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1. Normal visual sensation in the absence of complete visual perception is best illustrated
by
A) prosopagnosia.
B) synaesthesia.
C) tinnitus.
D) sensory interaction.

2. The process of receiving and representing stimulus energies by the nervous system is
called
A) priming.
B) synaesthesia.
C) accommodation.
D) sensation.

3. Perception is the process by which


A) stimulus energies are detected.
B) stimulus energies are transformed into neural activity.
C) sensory input is organized and interpreted.
D) nerve cells respond to specific features of a stimulus.

4. Sensation is to ________ as perception is to ________.


A) encoding; detection
B) detection; interpretation
C) interpretation; organization
D) organization; accommodation

5. Hearing a sequence of sounds of different pitches is to ________ as recognizing the


sound sequence as a familiar melody is to ________.
A) absolute threshold; difference threshold
B) sensory interaction; feature detection
C) feature detection; sensory interaction
D) sensation; perception

6. Bottom-up processing involves analysis that begins with the


A) optic nerve.
B) sensory receptors.
C) cerebral cortex.
D) feature detectors.

Page 1
7. Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes is called
A) prosopagnosia.
B) sensory interaction.
C) top-down processing.
D) synaesthesia.

8. Berdine has developed cataracts in both eyes, preventing her from being able to identify
even her mother's face. Berdine most clearly suffers a deficiency in
A) the optic nerve.
B) accommodation.
C) bottom-up processing.
D) kinesthesis.

9. Patients who have negative expectations about the outcome of a surgical procedure may
experience increased postoperative pain. This best illustrates the importance of
A) accommodation.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) difference thresholds.
D) top-down processing.

10. Three steps that are basic to all sensory systems include the ________ of information to
the brain.
A) proximity, closure, and continuity
B) receiving, transforming, and delivering
C) priming, grouping, and parallel processing
D) feature detection, interposition, and sensory adaptation

11. Which of the following represents the very first of three steps basic to all sensory
systems?
A) forming perceptual sets
B) delivering neural information to the brain
C) receiving sensory stimulation
D) transforming stimulus energies into neural impulses

12. The process by which our sensory systems transform stimulus energies into neural
impulses is called
A) priming.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) transduction.
D) accommodation.

Page 2
13. The conversion of a fresh coffee aroma into neural impulses by olfactory receptor cells
best illustrates
A) top-down processing.
B) transduction.
C) sensory interaction.
D) the vestibular sense.

14. Nociceptors trigger neural impulses in response to a sprain or a burn. This illustrates
A) tinnitus.
B) transduction.
C) psychokinesis.
D) perceptual adaptation.

15. The minimum amount of stimulation a person needs to detect a stimulus 50 percent of
the time is called the
A) critical period.
B) just noticeable difference.
C) perceptual set.
D) absolute threshold.

16. During a hearing test, many sounds were presented at such a low level of intensity that
Mr. Antall could not detect them. These sounds were below Mr. Antall's
A) perceptual set.
B) absolute threshold.
C) vestibular sense.
D) difference threshold.

17. If a partially deaf person's hearing ability ________, his or her absolute threshold for
sound ________.
A) improves; remains unchanged
B) worsens; decreases
C) worsens; remains unchanged
D) improves; decreases

Page 3
18. Which theory predicts when we will first notice a faint stimulus presented amid
competing background stimulation?
A) place theory
B) frequency theory
C) signal detection theory
D) Young-Helmholtz theory

19. Which theory emphasizes that personal expectations and motivations influence the level
of absolute thresholds?
A) signal detection theory
B) frequency theory
C) opponent-process theory
D) place theory

20. Which theory would suggest that watching a horror movie late at night could lower your
absolute threshold for sound as you subsequently tried to fall asleep?
A) place theory
B) opponent-process theory
C) frequency theory
D) signal detection theory

21. Lonely, anxious people at speed-dating events respond with a ________ threshold, and
thus tend to be ________ in reaching out to potential dates.
A) low; unselective
B) high; unselective
C) low; overly selective
D) high; overly selective

22. Priming refers to the activation of certain


A) blind spots.
B) hair cells.
C) nociceptors.
D) associations.

Page 4
23. In experiments, an image is quickly flashed and then replaced by a masking stimulus
that inhibits conscious perception of the original image. In these experiments, the
researchers are studying the effects of
A) accommodation.
B) tinnitus.
C) priming.
D) blindsight.

24. After a photo of a nude man or woman was flashed and immediately masked before
being perceived, people's attention was unconsciously drawn to images in a way that
reflected their
A) precognition.
B) retinal disparity.
C) sexual orientation.
D) vestibular sense.

25. People's response to subliminal priming indicates that


A) they are capable of processing information without any conscious awareness of
doing so.
B) their unconscious minds are incapable of resisting subliminally presented
suggestions.
C) they are more sensitive to subliminal sounds than to subliminal sights.
D) they experience a sense of discomfort whenever they are exposed to subliminal
stimuli.

26. A subliminal message is one that


A) is below your absolute threshold.
B) cannot be detected 50 percent of the time.
C) can affect you under certain conditions.
D) is all of these things.

27. Subliminally presented stimuli


A) can sometimes be consciously perceived.
B) effectively influence purchases of consumer goods.
C) increase our absolute thresholds for visual images.
D) are usually mentally processed as completely as any other stimuli.

Page 5
28. Which of the following strategies best illustrates the use of subliminal stimulation?
A) A store plays a musical soundtrack in which a faint and imperceptible verbal
warning against shoplifting is repeated frequently.
B) The laughter of a studio audience is dubbed into the soundtrack of a televised
situation comedy.
C) A radio advertiser repeatedly smacks her lips before biting into a candy bar.
D) An unseen television narrator repeatedly suggests that you are thirsty while a cold
drink is visually displayed on the screen.

29. Experiments evaluating the impact of subliminal self-help recordings for improving
memory indicated that they
A) interfere with people's capacity for sensory adaptation.
B) did not help more than a placebo.
C) improve people's capacity for parallel processing.
D) have a positive long-lasting impact on people's health.

30. The minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the
time is called
A) retinal disparity.
B) the absolute threshold.
C) perceptual set.
D) the just noticeable difference.

31. Jennifer can tune her guitar more effectively than Maria because Jennifer is better at
detecting whether specific strings are playing too sharp or too flat. With respect to tone
sensitivity, Maria apparently has a ________ threshold than does Jennifer.
A) lower absolute
B) higher absolute
C) smaller difference
D) larger difference

32. The principle that two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum proportion for their
difference to be perceived is known as
A) the opponent-process theory.
B) Weber's law.
C) feature detection.
D) sensory interaction.

Page 6
33. Giulio's bag of marbles is twice as heavy as Jim's. If it takes 5 extra marbles to make
Jim's bag feel heavier, it will take 10 extra marbles to make Giulio's bag feel heavier.
This best illustrates
A) the opponent-process theory.
B) the McGurk effect.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) Weber's law.

34. Sensory adaptation refers to


A) the process by which stimulus energies are changed into neural impulses.
B) diminished sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus.
C) the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information.
D) changes in the shape of the lens as it focuses on objects.

35. After listening to your high-volume car stereo for 15 minutes, you fail to realize how
loudly the music is blasting. This best illustrates
A) Weber's law.
B) accommodation.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) the volley principle.

36. The constant quivering movements of our eyes enable us to


A) focus the light on our retina.
B) adjust the size of the pupil.
C) minimize sensory adaptation.
D) do all of these things.

37. A perceptual set is a


A) tendency to fill in gaps to perceive a complete, whole object.
B) readiness to judge an object as larger than it is.
C) tendency to view objects high in our field of vision as closer than they are.
D) mental predisposition that influences what we perceive.

38. After learning that her new college roommate had experienced several episodes of
depression during her high school years, Erin incorrectly perceived her roommate's
laughter as artificial and phony. This best illustrates the impact of
A) interposition.
B) perceptual set.
C) clairvoyance.
D) blindsight.

Page 7
39. After hearing rumors about the outbreak of an infectious disease, Alyosha began to
perceive his normal aches and pains as disease-related symptoms. His reaction best
illustrates the impact of
A) the McGurk effect.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) psychokinesis.
D) perceptual set.

40. The tendency to perceive a moving light in the night sky as belonging to an airplane
rather than a weather balloon best illustrates the impact of
A) kinesthesis.
B) retinal disparity.
C) perceptual set.
D) synaesthesia.

41. When researchers added a few drops of vinegar to a brand-name beer, the beer tasters
disliked it only if they had been told they were drinking vinegar-laced beer. This best
illustrates the impact of
A) kinesthesis.
B) interposition.
C) perceptual set.
D) the McGurk effect.

42. A concept that helps us to interpret ambiguous sensations is called a


A) gestalt.
B) schema.
C) feature detector.
D) masking stimulus.

43. The influence of schemas on our interpretations of ambiguous sensations best illustrates
A) shape constancy.
B) top-down processing.
C) psychokinesis.
D) the volley principle.

Page 8
44. Stereotypes are mental conceptions that can strongly influence the way we interpret the
behaviors of individuals belonging to specific racial or ethnic groups. A stereotype is
most similar to a
A) feature detector.
B) perceptual adaptation.
C) perceptual set.
D) difference threshold.

45. Visual perceptions of objects often change when the objects are viewed in different
surroundings. This best illustrates
A) blindsight.
B) Weber's law.
C) context effects.
D) retinal disparity.

46. Although Sue Yen sees her chemistry professor several times a week, she didn't
recognize the professor when she saw her in the grocery store. This best illustrates the
importance of
A) relative luminance.
B) context effects.
C) interposition.
D) perceptual adaptation.

47. When Rick learned that many students had received a failing grade on the midterm
exam, he was no longer disappointed by his C grade. His experience best illustrates the
importance of
A) perceptual adaptation.
B) linear perspective.
C) context effects.
D) interposition.

48. The horizon Moon appears to shrink in size if it is viewed through a narrow tube that
eliminates the perception of distance cues. This best illustrates the importance of
A) perceptual adaptation.
B) kinesthesis.
C) context effects.
D) sensory interaction.

Page 9
49. To those throwing a very heavy rather than a light object at a target, the target is likely
to be perceived as
A) softer.
B) slower moving.
C) larger.
D) farther away.

