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 CHARLES WILLIAM WASON 
 
 COLLECTION 
 
 CHINA AND THE CHINESE 
 
 THE GIFT OF 
 
 CHARLES WILLIAM WASON 
 
 CLASS OF 187e 
 
 1918 
 
Cornell University Library 
 DK 755.C71 
 
 A voyage down the Amoor:wlth a land our 
 
 3 1924 023 188 182 
 
The original of tliis book is in 
 tine Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924023188182 
 
^^&i■ ^j^s^t^. 
 
VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR: 
 
 LAND JOURNEY THROUGH SIBERIA, 
 
 INCIDENTAL NOTICES OF MANCHOOEIA, 
 KAMSCHATKA, JlHD JAPAN. 
 
 PERRY Mcdonough colliis, 
 
 TTNITED BTATES COUUEECIAL A.aEHT'AT THS AUOOB BnHSB. 
 
 NEW YOEK: 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, 
 
 346 & 348 BROADWAY. 
 
 LONDON: 16 LITTLE BKITAIN. 
 
 1860. 
 
\is%GG 
 
 EsTEKED, according to Act of OongrcBS, in the year 1860, by 
 D. APPLETON & CO., 
 In the Clerk's. Office of the District Court of the United States for the Southern 
 District of New York. 
 
LIEUTEKANT-GENERAL MOURAVIEFF, 
 
 GOTEEHOE-aEHEEAL OF EASTEEN 8IBEEIA, OOTJNT OF THE AMOOE, 
 ETO., ETC., 
 
 THIB VOLUME IS EE8PE0TFULLT IN8CEIBED, 
 
 IN TOKEN OF ADMIEATION AND GEATITTTDE, 
 BY ONE WHO HAS SHARED HIS GENEROUS HOSPITALITY, 
 
 AND WITHES8ED THIE NOBLE EE6ni,TS OF HIS PEOFOUND AND EENEFIOEKT POLICY 
 ON THE AMOOB EIVEE. 
 
PEEFACE. 
 
 My attention was first turned towards Siberia by the 
 perusal of Lieutenant Yon "Wrangel's narrative of an 
 expedition to the Polar Sea. Reflecting on the vast 
 extent of the country, its mighty rivers, its stately and 
 boundless forests, its immense mineral wealth, I was 
 struck with the magnitude of its natural 'resources, and 
 with its possible value to the commerce of the world, if it 
 could only obtain an easy outlet to the ocean. 
 
 For several years previous to 1855, while residing in 
 California, I had given much study to the commercial 
 resources of the Pacific side of the United States, espe- 
 cially in connection with the opposite coast of Asia. I 
 had already fixed in my own mind upon the river Amoor 
 as the destined channel by which American commercial 
 enterprise was to penetrate the obscure depths of North- 
 ern Asia, and open a new world to trade and civilization, 
 when news arrived in 1855 that the Russians had taken 
 possessioA of the Amoor country, and formed a settlement 
 at the mouth of the river. . Greatly interested by this 
 event, the important consequences of which my previous 
 speculations enabled me fully to comprehend, I proceeded 
 to Washington in search of accurate information on the 
 subject. Little was known in California about the 
 Amoor, with which no direct communication had then 
 1 
 
is PEEFACE. 
 
 been effected. To have gone to the mouth of the river 
 myself, as I was strongly inclined to do, would have 
 required me to charter a vessel for the express purpose, 
 and this I was scarcely able to afford. And besides, on 
 arriving there, a private adventurer, without credentials, 
 I could have no assurance of being permitted to ascend 
 the river or explore the country. What I chiefly desired 
 was to examine the whole length of the Amoor, and 
 ascertain its fitness for steamboat navigation. That point 
 settled in the affirmative, everything else was sure to fol- 
 low as a matter of course. 
 
 At Washington, I had conferences with President 
 Pierce, Secretary Mavcj, and the Eussian Ambassador, 
 which resulted in my appointment, March 24, 1856, as 
 Commercial Agent of the United States for the Amoor 
 Eiver. 
 
 Armed with this commission, and with letters to influ- 
 ential personages at St. Petersburg, I started without 
 delay for the Eussian Capital, resolved to traverse the 
 empire from West to East, cross Siberia, enter Tartary, 
 and, if possible, descend the Amoor river from, its source 
 to its mouth. I sailed from New York April 12, 1866, and 
 the result of my travels and voyages is here submitted to 
 the public. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 OHAPTEB PAOB 
 
 I. Departure for Siberia 5 
 
 H. From Moscow to Nijne-Novgorod 10 
 
 m. Nijne-Novgorod — ^the great Fair 15 
 
 IV. From Nijne to Ekaterinburg 23 
 
 v. From Ekaterinburg to Omsk 30 
 
 ■VI. From Omsk to Irkutsk 38 
 
 VII. Ii-kutsk 49 
 
 VIII. Irkutsk continued 55 
 
 IX. Irkutsk continued. 58 
 
 X. From Irkutsk to Kyaohta 64 
 
 XI. Kyaohta and Mia-mat-tsoMu 70 
 
 XII. The Feast of Lanterns 73 
 
 Xin. A Bussian Dinner 79 
 
 XIV. Keturn to Irkutsk 89 
 
 XV. From Irkutsk to Petrovskey 92 
 
 XVI. From Petrovskey to Verohne-TJdinsk 96 
 
 XVII. From Verchne-Udinsk to Chetah 99 
 
 XVIH. A Visit to the Mines of Nerchinsk 106 
 
 XIX. The Silver Mines of Zarentunskie 113 
 
 XX. The Cossacks of the Argoon 119 
 
 XXI. The Gold Mines of the Onon 122 
 
 XXIL Passage of Mount Bomorskoy 128 
 
 XXm. From Nerchinsk to Chetah 131 
 
 XXIV. Residence at Chetah 135 
 
 XXV. ABoratLama 139 
 
 XXVI. A Wild-goose Chase Ui 
 
 XXVU. Departure from Chetah 150 
 
 XXVni. Down thelngodah 156 
 
 XXIX. A Mineral Spring 161 
 
t CONTENTS. 
 
 OHAPTEE ^^22 
 
 XXX. From Bankin to Schilkah 165 
 
 XXXI. From ScMlkah to Onse-Chemey 171 
 
 XXXn. From Russian into Chinese Waters 175 
 
 XXXm. First View of the Amoor 179 
 
 XXXIV. From Ouse-Strelkah to Albasin 183 
 
 XXXV. Floating Along 188 
 
 XXXVI. A Mangoon Camp 192 
 
 XXXVII. Manchoo Visitors 197 
 
 XXXVUI. A Manchoo Guard-boat , -... 202 
 
 XXXIX. Arrival at Igoon 207 
 
 XL. Departure from Igoon 212 
 
 XLI. Manchoo Spies 216 
 
 XLH. A Manchoo Village 222 
 
 XLin. A Tartar Beanty 228 
 
 XLIV. Manchoo Junks 233 
 
 XLV. The Songahree 237 
 
 XLVT. Russian Progress 242 
 
 XLVII. Floating Along. 247 
 
 XLVni. Floating Along 251 
 
 XLIX. The Na-rigation 256 
 
 L. Native Villages 262 
 
 LI. The Hongahree 268 
 
 LH AGoldee ViUage 274 
 
 Lin. Kah-oor-me 279 
 
 LIV. Female Sailors 283 
 
 LV. A Night of Danger 287 
 
 LVL Ancient Monuments 292 
 
 LVII. The Monuments 298 
 
 LVni. Arrival at Nikolaivsky 306 
 
 LIX. NUcolaivsky 311 
 
 LX. American Residents 316 
 
 LXI. Voyage to Japan 321 
 
 LXH. Hakodadi 329 
 
 LXin To Kamschatka 335 
 
 LXTV. A Warm Spring 3II 
 
 LXV. Stay at Petropaulosky 346 
 
 LXVI. The Burning Mountain 352 
 
 LXVTI. Character of the Amoor Country. 357 
 
 LXVni. Natives on the Amoor 366 
 
 LXIX. Trade and resources of Siberia 376 
 
 LXX. The Amoor Railroad 333 
 
A YOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 OHAPTEK I. 
 
 DEPARTURE FOR SIBERIA. 
 
 On the l7th of May, 1856, I reached Cronstadt in 
 the first steamer that had entered the port that year, and 
 was the only passenger on board. For three days we had 
 been detained by ice in the Gulf of Finland. For two 
 more days I was kept at Cronstadt in consequence of my 
 passport having no Tis6 of a Russian Consul in the 
 United States, as is required by the police regulations of 
 the empire. At the end of that time, however, the mat- 
 ter was satisfactorily explained, and I was permitted to 
 enter St. Petersburg. 
 
 My main object at the Eussian capital was to get the 
 permission of the imperial government to traverse Siberia 
 and explore the Amoor Eiver, which I was resolved to 
 descend, if possible, from its head waters to its mouth. 
 Little, however, could be done in this direction during the 
 absence of General MouraviefF, the distinguished Gov- 
 
6 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 ernor-Q-eneral of Eastern Siberia, to whoin my appKca- 
 tion had been referred by the imperial government, and 
 who was then on a visit to Germany. I waited patiently 
 for his return through the months of June and July, oc- 
 cupying myself with observing the manners and. customs 
 and studying the language of the Eussians, and in en- 
 joying the hospitalities with which I was honored through 
 the kindness of the United States Minister, Governor 
 Seymour of Connecticut.- 
 
 Early in August General Mouravieff reached St. 
 Petersburg. I waited upon him at his lodgings in com- 
 pany with Governor Seymour. He received me with 
 great kindness, and warmly expressed his approbation of 
 my designs, saying that he was most happy to have the 
 opportunity to introduce an American to the Amoor. He 
 promised that I should see the whole country and have 
 every facility that his power and influence could procure. 
 He intended himself to leave Moscow early in November 
 for Irkutsk, the capital of his province. The winter was 
 the proper season for travelling in Siberia, as the roads 
 were then in the best condition and could easily be tra- 
 versed by sleighs. I could accompany him on the journey, 
 he said, or, if I preferred, could go somewhat earlier in 
 company with an officer despatched to Siberia on public 
 service. 
 
 In the latter part of August I went, with all the rest 
 of the world of Eussia, to Moscow to attend the corona- 
 tion of His Imperial Majesty Alexander II. After wit- 
 nessing that superb ceremonial, September 7, I remained 
 in Moscow nearly three months, waiting till the snow 
 thawed to make the roads to the eastward practicable for 
 
DEPAETUEE FOE SIBEEIA. 7 
 
 travel. I continually practised myself in the Kussian 
 language, wandering daily about the streets, markets, 
 bazaars, and shops of the city, taking my meals at the 
 native eating-houses, many of them sufficiently curious 
 places, drinking great quantities of tea in the tea-houses, 
 and visiting theatres, gardens, and all kind of places 
 where I could acquire the tongue and study the habits of 
 the people. Moscow, above all other cities, is the best 
 index to Eussia. There the character, the manners, and 
 the disposition of the true Eussian are seen in the highest 
 perfection. There'are found the written and the archi- 
 tectural records of the past history of the empire, and 
 there are preserved, in all their freshness, the traditions 
 which have such potent influence over the Eussian mind. 
 There lie buried the great princes and czars of the empire, 
 from Eurik down to the little murdered Demetrius, and 
 there the emperors come to be crowned from their glit- 
 tering metropolis on the marshy Neva. Every Eussian 
 looks upon Moscow with patriotic enthusiasm as the 
 holy city, the true, national, and religious capital of his 
 country. The emperor is not invested with full Imperial 
 authority until he has been formally crowned in its an- 
 cient cathedral. And, besides, the political importance 
 which this fact, and its old associations with the national 
 history, give to it, Moscow is rapidly acquiring additional 
 importance as a commercial capital. It is the centre of 
 the interior trade of the country, and affords peculiar 
 facilities, of which I endeavored fuUy to avail myself, for 
 becoming acquainted with the nature of the overland trade 
 with the Chinese Empire. 
 
 I had good advice respecting the nature of the pre- 
 
8 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 parations to be made for Siberian travel, and, in company 
 with Mr. Peyton, a countryman and friend, who had 
 agreed to make the journey with me' as far as Irkutsk, 
 and with Captain Anakoff, an officer of the staff of Gen- 
 eral Mouravieff, I quitted Moscow December 3, 1856. 
 
 We had received from Greneral Mouravieff the follow- 
 ing passport, which we soon found was of almost magical 
 efficiency in smoothing down difficulties and removing ob - 
 stacles on the road : 
 
 " The bearers of this, citizens of the United States 
 of America, Messrs. CoUins and Peyton, are proceeding 
 from Moscow to Irkutsk with the authorization of the im- 
 perial government. 
 
 " I have the honor to request all the chief authorities 
 to give a free passage to Messrs. Collins and Peyton, and, 
 in case of need, to offer to them legal protection, and to 
 contribute to the celerity of their journey. In faith of 
 which I have given them this open passport, with my sig- 
 nature, and to which I have attached my seal. 
 
 " MOUEAVIEFF, 
 
 " Governor-General of Eastern Siberia." 
 
 This passport or poderoj'ina authorized me to demand 
 post horses at the stations on the road. Captain Ana- 
 koff, however, carried his own poderoj'ina, and, so far. as 
 our way lay together, relieved us of^all care or responsi- 
 bility. 
 
 "We purchased in Moscow a stock of the warmest 
 clothing we could find and laid in provisions and supplies 
 of both a solid and liquid nature. We carried our own 
 
DEPASTURE FOE SIBEEIA. 9 
 
 tea, sugar, salt, spices, together -witli hams, biscuits, and 
 other substantial provender. 
 
 It is the invariable custom in Eussia to start on a 
 journey in the evening instead of the morning. We 
 therefore spent the last day of our residence in Moscow 
 in making farewell calls upon our friends and acquaint- 
 ances, and at the approach of darkness we were suffi- 
 ciently fatigued to be glad to take refuge in our sleigh, 
 and sufficiently warmed by the farewell glasses we had 
 emptied to face with indifference the chill air of a Eus- 
 sian winter night. 
 
 1* 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 FROM MOSCOW TO NIJNE-NOVGOEOD. 
 
 The bells attached to tlie yoke of our shaft-horse 
 jingled merrily ; our sleigh slid upon the slippery road 
 from one side to the other ; the driver selected the smooth- 
 est places, and the clatter of the horses' feet grew faster 
 and faster, as, answering to the command of the captain 
 — posliol! posTwl-shoro ! — go ! go quick ! he applied the 
 lash to his frosty horses. 
 
 The road on which we were travelling is the artery of 
 an extensive commerce, dotted with villages, towns and 
 cities. At every change of horses at the post-stations, 
 we found a warm room, where we could prepare our own 
 tea, from the quickly-steaming samovar, and procure such 
 fare as the house afforded, in addition to what we had in 
 our own provision-hox. Night or day, these rooms are 
 always heated, and if not quite as comfortable or as luxu- 
 riously furnished as the hotels we left behind us in New 
 York, Paris, or St. Petersburg, they were nevertheless 
 very acceptable. 
 
 Post after post, and station after station succeeded ; 
 night hung heavy and chUl upon me ; morning came, but 
 X had not closed an eye. In fact, I did not require sleep, 
 
FEOM MOSCOW TO NIJNE-NOVGOKOB. 11 
 
 my mind was so busy with the future ; for more than a 
 year I had heen straining every nerve to reach the goal 
 of my ambition — the Amoor. I was now on the high 
 road to it, with the Czar's permission in my pocket, and 
 an officer of General Mouravieff' s staff seated in my sleigh 
 — what could I wish more ? my highest hopes were ac- 
 complished, and if I could survive the rigors of a Siberian 
 winter, and the fatigue of five thousand miles of travel, 
 after the lapse of a few months I should be afloat upon 
 the waters of the Amoor, on my way to the Eastern 
 Ocean, opposite to the shores of my own country. 
 
 My mind was busy with the future, and I saw that 
 night, as if by inspiration, the deep snows open before 
 me ; the forests waved and toppled ; long and beautiful 
 vistas stretched out in the dim distance ; great rivers, 
 with broad and gentle currents, invited me on, and a 
 great ocean seemed to bound the extended horizon. I 
 dreamed, but my eyes were open ; I saw, though the 
 night was dark. 
 
 We discovered, before the close of the day, that the 
 interior arrangement of our sleigh was far from being 
 comfortable ; we had left the seats in the body of the 
 carriage-top ; these should have been removed, our bag- 
 gage placed as evenly as possible on the bottom, over 
 which our extra fars and sMns should have been spread 
 upon a good coating of straw, or covered with a mattrass, 
 on which we could, as convenience prompted, have sat or 
 stretched ourselves at length. 
 
 The best Kussian travellers (the couriers) seldom lie 
 down in the vehicle, wagon, or sleigh, but with a pillow 
 or two, or a leathern cushion placed behind them, sit up- 
 
12 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 right all the time, sleeping or waking ; this, I understand, 
 is considered the safest and hest mode, and less fatiguing 
 in long journeys, as many persons have their spines in- 
 jured by the motion of the vehicle or the roughness of 
 the roads, in those long and terrible Siberian expeditions. 
 
 Eight or ten stations were passed before we reached 
 Vlademir, one hundred and twelve miles from Moscow. 
 It is a pleasant-looking city, with many fine churches and 
 public buildings, and is situated on the Kliazma branch 
 of the Oka, a tributary of the Volga. It was founded in 
 the eleventh century, and the present population is ten 
 thousand. It was the capital of the Principality of Vlade- 
 mir from A.D. 1157 to 1328, when it was annexed to the 
 grand duchy of Moscow. The cathedral of St. Dmetre 
 once formed a part of its ancient palace ; the cathedral 
 of the Assumption was built in 1169, and contains the 
 ancient regalia of its princes ; many of its buildings are 
 of great antiquity. The ancient city is supposed to have 
 extended as far as the convent of Bogholubeskoy, a dis- 
 tance of seven miles. The trade is in linen, feathers, 
 cherries, etc. The bricklayers and carpenters of this city 
 are in great request. Vlademir is said to have been the 
 burial-place of Saint Alexander Nevsky, whose remains 
 were removed to St. Petersburg by order of Peter the 
 Great, to give eclat to his new capital. 
 
 It is said that the Saint, not liking the new and miser- 
 able quarters assigned to him on the banks of the Neva, 
 picked up his wet bones one bright moonlight night, 
 and made his way back to his old resting-place — the 
 monks declaring that he never would rest quietly on the 
 Neva. Peter, hearing of this " monkish theorie," whis- 
 
FROM MOSCOW TO NIJNE-NOVGOEOD. 13 
 
 pered into their ears a very different story, and told them 
 that if the Saint did not find his way back to the Neva, 
 and that in right good time, he would teach them a 
 lesson in ghost-walking that they would not soon forget. 
 
 Peter was not to be baulked in his plans on the Neva, 
 and St. Alexander, being the hero of the great triumph of 
 Eussia over her enemies upon the shores of that river, or 
 perhaps upon the very spot where he proposed to found 
 his city, it was highly proper, and certainly much to the 
 Saint's worldly honor, that he should take up his abode 
 in the new city. Peter was right ; the monks reported 
 the Saint all snug and dry enough again on the Neva ; 
 and now his remains repose at the Convent of the Nevsky, 
 at the foot of the Nevsky-prospective in St. Petersburg, 
 under a silver tomb, richly ornamented, and in one of the 
 most pleasant places in the. city of palaces. 
 
 Our horses were yoked to the sleigh, and the post- 
 master poked his head in at the door and said gotovey! 
 We passed through Sood-ogh-da-Moor-om, founded by 
 the Sarmatians before the eleventh century. There are 
 rich mines of iron and copper here. There is much trade 
 in com, leather, and skins, and the annual fair is held in 
 June, for ten days. The population is from five to seven 
 thousand. The town stands on the Oka, the sands of 
 which were formerly rich in gold, and is one of the most 
 xncient places in Muscovy. 
 
 Night arrived again, but we hurried on, regardless of 
 fihe darkness ; the frost was severe, with a piercing wind, 
 and the road far from good. The driver beat the jaded 
 horses into an unwilling gallop, upon the promise of 
 an extra grevna, as we were anxious to reach Nijne- 
 
14 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 Novgorod very early in the morning. The beasts were so 
 poor, and so jaded from previous hard driving, that it had, 
 even at the start, taken a thousand " charts" and " durahs " 
 to get them out of a snail's pace. It was, therefore, well 
 along towards noon before the gilded domes and silver 
 spires of Nijne arose from the snowy horizon. We gal- 
 loped rapidly through the broad and well-built streets, up 
 to the door of the Gostennitsali, the best hotel in the 
 city. 
 
OHAPTEE III. 
 
 NIJNE-NOVGOEOD — THE GKEAT FAIR. 
 
 We bore a letter from Governor-G-eneral Mouravieff, 
 of Siberia, to General Mouravieff, his kinsman, governor 
 of Nijne-Novgorod. Immediately upon our arrival, we 
 sent the letter to him, and it was not long before a mes- 
 senger was at our lodgings, with an invitation to dine 
 with the governor. 
 
 He entertained-us with great kindness and hospitality. 
 His palace stands within the citadel, and every thing 
 about it had a military air. 
 
 The governor has seen much service in Asia and on the 
 Kuban and among the Georgians ; is a gallant soldier, 
 and a man of great talent, and one in whom the pres- 
 ent Czar has much confidence. He has taken an active 
 and influential part in the great measure for the emanci- 
 pation of the serfs, which is now being carried out by the 
 imperial government. 
 
 The governor's wife and niece were present at the 
 dinner, and we found their society very agreeable. The 
 niece spoke English ; in fact, English, French, and Ger- 
 man were spoken by different members of the governor's 
 family. The niece mentioned the few Americans who 
 
16 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 had visited Nijne and those she had seen at Moscow dur- 
 ing the coronation. She had kept the cards of those with 
 whom she had become acquainted, and at her request we 
 added ours to the collection. We spent a very pleasant 
 evening in conversation with this accomplished family, 
 among other things speaking of the commerce of the city, 
 a subject with which the ladies seemed well acquainted. 
 We parted reluctantly from these agreeable people, and 
 were sorry that we could not remain a few days longer 
 in the city. 
 
 We took a drive around the town in company with 
 the chief of police, seeing what we could of it in so short 
 a time. The weather was far from agreeable. The wind 
 blew fiercely, and considerable snow fell during the day. 
 The object of great interest connected with this city is 
 the yearly fair held here. Not having been so fortunate 
 as to have witnessed it, I subjoin the following ani- 
 mated description, from Murray's excellent Handbook for 
 Eussia : — 
 
 " Twenty-four hours' travelling from Murom will bring the stranger 
 within sight of the white walls and blue domes of Novgorod. The fair 
 is held in the autumn, and the weather is at that season generally fine, 
 so that dust, not mud, will be the misery ; but if there has been any 
 rain, the road for the last nine miles will exceed, in depth of the latter, 
 all that the tourist has ever been dragged through ; and one traveller 
 states that he was five hours performing the last five miles. This is 
 caused by the carriages, kibitkas, and telegas of the different streams 
 of traders and merchandise converging to the central point. Long 
 lines of these vehicles will assure the stranger that he is approaching 
 the town ; bands of Cossacks, stationed by way of police in rude tents 
 along the road, with their long lances glittering among the trees, are 
 seen in larger numbers ; and crowds of Russians and wild eastern- 
 coking men, in singular and varied costumes, become every moment 
 
NIJNE-NOVGOROD THE GBEAT FAIR. 17 
 
 more dense, until, on reaching Nijni itself, the crowd and turmoil sur- 
 passes all description. 
 
 " The town of Nijni is situated on a high triangular promontory, 
 standing between the Volga and the confluence of the Oka with that 
 river. The Oka at this point seems as large as the former, and is, in 
 fact, a magnificent stream, and navigable for a great portion of its 
 length. The position of Novgorod is so admirably adapted for com- 
 merce, and so central in regard to Asiatic as well as European Rus- 
 sia, that Peter the Great intended, at one time, to make it the seat of 
 the capital of the empire, instead of the mouths of the Neva. The 
 country round it is also highly picturesque ; nevertheless those who 
 founded the city do not seem to have courted the opportunities of en- 
 riching themselves by means of the two great rivers which flow by it, 
 for the old town lies back behind the ridge. This mistake struck the 
 present emperor very forcibly when he paid Nijni his first visit ; and 
 he is said to have remarked, that ' nature had done everything, man 
 nothing.' To remedy this, a suburb has been built along the face, and 
 at the foot, of the high ground which forms the southern bank of the 
 Oka. The principal part of the city lies on the summit of the trian- 
 gular height, and is chiefly composed of three handsome streets, con- 
 verging towards an irregular open space in front of the Kremlin, which 
 covers the lofty point of the triangle immediately overhanging the 
 Volga. There is a beautifUl terrace above this river, from whence is 
 seen one of the most singular and extensive views in Europe ; as far 
 as the eye can reach extends a vast plain of corn and forest land. 
 The city contains no fewer than 26 churches, some of which are of 
 great size and beauty, two monasteries, and a nunnery. The Krem- 
 lin, with its low arched gates and jagged walls, is one of the most 
 remarkable of these ancient structures now remaining in Russia. 
 Curious, however, as the Kremlin and the various churches are, they 
 possess, to one who has seen all the wonders in this way at Moscow 
 and St. Petersburgh, little interest compared with the views from the 
 spot on which they stand, and the two mighty rivers on which the 
 traveller looks down, flowing so near that it seems as if a pebble could 
 be thrown into either from this lofty eminence. Turning, however, 
 from the far east, the stranger must look in a contrary direction, and 
 across the Oka, to the triangular piece of land between that river and 
 the Volga, a low, and sometimes inundated flat, exposed to the waters 
 
18 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 of both these rivers, where, during the fair, is exhibited a picture of 
 human life unparalleled in any other portion of the globe. Here is 
 then seen a vast town of shops, laid out in regular streets, with 
 churches, hospitals, barracks, and theatres, the whole tenanted by no 
 less than from 250,000 to 300,000 souls, destined, however, in six 
 weeks to be as silent and lifeless as the forest steppes of which we 
 have just made mention ; for, when the fair is over, not an inhabitant 
 of Nijni ever traverses the spot which annually swarms with foreign- 
 ers. It must not be supposed that these shops are constructed like 
 the English booth, of canvas, ropes, and poles ; they are, on the con- 
 trary, regular houses, built of the most substantial materials, generally 
 of one story, with large shops to the front, and sleeping rooms for the 
 merchant and his servants in the rear. The interior portion of the fair 
 is regularly laid out in twelve or thirteen streets of shops, terminating 
 in a Kussian church and twelve Chinese pavilions, from the summits 
 of which there is a good view. It is said that a person would have to 
 walk twenty-five miles if he promenaded every street ; and this does 
 not include what may be termed the suburbs of the fair. The business 
 of this fair is of such importance that the governor of the province 
 takes up his residence in it during the two months it lasts, that is to 
 say, July and August. His house, which is in the centre, is a hand- 
 some building, and accommodates a large train of secretaries and other 
 ofBcials. A dozen Chinese pagodas rise above the shops, and the whole 
 stands upon vaulted cloacas, into which dirt of every description is 
 conveyed. These sewers, which are constructed of hewn stone, are 
 cleaned out several times a day by pumps, which draw the water from 
 the adjoining rivers, and are entered at several points by handsome 
 staircases. They were constructed by the Emperor Alexander, and are 
 worthy of the Morpeths of ancient Home. Any one who shows a 
 disposition to defile the streets is quickly enjoined by a Cossack to 
 retire to the lower regions. A portion of the sums expended on these 
 sewers, which, from the nature of the swampy soil, must have been 
 enormous, would have been economized had a better site been selected ; 
 but there seems to be a fatality attending the choice of position for 
 public edifices all over the world, our own barracks in the West Indies 
 included. The first view of this fair from the Kremlin is very strik- 
 ing ; but we must descend from that elevated spot and take the trav- 
 eller into the busy scene itself; this is about a mile from the centre of 
 
NIJNE-NOVGOEOD — THE GKEAT FAIB. 19 
 
 the city, though less from the outskirts, to which it is in fact united 
 hy a long and wide bridge of boats across the Oka, and a line of good 
 houses along the steep and difficult slope leading to the bank of that 
 river. Here will be met a countless throng of every kind of vehicle, 
 for this is the only bridge that connects the town of Nijni with the 
 fair ; and the space between the street in question and the entrance to it 
 is one of the very few spots in Eussia where large masses of the popu- 
 lation can be seen congregated together, always excepting the military 
 portion of it. On each side of the bridge, and for more than a mile 
 and a half above it, the river is wider than the Thames at Westminster, 
 and so completely covered with boats, that the element on which they 
 float is scarcely visible. These barges, of every variety of shape and 
 tonnage, are either discharging or taking in their cargoes. The shops 
 in the fiiir near the bank thus receive their goods at once from the two 
 rivers, and at the more remote parts of it there are canals which serve 
 the same purpose. An aquatic community, amounting to 40,000 per- 
 sons, from every corner of this side of the earth, inhabit this floating 
 camp ; and their countenances and costumes are as varied and strange 
 as the vessels they navigate. On the Volga, near the mouth of the 
 Oka, and up and down the former river, extends a similar scene. Im- 
 mediately on leaving the bridge, the fair ground begins ; this part is 
 crowded with mujiks looking out for employment, with a good sprink- 
 ling of Cossacks to keep order ; then come lines of temporary booths, 
 displaying beads, trinkets, and articles of dress for the lower orders, par- 
 ticularly caps from Tartary, Kirghis bonnets, made of black wool, and flat 
 gold-figured cowls from Kazan. These booths stand in front of the tea 
 houses laid out with little tables ; and traktirs, or restaurants, large 
 enough for two or three hundred persons to dine in with comfort, at 
 anj' price from ten silver kopeks to twelve silver rubles. This being 
 the great entrance to the fair, it is always the most crowded part of it, 
 consequently the most interesting to the traveller ; and if he can squeeze 
 himself into some corner, or under the projecting roof of some booth, 
 no easy matter in sucli a whirlpool of promenaders, he will pass in re- 
 view as strange a scene as he ever witnessed, or is likely to do again. 
 It is scarcely accurate to apply the word tame to such a stream of hu- 
 man beings, but the stranger must not expect to witness the diablerie 
 of an English, German, or French fair; no clown, grinning from car to 
 car, is to be seen, nor is the pecuhar squeak that announces the peri- 
 
20 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 patetic Punch to be heaxd, np quack dentist to pull teeth and dispense 
 his nostrams. The fair of Nijni is not an idle holiday meeting, but a 
 place of business, a gathering of merchants, traders, and bankers, who 
 have their whole fortunes at stake, and who meet here once a year to 
 deal and barter in commodities which may be valued at not less than 
 fifteen millions sterling. It should also be mentioned that a great blank 
 exists in the crowd, caused by the scarcity of female faces. From the 
 space in front of the bridge the stranger enters into the regular quarters 
 of the fair, and unless he has studied costumes, various will be his in- 
 quiries as to those he meets at every turn. Amongst the traders 
 which may probably fall under his observation is the white-faced, flat- 
 nosed merchant of Archangel, come to sell his furs ; the bronze and 
 long-eared Chinese his tea ; Tartars, Grim and Nogai, with their mus- 
 lins ; Cossacks with their hides from the Ukraine ; and others from the 
 Aktuba with caviare ; Persians with their scents and amulets ; Buka- 
 rians with their turquoises and precious stones ; Bashkirs, Calmucks, 
 Turkomans, Kirghisses, Circassians, Turks, and other eastern etcetera. 
 There is, indeed, no spot in the world where so many individuals meet 
 belonging to such different divisions of the globe. The number of 
 Mahometans is so great that a handsome mosque has been built for 
 them at the end of the fair, in which worship is performed as regularly 
 as in those of their native cities. The Bukharians, who inhabit the 
 country near Thibet, consume nearly a year, in their journey out and 
 home. The Kalmucks and Kirghis.ses are many of them horse-dealers, 
 and bring here droves of their little wild steeds ; these animals are very 
 active and strong, and singularly attached to each other, so much so 
 that when sold it is necessary to separate them by force. Amongst the 
 European merchants and dealers may be cited those of Manchester ; 
 German jewellers ; Swiss watchmakers ; Frankfort wine merchants ; 
 Hamburgh leech buyers; dealers in amber from the Baltic; pipe- 
 makers from Dresden ; furriers from Warsaw ; French fancy dealers ; 
 Jews from Poland and the south of the empire, in their long black 
 caftans ; and, though we did not meet with one, there is no doubt, when 
 so many dollars are changing hands, a delegate or two from Boston and 
 New York. Many of the bulky articles occupy a large space of ground, 
 and to that called the tea quarter we will now conduct the traveller 
 through streets as long and as wide as some of the best in London, 
 many of which have elegant light arcades on each side, supported in 
 
NIJNE-NOVGOEOD — THE GEEAT PAIE. 21 
 
 front by thousands of cast iron columns, where purchasers can walk 
 about well sheltered in all kinds of weather, and make purchases, or 
 gossip, as they feel disposed. The shops, generally very handsome, ex- 
 tend, in some instances, like Swan and Edgar's, from street to street, so 
 as to have two fronts ; they present nothing of the confusion of a fair, 
 and the goods of erery kind are as neatly arranged as in the shops of 
 a large capital. This tea quarter is one of the most interesting in the 
 fair, not only from the number of Chinese seen in it, but also from the 
 large demand there is for this article. The Russians are, after the En- 
 glish, the most inveterate tea drinkers in Europe ; and we believe that 
 the tea sold at Nijni is the finest imported from China — it is, certainly, 
 the most fragrant and perfumed, and, therefore, to the English palate 
 generally perhaps not so agreeable ; to our own, however, the Russian 
 tea is delicious. It is introduced into this country by Kiatka, on the 
 frontiers of China, a very insignificant place, and separated from it and 
 the Chinese town of Mamaia by a small brook. At this first depot it 
 is exchanged for goods ; and from thence transported by land in pack- 
 ages of about two feet square, and covered with skin, to Koursk, in 
 Siberia ; here the tea is put into barges, which navigate the Irtish and 
 the Tobol, until it arrives at the town of Tourmine, where it is dis- 
 embarked and transported again by land to Perm, in Siberia ; there it 
 is once more embarked in boats that descend the Kama to the Volga, 
 by which river it arrives at Nijni. From 90,000 to 100,000 chests are 
 annually imported ; half of these remain in Siberia, and reach Moscow 
 by sledges during the winter, while the remainder are sold at this fair. 
 The importation from China to England is upwards of 350,000 chests 
 annually ; but it should be observed that a pound of the tea sold at 
 Nijni would go farther, that is make more tea, than two pounds of that 
 sold in England ; the very finest fetches sometimes as much as thirty 
 or forty shillings a pound. Next in interest to the tea quarter is that 
 of the Persians, situated in a suburb on the opposite side of an arm 
 of the Oka, in which are sold costly shawls, small carpets, and silk 
 pieces. Then there is the quarter for the dealers in skins and furs ; 
 here the outside garment of pretty nearly every beast that claims the 
 arctic circle for a home may be seen, from a sable to a bear ; and a 
 pelisse of the choicest skins of the latter animal will fetch as much as 
 five hundred pounds. Near this is the quarter for the sale of Siberian 
 iron — a perfect metal town ; one may walk for nearly half a league 
 
22 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 surrounded by every species of bar-iron, palisades, pots, agricultural, 
 and other instruments. The outskirts, in which most of the foregoing 
 articles are sold, is by far the most animated portion of the fair ; there 
 is more movement there, carriages and carts are passing to and fro, the 
 tones of the dealers are louder, venders of kvass and refreshments ply 
 their trade with unceasing energy, and the crowd rolls backwards and 
 forwards in one uninterrupted stream ; every tongue going ; and ear- 
 nestness or drollery in every face. In the interior of the fair there is 
 an air of regularity and order which savors more of real business ; even 
 the features of the Cossacks, who do the duties of policemen, are 
 scarcely ever seen to relax into a smile. There is also a theatre, and 
 sometimes a good company." 
 
CHAPTEE IV. 
 
 FROM NIJNE TO EKATEEINBUEG. 
 
 Oapt. Anakoff, whom we had found a very pleasant 
 companion, parted from us here on his way to visit his 
 friends further to the south. So eager was he to go on, 
 that he would not even take time to call on the governor. 
 From his extreme haste, I was induced to surmise that 
 there was a fair lady waiting for him at his point of des- 
 tination. 
 
 Before leaving Moscow, it was arranged that a party 
 of officers, who were going to Siberia, and who were to 
 leave the next morning after our departure, should over- 
 take us at Nijne, and that we should go on under their 
 guidance and protection as far as Irkutsk. Our new 
 friends arrived during the evening — Messrs. Leutke, Paul 
 Malaveytsky, and Belchekoff, officers belonging to the 
 civil service ; their podorojnaya was to be our passport 
 to the " further east," and we willingly resigned ourself 
 to their care. A pleasant, kind, and clever set of fellows 
 they proved to be. Only those who have experienced the 
 difficulties and perplexities of travelling in strange and 
 unfrequented countries, can estimate or appreciate the 
 thousand-and-one troubles that we were saved from by 
 
24 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 tliis arrangement, which we owed to the kindness of Gen- 
 eral Mouravieff. 
 
 After a hearty warm supper and plentiful cups of tea, 
 our podorojnaya having been despatched to the post sta- 
 tion for horses, we were prepared for our second stage on 
 the journey. We were kept waiting but a short time, 
 the bells were jingling in the yard, and soon the pleasant 
 word " gotovey" was spoken. It was about midnight 
 when we set out from Nijne-Novgorod. The night was 
 very dark, with a thick atmosphere, though the snow had 
 ceased to fall. 
 
 We passed immediately from the town down the Volga, 
 upon the frozen surface of which our drivers proposed 
 to travel during the night. They said we should be able 
 to keep upon the river all the way to Kazan, which would 
 facilitate our journey a full day. We passed along very 
 well for some miles, occasionally getting a good shaking 
 up in deep holes under the bank of the river where the 
 water had receded, leaving the ice broken into considera- 
 ble inequalities. 
 
 It was not long before the sledge of our companions 
 stopped, stuck hard and fast in a hole and half buried 
 in the loose snow, the horses floundering, tugging, and 
 snorting under the heavy lash and severe blows of the 
 driver. A half hour elapsed before they were extri- 
 cated, and then not till the horses from our sleigh were 
 hitched to the hind part of theirs, which was thus pulled 
 backwards out of the hole. 
 
 Our drivers now went along the banks, crossing and 
 recrossing to find the best road. If any track there was, 
 it had been covered by the recent fall of snow, and the 
 
FKOM NIJNE TO EKATEKINBUBG. 25 
 
 only guide they had was to avoid the black-looking places 
 where the water was upon the ice. At length, one runner 
 of our sleigh broke through, and the horses fell floundering 
 in broken ice and water. This looked rather serious, and 
 we got out of the sleigh as soon as possible, and found 
 hard and dry footing near by. Fortunately it was near 
 the shore and the water shallow. The horses were turned 
 towards the land, and finally succeeded in gaining a solid 
 footing. At a point lower down we recrossed the river, 
 and after meeting a gang of freight sleds, with the drivers 
 of which ours held a short conference, we found a slope 
 leading up the bank, and making the best of our way 
 through fields where there was no sign of a track, 
 we gained at length the high road, which we were very 
 glad to pursue for the rest of the night, and not try further 
 navigation upon the river. 
 
 The fact was, our drivers were experimenting upon 
 the sufficiency of the ice to bear us, and in the darkness 
 of the night it was a miracle that we were not plunged 
 into dangers from which it might have been difficult to 
 escape. The trouble was, there had first been a severe 
 frost, by which the river was sufficiently frozen for travel, 
 after which there had been a thaw, a rise in the river, and 
 a breaking up of the ice, succeeded by the present cold 
 spell, leaving many holes and much water on the ice be- 
 neath the snow. 
 
 We kept the post-road and made tolerable time after 
 we left the river, but it was a tough night, cold and raw, 
 and from having to get out of our well stowed places several 
 times, we suffered considerably. We were until near day- 
 light in getting to the first station, twenty-one miles 
 2 
 
26 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 distant, where we fortified ourselves with several cups 
 of hot tea, which revived us very much. 
 
 We dashed along through many towns and villages, 
 over a comparatively level country, sometimes gently un- 
 dulating, with but little forest. This is a fijae grain and 
 stock country. The post-horses were generally in good 
 condition, and we made some rapid drives. 
 
 From Nijne-Novgorod to Kazan we were two days and 
 a half, stopping only to change horses, drink tea, or take 
 a hasty meal. We changed horses more than twenty 
 times. 
 
 Kazan is 208 miles east by south of Nijne, and stands 
 on high ground, near the Kanska, about four miles above 
 the Volga. It is chiefly built of brick, and has broad and 
 winding streets. The population is about 60,000, of whom 
 about ten or twelve thousand are Tartars. There is a 
 very large bazaar and a handsome college, built of white 
 stone. It is a place of considerable trade, being the cen- 
 tral point of commerce between Moscow and St. Peters- 
 burgh on the west. Archangel on the north, Astrakhan on 
 the south, and Siberia on the east. 
 
 Before we reached Kazan we had shivered one of the 
 runners of our sleigh, where it turned up in front ; this 
 needed repair, and we also wanted a new shaft and more 
 rope. The jolts and thumps we had received since leav- 
 ing Moscow had satisfied us that we were far from being 
 properly prepared for a Siberian journey, upon which we 
 had, as it were, only just entered. 
 
 We here purchased a mattress to put in the bottom 
 of our sleigh, and two pillows to support our backs and 
 protect our heads and necks when sitting up from coming 
 
FROM NIJNE TO EKATERINBURG. 27 
 
 in contact with the wood-work in the jolts and thumps 
 wc received in rough parts of the road. 
 
 We added also to our wardrobe Kazan sheep-sldn coats, 
 which are warm, with the wool turned in, and are generally 
 heneath an outer garment. I wore mine as an outer coat, 
 having chosen it long and large for the purpose, so that it 
 completely enveloped me from head to foot. The skin is 
 dressed better here than elsewhere, and is soft, pliable, and 
 silky. "We found these coats, upon trial, exceedingly warm 
 and comfortable ; and with them and the bedding, we felt 
 as if we certainly could keep out the cold, and sleep with- 
 out having our necks dislocated or our backs broken. Mr. 
 Peyton had a splendid buffalo robe, which he had brought 
 from the United States, and by spreading this partly upon 
 the mattress, and using the rest of it to cover our feet and 
 legs, we protected our feet from the draft of air that came 
 in at the fore part of the sleigh. 
 
 Wo set out from Kazan at midnight for Ekaterinburg, 
 the next great stage of our journey. It was six days since 
 we had left Moscow, and we had not slept anywhere but 
 in our sleigh during the time. We proceeded now at a 
 more rapid pace, the horses improving in speed and flesh 
 the further we penetrated to the eastward ; and even the 
 roads appeared to grow better the further we passed from 
 the capital, though perhaps the change was owing to the 
 fact that we were now somewhat hardened to the rough- 
 ness of the travelKng, and besides, we were now fairly do- 
 miciliated in our vehicle, and felt quite at home in it. 
 There was also more snow, and it lay evenly on the roads, 
 with the absence of those dreadful OuJcJiahas lying in our 
 
28 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. • 
 
 track like a miniature frozen sea, with the waves frozen 
 just as they were under the lash of the winds. 
 
 The most of the way between Kazan and Ekaterin- 
 burg the road was broad, smooth, and well beaten. For 
 several hundred miles it is planted with double rows of 
 trees on each side, and a foot- way between, painted verst- 
 posts, water-ways, and bridges, as on a turnpike road. We 
 were astonished by the beauty and regularity of the road, 
 the perfect manner in which it is kept in repair, its regu- 
 lar grades, and the precision of engineering observed in its 
 structure. It very seldom forms curves, but makes angles 
 of various degrees, according to the face of the country, so 
 that you have long stretches before you, the curves only 
 occurring in ascending or descending abrupt hills or moun- 
 tainous districts, where it is graded to suit the nature of 
 the ground. 
 
 Town after town, village after village, and station after 
 station, were passed as we hurried forward towards the 
 ridge that divides Europe from Asia. Nothing occurred 
 of any great interest on the way, except, as in Kazan, we 
 frequently saw a large mixture of Tartar faces and cos- 
 tumes in several of the villages, and occasionally a mosque, 
 denoting the prevalence of Mahommedanism yet among 
 these people. We observed some really good faces among 
 the girls, who, with their sUver necklaces, girdles, and 
 high, ornamented head-gear, were not by any means desti- 
 tute of attraction. I saw several with fine teeth, lively 
 countenances, and well-turned busts. Before reaching 
 Kongour our sleigh was further damaged, our side-win- 
 dows and lamps were smashed, our boxes thrown from the 
 top to lighten it, and our baggage and traps settled down, 
 
FEOM NIJNE TO EKATEKINBUEG. 29 
 
 jaramod, and confined to the least possible space. A trunk 
 lashed on the front part was filled with useless trash pur- 
 chased in Moscow, taken from the inside, and all made 
 firm and secure with ropes. Shaft ropes were renewed, 
 wider and heavier fenders were lashed to the sides, like 
 out-riggers to a canoe, to keep us from upsetting, and on 
 we sped as fast as Tartar horse-flesh and Tartar drivers 
 could hurry us. 
 
CHAPTEE V. 
 
 FEOM EKATEEINBURG TO OMSK. 
 
 We reached Ekaterinburg on the 16tli December, 
 1856, on the thirteenth day out from Moscow, not having 
 as yet slept in a house on the road. We found a very 
 comfortable hotel here, in -which we obtained rooms 
 without beds, but provided with sofas and lounges, 
 chairs, tables, mirrors, and warmed to a pleasant summer 
 heat. It seems to be the practice in Eussia for persons 
 on the road to furnish their own bedding. A traveller 
 through Eastern Eussia and Siberia soon learns to get along 
 without warm beds and downy couches, which would only 
 tend to unfit him for the hardships of the road. We, how- 
 ever, found it no hardship to sleep on our own furs and 
 skins, and to make our own bed upon the floor of a warm 
 room, after having passed twelve nights in our sleigh. 
 
 Ekaterinburg is 1122 miles from Moscow ; contains 
 25,000 inhabitants, and is situated on the river Iset, near 
 some lakes. It is well built, with several fine churches, 
 magazines, stores, and markets ; and is the" seat of 
 much industry in copper, iron, glass, marble, and pre- 
 cious stones. There appears to be much wealth here, and 
 the markets are plentifully supplied with meats, game, 
 
FROM EKATERINBURG TO OMSK. 31 
 
 fish, and vegetables. We laid in a supply of fj'esh fish, 
 quails, and white hread, for the road, at reasonable prices, 
 and our friends did not forget a little vodka, or brandy. 
 The weather was pleasant, because there was no wind, 
 yet the atmosphere was hazy, so that the surrounding 
 country was shut from view. The thermometer indicated 
 2° below zero. Our time was spent agreeably in visit- 
 ing various workshops, and in looking about the town, to 
 say nothing of the real, substantial, downright hard-sleep- 
 ing that we luxuriated in during the two nights we re- 
 mained in the city. 
 
 Ekaterinburg, perched upon the very summit of the 
 Ural chain, half European, half Asiatic, takes one by 
 surprise as he is entering into dreary and frozen Siberia. 
 Its appearance would do credit to any country in Europe 
 or America. The works in marbles and precious stones 
 are very extensive and remarkable, and a stranger might 
 occupy himself profitably for a month in their inspec- 
 tion. But my pathway lay so far to the east, and time 
 being a great object with me just then, I was con- 
 strained to hurry away from this as I had from other 
 places of interest on the road. 
 
 We departed from Ekaterinburg by daj'light, the fii-st 
 time we had done so at any stopping-place since we left 
 Moscow ; the country was covered with snow, but not in 
 the least so as to impede travel ; the roads were well 
 beaten, and our Asiatic horses fairly flew over the streets 
 and out at the eastern gate. Our driver was a merry 
 fellow, and simg, coaxed, and talked his horses to the 
 very acme of speed. We did not forget him at the next 
 change of drivers. 
 
32 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 The descent of tlie Ural is so easy and regular, that 
 with but little grading a railroad track would take the 
 place of the present post-road : as an impediment to a 
 railroad from Europe into Asia, the Ural Mountains 
 amount to nothiag. Much of the descent was well 
 wooded, and had the appearance of having been subjected 
 to the axe at regular periods, the trees were so uniform 
 in their growth. 
 
 Twelve stations brought us to Tumen, a handsomely 
 situated city, on the western branch of the Oby, and 
 about 160 mUes in a south-'westerly direction from To- 
 bolsk, and now its rival as one of the storehouses of the 
 carrying-trade of the great Asiatic-European commerce. 
 It is here that the t^o streams of trade meet from the 
 east and from the west, one to rest before setting out on 
 its great journey thousands of ihiles to the east ; the 
 other, to gather strength to cross the Ural into Europe, 
 after its fatigue and hardships on the steppes and rivers 
 of Asia. 
 
 Viewed by snow and moonlight, it appeared a well- 
 built place, on navigable water, with wide streets, and 
 large public squares. I walked from the station down to 
 the bank of the river, and found the sidewalks paved, and 
 bordered with trees. The watchmen, guardians of the 
 night, were rendering it hideous by the deafening clatter 
 of their tam-tams, arousing the dogs of the town, a 
 numerous pack, whose barking kept time and tune to the 
 tam-tams' din. 
 
 The town is 198 miles from Ekaterinburg, 1758 from 
 St. Petersburg, and has a population of twenty thousand ; 
 of late years it has superseded Tobolsk in the eastern 
 
FROM EKATERINBUEQ TO OMSK. 33 
 
 transit trade, and hence its growth in importance and 
 population. Tobolsk formerly monopolized the entire 
 transit of the eastern trade. 
 
 The weather had not, as yet, been very cold, only on 
 the western side of the mountains, coming up from Kazan, 
 on the steppes, with piercing wind blowing from the 
 north and north-east — then the mercury was at 10° below 
 zero. The cold was steady at Ekaterinburg, but was not 
 in the least unpleasant, because the atmosphere was calm. 
 
 We rode out through the eastern portal of Tumen at 
 full speed, our driver no doubt benefited by the stirrup- 
 cup we had volunteered to give him, and enlivened 
 by the tam-tams and the barking of the dogs ; — the 
 clatter that the watchmen keep up must be admirably 
 calculated to give thieves warning of their whereabouts, 
 like the lighted lanterns of our Knickerbocker watchmen ; 
 the custom is probably Tartar or Chinese. A faint relic 
 of this is still observed in St. Petersburg, where you hear 
 •the dvitnu'ls at night before their gateways, when not 
 asleejD, knocking on the pavement with their heavy pole- 
 clubs, five or six feet long, and of formidable thickness. 
 
 We left the old beaten track by way of Tobolsk, and 
 turned southerly, directly towards Omsk. The country 
 here is populous, ynth. evidences of Tartar origin among 
 the people, though they are pretty thoroughly Sclavonized. 
 Much of this country would be interesting, if traversed in 
 summer, but the interminable horizon of snow is very 
 monotonous. The country evidently contains much well- 
 cultivated land, as we judged from the amount of stock 
 and the good condition of the horses. 
 
 We. crossed the steppe of Ischem, which lies between 
 
34 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 the main western brancli of tlie Oby and a southern 
 branch of the Irtish ; this is a prolongation of the great 
 Kirgeese Steppe ; the road was well beaten, and we made 
 very good time over a portion of it. 
 
 After a long, cold drive, with the mercury at 15° be- 
 low zero, we reached Ischem, a town of five or six thou- 
 sand inhabitants. It was market day, and the streets pre- 
 sented a lively and grotesque appearance as we passed 
 along through the crowd of sledges, horses, men, and 
 women, with an indescribable medley of provisions and 
 merchandise exposed for sale in the open streets, either 
 arranged on frames or rude tables, or spread upon the 
 ground. It was evident, from the looks of the people, that 
 we were quite as great curiosities to them, as they and 
 their wares were to us. 
 
 Ischem is not far to the north of the Kirgeese country, 
 consequently we found the real pure Tartar face somewhat 
 prominently mixed up with the Sclavonic ; in fact, this 
 was formerly the seat of a formidable Tartar nation, where 
 the successors of Gengis Khan held sway over a numerous 
 and warlike people. 
 
 We rested at a traJofer for several hours ; had our 
 sleigh repaired and new ropes put to the shafts ; walked 
 about the streets ; saw several pretty Tartar-Sclavic girls, 
 made them laugh and shew fine white teeth in our at- 
 tempts to talk Euss ; bought more rope and wrought- 
 nails ; packed into our sleigh, and separated from Ischem 
 on the third day since we entered Asia. 
 
 We were whirled along at full speed during most of 
 the day and night, along frozen water-courses or over 
 lakes, seeming to have abandoned the regular road, but we 
 
FROM EKATEKINBUKG TO OMSK. 35 
 
 came regularly to villages, wliere we obtained horses, and 
 again sped merrily on. The road was often narrow, and 
 the snow outside of the tracks was deep. At night we 
 thumped and jolted against innumerable freight-sleds 
 either going from or towards Ischem, and were frequently 
 detained in the road waiting for them to yield us the track 
 All other vehicles must give way to the "post; " this does 
 not necessarily mean that you are in a veliicle carrying the 
 mail, but you are driving "post " horses, for which privi- 
 lege you have paid the govermnent half a kopyek per verst. 
 In the day time you are not often detained, because 
 you can see the approaching train, or at the sound of 
 your bells they clear the track, but at night, where the 
 ix»ad is narrow or the banks steep with deep snow, the 
 drivers find it difficult to force their horses off the road, 
 or they themselves are half asleep sitting on their sleds, 
 wrapped up in their great sldn coats, and the horses having 
 it all their own way, it is only by loud and long shouts and 
 cm-ses that your driver succeeds in getting a half clear 
 track. The horses, from their own instinct, trying to 
 avoid the unbeaten road-side, where hidden holes and pit- 
 feUs, covered deep with treacherous snow, await them, re- 
 sist to the last the lashes and oiitcries with which they are 
 assailed. The half-sleeping and frozen drivers of the sleds, 
 equally unwilling to leave their seats or rouse from their 
 snooze, stick to their places, and let your driver and their 
 horses fight it out as best they can. They are generally 
 sharp enough though, in the last resort, to keep out of 
 the reach of the whip of your post-man, who is fully 
 authorized, in case you back him up, to slash them right 
 and left. 
 
36 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 Many an animated chase we have witnessed between 
 our yamschek, when willing to exercise his power, and 
 some calf-sMn-coated sled-driver, who had refused or 
 neglected to give the road after the often-repeated shouts 
 of the post-man. Sometimes the horse and sled would 
 roll down the laank in one direction, the combatants in an- 
 other, while we were left standing in the road witnessing 
 this frequently amusing performance. On more than one 
 occasion horses went down, sleds were overturned, broken, 
 or stuck fast into holes ; and in one case a poor horse's leg 
 was broken. This accident, however, seemed to involve no 
 very serious loss. Several of the drivers were Tartars, and 
 the horse was knocked in the head, the hide stripped oif, 
 and the smoking carcase quartered and deposited on the 
 same sled that, but a few minutes previously, he had drawn 
 himself At the next stopping-place the flesh afforded 
 good steaks or soup, while the hide would be exchanged 
 for a bottle or two of vodka. 
 
 These sleds generally run in gangs of ten to fifty, most 
 .commonly drawn by a single horse each, with one driver 
 to every third or fourth sled; the cargo weighs from seven 
 to ten hundred pounds. The second horse is tied to the 
 tail of the first sled, and so on to the end. A thousand 
 of these sleds have been passed by us in one day's travel, 
 and at this season of the year the majority of those going 
 west were loaded with tea from Kyachta. 
 
 We reached Omsk in the night, unfortunately, for I 
 wished to see it by daylight. It is apparently a well buUt 
 place, covering a large extent of ground, and seems to be 
 regularly laid out. It is the seat of government for the 
 district of Tobolsk and has about 20,000 inhabitants. 
 
FROM EKATEKINBUKGt TO OMSK. 37 
 
 We found a very comfortable trakter, and while our 
 horses were changing, had tea and beefsteaks for dinner. 
 One of our companions, Capt. Malavetsky, was taken 
 suddenly ill, which detained us several hours. We were, 
 however, off again long before daylight. 
 
