Wichita eagle., 1888-12-06

ga pairn
eyes, pair"
"How much the vers.Y'
Eight kopeks"
81 cannot give so much: six kopeksf'
"Too little-but-you can have them
In a few minutes the horses were ready
and harnessed to the sledge.
"Where do you come fromr' said the land
lord, as took my place in the sedge.
From Tomsk; l am the clerk of the
Messrs. N. My master has gone on to
the fair, and am very late; he will be angry;
and If you reach there in time, will give
you pourboire."
1.-THE peasant whistled to his horses and
they set off at full speed Suddenly the sky
clouded over, the snow began to fall, the
wind rose; we were in a whirlwind Of light,
fine snow. Ny peasant lost his way, and
then lost heart, and confessed that be had
done SO. will not attempt to describe the
terrible agony Of that night passed in
sledge, not twelve miles from Ekaterininski-
Zovod, in the midst of tempest of snow.
st last day began to break.
Let US return to Tara" said; 81 will en-
gage some one who knows the road, and you
shall be given up to the police for having
made me lose SO much time"
Dun ny udyllgut my conductor recovered
himself, and found the road. From that mo-
ment he made every effort to make up for
the time already lost, and drove with light
ming speed. But was not satisfied. What
fugitive ever is soi A horrible thought
haunted me- | remembered the fate Of our
poor Col. Wysocki, who, after having been
delayed for a night in the forest by his guide,
was delivered in the morning to the gen
] ha tod I
grasped my poniard Vain fears! unjust
suspicionsi Ny peasant drove me to an inn,
where drank some tea and changed horses.
In this way drove on all through that day
and far into the night, where, at my last
hating place, the village of Soldatskaia, l
was, while drinking tea in crowded cabaret,
robbed Of forty rubles in paper about eighty
franc9 and Of the envelope in which they
were contained, which, alasl also contained
q list of the villages through which had to
pass on my journey To Archangel, and also
my passport.
One thing sustained me in the face of this
terrible loss, and that was the utter impossi-
bility OF doing anything but go on | con-
tinued my journey, therefore, and on the
third day of my flight found myself at the
gates Of Irbit, and a thousand kilometers
from observation-disclosures Haiti and show
your passport" exclaimed the guard at the
! city gate. Fortunately for me, he added in
q whisper, Give me ten kopeks, and be off
with you"
l hastoned to comply with his demand,
and soon after found myself in a crowded
inn Of the poorest class and among a swarm
OF peasants from ell parts of Siberia. l an
uounced that | had left my passport with
the authorities, and the next morning after
breakfast l slipped out, avowedly to get it
and show it to the landlord, but really for
the purpose OF leaving Irbit, which ] did at
once, and unchallenged, by the northern
gate. During the night, while apparently
asleep, had reviewed my resources, and had
come to the conclusion that | could 10 longer
proceed in sledges nor sleep in even the
poorest inns, but must husband to the utmost
the 125 francs which remained | walked
therefore all through the day, from time to
time munching the frozen bread and dried
fish which | carried in my bag, and quench-
ing my thirst at the holes cut by the peasants
in the ice for the purpose of watering their
cattle. When night began to draw in l re-
solved to prepare an Ostiak burrow to
sleep in.
Where the snow is deep and dry it is not
by any means impossible to sleep warmly in
the very heart Of forest, provided always
that one knows how to prepare an Ostiak
furTow. This is done by following a sort of
horizontal cave in the snow Into this the
Ostiaks creep, and after piling up the snow
at the entrance of the burrow, so rs to ex-
clude the cold air, they lie down and sleep in
perfect security and warmth. succeeded per-
fectly in preparing my Ostiak bed but was
imprudent enough to cover myself with the
cifl 10 of
slept so warmly in consequence that the snow
melted at the door OF my burrow and let in
the cold air, SO that | awoke at day break
with my feet almost frozen, and had to rise
and begin my journey at once. 1t was ter
rible day The work of toiling through the
snow was hard enough, but toward noon
rose the terrible icy wind of Siberia, which
drove in my face with binding force, and
whirled masses of dry light snow before it.
Still | toiled on. The short day was closing
in when l had to confess to myself that
must rest or die. Fortunately was near a
small solitary hut, and knocked at the door,
1t was at once opened by a young woman,
who motioned me TO enter | saluted her
and her mother in the Russian fashion, and
in reply to the usual inquiry where | was
going, and where the good God was leading
me- answered that was a workman from
the government Of Tobolsk, and was going
north to the iron foundries of Bohotsk. The
woman gave me hot supper, and l had the
infinite relief Of being able to take OFF and
dry my clothes. l then stretched myself on
a bench and fell asleep, with an indescrib-
able sensation of relief and conTentment
thought that had neglected no precauton
nevertheless the women began to suspect me (
l had four shirts-too great luxury for q
Siberian. l was sinking into a deep sleep
when l was awakened by rude grasp on
nv shoulder and saw myself surrounded by /
four peasants, who demanded my passport
And what right have you to demand my |
passportP' l exclaimed, in feigned anger. rs |
one OF you government oflcerf'
None Of US, ii is tICS, but We are at home" |
"Is that truel" ! asked, turning to the old /
peasant woman
Yes; they are from this village"
"'Wen, them | replied, Il will tell you /
that my name is Lavrenti kouzmine, from .
the government of Tobolsk, and that am .
going to Bohotsl to seek work.
Forgive Us, little father" responded the /
peasants I'VE are excusable, you see, for
there are often escaped convicts about"
Tho rest of the night passed comfortably /
and quietly, but the next morning break
tasted and bade farewell 70 the women, with
the melancholy certainty of passing my
nights il future ii the heart Of the forest.
I he demand for passport had shown me
how dangerous it was for me to frequent the
haunts Of men. For many night after
ward, therefore, the Osoiak burrow was my
sole refuge, and became so accustomed to it
that at close Of day / entered the forest es If
Il were a well known hosiery