50. If rewards were linked to seeing farm animals rather than sea animals, viewers tended to
perceive a horse after exposure to an ambiguous horse/seal figure. This illustrates the
impact of ________ on perception.
A) subliminal stimulation
B) sensory adaptation
C) critical periods
D) motivation

51. While listening to sad rather than happy music, people are more likely to perceive a
spoken work as mourning rather than morning. This best illustrates that perception is
influenced by
A) synaesthesia.
B) relative luminance.
C) linear perspective.
D) top-down processing.

52. Those who feel loved and appreciated by their spouse perceive less threat in stressful
marital interactions. This best illustrates that perceptions are influenced by
A) emotion.
B) interposition.
C) the volley principle.
D) relative luminance.

53. Brightness is to intensity as hue is to


A) amplitude.
B) transduction.
C) pitch.
D) wavelength.

Page 10
54. Humans experience the longest visible electromagnetic waves as the color ________
and the shortest visible waves as ________.
A) blue-violet; red
B) red; green
C) red; blue-violet
D) black; white

55. The pupil is the


A) adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters.
B) transparent structure that focuses light rays in a process called accommodation.
C) light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing both rods and cones.
D) central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster.

56. Which process allows more light to reach the periphery of the retina?
A) accommodation of the lens
B) transduction of the blind spot
C) dilation of the pupil
D) sensory adaptation of feature detectors

57. The amount of light entering the eye is regulated by the


A) iris.
B) retina.
C) optic nerve.
D) feature detectors.

58. Objects are brought into focus on the retina by changes in the curvature and thickness of
the
A) rods and cones.
B) lens.
C) bipolar cells.
D) optic nerve.

59. Accommodation refers to the


A) diminishing sensitivity to an unchanging stimulus.
B) quivering eye movements that enable the retina to detect continuous stimulation.
C) process by which stimulus energies are changed into neural messages.
D) process by which the lens changes shape to focus images on the retina.

Page 11
60. Which of the following is the correct order in which the retina's neural layers process
visual stimulation?
A) ganglion cells, rods and cones, bipolar cells
B) rods and cones, ganglion cells, bipolar cells
C) bipolar cells, ganglion cells, rods and cones
D) rods and cones, bipolar cells, ganglion cells

61. Which cells for visual processing are located closest to the back of the retina?
A) ganglion cells
B) bipolar cells
C) rods and cones
D) feature detectors

62. The axons of ganglion cells converge to form


A) the basilar membrane.
B) bipolar cells.
C) the auditory nerve.
D) the optic nerve.

63. The blind spot is located in the area of the retina


A) called the fovea.
B) that contains rods but no cones.
C) where the optic nerve leaves the eye.
D) where bipolar cells connect with ganglion cells.

64. The fovea refers to


A) the outer protective surface of the eye.
B) a coiled, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear.
C) an area of the thalamus that receives information from the optic nerve.
D) the central focal point in the retina.

65. Which receptor cells most directly enable us to distinguish different wavelengths of
light?
A) rods
B) cones
C) bipolar cells
D) feature detectors

Page 12
66. Rods are
A) more light-sensitive and more color-sensitive than are cones.
B) less light-sensitive and less color-sensitive than are cones.
C) more light-sensitive and less color-sensitive than are cones.
D) less light-sensitive and more color-sensitive than are cones.

67. Damage to the fovea would probably have the LEAST effect on visual sensitivity to
________ stimuli.
A) brilliantly colored
B) finely detailed
C) dimly illuminated
D) highly familiar

68. On the way to the visual cortex, neural impulses from the retina are first relayed to the
A) olfactory bulb.
B) thalamus.
C) hippocampus.
D) oval window.

69. Visual information is processed by


A) feature detectors before it is processed by rods and cones.
B) ganglion cells before it is processed by feature detectors.
C) bipolar cells before it is processed by rods and cones.
D) feature detectors before it is processed by bipolar cells.

70. The feature detectors identified by Hubel and Weisel consist of


A) nerve cells in the brain.
B) rods and cones.
C) bipolar cells.
D) ganglion cells.

71. The feature detectors identified by Hubel and Weisel respond to specific aspects of
________ stimulation.
A) visual
B) auditory
C) olfactory
D) kinesthetic

Page 13
72. When we look at the hands of a clock showing 8 A.M., certain brain cells in our visual
cortex are more responsive than when the hands show 10 A.M. This is most indicative
of
A) sensory interaction.
B) feature detection.
C) perceptual adaptation.
D) accommodation.

73. An area of the brain dedicated to the specialized task of recognizing faces is located in
the right ________ lobe.
A) frontal
B) parietal
C) occipital
D) temporal

74. Simultaneously analyzing distinct subunits of information received by different areas of


the brain is known as
A) transduction.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) parallel processing.
D) feature detection.

75. The ability to simultaneously process the pitch, loudness, melody, and meaning of a
song best illustrates
A) kinesthesis.
B) accommodation.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) parallel processing.

76. The human ability to speedily recognize familiar objects best illustrates the value of
A) kinesthesis.
B) subliminal stimulation.
C) sensory interaction.
D) parallel processing.

Page 14
77. Certain stroke victims report seeing nothing when shown a series of sticks, yet they are
able to correctly report whether the sticks are vertical or horizontal. This best illustrates
A) serial processing.
B) the McGurk effect.
C) sensory interaction.
D) blindsight.

78. People who demonstrate blindsight have most likely suffered damage to their
A) cornea.
B) lens.
C) fovea.
D) visual cortex.

79. When we are exposed to the narrow band of wavelengths visible to the human eye, we
see a red object as red because it rejects waves of
A) blue-violet light.
B) red light.
C) green light.
D) yellow light.

80. Evidence that some cones are especially sensitive to red light, others to green light, and
still others to blue light is most directly supportive of
A) Weber's law.
B) the Young-Helmholtz theory.
C) the gate-control theory.
D) the opponent-process theory.

81. According to the Young-Helmholtz theory, when both red-sensitive and green-sensitive
cones are stimulated simultaneously, a person should see
A) red.
B) yellow.
C) blue.
D) green.

82. Ewald Hering found a clue to the mystery of color vision in


A) blindsight.
B) afterimages.
C) retinal disparity.
D) synaesthesia.

Page 15
83. When most people stare first at a blue circle and then shift their eyes to a white surface,
the afterimage of the circle appears
A) yellow.
B) red.
C) green.
D) blue.

84. People with color-deficient vision for red and green may still see yellow. This is most
easily explained by
A) the Young-Helmholtz theory.
B) the gate-control theory.
C) frequency theory.
D) the opponent-process theory.

85. Opponent-process cells have been located in the


A) thalamus.
B) cochlea.
C) spinal cord.
D) semicircular canals.

86. According to the opponent-process theory, cells that are turned “on” by
A) green light are turned “off” by blue light.
B) yellow light are turned “off” by red light.
C) green light are turned “off” by red light.
D) red light are turned “off” by blue light.

87. Early in the twentieth-century, a group of German psychologists noticed that people
tend to organize a cluster of sensations into a
A) just noticeable difference.
B) masking stimulus.
C) nociceptor.
D) gestalt.

88. A gestalt is best described as a(n)


A) binocular cue.
B) illusion.
C) organized whole.
D) perceptual set.

Page 16
89. Our shifting perceptions of a Necker cube best illustrate the importance of
A) blindsight.
B) Weber's law.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) top-down processing.

90. The perception of an object as distinct from its surroundings is called


A) perceptual set.
B) perceptual constancy.
C) figure-ground perception.
D) interposition.

91. As the airplane descended for a landing, the pilot saw several beautiful islands that
appeared to float in a vast expanse of blue ocean water. In this instance, the ocean is a
A) figure.
B) binocular cue.
C) ground.
D) perceptual set.

92. Figure is to ground as ________ is to ________.


A) form; substance
B) looking up; looking down
C) sensation; perception
D) a white cloud; blue sky

93. The organizational rules identified by Gestalt psychologists illustrate that


A) perception is the same as sensation.
B) we learn to perceive the world through experience.
C) the perceived whole differs from the sum of its parts.
D) sensation has no effect on perception.

94. Carmella, Jorge, and Gail were all sitting behind the same bowling lane, so Ruth
perceived that they were all members of the same bowling team. This best illustrates the
organizational principle of
A) proximity.
B) interposition.
C) closure.
D) continuity.

Page 17
95. The principles of continuity and closure best illustrate that
A) sensations are organized into meaningful patterns.
B) perception is the direct product of sensation.
C) cultural experiences shape perception.
D) visual information is especially likely to capture our attention.

96. The perception of the letter “t” as two intersecting lines rather than as four
nonintersecting lines illustrates the principle of
A) accommodation.
B) proximity.
C) closure.
D) continuity.

97. The perceptual tendency to fill in gaps in order to perceive disconnected parts as a
whole object is called
A) interposition.
B) closure.
C) continuity.
D) proximity.

98. Although a few keys on the piano were broken, Shana mentally filled in the missing
notes of the familiar melodies. This best illustrates the principle of
A) proximity.
B) closure.
C) blindsight.
D) interposition.

99. When hearing the words “eel is on the wagon,” you would likely perceive the first word
as “wheel.” Given “eel is on the orange,” you would likely perceive the first word as
“peel.” This context effect best illustrates the organizational principle of
A) proximity.
B) interposition.
C) closure.
D) accommodation.

100. The ability to see objects in three dimensions is most essential for making judgments of
A) continuity.
B) distance.
C) relative luminance.
D) tinnitus.

Page 18
101. The visual cliff is a laboratory device for testing ________ in infants.
A) size constancy
B) accommodation
C) depth perception
D) perceptual adaptation

102. Infants who were exposed to the visual cliff


A) tried to climb up the cliff if their mothers were at the top.
B) gave no evidence that they could perceive depth.
C) refused to cross over onto the glass over the cliff to their mothers.
D) eagerly crossed to their mothers by means of the “bridge” provided.

103. Retinal disparity is an important cue for


A) perceiving color.
B) shape constancy.
C) perceiving distance.
D) brightness constancy.

104. Retinal disparity refers to the


A) tendency to see parallel lines as coming together in the distance.
B) tendency to see stimuli that are near each other as parts of a unified object.
C) somewhat different images our two eyes receive of the same object.
D) inability to distinguish figure from ground.

105. Holding two index fingers in front of the eyes can create the perception of a floating
finger sausage. This best illustrates the effect of
A) relative height.
B) retinal disparity.
C) interposition.
D) relative luminance.

106. Indicators of distance such as linear perspective which are available to either eye alone
are called
A) masking stimuli.
B) feature detectors.
C) monocular cues.
D) absolute thresholds.

