Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1885-10-29

prudent L should have reflected that
the fellow was most likely hardened
scoundrel, quite undeserving Of pity,
and that his gratitude would probably
be shown either by robbing me, or if
he should happen to fall into the
hands of the police, by getting NE
into trouble to save his own worthless
neck. J. ought to have thought of
these things; but as [ said before / am
soft-hearted old fool and neglected
to do SO.
kept him in that empty house for
days; IL fact, till he had SO far re-
covered his strength as to be fit to 90
on. Nobody knew about him, not
even the members of my own family.
for if was doing 2 foolish thing [
had sense enough to run as little risk
over 1t as possible. Feodor Stepano-
witch, for that my convict tola me was
his name, enlightened me On some
few points OF MS personal history.
His native village was, he said, in the
government of VIadImer, and he had
left 1t to get work IL the town of
lvanova, where there are factories.
Every man tries to make out a void
case for himself, SO I did not feel N.Y.
self bound to place implicit reliance
on Feeders statement that he had
n6ver committees anything that could
properly be called crime. Accord
ing to his showing, the sole source of
his troubles had been difference
with an ouvadnik-a police agent.
do not exactly remember the par
ticulars. but, Of course, there was a
woman in the business; blows had
passed, and the auvadnik had, by a
false charge, procured Feodor's con-
domination to Siberia for life. This, [
say, was his story.
FeOdor told me that his place eff ex>
lie had been somewhere far UP tie
country; and cf the seventies he had
had to endure, and of the tyranny of
official he spoke bitterly. After max
ing his escape, the privations and
dangers he had undergone before
reaching Ekaterinburg were such as
should not have believed from his
words had they not been verified by
his appearance.
For Russian, he appeared to me
to be not uuintelligent fellow, and
pointed out to him the difficulties he
would find on his way to Ivanova, a
distance of twelve huadred versts
from Ekaterinburg, as the crow flies,
and advised him, as he was used to
mill>work, to stay and find employ
meat where he was. [ was weak
enough to offer to help him, and see
what could be done in the way of
getting q passport for him. But the
fellow was bent on goiHg forward.
He was resolved, he said, to see his
family again, and he was resolved to
see Basil Makaroff. This Makarof was,
[ found, the ouvadnik to whom Feo>
dor attributed his troubles, and 1t
seemed to me that his particular hank
ering to see this person meant cray
ing to have his revenge. | confess
that when I had learned this mach, I
felt no desire to detain my friend Fec
dor longer than was necessary, [ was
glad to give him something more de-
cent in the way of clothing than he
had brought, and trife in money to
help him on his way, and to be rid of
him.
never expected to see him again,
nor wished to do so, and / was some
what startled when q few weeks later,
among a gang of convicts WATCH were
being marched by guard of soldiers
out of the town, on their way east>
ward, recognized Stepanovitch. I
was standing close by when he passed
and was so much surprised to see him,
that somewhat mprudently, perhaps
spoke to him by name. But, will you
hnlI fsf,
me in the face, and marched sullenly
by without word or sign of recogni-
ton. $50 much" thought I, ''for gra
tltude."
Some months later, when the next
summer was getting we'll advanced,
we had one night an alarm of fire.
Many of the newer mills at Ekaterin-
burg are Of stone, but the main build
ing of ours, being comparatively old,
was of wood. It was thing to blaze
up like a box Of matches. It was how
ever, In the main building that the fire
had broken out, but in some sheds con-
nected with the main building by a
range of shopping. This last was stone
built, as i'll luck would have it cover
cred with wooden shingles.
A good many people were soon got
together, mostly our own hands, and
directed and encouraged them as
well as could to get the fire under.
But they were a stolid, heavy set of
fellows, those Russians, and the way
la which they take care not to over
exert the rnselves at fire is enough to
drive an Englishman wild. Yet there
were some few who worked well, and
one fellow in particular [ noticed-a
ragged fellow, bcggar took him to
be-who'really worked splendidly and
ia way that ought to have made
many of those whose daily bread de-
pended on the existence of the mill
ashamed of themselves.
What between the apathy of those
lazy scoundrels generally and want
OF water, 1t was soon plain that the
sheds which were On fire could not be
saved, and that what we had to look
to was the mill itself. The DANGER of
the main building was increasing
every moment, for the fire was begin
ming to make It's way along the shin