,,wonderful ,,development      ,,of     
,peter the ,great's ,pet ,projects1     
,,according ,,to      ,his ,last ,will  
and ,testament4        ,,american       
,,invention      ,,as ,,an      ,,aid   
,,to ,,russia',s ,,grasp      ,,on      
,,asiatic ,,territory4      ,,by ,w4    
,,gannon4      ,,new ,,york3    ,,the   
,,maritime ,,reporter ,,publishing      
,,co41    #ae ,,whitehall ,,street4     
#ahhi4            ,,progressive ,,russia
      ,,on ,,the      ,march to         
,constantinople4      ,,an ,,american   
,,inventor ,,the ,,ally ,,of ,,the      
,,muscovite4      ,peter the ,great may 
justly be credited with having been the 
greatest  civilizer of his race4 ,to him
 is due the credit of nationalizing  his
 country and inaugurating vast          
industries1 through the medium of  the  
,ship4 ,so far in advance of his time   
was he that his startling  innovations  
and wonderful discounting of the arts of
 diplomacy must  have endangered his    
head had he not been fortunate enough to

 have been  born a despot4    ,peter's  
last will and testament outlined the    
policy to be pursued by  his successors1
 looking to the aggrandizement of       
,russia1 and startling  though its terms
 are in their selfishness1 they are so  
thoroughly  diplomatic that his         
successors have religiously lived up to 
their full  meaning4    ,and so it comes
 to pass that the ever-advancing and    
constantly-tightening grasp of ,russia  
on adjacent territory is alarming  the  
,governments of the ,old ,world and may1
 indeed1 in the near future1  somewhat  
concern ourselves4 ,the ,canadian       
,government is now urging ,great        
,britain to erect defences on the       
,pacific ,coast1 for the reason that    
,russia1 in pursuance of her peculiar   
policy1 is enlarging her works and      
arsenal at ,vladivostock1 opposite      
,british ,columbia2 and the initiative  
has already been taken by ,great        
,britain in the erection of batteries in
  the neighborhood of ,esquimault4      

,as early as last ,may the ,st4         
,petersburgh correspondent of the ,new  
,york  ,tribune contributed the         
following report of the progress of the 
,grand  ,trunk ,railway through ,central
 ,southern ,siberia to the ,pacific     
,ocean and  ,china3        8,,signs ,,of
 ,,russian ,,progress4        8,the     
completion of the ,trans-,caspian       
,railway to ,samarcand marks            
another stage in the ,russian occupation
 of ,asia4 ,that city was      the      
objective point of the earlier campaigns
 from ,orenburg and      the sea of     
,aral1 which ended in the conquest of   
,khiva and ,kokan      and the          
establishment of ,tashkend as the       
military headquarters1      with railway
 connections northward4 ,bokhara was    
reduced to the      condition of a      
protected province and ,samarcand was   
virtually      converted into a ,russian
 centre of trade on the border of       
,china4      ,an interval of twelve     
years has elapsed1 during which         

,samarcand1      already within easy    
reach from ,tashkend1 has been gradually
      approached from the ,caspian ,sea4
 ,the ,trans-,caspian ,railway is now   
in operation from ,michailovsk to       
,samarcand1 a distance of #hhe          
miles1 by way of ,askabad1 ,merv and    
,bokhara4 ,this narrow-gauge            
system1 built at a cost of #ba1jjj1jjj1 
gives ,russia control of      the       
commerce of ,turkestan and completes the
 circuit of conquest on      the borders
 of ,china1 ,afghanistan and ,persia4   
,in future military      operations in  
,central ,asia this railway1 with the   
northern line      running from         
,tashkend1 will be a most useful base of
 transportation      and supplies4      
,meanwhile1 it binds together a         
straggling series      of conquests     
separated by broad reaches of desert4   
,it is already      rumored in ,st4     
,petersburg that the ,czar intends to   
visit during      the summer the great  
,empire in ,central ,asia which the     