Page 19
107. Relative height is a cue involving our perception of objects higher in our field of vision
as
A) brighter.
B) farther away.
C) hazier.
D) smaller.

108. If you stared at a house as you walked down a street, the trees in front of the house
would appear to be moving
A) in the opposite direction as you, and the trees behind the house would appear to be
moving in the opposite direction as you.
B) in the same direction as you, and the trees behind the house would appear to be
moving in the opposite direction as you.
C) in the same direction as you, and the trees behind the house would appear to be
moving in the same direction as you.
D) in the opposite direction as you, and the trees behind the house would appear to be
moving in the same direction as you.

109. If two objects are assumed to be the same size, the object that casts the smaller retinal
image is perceived to be
A) moving faster.
B) less hazy.
C) more distant.
D) closer.

110. As the farmer looked across her field, the parallel rows of young corn plants appeared to
converge in the distance. This provided her with a distance cue known as
A) proximity.
B) linear perspective.
C) closure.
D) continuity.

111. The monocular depth cue in which an object blocking another object is perceived as
closer is
A) interposition.
B) relative height.
C) continuity.
D) linear perspective.

Page 20
112. Which of the following is a cue used by artists to convey depth on a flat canvas?
A) proximity
B) continuity
C) interposition
D) closure

113. Our assumption that light typically comes from above us contributes most directly to the
importance of ________ as a monocular cue for depth perception.
A) interposition
B) retinal disparity
C) light and shadow
D) linear perspective

114. Perceiving objects as unchanging even as illumination and retinal images change is
known as
A) interposition.
B) prosopagnosia.
C) perceptual constancy.
D) sensory adaptation.

115. Color constancy refers to the fact that


A) light waves reflected by an object remain constant despite changes in lighting.
B) objects are perceived to be the same color even if the light they reflect changes.
C) the perceived color of an object has a constant relation to its brightness.
D) the frequency of light waves is directly proportional to the light's wavelength.

116. To experience color constancy, we should view things


A) from very short distances.
B) for long periods of time.
C) under low levels of illumination.
D) in relation to surrounding objects.

117. Jody's horse looks just as black in the brilliant sunlight as it does in the dim light of the
stable. This illustrates what is known as
A) perceptual set.
B) sensory interaction.
C) brightness constancy.
D) psychokinesis.

Page 21
118. Brightness constancy is most clearly facilitated by
A) proximity.
B) interposition.
C) relative luminance.
D) retinal disparity.

119. The amount of light reflected by an object relative to the amount reflected by
surrounding objects is called
A) continuity.
B) interposition.
C) retinal disparity.
D) relative luminance.

120. Although college textbooks frequently cast a trapezoidal image on the retina, students
typically perceive the books as rectangular objects. This illustrates the importance of
A) size constancy.
B) linear perspective.
C) shape constancy.
D) binocular cues.

121. As the retinal image of a horse galloping toward you becomes larger, it is unlikely that
the horse will appear to grow larger. This best illustrates the importance of
A) relative luminance.
B) size constancy.
C) closure.
D) sensory interaction.

122. The perceived size of an object is most strongly influenced by that object's perceived
A) shape.
B) color.
C) distance.
D) motion.

123. If two objects cast retinal images of the same size, the object that appears to be closer is
perceived as ________ the object that appears to be more distant.
A) overlapping
B) smaller than
C) larger than
D) the same size as

Page 22
124. Because she mistakenly thought she was much closer to the mountain than she actually
was, Fiona perceived the mountain to be ________ than it actually was.
A) higher
B) smaller
C) more richly colorful
D) larger

125. When the Moon is near the horizon, it appears larger than when it is high in the sky.
This effect is primarily a result of
A) the slightly dimmer appearance of the horizon Moon.
B) the scattering of the horizon Moon's light waves, which penetrate the atmosphere at
an angle.
C) distance cues, which make the horizon Moon seem farther away.
D) the brighter appearance of the horizon Moon.

126. Knowing about the effects of the perceived distance of objects on their perceived size
helps us to understand
A) the Moon illusion.
B) the McGurk effect.
C) prosopagnosia.
D) phantom limb sensations.

127. The tendency to hear the steady drip of a leaky sink faucet as if it were a repeating
rhythm of two or more beats best illustrates
A) interposition.
B) perceptual organization.
C) relative luminance.
D) perceptual adaptation.

128. Who emphasized that perceptual understanding comes from inborn ways of organizing
sensory experience?
A) Immanuel Kant
B) Aristotle
C) John Locke
D) Sigmund Freud

Page 23
129. The ability of newly hatched chicks to perceive depth best serves to support the views of
A) John Locke.
B) Immanuel Kant.
C) Sigmund Freud.
D) Aristotle.

130. The philosopher John Locke believed that people


A) learn to perceive the world through experience.
B) are endowed at birth with perceptual skills.
C) experience the whole as different from the sum of its parts.
D) are unable to adapt to an inverted visual world.

131. John Locke is to Immanuel Kant as ________ is to ________.


A) figure; ground
B) perception; sensation
C) nurture; nature
D) experience; learning

132. Lenore had been blind from birth. Immediately after corrective eye surgery, she could
visually perceive figure-ground relationships. This fact would serve to support the
position advanced by
A) Kant.
B) parapsychologists.
C) Aristotle.
D) Locke.

133. If an adult who was blind from birth gains the ability to see, that person would have the
greatest difficulty visually distinguishing
A) circles from squares.
B) the Sun from the Moon.
C) red from green.
D) a white cloud from the blue sky.

134. A clouding of the lens of the eye is called a


A) blind spot.
B) cataract.
C) visual cliff.
D) masking stimulus.

Page 24
135. Rebecca was born with cataracts that were not surgically removed until she was 3 years
old. As a result, Rebecca is most likely to
A) have lost visual receptor cells in her eyes.
B) be unable to perceive figure-ground relationships.
C) have inadequate neural connections in her visual cortex.
D) be unable to sense colors.

136. Sensory restriction is much more likely to hinder visual development in early infancy
than during other times of life. This suggests that there is a(n) ________ for normal
visual development.
A) absolute threshold
B) perceptual set
C) critical period
D) blind spot

137. The ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field is called
A) perceptual set.
B) accommodation.
C) perceptual adaptation.
D) shape constancy.

138. Research with distorting goggles best supports the view of human perception advanced
by
A) John Locke.
B) Herman von Helmholtz.
C) Immanuel Kant.
D) Ewald Hering.

139. Although he was wearing a pair of glasses that shifted the apparent location of objects
20 degrees to his right, Lars was eventually able to play tennis very effectively. This
best illustrates the value of
A) perceptual set.
B) shape constancy.
C) retinal disparity.
D) perceptual adaptation.

Page 25
140. Our sense of hearing is known as
A) the vestibular sense.
B) kinesthesis.
C) audition.
D) tinnitus.

141. The process of transducing air pressure waves into neural messages that the brain
interprets as meaningful sound is known as
A) sensory interaction.
B) the vestibular sense.
C) kinesthesis.
D) audition.

142. The loudness of sounds is determined by the ________ of sound waves.


A) difference threshold
B) interposition
C) amplitude
D) frequency

143. The high notes on a piano always produce ________ sound waves than the low notes.
A) higher-amplitude
B) lower-amplitude
C) higher-frequency
D) lower-frequency

144. Brightness is to light as ________ is to sound.


A) pitch
B) loudness
C) frequency
D) wavelength

145. High-frequency sound waves are to ______ as low-frequency sound waves are to
______.
A) a loud voice; a soft voice
B) a high-pitched voice; a low-pitched voice
C) a soft voice; a loud voice
D) a low-pitched voice; a high-pitched voice

Page 26
146. The absolute threshold for hearing is arbitrarily defined as zero
A) decibels.
B) amps.
C) phonemes.
D) hertz.

147. An 80-decibel sound is ________ times more intense than a 60-decibel sound.
A) 2
B) 10
C) 20
D) 100

148. The bones of the middle ear relay vibrations received from the
A) cochlea.
B) eardrum.
C) vestibular sacs.
D) semicircular canals.

149. Eardrum vibrations are transmitted by three tiny bones located in the
A) vestibular sacs.
B) inner ear.
C) cochlea.
D) middle ear.

150. Eardrum vibrations are transmitted to the cochlea by a piston consisting of


A) protruding hair cells.
B) the basilar membrane.
C) the hammer, anvil, and stirrup.
D) bipolar and ganglion cells.

151. The cochlea consists of


A) interconnected nerve fibers in the spinal cord.
B) a fluid-filled tube in the inner ear.
C) olfactory receptor cells at the top of each nasal cavity.
D) neural networks located within each temporal lobe.

Page 27
152. The surface of the basilar membrane is lined with
A) hair cells.
B) olfactory receptors.
C) bipolar cells.
D) feature detectors.

153. On the way to the temporal lobe's auditory cortex, neural impulses from the auditory
nerve are first relayed to the
A) thalamus.
B) amygdala.
C) hippocampus.
D) fovea.

154. Cones and rods are to vision as ________ are to audition.


A) eardrums
B) oval windows
C) hair cells
D) semicircular canals

155. Joe Wilson, age 55, has been told by experts that he has conduction hearing loss and that
a hearing aid would restore his lost sense of hearing. It is likely that Joe's hearing loss
involves problems within the
A) inner ear.
B) middle ear.
C) auditory nerve.
D) basilar membrane.

156. Damage to the hair cell receptors is most likely to result in


A) accommodation.
B) conduction hearing loss.
C) loss of the sense of balance.
D) sensorineural hearing loss.

157. Damage to the hammer, anvil, and stirrup is most likely to cause
A) prosopagnosia.
B) sensorineural hearing loss.
C) phantom limb sensations.
D) conduction hearing loss.

Page 28
158. Ringing of the ears after exposure to loud music is most likely to be caused by damage
to
A) nociceptors.
B) hair cells.
C) cochlear implants.
D) bipolar cells.

159. As a rock musician who has experienced prolonged exposure to high-amplitude sounds,
Rodney is beginning to lose his hearing. It is most likely that this hearing loss involves
problems in the
A) auditory canal.
B) eardrum.
C) tiny bones of the middle ear.
D) cochlea.

160. A cochlear implant converts sounds into


A) decibels.
B) electrical signals.
C) air pressure changes.
D) fluid vibrations.

