The Baltic Coachman has a Handkerchief : This is Europe

Don't knock those "soft tissues".

This blog takes its name from a posting at The Toynbee Convector by David Derrick which describes a "trivial" but telling historical event, as Russian boyars leaving Russia to visit the Baltic provinces "three-quarters of the way through the nineteenth century of the Christian Era", step out of their Russian carriage into a Baltic carriage at the Baltic border and view "the Baltic coachman" blowing his nose, using a handkerchief, giving the following commentary, as Derrick writes:

"Well," the [greatly surprised Russian boyars] exclaimed to their Baltic host, "What a country! Even a coachman here has a handkerchief! Why, this is Europe!”"

See The Toynbee Convector for the "full story".