valor of      his soldiers and the skill
 of his engineers have created4 ,an     
imperial journey to ,merv1 ,bokhara and 
,samarcand will illustrate      the     
wonderful progress made by the ,russians
 during the last twenty      years in   
overrunning ,asia4        8,the ,russian
 engineer who has completed the         
,trans-,caspian system is      now to   
undertake a new and colossal            
undertaking4 ,this is the trunk         
line through ,central and ,southern     
,siberia to the ,pacific ,ocean4        
,surveys have already been made for a   
railway from ,tomsk to ,irkutsk1        
and this line when finished is to be    
extended to ,vladivostock1      on the  
coast4 ,as the ,trans-,caspian now makes
 a close approach      to ,western      
,china1 the ,siberian will complete the 
circuit of the      ,celestial ,empire  
on its northern border4 ,if the consent 
of the      ,chinese ,government can be 
obtained1 branches will be built from   
,irkutsk to ,pekin1 ,shanghai1 and other

 centres of population4 ,within         
five years it is expected that this     
gigantic enterprise will be             
accomplished and ,st4 ,petersburgh      
brought into direct communication       
with ,vladivostock4 ,the journey from   
the capital to the ,pacific can         
then be made in a fortnight2 and if     
,chinese markets can be opened      to  
,russian traders1 a marvelous change in 
the conditions of ,asian      commerce  
and intercourse will be effected40      
99       99       99       99       99  
,and only a few weeks ago the same      
journal printed the following1 as a     
sequel to the above3        8,the       
announcement that ,russia's ,central    
,asia railroad system is      to be     
greatly extended was to be expected4 ,at
 present it reaches      to ,samarkand  
and already more than pays working      
expenses4 ,every      branch or further 
extension of the main line will1 of     
course1 add      materially to its      
traffic and its profits4 ,it is now     

proposed to      build a branch from the
 main line at ,chardjui1 on the ,oxus1  
to      ,chamiab1 and also to continue  
the main line onward from ,samarcand    
to ,tashkend4 ,the latter would cross   
the ,jaxartes2 and thus the road        
would give direct communication with    
both the great rivers that      flow    
into the ,aral ,sea1 just at the head of
 navigation on them1 and      would     
connect the commerce of the ,aral with  
that of the ,caspian4      ,just beyond 
,tashkend begins a series of steppes    
adjoining those      of ,siberia1       
whither ,russian colonists are flocking4
 ,the road thus      promises to be of  
equal importance to commerce and to     
military      strategy40      ,,the     
,,first ,,step4    ,the occupation of   
,asia1 so long determined on by ,russia1
 was a problem  most difficult of       
solution4 ,many years were spent in     
devising ways and  means to navigate the
 ,aral ,sea--the first thought being to 
transport  machinery and material for   

the construction of steamers over the   
mountains--a project which was at length
 abandoned as impracticable4    ,but a  
solution was at hand4 ,in the year #ahfj
 a novel system for the  construction of
 vessels was introduced in ,great       
,britain by an ,american1  through whose
 efforts a ,company was formed and an   
extensive factory  established at       
,liverpool4 ,this ,company1 on proof of 
the value of its  system of             
construction1 secured a contract with   
the ,british ,government  to construct a
 number of steamers for the ,east ,india
 ,company of  ,bengal--,moorshedaba4    
,as an evidence of the financial        
solidity of this company1 and the  class
 of men who invested their capital in   
that concern1 it may be  mentioned that 
,sir ,charles ,manby1 the great ,english
 civil engineer1 was  ,president1 while 
such men as ,sir ,robert ,stephenson1   
,president of the  ,institution of      
,civil ,engineers1 and ,john ,hamilton1 
also well-known as  an eminent engineer1

 were members and stockholders4 ,the    
entire capital  and membership of the   
,company belonged in ,london--,liverpool
 simply  being selected as a factory    
site4    ,the steamers under course of  
construction by this ,company were #aej 
and  #bjj feet long1 built on the new   
system of      ,,corrugated ,,galvanized
 ,,iron1    three-sixteenths of an inch 
in thickness4 ,by this system the weight
  of hull of a vessel was reduced       
one-third and the draft reduced in      
proportion1 while the strength was      
increased two-fold by means of the      
corrugations covering the entire outer  
surface of the hull1 which  corrugations
 take the place of frames or timbers1   
thus increasing  the interior capacity  
of a boat of given draft while vastly   
increasing  her strength4 ,the great    
utility and superior qualities of this  
mode  of construction was fully         
demonstrated by the building of several 
supply boats for the ,british ,navy1 as 
well as military wagons for the  ,army1 