161. Hard-of-hearing people are especially likely to remain sensitive to ________ sounds.
A) loud
B) high-pitched
C) prolonged
D) unpredictable

162. Place theory suggests that


A) structures in the inner ear provide us with a sense of the position of our bodies in
space.
B) we have a system for sensing the position and movement of the various parts of our
body.
C) we can locate the place from which a sound is emitted because of the distance
between our ears.
D) the pitch we hear is related to the place where the cochlea's basilar membrane is
stimulated.

Page 29
163. After a small section of his basilar membrane was damaged, Jason experienced a
noticeable loss of hearing for high-pitched sounds only. Jason's hearing loss is best
explained by the ________ theory.
A) gate-control
B) frequency
C) opponent-process
D) place

164. Which of the following best explains how we detect different high-pitched sounds?
A) opponent-process theory
B) Weber's law
C) place theory
D) gate-control theory

165. According to place theory, the perception of


A) low-pitched sounds is associated with large vibrations of the eardrum closest to the
oval window.
B) high-pitched sounds is associated with large vibrations of the eardrum closest to the
oval window.
C) low-pitched sounds is associated with large vibrations of the basilar membrane
closest to the oval window.
D) high-pitched sounds is associated with large vibrations of the basilar membrane
closest to the oval window.

166. Which theory best explains how we perceive low-pitched sounds?


A) place theory
B) opponent-process theory
C) frequency theory
D) the Young-Helmholtz theory

167. Individual nerve cells increase the frequency of neural impulses in the auditory nerve by
firing in rapid succession. This is said to illustrate
A) Weber's law.
B) the McGurk effect.
C) the volley principle.
D) top-down processing.

Page 30
168. The volley principle is most directly relevant to our perception of
A) color.
B) brightness.
C) pain.
D) pitch.

169. Some combination of place theory and frequency theory appears to be most necessary in
accounting for how we sense
A) high-frequency sound waves.
B) intermediate-frequency sound waves.
C) low-frequency sound waves.
D) subliminal auditory stimulation.

170. A time lag between left and right auditory stimulation is important for accurately
A) locating sounds.
B) detecting pitch.
C) recognizing rhythms.
D) judging amplitude.

171. Cocking your head would be most useful for detecting the ________ of a sound.
A) pitch
B) loudness
C) location
D) amplitude

172. The barn owl's right ear opens slightly upward while its left ear opens slightly
downward. This difference enables the owl to detect the ________ of a sound.
A) pitch
B) location
C) loudness
D) amplitude

173. Infant rats deprived of their mothers' grooming touch produce


A) less growth hormone and have a higher metabolic rate.
B) more growth hormone and have a lower metabolic rate.
C) less growth hormone and have a lower metabolic rate.
D) more growth hormone and have a higher metabolic rate.

Page 31
174. Premature human babies gain weight faster if they are stimulated by
A) blinking lights.
B) rhythmic sounds.
C) hand massage.
D) phantom limb sensations.

175. The sense of touch includes the four basic sensations of


A) pleasure, pain, warmth, and cold.
B) pain, pressure, hot, and cold.
C) wetness, pain, hot, and cold.
D) pressure, pain, warmth, and cold.

176. Touching side-by-side cold and pressure spots triggers a sense of


A) warmth.
B) pain.
C) wetness.
D) kinesthesis.

177. Men's hearing tends to be ________ acute than women's, and women are ________ pain
sensitive than men.
A) more; more
B) less; less
C) more; less
D) less; more

178. Sensory receptors that detect hurtful temperatures, pressure, or chemicals are called
A) vestibular sacs.
B) hair cells.
C) nociceptors.
D) fovea.

179. In response to a harmful stimulus, ________ initiate neural impulses leading to the
sensation of pain.
A) bipolar cells
B) nociceptors
C) feature detectors
D) ganglion fibers

Page 32
180. Which theory suggests that large-fiber activity in the spinal cord can prevent pain
signals from reaching the brain?
A) signal detection theory
B) opponent-process theory
C) gate-control theory
D) frequency theory

181. The classic gate-control theory suggests that pain is experienced when small nerve
fibers activate and open a neural gate in the
A) basilar membrane.
B) semicircular canals.
C) olfactory bulb.
D) spinal cord.

182. According to the gate-control theory, a back massage would most likely reduce your
physical aches and pains by causing the
A) release of pain-killing endorphins in your muscles.
B) activation of large nerve fibers in your spinal cord.
C) the release of adrenaline into your bloodstream.
D) deactivation of the pain receptors on the surface of your skin.

183. The brain's release of endorphins reduces


A) pain.
B) tinnitus.
C) prosopagnosia.
D) retinal disparity.

184. After losing his left hand in an accident, Jack continued to experience pain in his
nonexistent hand. His experience illustrates
A) tinnitus.
B) sensory adaptation.
C) phantom limb sensations.
D) the McGurk effect.

185. Which of the following best illustrates the impact of central nervous system activity in
the absence of normal sensory input?
A) tinnitus
B) kinesthesis
C) transduction
D) accommodation

Page 33
186. After painful medical procedures, people's memory snapshots tend to overlook
A) the final moments of pain associated with the procedure.
B) the peak moments of pain associated with the procedure.
C) the total duration of the pain associated with the procedure.
D) all of these periods of pain.

187. During the mid-1980s, pockets of Australian keyboard operators suffered outbreaks of
severe pain while typing. Their pain could not be attributed to any discernable physical
abnormalities. This best illustrates the role of ______ in the perception of pain.
A) phantom limb sensations
B) psychokinesis
C) social-cultural influences
D) the Ame's room illusion

188. An integrated understanding of pain control in terms of mental distraction, the release of
endorphins, and the presence of empathic caregivers is most clearly provided by
A) parapsychology.
B) opponent-process theory.
C) a biopsychosocial approach.
D) the volley principle.

189. The biopsychosocial approach to pain is likely to emphasize the importance of both
A) top-down and bottom-up processing.
B) frequency and place theories.
C) kinesthesis and psychokinesis.
D) telepathy and clairvoyance.

190. When given a placebo that is said to relieve pain, we are likely to be soothed by the
brain's release of
A) umami.
B) nociceptors.
C) endorphins.
D) feature detectors.

Page 34
191. For burn victims, a computer-generated virtual reality can help to control pain by means
of
A) subliminal stimulation.
B) thought distraction.
C) phantom limb sensations.
D) blindsight.

192. Our sense of taste was once thought to involve only the following four sensations of
A) sweet, salty, starch, and bitter.
B) salty, fatty, bitter, and sweet.
C) sour, bitter, sweet, and starchy.
D) bitter, sweet, sour, and salty.

193. The taste of umami is a ________ taste.


A) meaty
B) salty
C) bitter
D) sour

194. The taste sensation umami is most likely to attract us to foods that are
A) sweet.
B) bitter.
C) starchy.
D) rich in protein.

195. The sense of ________ is a chemical sense.


A) taste
B) kinesthesis
C) equilibrium
D) pain

196. Sense receptor cells that project antenna-like hairs are located within
A) feature detectors.
B) phantom limbs.
C) taste buds.
D) rods and cones.

Page 35
197. Receptor cells for our sense of ________ reproduce themselves every week or two.
A) vision
B) hearing
C) taste
D) equilibrium

198. The sense of smell is known as


A) subliminal stimulation.
B) the vestibular sense.
C) transduction.
D) olfaction.

199. Which of the following senses is best described as a chemical sense?


A) kinesthesis
B) audition
C) vision
D) smell

200. Which of the following would play a role in quickly alerting you to a gas leak in your
home?
A) bipolar cells
B) olfactory receptors
C) feature detectors
D) basilar membrane

201. The olfactory receptors are activated by


A) nociceptors.
B) feature detectors.
C) airborne molecules.
D) the basilar membrane.

202. Pleasant memories are most likely to be evoked by exposure to


A) bright colors.
B) soft touches.
C) fragrant odors.
D) loud sounds.

Page 36
203. Information from the taste buds travels to an area between the
A) frontal and parietal lobes.
B) parietal and occipital lobes.
C) occipital and temporal lobes.
D) frontal and temporal lobes.

204. Our sense of the position and movement of individual body parts is called
A) feature detection.
B) accommodation.
C) kinesthesis.
D) sensory interaction.

205. Sensing the position and movement of your pitching arm while throwing a fastball best
illustrates
A) synaesthesia.
B) kinesthesis.
C) the volley principle.
D) sensory adaptation.

206. Receptor cells for kinesthesis are located in the


A) fovea.
B) tendons, joints, and muscles.
C) olfactory bulb.
D) auditory cortex.

207. The semicircular canals are most directly relevant to


A) hearing.
B) kinesthesis.
C) the vestibular sense.
D) accommodation.

208. Tiny hairlike receptors that monitor the tilting of your head are located in the
A) ganglion fibers.
B) fovea.
C) olfactory bulb.
D) vestibular sacs.

Page 37
209. Which of the following play the biggest role in our feeling dizzy and unbalanced after a
thrilling roller coaster ride?
A) olfactory receptors
B) feature detectors
C) basilar membranes
D) semicircular canals

210. Sensory receptors in your vestibular sacs enable you to maintain your sense of
A) smell.
B) taste.
C) touch.
D) balance.

211. During the months when there is a large amount of pollen in the air, your hay fever
severely affects your sense of smell. At the same time your food all seems to taste the
same. This illustrates that your normal ability to savor tastes depends on
A) sensory interaction.
B) accommodation.
C) serial processing.
D) sensory adaptation.

212. The McGurk effect best illustrates


A) phantom limb sensations.
B) Weber's law.
C) tinnitus.
D) sensory interaction.

213. When sounds were accompanied by a puff of air on people's neck or hands, they more
often misheard the sound ba as the more airless sound pa. This best illustrates
A) synaesthesia.
B) prosopagnosia.
C) sensory interaction.
D) retinal disparity.

214. The influence of our physical gestures on our psychological preferences is said to be an
indication of
A) embodied cognition.
B) relative luminance.
C) psychokinesis.
D) phantom limb sensations.

Page 38
215. The interconnection of brain circuits that process sensory experiences with brain circuits
responsible for abstract thinking contributes to what psychologists call
A) parapsychology.
B) embodied cognition.
C) sensory adaptation.
D) kinesthesis.

216. After holding a warm drink rather than a cold one, people are more likely to rate others
more warmly. This best illustrates
A) the McGurk effect.
B) relative luminance.
C) synaesthesia.
D) embodied cognition.