CHAPTEK VI 
 
 FROM OMSK TO IRKUTSK, 
 
 After leaving Omsk we hastened along over the terri- 
 ble Barabinsky Steppe, which is much dreaded hy Siberian 
 travellers. "We were caught here at night in a furious 
 snow-storm, and our companion's sleigh was swamped in 
 a drift, the driver having missed the road. Our yamschek, 
 after driving on some time, stopped and listened for the 
 tinkling bells. He presently got down, and thrusting his 
 head into the window of our sleigh, said : " Baren nyat 
 kolokel, nyat drogay snyag ochen mnogo." " Schto tarn 
 takoy ? " we asked, What is the matter ? He again re- 
 peated " that he heard no bells; that the other vashok was 
 not coming, and that the snow was very great." "Well," 
 said we, " what is to be done ? We must not go on 
 without our companions; it is necessary that we go in 
 company; go back and see what has happened." He 
 reached to us the rope reins through the window, and has- 
 tened back on the road. Before leaving us, however, he 
 called loudly by name his brother yamschek, but received 
 no answer. We remained in this position two long hours 
 before we heard the bells and the shouts of the drivers. 
 
FROM OMSK TO IRKUTSK. 39 
 
 As our companions came up we started off, the snow fall- 
 ing in fitful, blinding showers. I feared that we should 
 certainly lose the road, and have a horrible night in the 
 snow-drifts, but either the driver or the horses possessed a 
 kind of instinct for finding roads where none was visible, 
 and after a most tedious and uncomfortable journey of 
 several hours, we reached the next station, nearly used up. 
 Hot tea was quickly provided, and we regained our spirits 
 and our warmth. 
 
 Fresh horses rapidly carried us to the next station, 
 which we reached about daybreak. In the morning our 
 friends, or the yamscheks, took it into their heads to explore 
 a new and shorter route than the regular post-road — one 
 more to the south. We floundered along over unbeaten 
 roads, or rather no roads at all, through a terrible waste 
 of country, flusliing a great many white partridges, upon 
 which we experimented with our six-shooters. The result 
 was, that after a very long and cold stage, on empty 
 stomachs, half starved, and with worn-out horses, we stuck 
 fast in a snow-drift at a village cross fence, but luckily the 
 village, a very small, poor looking one, was in ^iew. A 
 bareheaded, skin-clad peasant, seeing our dUemma, came 
 out from the village on horseback to see what we wanted, 
 which he soon ascertained, for we had already broken two 
 or three fence-rails in trying to prize the sleigh out. One 
 horse was down, and it was thought best to let him use 
 his own pleasure about getting up again, as when up he 
 was of no service. The new and fresh horse of our village 
 friend, vdth the assistance of additional stout and willing 
 arms from the village, soon put us on a gallop towards it, 
 where we found the whole population assembled to witness 
 
40 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 our entrance. Our driver told tliem his story, whicli must 
 have been satisfactory, for they very readily offered us 
 horses to assist us on our journey; besides which, we were 
 kindly invited into the best house in the place. We found 
 it wamij but its odor was very offensive after coming in 
 from the open air. 
 
 Our companions having disappeared, a runner was de- 
 spatched to seek them with fresh horses whUe we were wait- 
 ing to have the tea got ready. It was soon steaming, and 
 our companions having been dug out of a drift some miles 
 in the rear, we gave them a warm reception, and such other 
 creature comforts as our kind hostess could command were 
 added to make out our last night's supper and the day's 
 breakfast and dinner. The repast comprised tea, black- 
 bread, fish-bread, boiled milk, and honey, to which was 
 added, from our own stores, a little vodlca, and we fared 
 sumptuously. 
 
 It was difficult to decide among the crowd whose 
 horses and drivers we should choose, so we managed to 
 leave it with the villagers to arrange among themselves. 
 Every thing was satisfactorily arranged, and after paying 
 our hostess we took our departure. 
 
 We passed over a considerable extent of country be- 
 fore coming to the postroad again. Our companions sup- 
 posed that we had gained something in distance by leav- 
 ing the highway, but my private opinion was that, like 
 the country girl in the dance, we had made it* all up in 
 turning round. 
 
 We, however, at length regained the postroad, and at 
 several of the stations found horses ready harnessed await- 
 ing the arrival of General Mouravieff, who, from the re- 
 
FEOM OMSK TO IRKUTSK. 41 
 
 port of a courier, was hourly expected. In many villages 
 and towns at night we found watch-fires burning, and in 
 places where there were miHtary stations there were offi- 
 cers awaiting his arrival. We made most excellent time 
 over this portion of the road, being considered the avant- 
 couriers of the general, as our party held special podoroj- 
 naya from him. We experienced on this part of the road 
 the severest cold yet met with — 50° below zero. 
 
 We reached Tomsk after the worst, the coldest, and 
 the most tiresome, but the fastest night's ride since we 
 left Moscow. The snow had been at least three feet deep 
 on the road, and was rolled in waves like a miniature 
 frozen sea, over which we rapidly dashed from station to 
 station, each new yamschek seeming to be determined to 
 exceed his predecessor in the punishment of horse flesh. 
 
 I thought it impossible that our sleigh could with- 
 stand the thousand-and-one shocks, and feared a break- 
 down or a smash-up every moment, and that our spinal- 
 columns or neck-joints would certainly be dislocated ; but 
 on we sped, our drivers being determined to spend as little 
 time as possible on the road, a resolution which we par- 
 tially commended, for it was really a bitter and biting 
 frost. We gave them extra kopyeks at every change of 
 horses, which sent the next driver off in high spirits, talk- 
 ing to and praising his hardy little horses. 
 
 We were compelled to alight at every station and 
 warm ourselves, examine the condition of our sleigh as 
 well as the state of our half-frozen faces and feet, dislo- 
 cated bones, and sprained and battered muscles. In fact, 
 we had determined to make the journey a frolic, intending 
 to have a good time of it, or at least the best possible 
 
42 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 under the circumstances ; we therefore took every thing as 
 we found it, mended it if we could, grumbled at nothing, 
 kept as warm as possible, and paid the yamscheks liberally 
 for fast driving. On the last day before coming to Tomsk 
 we drove over two hundred miles and would have even 
 increased upon that if the road had not become wretched- 
 ly bad. 
 
 On the morning of the 25th December, 1856, we gallop- 
 ed through the streets of Tomsk and drove into the court- 
 yard of the " Grostennitzah Inostranetz." We found 
 warm rooms and with the ever-welcome samovar, and real 
 genuine Chinese tea soon made ourselves as comfortable 
 as possible. 
 
 Our meals were served in our rooms, and as usual we 
 made our sleeping-places ourselves with our own furs, cloaks, 
 and skins. We found a wine list and billiard room in an 
 adjoining building, and succeeded, with their help, in re- 
 viving and strengthening our worn-out frames. On the 
 whole we contrived to spend a tolerably pleasant Christ- 
 mas night in the city of Tomsk. 
 
 After getting thoroughly thawed out we rode and 
 walked about the city, and it being the commencement 
 of the annual fair, we had a good opportunity to witness 
 something of the traffic and see many of the people from 
 the southern borders. Tomsk has about twenty thousand 
 inhabitants, and is the centre of a very extensive, and for 
 Siberia, well-peopled country. The land is fertile, abound- 
 ing in stock and grain. There are a large number of 
 mines to the south and east and considerable trade, 
 extending into Tartary, which, with its annual fair, 
 makes the city the seat of an extensive commerce. At 
 
FKOM OMSK TO IKKUTSK. 43 
 
 all events we found here many stores and warehouses, 
 markets and bazars, with fish, flesh, and fowl, all effectu- 
 ally preserved by freezing. The fish when being handled 
 rattled like so many bricks. Loads of iron, tea, wool, tal- 
 low, honey, hides, skins, furs, hay, grain, chickens, turkeys, 
 and fish, filled the streets and lined the approaches to the 
 city, and thousands of chests of tea lay piled in the 
 streets, being transshipped on its way from Kyachta to 
 Nijne -Novgorod. Bukarians, Songarians, Kalmuks, and 
 other Tartar tribes added variety to the costumes of the 
 people and excitement to the scene. 
 
 We purchased some Persian powder for exterminating 
 vermin, which we were told would be very useful at times 
 in such lodgings as a traveller might chance upon on the 
 road. We also added to our store of provisions, and after 
 spending a part of three days and two whole nights within 
 doors, the first since leaving Ekaterinburg, we renewed our 
 journey in as good if not better condition and health than 
 when we left Moscow twenty-five days previous. 
 
 We left Tomsk rather reluctantly, that is, speaking 
 for myself, I did. It was a bitter cold day, but the air 
 was still, and we wrapped ourselves up as warmly as pos- 
 sible, deposited a teaspoonful of red pepper inside of our 
 socks next to our feet, and rode on determined to make 
 the rest of the journey to Irkutsk in quick time. We 
 were now fairly in Siberia, with whole bones, not frost- 
 bitten, and the coldest point reached, so that we felt as if 
 the worst of the journey was over, having but the matter 
 of ten or twelve hundred miles between us and Irkutsk, 
 with a fund of experience and hard knocks sufficient to 
 
44 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 justify us in the belief that we could at least hold out till 
 we reached our place of destination. 
 
 However, one pitch-dark night, with a thick hazy at- 
 mosphere, and bitter cold, we were descending a long 
 hill before reaching Krasnoyarsk when our yamschek, 
 either being asleep or the horses becoming unmanageable, 
 we were thrown off the side of the road into a deep chasm ; 
 there we stuck hard and fast, our horses tugging and pull- 
 ing and twisting to get out, but in spite of shifting of 
 horses, with blows, coaxing, and swearing, we still stuck 
 harder and deeper, with our sleigh, by this time, half 
 buried in the snow. After an hour spent in all sorts of 
 experiments and expedients our companions came up, 
 having themselves met with some mishap which had de- 
 tained them. With their assistance and the drivers of 
 some freight-sleds which had very luckily come up, we were 
 finally hauled out of the hole ; but while all the men with 
 our driver were about the sides and behind the sleigh, 
 prizing and shouting, encouraging the horses, they gained 
 a hard footing, and glad to get out of the scrape, went 
 down the hill at full gallop. Seeing that the horses were 
 off and the driver left behind, aU we dared do, at the fear- 
 ful speed at which we were rushing, was to sit still and 
 see what would .turn up ; in fact, we could do nothing 
 else. "We thought of divesting ourself of our furs and try- 
 ing to get from the door to the box to see if we could not 
 recover the reins, but the speed was so great, and the 
 motion of the sleigh bounding from one side of the road to 
 the other, was so violent, that we concluded not to make 
 the attempt. But we hoped that with the downhill 
 inclination there would be a corresponding up hUl, and so 
 
FEOM OMSK TO IRKUTSK. 45 
 
 consoled ourselves with the reflection that if we did not 
 turn over we would be able to stop on the next rise of 
 ground if there should happen to be one before reaching 
 the station. 
 
 We chiefly feared meeting with other sleighs and being 
 thrown off the road and dashed to pieces ; however, on we 
 went ; but how far, or what dangers were on either hand, 
 the darkness prevented us from observing. In an instant 
 there was a crash and a stop, as if the whole sleigh had 
 been torn to atoms, yet we found ourselves occupying our 
 accustomed places, and no bones broken, though pretty 
 thoroughly shaken up. We got out of the sleigh as soon 
 as possible, for one is not absolutely master of his own mo- 
 tions in a moment, with a Siberian winter-dress about 
 him. The tinkling of bells and a harsh growl, like the 
 snarl of a grizzly bear, was heard in the dim distance, 
 which e^adently came from the inmate of the sled going 
 in the opposite direction, with which we had come in col- 
 lision. 
 
 One horse was down, apparently lifeless, while two 
 others had turned around and were standing at the back 
 part of the sleigh entangled in the ropes and broken har- 
 ness, while the fourth was non est. The shafts were shat- 
 tered and the fore part of our craft knocked into a cocked- 
 hat. 
 
 Seeing that all the damage was done that could be 
 for the present (there being no danger of the two live 
 horses getting off again with the sleigh), we awaited calm- 
 ly and very coolly the advent of our driver. In due 
 course of time, distance considered, he came up with his 
 companion on the other sleigh, whereupon a council of 
 
46 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 war was held and a post mortem examination of vehicle 
 and horse had, upon which it was decided to send to the 
 nearest village for help and the necessary timber to bind 
 up the wounds and splinter the breaks in our vehicle. 
 Upon examination, our running gear was found in good 
 condition, which was the most important of all. 
 
 All this was effected in the course of time, though not 
 so soon as I tell it, nor did the night grow any warmer 
 during the operation, and we became thoroughly chilled 
 from standing in the road while the repairs were going on, 
 but we survived to drink tea at the next station. 
 
 Our next halt was at Krasnoyarsk^ a town of 6,000 
 inhabitants, and the centre of the mining operations of a 
 very extensive region of country north and south. We rode 
 about the town in a hack-sleigh, had a good dinner, with 
 a bottle of sherry, at a gostennitzah, kept by a German, 
 drank tea before leaving, arid with the mercury at zero 
 set out for Irkutsk. 
 
 We hastened on, making some very good days' works; 
 passed through Kansk, Nijne Udinsk, and many other 
 considerable towns, without any thing worthy of note, and 
 arrived on the banks of the Angara, opposite Irkutsk, the 
 capital of Eastern Siberia, on the 7th day of January, 
 1857, at four o'clock, p. m., making, within a few hours of 
 thirty-five days since leaving Moscow, a distance of 3,545 
 miles ; having slept out of our sleigh only three whole 
 nights in that time, with an atmosphere ranging from 50° 
 below zero to 10° above. We changed horses 210 times, 
 and drove over 700 on the journey, with some 200 drivers, 
 and twenty-five postilions. The actual time employed in 
 the journey, including ordinary delay, was about twenty- 
 
FKOM OMSK TO IRKUTSK. 47 
 
 eight days and nights, averaging, therefore, a speed of 
 126 miles, every twenty-foiir hours, or five miles and a 
 fraction per hour. 
 
 The river opposite Irkutsk was yet unfrozen, but large 
 fields of ice were sweeping past with a rapid current. We 
 were placed in a ferry-boat, propelled by oars and poles, 
 and watching a favorable opportunity, when the river was 
 partially free of ice, crossed to the opposite shore. 
 
 We came near camping out in the street the first 
 night in Irkutsk. There is only one house that bears 
 the name of hotel, Shultz's, kept by a German, and 
 there was not a room to be had in it. Our kind com- 
 panions, the Eussian officers, succeeded, after some delay, 
 in renting the upper story of a large house recently vacated, 
 in which we were quickly domiciliated. Our whole cargo, 
 for the first time since we left Moscow, was removed from 
 our sleigh, and deposited in the room, where it made a 
 queer enough medley. The old trunk that I had tied on 
 to the fore part of the sleigh, and which had stood the 
 voyage fi'om San Francisco, was filled with the odds and 
 ends of a cook shop, plates, knives, forks, spoons, cups, 
 glasses, &c., and as we were about to enter upon house- 
 keeping, were now all displayed, and a portion brought 
 into requisition ; our cloaks, sJwobas, boots, mattress, 
 sMnSj ropes, trunks, bags, and carpet-bags, were stowed 
 in various corners, or hung up on convenient pegs or nails, 
 and we were at home. The ever-grateful samovar was 
 soon steaming on a table, tea was prepared, and we were 
 soon warmed up and fortified until a servant was des- 
 patched to Shultz's to see if he could furnish us some din- 
 ner; but it was too late; dinner was over, and the arrival 
 
48 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 of five hungry men at one time created quite a panic in 
 the kitchen ; Shultz, however, sent us all he had to spare, 
 which, with a portion of ham, some broken sausages, and 
 some other odds and ends left of our old Moscow stock of 
 provisions, kept us from absolute starvation. 
 
 It was really a joyous time with us, after such a long 
 journey at the coldest season of a Siberian winter, to reach 
 a house where we had the prospect of a few days and nights 
 rest in a warm, comfortable room, where we could strip off 
 the cumbrous furs and skins, and have again the free use 
 of our limbs. Irkutsk, too, looked so pleasant and com- 
 fortable, with its fine wide streets, its substantial and spa- 
 cious buildings, and numerous churches, that it appeared 
 to us more like a pleasant dream than an actual, enjoyable 
 reality. This beautiful city, seated on one of the finest 
 rivers in the world, with its tprrets, steeples, towers, domes, 
 and crosses, gilded and burnished, and painted in different 
 colors, took us so completely by surprise, that it really 
 seemed like enchantment. We visited the theatre in the 
 evening, and witnessed a very creditable performance. 
 
CHAPTER VII. "^^ 
 
 IKKUTSK. 
 
 A FEW days after our arrival, we moved our quarters 
 to really a fine and pleasant suite o£ rooms, fronting on the 
 Angara, wliere we lived quite as comfortably as we would 
 in places much nearer home. The hospitality of the prin- 
 cipal citizens was unhounded, the people kind and civil, 
 society agreeable, ladies handsome, wine good, and dinners 
 excellent — what could a traveller ask more ? We had 
 hot baths, sleigh rides, pic-nics, ice-hills, suppers, routs, 
 balls, and sleigh-promenades, to refresh and divert us. 
 
 General Mouravieff arrived on the 24th January, which 
 was the signal for general gayety; dinners, balls, and 
 parties, followed in quick succession. The day after his 
 arrival he gave a reception dinner, to which we were in- 
 vited. Captain Hudson had departed several days pre- 
 viously. At this dinner there were about sixty persons 
 present — aU, except Peyton and myself, Eussians. There 
 were no ladies. 
 
 The palace of the governor-general, in which the ban- 
 quet was held, is a large, finely-proportioned building, 
 situated on, and fronting the Angara Eiver. At each flank 
 of the building sentinels were standing in their gray over- 
 3 
 
50 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 coats, looking rather cold, shouldering their muskets, with 
 large mittens on their hands, to protect them from the 
 frosty steel. 
 
 We drove up in our sleigh, and entering the outer 
 door, our cloaks, caps, and overshoes were taken by ser- 
 vants in military garh, and we were then ushered up a 
 broad and spacious flight of stairs, into a large hall, in 
 which the tables were already spread,* and at the upper 
 end of which were congregated a number of guests. Our 
 friend Martenoff, aid to the governor-general, met us, and 
 conducted us to the door leading from the hall, and through 
 it to the reception room. We made our way through a 
 crowd of elegantly-dressed officers, in full uniform, until, 
 from within a third room. General Mouravieff made his ap- 
 pearance. He received us with great cordiality, in the 
 midst of a brilliant staff and the high officers of his gov- 
 ernment, and welcomed us as Americans to Siberia, and 
 as the pioneers to the Amoor, embracing us in the true Eus- 
 sian style, giving us a friendly hug, and Idssing us at the 
 same time. 
 
 Dinner was soon announced, and the General led 
 the way to the dining-hall, an apartment about seventy- 
 five feet long and thirty wide, with a very lofty ceiling. 
 A military band of music occupied an overhanging gallery. 
 The dinner was extremely well served, and I doubt whether 
 a better could be got in Paris or London. The wines were 
 choice and abundant, and the champagne and white wines 
 in particular were of rare excellence and quality. 
 
 The dinner went on with great good humor, amid a 
 tempest of conversation, while in the overhanging gallery 
 the band at intervals discoursed most capital music. 
 
IRKUTSK. 51 
 
 G-eneral Mouravieff sat at the centre of tlie table, General 
 Venzel, Governor of Irkutsk, sat on his right, and on his 
 left was General Korsackoff, Governor of the Province of 
 Trans Baikal. I sat opposite to General Mouravieff, and 
 Mr. Peyton a little to the right of me. It was intended 
 that we should have sat together, but some accident in 
 seating the guests prevented this. 
 
 During the dinner, after the regular and national toasts 
 were given, to which there was no reply but vivas, music, 
 and cheers — speaking at dinner not being the custom in 
 Eussia — General Mouravieff proposed the toast, " America 
 and Eussia;" the whole company rose to their feet, and 
 it was drank standing, with cheers. All eyes were turned 
 in the direction of the two solitary Americans. I looked 
 pleadingly at Peyton, who shook his head. I thought it 
 too good an opportunity to be lost, though I did not feel 
 like speaking ; however, as I did not know how it would 
 be regarded on such an occasion, I stood hesitating a mo- 
 ment, until I caught the approving smile of my friend 
 Captain Martenoff, who had been placed near me, and 
 who spoke English well ; I then said : 
 
 " General Mouravieff, in responding to the sentiment 
 just proposed by you, and which has met with such a 
 generous and hearty response, you must pardon me if ,1 
 o'erleap the bounds of custom, or trespass npon the usages 
 of society here, a stranger among you, and not cognizant 
 of the particular customs on occasions like the present. I 
 shall act precisely as I would on a similar occasion in my 
 own country. 
 
 " The sentiment proposed by you, ' America and Eussia,' 
 is particularly agreeable to the American heart, because 
 
52 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 America recognizes in Eussia, from the earliest records of 
 heir national existence, a true and steadfast friend. In tlie 
 different angry and complicated questions, involving the 
 rights of a new power, just emerging from the depths of 
 a new world. Young America found in Old Eussia a 
 friend and co-laborer in the cause of 'Free trade and 
 sailors' rights.' From the reign of the great Catharine, 
 down to the present sovereign of Eussia, America has re- 
 ceived from Eussia only the most friendly offices. In 
 Alexander I., of glorious memory, and in Nicholas I., 
 we recognized true friends, as is evidenced by our willing- 
 ness to refer or submit to them complicated questions and 
 grave disputes between the United States and a powerful 
 European nation. 
 
 " The sentiment you have given is also most agreeable, 
 because it brings up other and more recent remembrances 
 of peace and good will between Eussia and America ; but 
 on this occasion I shall not revert at length to the past, 
 however agreeable and instructive it might be — it is with 
 us to deal with the present. 
 
 " In a country so remote as Siberia from the centre of 
 European civilization — a country so little known in my 
 own, where to speak of Siberia causes a freezing sensation 
 to steal over you — it is doubly agreeable to find one's na- 
 tive land so cordially and warmly regarded. 
 
 " We have now, in our time, and in our generation, a 
 new epoch in the history of the world presented to us ; 
 Siberia, heretofore regarded as a terra incognita, and only 
 used by geographers to fill up uncertain and waste space 
 on the map of the globe, has emerged from that Egyptian 
 darkness that enveloped her. Tartar rule and Tartar 
 
IRKUTSK. 53 
 
 supremacy liave passed away under the civilizing and en- 
 lightened rule of the Sclavonic race, spreading Christian- 
 ity, the arts and sciences, trade and commerce, where all 
 before was darkness, disorder, and superstition. A new 
 era has dawned upon Siberia, under the enlightened guid- 
 ance, and far-seeing and statesman-like policy of General 
 Mouravieff. I stand here to-day, a living monument of 
 that sagacious policy, to testify to the world that to Gren- 
 eral Mouravieff must be accorded the honor of making Si- 
 beria approachable from the Pacific Ocean by way of the 
 Amoor Eiver, and hereafter it will be recorded on the im- 
 perishable page of history as but a just tribute to his honor. 
 
 " What strikes a stranger particularly with amazement, 
 is the vast extent and wonderful resources of this country, 
 and one is equally amazed that they should have lain so 
 long comparatively dormant and scarcely recognized by the 
 world at large. But we are at the same time reminded 
 that it was reserved for a Mouravieff to develop the re- 
 sources and the knowledge of Siberia and the country of 
 the Amoor. The Kussian nation wiU owe, the world will 
 owe, to the man whose genius has achieved this, true and 
 lasting honor, because it must mark an epoch in history. 
 Kussia descending from the heights of the Altai to the 
 great Eastern Ocean by way of this mighty river, and the 
 United States descending to its opposite shores from the 
 heights of the Sierra Nevada, will shake the friendly hand 
 in commercial intercourse upon that mighty sea, and these 
 two great nations will only vie with each other in develop- 
 ing the resources of their respective countries." 
 
 I closed by giving the health of " Nicolai Nicolaivitch, 
 Lieutenant-General Mouravieff III., Goyernor-General of 
 
54 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 Eastern Siberia, by whose enlightened, sagacious, and far- 
 seeing policy in the opening of the Amoor River to com- 
 merce, this great hitherto unknown country is destined to 
 become one of the most important on the map of the 
 world." This was cheered by the guests, and the band 
 struck up a lively Eussian march. 
 
 Some further time was occupied in the dessert, when 
 the champagne again flowed, and General Mouravieif, 
 rising, proposed as a toast the health of the two Ameri- 
 cans — Messrs. Peyton and ColKns. This was drank with 
 aU the honors, and Peyton refusing to respond, I spoke 
 again briefly. The banquet soon after closed, and we re- 
 turned to our lodgings. 
 
CHAPTEE VIII, 
 
 lEKUTSK CONTINUED. 
 
 A EussiAN ice-Mll is a very popular, cheap, innocent, 
 healthful, and funny amusement. 
 
 I missed seeing the ice-hills at Moscow, as the season 
 had not yet properly arrived before I left there. The ice 
 hill at Irkutsk was elevated hy a scaffolding of timber 
 about Is^enty-five feet high, on the surface of the river in 
 front of the city. An inclined plane, made of planks, 
 upon which water is poured until a sufficient coating of 
 ice is produced, runs off from the raised platform in an 
 angle of 20°. Steps made along on both sides of the 
 plane, reach a platform or landing sufficiently capacious 
 to accommodate twenty or thirty persons with rude §eats 
 of plank, and a strong railing to prevent accidents. Up 
 these steps swarm a living stream of persons of both 
 sexes, who, arriving at the platform, take their regular 
 turn to commence the descent, regulated by police officers 
 to pre^'ent accident or confusion. Arriving at the plat- 
 form, and seated or lying upon small hand-sleighs, down 
 this inclined plane they rush like lightning till they reach 
 the surface of the river, where there is a clear wide track 
 
56 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 fenced off and scraped smooth, and cleared of all irregu- 
 larities, along which, with the impetus received in coming 
 down the hill, they glide for several hundred yards. 
 
 Along on each side of this icy track stand the specta- 
 tors to witness the sport and laugh and shout at the mis- 
 haps, the upsetting and spillings that freq[uently occur. 
 Around and on all sides are sleighs, with their fair loads 
 of furred and rosy-cheeked dames and damsels, With their 
 lovers, suitors, and gallants, all making themselves as 
 agreeable and as happy as possible. The sport of riding 
 down the hill here was mostly indulged in by the common 
 people. I did not see either military men or -fashion- 
 able ladies engaged in it ; though I think it is a favorite 
 amusement kmong the upper classes in Western Eussia. 
 
 Near this ice hiU was cleared a wide double track for 
 a race course, of near a mile in circuit, upon which all the 
 fast nags, fast men, and handsome women, ride fcd race 
 in their sleighs, which was really a very gay and pretty 
 sight, and well worth spending an hour after dinner in wit- 
 nessing. 
 
 The Angara closed opposite Irkutsk on the night of 
 the 18th January, 1857, with the temperature 12° below 
 zero. Why this river remains open so much longer than 
 other water courses in Siberia over which we had been 
 riding for a month past, and even when the whole surface 
 of the lake from which it flows is frozen over, is worthy of 
 investigation. It cannot be because of the rapidity of 
 the current, for other rivers are frozen which are quite as 
 rapid, and even the Angara itself at points lower down is 
 frozen where the current is even more rapid than it is at 
 Irkutsk. We must therefore account for this phenomenon 
 
IKKUTSK. 57 
 
 in some other way. The Angara is the sole outlet to a 
 large body of water, Lake Baikal, which is fed by many 
 rivers ; it is also fed by innumerable springs, and, besides, 
 many warm springs are said to be submerged, which are 
 connected with volcanic action benearth the surface of the 
 lake, which is fully attested by the fact of large quanti- 
 ties of asphaltum being thrown up from the bottom ; or 
 it may be a natural result where large and deep bodies of 
 water have but a narrow and confined outlet, that when 
 the surface becomes frozen, the deep water being much 
 warmer than the surface, and protected from the cold at- 
 mosphere by its shield of ice, that the escape water would 
 not be below the freezing point. Consequently, it would 
 have to be some time exposed to the atmosphere before it 
 would become cold enough to congeal. 
 
 There is a large space just at the outlet of the lake 
 where the river forms, which I was informed never froze. 
 This open space is sending up volumes of vapor, and in- 
 numerable ducks and divers are sporting there the whole 
 winter, while there is not a drop of uncongealed water to 
 be found elsewhere in Siberia. This water extends for 
 several miles down the river. I passed the lake and its 
 outlet three times during the winter, and found it clear of 
 ice and full of water fowl. 
 
 3* 
 
CHAPTEE IX 
 
 IRKUTSK CONTINUED. 
 
 Irkutsk, the capital of Eastern Siberia, has a popu- 
 lation of about twenty thousand, and is situated on the 
 northern or right bank of the Angara Eiver, about forty 
 miles by the course of the river from the lake, and oppo- 
 site the mouth of the Irkut, ■which flows into the Angara 
 from the south. It has many churches and public insti- 
 tutions, is well built, lighted, and paved. 
 
 The Angara is the only outlet to the pent-up waters 
 of Lake Baikal, which is five hundred miles long by forty 
 to sixty wide, and in portions of it of an unfathomable 
 depth. The rivers emptying into Baikal drain an exten- 
 sive country, and draw their sources from that chain of 
 mountains which divide the waters of the Frozen Ocean 
 from those of the Pacific. The Selenga Eiver penetrating 
 far into the regions of Mongolia, is only separated from 
 the waters of the Ho-ang-ho, the great river of Northern 
 China, by the mountain ridges of Gobi. Many rivers, 
 from more than three hundred sources, unite to make up 
 this beautiful sheet of water. 
 
 To appreciate the peculiar and singularly fortunate 
 position of this city, one must study a good map of 
 
IRKUTSK. 59 
 
 Northern Asia. The Angara falls into the Upper Ton- 
 guska several hundred miles to the north-west of Irkutsk ; 
 the Tonguska again falls into the Enesei not far above 
 the town of Eneseysk, from whence hy a comparatively 
 short portage you reach an eastern branch of the Oby, 
 which, leading still in the main a westerly course, con- 
 ducts you into the Irtish, which you ascend to the very 
 foot of the Ural ; thus having passed by water, with one 
 very short portage, across the whole western extent of 
 Siberia. To the east and north, within a few hundred 
 miles, are the navigable waters of the Lena, which con- 
 ducts by Yakutsk towards the sea of Okhotsk, and soon 
 by the Aldan to the Okhotsk, and thence across it to 
 Kamschatka. All these great northern rivers flow with a 
 navigable breadth and depth into the waters of the 
 Frozen Ocean, and are, even up to this day, quite unused 
 in much of their course, though for some months in the 
 year free of ice, because their length and rapidity of cur- 
 Tent render them unavailable to any agent but steam, 
 "and that as yet has not been introduced. It may be said 
 that commerce can never enter into this cold and inhos- 
 pitable region, or that there is nothing upon which com- 
 merce may subsist. On the contrary, bread and meat are 
 quite as cheap in Siberia as they were upon the banks of 
 the Wabash before Fitch built the first steamer on the 
 Ohio. The rivers are flanked with fine forests, the banks 
 yield iron and coal, gold, silver, and copper, while the 
 waters and forests are abundantly stocked with fish, fowl, 
 and game, only awaiting the advance of population and 
 the introduction of steamboats and railroads. 
 
 To the south you have the noble Angara, connecting 
 
60 VOTAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 with the Baikal, and leading off to the plains of Mongolia 
 hy the Selenga, connecting the great Eussian Chinese 
 marts of Kyachta and Mia-mat-tschin with a population 
 of twenty millions, whose trade must all pass through the 
 gates of Irkutsk, pulsating and circulating regularly be- 
 tween the imperial cities of Moscow and Pekin. 
 
 To the east of Kyachta, not many hundreds of miles, 
 and if a railroad were constructed only twenty-four hours 
 distant, you come upon the great outlet of Northern Asia 
 — the river Amoor, 
 
 Irkutsk thus situated, with a saluhrious climate, a 
 productive soil, nohle rivers, and oriental commerce, rich 
 in gold and silver, iron and coal, copper and lead, salt and 
 asphalt, and ivory, presents to us a c[ueenly little city, 
 seated upon the beautiful shores of the Angara, to whose 
 future grandeur and prosperity it is not easy at present to 
 assign limits. 
 
 The necessities incident to Asiatic Eussia are quite 
 reversed by the laws of nature ; having within her borders 
 the noblest system of rivers in the world ; they are yet, 
 in a great degree, unavailable to her necessities, from the 
 fact that their entrance into the ocean is so far north as to 
 render them, in consequence of the severity of the climate, 
 wholly unavailable during nine months in every twelve ; 
 owing to this, and to the fact that the ocean into which 
 they flow, to its high northern latitude, is nearly useless in 
 a commercial point of view, being, as its name implies, 
 " the Frozen Ocean,"' they can only be reached at great 
 expense, delay, hardship, and privation. The trade, then, 
 of Siberia, in seeking an outlet for its commerce, as 
 well as an inlet to its wants, must seek it against 
 
IRKUTSK. 61 
 
 all precedent, and aU example, towards the sources 
 of her great rivers ; and these again, mostly in their 
 general course, being from south to north, have their 
 origin in that great hack-bone of Asia, which divides 
 the waters of that continent between Northern and 
 Southern Asia. The commerce, then, of this vast coun- 
 try, seeking a channel of communication with other 
 countries and nations, must, of necessity, seek the 
 sources of new rivers for an outlet ; and in case of 
 failure to meet the required facilities of water com- 
 munication, must content itself with the more diffi- 
 cult and costly route by land, the only resort left to it. 
 Hitherto, the close and jealous policy of the people in- 
 habiting the more southern portions of Asia, has forced 
 the trade of that country westward, in order to seek an 
 outlet. This route, which would be absolutely impractica- 
 ble under any other than the government of Eussia, has, 
 under the fostering and thoughtful wisdom of that gov- 
 ernment, become one of the greatest commercial arteries 
 in the world. 
 
 Concentrating, as it does, at Kyachta, where it gathers 
 the trade of Manchooria, Mongolia, and China, settling 
 the balances, and arranging the exchanges, it then flows 
 westward in a steady stream by land and by water, often 
 slow, tedious, and expensive, until it becomes lost in the 
 great ocean of European- Kussian commerce at Nijne- 
 Novgorod ; there it commingles, increasing and perfecting 
 that immense system of Kussian inland commerce flowing 
 towards the imperial marts of Moscow and St. Petersburg. 
 
 This trade, although great, is absolutely one of com- 
 plete necessity, and flows only in a necessitous and re- 
 
62 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 stricted current, not at present susceptible of world-wide 
 expansion, or of much interest out of its immediate local 
 influence. What, then, does this country want ? The 
 question is easily answered — It wants a cheaper, an easier, 
 a more rapid, and a more constant communication to the 
 sea. What sea ? Not the Polar Sea — nature has laid a 
 prohibition in that direction ; not the Baltic, or the 
 Caspian, or the Black Seas, which would lead to the At- 
 lantic Ocean — that she has now by the present overland 
 route. What then remains ? The overland route to Pekin. 
 Yes ; but the land carriage is too great to reach the sea 
 that way, even if permitted by China. 
 
 What, then, is left ? There is no communication 
 eastward, in Siberia, into the Pacific Ocean by water ; if 
 there was, the intense severity of the cKmate renders it 
 impracticable. It seems, then, that there is no escape. 
 East, west, north, south, aU seem to be barred by nature, 
 or by man. But do not be too hasty ; look upon that 
 map once again. There is a chain of mountains, not 
 very high, that skirts the south-eastern horizon ; look 
 once again, you wiU. gee that two great systems of waters 
 are forming upon their gentle sides, and interlocking their 
 rivulets within their ravines and gorges ; gathering the 
 dew-drops, embracing the bubbling springs, absorbing 
 the murmuring brooks, and presently, on either hand, 
 course great rivers, on their way to far distant, far differ- 
 ent, and far divided oceans. Lake Baikal receives the 
 drainage of these waters on the north, while the Amoor 
 receives the waters from the eastern and southern sheds, 
 gathering, in its mighty course, the accumulated streams 
 of a hitherto unknown little world, and onward rollino- 
 
lEKUTSK. 63 
 
 its unbroken and majestic course for 2,500 miles, towards 
 the rising sun, and the mild waters of the Pacific Ocean. 
 Throw yourself with confidence upon its flowing tide, for 
 upon this generous river shall float navies, richer and 
 more poweiiul than those of Tarshish ; mines shall be 
 found upon its shore richer than those of Ophir, and the 
 timbers of its forests more precious than the Almugim of 
 Scripture ; a mighty nation shall rise upon its banks and 
 within its valleys, and at its mouth shall arise a vast city, 
 wherein shall congregate the merchant princes of the 
 earth, seeking the trade of millions of people. 
 
CHAPTEE X. 
 
 FEOM IRKUTSK TO KYACHTA. 
 
 On the 3d of February we partook, by invitation of 
 tlie Oolovdh, or Mayor of Irkutsk, of a dinner given by 
 bim to General Mouravieff. It was a very elegant and 
 costly affair, and numerously attended. After dinner we 
 made some evening calls, and, retiring to our lodgings, 
 prepared for our journey to Kyachta and Mia-mat- 
 tscbin. 
 
 For some reason or otber a Eussian baa a very great 
 distaste to set out on a journey in tbe day-time. I got 
 into tbe babit, or ratber yielded to tbe necessity, wbile in 
 Siberia, of commencing most journeys in tbe nigbt-time ; 
 tbe fact being tbat tbe day previous to setting out was 
 generally occupied in making calls, receiving company, or 
 in entertainments, and besides tbe day is so sbort tbat tbe 
 bours allotted to business matters are few. Tbe nigbt, 
 tberefore, was really tbe most proper time for starting, as 
 you did not bave to get out of a warm bed, and dress and 
 wasb, but merely to tumble out at tbe station and await 
 tbe cbange of borses. 
 
 We left Irkutsk at 1| A. m., on tbe 4tb February, for 
 Kyacbta and Mia-mat-tscbin, travelling upon and beside 
 
FEOM IKKUTSK TO KYACHTA. 65 
 
 the Angara until we reached Lake Baikal, and then partly 
 on that and partly on its ■western shore for some 40 miles 
 to the point of crossing. Our driver arranged so that we 
 had daylight to cross in. It had been reported at 
 Irkutsk that there were still openings and fissures in the 
 lake which would make crossing at night dangerous, and 
 at all events it would have been unpleasant to take a 
 bath in such icy waters twenty miles from land. 
 
 We drank tea at the last station on the north-west 
 shore of the lake under a high steep mountain, and caught 
 a fine view of the opposite shore, beyond which the crest 
 of the Altai range peeped out from a cloudy horizon long 
 enough to give us a fleeting view of great beauty and 
 grandeur. 
 
 There were now three of us in the same sleigh in 
 which we had travelled from Moscow, but we were not 
 encumbered with any baggage except a few clean shirts. 
 It was severely cold, and, wrapping ourselves up in our 
 furs, we packed closely into the sleigh while our horses 
 were being held by the head to keep them from starting, 
 our driver being already on the box. The word was 
 given, posJiol Tioroshinkey, and oif we dashed from the 
 front of the station down the bank and on to the lake at 
 full speed, with four tough, frosty, shagged little* white 
 horses, whose sharp-shod feet clattered merrily upon the 
 fij-m smooth ice, on which the track was marked by green 
 pine boughs. 
 
 Certain loud reports, like the booming of cannon, 
 which we had heard in the early morning as we came up 
 the shore of the lake, together with the clouds which we 
 had seen arising from its surface, had prepared us to en- 
 
66 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 counter an ice-wall, or rather a ditcli and moat in the very 
 midst of the lake. Accordingly, when ahout ten miles 
 from shore, we encountered one of these "ice-walls," 
 thrown up during the previous night by the collapsing of 
 the ice. This brought us to a stand, for the ridge was 
 too abrupt to be passed.- Our driver, however, jumped 
 from the sleigh, and while his horses were gathering a 
 little breath, beat down the rampart with an 'iron instru- 
 ment he carried for the purpose. In a very few minutes 
 we were again gliding over the ice at full speed: Mr. 
 Beetsov, the diplomatic secretary of G-eneral Mouravieff, 
 carried a courier's pass, with dispatches for PeMn via 
 Kyachta, and therefore had the right to kill as many 
 horses as he chose, if they did not keep up to time. 
 
 The clattering of the horses' sharply-shod feet, accom- 
 panied by the sonorous and hollow sound as the sleigh 
 passed along, had a strangely soothing effect, so that I 
 could scarcely keep my eyes open ; or it might have been 
 that I had not slept the previous night ; however, deter- 
 miued not to miss the novel scenery around me, I kept 
 my eyes alert by the occasional application of a handful 
 of snow. 
 
 We only stopped once more to brush the ice and frost 
 from tjie nostrils of our puffing horses, and went on again 
 at a round gallop, the ice thundering and cracking under 
 our horses' feet more than once in a way that greatly ac- 
 celerated their pace. The shore where the river Selenga 
 comes in is low and uninteresting, but to the north and 
 south the scenery is very grand. The lake was passed, 
 and our station in Trans-Baikal reached, in somewhat 
 more than three hours. This may be considered very 
 
FEOM lEKUTSK TO KYACHTA. 67 
 
 good driving with one set of four horses, without even a 
 sup of water or a moment's rest, except the two short 
 halts of not over five minutes on the way, a distance of 
 45 miles, or nearly 15 miles an hour. 
 
 We now traversed a thickly-settled country, keeping 
 along the banks of the main Selenga, -but frequently taking 
 to the ice on small streams, lakes, or ponds. We saw 
 much grain in stacks, and barns well filled, plenty of cat- 
 tle, sheep and horses, hemp and flax. 
 
 At Yerchne-Udinsk, which is about two hundred mUes 
 from Irkutsk, and the most important town on the Trans- 
 Baikal side of the lake, except Kyachta, we took the 
 frozen surface of the Selenga, nor did we leave it till 
 within a ,few miles of Kyachta. This river is rich in 
 wild and beautiful scenery, has almost continuous settle- 
 ments along its banks, and large flocks of sheep were 
 grazing upon the mountain sides. We only stopped to 
 change horses at the regular stations, which were gener- 
 ally convenient to the river, and frequently our sleigh was 
 left standing upon the river until a change of horses was 
 provided. We saw in the distance Old Selenginsk, once 
 the capital of this country before Irkutsk was founded, 
 but now shorn of much of its former greatness by the 
 march of empire eastward. It stands, nevertheless, in a 
 fine agricultural and stock country, and still has some of 
 its former trade. 
 
 The scenery on this river is fine, even in the winter ; 
 it must be really enchanting in spring and summer. The 
 ■mountains are lofty, with beautiful valleys interspersed, 
 and there is much forest. Yet some of the mountains 
 form steep precipices, whose base and almost perpendicu- 
 
68 VOTAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 lar sides quite oTerhang the river. As the river winds 
 througli this beautiful country, you see many vistas where 
 the landscape would weU. reward the pencil of an artist. 
 
 Old Selenginsk, the scene of very early Eussian pow- 
 er and settlement in these regions, looks deserted, and 
 has lost rank since the settlement of New Selenginsk on 
 the opposite side of the river, a mile or more distant. 
 This is the point to which the early ambassadors came on 
 their way to Pekin, and where troops and munitions were 
 gathered to be used in Tartar warfare. 
 
 The river abounds in fish, and great quantities are 
 taken by the people in the spring and summer ; particularly 
 a fish called omully, which comes up out of Baikal to spawn, 
 like the. herring in our rivers on the Atlantic coast. Wheth- 
 er these fish come from the sea I could not learn, but I be- 
 lieve it is said that the lake is to them the sea. Seals also 
 are found in the lake the year round, and are caught by 
 the people in the winter for their skins. There are many 
 varieties of fish in Bailcal — one especially interesting, 
 which at certain periods is cast dead upon the shores of 
 the lake. A live one has never been seen. This fish is 
 a mere mass of fat, from which the inhabitants make 
 quantities of oil, which is largely used for domestic pur- 
 poses, and is burned for light. Bitumen or asphalt is also 
 thrown up from the depths of the lake and cast upon the 
 shores, and from this also the people easily obtain oil. 
 The shock of an earthquake was felt here on the 10th of 
 August last. Baikal was called the Holy Sea by the na- 
 tive Tartars ; and the fact of these migrating fish and seal 
 living in it the year round, would justly entitle it to be 
 classed as a sea. 
 
FEOM IRKUTSK TO KYACHTA. 69 
 
 We readied the mouth of Kyachta creek, where it 
 falls into the Selenga, about 10 p. m., on the second day 
 after leaving Irkutsk. Here we had to leave our sleigh, 
 as the road was practicable only for wheel-vehicles. The 
 police master of Kyachta had passed us on the road, and 
 at this point, without our knowledge, had already pro- 
 vided the necessary means of conveyance for us to Ky- 
 achta, and was also prepared to render us all the aid and 
 comfort in his power within his bailiwick. A merchant 
 of the place sent for us to his house, where supper was 
 provided, and we were treated with every civility ; but I 
 was too unwell to enjoy the supper, and wanted a doctor 
 more than a cook. 
 
 The tarantass, a large partially-covered, four-wheeled 
 vehicle, swung on elastic poles between the wheels, which 
 were at least twelve feet apart, was ready with four black 
 horses, and we set forth about midnight. The night was 
 raw and cold, 15° below zero, with a piercing freezing 
 wind. The police master and Captain Beetsov rode on 
 before us in another vehicle, so as to have our quarters 
 prepared before we should reach Kyachta, as we learned 
 afterwards. 
 
 The road proved long, tiresome, and heavy, the horses 
 having at times as much as they could do to pull us at a 
 walk. We reached Troitzkosavsk about 5 A. M. , on the 
 second morning from Irkutsk, nearly frozen, sick, and 
 miserable. I had not felt so uncomfortable since leaving 
 Moscow ; in fact, it was the worst five hours that I had 
 passed in Siberia. 
 
CHAPTBE XI. 
 
 KYACHTA AND MIA-MAT-TSCHIN. 
 
 We found our friends at the house prepared for our 
 lodgings just on the outskirts of the town. It turned out 
 that this house belonged to Mr. EgouminofP, the oldest 
 and one of the chief merchants of Kyachta, and had 
 been appropriated to our use while we should remain in 
 the place — how, why, or by what means, I never could 
 fuUy learn — ^but I attributed the whole affair to the magic 
 wand of our friend, G-eneral Mouravieff ; which, in Siberia, 
 is almost equal in potency to the lamp of Aladdin. 
 
 .Fires were soon lighted in our lodgings, and we made 
 our beds upon sofas, with our furs and pillows, and rested 
 for several hours. "The rattle of crockery and the stir of 
 attendance soon indicated that we were not to starve, and 
 presently we had before us a charming supper : delicious 
 tea, light crisp bread, steaks, and cold fowl. 
 
 We had slept a little since our arrival, but yet my 
 head continued to ache, and I felt reaUy sick ; but the tea 
 seemed to revive me, to which I added a teaspoonful of 
 magnesia with a little vinegar, which in the course of an 
 hour relieved me very much. 
 
KYACHTA AND MIA-MAT-TSGHIN. 71 
 
 So soon as we were rested we called upon our host, Mr. 
 Egouminoff, who had sent his own vehicle for our use ; 
 this was a very genteel drojJce on four wheels, with a seat 
 running fore and aft, on which half a dozen persons could 
 be seated back to back — a well-dressed driver and a really 
 fine and spirited horse made up a capital turn-out. 
 
 We found Mr. Egouminoff at his own residence in the 
 city of Kyachta, two miles distant from Trditzkosavsk, 
 where he received us with great cordiality and hospitality. 
 After remaining a short time with him, we drove over 
 the Kusso-Chinese line to take a hurried look at the Celes- 
 tials in the city of Mia-mat-tschin. We had many cups 
 of tea and some cups of hot wine with the merchants of 
 " The Flowery Kingdom," looked at their shops and store- 
 houses, their temples and idols, walked through their 
 streets, very closely eyed by the curious people, and, by 
 appointment, returned to dine with Mr. Egouminoff. 
 
 The dinner was excellent, with several kinds of wine, 
 closing with champagne. We had also the pleasure of 
 the company of Mrs. E. and daughter, and several other 
 guests, besides a handsome widow. We saw what we 
 could of the little city, and retired to our quarters to get 
 a night's rest, which, after tjie thr^e previous nights, 
 mostly spent on the road, we found very desirable indeed. 
 That night was one of the nights to be recollected, and 
 we did not wake up till late the following day, when we 
 accompanied a party of Eussians who were invited to dine 
 with a Chinese merchant in Mia-mat-tschin. 
 
 We had a bountiful number of dishes, and I have no 
 doubt it was a good dinner, if we could have known how 
 to have eaten it. Wine and spirits were also served, and 
 
72 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 tea aftei-wardSj to whicli I did fall justice — pure and 
 simple tea out of nice little China cups. After dinner tlie 
 ladies went shopping, as ladies will do in all countries, the 
 fair dames and damsels of Siberia being every whit as 
 fond of the amusement as our own wives and sisters on 
 this side of the water. 
 
 Porcelain jars and vases, fancy lacquered boxes, fans, 
 ,and other -little Celestial notions, just from Pekin and 
 Nankin, Moukden and Canton, with musk from Thibet, 
 and shawls from Cashmere, rubies and garnets, pearls and 
 opals from Bukaria, Cabul, and Balk — all these little 
 notions, with a thousand others, were priced and ex- 
 amined, some purchases were made, and after a visit to a 
 tea warehouse and the capacious kitchen of our host, 
 where our dinner had been prepared, we retired to Ky- 
 achta. 
 
 I do not know who proposed to make a visit of in- 
 spection to the kitchen, but the ladies eagerly seconded 
 the motion, anxious to get a glimpse at the interior of 
 Chinese cookery. A glance was sufficient. The ladies 
 silently retreated the instant they reached the threshold, 
 and we -followed them with little delay. The walls of the 
 kitchen were covered with paintings, as large as life, of 
 the most grossly obscene character. • 
 
 Mr. Egouminoff, judging rightly that our Mia-mat- 
 tschin repast was one more satisfying to curiosity than to 
 the stomach, had a sumptuous dinner prepared for the 
 party upon our return, to which we sat down- soon after 
 reaching his house. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 THE FEAST OF LANTERNS. 
 
 Mr. Despot Zenovitch, the commissioner of the 
 frontier, an office nearly equivalent to that of consul- 
 general and collector of the customs combined, showed us 
 much attention and civility, and, among other clever acts, 
 invited us to accompany him to the " Feast of Lanterns," 
 the new year or white moon of the Chinese, to which he 
 was invited by the governor of Mia-mat-tschin, Pah- 
 Loyah, the " Zar-gots-tschay." "We were introduced as 
 Russian merchants from St. Petersburg ; the party con- 
 sisted of some twenty merchants and other guests. 
 
 We were introduced as Russians, because had it been 
 as Americans, it would have led to explanations on the 
 part of the commissioner, which he wished to avoid. Cap- 
 tain Beetsov explained this to us, and said that further 
 west than St. Petersburg the Zar-gots-tschay would not be 
 able to comprehend. I was perfectly willing to forego my 
 nationality for the time, in order to attend the " Feast of 
 Lanterns." 
 
 In company with the commissioner, in a vehicle, es- 
 corted by a troop of Cossacks, we passed out of the south- 
 ern gate of Kyachta, over the neutral ground, to the 
 northern gate of Mai-mat-tschin. Here we were received 
 4 
 
74 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 by a Mongol guard of honor, and, preceded by a band of 
 music, we entered the principal street on our way to the 
 hall of entertainment. The houses are well built, gener- 
 ally around a court, are mostly of one story, and entered 
 through a gateway, or port, before you reach the residence 
 of the owner. The streets are narrow, say fifteen feet in 
 width, but very clean, and covered with a kind of cement 
 for pavement. As we passed, the streets were crowded 
 with Chinese and Mongol faces to get a sight of the " out- 
 side barbarians." 
 
 Arriving at the entrance of the court leading to the 
 residence of the Zar-gots-tschay, we alighted from our 
 carriage, and, amid the squeaking of fiddles, the rattle 
 of drums, and the clang of gongs, entered through courts 
 and corridors into the dining-hall, or " room of feasts." 
 Here we found the chief, an aged, tall man, of the Man- 
 choo race, who received us with great cordiality. We 
 were soon seated, and tea being served with confectionery, 
 the " feast" commenced. I sat next but one to the chief 
 on his right hand ; wine being served, he motioned us to 
 drink. A very burning kind of spirit was also served in 
 small cups, and the number, Mnd, and quality of the 
 dishes, or rather bowls, which were constantly being served, 
 was absolutely beyond computation. Each guest was 
 furnished with a saucer half filled with a kind of soy, or 
 diluted vinegar, into which the delicious morsels taken 
 from, the aforesaid bowls by the little soup-ladle or chop- 
 sticks at the side of your saucer were to be dipped ; the 
 chief frequently selecting with his own chops dainty mor- 
 sels, which he conveyed to my now overflowing saucer in 
 the most patronizing and gracious manner. 
 
THE FEAST OF LANTEENS. 75 
 
 After these innumeraMe courses, the table was cleared, 
 ■\Vhen, from the upper end of the room, came attendants, 
 bearing tables, on which were several whole pigs, roasted 
 in the most approved style, and approaching quite to the 
 front of the chief, exhibited to the guests this crowning 
 glory of the " feast," all smoking hot. The chief bowed 
 approvingly to the cook, and the pigs disappeared by a side 
 door. Then came clean saucers and more soy, and soon 
 followed well filled bowls of the aforesaid pigs, all finely 
 cut into thin strips, with pieces of the crisped skin broken 
 into small squares. Finally, small bowls of plain boiled 
 rice, perfectly dry, were served, and the feast closed in 
 honor of the Russian guests with sparkling champagne. 
 
 A few minutes before we sat down to dinner, we were 
 invited into the court in front of the hall to witness the 
 performance of a band of players, among whom were_ sev- 
 eral men dressed as women, in a native Mongol dance. 
 During the dinner the band of musicians were piping 
 their music, and performing their antics for the gratification 
 of the crowd on the outside. After champagne was freely 
 drank, the chief invited the company to visit the theatre. 
 This we did on foot ; and here was presented a scene 
 worthy of the pencil. The chief, preceded by a few Mon- 
 gol guards to clear the way of the crowding multitude, 
 conducted us to an open pavilion in front of the theatre, 
 where we were seated on wooden benches around a table. 
 The theatre is simply a stage open in front and on the 
 sides, with screens for the performers to retire behind. The 
 audience stand in the open air. The players were already 
 in the midst of some grand scene when we arrived. 
 
 The Mongol guards cleared, and kept free a space in 
 
76 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 front of the chiefs box. Tea, confectionery, and dried 
 fruit were served to us during the performance of the 
 play. The crowd of spectators swayed to and fro like the 
 surges of the ocean. The united breath of the multitude 
 ascended like steam from a boiling caldron, the tempera- 
 ture being at 12° of Fahrenheit. 
 
 After some time spent here we visited the great pagoda. 
 By this time night had set in, and the illumination by 
 lanterns had commenced in good earnest. Passing through 
 a court immediately in front of the theatre, we were con- 
 ducted by the Zar-gots-tschay into the temple. On tables 
 in front of the different idols a great variety of dishes 
 were spread, with whole carcasses of sheep, as a repast for 
 the gods. At night these dishes are taken by the priests 
 and eaten in the recesses of the temple. The sheep, I 
 suppose, go the way of all flesh, and serve for the priestly 
 dinner next day. 
 
 From the temple we returned to the dining-room, 
 where a party of Kussian ladies from Kyachta and 
 Irkutsk had been invited to meet us t& take tea, and then 
 to partake with us of the " Feast of Lanterns." They 
 soon arrived. Tea, confectionery, and fruits were served. 
 Some children that were along were loaded with sweet 
 things by the good-hearted old chief We were now very 
 soon on our way to see and partake of the " Feast of 
 Lanterns." But how shall I describe the indescribable ! 
 Led on by the Zar-gots-tschay, preceded by the whole 
 band of musicians, actors, and mountebanks, with two 
 special lantern-bearers carrying great round lanterns im- 
 mediately in front of the chief, and followed and pressed 
 on all sides by a motley crowd of Tartars, we commenced 
 the promenade of the evening. 
 