and other constructions on the same     
principle for miscellaneous  purposes4  
,the steamers built by this company were
 so constructed that  they could be     
,,disjointed ,,and ,,transported ,,in   
,,sections1    being so arranged that   
they could be set up and taken apart    
with the  utmost celerity1 and without  
the aid of more than passable           
shipbuilding  or mechanical knowledge4  
,this unique and valuable system of ship
  construction was invented by ,joseph  
,francis1 an ,american born1 and  justly
 celebrated as founder of the ,united   
,states ,life-,saving ,service1  for    
which1 at a late day1 he received the   
,,thanks ,,of ,,congress ,,and ,,is ,,to
 ,,receive ,a ,,gold ,,medal4           
,information of this system of          
construction reached ,russia after its  
value had been proved by the ,american1 
,english1 ,french1 ,austrian and        
,german ,governments1 and ,mr4 ,francis 
was invited to visit that country1      
where he was received by the ,emperor4  

,in #ahfj1 ,admiral ,boutakoff1 of the  
,imperial ,russian ,navy1 was ordered   
by the ,emperor to proceed to ,liverpool
 and examine the system of              
construction1 with a view to its        
applicability to service on the ,aral   
,sea1 in ,asia1 and report as to its    
utility4 ,from documents placed  in     
possession of the writer1 he is enabled 
to present a copy of the  ,admiral's    
,report1 as follows3                    
8,,liverpool1 #aeth ,november1 #ahfj4   
8,,honored ,,sir3 ,i have sent to the   
,scientific ,committee of the           
,marine ,ministry1 with my reports of   
the #aeth and #agth of ,october1        
for publication in a marine journal1 a  
short article concerning      the       
corrugated iron steamers4 ,in addition  
to information therein      contained1  
,i would state that it is my conviction 
that for our      rivers1 which are from
 year to year getting more shallow1     
there      cannot be built a more       
suitable steamer than the above4 ,in the

      discharge of my duty1 ,i          
communicate to you the result of the    
trials which have been made at the      
,liverpool factory4        8,the        
corrugation of sheets of iron is        
effected1 as may be known to      you1  
crosswise and not lengthwise1 and the   
sheets of the hull are      riveted     
together by lapping one upon the other1 
corrugation upon      corrugation1 and a
 double row of rivets put in4           
8,it was important to ascertain the     
relative strength of the riveted        
lap to a whole sheet before proceeding  
with the construction      of the       
steamers4 ,for that purpose we placed   
upon two blocks a      riveted sheet a a
 7as marked in the diagram accompanying 
this71      three feet ten inches in    
length by two feet six inches wide and  
three-sixteenths of an inch thick4 ,we  
then began by laying on      it1        
directly over the line of the rivets1   
zinc slabs1 b b1 each      weighing     
thirty-one pounds ,english4        8,the

 sheet broke at one row of rivets after 
having placed upon      it #ahh slabs1  
or #afj poods of fourteen pounds each   
7nearly three      tons72 after this    
test a whole sheet of the same measure  
was placed      upon the blocks1 and it 
bent after #aii slabs or #agj poods1    
7over      three tons7 had been placed  
upon it4        8,finally we took a     
plain sheet of iron the same measure1   
not      corrugated1 and it bent and    
fell from the blocks after ten slabs    
had been placed upon it4 ,i believe that
 such results settle the      question  
in regard to the local strength which   
corrugation imparts      to iron and its
 adaptation in the construction of      
vessels4        8,with sincere regard1  
7,signed47     8,,alexander ,,boutakoff4
        8,to ,,admiral ,,arkass40       
,illustration3 ,,test ,,of ,,corrugated 
,,iron ,,lap ,,made ,,in ,,liverpool    
,,by ,,admiral  ,,boutakoff1 ,r4 ,i4 ,n4
    ,on a call from the ,russian        
,government1 the inventor submitted     

photographs and drawings of the steamers
 constructed by the ,liverpool          
,company1 addressed1 according to       
instructions1 to the ,grand ,duke       
,constantine4    ,after some little     
necessary correspondence1 shorn of all  
diplomatic red  tape1 a contract was    
entered into between the ,imperial      
,government and  ,mr4 ,francis1 for the 
construction of a fleet of light-draft  
steamers1  to be pushed to completion   
rapidly as possible4 ,the result was    
that1  ere the year #ahfb had passed1   
steamers1 fully engined1 and ready for  
service1 were erected at the ,liverpool 
factory1 and taken apart again  for     
shipment4 ,these vessels were #aej to   
#bjj feet in length1 built on  similar  
lines to vessels already constructed by 
the ,company4 ,when the  steamers had   
been put together1 tested and again set 
up at the factory1  they were boxed for 
shipment1 in sections1 both hulls1      
floating dock  and machinery1 when they 
were ready for      ,,the ,,strangest   

