I have already said that in St. Petersburg you must go out into the street to find out how cold it is. And it is likewise true that the Russians are not content with giving their houses a springlike temperature; some of their rooms are lined with windowed screens, behind which are arranged boxes and pots containing the lovely flowers that the month of May gives to France. In winter the rooms are lighted most elaborately. They are also scented with hot vinegar into which bits of mint have been thrown and which yields a very agreeable and healthy smell. All apartments are furnished with long, broad divans for men and women to sit on. I became so used to them that after a time I could not sit on a chair. The Russian lady's salute is a bow, seeming to me more dignified and graceful than our courtesy. They do not ring for their servants, but signal to them by clapping their hands together, as sultanas are said to do in the harems. Every Russian lady has a man in full livery at the door of her drawing-room; he is always there to open the door for visitors, whom it was at that time the custom not to announce by name. But what seemed stranger still to me was that some of these ladies made a female serf sleep under their bed. Of an evening I went out into society. There were innumerable balls, concerts and theatrical performances, and I thoroughly enjoyed these gatherings, where I found all the urbanity, all the grace of French company. It seemed as though good taste had made a jump with both feet from Paris to St. Petersburg. Nor was there a lack of open houses, and in all of them one was welcomed with the greatest hospitality. One met at about eight and supped at ten. In the meantime tea was drunk, like everywhere else. But the Russian tea is so excellent that I--with whom it does not agree, and who must abstain from it--was glad to inhale its aroma. Instead of tea I drank hydromel. This tasty beverage is made with good honey and a small fruit picked in the Russian woods; it is left in the cellar for a certain length of time before bottling. I found it far preferable to cider, beer, or even lemonade. CHAPTER IX CATHERINE II. SURROUNDINGS OF ST. PETERSBURG -- PATRIARCHAL UNCONVENTIONALITIES -- AN ARTILLERY REPAST -- THE GREATNESS OF THE SECOND CATHERINE -- WHO LIT HER OWN FIRE AND MADE HER OWN COFFEE -- AND WAS SWORN AT BY A CHIMNEY SWEEPER -- OTHER DOMESTIC AMENITIES IN THE CAREER OF AN EMPRESS -- THE SUIT OF GUSTAVUS IV. -- CATHERINE'S DEATH -- HUMILIATING FUNERAL INCIDENTS.