Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1888-12-13


calculating how far could go before day
light, when my fight must inevitably b.
discovered. Suddenly heard far behint
me the noise of sledge advancing at full
speed. Ishuddered, but nevertheless re
solved to hail it when it passed me. L wa
saved that trouble.
"Where are you goinga" said the peasan
who drove the sledge, coming to dead hal
beside me.
ITO Tara"
land where did you come from"
From the village of Zalininia."
"Give me sixty kopeks" (ten cents, "ant
l will take you to Tara, where l am going
myself"
mo; it is too dear; fifty kopeks" (eigh
cents,) ''if you like"
"Very well; get in, quickG'
did so, and the horses set off at tearing
| gallop. The road was as smooth as polished
floor, the cold stinging; in half an hour we
were at Tara. The peasant left me in the
street and drove of. approached the win,
dow of the inn, and shouted in a loud voice
after the Russian fashion.
Are there horsesr
'eWhere to go!" responded sleepy voice
from the interior.
''To the fair at Irbit."
''There are horses"
"a pair!''
"Yes pair"
''How much the verstl"
"Eight kopeks''
81 can not give so much; six kopeks?n
"Too little-but-you can have them"
In few minutes the horses were ready
and harnessed to the sledge.
"Where do you come fromp said the
landlord, as took my place in the sledge.
"From Tomsk; am the clerk of Messrs
N. My master has gone on to the fair,
and am very late; he will be angry; and if
you will reach there in time, will give you
pourbOire."
'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 whirlwind of
light, fine snow. My peasant lost his way,
and then lost heart, and confessed that he
had done so. will not attempt to describe
the terrible agony of that night passed in
sledge, not twelve miles from Ekaterinin-
slzi-Zovod, in the midst of tempest of
snow.
At last day began to break.
"Let US return to Tara" said; 81 will
engage some one who knows the road and
you shall be given up to the police for hav
ing made me lose so much time"
But with daylight my conductor recovered
himself and found the road. From that
moment he made every effort to make up
for the time already lost, and drove with
lightning speed. But l was not satisfied.
What fugitive ever is SOL A horrible
thought haunted me. l remembered the
fota NJ hn of
having been delayed for night in the forest
by his guide, was delivered in the morning
to the gendarmes. Was l to be so treateda
and 1 grasped my poniard. Vain fears!
Unspst susp6ciQnsl Ny peasant drove me
to IN inn, where I drank some tea and
changed horses. In this way drove on all
through that day and far into the night.
where, at my last halting place, the village
of Soldatskaia, was, while drinking tea in
a crowded cabaret, robbed of forty rubles in
paper (about eighty francs) and of the en-
velope in which they were contained, which,
alas also contained a 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 i'm
possibility of doing any thing but go on. /
third day of my flight found myself at the
gates of Irbit, and thousand kilometres
from Ekaterininski-Zevod. "Halt! and
show your passportp' exclaimed the guard
at the city gate. Fortunately for me, he
added in whisper: Give me ten kopeks,
and be off with you.'
hastened to comply with his demand,
and soon after found myself in crowded
IN, 2 olo md n
of peasants from all parts of Siberia. an
nounced that l had left my passport with
the authorities, and the next morning after
breakfast slipped out, avowedly to get it
and show it to the landlord, but really for
the purpose of leaving Irbit, which l 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 i could no
longer proceed in sledges nor sleep in even
the poorest inns, but must husband to the
utmost the 125 francs which remained. l
walked therefore all through the day, from
time to time munching the frozen bread and
dried fish which l carried in my bag, and
quenching my thirst at the holes cut by the
peasants in the ice for the purpose of water
ing their cattle When night began to
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
burrow. 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 as to
exclude the cold air, they lie down and sleep
in perfect security and warmth. succeeded
perfectly in preparing my Ostiak bed, but
wasimprudent enough to cover myself with
the furred side of my pelisse turned inward,
and slept so warmly in consequence that the
snow melted at the door of my burrow and
let in the cold air, so that / woke at day.
break with my feet almost frozen, and had
to rise and begin my journey at once. 1t was
terrible 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 had to confess to myself that
must rest or die. Fortunately was near a
small solitary hut and l knocked at the
door. 1t was at once opened by a young
woman, who motioned me to enter. l saluted
her and her mother in the Russian fashion,
and in reply to the usual inquiry where l
was going, and ''where the good God was
leading me,n 1 answered that was a work
man from the government of Tobolsk, and
was going northward to the iron founderies
of Bohotsk. The woman gave me a hot sup
per, and had the infinite relief of being able
to take of and dry my clothes. 1 then