Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1873-04-05

tinuous trot or gallop. 1t was only
after many days, when arriving at Ryb-
insk, that the party was allowed to rest
for few hours. All the beds in the
station, however, were occupied, and
the tired travellers were fain to lie down
on the floor. Again, the cortege set
out, passing along at a great rate
through towns and villages, in each
sledge there being guard of one ortwo
gendarmes the whole under the direc-
ton of Feldjager-a coarse species of
rufian, who abused and cheated the
postmaster, and beat the postillions
with his sword, when they did not come
up to his notions of speed. BY cruel
overdriving, seven horses fell dead on
the journey to Tobolsk, which was
reached on the twenty-second of Febru-
ary, after being seventeen days out.
From this place, the stations were of a
more homely kind, being mostly Gotta
ges belonging to peasants, who showed
various acts of kindness to the exiles.
Arriving at Krasnojarsk, where the
sledges were mounted with wheels, the
captain of police was so considerate as
to allow q benevolent old merchant to
receive the party into his house, and
treat them to q? bath, with other COM
forts, of which they stood in need. The
Feldjager having now left them, they
travelled more slowly, and with greater
degree of ease. Yet, dangers had to be
encountered. The cortege had to cross
rivers on the ice, each sledge carrying
planks to lay across the assures, over
which the hardy Siberian horses were
skilled in leaping with singular agility.
On one occasion the Baron's conveyance
was upset in passing down a mountain
steep, and being unable to extricate
himself in consequence of his chains,
his life was put in extreme jeopardy.
The tedious and distressing journey
came to a termination at Tschita, place
situated on the upper waters of the
Amoor, which then in its lower course
was Chinese river, but is now included
in the Russian empire. Here, at the
prison, all the party were deprived of
such trinkets and other objects of value
as they had about them. From Baron
Rosen's neck were taken a small por-
trait of his wife, locket containing the
hair of his parents, and small packet
of much cherished earth from the home
of his birth. The officer who committed
this miserable robbery, demanded a
gold ring which he saw on the Baron's
finger. The answer was 1t is my
wedding-ring, and you can only have it
by taking the finger also." The ring
was spared and soon afterwards, by
order of a superior official, the portrait
was restored.
The prison was wooden hut sur
rounded by courtyard, in which the
exiles were permitted to air themselves
daily and walk about as they best could
in their fetters. In this species of Sc
clusion, and on no pretence allowed to
write letters to their friends, they re-
mained till the end of May, when the
ground having thawed and the weather
improved, the exiles were put to regular
outdoor labor, in digging the founda-
tions for new prison. Thirty, the full
number in the place, were at first so
occupied. Other parties who had been
lodged in various quarters afterwards
arrived, and the whole, when the prison
was complete, were lodged together un-
der strong guard. The rooms were
small, the beds consisted of boards with
rugs and furs the air at night was op-
pressive, and the only amusement in
dulged in wasTsinging and playing at
chess. From cards, the universal re-
source in Russia, there was a discreet
abstinence, in order to avoid the con-
tentions that might possibly ensue. 1t
does not appear that in the ordinary
routine of prison life there was any ex-
ercise of positive cruelty by the warders
and other officials. Life was only cheer
less and well-nigh hopeless.
Cases of official indulgence were at
times heard of. Government orders had
been issued to prevent wives following
their husbands, but there were instances
of ladies of rank overlooking all obsta-
cles, and travelling thousands of miles
to try to reach their husbands and live
with them in the midst of the most re-
voting circumstances. In the work in
which the Baron narrates the story of
his captivity-recently translated and
published-we are told of the Princess
Catherine Trubetzkey, who followed her
husband to Siberia, and asked permis-
sion to join him in the common criminal
barrack, without servants or the com
forts to which she had been accustomed.
The request was with some hesitation
granted, and only on condition that she
renounced by written declaration her
rights of nobility. She renounced every
thing, and solely with a view of allevi-
ating her husbands hard fate, followed
him when he was carried from station
to station, bound with cords, as if he
had been a malefactor. Some other in
stances of the extraordinary devotedness
of wives, which we have not space to
notice, are related in this interesting
work.
The method of living among the i'm
prlsoned exlles was in time ameliorated
by the receipt of money from their
friends ; the richer helping the poorer
by contributions to improve the general
mess. All took part in daily duties.
Some-on one occasion prince-per-
formed the duty of cook, and some
acted as tailors and shoemakers. In the
evenings, some tried to give entertain
ments by lecturing on scientific and
other subjects, or by teaching languages
to their comrades. A few being good
musicians, a kind of concert was at
tempted, the part taken by the Baron
at these musical treats being that of
player on the fageolet. At length,
newspapers in various languages were
permitted to be introduced and, finally,
as an immense act of grace, the emperor
authorized the chains to be removed
from the legs of the prisoners. This
relief, OF course, suggested thoughts of
trying to escape-but whittier The
military guards might be overpowered !;