The Opelousas courier., 1904-08-20

ciety.
But now came the aide-de-camp with
an imperial order to escort him to
the Austrian frontier, In the coolest
period of the Siberian winter, when
fur clad Russians hesitated to make
even the brlefest trip out of doors.
In vain the blind traveller remon-
strated and begged for delay.
You are compelled" was the gov
ernor's relustant reply.
This inhuman order, too, had ar
rived when Holman's funds were for
the time being nearly exhausted; and
the order expressly stipulated that he
must bear the entire expense of the
enforced journey himself. ;.
He and the officer set off on the
morning Of January 10th, in bitter
wind, against which the hood and
curtain Of the sledge offered an in
sufficient protection. The Russian
wished to make a record for celebrity
in executing his comnalssrR. If he
could reach Petersburg agaE within
a certain number of days, he woul
be sent on an important mission to
Paris. Three horses were attached
abreast to the telega, and the officer
ordered the dryer to put them at q
gallop, although the snow wal to their
knees. This rate Of travelling was
kept up hour after hour. The suffer-
ings Of the horses SO touched the
heart Of the driver at last that hst
~disobeyed the repeated commands Of
Kolovin to lash them forward. There
upon the latter stopped the sledge and
gave the driver thirty blows with the
steel scabbard of his saber.
After fifty versts two Of the horses
fell from exhaustion. One of them
expired in the snow and was left be-
hind. For each horse thus cruelty
disabled and abandoned to the wolves
the blind traveller was obliged to pay
fifty rubles.
On the first day they were upset
three times, and during the ensuing
night the horses fell owe the steep
side of a mountain; but the sledge
was saved from destruction by logs
which had been set up beside the
way as a railing.
On the second night, while career
ing at full speed down the side of
another mountain, they ran over the
sledge of a peasant who a ascend
ing the slope. Again the telega was
overturned, and the three horses be-
came almost inextricably %entangled
with those of the other sledge.
After a-rsaous efforts in the bitter
wind and snow, the horses were olsen
tangled a~ndocompelled to get up; but
before resuming their way Kolovin
beat the peasant with his saber un-
mercifully, although 1t was not easy
to say how the poor man had been to
blame.
Owing to the headlong and violent
manner of travelling, b~reakdowns Of
the sledge were Of almost daily occur.
renee and caused many hours of delay.
over which Kolovin became furious.
His chief solace for all these en-.
forced halts lay in beating the hap.
less driver, who fell into such a pitt.
able state of terror as to be unable
properly d, guide the horses, since he
was continually looking back over his
shoulders in expectation of a blow
from the hard scabbard of the officer.
All the while the cold was SO in.
tense that Kolovin's Kalmuck ser
want, who was obliged to sit beside
the driver in front, often became Sc
benumbed that he had to be carried
from the sledge to the heated plat.
form over the Russian stoves In the
| post-stations. Both his feet were bad.
ly frozen.
OF his clothing Holman says, 81
wore two pairs of wooden stockings.
with two pairs of fur boots which
came above my knees, the inner ones
made of the skin Of the wild goat, the
outer ones of leather, lined with fur
and having thick soles. Added to
these, my legs were enveloped in g
thick fur cloak. Independent of my
ordinary clothing I also wore a thick
ly wadded greatcoat, and over that
an immense shube, made Of the skins
of wolves, while my head was protect
cd by a large wadded cap"
In short, they wore all the clothing
that they could move about in, but
even this was insufficient to Withstand
the deadly chill.
Thus they went On night and day
to Kr~asnoyarsk, Tomsk, Ekaterinburg
Kazan, and finally. on March 18th
reached Moscow. Not once in all thil
prodigous journey OF two months hat
the traveller been able to lie down II
an ordinary bed. 1t was one constant
forward rush Of galloping horses; ant
the sIedge had been overturned more
times than they could remember.
It will hardly be thought strangt
that Holman's condition on reaching
Moscow was SO bad that rest AMI
proper food were imperatively nee
essary. He had fallen into a fever
and was 80 shaken that he coult
hardly stand. They would not permi
him to see his friends at Moscow un
less In the presence of the police, O
allow him to converse in English Will
any one.
The doctor whom he summoned en-
Joined rest and quiet; but the cover
nor ordered him to go on the next day
and sent the chief Of police to com
municate the mandate. Holman re