217. If hikers perceive a hill as steeper when carrying heavy backpacks rather than light
backpacks, this would best illustrate
A) embodied cognition.
B) synaesthesia.
C) Weber's law.
D) psychokinesis.

218. When put in a foul-smelling rather than a pleasant-smelling room, people expressed
harsher judgments of immoral acts such as lying. This best illustrates the importance of
A) Weber's law.
B) the McGurk effect.
C) embodied cognition.
D) sensory adaptation.

219. For some people, hearing certain sounds may activate color-sensitive regions of the
cortex so as to trigger a sensation of color. This phenomenon is called
A) tinnitus.
B) blindsight.
C) synaesthesia.
D) kinesthesis.

Page 39
220. Telepathy refers to the
A) extrasensory transmission of thoughts from one mind to another.
B) extrasensory perception of events that occur at places remote to the perceiver.
C) perception of future events, such as a person's fate.
D) ability to understand and share the emotions of another person.

221. Jamal claims that his special psychic powers enable him to perceive exactly where the
body of a recent murder victim is secretly buried. Jamal is claiming to possess the power
of
A) psychokinesis.
B) precognition.
C) telepathy.
D) clairvoyance.

222. The extrasensory ability to perceive an automobile accident taking place in a distant
location is to ________ as the extrasensory ability to know at any moment exactly what
your best friend is thinking is to ________.
A) telepathy; precognition
B) precognition; psychokinesis
C) psychokinesis; clairvoyance
D) clairvoyance; telepathy

223. Margo insists that her dreams frequently enable her to perceive and predict future
events. Margo is claiming to possess the power of
A) telepathy.
B) clairvoyance.
C) precognition.
D) psychokinesis.

224. Andre claims that he can make a broken watch begin to run again simply by entering a
state of intense mental concentration. Andre is claiming to possess the power of
A) precognition.
B) telepathy.
C) clairvoyance.
D) psychokinesis.

Page 40
225. Parapsychology refers to the
A) study of phenomena such as ESP and psychokinesis.
B) study of perceptual illusions.
C) study of synaesthesia.
D) direct transmission of thoughts from one mind to another.

226. Psychics who have worked with police departments in an effort to solve difficult crimes
have demonstrated the value of
A) clairvoyance.
B) telepathy.
C) precognition.
D) none of these things.

227. The existence of convincing scientific evidence that ESP is possible would pose the
greatest challenge to the
A) contemporary scientific understanding of human nature.
B) continued existence of parapsychology.
C) continuation of research on the processes that underlie ordinary forms of sensation
and perception.
D) ordinary belief systems of most Americans.

228. The greatest difficulty facing contemporary parapsychology is the


A) inability to subject claims of ESP to scientific testing.
B) lack of a reproducible ESP phenomenon.
C) willingness of many experts to accept fraudulent evidence.
D) difficulty of persuading many ordinary people that there really is such a thing as
ESP.

Page 41
Answer Key
1. A
2. D
3. C
4. B
5. D
6. B
7. C
8. C
9. D
10. B
11. C
12. C
13. B
14. B
15. D
16. B
17. D
18. C
19. A
20. D
21. A
22. D
23. C
24. C
25. A
26. D
27. A
28. A
29. B
30. D
31. D
32. B
33. D
34. B
35. C
36. C
37. D
38. B
39. D
40. C
41. C
42. B
43. B
44. C

Page 42
45. C
46. B
47. C
48. C
49. D
50. D
51. D
52. A
53. D
54. C
55. A
56. C
57. A
58. B
59. D
60. D
61. C
62. D
63. C
64. D
65. B
66. C
67. C
68. B
69. B
70. A
71. A
72. B
73. D
74. C
75. D
76. D
77. D
78. D
79. B
80. B
81. B
82. B
83. A
84. D
85. A
86. C
87. D
88. C
89. D
90. C

Page 43
91. C
92. D
93. C
94. A
95. A
96. D
97. B
98. B
99. C
100. B
101. C
102. C
103. C
104. C
105. B
106. C
107. B
108. D
109. C
110. B
111. A
112. C
113. C
114. C
115. B
116. D
117. C
118. C
119. D
120. C
121. B
122. C
123. B
124. B
125. C
126. A
127. B
128. A
129. B
130. A
131. C
132. A
133. A
134. B
135. C
136. C

Page 44
137. C
138. A
139. D
140. C
141. D
142. C
143. C
144. B
145. B
146. A
147. D
148. B
149. D
150. C
151. B
152. A
153. A
154. C
155. B
156. D
157. D
158. B
159. D
160. B
161. A
162. D
163. D
164. C
165. D
166. C
167. C
168. D
169. B
170. A
171. C
172. B
173. C
174. C
175. D
176. C
177. D
178. C
179. B
180. C
181. D
182. B

Page 45
183. A
184. C
185. A
186. C
187. C
188. C
189. A
190. C
191. B
192. D
193. A
194. D
195. A
196. C
197. C
198. D
199. D
200. B
201. C
202. C
203. D
204. C
205. B
206. B
207. C
208. D
209. D
210. D
211. A
212. D
213. C
214. A
215. B
216. D
217. A
218. C
219. C
220. A
221. D
222. D
223. C
224. D
225. A
226. D
227. A
228. B

Page 46
Page 47
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his prison in the Kremlin, to which he had been consigned by the Poles.
Anarchy was rampant in Russia; every town usurped the right to act in
the name of the whole empire, and set up chiefs whom they deposed a
few days afterwards. Kazan and Viatka proclaimed the son of Marina;
Novgorod, rather than open its gates to the Poles, called in the Swedes,
and tendered the crown to Charles Philip, second son of the reigning
king of Sweden, and brother of Gustavus Adolphus. Another imposter
assumed the name of Dmitri, and kept his state for awhile at Pskov; but
being at last identified as one Isidore, a fugitive monk, he was hanged.
When all seemed lost in irretrievable disorder, the country was saved by
an obscure citizen of Nijni-Novgorod. He was a butcher, named Kozma
Minin, distinguished by nothing but the possession of a sound head and
a brave, honest unselfish heart. Roused by his words and his example,
his fellow-citizens took up arms, and resolved to devote all their wealth
to the last fraction to the maintenance of an army for the deliverance of
their country. From Nijni-Novgorod the same spirit spread to other towns,
and Prince Pojarski who had been lieutenant to the brave Liapunov, was
soon able to take the field at the head of a considerable force, whilst
Minin, whom the popular voice styled the elect of the whole Russian
Empire, ably seconded him in an administrative capacity.
Pojarski drove the Poles before him from town to town; and having at
length arrived under the walls of the Kremlin, in August, 1612, he
sustained for three days a hot contest against Chodkiewicz, the
successor of Gonsiewski, defeated him, and put him to flight. Part of the
Polish troops, under the command of Colonel Nicholas Struss, returned
to the citadel and defended it for some weeks longer. At the end of that
time, being pressed by famine, they capitulated; and on the 22nd of
October, 1612, the princes Pojarski and Dmitri Trubetzkoi entered
together into that inclosure which is the heart of the country, and sacred
in the eyes of all true Russians. The assistance of Sigismund came too
late to arrest the flight of the Poles.
Upon the first successes obtained by Prince Pojarski the phantom of
Dmitri, and all the subaltern pretenders, disappeared as if by magic.
Zarucki, feeling that an irresistible power was about to overwhelm him,
was anxious only to secure himself a refuge. Carrying Marina and her
son with him, he made ineffectual efforts to raise the Don Cossacks.
After suffering a defeat near Voroneje, he reached the Volga, and took
possession of Astrakhan, with the intention of fortifying himself there; but
the generals of Michael Romanov, the newly elected czar, did not allow
him time. Driven from that city, and pursued by superior forces, he was
preparing to reach the eastern shore of the Caspian, when he was
surprised, in the beginning of July, 1614, on the banks of the Iaïk, and
delivered up to the Muscovite generals, along with Marina and the son of
the second Dmitri. They were immediately taken to Moscow, where
Zarucki was impaled; Ivan, who was but three years old, was hanged;
and Marina was shut up in prison, where she ended her days.

ACCESSION OF THE HOUSE OF ROMANOV (1613 A.D.)

