The sun. [volume] (Morris, Stevens County, Minn.) 1882-1895, 1892-11-17

The Russian soldier in convict station
of Siberia carries out hls orders With
british unreasoning and in the present in
stance he would not have hesitated to put
| a bullet into child of tender years ifit
had gone forth into the open at that mo-
| ment.
| Now let us see how the alarm came to be
/ raised. 1t has already been pointed out
| thai during the winter the settlement was
scarcely guarded at all by sentries, Tor 1t
/ was well known that no convict, i'll pro-
vided as he would be with clothes and pro-
visions, could possibly live in the woods
during the Artic cold, when the thermonle-
ter continued for weeks far below zero; but
| when the temperature rose and the SHOWS
were melting, and the harbinger of spring.
| the cuckoo proclaimed that southwark the
| iron rule OF the Frost King was over for the
year, attempts at escape became frequent
and extra precautions were taken by the
| authorities.
| At the time of Moshka's fl sht, although
| the SHOWS were melting, the weather was
still severe, and so the outlying sentries had
| not been placed; but at certain hours dur
| ing the darkness patrol went through the
| village, aud this practice was kept up all
| through the winter. Thus it came about
| tliat Balakhin was found lying on the
| ground perfectly insepsible. 1t seemed
| clear to the officer of the patrol that an
| outrage had been committed, and he had
| sounded the well-known notes of alarm on
| his bugle.
In very short time thereafter strong
| body.o soldiers filed.out of the barracks and
| were posted by their officers at various COM
manding points, where they were ordered
| to stand on guard with their rifles at the
ready. That done, steps were taken to find
| out the cause of the alarm, and, as soon as
it was ascertained, the insensible Balakhin
was borne rapidly TO the barracks, and the
| surgeon summoned; and then once more
| the silence of the night was broken by the
| beating of drums and the peal of the bugleS
! as all the convicts i'll the Tree settlement
were ordered TO come forth to muster roll.
| At this command every man and woman
| had to turn out instantly, not even waiting
| to put on their clothes if they happened to
| be undressed, and repair to the square,
where a Gordon OF soldiers was drawn.
By this means it was ascertained that
| MoShka Umanski was missing. Where was
| he? No one could answer, and at once
scoutswere sent off in all directions through
| the village. Then every person was ques-
| toned as to what he knew ofthe Outrage"
| as it was termed.
| Rachel suffered many pangs during this
ordeal. Butshe had now gone through SO
many ordeals, that she comported herself
/ with outward scompoSure But as it was
known that Balakhin had been paying her
| attention, she was questioned closely. She
| declared, however, that she had had no
hand in the outrage, which was true and
| all the questioning and all the scrutiny she
| was subjected To could bring nothing to
light as lar as she was concerned.
TO The officials therefore, the affair was
| mystery, but necessarily they connected
the injury from which Balakhln was suffer
ing with Moshka's escape, and it was
thought that the officer, having detected
the convict in his preparations for flight,
had attempted to stop him, and been over
come. Fortunately for Rachel, no one had
seen her and Balakhin together that even
| ing except Catherine, and she was staunch
So much having been ascertained by the
officials, orders were at once gwen to re-
take the fugitive dead or alive. But it was
all in his favor that night had fallen. To
pursue runaway through the forests at
night was a useless proceeding. At least
so it seemed to those concerned. But the
| pursuit vas to be commenced with the very
first gleam of daylight.
If however, Moshka made good, use of
his opportunities the chances were in his
favor He could press on all night, lie
perdu during the day, and resume his jour
ney again when darkness set in. The diff
culties in the way Of pursuit were the inn
mense extent of trackless forests, which af-
! forded safe cover to fugitive, and an un-
certainty as to the way he would take.
&c WttS Wei known THAT he would not go to
the north, but be might goseast west, or
south
| TO BE CONTINUED