THE FEAST OF LANTERNS. 77 
 
 The streets were beautifully ornamented with colored 
 paper suspended from the roofs of the buildings on cords, 
 and lanterns of every imaginable size, shape, and color, 
 lighted the streets and illuminated the buildings and 
 temples. 
 
 Thus led on, pressed by the crowd, to the tune of 
 the unmusical Mongol music, we proceeded through one 
 of the principal streets to the residence of the first mer- 
 chant with whom we were to " feast," and this was to be 
 repeated eight times in different parts of the city at as 
 many different establishments. But it will not do to 
 describe the eight suppers or feasts ; they were but little 
 removed in style or fashion from the dinner. Of course, 
 eating was out of the question and impossible ; but tast- 
 ing and drinking innumerable cups of tea and hot Chinese 
 wine was absolutely necessary, in order to satisfy the press- 
 ing invitations of the various hosts, who frequently added 
 Madeira and champagne. 
 
 At the entrance of each establishment the musicians 
 ranged themselves in open order, piping us into each 
 house, and during the repast continued their antics and 
 music for the amusement of the crowd without. At our 
 / exit they took up the line of march, the lantern-bearers 
 resumed their station, and on we went amid fireworks, 
 fire-crackers, plays, and lanterns, to the next feast, and 
 so on to the end. 
 
 The concluding feast was near the gate. The Zar- 
 gots-tschay and the host of the feast bid us good night. 
 We reached our vehicle at the outer port, the Mongol 
 guard and music conducting us. Here the commissioner's 
 Cossack escort were mounted, waiting, and, amid the 
 
78 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 shouts of the crowd, we crossed the " neutral ground," 
 and passed the gate of Kyachta, put the commissioner 
 down at his residence, and reached my lodgings, three 
 mUes distant, all the better for the ride, in a clear frosty 
 night, with the thermometer at 10°, which helped much 
 to counteract the effects of the various Chinese potations. 
 
CHAPTEB XIII. 
 
 A RUSSIAN DINNEE. 
 
 On the day previous to our departure, we were invited 
 by the merchants of Kyachta to a public dinner, to be 
 given at their club-rooms, to the two Americans, the first 
 that had ever been in their city. 
 
 The club-house is handsome and spacious, and the 
 dining-haU capable of seating a hundred guests. When 
 we arrived, at four p. m., a numerous party were already 
 assembled. The military were well represented, and the 
 principal civil functionaries of the city were present. 
 
 A band of muaic struck up as we entered, and, passing 
 into the room, we were received by the Grolovah, who wel- 
 comed us in the name of the merchants of Kyachta to 
 their city, as the pioneers of American commerce, and the 
 heralds of steamboats on the Amoor. 
 
 We passed along through the dining-room, to an ad- 
 joining apartment, where most of the company were as- 
 sembled. Here we were introduced to various gentlemen, 
 among whom we also found several old acquaintances from 
 Irkutsk. About sixty persons sat down to dinner, after 
 having observed a custom which is nearly universal 
 throughout the empire. Either in the hall, in an adjoin- 
 
80 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 ing room, or upon a side-table in the dining-room, is pre- 
 pared what we would call a luncheon, composed of bread, 
 salted fish, caviar, ham, butter, brandy, wines, and cor- 
 dials. Each guest partakes of this, as an appetitive, just 
 before going to dinner, in fact, on his way to the table — 
 a true Eussian dinner is not complete without it. 
 
 The dining-room swarmed with servants, and the band 
 of musicians and a choir of singers gave us instrumental 
 and vocal music at intervals. The dinner proved to be a 
 regular drinking-bout, and I soon saw that in all proba- 
 bility we were fairly in for a debauch, at least if we drank 
 but one toast out of ten. To avoid drinking was out of 
 the question, among such a lot of good fellows, and our 
 only salvation was to touch as lightly as possible before the 
 champagne came, which is generally towards the close of 
 the entertainment, at which time you are expected to 
 drink bumpers. But unfortunately the champagne began 
 to flow before the dinner was half over, and as bumpers 
 must be drank out of respect and politeness, as well for 
 the host as the subject toasted, I began to fear that I 
 should really run over before the dinner closed. 
 
 The emperor always receives the first toast, after which 
 there appears to be no regularity in the form and manner 
 of toasting. The name of Greneral Mouravieff was next 
 given, and without a moment's consideration whether it 
 was proper or not, though knowing that the custom of re- 
 sponding to toasts does not prevail in Kussia, I rose to re- 
 ply, and said as follows : 
 
 " Gentlemen-merchants of Kyachta, you have done 
 well in drinking to the health of Mcolai Nicolaivitch 
 Lieutenant-General Mouravieff, and with your permission. 
 
A RUSSIAN DINNER. 81 
 
 I cannot refrain from saying a few words when I hear his 
 name mentioned. — (Clapping of hands, and horosho ! 
 horosho ! ! good ! good ! !) — Because I have had an oppor- 
 tunity to see what he has done for your country. In him 
 Kussia has a true, a faithful, a vigilant, and sagacious 
 public servant. He knows the wants, the interests, and 
 the rights of Eussia, and how to provide for the one, to 
 advance the other, to defend her when in peril. 
 
 " In opening up Siberia to the commerce of the world, 
 through that magnificent river the Amoor, whose head 
 waters drain yonder snow-clad mountains, he has done 
 more for your country than any of his predecessors. Look 
 upon the map, and regard the peculiar situation of Si- 
 beria, and you must at once perceive that it is only 
 through this river that you can have communication with 
 the great ocean, and thus an extended commerce with all 
 the nations of the world. 
 
 " This great river, and its tributaries in the possession 
 of Eussia, with steam upon their waters, and a railroad 
 connecting you and it with Lake Baikal, and steamers 
 upon this magnificent sheet of water, and the more west- 
 ern rivers of Siberia, would open up a system of inland 
 navigation, wonderful in extent, and absolutely past cal- 
 culation in its commercial results. 
 
 " Siberia, then, would be able to contend with Eng- 
 land for the commerce of China and of India. Peter the 
 Great and Catharine II. thought the Chinese commerce 
 worthy of their consideration, and the existence of your 
 own beautiful, rich, and prosperous little city, attests the 
 wisdom of their policy; and I shall be very much mistaken 
 if your present sagacious emperor does not increase your 
 4* 
 
82 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 wealth, by increasing the borders and commerce of your 
 country also, and that before a yery long period. 
 
 "I am no prophet, nor the son of a prophet ; but if 
 General Mouravieff does what I think he will do, and what 
 I believe Eussia ought to allow him to do, I believe that 
 his country will hereafter accord to him the honor of creat- 
 ing a new era in the history of Siberia, for the occupation 
 of the Amoor Kiver by Eussia must become celebrated in 
 history as the event of an age. 
 
 " It is with great pleasure, then, that I have drank his 
 health, because through his policy in opening the Amoor, 
 the Americans will become acquainted with Siberia and 
 Siberians, and with the great trade of your own city, and 
 from what I have already witnessed, that acquaintance 
 will prove of mutual advantage, and a -great commerce 
 must spring up between the two countries, beneficial to 
 both." ^ 
 
 This speech created a lively sensation, and was well 
 received ; hands were shaken prodigiously, and champagne 
 flowed fiercely. After some little time spent in animated 
 conversation, the Golovah proposed the health of the 
 President (elect) of the United States, Mr. Buchanan. 
 This was of course drank standing, with cheers and bum- 
 pers, and as my companion would not respond, I rose to 
 the call from all sides of the house, and let off a little of 
 the champagne in the following speech : 
 
 " Gentlemen-merchants of Kyachta, it gives me un- 
 alloyed pleasure, as an American citizen, in a land so far 
 remote from my native country, and one so distant as this 
 is from the active scenes of our national politics, to reply 
 to the toast just proposed, ' the President of the United 
 
A RUSSIAN DINNBE. 83 
 
 States of America.' In proposing this toast, you have, 
 as Bussians, done honor to a friend, because I know 
 personally the sentiments of the President towards your 
 country. 
 
 " If it were possible for Eussia to want proof of our 
 determination to act justly and fairly with her, we could 
 point triumphantly to the fact that our President recently 
 dismissed the minister of one of the most powerful nations 
 of Europe, because he violated a principle of our national 
 law, wherein Eussia was concerned during the late allied 
 war against her. 
 
 " But you want no extraordinary or recent proof of our 
 friendshijj and good-fellowship towards your country, for 
 the United States have been your true and tried friends 
 since our national existence. 
 
 " It is truly gratifying to us, as Americans, to respond 
 here in Kyachta, ground on which no American ever stood 
 before, to so friendly a sentiment. It revives in us recipro- 
 cal feelings towards your sovereign, who has manifested 
 the most friendly feelings towards our country. 
 
 " The President of the United States but reflects the 
 will, and gives utterance' to the voice, of the American 
 people in his friendly relations with Eussia. Eeceive, then, 
 gentlemen, from us, the reciprocal assurances of friendship 
 towards your own beloved country." 
 
 By this time every thing had disappeared from the table 
 except bottles and glasses, and bumpers were exchanged 
 between neighboring parties, just in order to keep their 
 hands in for the next regular toast. Presently the Grolo- 
 vah rose, and glasses all being filled to the brim, and run- 
 ning over, sUence was restored, and he gave, " Our guests, 
 the Americans." 
 
84 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 I was now ready and willing to resign to my com- 
 panion the oratorical field, and retire upon my honors, but 
 Peyton would not speak, so off I went for the honor of the 
 nation. The toast was drank with hearty good-will, and 
 all eyes were turned upon us. I said : 
 
 '■' Mr. Golovah, and your associates, merchants of Ky- 
 achta, it becomes me to reply to the toast just proposed 
 for my friend Mr. Peyton and myself, who have been so 
 kindly, so hospitably, and so nobly entertained by you. 
 
 " We cannot receive this magnificent banquet as solely 
 for ourselves, because it is too much for us to assume, and 
 we know that individually it is more than we could ask of 
 your generous hospitality, but we receive it as Americans 
 for America, for that country of which we are proud to be 
 citizens, and as an earnest of the friendly feelings that you 
 are willing to extend to our countrymen. 
 
 " We shall ever cherish in our hearts this spontaneous 
 expression of your kindness towards us, and of the noble 
 and generous hospitality of Kyachta. I wish it were pos- 
 sible for me to speak the feelings of my heart to you in 
 your own native and expressive tongue, then I could do 
 justice to myself and my feelings, and thank you in be- 
 coming language for your generous kindness ; but, as it is, 
 I must content myself with but few words. 
 
 'In conclusion, Mr. Mayor, receive for yourself and 
 your brother-merchants of Kyachta, our warm and heart- 
 felt thanks." 
 
 I now gave, " the Grolovah and Merchants of Kyachta," 
 all glasses were refilled, and it was drank with bumpers. 
 The G-olovah then said : 
 
 " It gives me much pleasure to meet Americans in 
 
A RUSSIAN DINNEE. 85 
 
 Siberia, and we hope that now you have shown your coun- 
 trymen the way, that they will hereafter come to our coun- 
 try, y^e thank you, also, for the sentiments you have 
 spoken in regard to Eussia and Siberia ; we have always 
 beheved that the Americans were friendly towards us, and 
 we are pleased that that sentiment stiU prevails in the 
 United States. 
 
 " Tou have paid a just tribute to the genius and saga- 
 city of General-Governor Mouravieff. We aU feel that he 
 has done great things for Siberia. The opening of the 
 Amoor alone ought to prove to everybody his great desire 
 for the prosperity of Siberia and the grandeur of Eussia. 
 Through this great river we hope that, upon your return 
 to your country, you will be able to tell your merchants 
 that they will be able to reach Siberia, and exchange trade 
 with us. We believe it can be made mutually beneficial 
 to both countries." 
 
 Though the wine continued to flow, I really hoped 
 that the dinner was over. I could not now see much room 
 for its continuance, and I was sure there could not be much 
 more room within the company. Finally, the Golovah 
 rose, and the dinner ended, and with it, as I supposed, the 
 drinking also ; but I was mistaken. We adjourned to the 
 coffee-room, where tea and coffee were both served ; the 
 tea really delicious, the purest herb of China. I drank 
 very freely of it, for I hoped that it would counteract the 
 effects of the wine. As soon as politeness would seem to 
 justify, we rose to depart. In the mean time, the dining- 
 room had been cleared of every vestige of the dinner, 
 tables and all, and was now occupied by groups in ani- 
 mated conversation. As soon as we entered the apart- 
 
86 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 .ment, servants, bearing trays loaded with glasses, foaming 
 with champagne, approached us, and the Grolovah pressed , 
 us to take the parting glass. This it was idle to refuse, so 
 we drank, as we supposed, for really the last time. Pres- 
 ently I noticed a pretty dense circle encompassing Peyton, 
 and in an instant he was seized by halfia-dozen stout, 
 joUy merchants, and tossed up in the direction of the ceil- 
 ing. Fortunately it was not a very low one, or else he 
 must have gone through to the roof Down he came, 
 however, into the hands of his tormentors, who sent him 
 up again, if any thing, higher than ever, the most uproari- 
 ous mirth and laughter prevailing. My companion was 
 not a small man, or a light one, but he was no more than 
 a feather in the hands of these portly Siberians. 
 
 This sport is called in Eussian podJceedovate, or toss- 
 ing-up, and is_ considered a mark of great respect. Gren- 
 eral Mouravieff told me, after our return, that he had had 
 podheedovate performed upon him in the same room. 
 
 During the performance, I stood half-aghast, looking at 
 the figure Peyton was cutting, a man six feet high and 
 well proportioned, going up and down Kke a trap-ball, his 
 coat-tail flying sky-high, and his face as red as a brick. 
 I was all the time consoling myself that they had adminis- 
 tered this extra touch of hospitality to Peyton because 
 they considered him the most worthy, and the best able 
 to stand it, and I said to Beetsov, " I hope one tossing 
 for the American nation will- be considered honor enough." 
 He replied, " Your turn will very likely come too." 
 
 After a while Peyton came down, and staid down. 
 Servants again came around, and again we had to drink 
 champagne. I had just emptied my glass, and placed it 
 
A RUSSIAN DINNER. 87 
 
 on the waiter, when, without a moment's warning, I was . 
 seized, and up I went. Being much lighter than Peyton, 
 and handled after him by these stoutj and now very jovial 
 and mellow fellows, I have a distinct recollection of .touch- 
 ing the ceiling. My coat-tail certainly did, and what I 
 thought at first a piece of good fortune, now proved to be 
 otherwise, for, having taken Peyton's guage with regard 
 to weight, they did not take into consideration my light- 
 ness, and I came near going through the top of the house. 
 Up I went and down I came, only to go up again, until 
 my friends were satisfied that if I was not drunk before, 
 my head would certainly swim now. However, I was able 
 to stand when I came to my feet, which was more than 
 I calculated upon when tossing between the floor and 
 ceiling. 
 
 Of course we all had to take another drink. By thid 
 time Peyton and I were working our way towards the 
 door, in order to evacuate this citadel of hospitality, and 
 finally succeeded in reaching our sleigh, which was stand- 
 ing near the entrance of the house ; we had, however, to 
 partake of the stirrup cup after we were seated ; and thus 
 ended one of the most extraordinary, and, barring the 
 overflow of wine, one of the most agreeable dinners I ever 
 partook of 
 
 As we had made arrangements to leave for Irkutsk 
 • that night, it was our duty to call on Mr. Bgoumenoff, and 
 thank him for his hospitality while in Kyachta. How- 
 ever, we first rode to our lodgings, about two miles dis- 
 tant, in order to breathe the cold air, and relieve us a 
 little from the effects of the banc[uet. 
 
 Late in the evening we repaired to Mr. Egoumenoff's, 
 
88 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 ' but before be would listen to our adieus we were compelled 
 to take a last and parting glass of cbampagne. We 
 parted with our kind host, and at half-past one A. m. were 
 seated* in our tarantass, and galloping out of the northern 
 street of Troitzkosavsk, on our return to Irkutsk. But 
 we were fated to be disappointed in having drank the final 
 glass of champagne for the night, and I had hoped for a 
 month, for our 'constant and most obliging friend, Golova- 
 chevsky, was at the northern gate of the town, with what 
 I verUy hoped was the last bottle of champagne in Sibe- 
 ria, which of course had to be drank, but as we were now 
 in the open, frosty air, and a long, cold ride before us, it 
 perhaps did us no harm ; at all events, it went the way 
 of all champagne, and shaking the offered hand of our 
 kind friend, we bade farewell to Kyachta. 
 
OHAPTEK XIV. 
 
 EETUEN TO IRKUTSK. 
 
 We passed back in the direction of Irkutsk over the 
 same road we came, killing one horse on the way, though 
 how many more died from hard driving afterwards, we had 
 no account of. The death of that horse was a singular 
 circumstance. We were galloping rapidly, and were ap- 
 proaching the station, when the animal dropped as if 
 struck hy lightning. We were in such rapid motion upon 
 the smooth ice of the river, that though several yards from 
 the stopping point, the other horses kept on, dragging the 
 dead horse, nor did the driver attempt to stop them, hut 
 seemed determined to reach the station at full speed. As 
 soon as we had stopped I got out and examined the body. 
 It was as stiff as a poker, and stirred not a muscle, the 
 eyes being cold and glassy. The fact is, the horse must 
 have been dead before he fell, and his muscular action was 
 kept up some time after life had departed. We inquired 
 of Captain Beetsov as to our responsibility for the loss, 
 but he said as he was riding as a courier, if any damage 
 had been done, the accounts could be presented at Irkutsk 
 — ^we had nothing to do with it. 
 
90 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 The driver put on a very sorry face, and in order to 
 clieer his droopiag spirits, we gave him a few roubles, which 
 seemed to have all the vivifying qualities req[uisite, and 
 produced in the new driver very great alacrity in yoking 
 in the fresh horses, and a speedy departure from the 
 station. 
 
 We performed the return journey in about forty-eight 
 hours, crossing Lake Baikal at night in three hours and a 
 half, and reached Irkutsk about 2 a. m., on the morning 
 of February 14th, 1857. 
 
 After our return there were balls, suppers, parties, 
 sleigh-rides, dinners, and theatricals in profusion. The 
 weather was generally pleasant, dry, cold, and clear, with- 
 out wind, the air bracing and healthy, and time passed 
 off pleasantly, though slowly to me, as I was impatient to 
 turn my face once more to the east. But to depart before 
 March was worse than useless, as I should have to remain 
 on the head waters of the Amoor until May before being 
 able to proceed as I wished by water. 
 
 On the Vth March, we took our farewell dinner with 
 Greneral Mouravieff, and Peyton departed for the United 
 States, via Moscow, on the 8th. I was now " solitary and 
 alone," the only American between Irkutsk and San Fran- 
 cisco. On the 9th I had a very agreeable conversation 
 with Greneral Mouravieff, and in the course of the morn- 
 ing made as many adieus as possible, conforming to the 
 Bussian custom. 
 
 It was a beautiful day, and the sun was shining in a 
 clear sky. After many adieus to very pleasant acq[uaint- 
 ances, we partook of breakfast at the residence of Colonel 
 Kleminoff, the general director or governor of the mines 
 
EETURN TO IRKUTSK. 91 
 
 of Tenisaisk. Colonel KoMe has a large family, and one 
 of the most agreeable and accomplished in Irkutsk 
 
 The impatient post-horses were soon at the door, Tou- 
 vieff received- his papers, and as it was 3 p. m., and we 
 were to dine next day at Verchne-Udinsk, some two hun- 
 dred miles distant, we hurried through the streets and out 
 of the north-eastern gate of the capital of Eastern Siberia. 
 
CHAPTEE XV. • 
 
 FKOM IRKUTSK TO PETEOVSKEY. 
 
 We galloped along for some time upon tlie margin of 
 the frozen Angara^ and again upon its banks, changing 
 horses once before we reached Lake Baikal, along the left 
 shore of ■which, changing horses again, we reached the 
 jumping-off station where the lake must be crossed, about 
 forty miles over, with one set of horses. It was now 
 night, and the sky had seemingly closed down upon us, 
 with a duU, heavy, impenetrable sort of canopy, the at- 
 mosphere of which was so intensely cold and thick, that 
 the breathing of it seemed to make up for the vacuum 
 within, consequent upon nothing to eat since breakfast. 
 We, however, fortified ourselves by drinking of a dozen 
 or so of cups of hot tea before we launched our sleigh 
 upon this frozen sea. Oar four sprightly, snorting, shaggy 
 little horses were already at the door, our driver was seated, 
 golovey was the word, and, wrapping ourselves snugly in 
 our furs and skins, with the merry little bells ringing at 
 the yoke of our shaft-horse, we were soon speeding at full 
 gallop over Baikal. 
 
 It was not so cold as I had before experienced, yet I 
 felt it more than on the first occasion when I crossed the 
 
FEOM IRKUTSK TO PETROVSKET. 93 
 
 lake, owing to the peculiarly raw state of the atmosphere. 
 The darkness was frightful ; there was danger of gaps or 
 fissures in the ice, but my companion, Captain Gourieff, 
 berated the driver until the smoking breath and sweat of 
 the horses fairly rained upon us in frozen particles and 
 enveloped us in a sort of frozen mist ; but the nimble 
 clattering feet of our horses, assisted and hastened by 
 blows, and the curses of the driver, in something more 
 than three hours brought us to the next station on the 
 eastern shore of the lake. Fresh horses being quickly pro- 
 cured (for a courier's pass opens every door and removes 
 all difficulties), we hastened along frozen water-courses, 
 through open fields and sleeping villages, and, after day- 
 light, procuring hot tea and a slice of bread, we hurried on. 
 
 We arrived at Verchne-Udinsk in time to dine, by in- 
 vitation of the merchants, at a public dinner given to 
 General Korsackoff', the governor of this province, who 
 had preceded us by a day on his way from Irkutsk to 
 Chetah. The dinner, as well as the company, were aU one 
 could desire, and after the twenty-four hours' drive it was 
 a very comforting affair to my inner man. Champagne 
 and other wines were plenty, and both General Korsac- 
 koff and myself had to answer to the drinking of our 
 healths. Captain Gourieff, a good English scholar, ren- 
 dered my speech into Eussian, which was received with 
 apparent satisfaction as well as applause. 
 
 After a very pleasant time, we set out at 11 p. m., for 
 Petrarsky iron works, taking the same road, or rather 
 river, we had traversed on our way to Kyachta. After a 
 couple of stations on the river, we left it on the right, and 
 commenced ascending the mountains. We had gone along 
 
94 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 fairly while on the river, but, once upon the land, we 
 found the road frequently bare of snow. After toiling on 
 very slowly for some time, and the night bitterly cold and 
 in an open vashoJc, we came to a dead halt, the horses re- 
 fusing or being unable to pull us over the bare ground any 
 longer. Our driver, with whip and oaths, did all he 
 could to make them go on, but to no purpose. There we 
 stuck on the side of the mountain. G-ourieff scolded the 
 driver soundly for daring to set out with runners when he 
 knew that there was no snow upon the ground; but he con- 
 tended that there had been snow, or ought to have been, 
 and that the devil had blown it away, or done something 
 else with it. It was bitterly cold, the wind blowing 
 fiercely, and it was yet several hours to morning and ten 
 mUes to the next village or station. The driver finally 
 gave up and declared that his horses could not pull the 
 vehicle. Nothing was left for us to do but to wait until 
 the driver could go to the next station and procure fresh 
 horses. Off he went, leaving us desolate enough. I had 
 vague and discouraging reminiscenses in my memory of 
 travellers in the wilds of Siberia being attacked and de- 
 voured by wolves, and not anticipating any danger or de- 
 tention on the road, we had not so much as a pocket- 
 knife for defence. We, however, had some consolation in 
 the fact that the three remaining horses would serve for a 
 lunch for a tolerably hungry pack before trying Gourieff 
 and myself 
 
 The hours wore away cold, dreary, tedious, but finally 
 the rattling of wheels and the shout of the driver were 
 heard conaing down the mountain. We were soon trans- 
 ferred into the wagon and once more under way. We 
 
FEOM IKKUTSK TO PETROVSKET. 95 
 
 rode along over tlie mountains whicli flank immediately on 
 tlie river, and afterwards came into a rolling country, witli 
 fine valleys, along which we rode, sometimes changing our 
 telyaga for a vashoJc, or vice versa, as the snow, or ground, 
 or ice would justify. We drank tea at a peasant's cabin, 
 and the good housewife furnished us with cream, bread, 
 and fresh eggs, of which we made a pleasant and hearty 
 breakfast. 
 
 "We galloped along through valleys and over hills, and 
 towards night reached the Zarad of Petrovskey, one hun- 
 dred miles to the southeast of Verchne-Odinsk. We were 
 received with hospitality by the superintendent, our bag- 
 gage was deposited in a room provided for our special ac- 
 commodation, and, after making a comfortable toilet in a 
 warm room, we were regaled with a good dinner and ex- 
 cellent wine. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 FROM PETEOVSKET TO VEKCHNE-ODISUSK. 
 
 Peteovsket.is the seat of government iron works 
 and the nucleus of a large village, wliicli has grown up 
 from liberated convicts and the industrial interest of the 
 iron mines. We spent a very pleasant evening with the 
 superintendent, a German engineer, who was superintend- 
 ing the construction of machinery for a steamer on the 
 Amoor, and with one or two other gentlemen connected 
 with the works, after which we retired and enjoyed a good 
 night's rest in a warm room. -No person can estimate 
 reasonably the amount of satisfaction derived from com- 
 fortable sleep after a cold and dreary night upon the road. 
 
 We found ourselves much revived in the morning. 
 Our host had a breakfast of cutlets and other creature 
 comforts prepared, after which we walked- out to look at 
 the iron works. We found a considerable degree of skiQ 
 exhibited in the various departments, though the estab- 
 lishment is ia rather a dilapidated condition. The works 
 produce about one thousand poods of bar-iron yearly, 
 which goes into the consumption of this section of the 
 country. There are also castings of hollow ware, ploughs, 
 and some machinery made of limited amount. 
 
FEOM PETROVSKET TO VEECHNE-ODISUSK. 97 
 
 These works were established in the reign of Peter the 
 Great, and belong to the crown, and are worked naostly 
 by convicts. Mineral coal is found in abundance in this 
 vicinity, but timber being also plentiful, charcoal is used 
 in smelting the ore. The ore is certainly of good quality, 
 and specimens of the bar-iron I saw looked well ; yet it is 
 said the quality is not good, and the price is so high that 
 large quantities of iron are brought from the Ural, two 
 thousand miles distant. 
 
 We saw here the iron framework of a building in 
 progress of construction, manufactured on the spot, which, 
 when completed, wOl augment the capacities of the present 
 establishment, and also afford a machine shop in which 
 steam engines can be built. It is anticipated that under 
 the new impetus given to everything here by the Amoor 
 movement that these works will receive such aid from the 
 government as will enable it to become a first-rate estab- 
 lishment. 
 
 My object was accomplished in seeing with my own 
 eyes a large iron foundery, smelting furnaces, trip ham- 
 mers, rolling-mill, and brass, copper, and iron fittings 
 being turned, polished, cast, and fitted here at the foot of 
 the mountains, from whose summits the Amoor could be 
 descried, and could be reached by a wagon-road within a 
 few days. Coal and iron are there in inexhaustible quan- 
 tities ; and with coal and iron man can do wonders. The 
 machinery was worked with water, though there is a steam 
 engine attached to the works, and in the improved and en- 
 larged works steam will be used as auxiliary. 
 
 We were treated with great politeness, and were 
 courteously shown everything, and spent an agreeable day 
 5 
 
98 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 with, tte intelligent superintendent. In the afternoon, 
 after dinner, we set out on our return and rode briskly 
 through the valleys and over the mountains, and, having 
 now the descent in our favor, reached Verchne-Udinsk the 
 following day. 
 
 Having tried the post station at this place once before, 
 and finding no accommodation for man or beast. Captain 
 Gourieff concluded that the best plan was to drive to the 
 house of our friend Mr. Korbatoff, the banker and mer- 
 chant prince of this section. We were very kindly re- 
 ceived by him, and, in due time, dinner was prepared for 
 us, which was washed down with champagne, sherry, 
 claret, and ale. This generous repast set us up again 
 after the previous night's ride, and we were now prepared 
 to go on our way rejoicing. 
 
OHAPTEE XVII. 
 
 FROM VEECHNE-UDINSK TO CHETAH. 
 
 I HAD met Mr. Korbatoff before at Irkutsk and also as 
 I passed up to Petrovskey at the dinner given to General 
 Korsackoff, and found him a very agreeable gentleman. 
 He had invited me to call upon him, and I intended to do 
 so, but I did not expect to drive into his yard, and, with 
 bag and baggage, occupy his house as a hotel. That, 
 however, is the style in Siberia. In travelling, you quarter 
 upon your friends without ceremony, stay as long as you 
 choose, and leave when it suits you. 
 
 Mr. Korbatoff was evidently very much pleased to see 
 us. Greneral Mouravieff had spoken in the highest terms 
 of the probity and character of this gentleman, and had 
 procured an interview between us on a previous occasion at 
 Irkutsk to talk over the commercial affairs of Siberia. 
 We, therefore, felt ourselves at home under his roof 
 
 Mr. Korbatoff is very wealthy — a millionnaire, in fact. 
 He is engaged in extensive commercial, manufacturing, 
 and mining enterprises, and has also contracts for supplying 
 the army. He lives in princely style in a house that may 
 be called a palace. We had our supper before setting 
 out, and the horses being at the door, we emptied a part- 
 
100 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 ing bottle of champagne, bade him farewell, and drove on 
 towards Chetah at 11 p. m. 
 
 Just above the town, as we were making our way upon 
 the surface of the river, we suddenly found the horses 
 splashing along through water knee deep. The driver 
 had slacked their pace, and it was not long before we called 
 a halt, as the water appeared to be deepening and the 
 horses were themselves unwilling to proceed. 
 
 We held a council to see what was to be done. The 
 driver declared that this was the only safe road to reach 
 the opposite side of the river, and that the water was 
 caused by a recent thaw of the snow further up. But 
 this explanation did not help the matter much. At length 
 a horse was unhitched, and the driver mounted, and was 
 despatched ahead to try the depth and practicability of the 
 proposed ford. He was soon lost to view in the distance 
 and the darkness, and even the splash of his horse's feet 
 died away, and there we sat, heaven knew how far from 
 shore, with the water nearly touching our feet. How- 
 ever, after some fifteen or twenty minutes, we heard the 
 returning splash of the driver, who reported that the 
 water would not be deeper than the bed of our wagon. 
 To return would be unpleasant, besides involving consid- 
 erable delay and a probability of an increased depth of 
 water. We concluded, therefore, to go ahead, and on we 
 splashed through the water in the dark, standing up in 
 the wagon to keep from being submerged. We, however, 
 succeeded in reaching the opposite shore without any 
 serious consecLuences, and drove up the bank and set foot 
 upon dry land as soon as possible, well pleased to get out 
 of the scrape so cheaply. The driver said that at that 
 
FROM VEKCHNE-UDINSK TO CHETAH. 101 
 
 season of the year it sometimes happened that a delay of 
 a week occurred in crossing the river. 
 
 We dashed along at a rattling pace, and under the 
 good influence of the last bottle of champagne, I slept 
 soundly, and was only awoke at the next station. We 
 had been, since leaving Irkutsk, riding in the vehicles be- 
 longing to the post, which are changed at every station 
 along with the horses, so that my nap was broken here, 
 much against my inclination. 
 
 These little wagons are very hard riding vehicles, es- 
 pecially if the road be rough. There is a box placed be- 
 tween the wheels on two poles, and in the better ones a 
 cover on the hind part to protect the head, and some of 
 them have an apron to button up from the foot, so as to 
 cover you partly in case of stormy weather; but you are 
 jolted and stirred up so effectually that you must go 
 through a seasoning before you can rest much in one of 
 them. 
 
 We hurried along during the day and found the road 
 tolerably good ; in truth, we could scarcely realize the fact 
 that we were approaching the great Altai chain, or, indeed, 
 crossing it, then ; but the range is very much depressed 
 and broken in this region, where the Selenga breaks 
 through and waters the " land of grass," as the Tartars 
 call Mongolia. The scenery at some points was beautiful, 
 though the atmosphere was too thick and hazy to let us 
 see the distant elevated ridges. Handsome openings, with 
 scattered timber and rounded hUls, with fine valleys, were 
 seen to the right, while much of the land to the north ran 
 off into an undulating prairie country. 
 
 We passed through many Burat villages, and changed 
 
102 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 horses and vehicles at their stations, while we obtained 
 very active and most excellent drivers. These Tartars 
 inhabit a large section of this portion of Siberia. They 
 formerly constituted a kingdom or khanate, lying north of 
 Mongolia proper, but have been entirely absorbed by 
 Kussia. 
 
 We were making very good time, and drove rapidly 
 over the mountains or among the hills. The road was 
 generally good, and we met with no delay at the stations. 
 General Mouravieff's courier was quickly despatched. 
 Gourieff gave the drivers no rest, and our little Tartar 
 horses fairly flew over the road. After becoming a little 
 more familiar with Eussian and Siberian travelling, I 
 found it expedient to have as little baggage as possible, 
 and to be satisfied with what I could find to eat at the 
 stations or towns on the road. In Siberia I found it bet- 
 ter to provide nothing but tea and sugar. 
 
 When riding in the post-vehicles you should be as 
 little encumbered as possible, because at every station out 
 goes everything from the old to the new vehicle, and this 
 is troublesome and annoying if you have much baggage. 
 Gourieff generally succeeded well with the good woman at 
 the stations, and if any thing was to be had in the kitchen 
 or larder we did not starve. Eggs, cream, cheese, black- 
 bread, fish, and sometimes cutlets or steaks, made up the 
 biU of fare. 
 
 On the following day we were dashing along in the 
 midst of a severe blinding snow-storm on the very summit 
 of the mountains, and had sleighs instead of wagons for 
 several stations. Towards noon the storm came thicker 
 and faster, and Gourieff swore lustUy at the driver, fearing 
 
FEOM VEECHNE UDINSK TO CHETAH. 103 
 
 that we might have to spend the day in a snow-drift. We 
 lost our way at one time, the driver becoming completely 
 hewUdered, as aU signs of the track were buried under the 
 snow, while the atmosphere was so thick that no object ten 
 paces off could be seen. We finally came among some 
 trees and bushes, which enabled the driver to regain the 
 road, upon which he hurried us on with increased speed. 
 
 Nothing could be seen of the mountains, and we were 
 now upon the descent, going down into the valley of the 
 Ingodah. We saw fine timber and well wooded districts 
 as we passed down, for we had got below the snow-cloud, 
 and could form some idea of the country. There was no 
 difficulty in the descent of the mountains, the road being 
 well graded, and we succeeded in reaching the station at the 
 post before night. Here we drank tea, and found ourselves 
 at last on the eastern slope of the Altai chain. The water 
 at our feet was running towards the Pacific Ocean. The 
 clouds broke away from the eastern horizon, and we had a 
 view of the first valley on the head waters of the Amoor. 
 A well-defined range of mountains bounded the horizon to 
 the east, while to the north and south the valley stretched 
 out to a great extent. The scene, for a moment, was 
 very fine, as a struggling ray from the setting sun gUded 
 the opposite mountains. 
 
 We were only delayed at the station a few minutes, 
 while we fortified ourselves with a few cups of tea for the 
 evening's ride. Our driver said gotovey, and, leaping 
 into the wagon, we were off at full speed. We bounded 
 along over a rolling prairie, where we saw herds of cattle 
 and flocks of sheep grazing on the natural grasses of the 
 country, as I have seen them in California during the 
 winter. 
 
104 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE 
 
 We were very anxious to reach Chetah, and Captain 
 Grourieff gave tlie drivers no rest, till they whipped their 
 horses to their highest speed. The road was really fine, 
 and we dashed along, watching for the first light that 
 should disclose Chetah to our view. 
 
 At 8 p. M; we were at the police master's door. Our 
 lodgings had already been provided, hy order of the gov- 
 ernor. General Korsackoff, to which we drove, and in 
 a few minutes we were seated in a warm room, drinking 
 hot tea to the health of the governor of the province of 
 Trans-Baikal. A supper of cutlets and potatoes was soon 
 forthcoming, in paying our respects to which we forgot the 
 discomforts of the passage of the Altai. 
 
 To cross the great chain in forty-five hours, a dis- 
 tance of nearly three hundred miles, was not bad driving, 
 with about twenty changes of horses, vehicles, and drivers. 
 I was the first American — in fact, the first white man, ex- 
 cept of Eussian race, who ever crossed the frontiers of 
 the Amoor, and descended to its valley. 
 
 The first thing in order, on the following morning, 
 March 16th, 1857, was to pay my respects to Greneral 
 Korsackoff. He met me with great cordiality, and wel- 
 comed me warmly to the valley of the Ingodah, congratu- 
 lating me upon being the first of my countrymen who had 
 visited this distant out-post of the Eussian Empire. 
 
 The time, however, passed off heavily at Chetah, not- 
 withstanding General Korsackoff's kind invitation to dine 
 with him daily, and the presence besides of several old 
 Irkutsk acquaintances, and some very pleasant new ones. 
 I was anxious to be off to the Amoor. There were many 
 Eussian officers arriving and passing through Chetah, to 
 
FROM VEKCHNE UDINSK TO CHETAH. 105 
 
 points further on, some to stations in the country, and 
 others to join the Amoor expedition under Colonel Ouaha- 
 koff. I longed to be on the great river, and so the time 
 passed heavily. 
 
 Meanwhile, we hunted the goat, kozel, upon the moun- 
 tains, and had wild goose hunts upon the plains. Grovernor 
 Korsackoff in person, with his Cossacks, gave us two gazelle 
 hunts, in which the horsemen beat the bush and mountain 
 side, while the guests took stands upon the mountains or 
 in the gorges and passes, to shoot the fleet and beautiful 
 antelopes, as they passed, fleeing from the whoop and horn 
 of the Cossacks. An impromptu lunch of sandwiches 
 and brandy came very opportune, at the foot of the moun- 
 tain, after a tedious walk and stand of an hour or two. 
 But the gazelles escaped us, and the polite general pro- 
 posed that we should try them on the other side of the 
 mountain. I saw no antelope fall, Irat we had venison for 
 dinner the next day. The hunt, in spite of our scanty 
 success, was very satisfactory to me, and very amusing. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 A VISIT TO THE MINES OF NERCHINSK. 
 
 The frozen chains of winter still held in hondage the 
 waters of the Altai ; and, after becoming conversant with 
 the country, and heing satisfied that the Ingodah might 
 he navigable hence to the Amoor, I determined to make 
 Chetah my starting point by water to the Pacific Ocean. 
 First, however, I paid a visit to the great mines of Ner- 
 chiask. 
 
 Captain Grourieff made all the necessary arrangements, 
 and, provided with a courier's podorojenaya, we set forth 
 from Chetah on the 3d April, 1857. Sometimes we were 
 on the river on runners, again we were on land, bound- 
 ing over lull and dale in the telyaga, making our way over 
 hill, valley, and mountain, without any consideration for 
 horse flesh. We left Chetah in the daytime, consequently 
 we had an opportunity to look at the country, and admire 
 the beautiful scenery of the Ingodah. 
 
 The mountains to the right were generally wooded, 
 while those on the left, except the most lofty, were bare 
 of timber, but covered with grass. We rolled along 
 through the Cossack villages and stations, until the fol- 
 lowing morning, when old Nerchinsk rose to our view. 
 
A VISIT TO THE MINES OF NERCHINSK. 107 
 
 The surrounding country is of mucli picturesque beauty, 
 and has a rich soil. Hill, valley, river, mountain, all com- 
 bine to make it an interesting spot, aside from its legendary 
 and historic associations. 
 
 It is about 5000 miles east of St. Petersburg, and 
 contains six thousand inhabitants. It is on the river 
 Nercha, near where it falls into the Schilkah. The upper 
 town is built at the end of a long sweeping prairie, and 
 "exposed to all the winds that blow up through the valley 
 or down from the snow-clad summits of the Yoblonovey 
 mountains. 
 
 There are churches, and magazines, and several large 
 straggling government houses in the upper town ; but the 
 principal part of the city lies on the banks of the Nercha, 
 and is mostly built of logs, but nevertheless has some 
 very comfortable houses. 
 
 We drove up to the post station for a change of horses 
 and a little rest, intending also to look at the town. The 
 smotretal informed Grourieff that he had no accommodation 
 for travellers, not even a room where we could wash or 
 change our dress, or even sit while the horses were being 
 changed. 
 
 Grourieff immediately ordered the driver to drive to 
 the police-master. On arriving at his quarters our wants 
 were made known, and a Cossack was ordered to procure us 
 lodgings. Gourieff raised quite a breeze in the place, and 
 orders were given on the spot, that hereafter a room should 
 be provided at the post station for travellers to rest in 
 during the change of horses. 
 
 In many of the interior towns in Siberia, as well as in 
 Eussia, there are no hotels. There are seldom any trav- 
 
108 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 ellers but officers or merchants. Officers apply to the 
 police master of the town, or village, who appoints them 
 quarters in any house in the town that he may choose, 
 while merchants either stop with their friends or hire 
 lodgings the best way they can. 
 
 After some delay the Cossack returned, and conducted 
 us to a large house, through a narrow hall, into a small 
 room, where we sat down cheerless and disconsolate. Grou- 
 rieff was so angry that he would not talk. We sat for a 
 considerable time here, no one coming or paying the least 
 attention to us. Grourieff was too enraged to ask for any 
 thing, though we were half famished, having eaten noth- 
 ing since the previous night, so that we were really not 
 only in bad humor, but in bad plight. There were a num- 
 ber of people passing back and forth through the hall, and 
 up a flight of steps, among whom we caught a glimpse 
 of a pretty face, and a neat, gaitered foot, and heard the 
 soft voice and merry laugh of a woman, which somewhat 
 tended to break in upon the wofulness of our situation. 
 
 From appearances, I judged that we were in the house 
 of a merchant, and having been thrust upon him against 
 his will, we were likely to fare but poorly, as Grourieff, in 
 this instance, would not exercise his prerogative, or con- 
 descend to ask for any thing, where our presence seemed 
 to be so unwelcome. 
 
 After a long hour the horses were ready, and just as 
 we were ready to start, an old lady came into the room 
 and wanted to know if we would not have some tea, and 
 made an apology for not offering us any thing before. I 
 was quite willing to accept the offer, tardy as it was, but 
 Grourieff would make no concession, and off we drove. 
 
A VISIT TO THE MINES OF NEECHINSK. 109 
 
 The weather -was very unpleasant, a savagely cold 
 wind, with a bluish-grey atmosphere, and the next station 
 was nearly twenty miles distant. Before leaving the town 
 we drove up to a store, and Grourieff purchased some small 
 jars of preserved cherries and currants. The grass did not 
 grow under our horses' feet this post, for Gourieff was at 
 the top of his humor, and he swore at the driver until we 
 fairly flew along the road, and along the frozen surface of 
 the river, until we reached Bankin. 
 
 The country north-east of Nerchinsk rises and runs 
 off to the mountains in an extensive steppe, and, where 
 the soil had been turned up by the plow, it looked black 
 and rich. 
 
 We were cold, hungry, and out of temper, when we 
 reached Bankin ; but we found at the post station two 
 officers, whom we had met both in Irkutsk and Chetah, 
 now on their way to Schilkah. They had been dining, 
 and we found their samovar steaming upon the table, 
 and, with the assistance of a little vodka, we succeeded 
 in thawing out, and our long faces, in company of our old 
 friends, with plentiful glasses of tea, were reduced to their 
 proper proportions. We lunched on biscuits and pre- 
 serves, while the people were getting dinner for us, and 
 found the cheese of our friends very acceptable. 
 
 We remained here at least two hours, thawing out. 
 Gourieff emptied a jar or two of preserves, while I paid 
 my respects to several pounds of very tough beef ; but we 
 had left a long hungry day behind us, and had high moun- 
 tains and a long, bleak night before us, which promised to 
 be one of the worst of the season ; and it became neces- 
 sary to fortify the inner man against the dreary pas- 
 
110 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 sage of the mountain — ^the highest in this region. Our 
 friends had departed, and it was near night when we set 
 out. We found the telyaga the merest apology for a 
 vehicle we had yet met with on the road. It was 
 very smaU, without back, top, or seat — a mere box on 
 wheels. Our baggage filled the box, and on the top of 
 that we seated ourselves, and drove off, liable to be jolted 
 or shaken from our seats at any moment. We soon 
 reached the mountain, where the road was both steep 
 and narrow, which rendered it not only tedious but dan- 
 gerous, as we made our way along the narrow track cut 
 out of the sides of the mountain. At times there were 
 only a few inches between our wheels and a yawning gulf 
 of hundreds of feet in depth. 
 
 The night was cold, the road frightful, and our con- 
 veyance detestable. I finally was compelled to abandon 
 the attempt to sit up without support, and turned my 
 back against that of the driver, who sat half in and half 
 out, upon the front part of the box. I got some support 
 in this way, and partial shelter from the keen wind, which 
 increased in intensity as we ascended the mountain. 
 
 We toiled on, winding along the sides and crossing the 
 heads of ravines on bridges, for over two hours before we 
 reached the summit. We caUed a short halt here, and 
 arranged our places as well as we could, wrapped our- 
 selves well in our furs, and started downwards. The 
 driver, determined to make up for lost time, now dashed 
 along, quite heedless of the probability of broken bones 
 from the yawning gulfs, into which the least mishap would 
 have plunged us. However, we did not check him, and 
 on we rattled, at a fearful pace. Sitting upright was 
 
A VISIT TO THE MINES OF NEKCHINSK. Ill 
 
 out of the question, and I coiled myself down on the hot- 
 torn and tried to forget cold, fatigue, and danger. It was 
 a long, long time hefore we reached the next station, and 
 I felt as if I would give a kingdom for one hour's sleep in 
 a warm hed. 
 
 We found a clean warm room at the station, and 
 drowned our troubles, and fortiiied ourselves against the 
 next stage of twenty miles, with abundant cups of hot 
 tea. Gotovey ! was pronounced from the half open door, by 
 the smotretal, and we left the comfortable room reluc- 
 tantly. The road lay along valleys and down a considera- 
 ble stream, with some fine-looking land, but generally bare 
 of timber, except upon the higher mountains. I was 
 much struck with the resemblance of this country to the 
 regions round about Knight's Ferry on the Stanislaus, in 
 California. In fact, this whole country may find its coun- 
 terpart in different sections of California, north and south. 
 
 We came regularly to stations, and to thrifty-looking 
 villages, and, passing one gold washing establishment, 
 reached Great Nerchinsk Zavod on the third day from 
 Chetah. 
 
 Gourieff directed our driver to take us to the chief of 
 police, in order to procure lodgings. We dashed through 
 a long narrow street and up to the station, which was sur- 
 mounted with the double-headed eagle. A Cossack re- 
 ceived Gourieff's orders and disappeared withia the build- 
 ing. After half an hour's delay, we turned upon our 
 track, a quarter of a mile, and were deposited in the pri- 
 vate house of a merchant, where we found a good room^ 
 with two sofas, a few chairs, and a table. As usual, there 
 were no beds. Our host received us very civilly, and or- 
 
112 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 dered tea immediately, of which we stood much in need. 
 
 After supper we called upon the governor of the mines, 
 whom I had met before at Irkutsk. He received us cor- 
 dially, but was sorry that at that season of the year there 
 were no mines immediately in the vicinity that he could 
 show me. But he prepared a sketch of a route further to 
 the south, where I could find accessible mines. 
 
 We slept soundly that night, on our host's sofas. After 
 our terrible ride of four hundred miles, to say nothing of 
 the passage of the mountains, it was a real luxury to be 
 able to throw off skins, cloaks, and clothing, and stretch 
 out in a warm, comfortable room, and know that we need 
 not get up or wake up till morning. 
 
 The next day we dined sumptuously at the governor's, 
 with his family and two officers, whom we had known at 
 Irkutsk. The governor's wife was an intelligent and 
 agreeable lady, and had a most interesting family of chil- 
 dren. It was really like a dream — here, in the very depths 
 of northern Asia, five thousand miles from St. Petersburg, 
 to find'such comfort, such luxury, and such charming peo- 
 ple, and such refined hospitality. 
 
 The governor offered us his own private tarantass, in 
 which to make the tour of the southern mines on the Ar- 
 goon. We had determined to set out that evening, sows 
 very reluctantly bade adieu to our friend and his family, 
 and rode to our lodgings to pack up again and be off. I 
 am very sorry that I have forgotten the name of the gov- 
 ernor of Nerchinsk, which deserves to be recorded, wer? xi 
 only for his extreme kindness to a stranger. 
 
OHAPTEK XIX. 
 
 THE SILVER MINES OP ZAKENTUNSKIE. 
 
 Q-REAT NercMnsk Zavod is situated on a small stream 
 that empties into the Argoon, a tributary of the Amoor. 
 It is about five thousand two hundred and fifty mUes east 
 of St. Petersburg, and about seven hundred miles nearly due 
 north of Pekin, and about four hundred and eighty north 
 of the Chinese Wall. The population is about six thou- 
 sand. It is the principal mining town in the district of 
 Nerchinsk, and the seat of the general direction for the 
 mines. 
 
 The town is built under some high, rounded hills. 
 The ore principally worked is silver, though gold, lead, 
 and copper are also worked here. The shops and ware- 
 houses are well supplied with merchandise from Europe 
 and China, and the merchants appear to be in a pros- 
 perous condition. The attention of the traders is now 
 beginning to be directed to the commerce of the Amoor, 
 and I was shown samples of various kinds of provisions 
 which were being prepared for shipment on the opening 
 of navigation. 
 
 We passed out through the southern portion of the 
 town, and rode along the sides of great rounded hills, bare 
 
114 VOTAGE DOWN I'HE AMOOE. 
 
 of timber, but covered with bushes or grass. We saw at 
 every few hundred yards mining shafts and excavations on 
 the sides of the mountains or hOls. The country has 
 much the appearance of the mountain region east, of Los 
 Angeles, in California. The soil is rich, and produces 
 vegetables, grain, and grass in abundance. The country 
 is well stocked with cattle, sheep, and horses. 
 
 "We reached the silver rudnile of Zarentunskie in a 
 drive of two or three hours, and were politely received by 
 Mr. Eichwald, the superintendent and engineer, who had 
 spent some time in the mines of G-ermany, studying his 
 profession, and was recently sent here by the Eussian gov- 
 ernment, to carry out practically such alterations and im- 
 provements in working the silver mines as his knowledge 
 and experience might suggest. The mines are of great 
 richness, but, from careless working and improper en- 
 gineering, many of them have been abandoned to water 
 and foul air. From the plans and drawings of this en- 
 gineer, and his practical turn of mind, I am inclined to 
 believe that he will create a revolution in their working 
 and productiveness. He was very eager in his inquiries 
 in regard to the mines of CaUfornia, concerning which I 
 readily gave him fuU details. 
 
 We visited a mine on the side of the mountain, half a 
 mile from the little village. There was a building over 
 the entrance to the shaft, where the guard was on duty, 
 and a room for tools and implements a,nd for the raised 
 ore. Two men lighted candles, of which we each took 
 one, and commenced the descent. We found adits at dif- 
 ferent depths, and flights of steps, until we reached the 
 bottom, where we passed along a horizontal shaft, tor- 
 
THE SILVER MINES OF ZAEENTUNSKIE. 115 
 
 tuous, and somewhat uneven on the floor, until we came 
 to a long chamber perfectly sheathed with ice and icy- 
 stalactites, which gave us rather a cool reception. Not 
 far beyond we came to several side shafts, and two men 
 working. We were shown here, in the sides of the adit, 
 rich veins of ore, blue and sparkling, and one of the at- 
 tendants dug some pieces out on the spot. We now pass- 
 ed out of the mine by a drift in a different direction, and, 
 after a walk altogether of certainly five or six hundred 
 yards, came out on the side of the mountain several hun- 
 dred feet below where we entered. Mr. Eichwald had an 
 excellent dinner prepared for us, of beef, veal, fish, and 
 dessert, with na-lifka of excellent flavor and pleasant to 
 drink. There were maps, drawings, plans, models, and a 
 fine cabinet of minerals, curiosities, and specimens, at- 
 tached to his quarters. 
 
 Bidding adieu to our mining friend, we pursued our 
 course stiU to the south and west, nearer the Argoon, the 
 great south-western tributary of the Amoor. We were 
 not far from Zuruchaitu, the old "fortress of commerce" 
 before Kyachta sprung into existence, where merchants 
 from PeMn and Bukaria were wont to congregate and 
 trade with the Eussians — a place something Kke Santa F6, 
 in New Mexico, in old times, when adventurous traders 
 crossed the plains from Missouri to exchange their mer- 
 chandise for Mexican silver. 
 
 The next point of interest was Zarentoonsky roodnih. 
 We met with a very warm reception from the smotretal, 
 who seemed to be post-master, chief of police, nachalnik 
 
 in fact, every thing. The first thing he did was to offer 
 
 us some excellent brandy ; then we must drink tea, to 
 
116 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 whicli the good ■woman contributed nice bread. It was 
 growing late, and we wished to visit the mines, but our 
 hospitable friend pressed us to pass the night with him 
 and take the next day to look at the mines. He said we 
 had better take a comfortable night's rest. But we had 
 become accustomed to living and sleeping in a tarantass, or 
 even a telyaga, and preferred to see what we could in the 
 day and travel at night, which would greatly expedite us 
 in our journey. Against his earnest protestations, there- 
 fore, we declined to stop, and after another drink, to for- 
 tify us in our visit underground, we set out in a telyaga 
 which he furnished us. We did not have to ride far 
 before we came to the entrance of the mine. Several 
 men from a neighboring building took candles themselves, 
 and, providing us also with lights, proceeded at once to enter 
 the drift. We were soon passing along a vaulted way, 
 which continued for several hundred yards, when we came 
 to a shaft, down which we descended by simple ladders, 
 covered with ice, and dripping with water. On the walls 
 were pendant icicles, and the rounds of the ladders were 
 clammy and slippery, the air chill, damp, and foul. G-ou- 
 rieff looked rather horrified, and asked how much deeper we 
 had to go. " Ne dalaico," said our host, and down we went. 
 
 "OJiort!" exclaimed G-ourieff, "get me out of this, and 
 I shall be done with silver mines for the rest of my life. 
 The devil ! another flight of those slippery steps." 
 
 " ^e dalaico, ne dalaico, ochen hlezh — not far, very 
 near ! " shouted our guide, and down we went again. 
 
 We now came to a passage, at the turn of which 
 were four men — convicts — two pumping and two resting. 
 "This, for the present," said the overseer, "is all the 
 
THE SILVER MINES OF ZAEENTTJNSKIE. 117 
 
 work we are doing. This pumping goes on night and day ; 
 the men are relieved regularly every four hours. "We are 
 only keeping the water down to a certain point." 
 
 We now passed along another drift, and found nothing 
 unpleasant in this underground passage, and finally, after 
 a descent of two hundred and eighty feet, our way led in- 
 to a dark, deep, and hoUow-sounding cavern, in which our 
 voices and our footsteps were reverberated in thunder tones. 
 The men now lighted pine torches, which, in addition to 
 our candles, revealed a scene which well repaid us for the 
 descent down cold, slippery ladders, and along wet and 
 narrow passages. Gourieff acknowledged it, but said, 
 nevertheless, he would hereafter be satisfied with the bare 
 recital of what was hidden within the depths of the 
 mountains, without descending to look at them himself 
 
 The torches revealed to us a palace whose roof and 
 sides were fretted silver, and whose floor was inlaid with 
 silver and ivory (hornblende). Silver was above our heads, 
 under our feet, and aU around us. The wealth and splendor 
 here disclosed, rivalled the most gorgeous tales of Oriental 
 romance. It was a true Aladdin's cave of riches. 
 
