(no subject)

[gnomygnomy.livejournal.com]

I'm sure I've seen this before, but what would be an appropriate ending to a letter to a host family you haven't met yet?

Ваша Нина?

Would that work? Or would something else be better? (read: To me that sounds a bit too intimate. Or maybe that's just me.)

Yet another translation question.

[quem98.livejournal.com]

First is an excerpt from a soviet historian's writings about those 18th century documents I've been asking for help on.

The sentance is "Наибольше интерес представляет декларативная часть указа - своеобразное программное завление, излагающее солержание социальной политики ставки Пугачева и намечающее перспектывы движения.

So I've translated it as (I've tried to keep the translation as direct as possible):
The declarative portion of the decree presents a far greater interest - The unique policy statement, laying out the contents of the social politics of Pugachev's headquarters and outlining perspectives of the movement...

Or does ставки in this case mean a stake or a bet? Which it what multitran tells me...

The second sentence is yet another one of those godawful 18th century texts. It's talking about Catherine II's troops being completely overshelmed by Bashkir raids, and I get most of it, but I can't parse this sentence to save my life. Each time I try I come out with wildly different translations:

...А доныне нигде еще башкирамъ от наших командъ удару [?] не было; и что делаютъ наши генералы - богъ знаетъ, а ожидают только, чтобъ сами они, злодей, пришли въ познание, чего никогда им не дождаться.

(Question mark is in the text)

The last part stumps me... Is it...

And up until now, nowhere yet was there a strike on the Bashkirs from our unit; and what our generals are doing - lord knows, but [they] expect only that the evil doers themselves will

a) appear where we least expect them?
b) come to the knowledge that no one ever expects them?
c) expect the unexpected?
d) run away and join the circus?

Are any of my translations close? (nevermind b and c... Non stop thesis writing has done bad things to my brain)