The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1889-09-07

ways. AHC 4OOO S1vCA 40 az VIC
mines was poor. l stood the con.
finement pretty we'll, for l had
some money with which I could
buy better food than that which
was served out to us.
II remember one tyrannical over
seer who served out bad food to the
prisoners. The meat was bad and
the vegetables poor. One day the
soup which was being made for 200
men in a great iron kettle had a bad
smell owing to the bad meat which
had been put into it. There was a
strong prisoner who had been heav-
lily ironed because of his repeated
complaints about the bad food.
Never mind, boys said he, IN
give you something for supper to-
day. When the overseer came
along the prisoner, ironed as he
was, seized the overseer in spite of
his struggles, and lifting him up,
thrust him head first into the big
pot where the hot soup was boiling.
He held him there until he was
boiled to death.
1.-Two weeks after this occurrence,
eighty prisoners, of which l was
one, ran away from the mines.
There was no difficulty about escap-
ing. No restraint was put upon
the prisoners so far as preventing
their escape was concerned.
"We took to the woods and broke
our chains and marched across the
border into China. After a week
spent in China we had to give up and
turn back. We were half starved
and the people were hostile. We had
to fight our way as far as we went.
There was no trouble about that,
for we kept together, and our party
of eighty was good for one thousand
of the Chinese. But it became clear
that the further we advanced the
worse it would be. We saw it was
no use and turned back.
SIN Siberia we separated into
small companies and started for
Irkutsk. My party of three were
captured on the Chinese border. We
were sent, not back to the NerchiEsk
gold mines, but to the iron mines of
Petrofski. We took assumed names
and concealed our identity. The
iron mines Of Petrofski are $50
versts from the Chinese border.
There were 1000 prisoners working
in them when | was taken there.
The work was harder in the iron
mines than in the gold mines, and
after year | could stand it no
longer and ran away again. made
my escape with six others. We got
to Lake Baikal, where we built
boat and crossed the lake. One Of
our number-a young fellow he
was, too-was drowned in the lake.
We shaped our course by compass
for Irkutsk, where three of US finally
arrived.
"In going through the country
this way you may wonder how es-
Gaping convicts manage to live. 1t
should be remembered that the in
habitants of Siberia are largely de-
scendants of convicts. The Siberi-
ans are a hospitable people and
their sympathies are with the pris-
oners. AS we went by the farm
houses in the night we would find
all sorts of food, and even clothing,
placed out of doors by the people
for the benefit of runaway convicts.
These things we were always free to
take, but it would never have done
to have stolen anything. This would
have meant a shot from gun.
"After getting to Irkutsk, | stayed
in the city for four months with
friends. Then the three of US started
on foot, our original intention be-
ing to make our way to Bokhara
and thence to Persia, where we
hoped to find an English ship. After
walking 1900 versts to Tomsk, we
changed our minds and turned our
faces toward Moscow.
sin our long journey back to
Moscow we travelled largely by night
though not always, in Siberia. After
getting into Russia we had to be
more careful, and always travelled
by night.
GAS l have already said, the peo-
pie in Siberia were friendly to US.
They knew we were escaped con-
victs. We sometimes met soldiers
On the road, but they did not trouble
as. Many of the soldiers in Siberia
nave been sent there as punish
nent, and SO they were not likely
@ be over jealous. In Siberia we
worked for the farmers in the sum-
ner and stayed with them in the
winter. They supplied our wants
md directed US on our course, tell
ng us where to find friends and
low to avoid village where there
vas some man whom it would he
dangerous for us to meet. The In
labitants of Siberia are fine peo-
ole. They are proud to say: we
ire Siberians.' Siberia is splen-
lid country. It's mineral wealth is
,or,, nroaf md many parts of the