 No ore has been allowed to be taken from this mine 
 for several years, on account of some defect in the drain- 
 age, and the fear that further mining in a certain direction 
 would lead to an accumulation of water above their power 
 to carry it off ; it, therefore, awaits the talent of some 
 new engineer to propose and carry out a new system of 
 drainage. The superintendent said the whole mountain 
 was rich in sUver as far as it had been explored. Nor is 
 it a very small mountain, for it stretched off to the south 
 and east as far as we could see. 
 
118 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 We returned along those gloomy and slippery passages, 
 which made a horrid contrast to the bright scene we had 
 just left. They afforded a truthful and lively picture of 
 the dark, tortuous, and slippery paths which often lead to 
 wealth. We found our telyaga awaiting our reappear- 
 ance on upper earth, and, seating ourselves, we drove back 
 to the house of our host. That worthy gentleman talked 
 so fast, and would have us drink so often, and was so 
 lively, and had so rich and soft a brogue, that I was half 
 inclined to think he was an Irishman, who had somehow 
 strayed off to Siberia. He reaUy looked like an Irishman, 
 and was so free and open-hearted in his hospitality, that it 
 was with great difficulty that we could prevail on him to 
 send for horses that we might pursue our journey. He 
 fairly forced us to eat and drink again and again, until we 
 tore ourselves away. 
 
OHAPTEE XX. 
 
 THE COSSACKS OF THE AEGOON". 
 
 It was now night, and snow was falling fast. Our 
 driver became somewhat bewildered, for we awoke after a 
 very long nap, and found we were standing motionless on 
 the road. Grourieff swore at the driver, who said the snow 
 was falling so fast that he could not find the road, and 
 that he had been on ahead to look for it. We proceeded 
 slowly, and arrived at a village abojit midnight, where we 
 stopped to get a change of horses and inquire concerning 
 the Zavod of Alexandrovsky. 
 
 We were yet some distance from it, but learned that it 
 would be useless to visit it, as there were no workmen 
 there, and, of course, the mills were idle. Grourieff be- 
 came satisfied that we could see nothing farther iu this 
 direction, unless, as he said, I would like to take a ride 
 down to the Great Wall, or to Pekin. 
 
 After some delay, we procured fresh horses and drove 
 on. The night was dark, though not very cold, and we 
 found the road rough, but comparatively level. We now 
 rode through the border Cossack villages on the Argoon, 
 near the frontier of Mongolia, and had a pretty tedious 
 
120 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 night of it, making but little progress. We, however, 
 had a good opportunity to witness the economy of Cossack 
 border hfe, to inspect their dwellings, and to witness the 
 simplicity of their sleeping arrangements, during this and 
 several other nights which we spent in this region.. 
 
 The houses are built of logs, and are of one story, with 
 two or four rooms, and a passage between. The doors are 
 low and wide, and if I ever said d — n in my life, with em- 
 phasis, it was when I thumped my head against the top 
 log of pne of these detestable Siberian doorways. I said 
 then, and, with a vivid recollection of the thump, I stiU 
 adhere to it, that if I were emperor of Russia, or gov- 
 ernor of Siberia, I would compel the people, in building 
 their houses, to have every door at least six feet and a 
 half in the clear. 
 
 In one end of the house the family live permanently, 
 and eat, drink, and sleep. If there is a small back room 
 partitioned from this, jou may find a bed in it, and the 
 wealth of the household, consisting of clothing and other 
 valuables, secured in a trunk or box. But it is not al- 
 ways that you find so effeminate an article as a bed in a 
 Cossack's house. The sleeping is done on or along the 
 sides of the oven or stove, by which the room is warmed, 
 or around the sides of the room on narrow benches, or 
 upon the floor or under the benches ; sometimes the floor 
 is covered several inches deep with hay or straw, and on 
 this the whole family sleep. Coming into one of these 
 houses out of the cold fresh air, the stove^ steaming hot, 
 the accumulated breath and perspiration of a dozen or two 
 of skin-clad people, is almost pestilential, and generally 
 makes one sicken immediately. I have, on many occa- 
 
THE COSSACKS OF THE AKGOON. 121 
 
 sions, had to escape into the open air to catch my breath. 
 You will see in this manner whole families for two or 
 three generations, packed in pairs and fours, and in sixes, 
 around the room. You walk in, and the mistress of the 
 house gets up and strikes a light, frequently of splinters 
 of wood, and there you see the family lying heads and 
 tails, arms and legs, odds and evens, dressed, half dressed, 
 and not dressed at all, snoring, sleeping, groaning, cough- 
 ing, stewing, squirming, and sweating. That they don't 
 all die of fevers, is a strong proof of the salubrity of the 
 climate and the robust constitution of the people. 
 
 One end of the better houses in the larger villages has 
 a room generally kept as a spare room, with a few chairs, 
 a small table or two, and a rough sofa. In such a house 
 you can get tea, and, if the good woman is applied to, 
 you may get eggs, cream, milk, fish, and sometimes meat 
 and vegetables, or cabbage-soup, and perhaps quass. In 
 some of the larger villages you wiU also find a peasant 
 who is the rich man of his tribe, and in his house you will 
 find a good and clean spare room. These rooms are kept 
 for the accommodation of officers, or such other transient 
 travellers as may happen to pass. The officers of gov- 
 ernment are always furnished with accommodation by ap- 
 plying to the starosta, the head peasant of the village, or 
 to the police master. They are quartered on any person 
 who has a house or a suitable room, as we were in Ner- 
 chinsk and other places. 
 
CHAPTEK XXI. 
 
 THE GOLD MINES OP THE ONON. 
 
 We had now made a considerable circuit up the 
 Argoon, and ■were turning more to the north in the direc- 
 tion of Onon. "We had seen some good country, where 
 grain and vegetables thrive well, and where there is fine 
 grazing for cattle and sheep. We had mountains in the 
 distance on the north, but the country generally was undu- 
 lating and favorable to agriculture and stock. 
 
 We stopped to change horses in a small village, and, 
 in the mean time, to drink tea and get what we could to 
 eat. We had a dozen hard-boiled eggs, black-bread and 
 milk, which, with our tea, made us breakfast and dinner 
 both. Gourieff's preserves, which held out, served for a 
 dessert. It was some time before the horses were ready, 
 and we had considerable conversation with the women 
 about the house in relation to the Amoor country. Some 
 of the men had been in the expedition of the previous 
 year, and the people feared that the whole viUage might 
 be called upon to emigrate in the summer to the Amoor. 
 
 These border Cossacks are, under their own peculiar 
 constitution, liable to be moved by their Hetman from 
 time to time, as the necessities of their service demand. 
 
THE GOLD MINES OF THE ONON. 123 
 
 and frequently migrate in tribes, or battalions, as they are 
 now organized. 
 
 After much, delay the horses came, and we drove off, 
 with only a very dim wagon track for a road, through a 
 country of undulating prairie, with rounded hUls on the 
 right and left, and a high mountain in the distance in 
 front. After an hour's drive, we came to a long, wooded 
 slope, and then across meadow land, and along a creek, 
 with ploughed land, and then aver a fine sweep of rolling 
 prairie. Grourieff questioned the driver, to know why he 
 was taking us through such by-roads and, apparently, in 
 such a roundabout direction, but he answered constantly, 
 " nechevo nechevo, sechass sechass, bolshey dorogah — never 
 mind, never mind, have no fear, we shall have the great 
 road directly," and, crackipg his whip, sent his horses off 
 at a gallop. 
 
 Four hours brought us to a small village at the foot 
 of the mountain we had had in view all day. Driving up 
 to the principal house, we went in, while our driver un- 
 yoked his horses and started on his return to his village. 
 After waiting some time for the man of the house to ar- 
 rive, in order to procure fresh horses, we were told that 
 there was neither road or track over, through, or around, 
 or under, the great mountain before us, and that to reach 
 our road the nearest, and indeed the only way, was to go 
 exactly back on the same track over which we had come. 
 
 We drank tea on the strength of this ' information, 
 while the Cossack yoked a team of four sturdy little 
 horses to take us back. Gourieff instead of swearing, as 
 I expected, was as demure and contented as a Methodist 
 preacher going to camp-meeting. I accounted for this 
 
124 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 by the recollection of a very pretty Cossack girl at the 
 village we were returning to. For myself, it was a matter 
 of indifference, for I had become interested in these border 
 Cossacks, and a few days and nights more or less would 
 make Ho difiference in my journey towards the Amoor, for 
 which it was yet some weeks too early to set off. 
 
 We made the return trip rapidly, and reached the 
 residence of the pretty Cossack in good time and fine 
 spirits. Our former driver, and the people of the' house 
 were not in the least surprised at our return, as they all 
 told the Captain, or Prince, as the girl called him, that 
 there was no road over the mountains, and they were ex- 
 pecting us back during the night. While a new set of 
 horses was being procured, we drank tea and swallowed 
 milk and eggs to fortify us for the night's ride. I left the 
 Captain, the girl, and her mother talking about the roads 
 and the villages further on, and went into another part of 
 the house, where I found a woman spinning, with whom I 
 talked as much Eussian as I was master of, and tried to 
 talk much more, at which she laughed heartily, though 
 she tried hard to add a few words to my vocabulary. 
 
 When the horses were ready, we set off in the direc- 
 tion of Chetah. The night was frosty, but the stars were 
 twinkling brightly, our new driver was in good spirits, and 
 drove us over a smooth good road at a full gallop. Three 
 hours brought us to a village, whose watch- dogs barked 
 fiercely whUe we alighted in front of a house, the driver 
 calling out loudly for the people to get up. We discov- 
 ered the door and went in. A light was soon struck, and 
 we found ourselves in an encampment of men, women, 
 children, pigs, calves, and chickens. The air was so 
 
THE GOLD MINES OF THE ONON. 125 
 
 terribly close and stifling tliat we both were compelled to 
 back out in a few minutes to take breath. 
 
 After an hour's delay fresh horses were ready, and off 
 we went at full speed, the driver talking to his horses as 
 they flew over the hard frosty road. We made a couple 
 of stations before morning, dashing along through several 
 villages on our route. At an early hour we reached the 
 post-road that we had passed over on our way to Nerchinsk 
 Zavod, and came to the station where we were to leave the 
 tarantass of our friend, the governor of Nerchinsk. For- 
 tifying ourselves with many glasses of tea, we again set forth 
 in the post telyaga to visit the gold mines of the Onon. 
 We left the main road, and taking a mere track over the 
 roughest country I had seen in Asia, made all haste to- 
 wards the " diggings." Much of the way was in creek- 
 beds and along mountain torrents and ravines, over loose 
 and broken rock, and along the sides of mountains like 
 the worst mule trail in California. We arrived at the 
 diggings, and were shown into a room, where we washed 
 and made our toilet, and were soon invited to the superin- 
 tendent's quarters. He ordered his tarantass, in which we 
 were soon seated and on oiir way through a straggling vil- 
 lage, beyond which we came to the mines where the con- 
 victs were at labor. They were working on the machines, 
 which are used for separating the gold from the earth, and 
 preparing the earth ready to be washed. On the previous 
 night cord-wood had been spread upon the ground in a 
 trench and set fire to, for the purpose of thawing the 
 earth. A number of men were now removing the dirt that 
 had been thus softened. 
 
 The machines used here, I have no doubt, are very ef- 
 
126 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 ficient. They simply consist of a wheel, turned by water^ 
 which sets in motion a vertical shaft, having four large 
 arms, to which are attached pieces of iron, chains, or 
 drags, which revolve in a bason, having an iron bottom, 
 pierced with small holes. The earth is cast into this 
 bason, water being, at the same time, led into it from 
 abovo. Here the earth is crushed and separated from the 
 stones, which are precipitated through an opening in the 
 side, while the washed earth, sand, and gravel, pass down 
 through the holes in the bottom of the bason, and are car- 
 ried by the water over a wooden apron, inclined at an angle 
 of about 35°, having grooves or pockets in it, which catch 
 the heavier portions of the sand, and the gold, while the 
 water and refuse matter pass off, and the tailings are 
 borne away by men stationed at the tail-race. These ma- 
 chines are placed along, at intervals, according to the 
 number of men employed. 
 
 The bed of the stream in which the gold is found, is 
 first drained of its water, by means of a canal tapping it 
 at the proper point above, and brought along the bank of 
 the stream, and used to propel these machines. 
 
 This was a convict establishment, like aU. the mines east 
 of Lake Baikal. The men were well clad, and, in visiting 
 the hospital, prison, and quarters, I found the arrange- 
 ments for their health and sleeping, clean and comforta- 
 ble. Cooks were preparing dinner for the prisoners. I 
 tasted of the soup, bread, and hassia, or grits, made from 
 buckwheat, and found them good and well prepared. 
 There were a number on the sick list, mostly those who 
 had recently arrived, but they were in a warm, clean room, 
 with clean beds and clothing, and with a separate kitchen, 
 where proper diet was prepared for them. 
 
THE GOLD MINES OF THE ONON. 127 
 
 These mines are considered ricli. There were only 
 three hundred men at work at this time, and the requisi- 
 tion for the year was only one hundred thousand rubles. 
 They are on a branch of the Onon, which falls into the 
 Ingodah, and have been worked but a few years. They 
 are quite extensive, and He in creek and gulch bottoms, as 
 in California, and would be worked with us precisely as 
 our creeks are there, with long-toms and sluices. The 
 gold is mostly fine, though coarse gold is found mixed with 
 it. I could not ascertain the yield per man. They calcu- 
 late by the pood of dirt (36 pounds) ; perhaps five cents 
 to the pan. The mountains are rugged, but I saw no 
 quartz. There were heavy boulders of trap and granite 
 in the creek, and much more sand than is generally found 
 in California. 
 
CHAPTEE XXII. 
 
 PASSAGE OF MOUNT BOENOKSKOT. 
 
 On returning from our tour of inspection, we found a 
 good dinner prepared for us, with native wine, and, after 
 spending a social hour or two with the superintendent, we 
 ordered our horses, and succeeded in reaching the post- 
 road before night. We now took the post telyagas again, 
 and were on the road to Bankin. We wished to have re- 
 turned by another route, higher up the river, but the re- 
 cent thaw in the mountains had rendered the rivers diffi- 
 cult to pass, and we were, therefore, compelled to cross 
 Bornorskoy Krebet, the same terrible mountain that we 
 had encountered upon our entrance into the country ; 
 but we hoped that we should not have so unpleasant 
 a night as we had before. We determined, however, 
 to go on and cross it again in the night. We paid dearly 
 for our temerity. We advanced, making changes of 
 horses at several stations, and, at about 3 A. M., came to 
 the last one before reaching the dreaded mountain. The 
 night was cold and cloudy, with considerable wind. The 
 ascent was slow and tedious, and, by the time we got half 
 way up, the freezing nortlx wind was blowing through the 
 
PASSAGE OF MOUNT BOENOKSKOY. 129 
 
 gorges and sweeping along the sides of the mountain most 
 fearfully, and right in our faces. It was pitch dark, and 
 the nearer we approached to the summit, the fiercer the 
 storm raged. I feared that as we came to narrow and 
 exposed parts of the road, our wagon, horses, and all 
 might be blown off into the gulf beneath. The air was 
 so icy and chill that our clothing gave us no warmth, and, 
 above aU, I was fearful that our horses might give out on 
 the road, or refuse to go in the face of the storm ; for it 
 was only by the constant application of the lash that they 
 could be got to move, and that at a snail's pace. A portion 
 of the harness also gave way, and it was some time before 
 the driver, benumbed and half frozen as he was, could repair 
 it. The very worst weather I experienced in Siberia was 
 these cold, freezing winds. Forty degrees below zeio, in a 
 still atmosphere, is nothing to it, as I had the opportunity 
 more than once to experience. Our harness being again 
 in a state of repair, we wrapped ourselves up as closely as 
 possible, and finally reached the summit. In descending 
 the opposite side, upon some portions of the road, we 
 made tolerable speed. I turned my back to the wind, but 
 the jolting of the telyaga over the rocks was so violent, 
 that I could scarcely retain my seat, and our baggage was 
 aU in a jumble. However, we reached the foot of the 
 mountain, and the driver did aU in his power to hurry on 
 the horses. It was daylight before we reached the station. 
 We were pretty nearly used up, and Gourieff, though accus- 
 tomed to a Siberian climate, was fully as well satisfied as 
 myself at finding a warm room, where, with a steaming 
 samovar and plenty of tea, we forgot the horrors of a 
 night passage of Mount Bornorskoy. 
 
130 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 Bankin is on the Schilkahj twenty-five miles below Old 
 Nerchinsk. It was a place formerly of considerable note, 
 on account of its being the only point from whence the 
 mines could be reached, and, consec^uently, had all the 
 overland trade. It was the point also for the reshipment 
 and storage of merchandise and provisions to other points 
 further down the river. 
 
 After resting sufficiently long to become perfectly 
 thawed out, we ordered horses, and started for Nerchinsk. 
 The river being unsafe to travel upon, we kept the high 
 road over the country. At Nerchinsk, while changing 
 horses, we sat in the police office until the horses were 
 ready. Gourieff was determined to teach these people 
 that it was necessary to have a place to accommodate 
 travellers, and took this mode of giving them a practical 
 lesson. Papers were written and instructions given,, while 
 we were there, to the postmaster, thkt, hereafter, a room 
 must be provided for travellers to rest in at the station. 
 I think the authorities were somewhat struck with our 
 audacity, for sharp words passed between Gourieff and the 
 police master. We were seated in a room, where several 
 clerks were writing and officers passing" in and out. When 
 the horses were forthcoming, shaking the dust off our feet, 
 as a testimony against the town, we galloped towards 
 Chetah. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 FEOM NEKCHINSK TO CHETAH. 
 
 Neechinsk, as you approach from the east, presents a 
 pretty appearance, the country to the west being a long 
 stretch of roUing prairie, with the high wooded mountains 
 of the Ingodahand Onon in the distance, on the left, while 
 the high mountains to the north lay like a waU against 
 the horizon. The large public buildings, a gosteney-dvor, 
 or row of shops, and a large church, with painted dome, 
 looked rather imposing, while the town itself lay modestly 
 below the plateau along the margin of the river Nercha. 
 The place has a very bleak location, and is one of the 
 coldest in Southern Siberia. The wind blows with great 
 force through the gorges of the Yablonovoy mountains 
 from the north, and sweeps in dusty clouds over the 
 steppe from the west, making it altogether an uncomfort- 
 able place in the winter. We took some pride, however, 
 in having created a revolution in the city in favor of future 
 travellers. 
 
 We had an excellent vehicle to the next station, the 
 road was good, and we dashed over the smooth steppe in 
 fine style. Yet we had a hard drive before us, for we were 
 
132 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 forced to take the mountain road, as the river was imprac- 
 ticable. As hard luck, too much haste, or slow driving, 
 would have it, we had another mountain to cross in the 
 night, hut, after having crossed the Bankin mountains, we 
 were not to be stopped by those of the Ingodah, and, after 
 steaming up deep potations of tea, and breakfasting on a 
 dozen of boiled eggs, we set out. We had several changes 
 of good horses, over a fine country, and drove on, making 
 good time. 
 
 At night we reached the mountain, which is one of the 
 most rugged in this section of the country, abutting upon 
 the Ingodah in precipitous crags. Nothing daunted by 
 our previous night's experience, we drove on with good 
 horses. The way proved a long one, but the time was not 
 lost, for I slept like a top, as warm and as snug as possi- 
 ble. The night air was nipping and frosty, but we had a 
 large leather apron over us, and, shutting ourselves up, let 
 the driver take his own time, which I am under the ini- 
 pression he did to the fullest extent, for the chickens were 
 crowing when we alighted at the next station. 
 
 We found a clean, warm room, containing a rough 
 plank bed, on which we rested until the horses were ready. 
 We rode on all day, over a broken, well-timbered country, 
 and arriving at Chetah after nightfall, we drove to the 
 police master's in order to procure lodgings. After con- 
 siderable delay, we were shown the upper story room in 
 a house in the lower part of the town, where, upon a bare 
 and very dirty floor, without fire, we were told that we 
 might, as a great favor, rest that night, but that the next 
 day we must vacate it for parties who had previously en- 
 gaged it. I told Grourieff that we had better pay the 
 
FEOM KEECHINSK TO CHETAH. 133 
 
 driver for his telyaga and lodge in that ; hut this, it seem- 
 fed, could not be done, as the driver was compelled to re- 
 turn quickly to his station, in accordance with the regula- 
 tions of the service. 
 
 Captain Alarofsky's rooms would have been at our 
 service, but, unfortunately, they were undergoing repair 
 during his absence with General Korsackoff at Kyachta, 
 and it was too late at night to seek for any better quar- 
 ters than the police master had shown us. Our luggage 
 was brought from the telyaga, and deposited in the room. 
 We spread our vailoh upon the floor, wrapped ourselves 
 in our cloaks, and awaited the coming of daylight. Gen- 
 eral Korsackoff was absent at Kyachta, where he had 
 gone to meet General Mouravieff and Admiral Puchachin, 
 who was on his way as ambassador to Pekin, and had gone 
 to Kyachta to try to induce the Chinese authorities of 
 Mia-mat-tschin to permit him to proceed to Pekin over- 
 land. The number of officers and merchants on their 
 way to the Amoor, or who had been brought here in con- 
 sequence of the Amoor movement, was the cause of the 
 scarcity of lodgings in the city. 
 
 The next day we changed our quarters to Captain 
 Alarofsky's house, which had been newly scrubbed, washed, 
 and whitewashed, and a very hot fire kept up in the pech 
 all day, in order to dry it for our reception. The room 
 smelt like a lime-kiln, and the evaporation made it quite 
 like a real steam-bath ; but we had no choice, and, being 
 rather worn and tired after ten days, spent mostly on the 
 road, night and day, we were soon asleep, and this time 
 on a bedstead, with white sheets — a luxury I now saw for 
 the first time in Siberia. I awoke in the night, nearly suf- 
 
134 VOYAaE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 focated, and with a most maddening headache. The fire 
 in the stove had not been properly attended to, and, pro- 
 bably, some pieces of wood had been left uncharred pre- 
 vious to closing the chimney. The gas from this, and the 
 steam and heat of the room, came very near killing both 
 Grourieff and myself. I was very sick the next day, in 
 consequence, and did not recover from the effects for sev- 
 eral days afterwards. 
 
 We moved our quarters the next day to a house in the 
 new portion of the town, near the governor's residence. 
 
 It was now the 15th of April, and having made up 
 my mind that I had seen enough of the country to fuUy 
 understand its resources and wants, and having travelled 
 in all, since I left St. Petersburg, between five and six 
 thousand miles, and, being at last on the head waters of 
 the Amoor, I was naturally anxious to proceed, but the 
 icy band of winter was yet upon its sources, and I must 
 await patiently the genial influences of spring for the 
 movement of the waters. 
 
 Spring was really at hand. The wild goose, the 
 harbinger of open water and springing grass, was with us, 
 and his deep, guttural voice was heard at night, as he 
 winged his way to his favorite northern haunts on the 
 shores of the icy ocean. 
 
CHAP TEE XXIV. 
 
 RESIDENCE AT CHETAH. 
 
 GovEENOB KoESACKOFF being absent, Gourieff and I 
 amused ourselves as best we could. We practised pistol 
 sbooting in the skirt of woods opposite our lodgings, rode 
 on horseback to the adjacent villages, and, with goat 
 hunts on the mountains of the Ingodah, and pleasant 
 meetings occasionally among our friends, contrived to pass 
 the time agreeably enough. 
 
 I also made a pleasant visit with Mr. Linan, wife, and 
 friends to his establishment on the Ingodah, where he was 
 preparing beef, pork, and bread for shipment to the Amoor. 
 "We had an agreeable time, and paid a visit also to the 
 river near Mr. Linan's place, where he had several barges 
 building for the descent into the Amoor, which he would 
 load with such produce and merchandise as he expected 
 to sell down the river, or to barter with the natives for 
 furs and skins. 
 
 After some time spent in looking about the premises, 
 and an impromptu dinner, we returned at 11 p. m. Mr. 
 Linan is an enterprising merchant and a spirited specu- 
 lator, and, if he had the necessary capital, would proceed 
 immediately to build steamers on his own account, and 
 
136 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 place them at once on the Amoor ; but, like many other 
 bold, shrewd, clear-headed men, he has not the means 
 himself to engage in an undertaking where so much money 
 is required. I dined frequently with him, and he was con- 
 stantly dwelling on the great advance in commercial pros- 
 perity Siberia would make so soon as steam could be 
 placed on the Amoor, and the great increase in the wealth 
 and the industrial pursuits of the country consequent 
 thereon. 
 
 We also rowed down upon the Ingodah, several miles 
 below the town, where there are some obstructions to the 
 navigation of the river, which we examined in order to 
 suggest a remedy. The river makes a sudden bend at a 
 rocky island, and on the opposite side forms a wide and 
 shoal rapid. In the main channel, which is wide enough 
 for a steamer, are some boulders, which have either tum- 
 bled down from the opposite mountain, or have been de- 
 posited there by some passing field of ice from a higher 
 source. The whole difficulty appeared to me to be easy 
 to remedy. In the winter the river freezes nearly solid at 
 this place, as in most shoal places, and at times is perhaps 
 perfectly solid. The remedy, then, would be to remove 
 the ice, apply powder to the rocks, and blow them up. In 
 the second place, in order to deepen the water in the right- 
 main channel, a dam should be buUt from the head of the 
 bar, or island, diagonally to the opposite shore, which 
 would throw sufficient water into the main channel to in- 
 crease the required depth, making it equal in depth to 
 other bars and shoals on the river. This plan was after- 
 ward suggested to Q-overnor Korsackoff, who thought fa- 
 vorably of it, and, as far as removing the rocks is con- 
 
RESIDENCE AT CHETAH. 137 
 
 cerned, lie said it would be put in execution the coming 
 winter ; the other, and more costly improvement, of 
 course must take time and await the action of government. 
 
 Mr. Linan, and his very pretty and accomplished 
 wife, are hoth from European Kussia. He himself had 
 been engaged in the commerce of the Kuban and coun- 
 tries upon the Caspian and Volga. His wife, I believe, is 
 a native of Nijne-Novgorod, and of noble blood. She 
 speaks French fluently, draws well, and plays upon the 
 piano and guitar — ^what more could a merchant ask in a 
 wife upon the banks of the Ingodah, nearly six thousand 
 miles east of Paris, and twelve thousand miles west of 
 New York ? 
 
 I met also at Chetah a very remarkable character, one 
 of the political exiles of the emeufe against Nicholas, in 
 1826, at his accession to the throne. This gentleman had 
 lived in Siberia thirty years, and was yet a hale, hearty, 
 sprightly, active man. He was, of course, young at the 
 accession of Nicholas, but years had sat more lightly on 
 the exile than on his Emperor — free from care and ambi- 
 tion he had passed a generation in Siberia, apparently con- 
 tented and happy. He had his home, his books, and 
 friends ; lived very comfortably, " taught the young idea 
 how to shoot," interested himself very much in the pro- 
 gress and prosperity of his country, and was quite con- 
 versant with American affairs. In early days, when a 
 boy, attached to the public service under Alexander I., 
 he had visited the Pacific and California, and was delight- 
 ed to see one who had been there, and especially since the 
 discovery of gold and the conquest by the United States. 
 
 He was now free to return to Eussia, by the ukase of 
 
138 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 Alexander II. at his coronation, but lie loves Siberia, and 
 thinks it a better country than Kussia, and the probability 
 is that he wiU remain on the head waters of the Amoor 
 and participate in its development and coming pros- 
 perity. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 A BUKAT LAMA. 
 
 A BuEAT Lama called upon me at Chetah. He was a 
 fine-looking man, with a very agreeable face, and was 
 dressed in the heavy fur-lined yellow silk robe of the 
 priesthood, bound about the loins by a red silk sash. It 
 had a few gilt or brass buttons on the upper front, and a 
 black velvet coUar and facings. Yellow leather boots, with 
 wide loose breeches, tucked inside, completed his apparel. 
 On his head he wore a small Chinese skull-cap, with a 
 blue rosette, or button, at the top. He could speak Eus- 
 sian a little, nevertheless he was accompanied by an inter- 
 preter and body servant. Captain Grourieff spoke in Eus- 
 sian, and, when the Lama could not comprehend, he would 
 call for explanation upon his interpreter, a Burat, who 
 understood Russian well. He was very anxious to know 
 something concerning my country, and if I was from the 
 " Sea of the West," and how long it took me to reach 
 Chetah. He was greatly surprised when I told him that 
 my country was to the east, though I had come from the 
 west, but, having passed about two-thirds of the distance 
 round the world, I was nearer home now than I had been 
 for some time, and that, by descending the Amoor and 
 
140 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 falling into the great sea to the east of China and Japan, 
 my country would be just opposite, across the ocean. 
 
 " How much will it cost me," said he, " to go down 
 the Sak-hah-lin on one of jour parohads 1" This is the 
 only name they use for a steam-vessel, which they have 
 learned from the Eussians. " How much would it cost 
 to go to Thibet, if these parohads you speak of were 
 navigating the Sak-hah-Hn ?" 
 
 I had told him previously that it was my intention to 
 induce an American company to place steamers on the 
 Amoor. I told him it would take ten days perhaps to go 
 to the sea. He then asked me how many days it woxdd take 
 to go from the sea to Thibet ? I explained to him that 
 Thibet could not be reached by the sea, but that he could 
 pass by way of China and the English possessions in 
 India, and reach Thibet in that way. 
 
 " Ah," said he, " this is most excellent ; how valuable 
 it is to be a great traveller, and to know all these things. 
 How much win the whole of this journey cost ? " 
 
 I told him " about a thousand rubles." 
 
 " Oh ! " cried he, " this is not much, one can afford to 
 pay that much to visit the country of his God and to see 
 the Grand Lama." 
 
 " How long," asked he, " before these wonderful things 
 will be done ? " 
 
 I told him " in the course of three years perhaps steam 
 would be introduced on the Amoor, and that, if he would 
 go with me down the Amoor to the sea, he would find 
 American ships that would convey him to China, from 
 whence he could find an English steamer to carry him to 
 Calcutta." 
 
A BUKAT LAMA. 141 
 
 " Ah," said he, " this is truly wonderful, but I am not 
 yet prepared for so great a journey ; when you return, I 
 will then go with you." 
 
 I told him that "when I again visited Chetah, it 
 would, perhaps, be on a parohad, when he would be able 
 to reach the sea in a few days, when our ships would cer- 
 tainly be there to carry him to any part of the world." 
 
 " How wonderful ! " he exclaimed ; " your countrymen 
 must be powerful and happy, to be able thus to visit every 
 part of the earth." 
 
 I had been writing, and, seeing the pen, ink, and 
 paper, he asked me to write my name on a piece of paper 
 that he might preserve it. I wrote my name on a card, 
 and gave him a few steel pens, with which he was highly 
 delighted. Wrapping them up carefully, he placed them 
 beneath the folds of his robe in his bosom. I now re- 
 quested him to write his name. This he joyfuUy assented 
 to, and, taking the pen with which I had written, asked 
 me " whether I would have him write in Thibetian or 
 Mongol ? " I answered, in the latter. He wrote with 
 great ease, in the Mongol character, his name. He then 
 took from his neck, beneath his dress, a rosary of beads of 
 various sizes and shapes, and, untying it, selected one of 
 the beads, and, placing it in my hand, said it would be a 
 token by which I should keep him in remembrance. 
 
 This Lama lived about forty miles distant, at a Burat 
 village. He invited me to visit him, but I could not make 
 it convenient to do so during my stay at Chetah. He 
 called again to see Captain Grourieff, to get his aid in some 
 business affair he had with the government concerning his 
 people. In a few days he left for his village, promising to 
 
142 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 visit US again after our return from Nerchinsk, but I saw 
 no more of liim. 
 
 The Burats were a trihe, or nation, of the Northern 
 Mongols, subjugated and cut off by Kussia from the more 
 powerful hordes of the south. They inhabit the region 
 round about the Baikal, and were once a large and power- 
 ful nation. 
 
 I believe there are no Lamisaries, or communities of 
 Buddhist priests, among the tribes under Eussian domin- 
 ion, except at Selenginsk ; but to the south of Mai-mat- 
 tschin, about one hundred and fifty miles, on the Orchan, 
 which falls into the Selenga, there is an immense Lami- 
 sary, and a large city, situated in a beautiful valley, sur- 
 rounded by a fertile country. This Buddhist society of 
 priests number many thousands. A large city has sprung 
 up in the vicinity, and it is a place of great trade. The 
 Jesuit Hue, who was to the south further than I was to 
 the north of it, describes it as a singularly interesting and 
 important place, both as regards trade and political in- 
 fluences. 
 
 I had in my possession a Buddhist hand-bell and scep- 
 tre, that Governor Korsackoff had presented to me, under 
 the following circumstances. Previous to my leaving 
 Moscow, G-eneral Mouravieff had written to General Kor- 
 sackoff that the Americans were coming, and told him to 
 give one of those bells — which are highly valued because 
 they are considered to be very fine in metal and tone, and 
 the workmanship excellent — to the first American who 
 should cross the Altai and penetrate into his province. 
 One day, when dining with him, he gave me this bell, the 
 metal of which is said to be pretty well mellowed with sil- 
 
A BUKAT LAMA. 143 
 
 ver, wMle the clapper is of fine polislied steel, tied with 
 red silk thread to the staple on which it swings. 
 
 These bells are used in religious ceremonies by the 
 Lamas, and are considered very sacred, and much value is 
 attached to them. This priest, at Chetah, showed me 
 the use of the bell. He took it in his left hand, holding 
 the handle between the thumb and fore finger, with the 
 palm of the hand open, and the muzzle of the bell 
 turned towards the body. In the right hand he took 
 the mace, or sceptre, and, with much swaying of the 
 body back and forth, he repeated, in a sing-song tone, 
 om mani, or some other pious invocation, and rang 
 the bell at intervals to accompany the prayer, while 
 he was roUing the mace back and forth within the palm 
 of his right hand. He then told us that it was a very 
 holy instrument, and, in using it, much good could be 
 done ; he also explained to us that, in the right hand, 
 some grains of wheat, or other grain, are generally 
 held, and sprinkled on the ground from time to time in 
 front of the altar, or image, before which the ceremony is 
 performed. 
 
CHAPTEE XXVI. 
 
 A WILD-GOOSE CHASE. 
 
 GovEENOE KoESACKorr was still in Kyachta, Alarof- 
 sky was absent, and " winter lingered in tlie lap of spring." 
 I wished and hoped and prayed for rain, a real drench- 
 ing, soaking rain, to raise the waters and set free the ice. 
 The climatology of this section, however, was to me a puz- 
 zle. February and March and April had passed, and out 
 of Irkutsk there had been snow only three times, and not 
 a drop of rain. It must be recollected, however, that, on 
 the east and south of the great Altai range, the physical 
 causes of climate are very different from those on the 
 north and west. On the north, the great Polar Sea, 
 immense tracts of swamp, lakes, and rivers, all supply 
 the atmosphere with moisture and swell abundantly the 
 rain and snow clouds, while the prevailing winds in sea- 
 sons of change are from the north. But upon the south 
 there are few lakes or rivers, while the land in general is 
 dry, rolling, or mountainous, and remote from the ocean. 
 The water-charged clouds, coming down from the north, 
 pass over a region of more than one thousand miles in 
 breadth, where they precipitate much of their moisture, 
 and, as they approach the purer and cooler air of the 
 
A WILD-GOOSE CHASE. 145 
 
 Altai, and in the process of elevating themselves to pass 
 the mountains, they part with almost their last drops, 
 which fall in snows and rains along the northern sides of 
 the range, or upon the crest and southern and eastern 
 water-sheds. 
 
 Looking to the south and west, we find a high, dry, 
 rolling country, with lofty mountains intervening between 
 it, the Caspian Sea and the Indian Ocean. The winds and 
 the rain clouds that gather there fall upon the mountains 
 of Thibet and Bucharia, and, before they have reached the 
 desert of Kobi, have but little moisture left, and, conse- 
 quently, the country upon the head of the Amoor, 
 in a south-westerly direction, receives very little water 
 from them, and the south-westerly winds that sweep so 
 regularly over the steppes of the Ingodah, Onon, and Ar- 
 goon, are harsh and rainless, and it is only when the soften- 
 ing influence of spring has given to the north wind sufficient 
 warmth, that rain descends in reviving showers from the 
 summits and slopes of the Altai. This country, in many 
 respects, is much like portions of California. From the 
 causes enumerated heretofore, very little snow falls in the 
 valleys, and even on the lower mountains, not enough to 
 interfere with the grazing of sheep, cattle, or horses, where 
 I have seen them feeding on native grasses during my so- 
 journ on both sides of the Altai, in the Trans-Baikal 
 country, during the winter and spring. 
 
 Wheat, buckwheat, rye, barley, and oats, hemp and 
 flax, yield good crops on both sides of the mountains. 
 Potatoes, cabbages, turnips, lettuce, radishes, onions, 
 spinach, and horse-radish, are also cultivated. 
 
 The prices of the staple products have been heretofore 
 
146 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 regulated merely upon domestic consumption, because ex- 
 port was out of the question, except to a very limited ex- 
 tent. A few thousand poods of rye, wheat, butter, cheese, 
 taUow, and honey found their way to the Okhotsk, Kam- 
 schatka, and Eussian America, by the tedious and expen- 
 sive overland route north of Irkutsk via Takoutsk, to the 
 ports of Okhotsk or Ayan, while a still less quantity, of 
 late years, found a market through the gates of Mia-mat- 
 tschin, in exchange for Chinese produce. 
 
 Eye has been sold, of late years, at ten' kopyeks the 
 pood*, or about ten cents the bushel (American), and wheat 
 twenty-five cents the pood, cattle at five to ten rubles a 
 head, and sheep at seventy kopyeks. 
 
 Governor Korsackoff and suite returned from Kyachta 
 on the 5th of May, which gave a more lively turn to af- 
 fairs, and hastened the movements in the direction of the 
 Amoor. We had agreeable reunions at his hospitable 
 board, where I met several of my old friends and acquaint- 
 ances, not only from Irkutsk, Verchne-Udinsk, and 
 Kyachta, but also from Eussia. 
 
 One day Captain Alarofsky invited me to witness a 
 goose hunt. Early in the morning Gourieff and myself 
 proceeded to his lodgings, where were guns, ammunition, 
 provisions, telyaga, and horses, all in readiness for the 
 expedition. Before setting out, each of us provided 
 himself with arms and afamunition, and, in order to 
 practise a little, one of our party, a midshipman on his 
 way to join the Amoor fleet, let off his rifle, fuU charged, 
 into the floor of the room in which we were all stand- 
 
 * 36 Its. American. 
 
A WILD-GOOSE CHASE. 14'7 
 
 ing, missing Aryefsky's toes by scarcely an inch, while 
 Stewpan jumped as if he were shot, letting fall, in his 
 fright, my gun, which he was bringing to me. However, 
 vre got off without further accident, and, crossing the main 
 Chetah creek, yet frozen, with the water from the recent 
 thaws running over the ice about three feet deep, we made 
 across the intervening ground towards a village on the In- 
 godah. Here we had to cross a branch of the Ohetah, at 
 its entrance into the river, and, plunging in, the water 
 was deep enough to float our provisions and extra baggage, 
 but, seizing our guns, we stood up in the telyaga and es- 
 caped with moist feet. 
 
 ■ Our road now lay along the base of a mountain. We 
 soon came to some small lakes, where Aryefsky got down, 
 and stole along, half bent, to get a shot at a number of 
 geese feeding on the margin of one of the lakes, but an 
 old gray gander was on the look-out, and, with kronJe ! 
 hronk ! the whole flock were up and off in an instant. 
 We now went at full gallop over the broad plain to the 
 west towards lofty, snow-capped mountains. The day was 
 mild and pleasant, the sun shining brightly, larks were 
 singing merrily, and occasional flights of geese and ducks 
 gave us encouragement of good sport ahead. After a ride 
 of several miles, we came in view of a ridge of low hUls 
 to the left, with the valley of the Ohetah opening up 
 broad and blue away to far distant, brilliant, snow-capped 
 peaks to the north, where Pacific and Frozen Ocean 
 waters were locked in icy embrace. 
 
 We soon saw some small lakes skirting along at the 
 foot of low hUls. Here Alarofsky called a halt, and, 
 pointing in the direction of the water, said, " Goose 
 
148 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 smat-vot ! vot!" — look at the geese ! — " Dalaho," said I; 
 " Nyat, nyat," said he, " Uezke " — ^no, no, near by. Grou- 
 rieff had seen them with his quick eye, and was out of the 
 wagon and off before I saw a feather. Aryefsky followed, 
 and then Alarofsky, while I took a direction between the 
 two lakes, hoping that, if they flushed the birds, I could 
 give them a shot on the wing as they passed over ; but 
 the best of calculations sometimes fail, and so it was in 
 this case. Bang, bang, bang, went the guns of my friends 
 on the right, and away went the geese in the wrong direc- 
 tion for me, seeking the higher, instead of the lower, waters 
 of the Chetah, leaving us gooseless in the sohtary plain. 
 Gourieff now took a wide circuit to the front and left, 
 Alarofsky and Aryefsky to the front and right, while I 
 satisfied myself with skirting a lake to the rear and left. 
 We were in a perfectly open prairie, not a shrub or bush 
 to conceal our approach to the game. I had made up my 
 mind, from the shyness of the first flock that we had seen 
 in the morning, that our chances for success with the 
 geese were rather slim, so I began to shoot larks, and 
 bagged quite a number. 
 
 However, the party, after an hour, began to draw in 
 towards the point where our driver had located a camp, 
 by unhitching his horses, and, gathering a few scanty chips 
 of hois de vache, raised a smoke, if not much fire. It was 
 not long before a Burat came into camp with a pair of 
 geese for sale ; they were purchased, and, with the camp 
 appliances that Alarofsky's soldier-like precaution had 
 provided, our driver was soon in the midst of a grand 
 stew, diversified by roasting of beef on ramrods. 
 
 Gourieff was now seen on the opposite side of the lake. 
 
A WILD-GOOSE CHASE. 149 
 
 and the question was how he was to reach us, without a 
 great circuit to the east, or retracing his steps to the north, 
 but the difficulty was soon settled, by his mounting a 
 bullock which the Burat huntsman had brought with him. 
 The Burats train bullocks to assist them in hunting, using 
 them with great success to stalk geese and wUd ducks. 
 The hunter, walking behind the bullock, drives the animal 
 slowly along until he is near enough to the birds to make 
 sure of his aim'. Being accustomed to the presence of 
 cattle the birds are easily approached in this way. 
 
 We returned by a different road, fording the creek at 
 a point much higher up, where we got the assistance of 
 some peasants in a cart to carry ourselves and traps over 
 dry, while our low wagon was submerged in crossing. 
 
CHAPTEK XXVII. 
 
 DEPAETUEK FROM CHETAH. 
 
 A REGIMENT of infantry of the line, from, beyond the 
 mountains^ halted at Chetah on their way to Schilkah, the 
 rendezvous for the Amoor expedition. They were regaled 
 with a public dinner of meat, soup, bread, quass, and 
 vodka. After a few days' rest they moved on towards the 
 Amoor. In the movement of materiel and troops towards 
 Schilkah, I was doomed to suffer a heavy loss. The ser- 
 vices of my friend, Captain Grourieff, became absolutely 
 necessary to G-overnor Korsackoff, and he was despatched 
 as courier to the different military posts below. It was 
 really a sad loss to me. We had been together since my 
 arrival at Irkutsk, almost daily, except when I was at 
 Kyachta. He spoke three languages fluently, and Eng- 
 lish tolerably well ; was intelligent, inquiring, active, and 
 well versed in every thing pertaining to his own country, 
 and had proved to be in every way an agreeable and most 
 valuable companion. I had hoped that, by some turn in 
 the necessities of the public service, he would accompany 
 me on to the mouth of the Amoor. We parted, with the 
 hope of meeting either at Bankin or Schilkah, as I passed 
 down the river. I hope that his government may appre- 
 
DEPAETUKE FROM CHETAH. 151 
 
 date his talents and worth ; at all events, I think that 
 his own force of character will bring him to the favorable 
 notice of his superiors ; in fact, I am sure of this, under 
 so discriminating and active a chief as G-eneral Mouravieff. 
 
 Though I had lost Gourieff, good fortune favored 
 me, as it had from the first since I entered Kussia, with 
 agreeable companions and kind and noble friends. Cap- 
 tain Fulyhelm, of the Imperial Kussian Navy, Governor 
 of Ayan, in the service of the Eussian- American Com- 
 pany, to whom I had been introduced at Irkutsk by Gen- 
 eneral Mouravieff, was now here on his way to the Amoor, 
 under instructions from St. Petersburg to descend the 
 river, for the purpose of observation connected with the 
 general interests of the company. Heretofore, the whole 
 commerce of this company had been carried either around 
 the Cape of Good Hope, or by the shorter but more expen- 
 sive transit of Yakutsk and the Okhotsk, but now the re- 
 cent occupation of the Amoor had opened to them a new 
 route to their possessions on the Pacific, and Captain 
 Fulyhelm was, like myself, awaiting the moving of the 
 waters to proceed on his mission. 
 
 This gentleman spoke four languages fluently, had 
 travelled much, cruised on the Pacific Ocean, visited 
 California and the Sandwich Islands, and, as governor of 
 Ayan, had seen much of our whalemen there, and was 
 also conversant generally with affairs in our country. 
 
 On the 11th May, General Korsackoff and staff de- 
 parted for Schilkah, which again made delay more irk- 
 some to me, a feeling in which Captain Fulyhelm partici- 
 pated. A small boat, or skiff, by direction of General 
 Korsackoff, had been ordered to be constructed for us at a 
 
152 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 place tMrty miles distant up tlie river, and we were now 
 anxiously awaiting its completion. 
 
 On the 7th, Colonel Oushakoff announced to us that 
 the river was open, and that we might certainly expect 
 our boat by the 13th. I walked down to the river bank, 
 and saw the Ingodah flowing past. It was a pleasant and 
 suggestive sight, and I anticipated with pleasure the hour 
 when I should be afloat upon its dark and sweeping tide. 
 
 Two or three days after the first opening of the river, 
 the flow of ice was checked both above and below Che- 
 tah, which dampened for the time our prospects of de- 
 parture ; but before the 13th it was again all clear, and 
 we anxiously awaited the arrival of our skiff". The 13 th 
 came and passed, as did the 14th, 15th, and 16th, and 
 the boat did not come : Colonel Oushakoff was confident 
 that it must arrive without further delay. We had been 
 notified that it was coming, with others built for officers 
 who were also waiting, but come it did not. It was now 
 the 18th day of May, just one year since I had entered 
 Eussia at Kronstadt. 
 
 " What shall we do ?" asked Captain Fulyhelm. 
 " Gospodeen Zemin is here, whom you know, from Irk- 
 utsk, and offers us passage in his barge to Bankin, or per- 
 haps Schilkah. Our skiff don't come, and Colonel Ousha- 
 koff is discouraged and vexed at the delay, but can do 
 nothing to prevent it." 
 
 " By all means,'' I replied, " accept Mr. Zemin's kind 
 offer, and take our chances, if he does not proceed to Schil- 
 kah to procure conveyance from Bankin, as best we can." 
 
 In five minutes we were packing up, and, after de- 
 
DEPAETTJKE FROM CHETAH. 153 
 
 spatching several cart-loads of stores, provisions, and bag- 
 gage, we bade farewell to friends and acquaintances, and 
 set out in a telyaga, with post borses, for tbe point of em- 
 barkation. 
 
 We spent the nigbt at Ataman, eight mUes east of 
 Chetah, in a peasant's cabin, on a tolerably soft pine plank 
 against the wall ; the husband and wife were in an 
 adjoining room. She was crying the fore part of the 
 night, and talking to her husband concerning his going to 
 the Amoor, and how long he would be absent. She was 
 much distressed, and had been speaking to Captain Fuly- 
 helm in tbe afternoon, to intercede with the chief to pro- 
 cure the release of her husband, as he had been upon the 
 Amoor once before, and, therefore, ought to be exempt 
 this year. The captain made a memorandum of his name, 
 and wife's statement, and promised to do what he could in 
 the premises. 
 
 The barge we were to embark in was flat-bottomed, 
 about forty feet long and twelve feet wide, with high sides, 
 and partially roofed with plank, open between the roof and 
 sides, and drawing two feet and a half of water. This 
 was intended to be used below Schilkah as a lighter, 
 to accompany a fleet of forty large freight barges, which 
 were building at difierent villages on the Ingodah and 
 Schilkah, belonging to Mr. Zemin, and to be freighted for 
 the Kussian- American Company and the Kussian Govern- 
 ment. 
 
 These barges are constructed from the pine and 
 
 spruce timber of the country, growing in abundance upon 
 
 the shores of the rivers, and are about sixty feet long, and 
 
 sixteen feet wide, very heavily and strongly built, and 
 
 7* 
 
154 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 capable of carrying fifty or sixty tons, and, wlien fully 
 loaded, draw from six to seven feet of water. They carry 
 a crew of ten men each, a large lug-sail, two side oars, 
 a steering oar, and anchor, and will make the passage 
 to the mouth of the Amoor in ahout sixty to ninety 
 days. 
 
 The Ingodah, at this point, is ahout two hundred 
 yards wide, the shores well timbered, and mountainous ; 
 the color of the water is dark, almost black, when looked 
 at from the shore ; when dipped up in a glass, it is clean, 
 with a slight yellow tinge, and pleasant and agreeable to 
 drink. We took our tea in the yard, to which the 
 captain's servant, Evan, added some excellent chicken 
 soup, which made up for the loss of our dinner ; the 
 good woman added milk, eggs, and black-bread, which 
 furnished us an excellent meal. Our table was a pile of 
 logs. 
 
 Tuesday, May 19. The long looked-for day broke bright 
 and glorious over the rugged, pine-clad, eastern moun- 
 tains, and, having slept rather badly on my plank during 
 the night, I was glad when the morning came : — the day 
 on which I should embark upon the waters of the Amoor, 
 after a three-fourths circuit of the globe, and sixteen 
 months eastward travel, was to me an eventful one. 
 
 During the morning I wandered along the banks of a 
 beautiful creek, that came laughing down through a 
 mountain gorge behind the vUlage, and passing through 
 the centre of it ; as I ascended along it among the spurs, I 
 found the shores yet covered in places with heavy masses 
 of ice, the accumulation of the previous winter, and 
 which the spring sun, amid the shades of the mountain. 
 
DEPARTURE FROM CHETAH. 155 
 
 had as yet been too feeble to dissipate. Flowers were 
 springing up along its margin in sunny spots, wbere a 
 soutbem exposure admitted the full force of the sun ; 
 and wild ducks were trying its banks for the tender grass 
 of spring. 
 
OHAPTEE XXVIII. 
 
 DOWN THE INGODAH. 
 
 At 3 P. M. Mr. Zemin arrived, with the announcement 
 that we would depart immediately. Bags, hoxes, trunks, 
 guns, pistols, knives, chicken-coops, bundles, cloaks, skins, 
 pots, kettles, pans, bottles, with an indescribable variety 
 of et ceteras, only known to Siberian travellers, were 
 quickly in carts and on their way to the beach where the 
 boat lay. We were all on board by 5 P. m., and, amid 
 the shouts of some hundred peasants and boatmen, we 
 pushed off into the Ingodah, the men sprung to their 
 oars, and, with the assistance of the current, we were soon 
 gliding rapidly along the beautiful shores of this river. 
 
 This was reaUy a joyous moment to me, after the long 
 and terrible land journeys I had made during a Siberian 
 winter, and I felt as proud of our little pine barge, as she 
 floated past the beautiful shores of the head waters of the 
 Amoor, as if I were on one of the finest floating-pal- 
 aces on the great " Father of Waters." 
 
 The river proved easy to navigate in this description 
 of craft, and we proceeded along at the rate of nearly five 
 miles an hour ; we touched once upon a rock at a noted 
 ripple, in which is lodged a huge boulder called Kepetan- 
 
DOWN THE INGODAH. 157 
 
 Kamen, "Captain Stone." The current here is very- 
 swift, the channel narrow, and the " Captain Stone " right 
 where he ought not to be. The expenditure of a few hun- 
 dred rubles in the winter, when the water recedes and the 
 river becomes frozen solid to the bottom, would dislodge 
 this famous " Captain," and rob the' place of all its terror. 
 
 At 9 p. M. we landed at the village of Krugenskah, 
 twenty-five miles by water from Ataman, and twenty- 
 eight by post road from Chetah. Here we found Colonel 
 Oushakoff, the chief of the Eussian military expedition to 
 the Amoor this year. He had " posted " from Chetah 
 since we left Ataman, to look after a government raft and 
 its cargo, wrecked upon the " Captain Stone " the day pre- 
 vious. We went up into the village and drank tea with 
 Colonel Oushakoff, after which we retired to our boat to 
 spend the night. 
 
 I had passed over the same river in a sleigh but little 
 over a month previous, and had visited this post station twice 
 before, and, after travelling in open sleighs and telyagas, 
 and sleeping in them on the road, night and day, during the 
 coldest mid-winter, I had no new hardship to encounter in 
 sleeping in an open boat. Wrapping ourselves up in our 
 cloaks, either on the floor or along the sides of the boat, on 
 benches of planks, we slept well and comfortably. 
 
 Our party consisted of the owner, Mr. Zemin, and his 
 clerk, Captain Fulyhelm and servant, Evan, Mr. Eaddy, 
 and a Cossack huntsman, a pilot from the river Lena, ten 
 boatmen, and myself. Mr. Kaddy was a naturalist em- 
 ployed by the imperial government, and especially by the 
 Geographical Society of St. Petersburg, and was going to 
 spend a couple of years in the great southern bend of the 
 
158 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 Amoor in the region of tlie Sangahree Eiver. We had no 
 cargo but our provisions and baggage ; this, however, 
 made a very considerable bulk, quite sufficient to occupy 
 most of the covered space of the barge. 
 
 We found the river of nearly uniform width, about 
 two hundred yards, with occasional bars, composed of 
 small boulders and gravel. We grounded twice during 
 the day, but both times out of the channel. We were 
 only detained a few minutes each time. We were 
 under way at 4 a. m. The day proved bright and agree- 
 able, though the night had been frosty, and the icicles 
 hung to the oars on the shady side till near noon. The 
 shores are generally mountainous, well timbered with pine 
 and birch, with an occasional opening or receding of the 
 mountains, sufficient for a Cossack village and ground for 
 cultivation. 
 
 We passed a number of vUlages during the day ; we 
 did not succeed in reaching the post station of Oroolgah, 
 and, it coming on to grow dark, we landed for the night 
 upon the right bank of the river, where there was an ex- 
 tensive prairie and signs of cattle and horses. The men 
 soon had a blazing fire on the shore, seated or standing 
 around which they prepared their supper ; we had our 
 samovar and tea. The night was bright and beautiful, 
 and we spent some time walking and in conversation upon 
 the shore, till the sharpness of the air and the lateness of 
 the hour drove us to our planks and cloaks. 
 
 May 21. We were off as soon as it was light in the 
 morning ; the day proved unpleasant, harsh, and cloudy, 
 with much wind, which compelled us to land for a short 
 time, or rather our pilot found the labor of steering too 
 
0OWN THE ENGODAH. 159 
 
 great ; he now commenced giving us lessons in Lena barge 
 navigation. 
 
 There was not a soul on board who had ever before 
 seen the Ingodah, so that we had to depend entirely upon 
 the experience of our Lena helmsman in river navigation. 
 He was a good-natured, ruddy, stout, hearty specimen of 
 a Siberian, proud of his knowledge as a navigator, as well 
 as of the boat and live cargo intrusted to his care and un- 
 der his sole direction. 
 
 I must say that he had quite a good idea of the draft 
 of water in a current river, but not always as good judg- 
 ment of the effect of the current upon his craft — a 
 sad defect in a pilot. We made but a poor run, and 
 landed for the night on the right shore, with a vUlage on 
 our left. 
 
 The country during the day became more and more 
 open, with extensive high rolling prairies, the shores beau- 
 tiful in natural scenery; the forests are leafless, except 
 the pine, though the first flowers of spring are seen, and 
 the willows are budding along the shores. Mr. Eaddy was 
 perfectly enchanted with the beauties of nature, and anx- 
 ious to flnd some new plant to add to his herbarium. 
 
