BUT the pursuit of knowledge | Peter was born in 1672, and at is not necessarily confined to the study of books; and therefore, although we pass over many other names that might be here introduced, we must not omit that of a sovereign who distinguished himself by his ardour in this pursuit in a variety of ways, and was in all respects one of the most extraordinary men that ever lived, -the Czar PETER I. of Russia.1 1 'The education given to the Russian upper classes at this period seldom consisted of anything more than learning to read, to write, and to sing by note, with some ideas of history, geography, and of the productions of the earth, which were conveyed by means of picture-books; but instruction in grammar, in mathematics, even in arithmetic or in the higher branches of learning, was exceedingly rare, except among the clergy. . . . It is probable that such an elementary education was all that Peter would have received had circumstances not interrupted his earlier studies and changed the bent of his mind. A picture-book was ordered to be prepared by one of the Moscow artists for Peter when he was only a year old. . . . The Psalter, ten years of age found himself in nominal possession of the throne, although, for some time, all the actual power of the State remained in the hands of his sister, the Princess Sophia, who was about five years older than himself. But his boyhood was scarcely expired when he gave proof of the energy of his character by ridding himself of this domination; and in 1689 the princess was already re Be the Gospels, the Book of Hours, were the books from which, like other boys of his age, Peter was taught. sides learning to read, he acquired much by heart, and was able, even at a late period of his life, to recite many passages from the Scriptures. Apparently he learned to write late, for the first copy-books of which we find mention were not given out till 1680, when he was already seven years old; and his handwriting was always extremely bad. At the same time he learned singing by note-an acquirement which in later years frequently afforded him amusement, for in country churches he would enter the chancel and join the choir.'Eugene Schuyler in Scribner's Maga zine,' 1880. But how moved from the government, It is exactly the case of a strongminded and enterprising leader of some tribe of wild Americans or South Sea Islanders, setting out to see with his own eyes the wonders of those distant lands of which his white visitors have told him, and, after all, viewing the scenes which civilisation presents to him with an intoxication of surprise which shows how imperfectly even his excited fancy had anticipated their actual nature. ever he was at first struck with what he beheld, Peter did not continue long lost in mere amazement. The story which is told of the occasion which awakened him to the ambition of creating a Russian navy is very illustrative of his character. While looking about one day among some old stores and other neglected effects, he chanced to cast his eye upon the hulk of a small English sloop, with its sailing tackle, lying among the rest of the lumber, and fast going to decay. This vessel had been imported many years before by his father, Alexis Michelovitch, also prince of distinguished talents, and who had nourished many schemes for the regeneration of his country; but it had long been forgotten by everybody, as well as the object which it was designed to promote. No sooner, however, was it observed by Peter than it fixed his attention; he made inquiries of some of the foreigners by whom he was surrounded as to the use and immured in a monastery. From this moment the young Czar, now absolute in reality as well as in name, directed his whole efforts to the most extraordinary enterprise in which a sovereign ever engaged; being nothing less than to change entirely the most settled habits and prejudices of his subjects, and not so much to reform them as to transform them, almost by main force, from barbarians into a civilised people. For the Russians at this time -not more than a century and a half ago-were, in truth, little better than a nation of savages. Nay, Peter himself was born and reared a savage; and to his last days the passions and propensities of his ori- | ginal condition remained strong in his nature. It speaks the more for his wonderful genius, that throughout his whole history he forces us to feel that we are reading the adventures of the chief of a barbarous country, struggling to civilise himself as well as his people. And undoubtedly we do not follow his progress with the less interest on that account. Nothing, in fact, in his proceedings or his character so much engages our curiosity as to watch the astonishment with which his own ignorance was struck on the first view of those arts of civilised life which he was so anxious to introduce among his less ambitious, but hardly more ignorant, subjects. a of the mast and sails, even the general purposes of which he did not know; and the explanations which he received made him look on the old hulk with new interest. It immediately became, in his imagination, the germ of a magnificent national marine; and he could take no rest till he had made arrangements for having it repaired and set afloat. With some difficulty the Dutch pilot was found out, whom Alexis had procured at the same time with the sloop to teach his subjects the method of managing it; the man, like the vessel of which he was to have the charge, had long been forgotten by all the world. Once more, however, brought out of his obscurity, he soon refitted the sloop; and the Czar was gratified beyond measure by at length beholding it, with its mast replaced and its sails in order, moving on its proper element. Delighted as he was, he went himself on board, and was not long before he became a sufficiently expert seaman to take the place of his Dutch pilot. For several years after this his chief attention was given to maritime affairs, although his first ships were all of foreign construction, and it was a considerable time before any issued from his own docks. But the most extraordinary of the plans which Peter adopted in order to obtain an acquaintance with the arts of civilised life was that which he put in execution in 1697, when he set out in the suite of his own ambassador to visit the other countries of Europe. On this occasion, passing through Prussia, he directed his course to Holland, and