it was being made. It is nearly twenty feet high, and is now used as a chapel.
[Illustration: The Great Bell at Moscow.]
The next largest bell in the world is also in Moscow. This bell is hung up in a church; and when they ring it, the sound is heard all over the city like the rolling of thunder.
SWITZERLAND.
Switzerland is a land of mountains and hills and valleys and beautiful lakes and streams. Every year many people go from all parts of the world to see the beautiful Swiss mountains and valleys.
Sometimes large masses of snow and ice, mixed with earth, fall or slide down the sides of the mountains with a loud crash. As they slide, they tear away rocks and trees, and bury houses and villages beneath them. These masses of snow and ice are called avalanches.
