The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1885-01-31

lect. The yemschiks who drove us
changed in appearance and in national
ity; the very breed of the horses varied
But let man or cattle be of what kind
they may, we were well and skillfully
conducted.
The weather was glorious, almost too
glorious. The cultivated country we
passed through looked thriving and
productive. Siberia was very different
in appearance from what is usually
associated with its name. The air when
not too warm was simply delicious.
Never have | breathed a more invigora-
ting and bracing atmosphere. There
were days when the breeze seemed to
send new life through every vein.
The people thought fairly honest, and
whenever | found need of producing
my papers the word ciyility will scarce
~ express the treatment l received.
How should have been treated without
these potent talismans can not say.
The whole countryside in most places
was busy with the hay-harvest; a mat
ter of such Importance to the commu-
nifty at large that convicts are told off
for some six weeks to assist in the work
of saving the crops. The wild flowers,
many of them very beautiful, grew
freely; the people looked well and con-
tented. Altogether my impressions of
Siberia In summer were pleasant ones.
Yet wished it had been the dead of
winter. Then it is that, in spite of the
cold, one travels more pleasantly. Ivan
assured me that when good snow road
is formed and tarantass may be ex-
changed for sledge, the amount of
ground passed over in day is some
thing marvellous. / am afraid from
memory to say how many miles may be
covered in twenty-four hours when the
smooth-going runners take the place of
wheels.
We had, of course, various small ac-
cidents and delays on the road. How
ever strongly built tarantass may be
it is but mortal. Wheels broke, axle
trees gave way, CHATS snapped, twice
we were overturned, but as no evil ex-
cept delay ensued | need not relate the
history of these misfortunes.
Nor need | enumerate the towns and
villages through which we passed I'M
less l wish to make my story as inter-
esting as a scriptural genealogy-Tara,
Kainsk, Koliuvan, Tomsk, Achinsk,
Krasnoyarsk, Mini Udinsk, may or may
not be familiar to the reader, according
to the depth of his geographical stud
les; but most of the others, even if |
knew how to spell their names, would
be nothing more than vain sounds.
Perhaps when we trace the march OF
the Russian army destined to invade
our Indian Empire we may become
better acquainted with the Czar's Asiat-
lc dominons.
Yet at the entrance to each of these
little towns or villages, the very names
of which | have forgotten, so surely as
you found the well-appointed posting
station, you found also a gloomy square
building, varying with the size of the
place, surrounded by a tall palisade,
the gates of which were barred, bolted
and sentried-these buildings were the
ostrogs, or prisons.
Here it was that the wretched con-
yicts were housed as they halted on
their long march. In these places they
were packed like sardines in "a box
Prisons built to hold two hundred were
often called upon to accommodate al
least twice that number of luckless
wretches. was told that when ice was
breaking up in the rivers; when the
floods were out; when in fact the prog
ress must perforce be delayed, the
scenes ut these prisons or deuots beg
CARED description. Men, sometimes un
seXed women with them, huddled into
rooms reeking with filth, the floor
throwing out poisonous carnations
rooms built to give but scanty space t.
a small number, crowded to suffocation
The mortality at times was fearful. Tn,
trials of the march were as nothin!
when compared with the horrors of tn,
so-called rest. And it was in one o
these ostrogs should find Ceneri
We passed many gangs of convict
plodding along to their fate. Ivan toll
|, me that most of them were in chains
This should not have noticed, as tn
: irons were only on the legs and worl
under the trousers. Poor wretched be
, ings, my heart ached for them! Felon
t though they were, | could never refus
t the charity they invariably prayed for
. So far as | could see they were not I'm
kindly treated by the soldiers and off
i GERS, but terrible tales were told m
: about their sufferings at the hands O
Q inhuman jailers and commandments @
$ prisons There, for the slightest in
fraction of rules, the rod, the dar
cell and variety of other punishment
t were called into play.
t l always felt relieved when we ha
g passed out of sight of a gang Xix
h this. The contrast between my ow
4 position and that of such number c
@ my fenow-men was too painful to cor
S template-and yet, if Ceneri did nc
| clear away every shadow of dout
It from my mind l might retrace m
o steps a more miserable wretch tina
n either of those footsore convictS.
Some week or ten days after leavin
l Tobolsk began to make inquiries q