,,route ,,ever ,,traversed ,,by ,,ship4 
,from ,liverpool they went first to ,st4
 ,petersburgh--thence to ,moscow--on  to
 ,nijni ,novgorod--across the           
,volga--over the ,ural ,mountains--to   
the  ,aral ,sea1 in ,asia--where they   
were at length unboxed1 the sections    
once  again put together and1 lo1 a     
,,proud ,,flotilla ,,graced ,,the       
,,aral1    upreared as if by magic      
hands4 ,this was the initiative in      
,russia's  grandest ,dream of ,empire4  
,these vessels had crossed the ,aral    
barrier1  and swooped down like things  
of life on the insulated sea1 the       
inhabitants of whose shores fondly      
dreamed they dwelt secure in  ,nature's 
fastness4 ,impossible would it have been
 to transport vessels  in their entirety
 over the rugged heights1 and deadly    
impracticable  would it have been to    
attempt their construction on the ,aral 
seaboard1  in full view of an alert and 
suspicious people4    ,here it may be   
well to introduce three letters1 the    

originals of which  are in possession of
 the writer1 and which are fully        
corroborative of  the preceding         
statements4        8,to ,his ,imperial  
,highness the ,grand ,duke ,constantine3
        8,i beg leave to present to     
,your ,imperial ,highness lithographs of
      the two corrugated galvanized iron
 steamers1 built at ,liverpool      for 
the ,syr ,dariah ,river1 under the      
supervision of ,captain ,a4             
,boutakoff1 of the ,russian ,imperial   
,navy4        8,the two steamers1       
together with one barge and a lifting   
dock1 are      finished1 ready for      
shipment4 ,captain ,boutakoff left      
,liverpool      ,march #be 7#acth74     
8,your ,imperial ,highness' humble      
servant1        7,signed47              
8,,joseph ,,francis40           99      
99       99       99       99           
8,,marine ,,ministry ,,of ,,the         
,,shipbuilding ,,dep',t4                
,march #ca1 #ahfa--,no4 #ahi4           
8,to ,mr4 ,joseph ,francis3        8,the

 letter which you addressed to ,his     
,imperial ,highness the ,grand          
,duke1 ,general ,admiral1 on the #beth  
,march1 with which you presented      to
 ,his ,imperial ,highness two drawings  
of corrugated iron steamers1      has   
been sent to this committee1 with a     
resolution from the      ,ministry of   
,marine1 stating that ,his ,imperial    
,highness desired his      thanks to    
you4 ,the committee has the honor to    
inform you thereof4        8,manager1   
,,bellarmsky4             8,,the        
,,president4        7,signed47          
,major-,general ,,chernofsky40          
7,letter from ,admiral ,boutakoff to    
,mr4 ,francis47        8,,fort ,,no4 #a1
 ,,syr ,,dariah1 ,july #b1 #ahfb4       
8,,dear ,,mr4 ,,francis--,the new       
steamers of my flotilla1 built at your  
works at      ,liverpool1 are not yet   
launched1 but ,i hope to accomplish it  
in      about a month4 ,the boilers1 on 
account of the great difficulty      of 
transporting them across the ,desert1   

will not arrive before      the middle  
of ,august1 so that ,i shall not have   
sufficient time to      employ the new  
steamers this year1 but will give them a
 trial upon      the ,syr ,dariah4 ,the 
parts of the pontoon dock will be here  
about      the end of ,august1 giving us
 time to put them together next winter4 
8,with a hearty shake hands1 and my     
sincere sympathies with your            
northern countrymen1 of whose victories 
,i congratulate you4        8,i remain1 
yours most truly1        7,signed47     
8,a4 ,,boutakoff40      ,on the         
launching of the steamers1 the ,emperor 
congratulated ,mr4 ,francis  on the     
success of the invention by which the   
first obstacle that  barred the way to  
the conquest of a vast territory was    
removed1 opening  an avenue to increased
 ,empire4    ,after the survey of the   
,aral1 only rendered possible by the    
construction of these vessels1          
fortifications were constructed on the  
shores of that sea1 and the             

