"They are only the females of
the male," and have few womanly qualities. They toil at the same
tasks in the field as the men, ride astride like them, often without
saddles, and the mortality is excessive among the neglected children,
who are carried out into the fields, where the babies lie the whole
day with a bough over them and covered with flies, while the poor
mother is at work. Eight out of ten children are said to die before
ten years old in rural Russia.
In the little church (generally built of wood) there are no seats,
the worshippers prostrate themselves and knock their heads two or
three times on the ground, and must stand or kneel through the
whole service. The roof consists of a number of bulbous-shaped
cupolas; four, round the central dome, in the form of a cross is
the completed ideal, with a separate minaret for the Virgin. These
are covered with tiles of the brightest blue, green, and red, and gilt
metal. The priest is a picturesque figure, with his long unclipped
hair, tall felt hat largest at the top, and a flowing robe.
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