The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1910-01-20
CHAPTER VII.
Zakouska.

The Russian steamer that took Har-
dy into Vladivostok was an iron tub
of the tramp variety, and not soul
on board could speak a word Of any
tongue ever heard before by the Amer
ican. He soon became aware, how
ever, that the red-faced burly captain
and his two officers meant to be kind
to him, and that their idea of friend
illness consisted principally in getting
him to eat and drink as much and as
frequently as possible. After vainly
attempting to converse with him and
learning only that he was American,
the captain led him to the dining
room and introduced him to one of the
great institutions of Russia, the "a
kouska, a lunch Of hors-d'oeuvres,
washed down with much strong drink
At one end of the room, near the side
board, a table was set, spread with
dishes of sardines, sardels, caviar,
chunks of picked fish, sandwiches,
and shrimp in bottles. The captain
poured out two generous bumpers OF
a white liquid into glasses, handed
one to Hardy, clinked and drained the
contents of the other at a gulp. Har-
dy swallowed the liquid, and the tears
came into his eyes; he nearly stran-
gled He looked about for water, but
in vain. He was to learn soon that
water, for drinking and washing pur-
poses, is the one thing most difficult
of all to obtain in Holy Russia.
Zakouska lasted, off and on, for
about an hour, during which the cap
tain and his two officers ate and drank
almost continually appearing to get
hungrier and hungrier all the time
and to suffer no unduly eXhilarating
effects from the vodka.
BY combining the utmost tirmness
with evident good nature, Hardy man
aged to pull through without getting
drunk, thereby accomplishing a feat
quite remarkable in a foreigner ac-
cepting Russian hospitality.
The next afternoon they entered
the magnificent harbor of Vladivostok,
passing the high rock, crowned with
a lighthouse. that stands as sentinel
at its mouth. the city, not visible
till the last moment, burst suddenly
on Hardy's view and gave him very
favorable impression of the country
into which he had come to live and
to retrieve, if possible, his shattered
fortunes. Here, Crowning the hills
that dominate the harbor, was mod
ern. European city of houses, many of
them several stories in height, evi-
IDENTIFY built of brick and stone. A Cou-
pie of menOf-war, very trim in their
white paint, besides numerous mer-
chant vessels flying the Russian flag,
lay at anchor in the bay, while sew
eral Chinese sampans and a junk or
two, drifting about, bore witness that
here the extremes Of the east and the
west meet and overlap. Two or three
of the sampans, indeed, floated up to
Hardys ship as she cast anchor, and
their long-cued owners made clamor-
Gus application to carry any one
ashore who might wish to go. Hardy
had already picked out the Celestial
whose appearance best suited him,
wondering whether he would take
Japanese money, when he noticed a
steam-launch rapidly approaching, and
a cheerful voice hailed him.
is that an American on board
there?"
Yes" Hardy shouted back, thrill
ing with sudden delight at the sound
of his mother-tongue, how did you
know"
"By the cut of your clothes. Where
is your baggage"
in my cabin
All right" said the man in the
launch "rll have it brought out. Get
in here and I'll take you ashore"
A few words of gruff Russian to the
captain, and IIardy's trunks and bag
gage were brought out and five min
utes later he was flying ashore in the
launch of the American Trading Com
pany.
As he was leaving, the captain
dashed up and wrung his hand, asking
anXiously:
"Zakouska?"
He wants to know" explained Har
dy, leaning over the rail, IF l want
more zakouska. I've had zakouska
enough to last me a lifetime. What
shall | tell him."
Tell him nyet'!" came the reply
and the American shook the hands Of
the captain and his two kind-heartet
officers vigorously, repeating many
times:
"Nyct! nyet! nyet! nyet!"