The deliverance of Moscow had alone been awaited in order to fill the
vacant throne by a free election. This could not properly take place
except in that revered sanctuary of the imperial power, the Kremlin,
where the sovereigns were crowned at their accession, and where their
ashes reposed after their death. Delivered now from all foreign influence,
the boyars of the council, in November, 1612, despatched letters or
mandates to every town in the empire, commanding the clergy, nobility,
and citizens to send deputies immediately to Moscow, endowed with full
power to meet in the national council (zemskii soveth), and proceed to
the election of a new czar. At the same time, to invoke the blessing of
God upon this important act, a fast of three days was commanded.
These orders were received with great enthusiasm throughout the whole
country: the fast was so rigorously observed, according to contemporary
records, that no person took the least nourishment during that interval,
and mothers even refused the breast to their infants.
The election day came: it was in Lent, in the year 1613. The debates
were long and stormy. The princes Mstislavski and Pojarski, it appears,
refused the crown; the election of Prince Dmitri Trubetskoi failed, and
the other candidates were set aside for various reasons. After much
hesitation the name of Michael Romanov was put forward; a young man
sixteen years of age, personally unknown, but recommended by the
virtues of his father, Philaretes, and in whose behalf the boyars had
been canvassed by the patriarch Hermogenes, the holy martyr to the
national cause. The Romanovs were connected through the female
branch with this ancient dynasty. The ancestors of Michael had filled the
highest offices in the state. He fulfilled, moreover, the required
conditions. “There were but three surviving members in his family,” says
Strahlenberg; “he had not been implicated in the preceding troubles; his
father was an ecclesiastic, and in consequence naturally more disposed
to secure peace and union than to mix himself up in turbulent projects.”
The name of the new candidate, supported by the metropolitan of
Moscow,[37] was hailed with acclamation, and after some discussion he
was elected. The unanimous voice of the assembly raised Michael
Feodorovitch to the throne. Before he ascended he was required to
swear to the following conditions: that he would protect religion; that he
would pardon and forget all that had been done to his father; that he
would make no new laws, nor alter the old, unless circumstances
imperatively required it; and that, in important causes, he would decide
nothing by himself, but that the existing laws and the usual forms of trial
should remain in force; that he would not at his own pleasure make
either war or peace with his neighbours; and that, to avoid all suits with
individuals, he would resign his estates to his family, or incorporate them
with the crown domains. Strahlenberg adds that Alexis, on his
accession, swore to observe the same conditions.
These forms, however futile they may have been, are remarkable: not
because they render sacred a right which stands in no need of them, but
because they recall it to mind; and also because they prove that, even
on the soil most favourable to despotism, a charter which should give
absolute power to a monarch would appear such a gross absurdity that
we know not that an instance of the kind ever existed.
Nothing could be more critical than the state of the empire at the
moment when its destinies were confided to a youth of seventeen.
Disorder and anarchy everywhere prevailed. Ustrialov gives us the
following picture: “The strongholds on the frontier which should have
served to defend his dominions were in the hands of external or internal
enemies. The Swedes possessed Kexholm, Oresheck, Koporie, and
even Novgorod. The Poles ruled in Smolensk, Dorogobuje, Putivle, and
Tchernigov; the country around Pskov was in the power of Lisovski;
Raisin, Kashira, and Tula struggled feebly against the Tatars of the
Crimea and the Nogai; Sarutzki (Zarucki) was established in Astrakhan;
Kazan was in revolt. At home bands of Cossacks from the Don, and the
Zaparogians, and whole divisions of Poles and Tatars ravaged the
villages and the convents that were still entire, when there were hopes of
finding booty. The country was wasted, soldiers were dying of hunger,
the land-tax was no longer collected, and not a kopeck was in the
treasury. The state jewels, crowns of great price, sceptres, precious
stones, vases—all had been plundered and carried into Poland.
“The young prince was surrounded by courtiers belonging to twenty
different factions. There were to be found the friends of Godunov, the
defenders of Shuiski, the companions of Wladislaw, and even partisans
of the brigand of Tushino—in a word, men professing the most various
opinions and aims, but all equally ambitious, and incapable of yielding
the smallest point as regarded precedence. The lower class, irritated by
ten years of misery, had become habituated to anarchy, and it was not
without difficulty and resistance on their part that they were reduced to
obedience.” Such, then, was the situation of the country; but Michael
found means to redeem it.
Notwithstanding the desperate state of his
[1617-1627 a.d.] finances, the insubordination of his troops, the ill-will
of the diets, and the confederations continually
springing up against him, Sigismund did not abandon his attempts upon
Russia; but the negotiations which ensued in consequence, upon
various occasions, produced no result. Wladislaw, at the head of an
army, once more crossed the frontiers, and appeared for the second
time, in 1617, under the walls of Moscow, which he assaulted and
whence he was repulsed. Deceived in the expectation which the
intelligence he kept up with various chiefs had induced him to form,
harassed by his troops, who were clamorous for pay, he consented to
renounce the title of czar, which he had up to that period assumed, and
concluded, on the 1st of December, 1618, an armistice for fourteen
years. The Peace of Stolbovna, January 26th, 1617, had terminated the
preceding year the war with Sweden, and was purchased by the
surrender of Ingria, Karelia, and the whole country between Ingria and
Novgorod; besides the formal renunciation of Livonia and Esthonia, and
the payment of a sum of money.
The captivity of Philarete had now lasted nine years; from Warsaw he
had been removed to the castle of Marienburg, and it was from that
place, as it is asserted, that he found means to communicate with the
council of the boyars, and use his influence in the election of the czar,
never dreaming that it would fall upon his son. The cessation of
hostilities restored him to freedom. He returned to Moscow on the 14th
of June, 1619, and was immediately elevated to the patriarchal chair,
which had remained vacant from the death of Hermogenes, in 1613. His
son made him co-regent, and the ukases of that date are all headed
“Michael Feodorovitch, sovereign, czar, and grand prince of all the
Russias, and his father Philarete, mighty lord and most holy patriarch of
all the Russias, order,” etc. There exist, moreover, ukases issued in the
sole name of the patriarch, thus called out of his usual sphere of action,
and placed in one in which absolute power was granted him. He took
part in all political affairs; all foreign ambassadors were presented to
him, as well as to the czar: and at those solemn audiences, as well as at
table, he occupied the right of the sovereign. He held his own court,
composed of stolnicks and other officers; in a word, he shared with his
son all the prerogatives of supreme power. From this period dates the
splendour of the patriarchate, which at a later epoch excited the jealousy
of the czar Peter the Great, who was induced to suppress it in 1721.
Philarete always gave wise advice to his son, and the influence he
exercised over him was always happily directed. A general census, of
which he originated the idea, produced great improvement in the
revenue; but, perhaps without intending it, he contributed by this
measure to give fixity to the system of bondage to the soil. In the
performance of his duty as head pastor, he directed all his efforts to re-
establish a press at Moscow,[38] which had been abandoned during the
troubles of the interregnum; and he had the satisfaction of seeing, after
1624, many copies of the Liturgy issue from it.h

THE COSSACKS

In the year 1627 the Cossacks of the Don, in one


[1627 a.d.] of their periodical uprisings, conquered Azov, which
they offered to the czar, but which he did not
accept. As we shall meet the Cossacks again from time to time, it is
worth while to interrupt our main narrative to make inquiry as to the
antecedents of this peculiar people.a
Soloviev gives the following definition of the term “cossacks”: “At the
end of the first half of the fifteenth century we encounter for the first time
the name of Cossack, principally the Cossacks of Riazan. Our ancestors
understood by this name, in general, men without homes, celibates
obliged to earn their bread by working for others. In this way the name
“cossack” took the meaning of day-labourer. They formed a class
altogether opposed to land owners; that is, the villagers. The steppes, so
agreeable to live on, not lacking fertility, watered by rivers filled with fish,
attracted in these countries the more hardy, namely the Cossacks; the
people who could not stay in villages, those who were pursued for some
crime, fugitive serfs, united with each other; it is this group of individuals
who formed the population of the frontiers and were known under the
name of Cossacks. The Cossacks were therefore of great importance;
being an enterprising people they were the first to lead the way to the
great solitudes which they peopled. It was not difficult for a Russian to
become a Cossack; in going to the steppes he did not enter a strange
country, nor did he cease to be a Russian; there among the Cossacks
he felt at home. The Cossacks who remained near the frontier
recognised the right of the Russian government over them in all things,
but obeyed it only when it would prove useful to them. They depended
somewhat on the government, while those who lived far away were
more independent.”i
Polish authors have acquainted western Europe with the name and
the fact of the existence of the Cossacks. This name (in Russian kazak)
has passed into other languages, by the writings of the seventeenth
century, with the Polish pronunciation. The etymology of this word long
exercised the sagacity of northern savants. Some derive it from the
Slavonic koza “goat”—the Cossacks, they argued, wandered about like
goats. Others believe it comes from kossa, which signifies “tress of hair,”
“scythe,” “body of land projecting into a river.” Justifications are not
wanting for these different acceptations, since (1) the Cossacks were
formerly in the habit of wearing long braids; (2) they used scythes to
make hay, as well as in battle; (3) their first colonies were on the river
banks, which abounded in promontories. In these days, when
etymological study has made such great progress, the word cossack is
generally accepted as derived from the Turkish. In that language cazak
signifies marauder, plunderer, soldier of fortune. Such were in effect the
first Cossacks established on the banks of the Dnieper and its
tributaries, between the Polish, the Tatar, and the Muscovite territories.
Their customs greatly resembled those of the inhabitants on the Border,
or Scottish frontier; and the name of the country where they first
appeared, Ukrania (Pokraina) signifies border, frontier, in the Slavonic
dialects.
The Cossacks have never formed a distinct nationality, but their
manners and institutions separate them from the rest of the Russian
people. The Cossackry—to translate by a single word all that the
Russians understand by Kazatchestvo—is the species of society,
government, political organisation which the Russian peasant
understands by instinct, so to speak, to which he conforms most easily
and which he probably regards as the best. The different fractions of the
Cossacks were designated as armies according to the provinces which
they occupied. There was the army of the Dnieper, the army of the Don,
that of the Iaïk (Ural), etc. Each of these armies was divided into small
camps or villages, called stanitsas. The ground round the stanitsa, the
flocks which grazed on its meadows, formed the undivided property of
the commune. At regular intervals equal partitions took place for
cultivation; but each gathered the fruit of his own labour and could
increase his share in the common fund by his private industry. Every
man was a soldier and bound to take up arms at the word of the chief
whom the public suffrage had designated. There was one of these for
each expedition and he bore the name of “errant captain,” ataman
kotchévoï, which was distinct from the ataman or political chief for life of
the whole army. This captain had under his orders an adjutant or
lieutenant, iéssaoul, then centurions, commanders of fifties, and
commanders of tens. During peace the administration of each stanitsa
belonged to the elders, startchini; but every resolution of any importance
had to be submitted to a discussion in which all the men of the
community could take part and vote. The political or administrative
assembly was called the circle, kroug. There were no written laws, the
circle being the living law, preserving and adding to the traditions. It left,
moreover, complete liberty to the individual, so long as this was not
harmful to the community. As to the foreigner, anything, or almost
anything, was permitted. Such institutions find fanatics amongst men in
appearance the most rebellious against all discipline. The filibusters at
the end of the seventeenth century had similar ones.
We are ignorant of the period of the first organisation of the Cossacks;
it appears, however, very probable that it is contemporary with the Tatar
conquest. The little republic of the Zaparogians in the islands and on the
banks of the Dnieper seems to be the model on which the other Cossack
governments were formed; for their dialect, the Little Russian, has left
traces amongst the Cossacks most remote from Ukraine. There is no
doubt that the first soldiers who established themselves in the islands of
the Dnieper were animated by patriotic and religious sentiments. Their
first exploits against the Tatars and Turks were a protest of the
conquered Christians against their Mussulman oppressors. In
consequence of having fought for their faith they loved war for its own
sake and pillage became the principal object of their expeditions. In
default of Tatars their Russian or Polish neighbours were mercilessly
despoiled.
Formerly the Cossacks had been
recruited by volunteers arriving on
the borders of the Dnieper—some
from Great Russia, others from
Lithuania or Poland. The association
spread. It colonised the banks of the
Don and there instituted the rule of
the stanitsas and the circle. The
czars of Muscovy, while they
sometimes suffered from the
violence of the newcomers, beheld,
with pleasure the formation on their
frontiers of an army which fought for
them, cost them nothing, and
founded cities of soldiers in desolate
steppes.
Michael Romanov
From the Don the Cossacks
carried colonies along the Volga, to
the Terek, to the Ural; they conquered Siberia. In 1865 descendants of
these same men were encamped at the mouths of the Amur and fringed
the Chinese frontier. The Don Cossacks, conquerors of a country
subdued by the Tatars, submitted to Russia in 1549, but they enjoyed a
real independence. It is true that in war-time they furnished a body of
troops to the czar; but war was their trade and a means of acquiring
fortune. They appointed their own atamans, governed themselves
according to their own customs, and scarcely permitted the Moscow
government to interfere at all in their affairs. They even claimed the right
to make war without command of the czar, and in spite of his injunctions
devoted themselves to piracy on the Black Sea and even on the
Caspian Sea. In 1593, when Boris Godunov instituted serfdom in
Russia, by a ukase which forbade the peasants to change their lord or
their domicile, the Cossacks received immense additions to their
numbers. All those who wished to live in freedom took refuge in a
stanitsa, where they were sure of finding an asylum. In their ideas of
honour, the atamans considered it their first duty to protect fugitives.
Consequently the most usual subject of disputes between the
government of Moscow and the hordes of the Don was the restoration of
serfs. At times exacted by the czars, when they had no foreign enemy to
fear, it was evaded by the atamans; at times it was in some sort
forgotten, whenever the services of the Cossacks became necessary.
Practically it was considered impossible to get back a serf once he had
procured his adoption into a stanitsa.
There were always two parties among the Cossacks, which might be
called the aristocratic party and the democratic faction, although there
was no nobility amongst them. The old-established Cossacks,
possessing a fortune acquired either by raids or industry, did not look
with a friendly eye on the newcomers, who were strangers to the
country. They first preached in the circle respect of treaties and
obedience to the czar; the others, on the contrary, declared themselves
in favour of every violent course, supported those bold spirits who were
meditating some hazardous expedition, and troubled themselves little
concerning the danger of compromising the privileges of the army of the
Don by abusing them. The old Cossacks in contempt called the
newcomers gole (nakedness, trash), and this name, like that of gueux in
Flanders, had ended by being borne proudly by the opposite faction.
The class of poor Cossacks, which was unceasingly recruited from
fugitives, hated the Russian government and obtained the sympathy of
the serfs who dared not break their chain. The condition of the latter was
deplorable; at a time when the life of a freeman was held of small
account, a slave was less than a beast of burden and certainly more
miserable. The savagery of manners, the harshness of the masters, was
equalled only by the ferocity of the laws. One example will be enough to
show what the legislation of this epoch was like. The serf was
responsible for his master’s debts. If the lord did not pay his creditors the
serf was put in prison and daily beaten before the courts of justice until
the debtor had paid or the creditors had abandoned their claims. In their
wretchedness the serfs were witnesses of the liberty of the Cossacks,
who spoke the same language as themselves and who had the same
origin. We need not be astonished if, in their despair, they were disposed
to accept as their liberators the Cossacks who came to pillage their
masters. A slave rarely dares to conceive the idea of conquering his
liberty; but he is always ready to aid the freeman who declares himself
his protector. Thus it is to be noted that all the great insurrections of
serfs which broke out in Russia were organised by Cossacks. The False
Dmitri, Stenka Radzin, and Pugatchev furnish the proof of this.b

