The humour of Russia

Russian wit and humor

Mr. Chenapan has again made rather a muddle of his Russian. “Zvon
  pobièdy, razdavaïsia!” (“Bells of victory, ring out!”) is the opening
  line of one of Derzhàvin’s pompous, servile, and essentially jingoish
  odes on the victories of Catherine II.—_Translator._

Footnote 36:

  “This is _our_ way of giving tips.”

Footnote 37:

  A well-known French actress of that time in St. Petersburg.—AUTHOR.

Footnote 38:

  Evidently a mistake; there are no municipal counsellors in
  Russia.—AUTHOR.

Footnote 39:

  “Now you’ll see me at my business!”

Footnote 40:

  The St. Petersburg Arcade.

Footnote 41:

  A quotation from Griboyèdov.

Footnote 42:

  The observation of a certain editor.

Footnote 43:

  The Islands in the Delta of the Neva are recognised places for fast
  amusements. The Arcadia is a well-known music-hall there.

Footnote 44:

  Village syndic.

Footnote 45:

  Landlord and Serf-owner (corruption of the ancient word “boyàrin”).

Footnote 46:

  The village bell-ringer.

Footnote 47:

  Bishop.

Footnote 48:

  District Police Inspector.

Footnote 49:

  Inferior police official, who collects taxes.

Footnote 50:

  The peasant is satirizing the Russian “Passport regulations,”
  according to which it is a penal offence for a householder to take in
  any inmate who cannot show police certificates.

Footnote 51:

  Colloquial for Mikhail.

Footnote 52:

  Principal town of any province.

Footnote 53:

  A famous group of statuary in Moscow.

Footnote 54:

  A slang term for the gendarmes; probably because their uniforms are
  “deeply, darkly, beautifully blue,” like the waters of the
  Mediterranean.—TRANSLATOR.

Footnote 55:

  Equipage with three horses.

Footnote 56:

  Member of the Committee of Inquiry.

Footnote 57:

  Contemptuous diminutive of Lipàtkin.

Footnote 58:

  Of the clerical class.

Footnote 59:

  Fragments of popular songs.

Footnote 60:

  The popular emblem of hospitality.

Footnote 61:

  A flunkeyish poetaster at the Court of Catherine II.

Footnote 62:

  “_Exekoùtzia_,” official term for wholesale flogging, in case of
  mutiny, or inability to pay taxes, among the peasantry.

Footnote 63:

  Mr. Chenapan has made a slight mistake. _Nedoìmka_ is the Russian word
  for debt; but he is so far right that “recovery of nedoìmki” is the
  expression officially used for the extortion of taxes from a starving
  population, and that such extortion is very often accomplished by
  means of “une espèce de peine corporelle.”—_Translator._

------------------------------------------------------------------------

                              PROSPECTUS.

[Illustration]

                                LIBRARY

                                   OF

                                HUMOUR.

            London: Walter Scott, Ltd., Paternoster Square.

                        _SPECIMEN ILLUSTRATION_

[Illustration:

  WHEN GREEK MEETS GREEK.
]

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Opening the text

General

The humour of Russia

Russian wit and humor

Mr. Chenapan has again made rather a muddle of his Russian. “Zvon
  pobièdy, razdavaïsia!” (“Bells of victory, ring out!”) is the opening
  line of one of Derzhàvin’s pompous, servile, and essentially jingoish
  odes on the victories of Catherine II.—_Translator._

Footnote 36:

  “This is _our_ way of giving tips.”

Footnote 37:

  A well-known French actress of that time in St. Petersburg.—AUTHOR.

Footnote 38:

  Evidently a mistake; there are no municipal counsellors in
  Russia.—AUTHOR.

Footnote 39:

  “Now you’ll see me at my business!”

Footnote 40:

  The St. Petersburg Arcade.

Footnote 41:

  A quotation from Griboyèdov.

Footnote 42:

  The observation of a certain editor.

Footnote 43:

  The Islands in the Delta of the Neva are recognised places for fast
  amusements. The Arcadia is a well-known music-hall there.

Footnote 44:

  Village syndic.

Footnote 45:

  Landlord and Serf-owner (corruption of the ancient word “boyàrin”).

Footnote 46:

  The village bell-ringer.

Footnote 47:

  Bishop.

Footnote 48:

  District Police Inspector.

Footnote 49:

  Inferior police official, who collects taxes.

Footnote 50:

  The peasant is satirizing the Russian “Passport regulations,”
  according to which it is a penal offence for a householder to take in
  any inmate who cannot show police certificates.

Footnote 51:

  Colloquial for Mikhail.

Footnote 52:

  Principal town of any province.

Footnote 53:

  A famous group of statuary in Moscow.

Footnote 54:

  A slang term for the gendarmes; probably because their uniforms are
  “deeply, darkly, beautifully blue,” like the waters of the
  Mediterranean.—TRANSLATOR.

Footnote 55:

  Equipage with three horses.

Footnote 56:

  Member of the Committee of Inquiry.

Footnote 57:

  Contemptuous diminutive of Lipàtkin.

Footnote 58:

  Of the clerical class.

Footnote 59:

  Fragments of popular songs.

Footnote 60:

  The popular emblem of hospitality.

Footnote 61:

  A flunkeyish poetaster at the Court of Catherine II.

Footnote 62:

  “_Exekoùtzia_,” official term for wholesale flogging, in case of
  mutiny, or inability to pay taxes, among the peasantry.

Footnote 63:

  Mr. Chenapan has made a slight mistake. _Nedoìmka_ is the Russian word
  for debt; but he is so far right that “recovery of nedoìmki” is the
  expression officially used for the extortion of taxes from a starving
  population, and that such extortion is very often accomplished by
  means of “une espèce de peine corporelle.”—_Translator._

------------------------------------------------------------------------

                              PROSPECTUS.

[Illustration]

                                LIBRARY

                                   OF

                                HUMOUR.

            London: Walter Scott, Ltd., Paternoster Square.

                        _SPECIMEN ILLUSTRATION_

[Illustration:

  WHEN GREEK MEETS GREEK.
]

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

The humour of Russia

The humour of Russia

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