To celebrate a parish fete in true orthodox fashion it is necessary to prepare beforehand a large quantity of braga—­a kind of home-brewed small beer—­and to bake a plentiful supply of piroghi or meat pies.  Oil, too, has to be procured, and vodka (rye spirit) in goodly quantity.  At the same time the big room of the izba, as the peasant’s house is called, has to be cleared, the floor washed, and the table and benches scrubbed.  The evening before the fete, while the piroghi are being baked, a little lamp burns before the Icon in the corner of the room, and perhaps one or two guests from a distance arrive in order that they may have on the morrow a full day’s enjoyment.

On the morning of the fete the proceedings begin by a long service in the church, at which all the inhabitants are present in their best holiday costumes, except those matrons and young women who remain at home to prepare the dinner.  About mid-day dinner is served in each izba for the family and their friends.  In general the Russian peasant’s fare is of the simplest kind, and rarely comprises animal food of any sort—­not from any vegetarian proclivities, but merely because beef, mutton, and pork are too expensive; but on a holiday, such as a parish fete, there is always on the dinner table a considerable variety of dishes.  In the house of a well-to-do family there will be not only greasy cabbage-soup and kasha—­a dish made from buckwheat—­but also pork, mutton, and perhaps even beef.  Braga will be supplied in unlimited quantities, and more than once vodka will be handed round.  When the repast is finished, all rise together, and, turning towards the Icon in the corner, bow and cross themselves repeatedly.  The guests then say to their host, “Spasibo za khelb za sol”—­that is to say, “Thanks for your hospitality,” or more literally, “Thanks for bread and salt”; and the host replies, “Do not be displeased, sit down once more for good luck”—­or perhaps he puts the last part of his request into the form of a rhyming couplet to the following effect:  “Sit down, that the hens may brood, and that the chickens and bees may multiply!” All obey this request, and there is another round of vodka.

After dinner some stroll about, chatting with their friends, or go to sleep in some shady nook, whilst those who wish to make merry go to the spot where the young people are singing, playing, and amusing themselves in various ways.  As the sun sinks towards the horizon, the more grave, staid guests wend their way homewards, but many remain for supper; and as evening advances the effects of the vodka become more and more apparent.  Sounds of revelry are heard more frequently from the houses, and a large proportion of the inhabitants and guests appear on the road in various degrees of intoxication.  Some of these vow eternal affection to their friends, or with flaccid gestures and in incoherent tones harangue invisible audiences; others stagger about aimlessly in besotted self-contentment, till they drop down in a state of complete unconsciousness.  There they will lie tranquilly till they are picked up by their less intoxicated friends, or more probably till they awake of their own accord next morning.