LAST YEARS OF MICHAEL

The peace with Poland being only for a stated term of years, Michael
endeavoured, before its expiration, to have his troops placed in such a
condition by foreign officers that he might be able to reconquer the
countries ceded to the Poles. Nay, on the death of Sigismund, ere the
armistice had expired, he began the attempt to recover these territories,
under the idle pretext that he had concluded a peace with Sigismund
and not with his successor. But the Russian commander, Michael
Schein, the very same who had valiantly defended Smolensk with a
small number of troops against the Poles, now lay two whole years
indolently before that town, with an army of fifty thousand men and
provided with good artillery, and at length retreated on capitulation, a
retreat for which he and his friends were brought to answer with their
heads. The Russian nation were so dissatisfied with this campaign, and
the king of Sweden, whom Michael wanted to engage in an alliance with
him against the Poles, showed so little inclination to comply, that the
czar was fain to return to the former amicable relation with Poland.
Peace was therefore again agreed on, and matters remained as they
were before.
During his reign, which continued till 1645, Michael had employment
enough in endeavouring to heal the wounds which the spirit of faction
had inflicted on his country; to compose the disorders that had arisen; to
restore the administration which had been so often disjointed and
relaxed; to give new vigour and activity to the laws, disobeyed and
inefficient during the general confusions; and to communicate fresh life
to expiring commerce. It redounds greatly to his honour that he
proceeded in all these respects with prudence and moderation, and
brought the disorganised machine of government again into play. More
than this, the restoration of the old order of things, was not to be
expected of him. Much that he was unable to effect was accomplished
by his son and successor, Alexis.

ALEXIS (1645-1676 A.D.)

The administration, however, of the boyar Boris


[1645 a.d.] Morosov, to whom Michael at his death committed
the education of Alexis, then in his sixteenth year,
well-nigh destroyed the tranquillity which had so lately been restored.
Morosov trod in the footsteps of Boris Godunov, put himself, as that
favourite of the czar had done, into the highest posts, and thus acquired
the most extensive authority in the state, turned out all that stood in his
way, distributed offices and dignities as they fell vacant among his
friends and creatures, and even became, like Boris, a near relation of
the czar Alexis, by marrying a sister of the czaritza. Like his prototype,
indeed, Morosov effected much good, particularly by making the army a
main object of his concern, by strengthening the frontiers against Poland
and Sweden, erecting manufactories for arms, taking a number of
foreigners into pay for the better disciplining of the army, and diligently
exercising the troops himself.
But these important services to the state could not render the people
insensible to the numerous acts of injustice and oppression which were
practised with impunity by the party protected by this minion of the czar.
The most flagrant enormities were committed, more particularly in the
administration of justice. The sentence of the judge was warped to either
side by presents; witnesses were to be bought; several of the
magistrates, however incredible it may seem, kept a number of
scoundrels in readiness to corroborate or to oppugn, for a sum of
money, whatever they were required to confirm or to deny. Such
profligates were particularly employed in order to get rich persons into
custody on charges of any species of delinquency sworn against them
by false witnesses, to condemn them to death, and then to seize upon
their property, as the accumulation of wealth seemed to be the general
object of all men in office. From the same corrupt fountain flowed a
multitude of monopolies and excessive taxes on the prime necessaries
of life. The consequence of all this was the oppression of the people by
privileged extortioners and murmurs against injustice and the
exhorbitance of imposts. In addition to this, those grandees who had
now the reins of government in their hands assumed a haughty, austere
behaviour towards the subjects, whereas Michael and his father had
been friendly and indulgent, and their gentleness communicated itself to
all who at that time took part in the administration.
From these several causes arose discontents in the nation; such great
men as were neglected and disappointed contributed what they could to
fan these discontents, and to bring them to overt act. Moscow, the seat
of the principal magistrate, who, himself in the highest degree unjust,
connived at the iniquities of his subordinate judges, was the place where
the people first applied for redress. They began by presenting petitions
to the czar, implored the removal of these disorders, and exposed to him
in plain terms the abuses committed by the favourite and his adherents.
But these petitions were of no avail, as none of the courtiers would
venture to put them into the hand of the czar, for fear of Morosov’s long
arm. The populace therefore, once stopped the czar, as he was
returning from church to his palace, calling aloud for righteous judges.
Alexis promised them to make strict inquiry into their grievances, and to
inflict punishment on the guilty; the people, however, had not patience to
wait this tardy process, but proceeded to plunder the houses of such of
the great as were most obnoxious to them. At length they were pacified
only on condition that the authors of their oppressions should be brought
to condign punishment. Not, however, till they had killed the principal
magistrate, and other obnoxious persons, and forced from the czar the
abolition of some of the new taxes and the death of another nefarious
judge, could they be induced to spare the life of Morosov, though the
czar himself entreated for him with tears. Thenceforth Morosov ceased
to be the sole adviser of his sovereign, though he continued to enjoy his
favour and affection.
Some time after these events, disturbances not less violent occurred
in Pleskov and Novgorod, and were not quelled until much mischief had
been done. The pacification of Novgorod was mainly due to the wisdom
and intrepidity of the celebrated Nicon, who was afterwards patriarch.
While the nation was in this restless and angry mood, another false
Dmitri thought to avail himself of an opportunity apparently so favourable
to gather a party. He was the son of a draper in the Ukraine, and was
prompted to his imposture by a Polish nobleman, named Danilovski.
One day, when the young man was
bathing, marks were observed on his
back which were thought to resemble
letters of some unknown tongue.
Danilovski, hearing of this freak of nature,
determined to build a plot upon it. He sent
for the young man, and had the marks
examined by a Greek pope whom he had
suborned. The pope cried out, “A
miracle!” and declared that the letters
were Russian, and formed distinctly these
words: Dmitri, son of the czar Dmitri. The
public murder of Marina’s infant son was
notorious; but that difficulty was met by
the common device of an alleged change
of children, and the Poles were invited to
lend their aid to the true prince thus
miraculously identified. They were willing
enough to do so; but the trick was too
stale to impose on the Russians. The
impostor found no adherents among
Tatar Girl of the Teleut Tribe them; and after a wretched life of
vagrancy and crime, he fell into the hands
of Alexis, and was quartered alive.
Alexis soon had an opportunity to repay in a more substantial manner
the ill will borne to him by the Poles, who had further offended him by
rejecting him as a candidate for their throne, and electing John Casimir.
The cruel oppressions exercised by the Poles upon the Cossacks of the
Ukraine had roused the latter to revolt, and a furious war ensued, in
which the enraged Cossacks avenged their wrongs in the most ruthless
and indiscriminate manner. At last, after many vicissitudes, being
deserted by their Tatar allies, the Cossacks appealed for aid to Alexis,
offering to acknowledge him as their suzerain. With such auxiliaries the
czar could now renew with better prospects the attempt made by his
father to recover the territories wrested from Russia by her inveterate
foe. He declared war against Poland; his conquests were rapid and
numerous, and would probably have terminated in the complete
subjugation of Poland, had he not been compelled to pause before the
march of a still more successful invader of that country, Charles
Gustavus, king of Sweden.
Incensed at seeing his prey thus snatched from
[1658-1662 a.d.] him when he had nearly hunted it down, Alexis fell
upon the king of Sweden’s own dominions during
his absence; but from this enterprise he reaped neither advantage nor
credit; and he was glad to conclude, in 1658, a three years’ truce with
Sweden, and subsequently a peace, which was an exact renewal of the
Treaty of Stolbova in 1617. The war in Poland ended more honourably
for Russia. An armistice for thirteen years, agreed upon at Andnissov, in
Lithuania, and afterwards prolonged from time to time, was the
forerunner of a complete pacification, which was brought to effect in
1686, and restored to the empire Smolensk, Severia, Tchernigov, and
Kiev, that primeval principality of the Russian sovereigns. The king of
Poland likewise relinquished to the czar the supremacy he had till then
asserted over the Cossacks of the Ukraine.
Russia had as much need as Poland of repose; for the empire was
suffering under an accumulation of evils—an exhausted treasury,
commercial distress, pestilence and famine, all aggravated by the
unwise means adopted to relieve them. To supply the place of the silver
money, which had disappeared, copper of the same nominal value was
coined and put in circulation. At first these tokens were received with
confidence, and no inconvenience was experienced; but ere long the
court itself destroyed that confidence by its audacious efforts to secure
to itself all the sterling money, and leave only the new coin for the use of
commerce. The cupidity displayed in transactions of this kind, especially
by Ilia Miloslavski, the czar’s father-in-law, taught the public to dislike the
copper coinage; it became immensely depreciated, and extreme general
distress ensued. A rebellion broke out in consequence in Moscow
(1662), and though it was speedily put down it was punished in the most
atrocious manner in the persons of thousands of wretches whose misery
had driven them to crime; whilst the authors of their woe escaped with
impunity. The prisoners were hanged by hundreds, tortured, burned,
mutilated, or thrown by night, with their hands bound, into the river. The
number who suffered death in consequence of this arbitrary alteration of
the currency was estimated at more than seven thousand; the tortured
and maimed, at upwards of fifteen thousand.
The conduct of the Don Cossacks was soon such
[1665-1671 a.d.] as to make it questionable whether the acquisition
of these new subjects was not rather a loss than a
gain to the empire. At the end of the campaign of 1665 the Cossacks
were refused permission to disband as usual and to return to their
homes. They mutinied; and several of them were punished with death.
Among those who were executed was an officer, whose brother, Stenka
Radzin, had no difficulty in rousing his countrymen to revenge this
violation of their privileges, and at the same time to gratify their
insatiable appetite for havoc and plunder.
He began his depredations on the Volga by seizing a fleet of boats
belonging to the czar, which was on its way to Astrakhan, massacring
part of the crews, and pressing all the rest into his service. Having
devastated the whole country of the Volga, he descended into the
Caspian, and having swept its shores, returned to the Volga laden with
booty. For three years this flagitious ruffian continued his murderous
career, repeatedly defeating the forces sent against him. At last, having
lost a great number of men in his piratical incursions into Persia, he was
hemmed in by the troops of the governor of Astrakhan, and forced to sue
for pardon. The imperial commander thought it more prudent to accept
Radzin’s voluntary submission than to risk an engagement with
desperate wretches whose numbers were still formidable. Radzin was
taken to Astrakhan, and the voyevod went to Moscow, to learn the czar’s
pleasure respecting him. Alexis honourably confirmed the promise made
by his general in his name, and accepted Radzin’s oath of allegiance;
but instead of dispersing the pardoned rebels over regions where they
would have been useful to the empire, he had the imprudence to send
them all back to the country of the Don, without despoiling them of their
ill-gotten wealth, or taking any other security for their good behaviour.
The brigand was soon at his old work again on the Volga, murdering
and torturing with more wanton ferocity than ever. To give to his
enormities the colour of a war on behalf of an oppressed class, he
proclaimed himself the enemy of the nobles and the restorer of the
liberty of the people. As many of the Russians still adhered to the
patriarch Nicon, who had been deposed and sent to a monastery, he
spread it abroad that Nicon was with him; that the czar’s second son
(who had died at Moscow, January 16th, 1670) was not dead, but had
put himself under his protection; and that he had even been requested
by the czar himself to come to Moscow, and rid him of those unpatriotic
grandees by whom he was unhappily surrounded.
These artifices, together with the unlimited license to plunder which
Radzin granted to everyone who joined his standard, operated so
strongly that the rebel found himself, at length, at the head of two
hundred thousand men. The czar’s soldiers murdered their officers, and
went over to him; Astrakhan betrayed its governor, and received him; he
was master of the whole country of the lower Volga; and on the upper
course of the river, from Nijni-Novgorod to Kazan, the peasants rose to a
man and murdered their lords. Had Stenka Radzin been anything better
than a vulgar robber and cut-throat, he might have revolutionised
Russia; but he was utterly without the qualities most requisite for
success in such an enterprise. Disasters overtook him in the autumn of
1670: a division of his army was cut to pieces; twelve thousand of his
followers were gibbeted on the high-road, and he himself was taken in
the beginning of the following year, carried to Moscow, and executed.