 May 22. The country to-day is stUl more open, hand- 
 some rolling prairie, with mountains in the distance ; on 
 the left, destitute of timber ; on the right, the country is 
 well wooded, and generally mountainous ; the river is 
 deeper and more sinuous, with fewer bars and higher 
 banks. We have made a good run to-day ; our speed is 
 estimated, with oars, at five miles per hour. We stopped 
 for the night at the village of Klutchefskyah. All the 
 villages along on the river are Cossack, under the old 
 
160 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 frontier system of settlement, first adopted in this coun- 
 try as a fence against Chinese or Tartar invasion, and to 
 protect and regulate the convicts in the mines. 
 
 These Cossacks are a distinct class in Siheria, having 
 a very singular constitution, with laws, regulations, rights, 
 duties, and privileges separate from other classes of the 
 population. Their constitution is strictly for military 
 purposes, though they are cultivators (ever so poor) of the 
 soil. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 A MINEEAL SPEING. 
 
 Mat 23. Early this morning we passed tlie river Onon, , 
 coming in from the right (south) ; we are now in the 
 Schilkah. This river is formed by the junction of the In- 
 godah and Onon, the latter coming in from the south and 
 draining all that section of country lying between the In- 
 godab and the Mongol-Chinese frontier. 
 
 These two rivers must have each a course of three 
 hundred or four hundred miles ; the accumulation, there- 
 fore, of the drippings of the watershed of the Mongol 
 frontier has given our new river greater breadth and 
 depth ; more breadth, perhaps, than depth in proportion, 
 for the sand-bars begin now to be a regular feature in the 
 Schilkah, growing more and more like some portions of the 
 Ohio river. There are evidences of much fluctuation in 
 its rise and fall ; the banks are sandy and cut in places. 
 
 Some forty miles below the Onon, the Narga, or Nert- 
 cha, enters from the north. The old city of Nerchinsk is 
 situated upon this stream, a few miles before it enters the 
 Schilkah. On the left, the country is open, rolling, and 
 bare of timber ; on the right, the mountains are well 
 wooded, with some very beautiful open spots and hill 
 
162 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 sides ; tlie bends of the river are more sweeping, and the 
 banks in places crumbling ; the soil looks rich. We 
 passed, on the right, the monastery of Nerchinskay. It 
 is beautifully situated on rising ground, some distance 
 from the river, with lofty mountains in the back-ground, 
 and a fine scope of good agricultural and grazing country 
 around. It is a lovely spot, and well chosen as a retreat 
 for religious meditation. 
 
 We reached a small village, just below Nerchinsk, on 
 the left, before dark, where Mr. Zemin had several barges 
 building. We went on shore and had supper at the house 
 of Mr. Z.'s agent, who had the charge of the construction 
 of the barges. The village is built in a hollow between two 
 mountains, and, on the opposite shore, the country is 
 rugged, but well timbered — a suitable place for boat- 
 building. 
 
 May 24. After supper we retired to our boat, and, 
 resting well, were up at 5 a. m., and crossed the river in 
 a skiff to another village, a little higher up, on the oppo- 
 site shore, in order to visit a mineral spring, some two 
 miles distant, up a mountain gorge. 
 
 We were conducted by the head Cossack of the vil- 
 lage along through and up a deep rocky glen, through 
 which a small creek was running, on which, near the vil- 
 lage, there were several simple mUls for grinding grain. 
 On reaching the spring, we found it surrounded with a rim 
 of ice, and the ground along the creek was frozen. Upon 
 dipping the water with a glass, we found it sparkling and 
 effervescent, like champagne. It was very sharp and 
 pungent to the taste, but wonderfully palatable and 
 pleasant to drink, having the flavor of the purest soda- 
 
A MINERAL SPEING. 163 
 
 water, slightly acid, and sweet enougL. to remind one of 
 hock and soda-water before breakfast " the next morning." 
 We drank as much as possible of it, though it was in- 
 tensely cold ; all regretting that we could not spend a week 
 at the village in order to drink this delightful water. We 
 filled some bottles to take with us, and returned to the 
 village. 
 
 There was no care taken of the spring ; it was just as 
 fashioned by Dame Nature, surrounded by trees, bushes, 
 and rocks, bubbling and sparkling up from the depths be- 
 low. We asked the people of the village as to its me- 
 dicinal properties, upon which they replied that they had 
 not remarked any thing in particular in it, they only 
 drank it when they were sick ; this was, of course, entire- 
 ly satisfactory, and gave us all the light on the subject 
 supposed to be req[uired by us from the villagers. 
 
 Captain Fulyhelm compared it to the Seltzer water 
 of Germany. I thought it quite equal to our own Sara- 
 toga. After drinking of this water, and while our bottles 
 held out, we all felt a peculiar vivifying effect from its 
 use, with increased and healthy action of the viscera. 
 
 On the western side of the mountains, on the waters 
 falling into Lake Baikal, there are several mineral springs, 
 both hot and cold, one of which is very remarkable. 
 This spring contains so much gas, and the effervescing pro- 
 perties are so powerful, that the vapor from it ascends like 
 steam in a considerable column, and, when closely ap- 
 proached, makes you catch your breath. It is quite diffi- 
 cult to drink at first. In the winter it freezes ; but the 
 strength of the gas constantly elevating the water through 
 the ice, it forms a column of several fathoms in height, 
 
164 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 which is giving off vapor the whole winter. This column 
 contimies increasing until the mild weather of spring 
 looses its bands, when, the force of the confined gas ex- 
 panding, the mass bursts, with the report of a heavy 
 cannon, scattering its firagments far and wide. 
 
 In the mountains of Mongolia, on the waters of Baikal, 
 there are also reported numerous mineral waters, hot and 
 cold. That region is essentially volcanic, though I could 
 hear of no mountain in an active state. 
 
 We returned to our boat, on the opposite side of the 
 river, and, pushing out into the stream, reached Bankin 
 by 9 A. M. This is the place previously spoken of in my 
 visit to the mines. Here Mr. Zemin was to stop for the 
 present to attend to the loading of some of his barges at 
 this point, but he kindly proffered us the use of his barge 
 to convey us to Schilkah. This we very gladly accepted, 
 as it would save us the procuring of a boat in which to 
 proceed thence, the removal of our baggage, and perhaps 
 tvTO days delay. Mr. Kaddy also left us here, proposing 
 to visit the Nerchinsk mines, but both himself and Mr. 
 Zemin would overtake us at Schilkah. 
 
OHAPTBK XXX. 
 
 FKOM BANKIN TO SCHILKAH. 
 
 We left Bankin about 11 a. m. It was a pleasant 
 sunny day, and contrasted very favorably with, the last 
 day I was here, on my previous visit, about a month 
 since. The river at this point is four hundred and fifty 
 yards wide, th-e shores mountainous, with occasional prairie 
 and bottom land. The scenery is picturesque, and noth- 
 ing is wanting but an occasional steamboat pufl&ng along, 
 with more cultivation, scattered farm-houses, and pretty 
 villages, to give it a strong resemblance to some portions 
 of the Upper Mississippi. 
 
 We glided along very pleasantly, and, having lost our 
 Lena pilot at Bankin, we were left to our own resources 
 for the navigation of a river unknown to us all. We, 
 however, got on well, and enjoyed ourselves very much 
 with the scenery, and in piloting our craft and sounding 
 the depth of the water on the bars. We landed for the 
 night at the village of Bolovsk, where we were very kindly 
 treated by the people, and had our supper on shore. 
 
 May 24. We were off early, and reached Straitensk 
 during the morning, where we landed to learn the where- 
 abouts of Governor Korsackoff. We had expected to 
 
166 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 .have met him at BanMn, but, when we arrived there, he 
 had previously departed from Schilkah, but was looked 
 for daily on hig return, perhaps to Chetah. We now 
 feared that we might miss him entirely. Captain Fuly- 
 helm called upon the military commandant of the station, 
 from whom he learned that the governor had passed up 
 the day previous by land, on his way to Bankin, but that 
 he would return in a very few days to Schilkah. We 
 also learned from the commandant's secretary, that an 
 order had been given at Schilkah, before the governor left 
 that place, that a boat should be prepared for us there. 
 This gave us much satisfaction, for we had feared that, in 
 case of the absence of General Korsackoff, we should have 
 some difficulty in procuring the men for the expedition 
 down the Amoor. His presence at Schilkah, or his order 
 to provide us with the necessary men, being absolutely re- 
 q^uisite, Captain Fulyhelm had determined, before we 
 reached Straitensk, in case General Korsackoff had gone 
 up, to return himself by land to Bankin, in order to pro- 
 cure his requisition on Colonel Oushakoff for the comple- 
 ment of men necessary for our boat's crew, biit the infor- 
 mation being satisfactory that the governor would return, 
 we, therefore, remained but a short time. 
 
 There is a communication by wagon-road from this to 
 Nerchinsk mines and the Argoon. It is very handsomely 
 situated on the right shore of the river, with bold, beau- 
 tiful mountains in front. The commandant of a battalion 
 resides here, and there are several good-looking buildings, 
 and barracks for a thousand men, and a station-house for 
 passing exiles. The battalion musters here once a year for 
 exercise, inspection, and drill, gathering from their villages 
 
FROM BANKIN TO SCHILKAH. 167 
 
 to spend a month perhaps each year, a few only being 
 retained on duty the year round. 
 
 We floated and rowed along the beautiful shores of 
 this river. The day proved very delightful, and, after a 
 good day's run, we landed for the night at the village of 
 Botovskah. We were kindly and hospitably entertained 
 at a worthy peasant's house, but preferred to sleep on our 
 boat, fearing that warm rooms would unfit us for our river 
 life. Having a long voyage before us, we must become 
 accustomed to sleeping in our little ark. We bathed in 
 the river, and then turned in. 
 
 We departed from our resting-place before the sun 
 was up. The morning was delightful and the river beau- 
 tiful, with superb shore scenery. I lay upon the deck of 
 our boat, hour after hour, admiring it as we glided along, 
 like the shifting scenery in some grand spectacle, as bend 
 after bend, and point after point, opened upon our view 
 landscapes and vistas of surpassing beauty. 
 
 We made all possible speed though, being very anz- 
 ious to reach Schilkah as early in the afternoon as pos- 
 sible, as we were now only fifty miles distant. Our men 
 pulled at the oars with a will, and, aided by the rapidity 
 of the current, we swept merrily past these lovely shores. 
 We struck heavily against a sunken rock (at the Devil's 
 Elbow), in what our helmsman had selected for the chan- 
 nel, but we soon perceived that the deepest waters lay in 
 quite another direction. No damage was done, and we 
 floated on without further obstruction. 
 
 We arrived at Schilkah at 4 p. m., and, as we had to 
 deliver Mr. Zemin's barge to his agent at this point, we 
 procured lodgings, to which we moved our baggage. 
 
168 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 We found tlie boat intended for us undergoing tlie 
 necessary repairs, witli tlie probability of its being com- 
 pleted within a few days. General Korsackoff had not 
 yet returned, nor had Colonel Oushakoff arrived, but they 
 were both looked for daily. The Amoor expedition being 
 ordered to rendezvous here, and General Korsackoff being, 
 by virtue of his office, hetman of the Cossacks in this 
 province, the whole detail and organization of the expe- 
 dition is under his immediate supervision. 
 
 Schilkah is the seat of an old convict silver mining 
 establishment. The working of the mines is now, how- 
 ever, discontinued. " Schilskenskey Zavad," as it is 
 called in Russian, is now the dock-yard and the naval and 
 military depot for the Ainoor. Two steamboats have 
 been buHt here, besides many barges, boats, and rafts, and 
 it has been considered to be the iead of navigation for 
 the Amoor, three thousand three hundred versts, or about 
 twenty-two hundred miles to the sea. 
 
 Many barges are in course of construction and prepara- 
 tion, troops being drilled, barges and rafts arriving from 
 the villages above, provisions and munitions being shipped, 
 and different minor and independent expeditions and 
 companies being fitted out and prepared for the descent 
 of the Amoor, viz. : Captain Arnosoff, on a mining expe- 
 dition, Mr. Eaddy, the naturalist. Captain Chickachoff, to 
 take charge of the steamship America, now at Nikolaivsky, 
 to convey Admiral Count Puchachin to Pekin, the admi- 
 ral's own barge. Captain , with a corps of topogra- 
 phical engineers, to establish a line of telegraph between 
 De Castries and Nikolaivsky, several merchant barges, 
 and our own little- volunteer exploring expedition. 
 
FEOM BANKIN TO SCHILKAH. 169 
 
 Schilkah is on the left bank of the river, has a popu- 
 lation of one thousand souls, and stretches for some two 
 miles along a narrow strip of table-land between the 
 mountain and the river. The town is evidently in a state 
 of decay from its former prosperity, when it was the thea- 
 tre of silver and gold mining. 
 
 The river in front of the town has a breadth of six 
 hundred yards, with a current of four knots, and a depth 
 of seven feet on the shoalest bars, which is said to be low 
 for this season of the year. During our stay in this place, 
 we were engaged from day to day in perfecting our outfit 
 and in laying in additional stores and provisions, to which 
 were added a few notions to barter with the natives for 
 provisions, or with which to make them presents, and 
 smooth our way. 
 
 On the 28th there was a review of the battalion. Six 
 hundred men were under arms — the Eussian battalion is 
 a thousand muskets. The following day they were blessed 
 by the priest, on the shore near where they were to em- 
 bark. This is a religious ceremony observed throughout 
 Eussia in the movement of troops. It is also observed in 
 private undertaMngs. A priest was brought from Chetah 
 to bless the boats built at Ataman, before their departure, 
 the one we sailed in as weU as the others. 
 
 After the conclusion of the ceremony the battalion 
 embarked, the two gun-boats firing a salute as they were 
 pushed off from the shore and swung into the current. 
 The flotilla was soon rapidly carried down the stream, 
 and lost to view behind a projecting point. This was the 
 advance-guard of the Amoor expedition for 1857, under 
 Colonel Oushakoff as chief 
 8 
 
170 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 General Korsackoff arrived on tlie SOtli. TMs gave 
 spirit and activity to every thing, and added mucli to the 
 pleasure of our stay, as, at his hospitable hoard, we met 
 the officers of the great and little expeditions on their way 
 to the Amoor. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXI. 
 
 FROM SCHILKAH TO OUSE-CHEENEY. 
 
 Tuesday, June 2, 10 a. m. Our boat was now ready, 
 our baggage and stores on board. Captain Fulyhelm bad 
 gone out in the town to make his adieus to bis friends. 
 I remained to give sailing directions, and to stop for him 
 opposite the quarters of General Korsackoff. 
 
 Our boat was built here two years since, and had been a 
 voyage down the Amoor as far as Igoon, with General Kor- 
 sackoff. It is thirty feet long, seven feet wide, and three feet 
 deep. Twenty feet of the centre is housed in and divided 
 into two compartments, one for sleeping, seven feet — the 
 other for stores and luggage. Our sleeping apartment has 
 a bunk on each side, two feet wide. The centre is open to 
 admit free passage fore and aft. Two oars, a mast for- 
 ward of the cabin, a small square sail, a flag at the stern, 
 (a blue cross on white ground,) sundry poles, a steering oar, 
 and two spare oars. For our crew we have five Cossacks ; 
 Captain Fulyhelm and his servant Evan, and myself, 
 made up the sum total of the party — eight in all. 
 
 We pushed out into the stream, and, rowing along 
 the shore, landed opposite the lodgings of General Korsac- 
 koff, where Captain Fulyhelm was awaiting my arrival. 
 
172 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 We proceeded at once to the general's, to bid Mm fare- 
 well. 
 
 General Korsackoff liad been so kind to me, added to 
 wbicb his general suavity of manners and agreeable con- 
 versation had rendered my stay at Chetah so agreeable, 
 that it was with pain I took his hand to say good-by. He 
 came with us to the beach to take a last look at his old 
 craft, now about to descend the entire Amoor. He stood 
 upon the shore to see us under way ; waving to him our 
 final adieus, we were once more fairly afloat upon our 
 downward voyage. 
 
 General Korsackoff is one of the handsomest men I 
 have ever seen. He has performed some wonderful jour- 
 neys in Siberia, and made the quickest trip from Kam- 
 schatka to St. Petersburg ever achieved. He was in the 
 first Amoor expedition, and is identified with the final oc- 
 cupation of the Amoor. He is stiU a young man, active, 
 sagacious, hardy, and accomplished, and capable of per- 
 forming prodigies for his country whenever an opportunity 
 presents itself. He has, within a few years, advanced 
 rapidly from a captain to be governor of a province, and 
 now general, but deserves all, and I hope his future may 
 be as bright as he is eminently worthy. 
 
 It is perfectly incredible, except to those who witness 
 it, what one week of sunshine will do in this country. 
 When we arrived at Schitkah the forests were leafless ; now 
 they are in full leaf, the shores gay with flowers and 
 blooming shrubs, and the air at times filled with fra- 
 grance. 
 
 The country is mountainous, and the bottom-lands upon 
 the river not of much extent, but, as you ascend the small 
 
FROM SCHILKAH TO OUSE-CHEENEY. 173 
 
 Streams that fall into the river, the country opens out 
 into beautiful farming and grazing land. At 12 m. we 
 stopped at Ouse-Skoro, ten miles below Schilkah, on the 
 left shore, in order to visit some gold mines a short dis- 
 tance in the interior. We found a conveyance waiting 
 for us. This we owed to Captain Ornosoff, who had pre- 
 ceded us, and, knowing our desire to visit the mines, had 
 informed the superintendent, who had kindly sent his own 
 vehicle. It had been waiting for us since the day pre- 
 vious. 
 
 In a few minutes we were seated in the vehicle, and 
 proceeding rapidly along the road which led up the creek 
 in the direction of the diggings. 
 
 The chief, or superintendent, was not at home, but 
 we were politely received by his officers, who showed us 
 every thing connected with the washings. 
 
 Like all mines in the province of Trans-Baikal, the 
 labor is performed by convicts and under military author- 
 ity. Every thing is on the basis of a great camp. The 
 carting and wheeling of the superincumbent earth, the 
 removal and digging of the dry dirt, and canalization, to 
 elevate the water, are all identical with like operations in 
 California mining, but the washing of the earth is by 
 machinery, propelled by water, as previously described at 
 the " diggings " on the Onon. 
 
 I could not ascertain the annual product of the mines, 
 but was told that the yield was one zolotnick to the one 
 hundred poods of earth washed. The mines extend for 
 some miles up the creek, and give employment to about 
 fifteen hundred convicts. There was quite a large village 
 in view, and the government establishments ; but as all 
 
174 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 the washings were of the same character, we were satis- 
 fied with the inspection of one company. The men 
 worked with alacrity. The system appeared well devised, 
 each one knew his place, and consequently there was no 
 confusion. 
 
 We returned to our boat, and were under way again at 
 4 p. M. The day was really beautiful, like one of our best 
 summer days, and we enjoyed it very much on this beau- 
 tiful stream, with scenery as fine as any on the Ohio. 
 
 We reached the village of Ouse-Cherney, the mouth 
 of the Black Eiver, at 8 p. m. This river, which comes in 
 from the north, a little below the village of the same 
 name, is a very rapid stream, at times so violent as to 
 dash the passing boat or raft a wreck against the opposite 
 rock-bound shore. So, in order to avoid wreck, if danger 
 there was, we spent the night at the village. The peo- 
 ple were very kind. We had tea on shore at a peasant's 
 cottage, with fresh cream, milk, black-bread, and boiled 
 eggs — sumptuous fare indeed. 
 
 After landing, we soon learned from the head peasant 
 of the village that there was no danger, as the Cherney 
 was not high, and we could pass without the least risk. 
 We found ourselves so comfortably situated, however, 
 and, wishing to see every inch of the river by daylight, 
 that we remained till morning. We considered, too, that 
 we had done a very good day's work, having accomplished 
 twenty-eight mUes by water and twenty by land since we 
 left Schilkah at 10 a. m., and arrived at Ouse-Cherney at 
 8 P. M. The river being measured here, we find that our 
 speed, with oars, is five miles per hour. 
 
CHAPTEK XXXII. 
 
 FROM KUSSIAN INTO CHINESE WATERS. 
 
 June 3. Cloudy and cool at sunrise, with rain ana 
 high wind from the east, so that we did not get off as 
 early as usual. At 7 a. m. the wind lulled, and we shoved 
 off. We found the Cherney quite docile and not the 
 least threatening, and, rowing on, reached Gorbitza 
 at 8 A. M. 
 
 As this is a point of some note, historically and geo- 
 graphically, if not in point of size or commerce, I will 
 give it a passing notice. This village is situated a short 
 distance to the west of the little Gorbitza river, which ap- 
 pears on the maps as the boundary in tliis region between 
 Kussia and China. It has some fifty or sixty houses, and 
 is prettily situated on a high flat of table-land on the left 
 bank of the river, and stretches along for over a mile. It 
 afforded me food for serious reflection. After entering Kus- 
 sia at its western gate, Cronstadt, between bristling cannon 
 and frowning fortresses, and having become accustomed 
 to the checkered sentry-box and striped gate-bars on the 
 shores of the Baltic, and wandered amidst that wUdemess 
 of palaces at the imperial city, called into existence by 
 
176 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 the Great Peter, and afterwards passing through such 
 cities as Moscow, Vlademir, Nijne, and Kazan, witness- 
 ing the grandeur and the power of this vast empire, and 
 not having lost sight of the checkered sentry-boxes and 
 striped bars, for the distance of five thousand miles, I felt 
 like parting from an old and tried travelling companion 
 and friend, when I looked upon that little frontier 
 sentry-box beyond the last house of Gorbitza, near 
 the mouth of the Little Gorbitza Kiver, dividing the 
 " Central Kingdom " from that of the " Northern 
 Bear." 
 
 " There' it is ; I see it yet. Look ! look ! " I ex- 
 claimed to Captain Fulyhelm, " we have passed through 
 the eastern gate of the mighty Muscovite Empire." I 
 still gazed from the roof of our boat as we passed the little 
 river dividing the two empires. The gate and sentry-box 
 were still to be seen, but the force of the current was sweep- 
 ing us along, and we were soon carried beyond a projecting 
 point, when the town of Gorbitza was lost to my view, 
 perhaps forever. The last white man's house, the last log 
 cabin, the last civilized dog even, sitting upon the shore 
 and wagging his tail, as we whistled to him from our boat, 
 has been passed on the left shore, and on the right is one 
 solitary village, and that is the last of Kussian civilization 
 until you reach the sea. 
 
 Twelve m. Cool, with rain sc[ualls. Thermometer 50°. 
 Two natives are poling a canoe up along the shore. In 
 view is a Tonguese hut, with reindeer feeding, on the left 
 shore. We asked the men for milk. They answered, 
 " Nyat, nyat," no, no, in good Sclavonic. 
 
 The country is well wooded M'ith pine, birch, larch. 
 
FKOM RUSSIAN INTO CHINESE WATERS. 177 
 
 and spruce ; mountainous, but occasional level tracts. 
 We landed, and found abundance of wild onions, or garlic, 
 which our Cossacks gathered for use. The river all day 
 has been qmte like a large canal, beautiful to navigate, with 
 a steady current, about three miles per hour — bends elongat- 
 ed, with reaches of five miles in extent, giving very delight- 
 ful views. A Ge-lak boat passed us, rowed by four Cos- 
 sacks belonging to the battalion of the line. They had 
 been left behind at Schilkah the previous year, and were 
 going on to overtake their comrades near Igoon. 
 
 Towards evening, the breeze being fair, we hoisted 
 sail. On the right bank we saw a small cabin. As there 
 were no inhabitants, we supposed it to be built for a sta- 
 tion or stopping place in the winter for persons going to 
 Ousc-Strelkah. A short time after dark we passed the 
 gun-boats, barges, and rafts of the Amoor expedition. 
 The cattle were turned on the shore to graze. Last year 
 there were over a thousand head of cattle taken down the 
 Amoor on rafts, with but very trifling loss, and, as they 
 got their food nightly along the shores, with little or no 
 expense. 
 
 The night being moonKght, and, as there was no spe- 
 cial object of interest in this part of the river, we con- 
 cluded to float on during the night. Captain Fulyhelm 
 set the watch for the night. The men were to get their 
 supper and retire. I was to steer tiU 12 p. m., while him- 
 self and his servant, Evan, would divide the morning 
 watch ; the Cossacks to be called at daylight. 
 
 The night proved beautiful, the current swept us 
 along picturesque reaches, and close under and in the 
 
178 
 
 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 shadow of high mountains. An occasional nigbt-hird 
 flitted along these mysterious savage shores, while nought 
 disturbed the profound stillness of nature but the mourn- 
 ful notes of the cuckoo, or the hooting of some amorous 
 owl calling to his mate. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXIII. 
 
 FIEST VIEW OF THE AMOOK. 
 
 June 4. At 5 a. m. we grounded on the head of a 
 middle sand-har, but our men were overboard and worked 
 us off into deep water. 
 
 We made good progress during the night, floating 
 clear of the shores and not touching bottom. Captain 
 Fulyhelm reported the river if any thing more beautiful 
 than heretofore ; the soft moonlight of a lovely night in 
 June gave it additional charms. We saw four men in a 
 canoe going up, supposed to be from Ouse-Strelkah going 
 up to Grorbitza. In a short time we passed a new house 
 on the right shore. Near by we saw three women and one 
 man, and on the left shore there were horses feeding. There 
 is fine bottom-land here, on both sides of the river. 
 
 At 9 A. M. thermometer 68°. We now proceeded 
 along the right shore. We saw two Cossacks on the right, 
 with oxen and cart, hauling timber. We learned from 
 them the distance to Ouse-Strelkah — ten miles. 
 
 We now became very anxious to see the Amoor — to 
 behold which we had journeyed so far. The right bank 
 continued level, with not very high mountains, while the 
 
180 
 
 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 opposite shore was skirted at times with rolling land, sus- 
 ceptible of cultivation for some extent from the river. 
 
 The morning was really delightful, the thermometer indi- 
 cating 70°. We rowed along assisted by the current,watch- 
 ing every opening in the bends of the river, to catch a glimpse 
 of the Kara- Amur. We were not kept long in suspense. 
 ■Rounding a point, we saw the opposite mountains of the 
 Argoon, between which and ourselves a low pomt made 
 out, behind which, as we supposed, was the Argoon ; con- 
 sequently the sheet of water before us beyond the low 
 point of sand on the right, must be the Amoor. We 
 pulled in under the right shore, and, skirting along a low 
 willow island that forms between the ScHlkah and Ar- 
 goon, landed on the Schilkah side, a hundred yards above 
 the point of a bar at their junction. 
 
 It must be confessed, as I stepped on shore I felt a 
 high degree of exultation. I had not been the first to 
 discover this river, neither was I the first white man, like 
 De Soto on the bank of the Mississippi, but I was the 
 first live Yankee who had seen it, and, as the road had 
 been a pretty long one, and some of it rather hard to 
 travel, I felt, I must admit, a little proud of the Ameri- 
 can people, inasmuch as I had perseveringly set my face 
 towards it two years since, and had never, for a moment, 
 turned my back upon it, and had confidently looked, with 
 hope and faith, as well as works, to the day when I should 
 stand at the head of the Amoor. 
 
 I felt proud of the day and the hour on which I set 
 foot on that little point of land — Thursday, June 4, 1857, 
 at 10 A. M., about fifteen thousand miles from my starting 
 point. 
 
FIRST VIEW OF THE AMOOE. 181 
 
 The two rivers came together, much as the Eussian 
 name indicates, Ouse-Strelkah — the " Arrow's Mouth " — 
 forming a point of land like the head of an arrow. We 
 crossed the point to the Argoon side, and, after walking 
 some distance along the beach, returned towards the point 
 and bathed at the head of the Amoor. I swam to and 
 beyond the extreme point. We found the water too cold 
 to remain long in. The water was 54°, while the air 
 was 68°. I took a run along the beach, in order to get 
 warm after our cold bath, and, returning to our boat, 
 was now ready to proceed. 
 
 The village of Ouse-Strelkah, a Eussian post or 
 watch-station, is in view on the Argoon shore, about one 
 mile up. Not far above the river bends to the left and 
 high mountains close the view. Standing on the extreme 
 point of the tongue of land, where the waters of the Ar- 
 goon and Schilkah meet and form the Amoor, looking to 
 the north-east, the view is very pretty. On the right 
 heavily wooded mountains abut upon the river for the dis- 
 tance of two miles, while on the left a strip of bottom- 
 land reaches along, with gently sloping hills in the back- 
 ground. To the front the river is sparkling in the sun, 
 rejoicing in its new and beautiful birth, amid scenes so 
 lovely and picturesque. Flowing gently along, for the 
 distance of several miles, it sweeps gracefully to the right, 
 and is lost behind a projecting mountain. The horizon 
 beyond is closed with densely wooded, but not very high, 
 mountains. Turning on your heel you see the SchOkah 
 and Argoon flowing joyfully on to meet in that conjugal 
 embrace from which springs a mighty river. 
 
 The Argoon serves as a boundary between Mongolia 
 
182 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 and Siberia. It is a fine river of the third class. Its 
 course is nearly south, for about three hundred and fifty 
 mUes. It then inclines more to the west. At this point, 
 just before you reach the lake of Dahlay-mer, or Choolun, 
 the boundary takes the ridge of mountains dividing the 
 waters of the Schilkah from the Argoon, while the latter 
 river pushes its head waters to the south and west, drain- 
 ing a large extent of country up to the Pekin and Mai- 
 mat-tschin road. Three hundred miles from this, where 
 I saw the Argoon not far from the Great Nerchinsk mines, 
 it is a fine river and susceptible of navigation with boats 
 of four feet draft. 
 
 After making our acc[uaintance with the Amoor and 
 bathing in its waters, we cast our boat adrift, and, in a 
 few minutes, we were gaUy afloat upon this new river that 
 was to conduct us to the ocean — two thousand miles to 
 the east. 
 
OHAPTEE XXXIV. 
 
 FEOM OUSE-STEELKAH TO ALBABIN. 
 
 Three miles below Ouse-Strelkah, the- Amoor is four 
 hundred and fifty yards wide, and capable of floating a 
 vessel of five hundred tons burden. The country border- 
 ing upon the river is well wooded with birch, pine, and 
 larch. The bottom land is somewhat extensive, and the 
 soil good. Five miles below we saw reindeer on the 
 shore, and were about to give them the contents of our 
 guns, congratulating ourselves upon savory venison steaks 
 for supper ; but as we approached them in full view, and 
 observed them more closely, we came to the conclusion 
 that they were private property, and not, as Blackstone 
 says, fercB naturce, but domitce naturce, for upon a nearer 
 approach we perceived a band around the neck of one of 
 them. A yearling fawn was kicking up his heels in great 
 glee, quite unconscious of his danger. These animals evi- 
 dently had strayed from their wandering Tonguse masters, 
 and were enjoying themselves upon the rich pasturage of 
 this section. 
 
 At 4l p. M. we passed the river Amahzar, where we 
 observed deserted Tonguse huts. At 5 p. m. we were vis- 
 ited with a severe squall of snow and hail, with the ther- 
 
184 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 mometer at 51°. It soon passed over, and at 8^ p. M. we 
 halted opposite the river Toumahcha, where we found an 
 extensive prairie, with rich black soil, and luxuriant grass 
 eighteen inches high. 
 
 Several natives came to us in a canoe (dug-out). 
 They were rather a miserable-looking lot of mortals, and 
 sadly in need of somebody more capable than themselves 
 to provide for them the necessaries of life, with which 
 their country absolutely teems. Whether they were the 
 subjects of the Celestial* Empire or of Eussia I do not 
 know, but they evidently wanted a master. We gave 
 them some bread and salt, although it was rather early 
 in our voyage to be over-liberal, because we did not know 
 to what strait we might yet be brought ourselves, before 
 we reached the ocean ; but the particular object of their 
 visit was to get a drink of " arrack," or " rak-ke." They 
 made the motion of crooking the elbow, and saying " ar- 
 rack," or " rak-ke ! " which we would not understand, and 
 they got no whiskey. They paddled off, evidently much 
 disappointed, and disappeared behind an adjacent point. 
 
 We continued floating on during the night. The 
 shores were alternately rocky bluffs and wooded bottoms ,' 
 the river sweeping in great bends along highly beautiful 
 and picturesque shores. The night was cool, and white 
 frost formed on the deck of our boat. 
 
 June 5. The weather was cool and clear this morning. 
 At 8 a; m. the thermometer in our cabin 54°. The 
 shores are well wooded and mountainous. The river is 
 very crooked, flowing in great sweeping bends, with a cur- 
 rent of four miles to the hour, and neither bars, islands, 
 nor shoals. We reached Kamenskoy at 11 A. m. 
 
FROM OUSE-STEELKAH TO ALBASIN. 185 
 
 This is a post station, settled by the Eussians, in con- 
 sequence of the grounding of the steamer Schilkah, huilt 
 at Schilkah the previous year, which on her way down 
 grounded near this point ; and as she needed some addi- 
 tional machinery, she remained here during the winter. 
 She is expected to be ready to proceed on her way- in the 
 course of ten days. We were kindly entertained by Cap- 
 tain Lasofsky at comfortable quarters on shore, in a neat, 
 weU-buUt log-house, not destitute of furniture or civilized- 
 looking table-gear, nor was a bottle of wine wanting at din- 
 ner to wash down venison steaks and black bread. 
 
 Captain Ornosoff was here, having only preceded us a 
 few minutes. There were quite a number of workmen 
 engaged upon the steamer in making the necessary re- 
 pairs and in adjusting the machinery. A band of the na- 
 tive Tonguse were here, and I had the first trial of a ride 
 upon a reindeer. They move very awkwardly under the 
 saddle, and must be very uncomfortable to a new begin- 
 ner in that style of riding. The saddle is fastened right 
 on or over their fore-shoulders or withers, which makes 
 the motion very unpleasant, particularly when in a gallop. 
 My impression was decidedly adverse to reindeer for the 
 saddle. Before a sleigh they would do better ; but as I 
 did not reach the reindeer country till sleighing was over, 
 I had no opportunity to test their qualities in that 
 respect. 
 
 We departed at 3 p. m., in order to reach Albasin be- 
 fore night, eighteen miles distant. From this point 
 the river has greater breadth and crumbling banks, high 
 and extensive sand-bars, and many islands. Immediately 
 below Kamenskoy there are middle and shore bars ; the 
 
186 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 current runs with, increased rapidity ; extensive prairies 
 are noticed on the left, with evidences of overflowed 
 banks. The extremes of rise and fall of the river here are 
 twenty-four feet. Trees are torn up by the roots, and 
 drifting with the current, form rafts on the heads of 
 islands and bars. Island chutes are numerous, and the 
 navigation begins to need good pilots. 
 
 We reached Albasin, or where it once stood, at 7 p. m. 
 It was a lovely evening, and while the keel of our boat 
 was yet grating upon the pebbly beach, we leaped on 
 shore. The location for a town is really beautiful, and 
 was well chosen. It is on the left shore, upon high table 
 land, with an elevation of fifty feet, overlooking an exten- 
 sive country to the front and left. An island of several 
 thousand acres lies in front of it, on the opposite side of 
 the river, behind which enters the river Albasin from the 
 south. The mouth of the Albasin is amid a cluster, of 
 islands, and the arm of the Amoor, which makes off from 
 the head of the island above, spreads out into a lake, and 
 with the accumulated waters of the Albasin where it joins 
 the main river, becomes an important stream. The coun- 
 try back of the old city stretches off into a plateau, half 
 prairie, half woodland, rich and luxuriant in its young 
 summer garb, and with but little labor, ready for the 
 plough. The remains of walls, moats, ditches, and mounds, 
 showing the site and extent of the city, are to be dis- 
 tinctly traced, while the curious antiquary will find bricks, 
 shreds of pottery, broken miQ-stones, arms, etc., by dig- 
 ging. 
 
 Albasin is one hundred and sixty miles below Ouse- 
 Strelkah. We remained till near dark, and walked for 
 
FROM OUSE-STKELKAH TO ALBASIN. 187 
 
 some distance around and behind the old city, following 
 what apparently must have been an earthwork of circum- 
 vallation, and probably the mode by which the Chinese 
 starved the Albasinians into capitulation. 
 
 We camped on an island a few miles below Albasin, 
 not liking the appearance of the river for night navigation. 
 We saw a light on the opposite shore, and Arnosoff passed 
 us after dark. We built no fire, as we did not wish to 
 notify the natives of our camping place. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXV. 
 
 FLOATING ALONG. 
 
 We were up and under way at 3 A. M., and floated 
 along until near six, when we grounded, having taken the 
 wrong side of a middle bar. The current was very swift, 
 and forced us down solne distance over a rather rough 
 bottom. Our men thought that there was plenty of water 
 nearer the shore, and that we could still go down on the 
 inside by towing our boat in that direction ; this proved 
 unavailing, however, and our only resource was to force 
 her back against the stream above the head of the bar, 
 where the current would set us on the opposite side. 
 
 This we found pretty tight work, but our Cossacks 
 were all overboard, tugging at the boat to force her up, 
 which was finally accomplished, and, the current catching 
 us on the opposite quarter, we slid off over the stones into 
 deep water. 
 
 A canoe, with a number of natives, came to us from 
 the right shore, having skins for sale. Captain Fulyhehn 
 said these were Orochon or Mangoon Tartars. One, a 
 fine-looking young man, might have been taken for a Chi- 
 nese. They had the Chinese pipes and hats of Mai-mat- 
 tschin, and were well-dressed. 
 
FLOATING ALONG. 189 
 
 We afterwards became satisfied that some of these 
 were Chinese, or the descendants of Chinese convicts, or 
 emigrants, who had settled in this country. Afterwards, 
 as we advanced, we became quite familiar with the same 
 Chinese face and dress, met with every day in the streets 
 of San Francisco, or in the mines of California. 
 
 At 12 M. the thermometer was 72° in the shade. The 
 country was generally mountainous, with prairie and 
 meadow land, near the river and on the islands, which are 
 numerous. There are also many sand-bars and island 
 chutes, which must render the river difficult to navi- 
 gate, except it be previously known in which of the many 
 channels the deepest and best navigable water is to be 
 found. There is not less than eight feet of water on the 
 bars at this time. 
 
 The wind has been contrary all day ; several boats, 
 with Mangoon and Orochon Tartars, have visited us dur- 
 ing the day, seemingly out of curiosity, or perhaps to beg 
 tobacco and whiskey. These people are all evidently of 
 the Mongol race ; they have the Mongol face, and wear 
 the tail. We bartered blue cotton cloth for fresh caviar, 
 which we found excellent, not unlike that from the Volga, 
 not quite so dark colored, nor of that richness of flavor, 
 but nevertheless very good. This caviar is taken J&om a 
 large sturgeon, abundant in the Amoor. We found ice in 
 shaded ravines to-day on northern exposures. The river 
 has been tortuous, with many islands. 
 
 June 7. We continued floating on during the night, 
 meeting with no difficulty. Captain Eulyhelm reported, 
 after 12 p. M., during his watch, many islands, with bars 
 and chutes. At 6 A. m. the weather was clear, with the 
 
190 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 prospect of a summer day. At 10 a. m. the thermometer 
 stood at 68°, 3 p. m. 73°, and 5 p. m. 80°. 
 
 We have had a fine river all day, with large islands, 
 alternate rocky hlufis, and fine bottoms, shores well tim- 
 bered with birch, spruce, and pine ; no ice seen to-day. 
 We saw many Tartar camp-fires last night. They are 
 now congregating on the shores to fish. We were hailed 
 several times during the night, but returned no answer ; 
 but during the day, up to near sunset, we saw not a hu- 
 man being. We made some use of our sail ; the naviga- 
 tion during the afternoon has been delightful — the shores 
 often beautiful and romantic. 
 
 June 8. At 5 A. m. we came in view of high, yellow 
 sand clifis on our left, crowned with birch and pine, one 
 of the most beautiful points yet seen. About two miles 
 before reaching the cliffs, a pair of antelopes came dash- 
 ing down the adjacent shore and across a bar on our right, 
 and, plunging into the river, five hundred yards ahead of 
 us, pushed for the opposite shore. We gave chase in our 
 sMff, but they were too quick for us, and reached the op- 
 posite bank before we could approach near enough to give 
 tlrem a shot. They went out at a deserted Tartar lodge, 
 and disappeared in the rank vegetation just above the foot 
 of the cliff. 
 
 While the barge was floating on, I landed in the skiff, 
 attracted by the singular appearance of the cliffs. I found 
 on the beach chalcedony, carnelian, and agate. The cliffs 
 were composed of amygdaloid sand, decomposed matter, 
 and sandstone, much of it highly colored with iron. The 
 current sweeps past the foot of these cliffs very rapidly, 
 and, being turned from its course, shoots off towards the 
 
FLOATING ALONG. 191 
 
 opposite shore, forming a large eddy under the point be- 
 low. Our barge was drawn into this eddy, and, the cur- 
 rent being reversed, our crew became completely confound- 
 ed at the sudden change in the direction of the barge, 
 and commenced rowing for the shore. By this time I 
 came up in the skiff and directed them to row into the 
 stream. We soon pulled out and were floating on again. 
 This is a very charming point ; the scenery is very 
 fine, and the river winds along its shores with many a 
 graceful curve, the deep green of the larch and pine con- 
 trasting beautifully with the yellow cliffs, and the whole 
 forming a lovely picture. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXYI. 
 
 A MANGOON CAMP. 
 
 At 9 A. M, thermometer 72°, wind ahead and cloudy. 
 The river is over a mile wide in places unobstructed by 
 islands. The wind has rendered our progress very tedious 
 during the day, and, at 4 p. m., we were blown on shore near 
 a camp of Mangoons. They had horses, very sleek, 
 plump-looking, bay and iron-gray little animals, very gen- 
 tle and docile. These people had recently camped for the 
 purpose of fishing. 
 
 As soon as we came near the shore several of the na- 
 tives came along the beach and directed us where to push 
 our boat so as to reach the bank. Their camp was in an 
 adjacent thicket of willows. We walked to their lodges. 
 Some of them were apparently pleased with our visit, 
 while others seemed rather surly. I discharged five shots 
 from one of my revolvers into the trunk of a willow, some 
 paces distant, in order to let them know that they must 
 keep on good terms with us during the stress of weather. 
 One of them, running up to the tree, and seeing five holes 
 in it, shouted to his companions, one of whom ran to a lodge 
 and brought a hatchet and commenced cutting into the 
 tree, in order to see really if there were any bullets in the 
 holes, which they evidently doubted. Four of the balls 
 
A MANGOON CAMP. 193 
 
 •were found, each of which were tasted of hy the party, 
 trying them between their teeth, in order to see that there 
 was no hocus pocus about the shooting. The fifth ball 
 could not be found, having passed through the tree. 
 This they sought for, and succeeded in finding a twig cut 
 by it several yards further on. This seemed to satisfy 
 them, and they became more friendly. 
 
 . In consequence of the tossing of our boat, we had our 
 samovar and tea on the shore, sheltered from the wind by 
 a thick clump of willows. Several of the natives came to 
 our boat. Among them was a woman having very beau- 
 tiful teeth, to which I called the attention of Captain 
 Fulyhelm. One of the " lords of creation," standing not 
 far off, noticed our attention to the red lady, who, as it 
 turned out, was his wife. He spoke to her, and they both 
 immediately left the beach, going in the direction of the 
 camp. Not long afterwards Captain Fulyhelm passed 
 along to the camp again, and found this man beating the 
 woman with a heavy stick. Captain Fulyhelm exhibiting 
 his revolver made the brute desist. The woman sat in the 
 lodge, taking the cudgelling without a murmur. 
 
 In the course of a few minutes I came up, not know- 
 ing what had taken place. I found the woman covered 
 with blood. Captain Fulyhelm had left before I arrived, 
 and she was sitting in the lodge, the man opposite her. 
 By the blood on the woman, and her streaming eyes, and 
 the dark scowl of the man, I saw that there was some- 
 thing wrong, but did not know what had happened. I 
 returned to the boat, where I found the captain, who re- 
 lated to me the particulars of the affair, and gave as a so- 
 lution the jealousy of the husband on account of our 
 9 
 
194 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 admiration of the wife's teetli. Out of compassion to 
 woman, I admired no more teetli while among this tribe 
 on the shores of the Amoor — at least, not while in the 
 presence of the men. 
 
 Captain Fulyhelm would have chastised the fellow on 
 the spot, but he did not think our party quite strong 
 enough to set up a reform society for the amelioration of 
 woman in these parts, as possibly there was a village not 
 far off, from whence reinforcements might have come, 
 while the stress of weather might have rendered our re- 
 treat out of the question if about to be overpowered. 
 
 These people had the pipes, hats, and ornaments of 
 Mai-mat-tschin ; their clothing was principally of skins. 
 Upon giving sugar and copper coins to a little urchin, the 
 father of the boy spoke to him, whereupon the little sav- 
 age clasped his hands behind his back, and, bending for- 
 ward on the right knee, bowed tiU. his forehead touched 
 the earth. This mode of obeisance we found to prevail 
 generally among the Tartar tribes. 
 
 These people resemble the Chinese much, and, with- 
 out knowing who or what they were, I should have pro- 
 nounced them ivild Chinese. 
 
 The Managres and Orochones appear to mix along in 
 this section, as we found, upon inquiry, several of the 
 latter among them. They inhabit indifferently both sides 
 of the river, and both have horses and reindeer, both of 
 which they eat. They had recently killed a deer, or colt, 
 we could not tell which, as the hide was not to be seen, 
 of which they offered us. They had not yet commenced 
 to fish, but were preparing to do so. 
 
 At 7 p. M. the wind abated sufficiently for us to pro- 
 
A MANGOON CAMP. 195 
 
 ceed, but we were driven ashore on the right bank not 
 long afterwards. 
 
 We found ice in a ravine on the left shore, and chalce- 
 dony on the beach. A quartz ledge, with indications of gold, 
 was traced up a small creek, where there was every indi- 
 cation of gold in the sands, and I have no doubt that, 
 with a few hours' work, gold could have been found. 
 
 The natives along this portion of the Amoor have a 
 very remarkable and novel mode of fishing. Three poles, 
 of eight to ten feet in length, much the same as those 
 used for tent poles, are placed in the water on a shoal, or 
 near the shore of a bar, spread at the bottom, as if for a 
 tent, and tied together at the top, in the cross of which a 
 man takes his seat to fish. Here you see them sitting, 
 perched along the shores, as if they had been left there 
 during a flood and were waiting for means to get off. The 
 hook is dropped, or the spear is used, as the unwary stur- 
 geon comes nosing along the shoal seeking food. The 
 stirlet and sturgeon abound in the Amoor, and in the 
 spring and summer salmon of good flavor run up ; in 
 fact, this river is bountifully supplied with fish. 
 
 Many native camps have been seen during the day; 
 the country is level on both shores, with prairie and for- 
 ests, good soil, and most excellent for grazing ; the river 
 of fine navigable depth, with many islands, and occasion- 
 ally mountains in the distance. 
 
 We gave a native a glass of vodka at a camp where 
 we stopped to-day, but, before he put the glass to his 
 lips, he placed the tips of the joined thumb and middle 
 finger in the fire-water, and, withdrawing them, snapped 
 them over each shoulder, to his forehead and breast, very 
 
196 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 much like making tlie Greek cross. This ceremony I 
 took to he a counter-charm against the spirit of evil, if 
 any, in the white man's drink. When we came to ask 
 them q[uestions about the Amoor, they could not compre- 
 hend, hut when we spoke of Sak-hah-lin they at once un- 
 derstood — the river is called Sak-hah-lin by them, nevei 
 Amoor. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXVII. 
 
 MANCHOO VISITOES. 
 
 June 9. We departed from our camping ground at 
 4 A. M. We had both, rain and wind during the morning, 
 at 9 A. M. the temperature was 62°, with rain. We passed 
 the Kah-mah-rah river, where there is a Eussian post 
 being established — a log-house, men, horses, and a raft on 
 the shore, told their whole history. They had floated, bag 
 and baggage, to this point on the raft out of the Argoon or 
 SchUkah, and were here planting one of the outposts of 
 civilization, as their ancestors had three hundred years 
 since, just at the foot of the Ural mountains. Here, as 
 there, cultivation, commerce, and civilization will take the 
 place of wild and roving Tartar hordes. 
 
 It is now one hundred and seventy miles to Igoon. 
 We have had mist and rain the greater part of the day, 
 the river beautiful, with points of fine scenery, and the 
 shores suitable for grazing, with rich land and luxuriant 
 grass. Pine and birch are becoming less general, and 
 trees of other species more frequent. 
 
 June 10th. We floated on during the night, rain con- 
 tinuing to fall, but I managed with a thick coat to keep 
 
198 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 my under clothing dry during my watch at the steer- 
 ing-oar. Herds of elk were frightened during the night 
 as we floated past the shores, where they had con- 
 gregated, standing in the water to avoid the insects so 
 troublesome at this season. We also saw during the day 
 tracks of a large animal, apparently a panther, upon the 
 sand, and also signs of bears. Dncks have been plenty 
 heretofore, but now we have plenty of geese. They are 
 breeding on the islands and shores of the lakes in this 
 region. 
 
 At 8 A. M. temperature 60°. The river is very beau- 
 tiful and the country well adapted to settlement. 
 
 A party of Manchoos came to us from a Chinese post 
 station, or watch-house, on the left shore. The leader of 
 the party wished us to land, saying harm would come to 
 us if we persisted in proceeding down the river. As we did 
 not seem to be much alarmed at their fears, they soon left 
 us and pulled to the shore, but, seeing that we were not 
 going to land, two of them came "running down along the 
 bank, calling to us, and making signs and gesticulating. 
 We, however, went on, rather choosing to seek a camping 
 place for ourselves. The " post" consisted of three log 
 cabins, thatched, and on the shore were three large three- 
 plank boats, called by the Chinese " san-pan." Our vis- 
 itors were not armed, but they undoubtedly had arms at 
 their station. 
 
 The faces of the mountains are frequently bare of 
 timber, gently sloping, with a fine carpet of grass, well 
 calculated for the grazing of sheep. The bottoms are 
 sparsely sprinkled with timber, or are entirely bare, ready 
 for the plough. 
 
MANOHOO VISITOKS. 199 
 
 The CHnese-Manclioo and Eussian " posts" are only 
 about seventy miles apart, on the same side of the river. 
 There is a sort of joint occupancy of the Amoor of an iU- 
 defined nature, but the probability is that the exact status 
 of the parties wiU be determined before long, and those who 
 navigate these waters will not long be troubled by Manchoo 
 " watch-boats." Steamboats will take the place of the 
 canoe and barge, and the swarthy Tartar will view with 
 wonder and admiration the progress of Eussian power 
 here, as his ancestors did upon the Caspian three hundred 
 years ago. But it will be more rapid here now than there 
 in the sixteenth century, because steam, artillery, and re- 
 volvers give to civilized man an irresistible power. Com- 
 merce, navigation, the arts and sciences, will develop this 
 stupendous country, and add, as it were, a sixth continent 
 to the domain of civilization. 
 
 At 9 A. M. there are Manchoo huts on the right. Three 
 men are standing near wood, prepared for shipment, on 
 the bank. We have fair wind, and, with our saU spread 
 to the breeze, are making fine progress. At 12 m. we 
 landed on the left bank on a rich and luxuriant prairie, 
 where we foimd Hlies of the valley and wild apple. The 
 wind was ahead and we remained for hours rambling over 
 the prairies. At length we put our sail into the water for 
 a current saU, and made some headway, but were finally 
 blown ashore about seventy miles above Igoon. 
 
 Here were Manchoos cutting wood for the Igoon mar- 
 Ket, which they form into rafts and float with the current 
 down the river. We have passed two watch stations 
 to-day. It is raining, and the wind is too high to pro- 
 
200 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 ceed. We lay to all night under tlie lee of a lofty moun- 
 tain, well sheltered from the blast. 
 
 Last night troops of reindeer, or ezuher, frightened hy 
 the approach of our boat, fled up the mountain side, 
 loosening the stones as they scampered, which came roll- 
 ing down into the river. A curious kind of gull was seen 
 for the first time yesterday, with black head and wings, 
 under part of the body and tail white, a long distance 
 from the sea, but they follow the rivers to their very 
 sources. I had seen the common white guU at Chetah, 
 and I have no doubt but that these birds cross the moun- 
 tains and seek the waters of Siberia flowing into the 
 Frozen Ocean, and that the gulls from that ocean visit the 
 Pacific in turn. 
 
 The cuckoo is constantly repeating its immusical 
 notes upon the shores by night and by day. It has been 
 our constant companion from Schilkah. The nightingale 
 has frequently relieved the stillness of the night by its 
 song. This bird is much like the mocking-bird of the 
 Southern States in its variety of note. It is a small gray- 
 ish-looking bird, not so large as the mocking-bird, whitish 
 on the under part of the body. Great and little owls 
 hoot and screech on the mountains, while a kind of crow 
 repeats a call like the stroke of a hammer against the 
 rocky face of the overhanging clifi". Flights of water- 
 fowl, alarmed by the approach of the boat, or the occa- 
 sional splash of the steering-oar, start hurriedly from their 
 repose upon the beach and islands, while great cranes come 
 flapping past, like evil spirits from the Dead Sea shore. 
 But our bark floats rapidly on its way to the great ocean, 
 a thousand mUes to the east. It is really enchanting 
 
MANCHOO VISITORS. 201 
 
 thus, at niglit, wlien all is Imsliecl and still, except the 
 occasional heavy snore of a sleeping Cossack, to glide, like 
 a phantom hark, along the shores and among the majestic 
 mountains and through the prairies of this -wonderful 
 country upon the silent tide of this vast river. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXVIII. 
 
 A MANCHOO GUAKD-BOAT. 
 
 June 11, 9 a. m. Temperature 62°. We got off 
 from our last night's camp at 4 A. m. It had rained the 
 whole night, and was still raining. We landed about 
 thirty miles above the river Zea on the left bank. The 
 mountains in the distance are not a continuous chain, but 
 broken into rounded masses, with valleys intervening. 
 Neither are they abrupt, but sloping, and susceptible of 
 cultivation or grazing. Woodland is" scarce upon the 
 river, and it is only upon distant mountains that we ob- 
 serve forests. 
 
 We have seen many natives to-day and also Manchoos 
 and Chinese making rafts of wood, already prepared and 
 piled up along the shores. We passed four Manchoos in a 
 plank-boat, covered with a matting made of grass. They 
 were smoking the everlasting Mai-mat-tschin pipes. 
 
 As we descend, the country is more rolling, and not 
 mountainous, and timber scarce and small. 
 
 We landed at the Eussian post of Zakhsky on the 
 left shore, at 4 p. m., in a heavy rain. The situation is very 
 beautiful, twenty miles only above Igoon. It was settled 
 last fall by a company of Cossacks. The officer in charge 
 
A MANCHOO GUARD-BOAT. 203 
 
 requested our rank, names, and number of men, in order 
 to announce, as agreed upon with the Chinese-Manchoo au- 
 thorities, the arrival of officers wishing to stop at Igoon. 
 
 At this point last year the river was frozen on the 27th 
 of October and open on the 23d of April. The rise and 
 fall of the river is from twenty-five to thirty feet. It is a 
 thousand yards wide, and flows with a rapid current. 
 
 At 6 p. M. a Manchoo boat, with officers, came along 
 side from a town and military station on the right 
 shore, called Sak-hah-lin. The chief, or captain, of the 
 party, was an old man, who stood in the boat, with 
 an umbrella over him. Two others occupied the centre, 
 seated. They were all well dressed. One of them 
 had a kind of oil-cloth mantle over his head and shoul- 
 ders, made of a black material and lined with red silk. 
 They were all three good-sized men, and whether Chinese 
 or Manchoos we could not teU, but most probably of Man- 
 choo race. They Hailed us to stop, but the captain was 
 not inclined to obey Manchoo orders, saying, "if they 
 wish to see us, let them come to us." They then came 
 along side, and two of their oarsmen, obeying the orders 
 of their chief, came upon the bow of our boat, and laid 
 hold of the oars in the hands of our men. We were sit- 
 ting on our bunks, observing all, and prepared to meet 
 any act of violence, when it became necessary. Our 
 Cossacks did not relish the intrusion of the Manchoo boat- 
 men, and one of them, Evan, seized a heavy pole and 
 used it pretty freely over the heads and shoulders of the in- 
 truders, which caused them to retire rather precipitately, 
 either into their own craft, or into the water. We now 
 interfered to quell the combat, while the officers were 
 
204 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 keeping up a terrific volley of words, like discharges of 
 small arms, from their boat. 
 