long-deferred conquest of that section  
of  ,asia was1 to all intents and       
purposes1 accomplished4    ,in order to 
still further emphasize his gratitude1  
the ,emperor caused  ,mr4 ,francis to be
 created a ,knight of the ,royal ,order 
of ,saint  ,stanislaus1 one of the      
richest decorations in the gift of      
royalty4  ,following is a copy of the   
parchment3          8,we1 by the grace  
of ,god1 ,alexander the ,second1        
,emperor and      ,autocrat of all the  
,russians1 ,czar of ,poland1 ,grand     
,duke of      ,finland1 etc41 etc41 etc4
        8,to ,joseph ,francis1 ,citizen 
of the ,united ,states of ,north        
,america3        8,the ,ministry of     
,marine having testified to your        
particular      services1 we have       
graciously been pleased to nominate you 
a ,knight      of our ,imperial and     
,royal ,order of ,saint ,stanislaus by  
an ,ukaz of      #gth ,november1 #ahfj1 
given to our ,chapter of ,orders1 to the
 end that      they do sign and seal    

this ,diploma in witness thereof1 and   
forward      to you the insignia of the 
,order4        8,,st4 ,,petersburg1 this
 #ajth day of ,november1 #ahfj4         
,the ,vice-,president1         ,,count  
,,borch      ,,seal4                    
,lieut4-,general1                       
,l',,ecesujsecetz4                      
,grand ,master of ,ceremonies1          
,,rhitrovo4                     ,member1
                     ,,ku1              
,,uyey#e;,,eyuivel41        ,no4        
#e1gef40      ,shortly after the        
securing of his patents in ,russia ,mr4 
,francis  disposed of a portion of his  
corrugated system patent to ,baron      
,rumin1  ,chamberlain to the ,emperor1  
covering ,moscow and the ,rivers ,volga 
and  ,don4    ,after the contract was   
drawn1 a request was made on the part of
 the  ,baron to include the ,caspian    
,sea1 and to which no objection was     
made1  as little value was placed on the
 ,caspian at that time1 on account of   
its shallow water and isolated position1

 no one supposing that a      ,,railway 
,,would ,,ever ,,cross ,,the ,,jaxartes 
and join both the great rivers that flow
 into the ,aral ,sea1 connecting        
commerce with the ,aral and ,caspian1 as
 well as ,china1 and so onward to  the  
,pacific ,coast4    ,a factory was      
eventually established by ,baron ,rumin1
 on the ,banks of  the ,volga1 for the  
construction of steamers1 and practical 
workmen  were sent to this factory from 
the establishment of ,mr4 ,francis1 at  
,greenpoint1 ,brooklyn1 ,new ,york4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,this brief account of ,russia's        
struggle for supremacy among the  family
 of nations1 so intimately interwoven   
with the history of one  of ,america's  
foremost inventors in the life-saving   
field1 is another  instance of the      
,providence that rules the destinies of 
the world1  through the lives of        
unassuming and patient workers4    ,from
 experiment came invention4 ,the        
,life-,car1 in this instance the        

outcome of extended experiment on the   
part of ,joseph ,francis1 proved  the   
value of the corrugating system1 the    
fame of which1 within a few  years1     
spread all over the world4 ,the         
,life-,car1 the first construction      
under the corrugated system1 was merely 
the germ of the widespread  uses to     
which the system was and is applicable1 
as has been shown4  ,steamships1        
floating docks1 pontoon bridges1        
military wagons and  railway cars are   
only a few among the many constructions 
to which  the ,francis system of        
corrugated iron was applied by him and  
those  to whom he sold the right to     
manufacture4 ,the ,life-,car1 then1 was 
the suggestion that led to the          
construction of the portable1 strong1   
light-draft ship1 which proved the most 
powerful implement1 in ,russia's  hands1
 of working out the vastest scheme of   
empire ever conceived in  the brain of  
man4 ,mr4 ,francis1 successful in all   
his inventions1 has  been honored beyond

 most men by foreign potentates1 and now
 is about  to receive what he holds to  
be the crowning honor1 the bestowal of  
the  gold medal awarded him by two      
,congresses1 with the double thanks of  
this chosen body of representatives of  
the people4          ,appendix4         
,,will ,,of ,,peter ,,the ,,great1      
,,father ,,of ,,russian                 
,,ship-,,building4      ,the following  
is an authentic copy of the ,will of    
,peter the ,great1 the  first ,emperor  
of ,russia4 ,this will is the supreme   
foundation and law  of ,russian         
politics1 since his time1 and was       
confidentially deposited  in the hands  
of the ,abbe de ,bervis1 ,minister of   
,foreign ,affairs1 in  #ageg1 and also  
in those of ,louis ,,xv4 ,a copy is also
 to be found in the  diplomatic archives
 of ,france1 from which this translation
 is derived3      ,,the ,,will4         
,,preliminary ,,considerations4    ,in  
the name of the most ,holy and          
,indivisible ,trinity1 we1 ,peter1  the 

