Hand County press. (Miller, Dakota [S.D.]) 1882-1893, 1882-08-23
sIBERxAx Posr-HoRsEs.


sIBRRxAN POSf-HORSES.
The most;Ito,l;gent animals along the
Siberian pos.-routes, not excepting the
Postmasters and the yemschliks, are
undoubtedly the unwsrying little post
horses. They never lag in their work
until they fall down exhausted in the
road. Yet over this great stretch of
2,7OO miles, over mountains and execra-
BILE roads, only ten or dozen have had
to be released from harness and sent
back to the station whence they came.
The yemschlik does not make much ado
about such mishap; he simply takes
the exhausted or sick animal out, fastens
the traces round the neck and bids it get
home. The faithful little brute does
not need to be shown the way, but goes
home to his stables-be the distance five
or ten miles it is all the same. Nobody
thinks of disturbing him on the way,
and the yemschlik is sure to find him
when he returns home himself. Wien
the journey or station has been made,
generally out fifteen miles in length, the
animals are allowed about ten minutes to
eat little hay, and then they are al
lowed three hours rest, and, If need be,
they are then harnessed up again for an
other journey. In winter they have
pretty easy times, but in summer, when
travel is brisker Oh the Siberian roads,
they are worked almost to death, and
they rarely last over two years Of work.
But they are cheap they cost their
owners almost nothing to keep, except
in winter, and then only during the most
severe weeks. Many stories are told of
the great intelligence of these tough lit
tie brutes. Mime. de Bourbouion gives us
two about the vigor and the energy of
"these demi-savages, as she calls them.
Apeasant who dwelt in the outskirts of
Krasnoyarsk being invited to q wedding
a. village some forty versts away be-
yond the Yenesei, drank SO deeply of
kwass and vodka that on his return he
fell asleep in his kibitka. The little
horses were left to themselves, but they
knew the way quite as well as their mas
ter in his most sober moment, and
finally reached the banks of the Yenesei
n safety. Here, however, they were in
q dilema, for the ferrymin was on the
other side OF the river and
also asleep. Weary of waiting for
their master to wake up, ana having
measured the breadth of the river, here
half mile, and their own strength, they
at last boldly plunged with the kibitka
into the river to swim across it. Awak-
ened by finding himself half submerged
in the water, the peasant was quickly
sobered, but seeing that the middle Of
the river had been reached wisely al
lowed the horses to proceed, and they
finally reached the opposite bank with
out word being spoken TO them. "One
can imagine" says Nine. de Bourbon
Ion, "the surprise OF the inhabitants Of
Krasnoyarsk at seeing just at the break
of day this new Neptune drawn in his
chariot approaching their city in this
unique manner" Madame also tells
story of how two Russian officers, quite
unarmed, were driving troika of horses,
when they were pursuedd an attacked by
q troop Of wolves. The sledge capsized,
the wolves set upon one OF
the horses, which they immediatey he
gan to tear to pieces. The officers cut
the traces of the other horsesi order to
give them the opportunity OF fight and
themselves beneath the over
turned sledge, hoping that deliverance
might eventually come. But what was
their surprise 10 find the horses, instead
Of taking to fight, boldly turning upon
the wolves and attacking them with such
vigor by means of their hind feet that
they soon put the brutes to fight Nine.
de Bourboulon heard many other wolf
and horse stories, but felt justified in
retelling the above only, guarantee
ing their authenticity. A gentle
man in Irkoutsk tells me the fol-
lowing incident, Of which he was an
eyewitness: Crossing the Angara on
the ferry, peasant boy, half drunk,
stood before his horse and kept striking
IL on the nose with his closed fist. This
brutality was frequently repeated, much
10 tho disgust Of the passengers. But
finally, after desperate blow, the horse
determined to revenge itself,
took hold OF the peasant's cap and hair,
lifted him up and over the ratings, held
him suspended, and, after shaking him
fiercely, let the brute fall into the swift
river, and the fellow was only rescued
with the greatest difficulty. SO much
for the intelligence Of Siberian post
horses. es.-Neu York Herald.
To THINK we are able is almost TO be
SO; TO determine upon attainment il