 So soon as order could he restored among the combat- 
 ants, and words came to be the only weapons, the chief, 
 making signs to express forcibly his meaning, sawing with 
 his open hand edgewise upon his bare neck, said, " that 
 if we proceeded without his permission, or before the news 
 of our approach was announced at Igoon, that we would 
 be very Hkely to lose our heads." 
 
 This threat made our Eussian captain really indignant, 
 and he replied warmly to the old Manchoo, telling him 
 that he must use other language to a high Eussian officer, 
 and repeated to him the word Polhornik, which the old 
 chief seemed to understand perfectly. It worked like a 
 charm, the chief pulled off his skull-cap and made a 
 polite bow to our captain, while the rest of the party sat 
 chattering and muttering in the rain. 
 
 Captain Fulyhelm then explained to him that it was 
 not our intention to proceed to Igoon until morning, but to 
 stop for the night at the next village, or at the mouth of 
 the river Zea. This seemed to satisfy the party, for they 
 soon made their best bows and shoved their boat off from 
 ours, and pulled for the shore. We had carried them some 
 distance below their post ; their disappointment was evi- 
 dently very great, and I was of the opinion that we ought 
 to have stopped when they hailed us. Of course, after they 
 seized our oars, it became a matter of compulsion to which 
 we did not choose nor think it politic to submit. 
 
 The wind being now favorable, we hoisted our little 
 sail, in order to reach the Zea before nightfall and stop at 
 the nearest village. At 7 P. m. we approached the Zea, 
 
A MANCHOO GUAKD-BOAT. 205 
 
 and, after sailing across its moutli, attempted to land at a 
 village on the left, where it joins the Amoor ; but we found 
 the water so shoal in nearing the shore, with a hottom of 
 boulders, and the wind so high, that we could not ap- 
 proach to land. Having struck the bottom, our boat was 
 thumping rather heavily against the rocks ; but we suc- 
 ceeded in pushing off again, and rowed out into the cur- 
 rent against the wind, in order to try a landing further 
 down the stream. After several ineffectual attempts, the 
 wind now blowing a gale and the rain descending in tor- 
 rents, we finally succeeded in making a landing at a more 
 favorable spot, where we could approach the shore. By 
 this time it was dark. To have reached the opposite side 
 would have required several hours' hard rowing, if not im- 
 possible ; so we were compelled to content ourselves with 
 a windward shore, however uncomfortable it might be. 
 
 We therefore lost, what I so much desired, the first 
 peep into a Manchoo town, after running the gauntlet of 
 the " watch stations " and " custom-house officers." For 
 my part, I would infinitely have preferred to have been 
 captured at Sak-hah-lin, and shown in a cage to the de- 
 lighted Tartars, than have missed seeing their town. But 
 all regrets were useless : the storm had us on a windward 
 shore, and there was no help for it. 
 
 The river Zea, or Zayah, enters the Amoor from the 
 north-west, being the first great tributary entering from 
 the left, or mountain region, that divides Dahoureya and 
 Manchooria from Siberia, about seven hundred mUes from 
 Ouse-Strelkah, by the course of the river. 
 
 The Zea has many Manchoo villages on its shores, for 
 some considerable distance up from its junction, as well as 
 
206 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 a considerable native population ; and it is reported to be 
 a good country, the river being navigable for several hun- 
 dred miles, well stocked with fish, and its forests and 
 mountains with game and fur animals. The people have 
 also cattle, horses, and reindeer. The main course of the 
 river is north-west, but it receives two large tributaries 
 some distance up, one from the north-east, the other from 
 the west : consequently, there is a large intermediate valley 
 between the Amoor and the dividing mountains, whose 
 northern shed feeds the rivers which flow into the Frozen 
 Ocean. 
 
 The Zea enters the Amoor with a turbid, yellowish 
 current, forcing itself, by its volume and velocity, into 
 strong competition for the mastery of channel with 
 the black waters of the Sak-hah-lin. This continues for 
 some miles below Igoon ; but finally the " black dra- 
 gon " swallows up his yeUow neighbor, and flows on majes- 
 tically towards the ocean. 
 
 The shores of the Amoor here are level, with exten- 
 sive prairies. Mountains are only seen in the distance, in 
 the direction north of the Zea. Villages are scattered 
 along its banks at every few miles, while the buildings 
 and clothing of the people indicate Tartar civilization. 
 The Amoor is now truly a large river, and strikes the 
 voyager as one of the great rivers of the world. Nearly 
 opposite our camp coal is found, samples of which we saw 
 at the " post " above. It is a poor species of cannel ; but, 
 having been taken from near the surface; it may not be a 
 fair specimen of quality. 
 
 At 10 p. M. the thermometer was 61°, wind high from 
 the south-east, with rain. 
 
CHAPTEE XXXIX. 
 
 AKEIVAL AT IGOON. 
 
 June 12, 6 a. m. Thermometer 56°. We departed at 5 
 o'clock, the wind still blowing in our teeth, and it took a 
 long pull and a strong pull for us to reach the opposite 
 shore, in order to float along it to the city of Igoon. As 
 we approached, a boat from a watch station came out to us, 
 in which there were three officers, the chief distinguished 
 by a white ball surmounting his cap, with a peacock 
 feather hanging from the centre of his cap behind, and 
 two black squirrel tails, one on each side of the feather. 
 The under officers had only brass balls on their caps. We 
 invited them to come on board of our boat, which invita- 
 tion they accepted ; and, seating them on the sides of our 
 bunks, entertained them with vodka, tea, preserves, and 
 biscuit. They had their own little brass or copper pipes, 
 which they filled and smoked at every spare moment. 
 
 Their great anxiety appeared to be as to the number of 
 men we had and our arms, if any. They looked at every 
 thing, poked about our baggage and provisions, examined 
 our guns, and talked incessantly. They already knew 
 that we were not traders, because, by this time, our ar- 
 
208 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 rival at the Russian post, and our affair with the guard- 
 boat at Sak-hah-lin, had been communicated along the 
 line. We made no objections to their search, giving them 
 full opportunity to satisfy their suspicions or curiosity. 
 They were very polite, and smiled and bowed and shook 
 hands with us, and made themselves quite agreeable. 
 
 We rowed along very near the shore, with the guard- 
 boat in tow, drinking tea and smoking pipes with our fiiend- 
 ly visitors, or captors — ^for which they were we hardly knew. 
 There were two large villages, and many people on the shore. 
 In front of the villages were platforms, built for fishing, 
 where nets were suspended. Just at the upper side of Igoon 
 our boat grounded. By this time a second guard-boat, with 
 another instalment of officers, had come on board. The 
 boatmen of the guard-boats shoved us off, and we were 
 soon at the place of landing, in front of the city. 
 
 One of the officers from the second boat, a very po- 
 lite, good-featured, pleasant person, took great interest 
 in our clothing as we began to dress to go on shore. 
 Captain Fulyhelm was dressed in fuU uniform, with 
 sword and gold epaulets, and made a very stylish ap- 
 pearance ; my suit being plain, not even so much as a 
 metal button to set me off, seemed to give sad disappoint- 
 ment to the Tartars, as they were evidently anxious that we 
 should make a brilliant appearance. One of them insisted 
 that I should strap on, outside of my coat, to make up its 
 lack of buttons, a pair of revolvers and a bowie knife and 
 the captain's gold watch and chain, which he had handed 
 me to take care o£ This demonstration I, however, de- 
 clined, rather wishing to conceal my artillery. One of the 
 under officers smoothed and brushed my coat with his 
 
AERIVAL AT IGOON. 209 
 
 hands, being determined that I should look as respectable 
 as possible. By this time Captain Arnosoff had arrived 
 with his Burat interpreter ; and, as the captain sported 
 regimentals, our grand entrance into Igoon would be more 
 imposing, as I could walk between my two military and 
 naval friends, and thus borrow a little of their lustre. 
 
 All being now ready, and the Manchoo officers having 
 preceded us on shore, as a kind of escort, or guard of 
 honor, we walked the plank laid for us by our Cossacks, 
 and were soon in front of the Manchoo city of Igoon. It 
 was a curious spectacle, and one not readily forgotten. 
 
 Igoon is built upon the right bank of the Amoor, 
 where it bends gently to the right, sweeping, with its 
 broad and rapid current, the whole front of the city. The 
 elevation is not great, as it stands on a plain, there being 
 no greater elevation than the natural banks of the river, 
 some eight or ten feet, apparently, above the highest floods. 
 This table-land stretches off to mountains, which show 
 themselves as a background to the picture, in a serrated 
 chain upon the southern horizon. Immediately opposite 
 our boat, upon the shore in front of the town, was a pa- 
 vilion of dark blue cloth, surmounted by a flag. On both 
 flanks of the pavilion were crowds of people — men, wo- 
 men, and children. Adjoining the tent the crowd was 
 very dense, and swayed to and fro, pressing, with impa- 
 tient curiosity, to get a glimpse of " the outside barba- 
 rians ;" but police officers, with sticks in hand, kept them 
 back and within a line parallel with the pavilion, except 
 some few stragglers, who had been allowed to steal along 
 the beach and approach our line of march from our boat 
 to the haU of reception, or audience. 
 
210 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 Thus escorted and guarded, we proceeded up tlie bank 
 by a path, to tlie front of the pavilion, the people crowd- 
 ing and jostling to get as near as possible to the line of 
 our approach. The front of the tent was entirely open. 
 Here we paused a few moments, while the crowd of offi- 
 cials and servants within seemed to be agitated by some 
 unfinished act of preparation. Soon every thing was 
 calm and all stationary within, when a taU, aged, and fine- 
 lookitig man came forward, just as we entered the thresh- 
 old, shaking his own clasped hands at us, after which he 
 gave us his left hand' to shake, and seated us upon benches 
 on the left. This was the governor of Igoon. He was 
 dressed in rich-figured silk robes, with the cap and peacock 
 feather, surmounted with a crystal ball. After we were 
 seated, he occupied a sort of high-backed chair, or tri- 
 bunal, raised about a foot from the ground. Upon a plat- 
 form in front of him was a small table, covered with cloth ; 
 behind him, ranged along the back of the tent, was a row 
 of various petty officers and servants, standing. Upon his 
 right and opposite to us, were seated, upon benches, similar 
 to those we occupied, along the side of the tent, the higher 
 dignitaries of his government, while the front and flanks 
 were swarming with common mandarins. 
 
 A' small table "was now brought and set before us, 
 upon which servants placed small dishes of dried fruits 
 and comfltures, followed by tea in China cups. We were 
 warmly pressed to eat and drink. Small cups of samcJioo, 
 or rice wiue, were brought, which we were pressed to 
 drink. Behind us were squatted several scribes, with strips 
 of paper and writing materials, who were noting down the 
 conversation through Captain Arnosoff' s Kusso-Mongol- 
 
AREIVAL AT IGOON. 211 
 
 Burat interpreter. The questions were put in Mongol to 
 the interpreter, by Mm rendered in Eussian to Captain 
 Fulyhelm, who answered in Eussian ; then reduced to 
 Mongol hy the Manchoo interpreter, and by him in Chi- 
 nese to the governor, and written down by the scribes. 
 
CHAPTER XL. 
 
 DEPASTURE FBOM IGOON. 
 
 The general drift of the questions, after getting our 
 names and condition, of which, by the by, they were al- 
 ready informed, turned on the movements of the Russians 
 on the rivers above, the number of men, guns, boats, etc., 
 on the way down the Amoor, or expected durii^ the year, 
 where they were going, and what they were going to do. 
 They could not understand wj;iat an American consul was, 
 or what he could be doing in Manchooria. Captain Fuly- 
 helm said they probably knew of America, but of that he 
 was not certain ; but a consul — what that was, seemed to 
 perplex them much. 
 
 In the meantim.e, several fat and portly dignitaries 
 came in, shook their clenched hands at the governor, made 
 an inflection of the body by bending the knees, and, seat- 
 ing themselves on the right, paid great attention to what 
 was passing. When my name was again brought in 
 question, and the interpreters rendered the answers in 
 Manchoo, there was a general casting of eyes in my direc- 
 tion. They seemed puzzled by the term consul as given 
 by Captain Fulyhelm, and were anxious to understand its 
 import ; but the impatience of the captain, I am inclined 
 to believe, failed to satisfy them. More tea was brought, 
 
DEPARTURE FROM I600N. 213 
 
 and we were invited to renew our cups of samchoo, but all 
 further parley was cut short by Captain Fulyhelm, who 
 now rose and said, inasmuch as we were not allowed to 
 enter the city, he should leave instantly. 
 
 At this juncture, I requested Captain Fulyhelm to re- 
 new, through the interpreter, our desire to visit the city ; 
 to say to the governor that we had come a great distance 
 from the west, had heard much of the Manchoo nation 
 and of the city of Igoon, and were, consequently, very 
 desirous to visit the largest city upon the Sak-hah-lin. 
 Upon this there was a consultation among the dignitaries, 
 and, at one time, I thought leave would be granted ; in 
 fact, I think there was no positive refusal, and permis- 
 sion was at present given to walk upon the beach in front 
 of the town. 
 
 This, however, only irritated Captain Fulyhelm, and he 
 immediately rose, and I had no choice but to follow, be- 
 cause with him also went the interpreter. All further 
 parley was at an end. We shook hands with the governor, 
 and, bowing to him as politely as possible, withdrew to the 
 vicinity of our boat. The crowd and bustle at the flanks 
 of the tent were intense. We walked down along the bank 
 near the water, where a dozen of war junks were moored 
 to the shore, but apparently not manned. They had each 
 a single mast, high sterns, and bulwarks on the sides — . 
 were painted a reddish-brown color, and were probably 
 sixty feet long and fifteen feet wide. We then turned 
 and walked up along the shore for some distance, followed 
 and conducted by several mandarins, having short sticks 
 in their hands, with which they drove the people off. 
 
 Many well dressed women and girls were standing in 
 
214 VOTAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 a group a little above us on tlie bank, near where we were 
 walking. I stepped off a little, as if intending to pass 
 directly to them, hut the jealous officer interfered in my 
 movements, and I returned to my comj)anions. The fe- 
 males stood their ground bravely, and seemed not the 
 least alarmed or disconcerted at my approach. I was, 
 however, near enough to become satisfied that the females 
 of Igoon are not without soine traces of beauty. 
 
 We passed along, the crowd pressing as near to us as 
 the police, with their sticks, would allow. We again, but 
 in a direct line of our march up the beach, advanced to- 
 wards a group of females and children ; but the " brass 
 balls," shaking their sticks and shouting at them, advanc- 
 ing to our front, sent them scampering up the bank to- 
 wards the town. As we returned along the beach towards 
 our boats, we perceived that the councils still held their 
 sitting^ in the pavilion, and that the crowd of people had 
 not diminished upon the bank. At this juncture, while 
 we were standing upon the shore of the river, pondering 
 what steps to take, a messenger came running from the 
 council to invite us to renew our visit and partake of re- 
 freshments. This Captain Fulyhelm abruptly declined, 
 and sent word back by the messenger that if we were not 
 permitted to visit the city we would depart immedi- 
 ately. After some delay, the messenger returned to say 
 that permission to visit the city could not be granted, as 
 the governor feared we might be insulted, or not receive 
 proper respect from the people. We then proposed to 
 take all unpleasant consequences upon ourselves, acquit- 
 ting the governor, in advance, of any blame on our part ; 
 but it was all to no purpose. 
 
DEPAKTUEE FEOM IGOON. 215 
 
 The threat of debarkation was kept, much to my dis- 
 appointment, for I would have revisited the governor and 
 given him answers to a thousand questions, and drank as 
 many cups of tea and rice-wine as he wished. 
 
 Admiral Puchachin, of the imperial navy, as I am in- 
 formed, is the only Kussian who has defied the authorities 
 and entered the city of Igoon, as it were, sword in hand. 
 Having requested permission of the governor, and being re- 
 fused upon the plea that he would not be safe against the 
 insults of the people, the excitable and nervous admiral, 
 taking with him four armed men, marched into the town, 
 surrounded and pressed upon by the curious people, much 
 to their gratification and greatly to his own ; for he not 
 only had a good view of the city, but a review of the 
 whole population during his promenade. 
 
 I proposed to follow in the footsteps of the brave ad- 
 miral, but was not seconded in the movement ; and, as the 
 Cossacks would not move without the sanction of Captain 
 Fulyhelm, there was an end of it. To be excluded from 
 the city I felt to be a severe blow after so long a journey 
 to it, and I was quite ready for a desperate effort. 
 
 We stepped on board of our little bark, the plank 
 was hauled in, our Cossacks pushed her into the downward 
 current, and we were soon floating along the fi'ont of the 
 city. And thus we left the grave and reverend council 
 of the governor of Igoon, seated in their blue pavilion on 
 the shore of the Amoor, smoking their pipes, and sipping 
 their tea, with every mark of Oriental gravity and deco- 
 rum, wondering and speculating, I have no doubt, as to 
 why we came, and, still more, as to why we went away so 
 suddenly. 
 
CHAPTER XLI. 
 
 MANCHOO SPIES. 
 
 I FELT mucl. depressed in leaving our hospitable friends 
 so sagely seated, and in having lost all hope of seeing the 
 interior of Igoon. I attributed our failure to the excita- 
 ble and nervous temperament of Captain Fulyhelm, be- 
 cause these people, like all the red nations, are not to be 
 dealt with hastily. They have their customs, forms, and 
 ceremonies ; their civil and religious institutions are rigidly 
 fixed and regulated by laws, custom, and immemorial 
 usage, and strangers should conform to them, or take the 
 consequences. What we met with at Igoon was not more 
 unreasonable, or a whit less exacting, than a foreigner 
 would meet with at any of the continental cities or 
 countries of Europe, and even at the imperial city of 
 Peter the Grreat, where none can hope to enter without for- 
 mal passports ; and the exactions of the police of West- 
 ern Eussia were more annoying than Manchoo jealousy ; 
 for, in entering Manchooria, we were not searched in our 
 baggage or persons— no passports were required of us. 
 The want of them would have been fatal at Cronstadt or 
 Calais. We had forcibly resisted the execution of their 
 police regulations in not landing at the guard-house, which 
 
MANCHOO SPIES. 217 
 
 is nothing more than a kind of toll-gate to Igoon, as Elsi- 
 nore is to Cronstadt, and not more than what is exercised 
 in our own ports hy the boarding officer. 
 
 We were kindly, hospitably, and honorably received, 
 with great respect and all prescribed ceremony and polite- 
 ness — all that it required was patience and ordinary com- 
 mon sense to have won these people to our utmost wishes. 
 After the ceremonies, if we had given them full audience, 
 answered their questions and retired quietly to our boat, 
 the crowd having dispersed after satisfying their curiosity, 
 we might, either in the evening, or early next morning, 
 have gone over the entire city and have seen all we desired. 
 
 Capt. Fulyhelm tried to console me for the loss of my 
 visit to Igoon, by saying that we should see all in the vil- 
 lages below that we should have seen in the city. This is 
 true in one sense, as to the common people and their way 
 of living, but I wished to see the higher style of build- 
 ings, their shops, trade, markets, customs, population, 
 numbers, &c. 
 
 But the captain's caution and nervousness arose en- 
 tirely from the wish and determination to do nothing that 
 might compromise his government or himself as an officer 
 and a man. He acted from the best and most prudential 
 motives, and consequently I was not inclined to act in 
 opposition to his wishes. 
 
 The town stretches for about a mile along the shore, 
 but the low stage of water and height of the banks pre- 
 vented us from observing much of it, except the immedi- 
 ate water's front. At the lower or eastern extremity we 
 observed well-built barracks, capable of housing several 
 thousand troops, but not a single soldier was to be seen — 
 10 
 
218 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 even tlie sentry-boxes were vacant. My impression was 
 that the troops had been ordered out of view of the river 
 in order that their numbers might not be known to the 
 passing Russians. 
 
 The Manchoos are playing a timid and temporizing 
 policy with the Russians. They are instructed to carry 
 no arms, to offer no force, but not to permit their people 
 to hold any communication with the Eussians, and the 
 people are punished if found disobeying those injunctions. 
 I saw a poor disconsolate-looking individual seated on the 
 bank near the river, with his head sticking through a great 
 wooden collar, or movable pillory, as a punishment for 
 holding intercourse with the foreigners. 
 
 The buildings fronting the river are generally small, 
 one story, either of logs or daub, with high wooden chinv 
 neys, standing detached from the house, into which the 
 smoke is conveyed by an underground pipe after the heat 
 from the furnace has performed the circuit of the house in 
 other pipes. 
 
 Soon after we were fairly off into the stream a small boat 
 came rowing after us, with several persons in it, making 
 signs to us, as if wishing us to stop and let them conunu- 
 nicate with us. We ceased rowiag, and allowed them to 
 come up. I suggested to Captain Fulyhelm that it was a 
 spy-boat following to watch us in the villages below, and 
 to prevent us from having any intercourse with the peo- 
 ple, if possible. But he thought otherwise. The boat 
 contained, besides the rowers, a " white-ball" officer and 
 two attendants. We invited the white-ball into our cabin 
 and regaled him with vodka, or, as he called it, " Buskee 
 arrache," preserves, biscuit, and cigars. He did not like 
 
MANCHOO SPIES. 219 
 
 cigar smoking, and tad recourse to his own pipe and to- 
 bacco, wticli he very politely offered to us from his own 
 lips from time to time. We soon found that my conjec- 
 ture was right, and, after showing him all the civilities 
 of our boat, we civilly asked him to take a seat in his 
 own boat again, which, by the by, he seemed to be in no 
 great haste to do. However, he finally very politely shook 
 hands with us and reembarked in his own cutter, but still 
 towing along on our side. 
 
 We determined to land at the first village, now in view 
 on our left, and to try some expedient in order to rid our- 
 selves of this pest, if possible, by any fair means. We 
 soon came to the village and went on shore, where the 
 white-ball, having his mat brought from his boat to the 
 beach, was soon squatted upon it, smoking his everlasting 
 pipe. 
 
 It was really a beautiful place, covered with grass 
 and wild flowers, and the country stretching out as 
 far as the eye could reach in green and luxuriant 
 pasturage. We were a little below the village, and, 
 passing up the bank, came to a house, enclosed with a 
 fence, made of small poles and willow branches inter- 
 woven, the same as you will find in many parts of East- 
 ern Siberia. The man of the house came out to us at the 
 fence, and offered us a basket of light red dried beans. A 
 woman and girl, with a young child, retreated hastily into 
 the house as we came up, but turned and gazed upon us 
 from the door. We wished to pass into the yard, but the 
 man shook his head, and, closing the opening with a pole, 
 stood before it. Seeing that he was averse to our enter- 
 ing, we passed on towards other houses a few hundred 
 
220 
 
 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB, 
 
 yards distant. Coming to a house, fenced much like the 
 first, two girls and an old woman retreated hastily upon 
 our approach. We walked up to the fence and stood there, 
 looking over. Soon the girls came to the door, and stood 
 looking at us. We beckoned to them, and, calling out 
 " mundah, mundah," asked for fish in Kussian, with- 
 out making any attempt to force the barrier. The girls 
 soon seeing that we were not very dangerous characters, 
 came out to us at the fence, and finally through the gate 
 into the opening where we were. The old woman now 
 brought garlic and broken grain in a basket, which she 
 offered to us ; but we were now occupied with the girls, 
 and beans and garlic became a secondary consideration. 
 
 We made the girls some little presents of coin, 
 &c., and Captain A. got a very pretty ring, set with small 
 pearls, with Manchoo characters engraved on it, as a sou- 
 venir from one of them, giving her, of course, half a dozen 
 times its value. We were getting on very good terms 
 with our red friends, but, at this juncture, up came the 
 two satellites of the white-ball, and drove the girls into 
 the house, to which they retreated very reluctantly. 
 
 These girls were evidently sisters, very much alike, 
 and possibly twins, or, at most, not more than a year's 
 difference in their ages. They had small delicate hands, 
 and fine teeth. Their color was red, to be sure ; yet the 
 color of the peach-bloom was in their cheeks, and they 
 were very sprightly, and well formed. Being of Mongol 
 blood, their hair and eyes were black. 
 
 We now passed on more towards the upper part of 
 the village, where there were people fishing upon the 
 beach ; but the spies being on our trail, these men were 
 
MANCHOO SPIES. 221 
 
 shy, and we concluded to return to our boat, and rid our- 
 selves of the spies, if possible. As we returned, the two 
 sisters and grandmother came out to meet us, offering us 
 some broken grain and dried fish. We invited them to 
 our boat, but the spies coming up, drove them back with 
 shouts and the shaking of their sticks. 
 
 We passed along in front of several houses, making 
 the children small presents, but the spies returning, after 
 we had driven them back the third time, put the people 
 to flight, and prevented us having further intercouse with 
 them. 
 
 Keturning to our boat, we found the old white-ball 
 seated, apparently very contentedly, upon the beach, 
 smoking his comfortable pipe, as if quite satisfied to re- 
 main there an indefinite period of time. We were all 
 terribly provoked^ and, as for myself, I felt like ducking his 
 highness in the river, just to try if it would not cool his 
 ardor a little, and induce him to return to Igoon for re- 
 inforcements, or further orders. We, however, all came 
 to the conclusion that he must be got rid of in some way, 
 or else we should lose aU opportunity to see and know 
 more of the people in the villages below. 
 
CHAPTEE XLII. 
 
 A MANCHOO VILLAGE. 
 
 We launched our bpat once more upon the tide, and, 
 making signs and gestures to the white-ball, told him to 
 go back to Igoon and not follow us any further, and fired 
 a few pistol shots — ^not at him, however — to see what 
 effect the smell of villainous saltpetre might have on his 
 nerves, and let him know that we were armed. But it 
 was all to no purpose, except to keep him at a very re- 
 spectful distance ; for, as soon as we were fairly out in the 
 stream again, he seated himself in his boat, and followed, 
 hugging the shore very closely. 
 
 Much to our relief, a breeze sprung up, and, hoisting 
 our sail, we hoped to give our Manchoo friend the slip and 
 a long stern chase. We sailed joyfully along, anticipating 
 an uninterrupted visit to the next village, but, as we 
 found it so near at hand, and the white-ball still in sight 
 creeping along near the shore, we concluded to pass along 
 while the breeze continued to facilitate our escape, in 
 order to put as great a distance as possible between us. 
 
 We passed three villages in quick succession, and, in 
 about two hours, landed at the fourth one .upon the right 
 shore. Looking back upon the broad expanse of the 
 Amoor, we could see nothing of our pursuer, having fairly 
 
A MANCHOO VILLAGE. 223 
 
 out-generalled him by the fortunate assistance of the wind. 
 Very soon qmte a concourse of people were gathered upon 
 the heach to witness, perhaps, the first landing of white 
 men upon their shores. They brought beans, red pepper, 
 Indian corn, or maize, dried beans, round cakes of white 
 bread, leaf tobacco made up into small parcels of two to 
 three ounces weight, and a kind of millet, pounded or 
 broken. 
 
 Several of the young girls and women were well-favor- 
 ed, generally round-faced and fleshy, and of a very red 
 complexion. There was one girl, of some ten or twelve 
 years old, much fairer than any of the others, who was q[uite 
 pretty. She was blind of one eye. Several of the 
 old people and younger children were afflicted with sore 
 eyes, and among the women I noticed several cases of 
 goitre. The people were generally well clad, much in the 
 Chinese style. 
 
 In their houses, many of which we visited freely, we 
 were welcomed with pipes, which were filled and lighted 
 by the females, who took first a few puffs themselves, and 
 then handed them to the guests, not, however, without 
 wiping the mouth-piece with the hand, or upon the dress, 
 first. Mats or carpets were spread upon the dais, or 
 divan, which generally extended around three sides of the 
 family room. Here we were invited to sit, squat, or re- 
 pose, as we might fancy. The houses are generally di- 
 vided into apartments, one of which, the first you enter, 
 is the kitchen, where you will frequently find sucking 
 pigs, or young calves, comfortably housed, to say nothing 
 of dogs, chickens, or children. The next apartment is 
 the sleeping, eating, smoking, and reception room. Here 
 
224 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 live, eat, sleep, smoke, talk, and drink, the entire house- 
 liold and their guests, in separate groups, around and up- 
 on the divan, according to their social relations, by night 
 and by day. The dais is generally raised about two feet 
 from the ground floor, and about six to seven feet deep, to 
 the wall. It is their bed by night, their seat and table 
 by day. Different kinds of mats or carpets are spread 
 upon this divan, with a small round pillow for each per- 
 son. These pillows, with the matting, and such covering 
 as they have, consisting of light coverlets of cotton fabric, 
 we saw carefuUy packed in a Mnd of clothes-press, against 
 the wall, in one corner of the room, where they are ar- 
 ranged by the careful housewife in the morning, after the 
 night's repose. The room is warmed by the hot air from 
 the furnace, conveyed in wooden pipes along the perpen- 
 dicular wall of the divan, going out at the side of the 
 house, and ending in a high wooden chimney, sticking up 
 in the yard adjacent to the house, which carries off the 
 smoke. 
 
 After we had visited this village pretty freely, the 
 white-ball came up, evidently chagrined at our success, 
 for he found the people perfectly content with our visit, 
 while we remained unharmed and free from insult. The 
 governor of Igoon had given as a reason why he placed 
 officers near us, that it was to preseive order and decorum, 
 and to see that we were respected by the people. But 
 the fact was, that jealousy prompted it ; either that the 
 people should not become enamored with foreign fashions 
 or faces, or that we might not observe the strength or 
 weakness of their defences in a military point of view. 
 After the whit&-ball came up, we still continued our 
 
A MANCHOO VILLAGE. 225 
 
 intercourse with the inhabitants, and he was quite con- 
 tent with having his mat spread upon the beach, upon 
 which he was soon seated, cross-legged, smoldng the 
 everlasting pipe. Of aU the people that I have yet seen, 
 these are the most inveterate smokers. The Eussians, 
 I had thought, were very fair smokers, before I saw the 
 Mongol-Chinese population of Mai-mat-tschin, but I was 
 then compelled to give the palm to the latter ; but now, 
 since I have visited the Manchoos, all other smokers must 
 be accounted novices — men, women, and children, all 
 smoke, smoke, smoke. The spy, seated on his mat, con- 
 soled himself with a small flask of arrake, of which he 
 offered me a drink, and also gave me half a dozen cakes 
 of sweet white bread as a peace offering. Having broken 
 bread with him, and drank of his cup, we at once were 
 established on the most friendly relations. 
 
 We invited him on board of our boat, and tendered 
 him refreshments of vodka, preserves, and biscuit. A few 
 silver rubles and pieces of blue cotton cloth were shown 
 him, in order to see what effect they would have on his 
 propensity to dog our trail, and to see if the present would 
 not induce him to permit us to proceed without his special 
 attendance ; but he very poKtely declined any substantial 
 present, and pointing to his own and the captain's breast, 
 and shaking his long and bony fore finger before his face 
 — all of which seemed to give us to understand, or to con- 
 vey to us the idea, that his honor would not permit him 
 to receive presents, or his eyes to be blind to his duty. 
 This, certainly, was much more than many more civilized 
 guardians of customs would have withstood. 
 
 We again went on shore, and remained in the village 
 10* 
 
226 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 uutil our curiosity was fully satisfied, and seeing as mucli 
 of the people as possible, after wHcK we departed, followed 
 at a respectful distance by the guard-boat. 
 
 During our stay at the village we had given many 
 pieces of Eussian silver coin to the children, of which they 
 appeared to have no appreciation, except as ornaments. 
 Our Cossacts drove quite a thriving barter with them, 
 giving copper coin for silver, at about one-fourth its rela- 
 tive value ; in fact, copper seemed to be much more 
 esteemed than silver. At 12 m. the thermometer stood 
 at seventy-two degrees in the shade ; it was a lovely sum- 
 mer day, the air soft, pleasant, and balmy. Apple trees 
 of eighteen inches in diameter were growing in the com- 
 mons in front of the village ; men were ploughing in the 
 small fields attached to the house, with bullocks yoked by 
 the horns, much in the Mexican style ; the soil was a rich 
 black loam, while the vegetation along on the sides of the 
 fields and in the open grounds back of the village, bore un- 
 mistakable evidences of its fertility. We were offered fish 
 and broken grain, or millet, cooked in small earthen bowls 
 ^jy the women, who seemed to be anxious to make our 
 visit pleasant and agreeable ; nor was there, except in one 
 instance, any mark of jealousy on the part of the men, and 
 that was soon allayed, and harmony and good understand- 
 ing reigned supreme. 
 
 Several other villages were visited, but nothing new 
 or striking was noticed, except that we were less closely 
 watched the further we departed from the atmosphere of 
 Igoon, and the people less respectful to the spies who ac- 
 companied us. 
 
 Passing several other villages, and having no breeze 
 
A MANOHOO VILLAGE. 227 
 
 to fill our sailj we rowed or floated with the current, fol- 
 lowed by the spy, who kept us in view. Coming to an 
 island where the river made a great sweep to the left, we 
 followed the. main channel, while our white-hall rowed 
 over towards a village behind an island, where a point 
 soon intervening between us, we saw him no more. 
 
 The night proving calm, we continued to float with 
 the current ; the islands were numerous, the shores low, 
 running off into vast prairies, covered with luxuriant 
 grass. The men having retired, I steered on until 2 a. m. 
 The current is about four miles an hour ; some of the 
 bends are deep, with caving banks, and trees, undermined, 
 have fallen into the river. We swept along several of 
 these caving and crumbling bends, the boat frequently 
 brushing the shore. It was a lovely night. Many wild 
 fowl were started from their repose as we wound along 
 among the shaded island shores and grassy banks. 
 
CHAPTEE XLIII. 
 
 A TAETAR BEAUTY. 
 
 June 13. We continued to float on during the entire 
 night, moving amid a labyrinth of islands fringed with 
 rank grass and tangled growth of wiUows and vines. In 
 the afternoon we landed, to look at the country on the 
 north or left banks. We found the soil rich, with a 
 growth of oak, apple, pea-vine, grass, and blooming with 
 many beautiful flowers. During the day we have passed 
 much fine country, and several very beautiful situations 
 for settlements. We landed at a Goldee-Manchoo village 
 on the right bank, and found the people kind and hospi- 
 table. They had much of the Chinese-Manchoo style in 
 their houses and clothing, and cultivated the soil, having 
 horses and cattle. 
 
 They offered us dried fish, car\'iar, broken rye or barley 
 seed, and jerked meat ; but whether horse-flesh or beef, it 
 was difiicult to determine. We purchased some milk, and 
 made the children presents, paying for what we bought 
 with blue cotton cloth. 
 
 We saw here a native girl, whose appearance struck 
 us with admiration and astonishment. She was from six- 
 teen to eighteen years old, and was exceedingly beautiful. 
 
A TAETAK BEAUTY. 229 
 
 As we entered the house, she was standing in the shade of 
 rather a dark room, which was only lighted by the open 
 door, and we only got to see her in a more favorable light as 
 she passed out of the door and across the yard, to an out- 
 building on the opposite side of the enclosure. We were 
 endeavoring to procure fresh caviar, but failing to make the 
 man understand, when the girl returned into the house. She 
 seemed at once to comprehend the word " rebah " — Eussian 
 for fish. She led us across the open space in front of the 
 house to the storehouse, or magazine. Her arms were bare 
 to the shoulders, and beautifully formed, and she wore 
 only a very light single chemise or kalat, tucked up on one 
 side under a girdle, which gave her limbs 'free motion; 
 her head thrown back with a light elastic step, that would 
 grace Diana, she hastened towards the store-room. When 
 in the room she stood with one hand clasping a beam over- 
 head, and occasionally showed a pearly set of teeth, in 
 trying to make us understand the names and uses of the 
 various articles stored within. 
 
 These were dried fish, caviar, sturgeons' entrails, dried 
 herbs, meat, sldns of various kinds, seeds and grain, with 
 an indescribable medley of half-savage, half-Tartar gear, 
 with implements of the chase, nets and fishing spears, 
 mixed in great confusion. But we were now less inter- 
 ested concerning the caviar, and more than interested in 
 our Goldee belle, who was indeed a jewel for which 
 barbaric princes would have given thousands, or have 
 shared a throne to possess, and which made the civil- 
 ized wanderer from far distant lands wish that she could 
 have been transplanted- to a more genial soil, where culti- 
 vation and art could have developed, perhaps, a mind 
 
230 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 more thau equal to the charms and graces of her person. 
 Our memories will often go back to that wild green shore, 
 where dwelk the Tartar maiden on the banks of the Sak- 
 hah-lin. 
 
 The river during the day has been much like portions 
 of the Mississippi. The plains are extensive, and fre- 
 quently neither mountains nor rolling lands are in view. 
 The whole country is susceptible of cultivation or stock- 
 raising. 
 
 June 14. Thermometer 10 a. m. 72°. We have a fair 
 breeze ; partially cloudy ; river a mile wide, with islands ; 
 high land in the distance, with extensive prairies. At 
 12 M. we landed at a white sand cliff on the right shore, 
 where Captain Fulyhelm found, after walking some dis- 
 tance along the shore, a seam of coal three or four inches 
 thick, and upon trying some pieces of it upon the fire, we 
 found it to burn well, with but little smoke or smell, leav- 
 ing but a trace of ashes ; it had much the appearance of 
 cannel coal. 
 
 I observed two kinds of oak, and the common wild 
 rose of our Northern States, growing here. The country 
 below was very beautiful. We saw a man with dogs 
 herding cattle and horses. As we proceeded we overtook 
 a Manchoo trading-boat, which had just left a village on 
 the left shore, near which there were four canoes, with 
 men drawing fishing nets. The natives in this region ap- 
 pear to be exclusively engaged in fishing at this season of 
 the year, with nets, spears, and hooks. The large fish 
 are cut into thin strips, and exposed in the sun, on poles 
 and wooden cross frames, to dry. . 
 
 We landed at a fishing camp a little lower down, 
 
A TAETAE BEAUTY. 231 
 
 where the people had quantities of fish curing in this way. 
 We went on shore to see if they had any sahles, but 
 found none. They offered us cooked fish in bowls, as an 
 act of friendship and hospitality, repeating the universal 
 salutation, " Mendow ! Mendow ! " used by all the na- 
 tives under Manchoo influence. 
 
 We gave them some fathoms of cotton cloth in ex- 
 change for fish for our Cossacks. Several girls and wo- 
 men came running to us after we were on board of our 
 boat and about to leave, with more cooked fish in wooden 
 bowls, their hands all dripping with grease. We shoved 
 off, though it was raining, and blowing quite fresh, but 
 went only a short distance, when we were blown violently 
 on a rocky shore below, and our men had to get overboard 
 to force the boat into deeper water, in order to save the 
 bottom from severe shocks. Two of the natives came run- 
 ning into the water to assist us, one of whom was very 
 drunk. 
 
 The storm soon blew over, and we made sail with a 
 fair breeze. The Manchoo merchant we overtook would 
 sell us nothing, making signs with his hand across his 
 neck, as much as to say, " If I trade with you I will lose 
 my head." Captain Fulyhelm, however, succeeded in 
 exchanging one of our Kussian hens for a large, fine-look- 
 ing Manchoo chicken, giving him about twice the value 
 of the fowl in cloth, to boot. 
 
 We were blown on shore twice during the evening, 
 but succeeded in rowing and poling off. At 11 o'clock, 
 the men being asleep, we were blown ashore again, and 
 as the boat rested easily against the bank, under some 
 
232 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 overlianging trees, we remained till morning, when the 
 men were called to their work. 
 
 The river has been much like the Mississippi to-day, 
 with many islands. The main river has washed but two 
 bluffs iu the course of the day, and both of them on the 
 right. There was a ridge of high land in the distance, to 
 the south, most of the day, and on the left (north) a 
 boundless prairie. 
 
CHAPTEE XLIV. 
 
 MANCHOO JUNKS. 
 
 June 15, 8 A. m. Thermometer 68°. There was fog 
 early in the morning, and it is now partially cloudy. We 
 saw antelopes on the right shore ; the river is bounded by 
 mountains on both shores. We had strong head wind 
 during most of the day, and put our sail in the water as a 
 current sail, so that we were enabled to make headway, 
 though very slowly. The waves were so high that rowing 
 was of no effect. The mountain scenery has been very 
 pleasing ; the forests mostly ovate-leaved, with scattering 
 lir, pine, and spruce. 
 
 At 5 P. M. we met ten Manchoo merchant junks oi 
 barges, out of the Songahree river, which enters the Amoor 
 about one hundred miles below. They were on their way 
 to Igoon, with the first instalment of merchandise from 
 Pekin for the current year. These junks were about sixty 
 feet long, twelve to fourteen feet wide, with a large mast 
 amidships, forty or fifty feet high, high bows and stems, 
 and drawing three to four feet of water. There were ten 
 men to each junk — eight at poles or cordels, one steering, 
 and one on the bow, (the pilot,) sounding, and crying the 
 depth of water to the steersman. They all saluted us. 
 
234 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 crying " Mendow ! Mendow ! " It seemed like slow work, 
 as they laboriously poled along the sand-bar, or cordelled 
 along the shore, and reminded me of the early barge and 
 keel-boat navigation on the Mississippi and Ohio, and the 
 old flat-boat song, 
 
 " All the way from Shawnee-town, 
 Long time ago," 
 
 when it occupied six months to make a voyage from New 
 Orleans to Cincinnati. These junks were unquestionably 
 from the highest point of navigation on the waters of the 
 Songahree, at a point where the commerce overland from 
 Pekin finds its way to supply the wants of the Amoor 
 trade. The distance from Igoon by land direct to Pekin 
 is not probably more than eight to ten hundred miles, for 
 I was informed that couriers performed the distance in 
 twelve to fifteen days ; but by way of the Songahree and 
 Amoor, and thence overland to Pekin, the distance must 
 be double. I wished for a good- steamboat, that I might 
 have taken these junks in tow and landed them at Igoon, 
 in order to have shown the Manchoos the great advan- 
 tage of steam on their magnificent rivers. 
 
 A. short distance below we went on shore, at the foot 
 of a lofty promontory that ran jutting out into the river, 
 forming a very beautiful point. We found a high table- 
 land rising above the bottom, next to the river, running 
 off into gently rounded hills, sparsely wooded with indif- 
 ferent red-oak and black-birch. The grass was good, with 
 strawberry and grape vines in abundance. A red doe 
 started from her lair within ten steps of us, as we were 
 walking along in the tall grass, and went bounding off, 
 
MANCHOO JUNKS. 235 
 
 turning in a circle, stopping occasionally to look at us, 
 and snorting like a high-pressure steamboat. We were 
 unarmed, and consequently she escaped. 
 
 It began to rain very soon, and as it was growing late, 
 after wandering some time in this sylvan Paradise, we re- 
 turned to the beach, partly by the bed of a smaU creek, 
 where there was strong indication of gold. As we had 
 fortunately hit upon a good landing for the boat, and the 
 night looking threatening, we concluded to camp until 
 morning, as we wished to see every inch of the country to 
 the Ousuree. Kain continued to fall during the night, 
 and for the first time we were troubled with mosquitos. 
 There was vivid lightning, but no thunder ; though we 
 ■wished for a regular thunder-storm, hoping thereby to 
 have a clear day on the morrow. 
 
 June 17. We- left our camp at 4^ A. m., with drizzling 
 rain ; but by 10 o'clock we had sunshine, and landed on 
 the left bank, where the country had the appearance of 
 the oak orchards of California. We found the soil good, 
 with grape and pea-vines ; many varieties of flowers, 
 among which the lily of the valley was so abundant as to 
 impregnate the air with its delicious fragrance. We were 
 not mistaken in our judgment of this being a choice loca- 
 tion for a settlement. The prairie and table-land were 
 extensive, with a rich growth of grass, extending back to 
 the sides of gently sloping mountains, some ten to fifteen 
 miles distant, whose sides were bare of timber, but cov- 
 ered with grass well adapted to sheep or cattle, the higher 
 portions and summits covered with dense forests. After 
 wandering about for some hours, we discovered remains of 
 former habitations, containing broken bricks and shreds 
 
236 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 of pottery, from all appearances of the same age and 
 quality as found at Albasin. We therefore conjectured 
 this to have been one of the Cossack or fugitive settle- 
 ments of the Eussians from the mines of Nerchinsk, of 
 the same period as Albasin ; and as it was well known at 
 the time that the Cossacks passed down the whole length 
 of the Amoor, and even crossed over to Kamschatka in 
 quest of furs, we came to the conclusion that this was one 
 of the links in the chain, and served as a supply station 
 or post of defence. 
 
 Leaving this, we landed several times during the day, 
 and found the country one well calculated for the herds- 
 man or agriculturist. Besides the grape and pea, we 
 found apple, asparagus, peony, poppy, and a variety of 
 lilies. We passed the most of the day as near the left 
 shore as possible, but the main land was so masked with 
 islands covered with a tangled luxuriant growth, that we 
 were compelled to take many island chutes, where our 
 boat frequently grounded. 
 
 We have seen quite a number of natives fishing to- 
 day, generally on the lowest points of islands. We land- 
 ed at 10 p. M. for the night, so as not to miss the Songah- 
 ree, which we must now be approaching. Slight showers 
 during the day, but mild, pleasant weather. 
 
CHAPTEK XLV. 
 
 THE SONGAHEEE. 
 
 June 18, 10 a. m. Temperature 62°. We departed 
 at 3 A. M. High wind from tlie north-east. The night 
 was clear up to 2 a. m. During the morning we were 
 blown on bars and on shore several times. Being very- 
 anxious to reach the Songahree, which, according to the 
 information received from the natives, must be now near 
 at hand, we strained every nerve to proceed ; but island 
 after island was passed, and our men, with oars and poles, 
 worked us off the lee shore and bars time after time. We 
 were now approaching the head of an island on the right, 
 which we wished to avoid, fearing to be driven into the 
 chute by the force of the wind. Our Cossacks rowed, and 
 poled, and tugged to avoid this, but all to no purpose. 
 The wind took us a-beam, and the rushing suck of the 
 eddying chute fairly swallowed us up ; and rushing down 
 this deep, narrow passage, we soon found ourselves in a 
 very narrow, tortuous, miniature river, going q^uite in a 
 contrary direction from the main Amoor. But I consoled 
 the captain by telling him that the flat-boatmen on the 
 Mississippi river said, " that if the current is sufficient to 
 suck you in, it will be found strong enough to puke you 
 
238 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 out ; " SO that we must come out somewhere in the course 
 of time. Along this chute we passed hour after hour, till 
 we almost came to the conclusion that we had, much 
 against our own consent, found a new channel to the sea, 
 or that we would, perhaps, enter the Songahree some dis- 
 tance from its mouth, or that the higher water of the 
 Amoor was sending us into some vast inland lake ; hut 
 after some six hours spent in this wild labyrinth of islands, 
 we were ejected into the main river once more, to our 
 great delight. 
 
 Following the right hank as closely as possible, and 
 then an immense sand-bar of some miles in extent, we 
 saw to our right a large sheet of water, but at first we 
 were not sure whether it was the Songahree or the en- 
 trance of the concentrated waters of other island chutes 
 we had passed on our right. We rowed around under the 
 point of the bar, looking to discover if, by any possibility, 
 we might not be mistaken in our conjectures. We saw 
 evidently a decided change in the color of the water, and 
 now began to see quite a marked line of separation be- 
 tween the two waters. In a few minutes we saw a line 
 of foam and light drift running off towards the opposite 
 shore, and upon rowing still further into the channelj 
 soon saw the two rivers taking their first embrace. 
 
 The color of the Songahree is lighter than the Amoor, 
 and upon dipping a tumbler, I found it clearer and much 
 warmer. In fact, the Amoor had, up to this, been cold 
 enough to drink pleasantly, but the Songahree was insipid 
 and warm, coming as it does from a southern source. 
 
 We rested our oars to observe the force of the current, 
 and found it feeble in comparison with its great north- 
 
THE SONGAHEEB. 239 
 
 western neighbor, for while we were in a two-knot cur- 
 rent, on looking out upon the Amoor, it was sweeping 
 past at the rate of four or five knots. 
 
 The Amoor is certainly the noblest river of the two at 
 their j unction, but the Songahree bears every evidence of be- 
 ing a river equal to the Ohio. The height of its banks, the 
 breadth and extent of its bars, its width, and force of 
 current, all indicate a river of great magnitude. 
 
 We now pulled over near the right and proper shore 
 of the Songahree, and found the current somewhat 
 stronger as we reached the middle of the stream. 
 
 A boat had been seen rowing along the right shore for 
 some time, and, having reached a point opposite our boat, 
 came off towards us. It proved to be a Chinese-Manchoo 
 guard or custom-house boat, with the officer of the post 
 on board. He had a brass ball on his cap. We offered 
 him vodka, preserves, and biscuit, of which he partook. 
 He saluted us frequently with the now familiar " men- 
 dow ! mendow !" — ^friend ! friend ! His greatest curiosity 
 seemed to consist in knowing how many and what kind 
 of arms we had, and the number of men. As it was con- 
 venient to do so, we exhibited several six-shooters and a 
 couple of shot-guns, and counted, with our fingers, the 
 number of men. Another boat soon came alongside, 
 with another functionary, who seemed to outrank our first 
 boarding officer. We offered him the hospitalities of our 
 barge also. The new dignitary seemed to be satisfied with 
 the discoveries already made by his predecessor. Each of 
 these officers were accompanied by a secretary, who noted 
 down the result of their observations. They had each 
 four Goldees for boatmen. 
 
240 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 Having, by tListime, drifted nearly opposite the post, or 
 custom-liouse, they took their leave and rowed to the shore. 
 
 This post of Zend-Zoon-Jelend consists, as far as we 
 could observe from our boat, of two principal houses, some 
 half a dozen smaller ones, and a number of tents or huts, 
 with an open tent or pavilion of blue cloth, standing im- 
 mediately in front of the buildings on the banks of the 
 river. This we conjectured was for the reception of 
 strangers, in case they landed, as at Igoon. 
 
 Three junks, of the same fashion of those seen at 
 Igoon, were lying at the shore. This seemed to be the 
 entire guard to control the navigation of the Songahree 
 and Amoor. As we floated now along upon the united 
 waters of these two great rivers, the scene was truly 
 grand. To the south and west we saw the separate volume 
 of each before united ; to the east .the great Amoor lay 
 broad and sparkling in the sunlight, bounded by its 
 verdant shores stretching for many miles in the dis- 
 tance. Blue mountains, to the north, stretched like a 
 great wall against the horizon ; the air was warm, and 
 filled with the freshness and fragrance of early summer ; 
 the declining sun gave a rich and mellow tint to the out- 
 stretching prairies on the north, while the southern shore 
 was clothed in a deep dark forest — a scene truly worthy 
 of an artist. 
 
 About seven miles below, another guard-boat came to 
 us from a watch-house on an island to the left of the main 
 river. It continued with us until we saw a boat from the 
 left, manned by Eussians, comiag out to us. This proved 
 to be from a Eussian post recently established, apparently 
 for the purpose of providing wood for the steamboats ex- 
 
THE SONGAHEEE. 241 
 
 pected up the river this year. We found here also the camp 
 of a corps of Eussian topographical engineers. There seems 
 to be a joint occupation of this section of the country by 
 China and Kussia, both on the left of the main river, and 
 but a few miles apart. We were informed that the Man- 
 choos have occupied this post since the Russians came 
 here, as a counterpoise to Eussian occupation. 
 
 At the post above Igoon a Manchoo officer came last 
 year to inquire if it was the intention of the Russians to 
 settle a village there. They told the officer that they did 
 not know. The Manchoo officer then said that they were 
 informed that the Russians intended to settle three hun- 
 dred families there. He said the Russians might settle 
 that number, but, if more than the three hundred came, 
 a great misfortune would happen them. They are evi- 
 dently temporizing with the Russians, and, the moment 
 they think themselves strong enough, the attempt will be 
 made to expel them. The Manchoos are now evidently 
 a very timid people, and ill-prepared to oppose force to 
 their powerful Muscovite neighbors. 
 11 
 
CHAPTEK XLVI. 
 
 RUSSIAN PR06EESS. 
 
 Igoon was settled by the Chinese government soon 
 after the conquest of Albasin, to serve the double pur- 
 pose of a frontier guard and penal station, and to prevent 
 any further settlement by the Kussians on the Amoor. 
 
 Watch-posts or houses have been located from time to 
 time for purposes of communication, vigilance, or safety, 
 and the void tribes have been subjugated to serve the pur- 
 pose of a frontier guard ; in fact, the natives haVe been 
 enslaved by the Ohinese-Manchoo government, and are 
 seized upon in their villages whenever wanted for pur- 
 poses of government. The Chinese officers are instructed 
 to prevent the Russians from settlement and the naviga- 
 tion of the Amoor, but are not allowed to use force. . 
 
 The Eussian officers are very kind and just in their 
 dealings, and conciliatory in their manners with all the 
 people along the Amoor, paying them roundly for what 
 they purchase, and frequently making presents of cloth, 
 tobacco, and trinkets. When the first Russian vessel 
 came up the Amoor they knew nothing of the river, and, 
 in order to procure pilots, they were forced to enter the 
 native villages and take by force two of the oldest men 
 
RUSSIAN PEOGEESS. 243 
 
 in order to be informed as to the channel. Thus they 
 came from village to village, treating the men kindly and 
 paying them a hundredfold for their services. So soon as 
 the natives saw that they were not to he harmed, were 
 treated well, and richly rewarded, the Russians found no 
 difficulty in procuring men to show the navigable parts of 
 the river. These natives are found to possess quite an 
 accurate knowledge of the navigation, and would general- 
 ly teU in advance the depth of water to be found in diffi- 
 cult parts of the river. In this they rendered an impor- 
 tant service to the Eussians. 
 
 The Manchoos say that the Songahree is the real 
 Amoor and that the Sak-hah-lin empties into it. This is 
 readily credited at this particular juncture, as Eussia 
 would be quite willing to have the Songahree as the 
 more southern boundary ; in fact, it is now said that the 
 real Ya-blo-novey mountains cross the Amoor and run oif 
 far into Tartary, and that the location of the boundary 
 along the ridge that divides the waters of the Frozen 
 Ocean from those of the Amoor was a fraud and a deceit 
 of the Chinese, practised knowingly by them at the time 
 of the old treaty of Golovin, and, therefore, not legally 
 binding on Eussia ; in fact, recent events have gone far to 
 establish this. 
 
 But it remains to be seen how successful Eussia is to 
 be in making the Ya-blo-novey, or Hingan mountains 
 cross the Amoor, take in the country to the south, down 
 to Corea, through Manchooria, cross the Gulf of Tartary, 
 or Sea of Japan, and include the whole of the island of 
 Sak-hah-lin to the boundary of Japan. 
 
 But Eussia, having possession of the upper waters of 
 
244 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 the Amoor, she now also needs the Ousuree, because this 
 river runs off to the south, towards Corea, and approaches 
 the Sea of Japan at a point where there is a good harhor 
 (Pahseeat Gulf), in about north latitude 42°, which re- 
 mains unfrozen during the winter — a desideratum " de- 
 voutly to be wished " by Russia on the Pacific, and which 
 she will find necessary in her growing affairs in this re- 
 gion. I do not see why she should not have this port 
 as well as England and France their islands, ports, and 
 harbors on the Pacific and in the Indian Ocean. The 
 possession of this point would be one of the best steps 
 Eussia could take, perfectly proper and justifiable in view 
 of her future position on the coast of Tartary and the 
 necessities of her commerce. The occupation of this wUd 
 uninhabited coast by her will be alike beneficial to civili- 
 zation, to commerce, and to Christianity. She is now 
 willing to pay China a reasonable price for these wild Tar- 
 tarian coasts and harbors, rivers and mountains ; and 
 morally there is, no more wrong to-day in the conc[uest 
 and acc[Tiisition of these countries than there was, some 
 centuries since, in the conquest and settlement of America. 
 The climate of Pahseeat Bay and the country of the 
 Ousuree is quite mild. Little or no ice forms in the win- 
 ter to obstruct" navigation seaward, which makes it still 
 more desirable to Eussia for a seaport and harbor for her 
 fleets, such as she has not as yet on this side of the world. 
 While England, Holland, France, and Spain have colo- 
 nies in the Pacific and Indian Ocean, open the year 
 round, Eussia has nothing but frozen seas and ports closed 
 for six to eight months in the year. 
 