,first ,emperor and ,autocrat of all the
 ,russias1 etc41 to all our  descendants
 and successors to the throne and       
government of the ,russian  nation3     
,god1 from whom we derive our existence1
 and to whom we owe our crown1  having  
constantly enlightened us by ,his       
spirit1 and sustained us by  ,his       
,divine help1 allow us to look on the   
,russian people as called  upon         
hereafter to hold sway over ,europe4 ,my
 reason for thus thinking  is1 that the 
,european nations have mostly reached a 
state of old  age1 bordering upon       
imbecility1 or they are rapidly         
approaching it3  naturally1 then1 they  
will be easily and indubitably conquered
 by a  people strong in youth and vigor1
 especially when this latter shall  have
 attained its full strength and power4  
,i look on the future  invasion of the  
,eastern and ,western countries by the  
,north as a  periodical movement        
ordained by ,providence1 who1 in a like 
manner1  regenerated the ,russian nation

 by barbarian invasion4 ,these          
emigrations  of men from the ,north are 
as the reflux of the ,nile1 which1 at   
certain  periods comes to fertilize the 
impoverished lands of ,egypt by its     
deposit4 ,i found ,russia as a rivulet1 
,i leave it a river3 my successors  will
 make of it a large sea1 destined to    
fertilize the impoverished  lands of    
,europe1 and its waters will overflow1  
in spite of imposing  dams erected by   
weak hands1 if our descendants only know
 how to direct  its course4 ,this is the
 reason ,i leave them the following     
instructions4  ,i give those countries  
to their watchfulness and care1 as      
,moses gave  the ,tables of the ,law to 
the ,jewish people4      ,i4    ,keep   
the ,russian nation in a ,,state ,,of   
,,continual ,,war3 so as to have the    
soldier always under arms1 and ready for
 action1 excepting when the  finances of
 the ,state will not allow it4 ,keep up 
the forces2 choose  the best moments for
 attack4 ,by these means you will be    

ready for war  even in time of peace4   
,this is for the interest of the future 
aggrandizement of ,russia4      ,,ii4   
,endeavor by every possible means to    
bring in from the neighboring  civilized
 countries of ,europe officers in times 
of war1 and learned men  in times of    
peace2 thus giving the ,russian people  
the advanges enjoyed  by other          
countries1 without allowing them to lose
 any of their own  self-respect4        
,,iii4    ,on every occasion take a part
 in the affairs and quarrels of ,europe2
  above all1 in those of ,germany1 which
 country1 being the nearest1 more       
immediately concerns us4      ,,iv4     
,divide ,poland1 exciting civil discord 
there2 win over the nobility by         
bribery1 corrupt the diets1 so as to    
have influence on the election  of      
,kings1 get partisans into office1      
protect them1 bring to sojourn  there   
,muscovite troops1 until such time as   
they can be permanently  established    
there4 ,if the neighboring powers start 

difficulties1  appease them for a time  
by parceling out the country1 until you 
can  retake in detail all that has been 
ceded4      ,v4    ,take as much as you 
can from ,sweden1 and cause yourself to 
be attacked  by her1 so as to have a    
pretext for subduing her4 ,to accomplish
 this1  sever ,denmark from ,sweden1 and
 ,sweden from ,denmark1 carefully       
keeping  up their rivalries4      ,,vi4 
,always choose1 as wives for the        
,russian princes1 ,german princesses1 so
  as to increase family alliances1 to   
draw mutual interests closer1 and1  by  
propagating our principles in ,germany1 
to enlist her in our cause4      ,,vii4 
,england--requiring us for her navy1 and
 she being the only power that  can aid 
in the development of ours1 seek a      
commercial alliance with  her1 in       
preference to any other4 ,exchange our  
wood1 and the productions  of our land  
for her gold1 and establish between her 
merchants1 her  sailors and ours a      
continual intercourse2 this will aid in 

