This monastery, like Moscow and the towns of the Upper Volga, is a spot where the past seems ever present. It calls up visions of the Russia of the boyarin, the Grand-Dukes of Moscow, and the first Czars, and vividly explains the historical evolution of the Russian people. The Imperial family were present at a _Te Deum_ and knelt before the relics of St. Sergius, the founder of the monastery. The Archimandrite then handed the Czar an icon painted in a fragment of the coffin of the saint, one of the most revered in Russia. In olden times this image always accompanied the Czars on their campaigns. On the Czar’s orders it is being sent to General Headquarters and placed in the “field chapel” of the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armies. The Czar, Czarina, and their children visited the little church of Saint Nicon and then stayed a few minutes in the ancient residence of the patriarchs. As time was pressing, we had to abandon the idea of visiting the hermitage of Gethsemane, which is a little distance from the monastery. In accordance with a practice still frequently observed in Russia, certain hermits still have themselves shut up here in subterranean walled cells. They live in prayer and fasting to the end of their days, completely isolated from the world, and the slit through which their food is passed is their sole means of communication with their fellow-men. The Imperial family bade the Archimandrite farewell and left the monastery, accompanied by a crowd of monks who swarmed round the cars. CHAPTER X THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THE WAR On August 22nd we returned to Tsarskoïe-Selo, where the Czar was to be obliged to spend some time before he could get away to General Headquarters. Decisions of the utmost importance required his presence near the capital. Notwithstanding the terrible weight of responsibility on his shoulders, the Czar never showed such firmness, resolution, and conscious energy as during this period at the beginning of the war. His personal influence had never been exerted with more authority. It seemed as if he had devoted himself body and soul to the formidable task of leading Russia to victory. We felt he was inspired by some inward force and a dour determination to conquer which communicated itself to everyone with whom he came in contact. The Czar was shy and retiring by nature. He belonged to the category of human beings who are always hesitating because they are too diffident and are ever slow to impose their will on others because they are too gentle and sensitive. He had little faith in himself and imagined that he was one of the unlucky ones. Unfortunately his life seemed to show that he was not entirely wrong. Hence his doubts and hesitations. But this time it seemed as if he had changed. What was it gave him his confidence?