 A few miles below the mouth of the Songahree the 
 
ETJSSIAN PEOGEESS. 245 
 
 two rivers become so thoroughly mixed, that but little 
 change in the color of the water can be observed, though 
 it was sensibly warmer. The river is now over a mile 
 wide without islands, and, in places, wider, including is- 
 lands and chutes. 
 
 June 19. High wind from the east. Shoved off, but 
 were blown on shore a few mUes below. We went into 
 the country ; an extensive prairie, with some oak near 
 the river bank. Strawberry vines, in astonishing abun- 
 dance, peony, two varieties of pea, and asparagus and 
 clover ; good pasturage ; mountains to the north, distant 
 ten mUes. After some hours delay, the wind still blow- 
 ing fresh, we shoved off and rowed with much difficulty 
 into the current, put down the sail into the water, as it 
 was impossible to keep her head to the wind with the oars, 
 but our progress was short-lived. Coming to a bend of 
 the river, the wind blew us to the shore again. Here we 
 rested some hours, but seeing no likelihood of the wind 
 abating, we shoved with our poles along the shore. After 
 two hours of hard work we reached the head of an island- 
 chute, into which we pulled under a lee shore, thereby 
 avoiding the wind which was sweeping up the main river. 
 Being now quite sheltered iu this narrow channel, we got 
 on quite well until 7 p. m., when a violent rain-storm came 
 on, which, after a struggle of an hour and a half, drove 
 us on to the lee shore, where we were forced to tie up for 
 the night, though it was an expt)sed situation. The rain 
 descended in torrents ; our boat thumped very severely 
 against the shore and bottom. Our Cossacks, thoroughly 
 wet and fatigued with the hardest day's work they had 
 yet, had erected a temporary camp on the shore, which 
 
246 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 was well wooded, and kindling a huge fire, cooked their 
 supper and dried themselves. A little vodJca was dis- 
 tributed to comfort the wet bivouac. The whole day's 
 toil has only advanced us eighteen miles — the poorest 
 day's work yet accomplished. 
 
CHAPTEE XLVII. 
 
 FLOATING ALONG, 
 
 June 20th, 8 a. m. Thermometer 60°. It rained and 
 blew violently all night, with occasional flashes of light- 
 ning, without thunder. This is the third time, since our 
 departure, that lightning has occurred. At 5 A. m, the 
 wind was too high to depart, but at 7 we were enabled to 
 get off. The weather was stiU foul, with wind, fog, and 
 mist. The beautiful mountains that had been in view 
 for the last four days were now hid from us, and we only 
 caught a glimpse of the foot of a very high peak, which 
 we had seen in the distance, as we glided past it, the river 
 sweeping its base, and, at the same time, a little lighting 
 of the weather gave us a hasty view of the spurs of the 
 great chain of mountains bounding the northern horizon. 
 
 As the day advanced, the clouds partially lifted, so as 
 to give us a fine view of the mountains now forming a 
 background to the view, as they had a foreground at the 
 mouth of the Songahree. 
 
 The evening proved windy, and we were again forced 
 to land on a desolate island. This we regretted the more, 
 as we had anticipated during the day to have reached an 
 Indian village, where to have spent the night. It was 
 
248 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 now very dark, tlie wind blowing a gale, and we had great 
 difficulty in making a suitable landing place, as we were 
 on a lee store and the water rough. 
 
 At 11 p. M. a severe rain-storm, accompanied with 
 heavy claps of thunder and lightning, the first thunder 
 heard on the Amoor. The severity of the storm made 
 our boat pound very unpleasantly on the sand of the shore, 
 but there was no escape for us ; we had to take it as it 
 came ; but in the course of two hours the storm passed 
 over, and we slept a little towards morning. 
 
 June 21st, 10 a. m. Theimometer 70°. The morn- 
 ing looked unfavorable, and we were blown on shore soon 
 after our departure, but, the wind shifting a little, and 
 coming to a less crooked part of the river, we used our 
 sail, and the wind beginning to blow again quite fresh, 
 we made good speed. We kept our sail tiU about 6 P. m., 
 when, a rain-sq[all coming up, we ran into an island-chute, 
 where we were protected under the lee shore of an island, 
 but the squall was soon over and with it our fair wind. 
 
 We rowed on till 10 p. m., and landed on the right bank 
 at the foot of a mountain covered with forest. Some 
 Goldees who had rowed out to us as we passed their vil- 
 lage an hour previous, came to overtake us and to trade 
 sables for silver. They asked two rubles for them. Cap- 
 tain Fulyhelm said they were indifferent ; but, as we had 
 no silver, and they wanted nothing else, we made no trade 
 with them. 
 
 The country on the right has been very interesting to- 
 day ; mountainous and well timbered, reminding me of 
 mountains in the tropics from the variety and richness of 
 the foliage of the different species of trees. Some twenty 
 
FLOATING ALONG. 249 
 
 miles above the Ousuree we took to the left shore, or isl- 
 and-chute, a part of the river perhaps never before de- 
 scended by white men, and, with a fair breeze, we passed 
 along this unknown river, amidst innumerable islands, 
 complicated chutes, and darkly-wooded banks, alarming 
 the quiet water-fowl and startling the timid fawns in their 
 sylvan abode. We saw neither man, nor the marks of 
 any human being, until we entered the arm of the river, 
 some fifty or sixty miles below, usually travelled by those 
 navigating these waters. 
 
 Two barges, not far astern of us, took the Ousuree 
 channel, and I was curious to see which would come out 
 first at the meeting of the two arms of the river, but as 
 yet we have seen nothing of them. 
 
 During the night several canoes and three-plank boats 
 filled with men passed up and down between two villages, 
 and about 1 A. M. a boat came along near us, hailing sev- 
 eral times with the usual " Mendow ! Mendow ! " as they 
 came rowing up merrUy against the current. The rowers 
 were uttering a kind of brisk, lively cry, keeping time with 
 their oars, while the steersman, perched upon the stem, 
 was chanting a wild melody. In the stillness of the night, 
 and under the shade of a huge mountain, which gave back 
 from its rocky sides a half-repeated echo, the effect was 
 vdld and strange in the extreme, and fiUed me with ro- 
 mantic feelings. 
 
 The night proved pleasant, though it had threatened 
 
 both wind and rain. We were, however, in a favorable 
 
 situation, in a kind of cave, under a high mountain, where 
 
 only one direction of the wind could reach us, and being 
 
 11* 
 
250 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 to the windward of the threatened storm, we rested quite 
 secure. 
 
 June 22, 10 a. m. Thermometer 63°. Head wind 
 and cloudy, with drops of rain, at 4 a. m. The wind was 
 fresh during most of the day, but by putting the sail in 
 the water, we succeeded in making a little headway 
 against the storm ; but we were finally driven on the 
 shore at 5 p. m. 
 
 With the help of our poles we crept along very slowly 
 until about 7 p. m., when the wind freshening, rendered 
 further progress out of the question. The wind blew 
 quite a gale during the night. 
 
 The country where we have landed is prairie, rich and 
 luxuriant, with grass to the height of my shoulders — a 
 choice country for raising stock. There was a dim traU 
 along the shore, showing a path traversed by the natives, 
 and clumps of timber off in the distance. I walked some 
 distance out into the prairie, until I came to a long lake, 
 with oak and aspen on its banks, and signs of elk and 
 deer or antelope. There were also geese and ducks in 
 the distance, but too shy for a shot. 
 
CHAPTER XLVIII. 
 
 FLOATING ALONG. 
 
 June 23, 10 a. m. Thermometer 61°. The wind 
 blew a gale aU night, and it was past 9 a. m. before we 
 were able to get under way. The weather was cloudy 
 and cool, with the wind ahead. We struggled along 
 all day with poles and current-sail, and being driven at 
 length near to the head of an island chute, we were drawn 
 into it with great swiftness by the current, though we 
 struggled hard to keep out of it. We wound along its 
 banks of tangled woods and rank undergrowth for many 
 hours, turning point after point, and rounding bend after 
 bend, hoping every moment that we might see our way 
 out of this labyrinth. 
 
 We finally landed at a deserted Tartar village, to ex- 
 amine the forest trees. We found elm, ash, oak, poplar, 
 maple, walnut and gum, with a tangled and luxuriant 
 undergrowth of vines and shrubs of various kinds. 
 
 Though a mountain-side, and rocky in places, the soil 
 was exceedingly rich. The rocks were evidently plu- 
 tonic. We finally succeeded in reaching the main river 
 again. Though we had not advanced much in our direct 
 course, we had visited a wild and beautifdl country, never 
 
252 VOYAGE DOWN THE AHOOB. 
 
 before, perhaps, seen by a white man. We stopped sev- 
 eral times during the day to look at the coimtry, and pen- 
 etrated the forests for some distance, but found them so 
 rank and dense with undergrowth, as to deter us from 
 going far. We saw extensive woods of aspen. The cli- 
 mate and soil here are certainly very favorable to agricul- 
 ture, as is shown by the vigorous growth of timber and 
 herbage. 
 
 We were now on the southernmost bends of the 
 Amoor, below the Ousuree, and about eight hundred 
 miles above its mouth. The main river is so broad, and 
 the shores so masked with islands, that the navigation, 
 with only oars and the current, is very tedious ; for when 
 the wind is blowing, as it does nearly all the time at this 
 season of the year, if it happens to be adverse, you are 
 confined to the lee-shore, and pretty much at the wind's 
 mercy ; the river being so mde, that to reach the opposite 
 shore with oars is out of the question. The river is truly 
 a grand one, and since we passed the Zea, more and more 
 resembling the Mississippi ; and since we passed the Son- 
 gahree, and now the Ousuree, in many places with its cut 
 and crumbling shores, falling-in timber, and the muddi- 
 ness of its waters, and its huge sand-bars, the resemblance 
 had become almost perfect. 
 
 From the Songahree the Amoor is certainly a more 
 considerable river in breadth than the Mississippi below 
 the mouth of the Ohio. The expanse of water, the nu- 
 merous islands, and the many navigable chutes, some of 
 them thirty miles in extent, must give it more breadth than 
 the Mississippi. As for instance, above the Ousuree the 
 river is divided into two parts ; one — the right — usually 
 
FLOATING ALONG. 253 
 
 navigated, into wHch falls the Ousuree, deep, and about 
 the size of the Ohio ; the other, broad and filled with 
 islands, bars, and chutes, certainly as large as the Missis- 
 sippi above Memphis, and looting very like it. 
 
 We have seen but two Tartar villages to-day, and 
 only a solitary old man came to us in a canoe. We 
 showed him our map of the river, and asked him for cer- 
 tain villages which were indicated on it, at which he was 
 much surprised. We found, through him, our position, 
 of which we had been ignorant since yesterday. 
 
 We passed in the afternoon a range of elevated land 
 on the left, which was truly such a country as a farmer 
 would select for healthiness of locality, richness of soil, 
 and beauty of scenery. He would have timber and prai- 
 rie land at his option, with abundant grazing for cattle, 
 horses, and sheep. 
 
 The natives dress usually in the sammer in clothing 
 made of fish skins. I saw a woman to-day preparing 
 some of these garments, which are durable, and well 
 adapted to the necessities of the fishing season. They 
 shed rain as well as an india-rubber coat, and are light 
 and pliable, wliile some of them are quite becoming in 
 style and finish. The young girls, dressed in these new, 
 shining fish-skin robes, trimmed off with shells, beads, 
 and trinkets, laughing and frolicking along these wild 
 shores, are doubtless quite as attractive to the young men 
 around them as are their crinolined sisters of Broadway 
 or Pennsylvania Avenue to the youth of New York or 
 Washington. 
 
 June 24th, 10 A. M. Thermometer 60°. High wind. 
 We lay all night, the bottom of our boat pounding rather 
 
254 
 
 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 unpleasantly upon a rocky beach, as our -landing was after 
 dark and upon a lee shore, badly chosen, or rather not cho- 
 sen at all. The wind blew quite a gale all night. We lay 
 at the foot of a mountain densely covered with forests of 
 poplar, aspen, elm, and small oak. The river opposite 
 was over a mile wide, with several islands masking the 
 opposite shore. We pushed off at about 6 a. m., for it 
 certainly was better for our boat to breast the waves and 
 winds, than to have her thin .ribs in such close proximity 
 with occasional thumps from volcanic boulders. 
 
 We struggled all day, with current-sail, oars, and 
 poles, along a lee-shore, frequently grounding upon the 
 bank, and seeing no likelihood of the wind abating, and 
 having been unable all day to make the opposite shore, 
 which we wished to visit, or gain a windward island, un- 
 der whose lee we might have some shelter from the wind, 
 we at last landed. We found a soft bank, where we were 
 somewhat sheltered by the bend of the river, and bringing 
 a point of land a little to the windward, we tied up for 
 the night. The shore was a vast prairie as far as the eye 
 could reach, with grass shoulder high, where perhaps the 
 foot of man never before had trod. We were again out • 
 of the accustomed channel, and on water not laid down 
 on the charts, but I must still believe on the main river, 
 for it was at this point certainly a mile wide, with a cur- 
 rent of four miles an hour. 
 
 The shores to-day have been somewhat hiUy, with 
 some rocks and high sand-cliffs, wooded with aspen and 
 elm. The islands and bottoms are subject to overflow, 
 and either prairie or covered with willow. Wind north, 
 and north-east by east. This is the third day of this 
 
FLOATING ALONG. 255 
 
 storm of wiud without rain, cloudy by day and clear by 
 night. We have not seen a human being this day on the 
 shores, or the sign of habitation. The grass was so luxu- 
 riant, and the country so flat, that we did not undertake 
 to penetrate more than a few hundred yards from the 
 water. Up to 2 o'clock a. m. the wind was still blowing 
 fresh and cool over the broad expanse of the river, but the 
 bank of the river was soft and crumbling ; conseq[uently 
 our boat did not suffer much, though she was " bobbing 
 round " all night. 
 
CHAPTEE XLIX. 
 
 THE NAVIGATION. 
 
 June 25, 10 a. m. Thermometer 64°. Head winds 
 and clouds. We got off at 8 a. m. Wind still ahead, 
 but somewhat ahated in Yiolence ; the weather cloudy, 
 with indications of rain. We made more progress to-day, 
 the wind being more directly ahead, which made our cur- 
 rent-sail of more use, though we were again driven by the 
 wind into deep bends, but had no detention, nor were we 
 forced to resort to our poles except occasionally. 
 
 The river all day broad, with numerous islands ; the 
 banks covered with a dense growth of wiUow. We there- 
 fore conjecture that we have not seen the main shore to- 
 day. Towards night the peak of a distant mountain was 
 seen, which gives us hopes of seeing terra firma some 
 time to-morrow, as the wind now (11 J p. m.) had nearly 
 subsided, and we are lying without being tossed by the 
 waves, which has not been the case for the four last nights 
 past. Just at dark we saw lights, and attempted to pull 
 in to them, but were swept past by the force of the cur- 
 rent, and landed on a high gravel bar, below a village, 
 with an island chute intervening. The captain's servant, 
 Evan, and two of our men, have, however, gone with the 
 skiff to the village, to try to procure fish. 
 
THE NAVIGATION. 257 
 
 The night is cloudy, with drops of rain, and bids fair 
 to drench us before morning. It is a most extraordinary 
 fact, and proves this to be one of the safest navigable 
 rivers in the world, that last year (1856), out of six hun- 
 dred and ninety-seven barges and rafts which descended 
 from the upper waters of the Schilkah and Argoon, only 
 one failed to reach its destination, and that one was not 
 wrecked, but abandoned in an island chute, where it had 
 grounded, and the sudden fall of the water rendered it 
 impossible to get it afloat again ; so the cargo was re- 
 shipped on other barges or rafts. 
 
 There has as yet been no instance of the loss of a 
 barge. Several rafts have been broken or abandoned. 
 Last year there were fifteen hundred head of beef cattle 
 transported on rafts. All these cattle but seven reached 
 their destination. These rafts are more than two months 
 descending, landing every night to graze the cattle, and 
 frec[uently in the day-time, on account of storms ; yet see 
 the little loss ! One government barge, loaded with can- 
 non, was stove at Mkolaievsky, by coming in contact 
 with a ship. This was no fault of the navigation. The 
 steamer Schilkah grounded, not for want of water in the 
 river, but because she was not in the channel. Of course, 
 in such an immense river as the Amoor, some time must 
 elapse before the channel, at aU stages of the water, be- 
 comes well known. Till such time, much caution must 
 be observed in navigating by steamers, particularly in de- 
 scending, in order to know that they are pursuing the 
 channel or chute in which the greatest depth of water is 
 to be found ; otherwise it may happen, as in the case of 
 the Schilkah, that entering the improper channel and 
 
258 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 grounding, the sudden falling of the water renders it im- 
 possible to get afloat again, and may leave the steamer 
 high and dry on the inside of a sand-bar or island chute, 
 where a rise in the river must be awaited. 
 
 In my opinion the Amoor river will not prove as diffi- 
 cult or as dangerous to navigate as the Mississippi, be- 
 cause there is not so much shifting of the bars, nor but a 
 very limited number of snags. In the upper portions of 
 the river, the flow of ice in the spring effectually clears 
 the river of all fallen timber of the previous year, while in 
 the central and southern portions, the immediate banks 
 are not timbered to much extent, while again, low down 
 on the Amoor, the heavy timber is most generally on high 
 or rocky shores, not subject to be washed into the river. 
 
 Friday, June 26, 12 m. Thermometer 78°. We got 
 off at 4 A. M., with very little wind, but during the day 
 it blew sufficient to make the current-sail available. We 
 succeeded in reaching the northern shore, along which we 
 coasted, landing and looking at the country during the 
 morning. We found the soil fertile in grasses, with pea- 
 vine and strawberry, but generally destitute of timber. 
 In the afternoon, as we were approaching mountains on 
 our right, we pulled over to the southern shore, and coast- 
 ing along it, landed and examined the forests along that 
 shore. We found oak, ash, elm, and aspen. The oak 
 was frequently two feet in diameter, but the trees were 
 generally imperfect, being hollow at the butt or partially 
 decayed at the sides. We saw marks of elk or reindeer 
 on the beach along the shore, as well as tracks of a large 
 cat or panther, which had probably prowled along the 
 night previous in search of sleeping water-fowl, which are 
 
THE NAVIGATION. 259 
 
 abundant here. Walking along the shore while our boat 
 was floating along in the stream, we came to a creek, 
 which was the boundary line of mixed timber ; far below, 
 for some distance, we saw nothing but a dense forest of 
 aspen. 
 
 It came on to 'be dark before we entered an island 
 chute which bore us to the right of the main river. The 
 banks were low, and the chute so narrow, that in turning 
 some of the bends, the stern of our boat swept the wil- 
 lows. After proceeding near an hour along this chute, 
 it divided, when we again took to the right. Not being 
 sure that we were going with the current, as it was now 
 quite dark, we ceased rowing in order to observe the effect 
 of the current. We found that we were floating but slowly 
 down the chute. We rowed and floated on. It was now 
 pitch dark, and past 10 p. m. ; cloudy, and threatening a 
 storm. We again came to a division of the channel. 
 Again we pulled to the right, but we found that we had 
 entered into a large and apparently circular space of wa- 
 ter, though the entrance was not fifty feet wide. By 
 stopping the oars this time, we found that there was no 
 current. 
 
 We now concluded that it was time to stop for the 
 night and await the coming daylight to guide us either 
 out of this apparent cul de sac, or into some chute lead- 
 ing into the main river, or rather to be guided by the de 
 scending current. We therefore pulled up to the shore, 
 and made fast to some overhanging willows ; upon which 
 one of the men took the skiff, and rowing out upon the 
 dismal waters of this seeming dead lake, returned in the 
 course of half an hour with the intelligence that the only 
 
260 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 outlet was the one by whicli we had entered, and reported 
 hearing the barking of dogs down the chute which we had 
 passed on our left. 
 
 At 12 p. M. the night was warm and perfectly calm. 
 The mosquitoes sung a very merry tune over our mishap, 
 as if they were delighted with the prospect of a rich re- 
 past from the full veins of their hyperborean visitors. Our 
 Cossacks boiled their brick tea, hoping with smoke, fire, 
 and tea, to come to a parley with the leeches. They 
 fought them off for a couple of hours, and finally, under 
 the joint protection of our sail and their sheep-skin coats, 
 with the woolly side turned out, in which they hoped the 
 bloodthirsty swarm would become entangled in presenting 
 their bills, resigned themselves to slumber. 
 
 In the course of the day we were visited by two boats, 
 mostly manned by Groldee girls. In one of the boats there 
 were two very old men, one of whom performed the office 
 of steersman, while the other sat on the floor in the centre. 
 The girls were capital rowers, and handled their, oars with 
 great ease and dexterity. The old men had some fish for 
 barter, but the main thing they desired was a little ar- 
 rakhe. Captain Fulyhelm made one of the girls a pres- 
 ent of a number of pieces of Eussian coin, of which she 
 seemed very proud as she passed them to her companions 
 to look at. Not to be outdone in gallantry by the cap- 
 tain, I distributed a few coins among her companions. 
 
 They were all habited in short tunics of fish-skins. 
 Around the lower edge of the skirts were rows of small 
 pieces of brass or small eea-sheUs. One of them had as 
 many as three sets of ear-rings, two of which were very 
 large, and a ring in the nose, with a small piece of white 
 
THE NAViaATIOK. 261 
 
 metal like an ear-drop on the ring, wHch hung in the 
 centre of the upper lip. These are the first natives that 
 I have seen -with ornaments in the nose ; all had orna- 
 ments in both ears and nose. Their whole wardrobe con- 
 sisted of a single garment of fish-sMn, which was not too 
 long or too full to impede the free movement of their 
 limbs, nor yet so closely fitting or transparent as to reveal 
 nature unadorned ; but yet one could see, as they stood 
 gracefully in their boatSj resting upon their oars, that 
 they were not destitute of either shape or form ; and one 
 of them in particular had a well-developed bust, though 
 yet young — perhaps fifteen or sixteen. After satisfying 
 their curiosity they pushed off into the stream, and strik- 
 ing fheir oars regularly and gracefully into the water, 
 were soon lost to sight behind an adjacent island. We 
 saw no habitations or camp, and concluded that they were 
 out on a pleasure excursion, or perhaps a pic-nic. We 
 learned from the old men our whereabouts, of which we 
 had been ignorant since we left the Ousuree settlements. 
 
 It was really refreshing to find these laughing, frolick- 
 ing damsels, in this wilderness, enjoying themselves, 
 apparently without fear or restraint, approaching the un- 
 couth stranger and barbarian with all the confidence, and 
 yet the delicacy, of the sex, seemingly quite as unabashed 
 as any well-bred lady of London or Moscow, and evi- 
 dently tittering at our uncouth appearance, manner, and 
 address, as a fashionable belle would at the first essay of 
 a country cousin in a city drawing-room. 
 
CHAPTEK L. 
 
 NATIVE VILLAGES. 
 
 Saturday, June 27. "We were up at 4 a. m. to look 
 at our location. We were indeed in a lake ; the moun- 
 tains not far off and well wooded. Among tlie trees 
 we saw cedar. The mosquitoes and black sand-flies were 
 very annoying during the night, but, by closing the door 
 and windows of our cabin, we kept out the more hungry 
 swarms. We pushed our boat out through the narrow 
 passage, by which we had entered this lake, into the chute 
 we had left, and found a gentle current to assist our oars 
 in our onward progress. 
 
 At 6 A. M. we grounded on a sand-bar, but our Cos- 
 sacks, now converted into good watermen, were soon 
 stripped and overboard, towing our boat into deeper wa- 
 ter. Some natives came to us in canoes and pointed to 
 the part of the river where the best water was. We 
 were soon again afloat. Two miles below we landed at a 
 Goldee fishing station. We found the men well provided 
 with nets and spears and with plenty of fish. We saw 
 them here building one of those peculiar three-plank 
 boats found on the Amoor, called by the Kussians Gel-ack 
 boats, from the name of the tribe who use them also at 
 
NATIVE VILLAGES. 263 
 
 tlie mouth of the river. These boats are made of cedar 
 boards or plank, the trees from which they are made grow- 
 ing here to great perfection and of excellent quality and 
 large size. The tree is felled and split of the requisite 
 length and width. They are then floated to the village or 
 fishing station and fashioned into boats. They are of va- 
 rious sizes, but the Goldee generally uses one of the 
 smaller size — say fifteen feet long. The sides or gun- 
 wales are well raked fore and aft, and not brought quite 
 together at bow and stern, into which pieces are fitted. 
 The bottom plank extends beyond the bow, and, having a 
 good rake, stands clear of the water in the form of a tongue, 
 into which a ring is placed, or a hole made for a rope, 
 by which the boat is fastened to the shore. This tongue 
 answers also a useful purpose, as a means by which to 
 leave or enter the boat over the bow, while the great rake 
 it has, with its flat bottom, allows it to go in very shal- 
 low water and readily approach the shores over shoals and 
 bars, so abundant on the Amoor. This allows the bow 
 of the boat to shoot quite on dry land, while the stem is 
 still afloat. The tongue projecting affords a steady means 
 by which to gain the shore dry-footed, or to regain the 
 boat. 
 
 A native was constructing one of these boats here. 
 He used an iron adze, not a good instrument by any means, 
 but he nevertheless used it with much skiU. I conjectured 
 that the adze was of Chinese make. The fastenings of 
 the boat were wooden pins, some with heads like bolts ; 
 but they use iron nails, when they can procure them from 
 the Manchoo traders. 
 
 These people make ropes and nets of the bark of a 
 
264 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 tree^ as well as a kind of grass, also of hemp or flax procured 
 from the Manchoos of the Songahree. The women were very 
 busy preparing the fish for drying, and also quantities of 
 a large species of wild garlic, very strong and of a rank 
 smell, which they were cutting up with knives and drying 
 in the sun. This garlic, together with a bitter herb, 
 seemed to be all they had in the way of vegetable food, 
 which they had cooked with fish, of which they pressed us 
 to partake. Fish and garlic was the bill of fare for break- 
 fast. They had several young foxes confined in cages, 
 but whether for pets or preserved for some religious cere- 
 mony, I could not determine. Admiral Wrangel, in his 
 Polar explorations, mentions the fact of young foxes being 
 caught and tamed by some wild tribe, through whose 
 country he passsed, and probably kept from some re- 
 ligious motive, or as an offering or sacrifice upon some re- 
 ligious ceremony. 
 
 All that these people had of foreign clothing, orna- 
 ments, or utensils, was evidently of Chinese manufacture. 
 Their dresses, except those of a few of the younger women, 
 were of fish-skins, or entrails of fish. One woman had a 
 land of mat made of bark, which she seemed very anxious 
 to sell or give nie, and, bringing a skin skirt or tunic from 
 her lodge, on which to place the garlic, which was spread 
 upon the mat, offered it to me. I passed on down the 
 beach to some other lodges, and, as I returned, the mat- 
 woman came running to meet me from her lodge, with her 
 hands fall of garlic, which she offered to me. Two other 
 women then came up, who were rather inclined, as I 
 could perceive, to laugh at her. I, however, gave her some 
 small pieces of silver coin, which seemed to compensate 
 
NATIVE VILLAGES. 265 
 
 for the disappointment in the sale of her mat. These 
 women, seeing that I was not a dangerous character, but 
 inclined to be friendly, now gave my clothing a very mi- 
 nute and scrutinizing inspection ; my shirt, shoes, and 
 stockings seemed to attract the most attention. In turn, 
 not to be less curious, I looked at their dresses and ear- 
 rings, and iinally entered the lodge of my mat-woman, in 
 order to observe their household economy. It was very 
 poor. The interior of a lodge on the Amoor, as well as 
 on the Columbia, is a very sorry and filthy place, and 
 takes from savage life what little of outward romance 
 there is attached to it. It was well stocked with fish and 
 garlic, of which my hostess offered me some already 
 cooked in an earthen bowl. At another lodge I observed 
 a young woman with many ornaments in her ears, having 
 her hair carefully dressed with ornamented hair-pins thrust 
 through it. The hair was brought on the back part of the 
 head in a large knot. She also had a dress of Chinese cot- 
 ton-cloth, worked with embroidery at the edge of the skirt. 
 Her complexion was a deep brownish red, with full cheeks 
 and fine teeth. She was busy cleaning fish, and was at 
 first inclined to be offended at my close scrutiny of her 
 personal ornaments, but the first friendly squaw came up, 
 and, after some words of conversation between them, she 
 ceased from her work and was inclined to be on more 
 friendly terms. I afterwards visited other lodges, and 
 found iron pots, in which they cooked their fish, and some 
 few earthen jars and bowls of pottery. 
 
 We proceeded along down this seemingly interminable 
 chute, along portions of which the shores were beautiful, 
 and above overflow covered with grass and scattered 
 12 
 
266 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 groups of trees. It was not till 5 p. m. that we again 
 floated out into tlie main river at Mount Ohalahtzve. 
 Here we met sixteen row-boats and a small barge going 
 up containing Eussian soldiers, wbose term of service had 
 expired, making their way back to Siberia or Europe. 
 Each boat contained from ten to fifteen men — ^the barge 
 the officers. It seemed a tedious process, 'thus to force 
 these boats over two thousand miles against a current of 
 three and a half to four miles per hour, but even this 
 seemed preferable to the route by Ayan, where the land 
 route was of nearly equal distance to Irkutsk. But this 
 party expected to be overtaken by one of the iron steam- 
 ers building at Nikolaivsky, which is to take them on 
 board and convey them to the head of the Amoor or to 
 Schilkah. They had left Kezee, one hundred and fifty 
 mUes above the mouth, on the 13th inst., and were now 
 some two hundred miles on their way. If not overtaken 
 by the steamer, in case of accident or otherwise, they will 
 have a hard pull to reach the Kussian settlement at Ouse- 
 Strelkah before the freezing of the river, in which case 
 they may suffer much hardship. 
 
 These men and officers had been serving at Petro- 
 Paulosky, De Castries, and at the mouth of the Amoor 
 during the war, and in erecting fortifications since. They had 
 withstood every sort of hardship and privation, and were 
 now joyfuUy, though laboriously, wending their way to 
 homes, parents, and wives, after toil and suffering suffi- 
 cient to bow any but the most hardy and resolute. 
 
 The river Nooch-koo-che falls into the. Amoor here, 
 and it must be a desirable spot, for there are seven villages 
 in the vicinity. The shores are very handsome, the moun- 
 
NATIVE VILLAGES. 267 
 
 tains well timbered. The river is grand and majestic, 
 with beautiful shores, which nature has done much to fit 
 for the abode of man. 
 
 We proceeded till 10 p. m., when we landed at the 
 lofty mountain or promontory of Sahr-koo-Book-ke on the 
 right bank. This was one of the high points seen on the 
 previous day before entering the long chute, and in which 
 we were lost in the lake. The mountains are well wooded 
 with larch, pine, birch, and cedar, while oak, ash, and 
 aspen are found on the bottoms and foot hills. 
 
CHAPTEK LI. 
 
 THE HONGAHEEE. 
 
 Sunday, June 28. We were off early in tte morning. 
 The weather was cloudy and threatening rain, with head 
 wind the whole day. We passed into another of those long 
 chutes, making but little headway. Late in the after- 
 noon we reached the main river. 
 
 We have been in view during the day of lofty moun- 
 tains covered with forests, and near night came in view 
 of the loftiest yet seen. They were on the left of the 
 river, to the north of a stream called the Ahl-benn, dis- 
 tant some thirty miles. After a long unsuccessful strug- 
 gle against wind and tide, in order to reach the main shore 
 on the left, we were compelled to take shelter under the lee 
 of an island at 10^ p. m. In order to cheer our desolate 
 bivouac we fired the old dried grass and bushes of the pre- 
 vious year still standing. It soon spread far and wide and 
 lighted up the dark shore for several miles, making our 
 camp more agreeable. The warmth of the fire was not 
 unpleasant, as the evening was cool, with a heavy dew 
 falling. Many birds, either driven from their cover by the 
 fire or attracted by the light, flew over the shore, among 
 which we observed ducks, quail, snipe, and curlew. 
 
THE HONGAHBEE. 269 
 
 We found to-day, as usual ever since we left tlie Zea, the 
 river too wide to be pleasant or agreeable for our mode or 
 means of navigation ; there are so many islands, bars, 
 chutes, and channels, that one becomes lost in their laby- 
 rinth, and, when the wind prevails, you are thrown on one 
 shore or the other, without the possibility of crossing the 
 river or visiting such objects on an opposite shore as may 
 be of interest. We often wished for a little steamer in 
 which to go where we pleased, not regarding wind or tide. 
 There are many beautiful lakes that communicate with the 
 river, that we wished to visit, or sometimes ascend a trib- 
 utary stream, but, with our boat, we found it out of the 
 question. 
 
 The natives use here, as well as all along on the 
 Amoor, the birch-bark canoe, very lightly and beautifully 
 made, which they use in hunting and fishing excursions. 
 They usually carry but one person, and are readUy trans- 
 ported over portages. They sit in the centre, flat on the 
 bottom ; both ends are shaped alike. Two kinds of pad- 
 dles are used, one double, with a blade at each end, which 
 is used with both hands, first striking on one side and 
 then on the other with very rapid strokes, which sends 
 the canoe along with great speed. The other paddles are 
 small, one used in each hand, like the fins of a fish, and 
 used much in the same manner. They manage these 
 canoes with much adroitness, and proceed with great speed, 
 and, being so light and easily managed, they are a great 
 desideratum in hunting and fishing excursions, where the 
 game is taken by surprise, as they approach without noise 
 or float negligently along the shaded shores. These ca- 
 noes are like those used by our Indians on our northern 
 
270 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 lakes and rivers, only these are mostly for a single person, 
 or two at most, while those of Michigan, Huron, and Su- 
 perior, are frequently constructed to carry the whole family, 
 their provisions, and lodges. They are constructed like 
 those of our Indians. 
 
 Monday, June 29. We were under way by 4 a. m. The 
 fire we had kindled was burning far and wide, the weather 
 cloudy and threatening rain. Thermometer, 7 A. M., 63°. 
 The wind had increased during the night, so that as soon 
 as we had passed the island and came to the open river, 
 the water was quite rough and our progress slow. We 
 were finally driven upon the shore, a mile below a Groldee 
 village, under a lofty mountain, well wooded, with cedar 
 and other trees. Our Cossacks went up to the village to 
 procure fish, but returned without any. 
 
 The natives, except some old men and a dozen women 
 and children, were absent at a fishing station. In a short 
 time the whole remaining population came along the 
 beach to where our boat had landed to take a look at 
 us. We threw some biscuit on shore, which caused an 
 animated scramble among the younger women and chil- 
 dren. There was one man who understood a few words 
 of Eussian, from whom we derived some information con- 
 cerning the river. We wished to keep along the left 
 bank, and, as there were many islands intervening, we 
 wished to learn from him if it was possible to pass be- 
 tween them and the main shore. He indicated that we 
 could, all but one, which we found by experience to be 
 correct. We were now nearly opposite the Hon-gah- 
 ree river, which comes in from the south ; but as the 
 Amoor here divides into two large branches, from two to 
 
THE HGNGAHKEE. 271 
 
 three miles broad, a Ligli wind prevailing right in our 
 teeth, rendered it impossible for us to cross to look at the 
 country at its mouth, where it falls into the Amoor. 
 
 The country during the day has been more interesting 
 than for several days previous, there being much fine 
 mountain scenery. We progressed but slowly, however, 
 having to pole along the shores and bars and resort to the 
 current-sail from time to time. We wished to reach a 
 village, at which to pass the night, near which exceeding 
 fine cedar is said to grow ; but the wind was too Strong 
 and contrary for us, and, at 10 p. M., we were compelled 
 to land on a sand-bar to the left, with high wooded moun- 
 tains opposite on the right. 
 
 The Hon-gah-ree river drains the coast range of 
 mountains to the south of the Amoor, up to and within 
 a short portage of Emperor's Harbor, on the coast of Tar- 
 tary, in 49° north latitude, at which point the Eussians 
 have now a settlement, and it is their intention to make 
 it a harbor for their ships upon this coast. From this 
 point easy communication can be had with the Amoor by 
 way of the Hon-gah-ree, without making the long and 
 tedious navigation of the Amoor and then through the 
 Straits of Tartary to reach the sea-coast. Though Em- 
 peror's Harbor freezes in winter, yet it is open much longer 
 than the mouth of the Amoor or De Castries, and a much 
 better harbor in the winter than the latter. My com- 
 panion. Captain Fulyhelm, had visited Emperor's Harbor, 
 and he described it as very safe and easy of access. Two 
 months later I had a very good view of the approaches 
 to it myself, as we sailed along in view of its entrance, 
 in September, on our way to Hakodadi. There is 
 
272 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 also anotlier gulf or harbor more to the south, on the* 
 coast of Tartary, nearly opposite Hakodadi, in about 42° 
 north latitude, called by the Eussians Pahseeat Gulf. 
 The French and English visited this gulf during the al- 
 lied war and gave it the name respectively of Napoleon 
 and Victoria Bay, the French naming a group of islands, . 
 near, Eugenie Archipelago. To Kussia this would be 
 the most desirable acquisition next to the Amoor, because 
 here communication and entrance may be had the year 
 round, the harbor not being frozen during the winter, 
 added to which communication can be had by a short 
 land transit to the navigable waters of the Ousuree, which 
 communicates with the Amoor by two mouths, about one 
 thousand miles from the sea. There is also, at the head 
 of the Ousuree, a. large navigable lake, which, as well as 
 the river, is well stocked with fish, while fine pine, oak, 
 ash, and cedar timber, suitable for ship building, are 
 found in great abundance upon their shores and moun- 
 tains. The land transit might be very easily opened by 
 railroad to the lake, and steamboats thence into the 
 Amoor. The Eussians, as yet, have made no settlements 
 there, but it is the point towards which, in my opinion, 
 they should direct their attention immediately, if they 
 wish to secure a harbor on the coast of Tartary available 
 to them the year round, where their ships can be repaired 
 and refitted without submitting to the tedious process of 
 a six or seven months' imprisonment in the Amoor. 
 
 Timber for ship building may not be considered good 
 on the Amoor, though the cedar, pine, and spruce may be 
 rated as fair. The oak upon the immediate shores is not 
 good, but it is reported that the Hongahree and Ousu- 
 
THE HONGAHREE. 273 
 
 ree, with some small streams coming in from the soutli, 
 are well stocked with good oak. Pine and cedar may be 
 considered the best timber ; birch is plentiful for fire- 
 wood, and pine, larch, and spruce for building purposes. 
 It is perhaps upon the Ousuree, next to the Songahree, 
 that the Eussians will have to look for oak timber, and 
 this, of itself, is sufBLcient inducement to explore the Ou- 
 suree to the lake, and thence to the sea, for, at this point, 
 good timber, according to climate, ought to be found. 
 
 12* 
 
CHAPTEE LII. 
 
 A GOLDEE VILLAGE. 
 
 Tuesday, June 30. We were under way at 4 a. m:, 
 with head, wind, and made very slow progress till mid- 
 day : when the wind abated we dispensed with the cur- 
 rent-sail, and took to our oars. We stopped to visit a 
 village on the left, behind an island, about a mile from 
 the main river. We landed some distance below the 
 village, and walked along a very nice gravel beach to- 
 wards it. Not a human being was to be seen as we ap- 
 proached. Just below we came to a number of newly- 
 placed stakes set in the ground, leading from the beach in 
 two rows six feet apart, and at intervals of twenty steps, 
 up to a small frame house on the bank, in quite a thicket 
 of bushes and wild undergrowth. It proved to be a tomb 
 of some patriarch of the tribe. I passed along the path, 
 guided by the stakes, up the shore to the house. A 
 kind of flask and an earthen vessel of Chinese make, or 
 such as I had seen among the Manchoos, were suspended 
 at the gable of the tomb. A small square opening of 
 twelve inches was the only means of observing what was 
 within. There were some rough-hewn planks loosely laid 
 together on a kind of frame, with coarse matting partially 
 
A GOLDEE VILLAGE. 275 
 
 covering it. It was evidently a tomb of some years stand- 
 ing. The recently-placed stakes were most likely a re- 
 ligious offering, placed by tbe tribe or friends of the de- 
 ceased to propitiate some evil spirit, and turn away his 
 wrath from the departed chief. 
 
 We passed on into the viUagOj and were finally greeted 
 with the howls, growls, and yelps of a score or two of dogs 
 of every size and color. Entering a house, the door of 
 which was open, we found a woman the only occupant. 
 She was not apparently the least disconcerted by our ab- 
 rupt entrance, having been prepared for our visit by 
 the uproar of the dogs. She was engaged in dressing a 
 skin, and only ceased from her labor as we approached her 
 to look at her handiwork. 
 
 The house was thirty-five or forty feet square, built 
 of small posts set up and plastered with mud. The roof 
 was supported by heavier posts at the corners and sides, 
 with cross pieces and stringers, from which the rafters 
 rose, and upright pieces supported the roof. It was 
 of larch bark, with heavy poles and stones laid along, 
 and pinned to keep the bark in its place and from warp- 
 ing in the sun. The cross-beams and joists overhead 
 were the receptacle of nets, skins, dog sledges, light ca- 
 noes, dried fish, herbs, and in fact the wealth and pre- 
 cious stores of the half-dozen families to whom this was 
 evidently a comfortable home during a long and severe 
 winter. Around three sides of the house was a raised 
 platform, sufficient to seat and lodge the whole house- 
 hold. At the vacant side was the fireplace, where the 
 utensils for cooking, and various fish, intestines of fish, 
 and skins, were drying for use. 
 
276 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 From this we passed into several otlier houses. The 
 only persons there were one sick man, and several women 
 and children. We found the women employed mending 
 or making nets, or in dressing skins and making mats 
 from splints of wood. The men of the village were off 
 fishing. The dog sledges we saw accounted for the num- 
 ber of dogs which greeted us upon our entrance into the 
 village. These people along this portion of the Amoor use 
 dogs in summer to tow their boats along the shores, as well 
 as to draw their sledges in their winter excursions. 
 
 Finding no fresh fish, nor a man who could go with 
 us to guide us or procure us a sample of the cedar said to 
 grow in the mountains ten miles from the river, the qual- 
 ity of which is said to be very fine, we were compelled to 
 return to our boat. We were soon under way again. The 
 afternoon was really pleasant — the first for the last ten 
 days, and one of the most agreeable in the last fortnight, 
 while the river and the country were all, as to scenery 
 and natural objects, that one could wish. 
 
 Towards night, on the left, we saw snow-capped moun- 
 tains fifty miles to the north. The scenery is truly beau- 
 tifulj and the river one of the grandest in the world ; the 
 vegetation all a. farmer could ask. 
 
 I sat for hours on the deck watching the shifting 
 scenery, as we glided along with oars and current, like a 
 fairy bark softly and silently along some mystic stream. 
 A few sea-gulls were skimming lazily along the shore ; a 
 mons.ter sturgeon occasionally darted out of the water for 
 an instant, and with a heavy splash as soon disappeared ; 
 a solitary blue heron was seen upon an adjacent sand-bar 
 or the point of a low island ; the mournful cuckoo tit- 
 
A GOLDEE VILLAGE. 277 
 
 tered Jiis monotonous notes of love ; a solitary fisherman 
 paddled liis light canoe along the shore ; and in this you 
 have the sum of animated nature seen of a warm sum- 
 mer's evening on one of the greatest rivers of the world, 
 and amid natural scenery scarcely surpassed. 
 
 We stopped after dark at a native village on the left 
 shore, where we found some Eussian Cossacks, who were 
 here for the purpose of making a settlement near this 
 point. From them we learned that one of the iron steam- 
 ers (the Lena) which had been sent out from Philadel- 
 phia by the Russian government, and put up at Nikolaiv- 
 sky (mouth of Amoor), had passed up eight days previous. 
 This we very much regretted. We had unfortunately 
 missed her when in one of those interminable island 
 chutes, through which we had been descending, while she 
 was ascending the main stream. We had been congratu- 
 lating ourselves all along on the passage, that we should 
 meet her and obtain an inkling of news from the outside 
 world, to say nothing of some little creature comforts that 
 we might obtain for the inner man, and above all, to have 
 seen the first successful steamer ascending the Amoor, 
 American make (and perhaps a live Yankee engineer on 
 board), puf&ng and blowing like a true Mississippi craft, 
 against the current of its prototype ; but fate had ordered 
 it otherwise. 
 
 We have been to-day in a country abounding in fine 
 forests of fir, larch, and spruce, on the bottoms and upland, 
 and cedar, ash, and pine on the mountains. This country 
 is not so well adapted for farming settlements as higher 
 up on the river, in the vicinity of the Songahree, because 
 there is scarcely any open country here, and consequently 
 
278 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 it is much more laborious to clear away the timber to make 
 the soil ready for the plough ; but for timber it surpasses 
 any section of country yet seen. The natives here use 
 sails, for their large fishing boats, made of the skins of fish 
 dressed and sewed together. We landed on the left bank, 
 a few miles below the last village of Tsyan-Kah, kindled 
 a fire of drift-wood upon the shore, and bathed at 10|^ p. M. 
 
CHAPTEE LIII. 
 
 KAH-OOE-ME, 
 
 Wednesday, July 1. At 12 m. the thermometer in- 
 dicated 81° in the shade. We wete off at 4 A. m. The 
 wind still ahead, hut the river being here more confined 
 within solid shores, we made better headway. The scen- 
 ery has been beautiful all day. In the afternoon we had 
 fair wind for a few hours, and hoisting our sail, we made 
 fine progress ; but at 7 p. m. it hauled ahead again, and 
 continued so during the night. 
 
 We stopped at the village of Kah-oor-me, a little 
 below the mouth of the river Ger-en, on the left shore. 
 We found here a few Cossacks, from whom we learned 
 that it was the intention of the Russian government to 
 form a settlement at this point. Fine spruce and larch 
 are found here, as weU as cedar on the mountains, three 
 feet in diameter. There were several Manchoo merchants 
 with their junk-like trading-boats on their way to Keezee, 
 a Eussian military station, two hundred and fifty miles 
 above the mouth. They had furs and a variety of Chi- 
 nese wares, with tea and arrakke, for trade with the na- 
 tives. Their junks were manned by Groldee Tartars, and 
 one of the merchants had a tent spread on the shore, 
 
280 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 where lie was drinMng tea, smoking his pipe, and ready 
 to strike a trade. The captain's man Ivan purchased a 
 few sahles ; they also had a number of good black bear- 
 skins and other furs. 
 
 We are now about five hundred and fifty miles from 
 Nicolaivsky. We observed to-day a number of canoes 
 being towed along the shores by dogs. This I thought 
 to be a very good use made of these howling, wolf-like 
 curs, so troublesome and annoying at the camps and vil- 
 lages of the natives. These dogs are invaluable to these 
 people in winter, when they use them to draw their 
 sledges, generally having twelve to each loaded sledge. 
 They are fed on fish, and have, when worked, a dried sal- 
 mon each day. They are rather indifierent-looking ani- 
 mals, but their skins are also valuable, the hair being long 
 and dense, and when dressed, make warm and excellent 
 winter boots or garments ; so that after all, these animals 
 that seemed so worthless and annoying to us at first, are 
 in reality a choice gift of the Good Spirit to these people. 
 
 Having a moon and not much wind, we concluded to 
 float with the current during the night. The men hav- 
 ing been dismissed from the oars at 9 p. m., I steered till 
 1 A. M., when I gave way to Captain Fulyhelm, who stood 
 till daylight, when he was relieved by his servant. When 
 I gave way we saw on our left a distant mountain peak, 
 from which smoke was issuing apparently. 'Tis said that 
 there are active volcanoes near the Amoor. This may be 
 one of them, though we might have been mistaken, or 
 possibly deceived by some other cause producing the ap- 
 parent smoke or vapor ; it however ascended in a column 
 to a very great height, and had a light, steam-like appear- 
 
KAH-OOE-ME. 281 
 
 ance. We afterwards, however, saw another, and since 
 seeing the burning mountains of Japan and Kamschatka, 
 I am satisfied that they were volcanoes. The peaks were 
 lofty and covered with snow, and I should judge, fifty to 
 sixty miles distant. 
 
 Thursday, July 2. At 12 M. thermometer 79°. We 
 floated on during the night, making fair progress, the river 
 being less sinuous, and the current quite four miles per 
 hour. The wind is adverse, but not so violent as on pre- 
 vious days. On the right we have snow visible on high 
 mountains — a long and elevated sierra — in the deep 
 gorges of which the snow lies like so many bright lines of 
 silver reflected by a noonday sun. Some of the peaks are 
 bald, but their sides are generally wooded. 
 
 At 12 M. we found frozen snow on the sandy point of 
 an island. It had ' been preserved in this manner : In 
 the winter a great drift of snow had taken place, which in 
 the spring had been covered from the adjacent bar, by a 
 drift of sand covering it, several feet thick, and thus pre- 
 served from the action of the sun. We landed and pro- 
 vided ourselves with a bucketful, which, made the river 
 water very cooling and pleasant. It was a great treat. 
 We saw on the main shore of the river, opposite this 
 island, evidences of a great and peculiar current of air, 
 which had piled up ridges of sand ten to fifteen feet 
 high. 
 
 During the afternoon we had occasional fair wind, 
 and the river being straight, we made good progress. 
 More lofty mountains on the right, with snow in the 
 gorges. We kept as near the right bank as possible to- 
 (vards evening, in order to enter the right hand channel 
 
282 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 at a village, where it is separated by an island or a suc- 
 cession of islands from the main river, leading into the 
 lake of Kee-ze, on which there are Kussian settlements. 
 The main river leads far to the left, with a hroad and 
 rapid current, and if entered, would sweep us past the 
 lake and station at which we wished to halt. We hugged 
 the right shore, because boats are frequently drawn by the 
 current or drifted by the wind past the post, in spite of 
 aU the exertions of their crews. 
 
 We went on till 12 p. M., when it came on to blow 
 very hard, and the moon being obscured by clouds, and 
 again hid behind lofty mountains, under whose base the 
 river run, we concluded best to land and await daylight. 
 We landed on the right shore, in the shade of a dark for- 
 est. The scenery has been grand during the day, the river 
 noble, the country densely wooded, but mostly of pine and 
 aspen. Some of the more lofty mountains are bare of 
 timber. Upon these it is said great numbers of animals 
 congregate during the summer, in order to avoid the flies 
 and other insects so troublesome in the low lands and for- 
 ests. These mountains are celebrated for the resort of 
 great numbers of mountain-sheep of large size. During 
 the afternoon we had showers, and during the day squalls 
 of rain, accompanied with lightning, have been seen on 
 the mountains. 
 
CHAPTEE LIV. 
 
 FEMALE SAILOES. 
 
 Feidat, July 3. About 1 a. m., the weather looking 
 more favorable, and the barge of Count Admiral Pucha- 
 chin, the Eussian Ambassador to Pekin, coming along, 
 we cast off from the shore, and proceeded on our way. 
 We had not gone far when the barge of the admiral 
 grounded ; we kept more to the right, and escaped the 
 bar ; within a short time, however, his barge came on, 
 and passed us again. 
 
 The night proved pleasant, with but a light wind, and 
 when I retired, at 2 a. m., we expected to find ourselves 
 in the lake near Keezee, by 8 a. m. The fates were, how- 
 ever, against us, for about daylight. Captain Fulyhelm 
 having also retired, leaving Evan to steer our boat, he row- 
 ed into a small right-hand chute, which ought to have been 
 passed, and which proved a perfect labyrinth. We mean- 
 dered, turned, and twisted in this miserable place till 
 about 2 p. M., when we finally emerged into a lake, which 
 also proved to be very bad navigation. We rowed out 
 into it for some distance, when we sighted a remarkable 
 rock, which Captain Fulyhelm at once recognized, he hav- 
 ing been here the year previous, by way of the river from its 
 
284 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 moijth. This decided our latitude and longitude, but 
 how to get out was tlie next question. The water now 
 became too shoal for us to proceed by rowing, and the op- 
 posite shore was four miles off. Our Cossacks were soon 
 overboard, wading in different directions to find deeper 
 water, while I took the skiff to sound out a channel of 
 escape. We were several hours, however, in getting to 
 the opposite shore, near which we discovered the deep 
 water to be — our Cossacks towing our boat by main 
 strength through the mud and water into it, some eight 
 miles from where we had entered the lake. 
 
 While in the chute we had heard guns saluting Ad- 
 miral Puchachin at the military post of Marinskey. We 
 reached the post at 5 p. m. This place was first settled 
 in 1851—2, by the servants of. the Bussian American 
 Company, as a trading post with the natives. Afterwards 
 the Eussian government selected it as a military station, 
 and erected earthen batteries on a point nearly opposite 
 the junction of the lake and river. The two places — 
 Keezee and Marinskey post — are little more than a mile 
 apart, on the right shore, and both military stations with 
 a village attached. 
 
 The importance attached to this settlement arises 
 from the fact that from this there is a communication by 
 the way of the lake, with four to seven feet water, to 
 within twelve miles of the bay of De Castries, which is 
 the best harbor near the mouth of the Amoor, and easy 
 of access, and through which much communication has 
 already been had. < 
 
 De Castries is situated on the main coast of Tartary, 
 one hundred miles south of where the Amoor enters the 
 
FEMALE SAILOES. 285 
 
 straits, and two hundred miles to the mouth by way of 
 the river and lake. De Castries has good water and an- 
 chorage for any ship, with fresh water convenient. It is 
 not considered safe in the winter, when the ice is running, 
 but it is said that a breakwater can be erected within 
 the bay, so as to render it secure at all seasons. 
 
 At the two posts there are accommodations for two 
 thousand soldiers. One battalion is now stationed at 
 Marinskey. It was from this point that the Eussian 
 troops came who repulsed the Allies at De Castries dur- 
 ing the war. It is about forty miles from the Amoor to 
 De Castries, and the whole distance could be traversed by 
 a railroad, or by steamers on the lake and a railroad of 
 less than twelve miles, thereby avoiding the difficult navi- 
 gation of the Straits of Tartary. A telegraph is to be 
 erected from De Castries to Nicolaivsky this year, an en- 
 gineer being now on his way down the river to survey the 
 route. 
 
 The country around Keezee is generally mountainous, 
 except on the side next the Amoor. A very high moun- 
 tain, with much snow upon it, is seen to the south-west. 
 The lake is a shallow, irregular body of water, fed by 
 many mountain streams, some of which have their sources 
 in perpetual snow. It extends sixty miles in length by 
 ten to fifteen in breadth. About this lake and the adja- 
 cent parts of the Amoor there is a perfect labyrinth of 
 islands, lakes, chutes, and channels, all communicating 
 with the main river, so that one is perplexed which way 
 to go, and without other knowledge, must float with the 
 current. 
 
 The season has been wet, raining almost daily during 
 
286 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 the spring and summer, in consequence of wliich their 
 gardens are quite ruined. The people do not look 
 healthy. I have no douht the climate, added to aU the 
 wants and lack of conveniences of new settlements, make 
 it an uncomfortahle place. Admiral Puchachin remained 
 but a short time here, and had left before we came up. 
 
 We departed at 7 p. m. Light favorable wind, and 
 raining. The wind soon, however, hauled ahead. We 
 passed a Eussian village on an island to the left, with 
 gardens facing the river, and a little lower down, in a 
 chute, an encampment of Manchoo trading-boats, with 
 quite a large mimber of natives. Their boats were hauled 
 to the shore, and bark tents erected along the banks. It 
 continued to rain and blow, and at 11 J p. m. we were 
 blown ashore upon a willow bar. 
 
CHAPTER LV. 
 
 A NIGHT OF DANGER. 
 
