As it is impossible to devote the whole evening to discussing the ordinary news of the day, recourse is almost invariably had to card-playing, which is indulged in to an extent that we had no conception of in England until Bridge was imported.

Hour after hour the Russians of both sexes will sit in a hot room, filled with a constantly-renewed cloud of tobacco-smoke--in the production of which most of the ladies take part--and silently play "Preference," "Yarolash," or Bridge.

Those who for some reason are obliged to be alone can amuse themselves with "Patience," in which no partner is required.
In the other games the stakes are commonly very small, but the sittings are often continued so long that a player may win or lose two or three pounds sterling.

It is no unusual thing for gentlemen to play for eight or nine hours at a time.

At the weekly club dinners, before coffee had been served, nearly all present used to rush off impatiently to the card-room, and sit there placidly from five o'clock in the afternoon till one or two o'clock in the morning! When I asked my friends why they devoted so much time to this unprofitable occupation, they always gave me pretty much the same answer: "What are we to do?
We have been reading or writing official papers all day, and in the evening we like to have a little relaxation.