Daily Kennebec journal., 1894-09-27
IN A SNOW PIT.

1
year 1860, peasant named Dmitri Pa
iowski of the village of Zoiquinelhof, Gou-
yerncment Rursk, was sent by his father
to the city to sell some faienco vessels,
which were packed away on a sledge. The
weather was fine, and he sped on his way
without accident. But scarcely had he left
the city when the sky became overcast
with clouds A few seconds later it began
TO snow. The wind rose stronger and
| stronger, and soon a storm drove with fear
full violence across the plain and began to
sweep in all directions.
Dmitri was only few versts from the
| village when night fell, but the snow had
| entirely covered the knotty pine boughs
| that marked the way. The consequence
| was that he became lost. After he had
| vainly sought the right direction for a
| long time he alighted from the sledge,
for in consequence of the intense cold he
began to be overpowered by feeling of
uumbness For some time he wandered
Mt random, leading his horse by the bri-
| Ilc, but suddenly the snow caved beneath
his steps, and almost at the same moment
the horse and sledge went under. All his
efforts to right them again were fruitless.
| The metel, as such terrible storms are call
ed ragged more violently every moment,
and he was finally forced to cling to the
sledge in order to withstand the blasts OF
wind which were heaping the snow high
about him.
There was nothing for him to do but
| wait for daylight. So he embarrassed the
| horse and tied him to the shafts. Then
| he laid himself down in the sledge as
| TRANQUILITY as if he were in his own cottage.
| Before stretching himself out he removed
| his boots and cap, which he placed under
| his head, Russian fashion. Then he COW
| cred himself with his kaftan and lay down
| in such way as to protect his head from
| the wind. Thus he passed the night.
When he opened his eyes in the morn
| ing, he was covered with snow. AS he
conjectured that it must already be day,
| he took his little willow stick out Of the
| sledge and began to hollow out the snow
above him. Although it was already pref
| ty solid, he succeeded in breaking hole
| through it,
Then, raising himself up as high as he
| could he thrust his head out. The sun
| was up, but it was so dim and so enshrouded
| in clouds as to be almost indistingulsh-
| able. The metel had not yet abated. he
| let himself fall back into the sledge and
| undertook to enlarge the space about him
| as the natives of Siberia do when on a
| journey and wishing to pass the night in
an uninhabited place. From the main
aperture he dug little cells in the snow,
| whose walls he covered in order the more
| quickly to develop warmth and vapor.
| Thus he again passed some time in peace
| on his sledge. When he attempted anew
| to put his head out of his prison, he struck
| against SO dense q stratum of snow that
it was impossible for him to penetrate it.
When Dmitri did not return on the day
| on which he had started for Rursk, his
| father foreboded evil and set out to search
| for him. The local authorities immediate
! ly summoned a number of peasants, who
were to traverse the entire neighborhood.
| All efforts proved vain, and all returned
| home with the firm conviction that the
| unfortunate boy had been overcome by the
storm and was too deeply buried in the
snow ever to be found again.
The weather finally changed for the bet
| ter, and on the 9th of December peasant
of the district resolved to go hunting. AS
| he was passing along the edge of snow
covered declivity he noticed that not far
off his dog was pressed down fiat on the
snow and seemed to be scenting out some
thing. Approaching nearer, he discovered
| that it was the foot of horse which lay
buried in the snow, and whose head was
already partly 6cvoured by wolves. He
returned with all speed to the village and
gave information concerning it.
| Immediately Dmitris relatives, together
with other peasants, hurried to the spot
with axes and shovels In a comparatively
short time the body of the horse was dug
out of the snow Soon afterward the shafts
appeared. The workers redoubled their
efforts and at last struck layer of hard
snow spread over sledge They bored a
hole through the stratum, and, to tho
amazement of all present, warm vapor
exhaled toward them. One of the peasants
knelt beside the opening, and pressing his
| face against it looked about inside. A
man lay ON the floor of an ice grave, Civ
ing no sign of life When the aged father
was apprised of this, he went to the tunnel
which the shovels had scooped in the snow
and called in trembling tones, 'Dmitri,
art thou still alive?"
"Ycs, " answered half smothered voice.
"Then come nearer the hole, SO that we
may help you to leave this snow pit.
"Gladly, but have care that you do Eot
wound me with your axes"
| Some seconds later his head appeared in
| inc opening. WHICH tnCy liil "oFhcu WIFI
might and main to enlarge. His face was
dcathly pale. but his bearing evinced i'd
mirablo conposure. Ho had already closed
| his accounts with life.
| Twenty hands helped him to rise from
the grave He was visibly enfeebled and
his damp clothes steamed When Dmitri
saw his father he was deeply affected and
stretched out his hands to him, first of all
handing him the little leather pouch
which contained the proceeds of the faicnce
| that he had rold in the city. After this
they conducted him to q neighboring inn,
where he changed his clothes and took
some nourislimont. When they told him
that he had passed 12 days under the snow,
he was surprised. OF course the time had
seemed long to him, but he had been un-
able to measure its duration, for around
him had prevailed the most profound dark
ness and silence. Though he had lain
there almost motionless and was covered
only with his kaftan, he had been quito
unaffected Ey the cold. A few days suf-
| feed to restore his strength
| But similar cases, with fortunate issue,
L