perfecting  the ,russian fleet for      
navigation and commerce4      ,,viii4   
,extend your possessions toward the     
,north1 along the ,baltic1 and toward   
the ,south by the ,black ,sea4          
,,ix4    ,approach as near as possible  
to ,constantinople and its outskirts4   
,he who shall reign there will be the   
true sovereign of the world4            
,consequently1 be continually at        
war--sometimes with the ,turks1         
sometimes with ,persia4 ,establish dock 
yards on the ,black ,sea1 get  entire   
possession of it by degrees1 also of the
 ,baltic ,sea2 this being  necessary to 
the accomplishment of the plan4 ,hasten 
the decline of  ,persia2 penetrate to   
the ,persian ,gulf2 re-establish1 if    
possible1 the  ancient commerce of the  
,levant through ,syria1 and make your   
way to the  ,indies--they are the       
emporium of the world4 ,once there1 you 
can do  without the gold of ,england4   
,x4    ,seek1 and carefully keep up an  
alliance with ,austria2 acquiesce1      

apparently1 in her ideas of dominating  
over ,germany1 at the same time         
clandestinely exciting against her the  
jealousy of the neighboring  provinces4 
,endeavor that the aid of ,russia should
 be called for1 by one  and the other1  
so that by exercising a kind of         
guardianship over the  country1 you     
prepare a way for governing hereafter4  
,,xi4    ,give the ,house of ,austria an
 interest1 for joining in banishing the 
,turks from ,europe2 defraud her of her 
share of the booty1 at the  conquest of 
,constantinople1 either by raising a war
 for her with the  ancient states of    
,europe1 or by giving her a portion1    
which you will  take back at a future   
period4      ,,xii4    ,attach to       
yourselves1 and assemble around you1 all
 the united ,greeks1  as also the       
disunited or schismatics1 who are       
scattered either in  ,hungary1 ,turkey1 
or the south of ,poland4 ,make          
yourselves their centres1  their chief  
support1 and lay the foundation for     

universal supremacy1 by  establishing a 
kind of royalty or sacerdotal           
government2 the ,slavonic  ,greeks will 
be so many friends that you will have   
scattered amongst  your enemies4        
,,xiii4    ,sweden severed1 ,persia and 
,turkey conquered1 ,poland subjugated1  
our  armies united1 the ,black and      
,baltic ,seas guarded by our vessels1   
you  must make propositions separately  
and discreetly--first to the ,court of  
,versailles1 then to that of ,vienna1 to
 share with them the ,empire of  the    
,universe4    ,if one of them           
accept--and it cannot be otherwise1 so  
as you flatter  their pride and         
ambition--make use of it to crush the   
other--then  crush1 in its turn1 the    
surviving one1 by engaging with it in a 
death-struggle2 the issue of which      
cannot be doubtful1 ,russia  possessing 
already all the ,east and a great part  
of ,europe4      ,,xiv4    ,if--which is
 not likely--both refuse the            
propositions of ,russia1 you  must      

manage to raise quarrels for them1 and  
make them exhaust one  another2 then    
profiting by a decisive moment1 ,russia 
will bring down  her assembled troops on
 ,germany2 at the same time1 two        
considerable  fleets will set out--the  
one from the ,sea of ,azov1 the other   
from the  port of ,archangel--loaded    
with ,asiatic hordes1 under the convoy  
of  the armed fleets from the ,black    
,sea and the ,baltic2 advancing by the  
,mediterranean and the ,atlantic ,ocean1
 they will invade ,france on one  side1 
whilst ,germany will already have been  
invaded on the other4 ,these  countries 
conquered1 the rest of ,europe will     
easily pass under the  yoke1 without    
striking a single blow4      ,,xv4      
,thus ,europe can1 and ought1 to be     
subdued4        ,,peter ,i41            
,,autocrat ,,of ,,all ,,the ,,russias4  
,lest the reader of this ,,will may form
 an opinion antagonistic to its  author1
 it may be well to state that while     
,peter the ,great was a ,despot  he was 

also a ,patriot--and while a ,tyrant he 
was yet a ,humanitarian4  ,this man1 who
 could icily command death by the knout 
was the same  man who yielded up his own
 life in rescuing a sailor who had      
fallen  overboard in the ice-laden      
waters of the ,neva4 ,and ,peter was1   
above  and beyond all1 a ,statesman1 an 
,inventor1 a finished ,mechanic and     
,progenerator of the ,russian           
,life-,saving ,service4