concept
Zayats (fare-dodger)
hare
also: zayats
Contemporary Russian railway slang (literally "hare") for a passenger who rides without a ticket, typically bribing the conductor directly rather than buying one at the booth.
Reading notes
- Well, the Public! §16 riding without tickets
The passenger's complaint alludes to the widespread period practice of fare-dodging (the fare-dodger was popularly nicknamed a "hare," zayats), often achieved by bribing the conductor directly -- part of the story's irony that conductors were popularly assumed to be lax, not overzealous.
- In the Carriage §32 hare
"Hare" (zayats) was contemporary Russian railway slang for a fare-dodging passenger who rides without a ticket, typically by bribing the conductor directly rather than buying one at the booth.