THE ANSWER OF ZAPOROGIAN COSSACKS TO SULTAN MUHAMMED IV

(From the painting by Elias Repin)


The Turks had by this time made war on Poland, and Alexis was
bound by the Treaty of Andnissov, as well as by regard for the safety of
his own dominions, to support the latter power. In 1671 the Turks made
themselves masters of the important town of Kaminitz, and the
Cossacks of the Ukraine, ever averse to subjection, could not tell
whether they belonged to Turkey, Poland, or Russia. Sultan Muhammed
IV, who had subdued and lately imposed a tribute on the Poles, insisted,
with all the insolence of an Ottoman and of a conqueror, that the czar
should evacuate his several possessions in the Ukraine, but received as
haughty a denial. The sultan in his letter treated the sovereign of the
Russias only as a Christian gospodin (hospodar), and entitled himself
Most Glorious Majesty, King of the World. The czar made answer that he
was above submitting to a Mohammedan dog, but that his sabre was as
good as the grand seignior’s scimitar.
Alexis sent ambassadors to the pope, and to
[1676 a.d.] almost all the great sovereigns in Europe, except
France, which was allied to the Turks, in order to
establish a league against the Porte. His ambassadors had no other
success at Rome than not being obliged to kiss the pope’s toe;
everywhere else they met with nothing but good wishes, the Christian
princes being generally prevented by their quarrels and jarring interests
from uniting against the common enemy of their religion. Alexis did not
live to see the termination of the war with Turkey. His death happened in
1676, in his forty-eighth year, after a reign of thirty-one years.

FEODOR (1676-1682 A.D.)

Alexis was succeeded by his eldest son, Feodor, a youth in his


nineteenth year, and of very feeble temperament. The most pressing
task that devolved on him was the prosecution of the war with Turkey,
which, as far as Russia was interested, had regard chiefly to the
question whether the country of the Zaparogian Cossacks should be
under the sovereignty of the czar or of the sultan. The contest was
terminated, three years after Feodor’s accession, by a treaty which
established his right over the disputed territory. Only one other
memorable event distinguished his brief reign.
Nothing could equal the care with which the noble families kept the
books of their pedigrees, in which were set down not only every one of
their ancestors but also the posts and offices which each had held at
court, in the army, or in the civil department. Had these genealogies and
registers of descent been confined to the purpose of determining the
ancestry and relationship of families no objection could be alleged
against them. But these books of record were carried to the most absurd
abuse, attended with a host of pernicious consequences. If a nobleman
were appointed to a post in the army, or at court, or to some civil station,
and it appeared that the person to whom he was now subordinate
numbered fewer ancestors than he, it was with the utmost difficulty that
he could be brought to accept of the office to which he was called. Nay,
this folly was carried to still greater lengths: a man would even refuse to
take upon him an employ, if thereby he would be subordinate to one
whose ancestors had formerly stood in that position towards his own.
It is easy to imagine that a prejudice of this kind must have been
productive of the most disagreeable effects, and that discontents,
murmurs at slights and trifling neglects, disputes, quarrels, and disorders
in the service must have been its natural attendants. It was, therefore,
become indispensably necessary that a particular office should be
instituted at court in which exact copies of the genealogical tables and
service-registers of the noble families were deposited; and this office
was incessantly employed in settling the numberless disputes that arose
from this inveterate prejudice. Feodor, observing the pernicious effects
of this fond conceit—that the father’s capacity must necessarily devolve
on the son, and that consequently he ought to inherit his posts—wished
to put a stop to it; and with the advice of his sagacious minister, Prince
Vasili Galitzin, fell upon the following method. He caused it to be
proclaimed that all the families should deliver into court faithful copies of
their service-rolls, in order that they might be cleared of a number of
errors that had crept into them. This delivery being made, he convoked
the great men and the superior clergy before him. In the midst of these
heads of the nobles, the patriarch concluded an animated harangue by
inveighing against their prerogatives. “They are,” said he, “a bitter source
of every kind of evil; they render abortive the most useful enterprises, in
like manner as the tares stifle the good grain; they have introduced,
even into the heart of families, dissensions, confusion, and hatred; but
the pontiff comprehends the grand design of his czar. God alone can
have inspired it!”
At these words, and by anticipation, all the
[1682 a.d.] grandees blindly hastened to express their
approval; and, suddenly, Feodor, whom this
generous unanimity seemed to enrapture, arose and proclaimed, in a
simulated burst of holy enthusiasm, the abolition of all their hereditary
pretensions—“To extinguish even the recollection of them,” said he, “let
all the papers relative to those titles be instantly consumed!” And as the
fire was ready, he ordered them to be thrown into the flames before the
dismayed eyes of the nobles, who strove to conceal their anguish by
dastardly acclamations. By way of conclusion to this singular ceremony,
the patriarch pronounced an anathema against everyone who should
presume to contravene this ordinance of the czar; and the justice of the
sentence was ratified by the assembly in a general shout of “Amen!” It
was by no means Feodor’s intention to efface nobility; and, accordingly,
he ordered new books to be made, in which the noble families were
inscribed; but thus was abolished that extremely pernicious custom
which made it a disgrace to be under the orders of another if his
ancestry did not reach so high, or even—in case of equal pedigree—if a
forefather of the commander had once been subordinate in the service
to the progenitor of him who was now to acknowledge him for his
superior. Feodor died in February, 1682, after a reign of five years and a
half, leaving no issue.h

FOOTNOTES

[37] There was no patriarch at that time.


[38] Established in 1560. The first book printed in Moscow, The
Evangelist, appeared in the month of March, 1564.

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