at last arrived in the city of Amsterdam. His embassy was here received by the Government of the United Provinces with all manner of honour and distinction; but he himself refused to be recognised in any other character than as a private individual. The first days of his visit were spent in perambulating the different streets of the city, the various wonders of which were probably never viewed by any eye with more astonishment and gratification than they excited in this illustrious stranger. The whole scene was nearly as new to him, and as much beyond anything by which he had ever before been surrounded, as if he had come from another world. The different arts and trades which he saw exercised, and the productions of which met him, wherever he turned, in such surprising profusion, were all attentively examined. But what especially attracted his attention was the great East India dockyard in the village of Saardam (situated a few miles from Amsterdam), which was then the principal establishment of this description in Holland. Here he actually took the singular resolution of entering himself as a working carpenter; and accordingly, giving in to the superintendent the simple name vessels and seamen from that power to aid his favourite scheme of forming a navy for Russia. In this application, however, he was unsuccessful. On leaving Holland, Peter proceeded to England in a vessel sent to convey him by the Government; but on his arrival in London he insisted upon still being treated only as a private individual. Here he spent his time at first as he of Peter Michaelof, he took his place among the other workmen, and became in all respects one of them, even wearing the same dress, eating the same sort of food, and inhabiting equally humble lodgings. The hut in which he lived is still shown at Saardam. When he first made his appearance in the dockyard nobody knew who he was, and he of course attracted no notice; but even after his true quality was dis-had done in Holland, examincovered, he would suffer none ing the many interesting objects of the observances usual to that everywhere met his view. persons of his rank to be paid Among other places, he went to him, repelling every attempt to see the Tower, where he of the kind with evident dis- was much delighted with the pleasure. And in this way of armoury, and the coining of life he passed several months, money in the Mint. He was during which time he bore a taken also to see the two considerable part in the build- Houses of Parliament when ing of a vessel, which, when sitting; and he appeared twice completed, was named the St. or thrice at the play, but did Peter, and was purchased by not seem to have much relish the royal person whose hands for that species of amusement. had thus helped to put its tim- He was very fond, however, of bers together. While thus em- visiting the churches; and was ployed, however, the Czar did so anxious to learn the mode not neglect his duties and of worship observed by the appropriate occupations as a different denominations of dissovereign. After the labours senters, that he attended several of the day were over, his even- of their chapels. On one ings were generally employed occasion he was present at a either in writing despatches to Quakers' meeting. He paid the ministers whom he had left one visit to Oxford to see the in charge of affairs at home, or University; and another to in holding consultations with Portsmouth, where he was his ambassador regarding the greatly entertained by a mock negotiation pending with the sea-fight that was exhibited to Dutch Government, in which him. On this occasion he he took the most anxious declared that he considered an interest, as having for its object English admiral a happier man the procuring of a supply of than a czar of Muscovy. He also applied himself with zeal and diligence to learn whatever he deemed useful, without regarding the humble nature of any of the handicrafts in which he wished to become a proficient. With these views he did not scruple to work as a common labourer in papermills, saw-mills, rope-yards, and other establishments of a similar kind. Voltaire mentions (Histoire de Russie, i. 159) that he studied with particular attention the art of watchmaking. His first residence was a house appointed for his reception by Government below York Buildings, in the neighbourhood of Westminster Bridge; but he found this both a very noisy place of abode, and not conveniently situated for the object on account of which principally he had come to England, his improvement in the art of shipbuilding. After a short time, therefore, he removed to Deptford; and here he spent several months in the dockyard, employing himself in the same manner as he had done in that of Saardam. He was so much pleased, it is said, with the superior method of working which he found pursued here, that he used to declare he never should have known his trade had he not come to England. While at Deptford he lodged in the house of the celebrated John Evelyn, author of the Sylva, which stood on the site now occupied by the workhouse of the parish of St. Nicholas. We find the circumstance noticed in Evelyn's Diary, under the date of 30th January 1698: 'The Czar of Muscovy being come to England, and having a mind to see the building of ships, hir'd my house at Say's Court, and made it his court and palace, new furnished for him by the king.' He remained here, it appears, till the 21st of April. Some notion of his manner of living may be obtained from a letter written during this time to Evelyn by his servant: 'There is a house full of people, and right nasty. The Czar lies next your library, and dines in the parlour next your study. He dines at 10 o'clock and 6 at night, is very seldom at home a whole day, very often in the king's yard or by water, dressed in several dresses. The king is expected there this day; the best parlour is pretty clean for him to be entertained in. The king pays for all he has.' While the dockyard, however, was the place in which the Czar spent the greater part of the day, he employed many of his leisure hours in taking lessons in mathematics, navigation, and even anatomy, which he had begun to study while in Holland under the instruction of the eminent Professor Frederick Ruysch, whose museum he afterwards purchased for the sum of thirty thousand florins. Peter, indeed, neglected no opportunity during his travels of forming the acquaintance of |