Muller reckoned out the eighteen altins, with which the Czar hurried off to a shop, and purchased a pair of shoes. He put them on with the greatest delight; he thought he never had worn such a pair of shoes; he showed them with a triumphant air to those about him, and said, “See them; look how well they fit; I have earned them well—by the sweat of my brow, with hammer and anvil.” One of these bars of iron, forged by Peter the Great, and bearing his mark, was kept as a precious relic in the forge at Istra, and exhibited with no little pride to all who entered. Another bar which was forged by his hand is shown in the Cabinet of the Academy of Sciences at Petersburg. THE MODERN “OFFICER’S” PROGRESS. III.—THE CATASTROPHE. What the Psalmist said in sorrow, those who witnessed the career of the Honourable Ensign Spoonbill and his companions might have said, not in sorrow only but in anger: “One day told another, and one night certified another.” When duty was to be performed—(for even under the command of such an officer as Colonel Tulip the routine of duty existed)—it was slurred over as hastily as possible, or got through as it best might be. When, on the other hand, pleasure was the order of the day,—and this was sought hourly,—no resource was left untried, no expedient unattempted; and strange things, in the shape of pleasure, were often the result. The nominal duties were multifarious, and, had they been properly observed, would have left but a comparatively narrow margin for recreation,—for there was much in the old forms which took up time, without conveying any great amount of real military instruction. The orderly officer for the day—we speak of the subaltern—was supposed to go through a great deal. His duty it was to assist at inspections, superintend drills, examine the soldiers’ provisions, see their breakfasts and dinners served, and attend to any complaints, visit the regimental guards by day and night, be present at all parades and musters, and, finally, deliver in a written report of the proceedings of the four-and-twenty hours.