"Oh, yes, the Russians pay for what they take," exclaims the
Koenigsberger _Zeitung_, and adds:
"The inspector of a great farm, who was riding a fine horse, his
saddle and bridle ornamented with silver, encountered a troop of
Russians.
"'We need that horse; dismount,' ordered the Russian commander. 'But
to prove to you that we Russians are not so black as we are painted,
I now pay you for the horse.'
"So saying he handed a ruble (51.5 cents) to the inspector, who
discovered later that the piece was coined in the eighteenth century
and is not current now."