 Satubday, July 4. The rain and wind continued dur- 
 ing the night. We were under way, however, at 4 a. m., 
 struggling against a head wind with oars and current- 
 sail. At 10 A. M. we overtook the barge of the Archi- 
 mandrite Avvokomb, with others of the suite of Count 
 Admiral Puchachin. This reverend gentleman is one of 
 the returned fathers of the Eusso-Greek mission at Pekin, 
 now on his way to join Count Puchachia's embassy. He 
 is well versed in the different Tartar dialects, and speaks 
 Chinese like a native. During his ten years' residence in 
 China he visited Canton overland, and from his travels in 
 China and Tartary, understands the Celestials well polit- 
 ically, religiously, and strategically. This is the same 
 gentleman whom I had visited at Irkutsk, and from 
 whom I gathered much valuable information in relation 
 to Tartary and China. 
 
 They had left Sclulkah seven days after us, and had 
 passed us while we were in some island chute. Their 
 barge was a large, roomy vessel, with a large crew, and 
 managed both by oars and saU. They had not rested at 
 all on the way, but were straining every nerve to reach 
 
288 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 the sea. From tliem we learned that General Moncarieff 
 had proceeded with the regular military expedition as far 
 as Igoon, and was encamped opposite that city, deter- 
 mined to have a talk with the Chinese authorities, but as 
 yet nothing of moment had transpired in regard to the 
 question of boundary. 
 
 The day proved a very boisterous one, with the ther- 
 mometer at 60°, and much rain. We rowed on, however, 
 till near dark, when Captain Fulyhelm thought it best to 
 land for the night, as we were in a part of the river liable 
 to high winds and rough water. In fact, during the af- 
 ternoon the waves had so tossed us as to make it any 
 thing but pleasant. The stowage of our baggage and 
 stores was aH deranged, and the boat not too dry for com- 
 fort. We were now nearest the left shore, and concluded 
 to make it, in order to effect a landing for the night, be- 
 fore dark. We rowed on, but before we reached the 
 shore our boat grounded, five hundred yards off. It was 
 now dark, the storm increasing, and not being able to dis- 
 cern the nature of the shore below us, we concluded to push 
 out into the stream, and try to make the right shore, where 
 we had a mountain in view. We now hoisted sail, the 
 waves being so high that our men could do nothing with 
 the oars. In the course of half an hour we reached near 
 the opposite shore, but found no better success iu ap- 
 proaching it to make a landing than we had on the left. 
 After much time lost, and coming upon a bar where the 
 ground swell was rather high, we found that the shocks 
 were too violent for the safety of our boat. We pushed 
 her out into the stream again, but the wind was so vio- 
 lent, that with all hands at the oars, we could not breast 
 
A NIGHT OF DANGEE. 289 
 
 it. I now took the sMffi, with one man, and rowed along 
 near the shore, which was here a sand-har, to see if within 
 any reasonable distance water sufficient to land our boat 
 could be found ; but having gone near a mile, found the 
 water still shoal, and the bar extending, with a heavy sea 
 on it. I then returned to the barge and reported progress. 
 Captain Fulyhelm still thought that we must be going 
 with the current, but after half aa hour steady pulling 
 with the oars, and the current-sail down, we came to the 
 conclusion that we were making no progress. I now 
 wished to hoist sail and run before the wind up along the 
 right shore until we found a place upon which to effect a 
 landing. The captain was, however, still of the opinion 
 that we could go with the current, and did not like to 
 turn back. Another half hour passed, and the men by this 
 time were fagged out, proving the impossibility of further 
 progress in a downward direction. It was 1 A. m. ; the 
 storm on the increase, with squalls of rain. Finally the 
 captain said, " You may do as you choose." I then had 
 the sail hoisted, and putting her before the wind, with a 
 man on the bow sounding the depth of water, and taking 
 the steering oar myself, run her up along the shore as 
 near as the depth of water would permit, and in half an 
 hour we found a good landing on a dry beach at the foot 
 of a lofty mountain. 
 
 The men were absolutely wearied out, for they had 
 been pulling very hard all day, besides the extra fatigue 
 of the night, so that when we struck the shore they ex- 
 pressed themselves much pleased with my sldll in navi- 
 gation. Nor had they relished much the force of the 
 wind or the height of the waves. They soon sunk to rest 
 13 
 
290 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 on the fore part of the boat, while Evan watched till day- 
 light. 
 
 This is a part of the river subject to high winds ; at 
 times dangerous to small craft, owing to the peculiar 
 formation of the mountains, which creates a current of 
 air sweeping in this direction from the Okhotsk sea. 
 
 After all our toil we have only made to-day ten miles. 
 The fact is, we had escaped shipwreck by the merest 
 chance, and I not only felt relieved, but truly thankfal 
 to a higher source for our preservation and a safe harbor 
 under the shadow of this friendly mountain. I laid down, 
 but not to sleep ; for my mind was too busy with the 
 escape and excitement of the past night. 
 
 Sunday, July 5. We were off at 5 A. m. Wind still 
 ahead, driving clouds, rain and fog, with the thermometer 
 59° at 12 M. The wind was so severe, and the waves so 
 high at times, that we sought to keep as near the shore 
 as possible. This part of the river is quite straight, and 
 rock-bound on both shores. The scenery, of a fine day, 
 would be of the most agreeable description, as the moun- 
 tains rise on all sides grand and lofty ; but such misera- 
 ble weather makes one feel more like suicide than like ad- 
 miring scenery. 
 
 The river is a mile wide. We struggled on till about 
 6 p. M., when the storm abated, and at 8 we had a glimpse 
 of sunset upon the distant mountains, which was gorgeous 
 in the extreme. I do not recollect seeing a mountain 
 scene more richly painted — the different shades of the 
 forests, the deep gorges with their tangled undergrowth, 
 the high peaks, the bare and precipitous cliffs, aU were 
 lighted up in rich and mellow hues. This, added to the 
 
A NIGHT OP DANGER. 291 
 
 fact that the day had been so disagreeable, made it still 
 more enchanting. It was not long before the wind began 
 to blow again. We, however, struggled on until 10 p. m., 
 when it came to blow a gale, and we were compelled to 
 seek a landing. 
 
 We made a lee shore, the windward being out of the 
 question. We landed on a low, rocky bar, with loose 
 boulders scattered on the bottom. The shore was wet 
 and boggy in places, and we had to go some distance to 
 procure wood to make a fire to dry ourselves, and for the 
 inen to cook their supper. It proved a very xmcomforta- 
 ble night. It was 2 A. M. before I laid down, but not to 
 sleep ; for the ground swell was so heavy, and there not be- 
 ing sufficient water under us, our boat pounded so heavily 
 against the rocky bottom that sleep was quite out of the 
 question ; added to which, the roar of the waves breaking 
 upon the beach, made one think of shipwreck more than 
 slumber. I was glad when daylight came, so that we 
 might leave our uncomfortable quarters, rather preferring 
 to breast the waves than be pounded to pieces on the 
 beach. We were off at 3\- a. m. 
 
OHAPTEE LVI. 
 
 ANCIKNT MONUMENTS. 
 
 Monday, July 6. We departed at daybreak The 
 weather was dreary and wet, and the wind still high, and 
 blowing in squaUs from the north-east. The river being 
 very rough, we made miserable progress tiU about 6 
 p. M., when the wind lulled, and we made all haste to 
 rea,ch the Eussian village of Michaelovskey. "We rowed 
 on until near 10 p. m., when the lights in the village were 
 seen. We soon reached it. We had proposed to pass the 
 night at this village, but upon landing, learned that Mr. 
 Bodisco, a Eussian officer from Nikolaivsky, was there. 
 We hastened up the bank, guided by a peasant, to find 
 him. We were both anxious to learn something from the 
 outside world — Captain Fulyhelm, of the Eussian Ameri- 
 can Company's ships expected at the Amoor on De Cas- 
 tries, and myself, to learn if there were any chance ves- 
 sels arrived from China or California. 
 
 We soon found Mr. Bodisco, and were delighted to 
 learn that four American vessels had already arrived 
 either at De Castries, or were on their way to Nikolaiv- 
 sky. This encouraged us so much that we determined to 
 push on during the night, in order to take advantage of 
 
,,-«E^i^S^^f?^'i*- - 
 
 
 /a<^e.^^ ZPJ'SOO. 
 
ANCIENT MONUMENTS. 293 
 
 the calm which now prevailed, hoping, if the weather 
 proved favorable, we might possibly reach Nikolaivsky 
 the following night. 
 
 We pushed off into the stream at 11 p. m. in high 
 glee, keeping two men at the oars by turns during the 
 night. It was very dark and cloudy, threatening rain ; 
 but the shores were at times discernible. We pulled on, 
 keeping in mid-river as near as we could. I continued to 
 steer till 2 a. m., the weather rather improving as the 
 morning advanced. At 6 A. m. thermometer indicated 
 59°, and at 12 m. 69°. The river here is broad and ma- 
 jestic, with a current of four miles per hour ; the shores 
 generally covered with forest. 
 
 Tuesday, July 7. Thermometer at 6 A. m. 60° ; at 12 
 m. 65°. We continued on rowing during the night. It 
 remained quite calm, the first for many nights past. The 
 morning proved pleasant ; the sun shone out warm at 10 
 A. M. The river and surrounding country are on a mag- 
 nificent scale. The vast stream is like a sea of glass. 
 The shores and mountains are beautifully variegated 
 by the different-colored foliage of the various species 
 of trees growing in distinct belts, according to the na- 
 ture of the soil or the elevation. At 12 m. we came 
 to a rocky promontory on the right shore, one hundred 
 and thirty mUes above Nikolaivsky, where are to be 
 seen some ancient stone monuments, commemorating 
 Tartar supremacy centuries since in these remote regions. 
 The cliff rises abruptly from the beach, which forms in a 
 beautiful little sandy cove, between the two points of the 
 overhanging cape, which arises to the height of one hun- 
 dred feet, upon the summit of which there is table land 
 
294 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 extending for some distance, covered with oak, aspen, and 
 fir, with a rich undergrowth of grass, flowers, and shruhs. 
 Landing at the cove and ascending by a steep and difficult 
 footway, between where the rock became solid and per- 
 pendicular, we reached the summit. On the westernmost 
 point stand two of the monuments, and about four hun- 
 dred yards to the east, upon a more elevated point and on 
 a bare rock foundation, stands a third. The cliff faces 
 the south. 
 
 Looking up the river, you have a very extensive view 
 of the Amoor, with a large island to the left, opposite to 
 which, on the right shore, there is a Gre-lak village, two 
 miles distant. Far to the west, on the opposite side of 
 the river, stretch extensive plains, with streams of water 
 or outlets of the Amoor and Amgoon meandering through 
 them. To the north, the river is seen stretching in the 
 distance till the shores are lost to view, with a snow- 
 capped sierra rising against the horizon. On the west, 
 the horizon is bounded by ranges of lofty mountains, while 
 to the east the gradual rising of the woodland obstructs 
 the view. It is a very beautiful landscape, and seen under 
 a bright sun and on a lovely summer day, is hardly sur- 
 passed by any I have ever seen. 
 
 On the table-land, back of the two first-mentioned 
 monuments, are several excavations or pits, both within 
 and without the remains of a wall or the fallen and crum- 
 bled ruins of a large building — these remains being now 
 from six to ten feet above the surrounding soil. Near 
 these monuments are to be seen several stones, nearly 
 square, with a groove cut through their surface from side 
 to side to a depth of an inch. These are supposed to be 
 
ANCIENT MONUMENTS. 295 
 
 altars of sacrifice, the groove serving to conduct tlie blood 
 of the victim into the proper vessel. These altars un- 
 doubtedly were once elevated and within the temple. 
 
 The ground was richly covered with green sward, and 
 a number of plants and flowers were springing up around. 
 One large fir tree, which had withstood the devastating 
 effects of fire, yet visible in the adjacent forest, had been 
 felled by the occupants of a Eussian post station for fire- 
 wood or some other purpose. This we thought a desecra- 
 tion of this holy mount. Between the first two monu- 
 ments two poles, forty feet high, trimmed and the bark 
 removed, except near the top, were planted in the ground. 
 At the top were a few branches decorated with wreaths 
 and bound together with vines or bark. Upon the monu- 
 ments were wreathed garlands of finely worked splint or 
 the stripping of some tree, bound together at intervals 
 with willow twigs. The base of the monuments, as well 
 as the altars of sacrifice, were also dressed with shavings 
 of wood, worked to represent flowers, thickly planted 
 around in the earth. At a far jutting point of the rock, 
 some broken moss-covered stones indicated the remains 
 of another monument ; here also the reverent hands of 
 devotees had wreathed the wooden flowers. This work 
 of pious remembrance bestowed upon these ancient re- 
 mains of former Mongol power, were evidently devotional 
 offerings of the natives of the country, who have for the 
 place and its ancient uses some vivid tradition, sacred and 
 lasting, and this was undoubtedly the annual offering, ac- 
 companied perhaps by the sacrifice of an animal in pro- 
 pitiation of the spirit of the place. 
 
 Standing upon this remote wild spot, where more than 
 
296 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 six hundred years previousj the agents of Grenghis Khan 
 had stood, or perhaps himself, erecting these monuments 
 or laying the foundation of the structure which they com- 
 memorate, calling upon Grod to " give grace to his em- 
 pire" — I could not but reflect upon the westward progress 
 of that vast Tartar horde for many centuries afterwards, 
 until finally the grandson of the Great Mogul himself 
 made the very heart of Eussia bleed, cities to smoke in 
 ruins, whole districts to be laid waste, and men in tens of 
 thousands to be dragged in chains to slavery and death. 
 Then came ages of the decline of those restless and ruth- 
 less Tartar hordes, and the gradual but steady advance of 
 the Sclavonic power, and now the Kussian finds himself 
 master of the easternmost limits of the ancient dominions 
 of Grhenghis ; while at the same time he rests secure in 
 his citadal of the Kremlin or in his winter palace on the 
 shores of the Neva, while Tartar power and Tartar suprem- 
 acy have become almost annihilated before the retribu- 
 tive sword of the Czars. Sis hundred years have sufficed 
 to wipe almost from memory the vast power and world- 
 wide conquest of the Moguls, who had empire from the 
 shores of the Pacific to the gates of Moscow ; and now 
 Moscow, then weak and tributary, has stretched forth 
 " the force of her hand every where "from the shores of 
 the Baltic to the coasts of the great Eastern Ocean. 
 Nay, from Cracow to Sitka, over a longitudinal dis- 
 tance of two hundred and ten degrees, you may now 
 travel under the protection of the Sclavonic eagle and 
 upon Russian territory — more than half round the globe. 
 What is left to be done in Asia ? Only to place the se- 
 cond son of the Sclavic Czar on the throne of Ghenghis, 
 
ANCIENT MONUMENTS. ' 297 
 
 It would be a vast step in the progress of tlie Mongol 
 race and of civilization and worthy the great advance and 
 the great epochs of the nineteenth century, and the only 
 means by which nearly half of the inhabitants of the earth 
 can be Christianized and brought within the pale of com- 
 merce and modern civilization. May we not look to this as 
 a solution of the Chinese riddle ? for without Eussian in- 
 terposition the Mongol race must go down in intestine re- 
 ligious wars, pestilence, and famine, pressed as they now 
 are on all sides by the irresistible force of Christian 
 powers. 
 
 These thoughts came, as if the spirits of the slumber- 
 ing dead beneath my feet, on the Cape of Ghenghis, were 
 holding up to me a mirror, in which the past and future 
 of these two contending forces, Sclavic and Tartar, were 
 shadowed and revealed. They have been wrestling for a 
 thousand years. The blood of Japhet has triumphed 
 over that of Shem. The curse of Noah is about to be 
 accomplished, the prophecy fulfilled, and Asia Chris- 
 tianized. 
 
CHAPTEE LVII. 
 
 THE MONUMENTS. 
 
 The following interpretation of the writing upon tlie 
 monuments was given to me from the Kussian by Captain 
 Phillip Ayers, a Bussian officer at the Amoor in the ser- 
 vice of the government there under Governor Kosake- 
 vitch, a gentleman learned in languages. Archimandrite 
 Avvokoom, by whom it was rendered from the original, is 
 the prelate previously spoken of, now going to China as 
 the interpreter of Count Puchachin's embassy. 
 
 CONCEENING THE STONE MONUMENT AND THE INSCKIP- 
 TIONS UPON IT. 
 
 " Every thing proves that the spot where the monu- 
 ment is standing was once the site of a temple devoted to 
 the worship of Budha, which, in Chinese language, was 
 called ' YouTi-nen-se,' i. e., ' The Temple of Eternal Ee- 
 pose.' This denomination is testified to by two inscrip- 
 tions on the stone — one in Chinese, the other in the Mon- 
 golian language. The irregular disposition of words in 
 both inscriptions shows that they have been made by some 
 
f 
 
 
 X ^^t 
 
 
 ImQCS it l> 2^00 
 
THE MONUMENTS. 299 
 
 unlearned Mongolian Lama who had been living at the 
 temple. 
 
 "The inscription in Chinese, ■written in the copy 
 in' the middle in the upper part, is read horizontally 
 from the right hand to the left, as follows : ' Tsen-youn- 
 neen-se.' According to the Chiaese construction, these 
 words ought to he placed in the following order : ' Toun- 
 neen-tsin-se,' i. e. ' Deed concerning the Temple (or Mon- 
 astery) of Eternal Kepose.' 
 
 " In the Mongolian inscription, consisting also of four 
 words written vertically, it is difficult to decipher the first 
 word from the left hand. It certainly ought to correspond 
 to the first Chinese word, viz. : ' to remember,' ' to recol- 
 lect,' ' to inscribe,' ' memoranda,' etc. But, according to 
 the manner in which it is written, it is impossible to indi- 
 cate positively a Mongolian word that has a similar signi- 
 fication. Leaving the honor of interpreting it to persons 
 better acq[uainted with the Mongolian language, I will 
 only speak of the other three words. That they are quite 
 indistinctly written, so that they would not be correctly 
 deciphered and interpreted without the assistance of the 
 Chinese inscription, is also true. 
 
 " These words are the following : ' Youn-nenn-soomah.' 
 The two first words are Chinese, left without being trans- 
 lated. The last is Mongolian, and means pagoda, temple. 
 All the three words together signifies ' temple,' ' Younn- 
 nenn,' i. e., ' of eternal repose.' 
 
 The inscriptions on the sides of the monument are as 
 follows : Ist. On the left hand, in the first line, are the 
 Sanscrit words, ' Ott-mane-badd-ma-choon ' in Thibetian 
 letters, i.- e., ' Oh ! mane badma, give.' The inferior 
 
300 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 part of this line incloses the Chinese words, ' Dai-youan- 
 schoochje-le-goon-hoo,' i. e. great Youan (the Dynasty of 
 Youan), ' may the force of the hand be extended every 
 where ;' or, in Russian, ' may the power of the great 
 Youan (Mongolian) dynasty he extended every where.' 
 
 " On the same hand, in the second line, the same 
 Sanscrit words, first in Chinese letters : ' An (fimm) ma- 
 ne-ia-me,' and afterwards, in Ooygoonian letters : ' Ott- 
 ma-ne-bad-me-cTioon.' 
 
 " 2d. On the right hand, in the first line, the Chinese 
 words : ' Dai-youan-scliou-chie-lee-goon-boo,' i. e., ' The 
 power of the great Youan Dynasty extends everywhere.' 
 
 " In the second line, the first letters are Chinese : ' An,' 
 after that, in Ooygoonian letters : ' Ott-ma-ne-bad-me- 
 cJioon ;' further, in Thibetan letters, the same words : 
 ' Ott-ma-na-had-me-choon.' 
 
 " There is nothing more. 
 
 " Akchimandeite Avvokoom." 
 
 M. Hue gives us a further solution of this inscription. 
 In his recollections of a journey through Tartary and 
 Thibet we find the following : 
 
 "The Thibetans, as we have before said, are emi- 
 nently religious. 
 
 " There exists at Lha Ssa a touching custom, which 
 we are in some sort jealous of finding among infidels. In 
 the evening, as soon as the light declines, the Thibetans, 
 men, women, and children, cease from all business and 
 assemble in the principal parts of the city and in the 
 public squares. As soon as the groups are formed, every 
 one sits down on the ground, and begins slowly to chant his 
 
THE MONUMENTS. 301 
 
 prayers in an under tone, and this religious concert pro- 
 duces an immense and solemn harmony throughout the 
 city, powerfully affecting to the soul ! The first time we 
 heard it we could not help making a sorrowful comparison 
 between this pagan town, where all prayed in common, 
 with the cities of Europe, where people would blush to 
 make the sign of the cross in public. 
 
 " The prayer chanted in these evening meetings varies 
 according to the season of the year : that which they re- 
 cite to the. rosary is always the same, and is only com- 
 posed of six syllables — Om mani, padmi houm. This 
 formula, called briefly the mani, is not only heard from 
 every mouth, but is everywhere written in the streets, in 
 the interior of the houses, on every flag and streamer 
 floating over the buildings, printed in the Landza, Tartar, 
 and Thibetan characters. Certain rich and zealous 
 Buddhists even entertain, at their own expense, compa- 
 nies of Lamas for the propagation of the mani ; and 
 these strange missionaries, chisel and hammer in hand, 
 traverse field, mountain, and desert, to engrave the sacred 
 formula on the stones and rocks they encounter in their 
 path. 
 
 " According to the celebrated Orientalist Klaproth, 
 Om mani, padme houm is nothing but a Thibetan tran- 
 scription of a Sanscrit formula introduced into Thibet 
 from India, and which has, in that language, a complete 
 and indubitable sense not to be found in the idiom of 
 Thibet. Om is with the Hindoos the mystic name of the 
 divinity, with which aU prayers commence. This mystic 
 particle is also equivalent to the interjection Oh, and ex- 
 presses a profound religious conviction ; it is, in some 
 
302 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 sort, the formula of an act of faith. Mani signifies jewel, 
 precious thing ; padma, the lotas (padme is the vocative 
 case of that word) ; houm, is equivalent to our Amen. The 
 literal sense of this phrase is then : 
 
 Om mani padme houm ! 
 
 O the jewel in the lotus ! Amen ! 
 
 The Lamas assert that the doctrine contained in these 
 marvellous words is immense, and that the whole life of 
 man is insufficient to measure its depth and extent. We 
 were curious to know what the regent thought on this 
 subject. This was his explanation : animated beings are 
 divided into six classes — angels, demons, men, quadrupeds, 
 flying creatures, and reptiles. These six classes corre- 
 spond to the six syllables of the formula, Om mani padme 
 houm. All animated beings revolve by continual trans- 
 migration, and, according to their merits or demerits, in 
 these six classes, until they have attained the height of 
 perfection, when they are absorbed and lost in the grand 
 essence of Buddha — that is to say, in the eternal and 
 universal soul whence emanate all other souls, and to 
 which all others, after their temporary evolutions, wUl 
 reunite and become one. Animated beings have, ac- 
 cording to the class they belong to, particular means 
 of sanctification for ascending to a superior class, ob- 
 taining perfection, and of final absorption in the divine 
 essence. Men who recite very often and very devoutly 
 Om mani, &c., avoid falling after death into any other 
 of the six classes, and are immediately absorbed in the 
 soul of Buddha. The jewel being the emblem of per- 
 
THE MONUMENTS. 303 
 
 fection, and the lotus that of Buddha, these words may 
 perhaps be taken to express the desire of acquiring per- 
 fection, in order to he reunited to Buddha ; and the sym- 
 bolic formula, ' the jewel in the lotus ! Amen,' may be 
 paraphrased, ' that I may attain perfection, and be ab- 
 sorbed in Buddha ! Amen/ 
 
 "According to the explanation of the regent, the 
 mani may be, in some sort, the resume of a vast Panthe- 
 ism, the base of all Buddhist belief. The educated Lamas 
 say that Buddha is the one necessary being, independent, 
 the principle of aU things. The earth, the stars, man ; 
 all that exist, is a partial and temporary manifestation of 
 Buddha. All has been created by Buddha, in the sense 
 that all proceeds from him, as the light from the sun. All 
 beings emanating from Buddha have had a beginning, and 
 will have an end ; but as they proceeded necessarily from 
 the universal essence they will be reabsorbed also neces- 
 sarily. Thus as Buddha is eternal, his manifestations 
 always have been and always will be, although taken sep- 
 arately — all have had a beginning and will have an 
 end." 
 
 We remained some time upon the j)romontory of 
 Ghenghis Khan, as I named it, because it seemed to be but 
 just to the Great Mogul that this far eastern point of land, 
 made historical by these long-preserved monuments, de- 
 noting perhaps the limits of his conquests east, should 
 receive his name, in accordance with the inscription — as 
 the Youan dynasty was that of Ghenghis. On a Chinese 
 map that I have seen this point is called Toon; the Eus- 
 sians call it Teer or Tver, or rather that is the name, per- 
 haps native, (Gelack) of the village just below the pro- 
 
304 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 montory. Just above the village on tlie side of the moun- 
 tain there is a solitary loghut, built and occupied as a 
 Kussian post station. The island of the river from the 
 promontory is called Yeder-Bahl. The river ten mUes 
 above divides into three branches, two of which unite 
 at this point, while the other passes off to the left, where 
 it unites with the waters of the Amgoon — a considerable 
 river coming in from the north-west. Several chutes, 
 forming islands and lakes, again make off lower down to 
 the north, which do not unite again until within ten miles 
 of Mkolaivsky. 
 
 While standing upon the promontory we saw in the 
 river several large grampuses, for the first time, making 
 their way up stream two hundred miles from the sea. 
 We descended reluctantly from this beautiful spot, rather 
 commending the reverend Lamas for the selection of it 
 as a site for their pagoda. Our boat was ready at the 
 beach, and pushing her into the stream, we floated along 
 with the current, as near the right shore as possible, cast- 
 ing lingering glances back towards the cape, and enjoying 
 the wild but beautiful scenery of the shore. Mr. Bodisco 
 overtook us at 6 p. m., but as he was in a whaleboat with 
 five oars, and on official business, we could only keep com- 
 pany for a short time. 
 
 It coming on to blow about 8 p. m., and being unable 
 to reach the right shore, which we wished to do in order 
 to cross the river at the most favorable point above Niko- 
 laivsky, we hoisted sail in order to gain the shelter of an 
 island on the opposite shore, two miles distant. We, 
 however, sailed too far, the wind and current both setting 
 us towards another island chute, that would have carried 
 
i, -i- r^ > --J -^ tS: ^" 
 
 
THE MONUMENTS. 305 
 
 US thirty miles out of our direct course. We had now to 
 sail against the current, added to which, our men pulled 
 slowly with their oars, and with both sail and oars we had 
 a hard puU before we were able to reach the friendly shore 
 of an island. We, however, touched land at 11 p. M., 
 where we had a comfortable night, free from wind. 
 
CHAPTEK LVIII. 
 
 AEKIVAL AT NIKOLAIVSKY. 
 
 Wednesday, July 8. Thermometer at 12 m. 79°. 
 During the night we heard the mournful notes of the 
 cuckoo — one of the birds that we have found inhabiting 
 the shores of the Amoor from its head to its mouth. We 
 were under way at 3 A. m., in order to take advantage of 
 the early part of the day before the wind rose, the morn- 
 ings being generally calm on the lower part of the -river. 
 We got on quite well till 3 p. m., when the wind again 
 became high. We contended with it tiU 10 p. m., making 
 but little headway, when we were finally blown on to the 
 right shore of an island. Our men were perfectly ex- 
 hausted. As we were on a lee shore, we lay pounding all 
 night — the waves at times breaking over our boat, and 
 making it rather uncomfortable. 
 
 The waves dashed against the shore with much force, 
 and the boat tossed so that the men preferred to sleep on 
 shore. The night was bright starlight, and but for the 
 wind, would have been quite warm. We are not more 
 than fifteen miles above Nikolaivsky. 
 
 Thtjesdat, July 9. Thermometer at 12 m. 77°. We 
 were under way at 2 a. m., in order, if possible, to get the 
 
ABKIVAL AT NIKOLAIVSKT. 307 
 
 benefit of a lull in the wind about daylight ; it was still 
 blowing, but we conceived it better to be afloat than 
 pounding against the shore, though the shore was soft 
 mud. After a great struggle we succeeded in crossing to 
 the opposite side, but found it quite out of the question 
 to make any headway. After trying both oars and poles, 
 and coming on to shoal water, our men got overboard and 
 essayed to tow our boat ; but this seemed also to be a dif- 
 ficult process, so we finally concluded to sail out into the 
 main current, and try if we could not succeed against the 
 wind with the current sail. 
 
 The waves were roUing too high for comfort, or safety 
 to our style of craft ; for we soon found that neither oars 
 nor sail would manage her, and we were at the mercy of the 
 wind, broadside to in the trough of the sea, perfectly beyond 
 our control. Our only safety lay in hoisting saU, with the 
 danger of capsizing ; but it was our last resort, for it now 
 seemed probable that we might be under the disagreeable 
 necessity of swimming to shore, not very conveniently 
 near. However, we hoisted sail ; she came round before 
 the wind, and after an hour's sailing as near the wind as 
 we could hold her, we effected a landing. The men were 
 quite worn out, and we rested on shore to cook dinner. 
 
 While we were here a whaleboat, rowed by six sailors, 
 sent by Captain Chickachoff of the steamship America to 
 Captain Fulyhelm, came up to invite him to proceed in 
 it to Nikolaivsky, but he declined, as we expected to be 
 able to reach it in the course of the night. 
 
 We got under way again at 4 p. M. The captain 
 wished again to try the channel, but to this I objected, 
 having determined, if possible, not to leave the left bank 
 
308 YOTAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 again, as it was that on which the point we wished to 
 reach was situated. We wished to try the current sail, 
 but finally concluded to make what progress we could with 
 poles, and the men in the water towing, for it was too 
 shoal to approach the shore as we proceeded. We kept 
 on this way till 10 p. m., when the wind increasing in 
 force, we were compelled to land at the first convenient 
 place where the water would permit, as well for shelter 
 as to rest the men. We have made through the whole 
 day only about six miles. 
 
 As we toiled slowly along the shore we came in view 
 of several square-rigged vessels, lying at anchor opposite 
 the port of Nikolaivsky. My reflections were certainly 
 very pleasurable, after a journey of over a year's duration 
 from the shores of the Baltic Sea to the very verge of the 
 Pacific Ocean, whose tides, waves, and winds we were al- 
 ready under the influence of — the approaching termination 
 of a voyage not always very agreeable or comfortable, with 
 the probability of a speedy passage in one of these winged 
 messengers that would land me once again at the point 
 of my departure, after an absence of two years, all con- 
 tributed to fill me with heartfelt thanks to a protecting 
 Providence for my safe arrival so nearly to that ocean 
 whose opposite waves washed the shores of my own coun- 
 try, and upon whose bosom I could float to my home. 
 
 Pkidat, July 10. Thermometer at 12 m. 78°. We 
 were comfortable during the night, the wind having abated 
 very much before midnight, to which must be added the 
 reflection of the near approach of our present journey's 
 end, with ships and the fort of Nikolaivsky in view. Our 
 Cossacks took the masts of the ships for church steeples. 
 
AKRIVAL AT NIKOLAIVSKY. 309 
 
 They could imagine nothing but a church steeple so taU, 
 and were surprised when told what they were. 
 
 The wind abated during the night, and when we at- 
 tempted to shove off at 3 A. m., we found our boat hard 
 aground on the sticky clay of the shore. The subsiding 
 of the wind after a storm of some days duration, together 
 with a tide of something like a foot, had left us firmly 
 embedded. Our crew, after several ineffectual attempts 
 to launch the boat, stripped, and took to the water cheer- 
 fully. They tugged and toiled for an hour, so deeply was 
 the keel sunk in the mud, before they succeeded in get- 
 ting her afloat. I was so worn out, and we glided along 
 so quietly after we got off, that I fell asleep, and did not 
 awake until our keel grated upon the beach at Niko- 
 laivsky. 
 
 At 8 A. M. we paid our respects to Eear Admiral Gen- 
 eral Kosakevitch, governor of the sea coast of Eastern Si- 
 beria. He received me cordially, and welcomed me to his 
 house and to the province of the " sea coast." I delivered 
 to him, from Grovernor General Mouravief, a package con- 
 taining letters in my behalf I remained but a short 
 time, as the governor was about to go on board the steamer 
 Amoor, on her first trial trip. This was one of the iron 
 steamers constructed at Philadelphia and shipped here in 
 a sailing vessel, and put up during the winter and spring, 
 destined for the navigation of the Amoor to its head. 
 
 The governor informed me that he had ordered a room 
 to be prepared for me — the best to be obtained in the 
 place — which Mr. Bodisco had the kindness to conduct 
 me to. I was rather unwell after the fatigues and ex- 
 citement of the voyage, and chose to remain on board of 
 
310 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 our little bark for a day or two. After taking a hasty- 
 look at the water-front of the rising city, I retired to our 
 boat to rest for the day. It was pleasant and clear, with 
 the usual sea breeze. 
 
 In fact, I was really sick, and when the excitement 
 and necessity for further action was over, I found that the 
 wear and tear of the voyage, particularly the last fifteen 
 or twenty days, had rather used .me up, and I required 
 rest and physic. My head ached, my stomach was topsy- 
 turvy, my bones ached, my back ached — I ached all over 
 — good indications of approaching fever. But it was no 
 place, nor no time to be sick ; therefore I must give it up. 
 My little stock of medicines that I had laid in on the 
 other side of the world were not exhausted, and I swal- 
 lowed twenty grains of quinine, then a blue pill the size 
 of a bullet, and a pill of opium, and went to sleep. 
 
CHAPTEE LIX 
 
 NIKOLAIVSKT 
 
 Saturday, July 11. Temperature 12 m. 78°, The 
 morning was fair and pleasant, the usual sea breeze blow- 
 ing, white-caps dancing, and a very considerable surf 
 breaking upon the beach east of the post. I called upon 
 General Kosakevitch at 10 a. m., this being his name's 
 day. It is a custom in Kussia for persons to keep the 
 anniversary of the day on which they were baptized and 
 received their name, as a holiday, and for their friends and 
 acquaintances to call upon them. Particularly, all per- 
 sons in authority receive calls from the officers of govern- 
 ment. I also called, in company with Captain Fulyhelm, 
 on Admiral Puchachin, at his lodgings. I found him 
 very affable and agreeable, speaking Enghsh with a slow 
 and measured tone, and with the slightest possible French 
 accent. The ambassador was only awaiting the signal of 
 Captain Chickachoff (steamer America), " ready for sea," 
 to embark on his mission to PeMn. The Kussian govern- 
 ment is willing to compensate the Manchoo inhabitants on 
 the left shore of the Amoor for their improvements and 
 property, in case they do not wish to remain under Eus- 
 sian rule. The interference of the Manchoo authorities in 
 
312 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 the free navigation of tile Amoor by Russia must be 
 stopped. The river was more necessary to Russia tban to 
 China. It was only preseived by the Chinese in a wild 
 state, neither useful to themselves, to mankind, to civili- 
 zation, or to progress — while from the geographical isola- 
 tion of Siberia, the Russians absolutely needed this only 
 natural means of egress to the navigable waters of the 
 ocean. Nor would Siberia alone be benefited by the navi- 
 gation and settlement of this river — Manchooria would 
 be vastly interested in the commerce that would imme- 
 diately spring up and the money that would be expended 
 upon its shores. 
 
 The admiral had experienced also much head wind 
 on his passage down the Amoor, and Captain Chickachoff 
 was under the necessity of cutting the cover of his boat 
 off and casting it adrift in order to get on. He was 
 twenty-five days in descending from Schilkah with a large 
 crew and very light boat. 
 
 I dined with Governor Kosakevitch ; the ambassador, 
 Admiral Puchachin, and many other Russian officers were 
 present, most of whom I had met before in Siberia or 
 upon the upper waters of the Amoor or in Russia. The 
 dinner was excellent, with wines of different kinds, wind- 
 ing up with champagne — the Russian custom. Although 
 the only foreigner present, I found eight of the party 
 speaking English. 
 
 I find at anchor in the river, opposite the post, the 
 following American vessels : Schooner Lewis Perry, Cap- 
 tain Turner, from San Francisco, California, with assorted 
 merchandise to Carlton & Burling, who are establishing a 
 commercial house here ; schooner Greneral Pierce and 
 
NIKOLAIVSKT. 313 
 
 bark Burnham, with assorted merchandise to Mr. Ludorf, 
 from Hong Kong via Hakodadi ; bark Messenger Bird, 
 Captain Homer, from Boston, with assorted merchan- 
 dise to Pierce & Co., both of which are establishing 
 houses here permanently ; bark Bhering, Captain Morse, 
 from Boston, via Sandwich Islands, Kamschatka, and 
 Hakodadi, to Mr. Gushing, of the house of W. H. 
 Boardman & Co., of Boston, for many years in the Pacific 
 trade, with a house at Petropaulosky of many years stand- 
 ing and the first to enter with the Kussians into the 
 Amoor, having established a house here also. The Bher- 
 ing had also machinery and stores for the government and 
 general merchandise. 
 
 This certainly was an unexpected and agreeable sur- 
 prise to me to find the stars and stripes floating from the 
 masts of so large an American fleet in these, until re- 
 cently, unknown waters. The Kussian steamer America 
 and a small Eussian schooner, with the new steamer 
 Amoor, and the hulk of the steamer Argoon, built at 
 Schilkah, but now dismantled, made up the entire fleet. 
 Scattered along the shore were the remains of various 
 barges, rafts, and vessels, which had found their resting 
 place here, either from the waters above or from the 
 waters outside. Anchors, chains, guns, hulks, engines, 
 and machinery lay along. the beach or preserved in tem- 
 porary magazines, all going to show the importance of the 
 rising post. 
 
 Sunday, July 12. Temperature at 12 m., 80°. A fine 
 
 fair day, with sea breeze. Admiral Puchachin and suite 
 
 embarked on board the America. On the morning of the 
 
 13th the America sailed. Governor Kosakevitch and 
 
 14 
 
314 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 suite embarked on the steamer Amoor to escort the ad- 
 miral to sea. A salute in honor of the occasion was fired 
 from the shore battery. The flags of the American ves- 
 sels were displayed in honor of the occasion. The steamer 
 and steamship proceeded down the river, returning the 
 salute, and were lost sight of behind the projecting point 
 of land, or Fort Point. 
 
 The day proved really lovely and of that pleasant and 
 agreeable temperature just suited to frail humanity. I 
 walked down upon the beach beyOnd Fort Point and 
 bathed in the beautiful Amoor, where it was a luxury to 
 walk along pebbly shores, with fine overhanging old piae 
 trees sighing in the gentle sea breeze, and just enough surf 
 to make the shores musical. 
 
 This place, " Port " Mkolaivsky, is situated about thir- 
 ty miles above the entrance of the Amoor into the Straits 
 of Tartary on the left shore, having for its defences two 
 fortifications, a few mUes below, one on each side of the 
 river ; one upon a low sand spit forming the eastern point 
 of the bay, on which the town is built, and one opposite 
 raised from the water on the shoal edge of the bank, which 
 commands the approach to the town from up the river. 
 A small bay makes in from the river, with a depth of 
 seven feet of water, which makes a convenient and secure 
 landing for small craft. The town is built on the shore 
 of this bay, which rises to the height of fifty feet and ex- 
 tends off in a heavily- wooded plain to the foot of moun- 
 tains, several mUes distant. 
 
 The post was first established in 1853, as a military 
 station, but has, by emigration from Siberia and Kam- 
 schatka, acquired about fifteen hundred inhabitants. The 
 
NIKOLAIVSKT. 315 
 
 river opposite has a breadiih of near a mUe, while the cur- 
 rent rolls broad and deep towards the sea. Though the 
 tidal wave from the Straits of Tartary is felt here, yet it 
 has no perceptible effect upon the current which flows at 
 near four miles per hour. It is the seat of government 
 for the eastern coast of Siberia and head-quarters of naval 
 and military affairs for the regions round about. The site 
 is not well chosen, either in respect to the land or water, 
 for a commercial city. In the first place, large vessels 
 must lie out in the stream, half a mile distant, from 
 whence their cargoes must be lightered to the shore, while 
 the land is wet and swampy and very difficult to reduce to 
 a state of cultivation. The proximity to the straits ren- 
 ders it bleak and subject to terrific storms in the winter, 
 and there are no very good lands for cultivation in its 
 vicinity. On the whole, it is badly chosen, except per- 
 haps for a post of defence. The commercial city should 
 be built higher up on the river, where bold water and good 
 land can be had, with comparative shelter from the winter 
 storms. 
 
CHAPTEE LX. 
 
 AMERICAN RESIDENTS. 
 
 During my stay at Nikolaivsky the weather was re- 
 markably pleasant, though the general complaint was 
 that the spring had been very backward. The gardens 
 also attested that ; for the cabbage plants were yet small, 
 and, after my arrival, potatoes were planted and plants set 
 out. The best garden is at the governor's country residence, 
 two mUes to the west, upon the shore of the bay, where let- 
 tuce and radishes, under glass, were ready for the table. 
 Here also the soldiers have gardens, to which the governor 
 gives his special attention. A little further on is a Rus- 
 sian village, from whence grass and timber are procured, 
 and where are beginning to be also poultry, , eggs, and 
 butter. 
 
 Governor Kosakevitch treated me very kindly while 
 here, and gave me a permanent seat at his board during 
 my stay. We also had a pic-nic at his farm in company 
 with several ladies. We proceeded by water in the admi- 
 ral's cutter, rowed by a boat's company of Eussian sailors. 
 The day was very pleasant. The governor had provided 
 c[uite a beautiful surprise to us at his country seat, giving 
 us a handsome repast. We looked at the garden and enjoyed 
 
AMERICAN RESIDENTS. 317 
 
 ourselves seated or standing in front of the house, which 
 is situated on the elevated shore of the bay, out of the 
 port, having a fine view of the country to the west and 
 south. The governor did every thing in his power to 
 make me comfortable during my stay, and his officers and 
 staff were also very agreeable gentlemen and treated me 
 with much kindness. The American merchants and Mr. 
 Ludorf also tendered me the freedom of " pot-luck," of 
 which I readily availed myself. 
 
 The weather remained generally pleasant. The steamer 
 Amoor steamed up on the 18th, and departed for the up- 
 per regions of the river at 6 p. m., with four small barges 
 in tow. It is expected that she will ascend to Schilkah. 
 She has some cargo, with officers and soldiers returning to 
 Eussia and Siberia. During the month of July the 
 steamer Schilkah arrived from the upper waters. She re- 
 mained until the 5th of August, when, taking Governor 
 Kosakevitch on board, she steamed up the river. I was 
 informed that the governor was going to select and settle 
 upon the point for a new city between this and Kezee, 
 and that perhaps this post would be abandoned to the 
 soldiers and sailors, and for workshops for the fleet. The 
 country about this is generally mountainous and densely 
 wooded. Between this and De Castries, by way of Kezee, 
 there are scattered a few Kussian villages, which answer 
 for post stations, the whole Eussian population amounting 
 to perhaps four thousand. Then there are the Gelack vil- 
 lages, including those also below and on the coast, which 
 make up the whole sum of population. 
 
 The climate is certainly a harsh one in winter, the soil 
 cold, wet, and poorly adapted to cultivation ; while the 
 
318 VOTAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 spring is tardy and wet. The summer is too short for 
 producing any thing but the hardier grains and vegetables. 
 Timber is abundant, but not of the proper species for good 
 ship-building, though for lighter river craft and building 
 purposes it can be made to answer. 
 
 The several vessels were busy discharging and housing 
 their cargoes of merchandise, while various store-houses 
 were being erected in which to transact business per- 
 manently. The establishment of Messrs. Boardman & 
 Gushing, built last year is the best, and very comfortably 
 arranged, and, under the hospitable charge of Mr. Gush- 
 ing, is very convenient for a hungry or dry soul, or for one 
 seeking a readable book or paper from his weU-stocked 
 library, to be read lounging on a sofa in a pleasant sitting- 
 room. Their buildings have been erected in this wooden 
 country, at a cost of over seven thousand rubles, with iron 
 roofs, and are really most excellent log buildings, well cal- 
 culated to withstand the climate, and defy both cold and 
 wet. 
 
 Messrs. Pierce & Go. have brought with them, in Cali- 
 fornia style, a frame-house from the Sandwich Islands, 
 with shingle roof — the first in the country, and it looks 
 curious enough, with its high-peaked roof, trim, neat sides, 
 and rakish appearance, among its massive log neighbors. 
 The Eussians think it impossible that this house can be 
 made habitable for the winter, with its thin sides only, to 
 resist the cold. 
 
 Messrs. Carlton & Go. have purchased a log-house, 
 which they are refitting to suit their views of comfort, 
 with San Francisco furniture, wide bedsteads, and white 
 sheets. 
 
AMEEICAN RESIDENTS. 319 
 
 Mr. Ludorf has a large commodious log-house, with 
 zinc roof, nearly finished, for his head-c[uarters, and, with 
 his assorted cargoes of Japanese, Chinese, German, Eng- 
 lish, French, and Yankee notions, can not fail to suit the 
 tastes as well as drain the pockets of his customers. 
 
 Mr. Otto Esche, of San Francisco, whose vessel, the 
 Conrad De Savin, I met coming up just within the river, 
 as I was on my way out, is also about to establish, a house 
 here, and intends to reside permanently next year. He 
 had landed at De Castries, and was on his way, via Kezee 
 and the river, to Nikolaivsky. 
 
 The Eussian- American Company have an establish- 
 ment here, dealing generally in Eussian merchandise and 
 controlling the fur trade among the natives. They send 
 out trading parties during the winter and spring. The 
 head-quarters of the company will be removed from Ayan 
 to this port next year, as the communication and supplies 
 will come by way of the Amoor in future instead of over- 
 land by way of Yakutsk. Governor Fulyhelm will then 
 reside here permanently, and perhaps the company will 
 have a steamer or two upon the river to facilitate the 
 transportation of their supplies down and furs up the river. 
 
 The schooner Lewis Perry sailed on the 30th of July. 
 The General Pierce was sold to the Eussian government, 
 whQe the other vessels began to talk of departure. How- 
 ever, as neither the Burnham or Messenger Bird were 
 prepared to take a passenger, I was left to the " Hobson's 
 choice " of the only remaining vessel, the Bhering, with- 
 out any particular port of destination, but an even chance 
 of Hong Kong or Honolulu, via Hakodadi and Petropau- 
 losky. 
 
320 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 The departure of stearaers and vessels, with the ab- 
 sence of the governor, tended to render the post a little dull, 
 while the near approach of the departure of the remain- 
 ing vessels began to make me pack up once again for one 
 more movement eastward. The 8th of August was finally 
 determined upon by Captain Morse, of the Behring, wind 
 permitting, to saU, and upon her I was to traverse the 
 Pacific for some months to come. 
 
OHAPTEE LXI. 
 
 VOYAGE TO JAPAN. 
 
 On the 8tli of August, 1857, at sunrise, I was ready 
 to embark, but the wind proved unfavorable till about 10 
 A. M., when we went on board. It was not long before 
 the captain gave orders to weigh anchor, and in less than 
 half an hour we were sailing down the Amoor. 
 
 From Mkolaivsky to the straits the channel changes 
 from the left to the right shore, the river widening to 
 some three miles at its mouth. We were provided with 
 a pilot and eighteen Eussian soldier-sailors, with a large 
 launch and anchor, to assist us through the Leman, as 
 they call the upper part of the Straits of Tartary. We 
 came to anchor in the river before night the first day, the 
 wind having shifted to the south, which prevented us 
 from sailing out. The distance to De Castries is only about 
 one hundred miles ; but, in consequence of adverse winds, 
 the crookedness of the channel, and the slight depth of 
 water, we did not reach De Castries until the 27th of Au- 
 gust, making the passage occupy nineteen days. We were 
 frequently aground, becalmed, or detained by head winds. 
 This, however, to vessels of the proper depth — not over 
 thirteen feet — can all be overcome by the assistance of 
 steam. A steam-tug of the proper construction would. 
 14* 
 
322 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 have taken us to De Castries, that is to sea, in twelve 
 hours. Much detention must occur till steam is provided 
 for this purpose. This must, however, speedily take 
 place ; the wants of the government alone will require it. 
 The necessary coal for steamers is found in the greatest 
 abundance on the island of Sak-hah-lin, just in view of 
 the Amoor. 
 
 De Castries is accessible and commodious, with wood 
 and water convenient and good holding ground. At this 
 point vessels going into the Amoor will stop for a pilot as 
 well as to forward despatches by way of the post to Kezee 
 and Nikolaivsky. De Castries freezes in the winter and 
 becomes inaccessible, and, in consequence of drift ice in 
 the winter and spring, vessels would be ia danger ; but it 
 is said that a breakwater can easily be constructed in the 
 southern site of the bay that will render it perfectly safe 
 during the winter. 
 
 We passed De Castries on the 27th. The coast of 
 Tartary is everywhere rugged and flanked with mountains. 
 The opposite coast of Sak-hah-Hn is also mountainous, 
 and in the region opposite this, good coal mines are found. 
 The coal has been tested by the steamers here and found 
 suitable for sea-going steamers. The steamer America 
 has used it and is now on her way to China, burning this 
 coal. The mines are convenient to the coast, and veins 
 of eighteen feet in thickness have been found. They are 
 said to be inexhaustible, ranging for a great extent along 
 the island. 
 
 We coasted along the Gulf of Tartary to Emperor's 
 Harbor, and then made the opposite coast of Sak-hah- 
 lin, where the mountains are very lofty. On the 4th of 
 
VOYAGK TO JAPAN. 323 
 
 September, in the aftemooiij we made tlie Japanese island 
 of Jeddo or Matsmai, and, sailing near the islands of Oh- 
 semah and Oosemah, off the entrance of the Straits of 
 Sangar, the wind being contrary, we stood to sea untU 
 morning, when we entered the straits and sailed along the 
 coast near to the city of Matsmai. This city, the resi- 
 dence of a prince, is very handsomely situated, facing 
 the straits upon land sloping gehtly from the mountains 
 to the sea. We coasted along, passing nupaerous Japan- 
 ese junks of large size, entered the bay of Hakodadi, sail- 
 ing in with a moderate breeze, cast our anchor in front of 
 the city at 3 p. m. on the 5th September, nine days from 
 De Castries and twenty-seven from Nikolaivsky, the whole 
 distance not being more than eight hundred miles, or 
 seven hundred from De Castries. At this season of the 
 year the winds are from the south, which makes the voy- 
 age in a sailing vessel tedious and lengthy ; while a 
 steamer would make the voyage in three days from an- 
 chor to anchor. 
 
 It was a very agreeable surprise to us to find the stars . 
 and stripes floating at the top of a high pole on shore, 
 for we had not been apprised of the appointment of a 
 United States consular officer to this port. The cus- 
 tom-house officers came on board soon after our anchor 
 was down, having an interpreter who spoke English after a 
 fashion. The first question asked was, " What you want 
 here ?" Answer : " Trade, provisions, and water." This 
 was not specific enough for Japanese purposes. We were 
 then requested to specify what particular articles and the 
 specific quantity of each. Mr. Cushing then furnished 
 them with a list of the objects desired, adding one thou- 
 
324 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 sand piculs of rice. This made tlie officials open their 
 eyeSj and their mouths too, they ahsolutely declaring that 
 there was no lice (rice) for sale ; and from the number of 
 persons on board — seventeen in aU — thought it impossible 
 that we could eat such a quantity — about sixty tons. 
 
 The captain treated them to wine and brandy, of 
 which they partook — the champagne being their favorite. 
 The chief of the party became sea-sick, and, drawing a 
 very capacious pocket-book from the bosom of his dress, 
 commenced swallowing silver-coated piUs ; but they did 
 not seem to have the desired effect, for he soon had to 
 leave his champagne and retire to the deck. They smoked 
 their thimble-like brass pipes, fiUing them from their hand- 
 some pouches with very soft fine-cut tobacco, which was 
 exhausted in about three puffs. They were handsomely 
 dressed in silks and rich brocades, carrying fans, pipes, 
 pouches, tobacco, flints and steel, and two swords each. 
 The Japanese wear no tails like the Chinese or Tartars. 
 They shave the head and face, with the exception of a 
 small circle on the back of the head, between and behind 
 the ears. This is carefully dressed and brought to a point 
 on the top and centre of the head, and there confined by 
 metallic rings or tied in a little queue the length and size 
 of a finger. For pocket-handkerchiefs they use soft yel- 
 low paper, wiping their faces or hands and depositing 
 the soiled pieces in the capacious sleeves of their gar- 
 ments, where it remains until a convenient opportunity 
 presents to throw it aside. They are polite and courteous 
 in their demeanor, making their bows with their hands 
 upon their knees, and shaking hands with you, if you will, 
 in European style. Their boat was rowed or sculled by 
 
VOYAGE TO JAPAN. 325 
 
 nearly naked natives. In the stern was carried two ban- 
 ners, denoting the quality and functions of the officers. 
 
 The following morning Dr. Kice, Commercial Agent 
 of the United States, came on board ; he had only been 
 here a short time, and came by the way of China. From 
 him we were»made acquainted with more recent affairs in 
 China and our own country. 
 
 The doctor is housed in a very good and commodious 
 residence in one of the Temple yards, and provided by 
 order of the Governor with some half dozen soldiers, who 
 perform the functions of boatmen, cooks, servants, com- 
 pradores, barbers, washerwomen, &c. He has them already 
 speaking several words of English, and they are engaged 
 every day in taking lessons, which they reciprocate in teach- 
 ing the doctor Japanese, in which he has made also some 
 progress. The town is well situated, having in its rear a 
 high promontory making into the straits, which breaks the 
 force of the wind and waves and protects the inner harbor 
 and port ; a low strip of land unites the town with the 
 main land to the north and protects the harbor in that 
 direction ; the shores of the bay sweep around forming the 
 half of a circle, which makes it a very commodious and 
 secure harbor, with good holding ground within four hun- 
 dred yards of the town. The capacity of the bay is suffi- 
 cient to accommodate several hundred ships. During our 
 stay there were from four to five hundred junks in the har- 
 bor, frequently fifty arriving or departing in a day accord- 
 ing as the wind or tide favored them. Their import car- 
 goes consist of rice, and articles of the growth, produce or 
 manufacture of the southern islands, while their export 
 cargoes consist principally of fish, sea cabbage, sey, furs, 
 
326 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. , 
 
 skins, lumber and timber, and various objects the produce 
 of the sea. Their domestic trade is all regulated by the 
 proper officers through the custom-house, and all their 
 affairs appear orderly and well regulated. In their shops 
 you find a considerable variety of objects well adapted to 
 their wants, habits and climate. Cooper ^hops, black- 
 smiths, tinkers, barbers, bath-houses, ply their various 
 vocations ; silk mercers, shoe stores, fruit and vegetable 
 stalls, fancy shops, tea and tobacco venders all find cus- 
 tomers and occupation ; trains of horses or bullocks with 
 their cargoes strapped upon their backs, tied head to tail 
 pass in long trains through the streets ; dogs bark and run 
 with tail down away from the uncouth foreigner, while wo- 
 men gaze and children scamper from the approach of the 
 red-haired white-faced man. The shaven priest looks as- 
 kance with fan in hand protecting his bare skull from the 
 hot sun, wondering in his mind who may be the God of 
 such an outlandish uncouth set of barbarians with unshav- 
 en chins, leather-cased feet and legs, stove pipe hats, and 
 candle-mould breeches. God be praised ! the priest 
 ejaculates. God is great ! He has created many wonder- 
 ful things. 
 
 During our stay the weather was pleasant ; the country 
 looked fresh and verdant ; we procured potatoes, onions, 
 tomatoes, rice, eggs, chickens, fish, apples, pears, tea, 
 lacquered ware and silks. 
 
 A company of wrestlers were exhibiting in a square 
 kind of rough enclosure back of the town ; the sides were 
 enclosed with boards and cloth, and the top with, bushes 
 and cloth ; a range of boxes ran around the sides raised a 
 few feet from the ground, which were occupied by the 
 
VOYAGE TO JAPAN. 327 
 
 aristocracy, while the people were sq[uatted on the ground 
 around a platform of earth raised some three feet from 
 the ground in the centre. The wrestlers entered from 
 the rear and ranged themselves by nines on opposite sides 
 of the platform or ring, in a sitting posture ; they 
 were naked except a girdle about the loins ; they awaited 
 the master of ceremonies, who now ascended the platform 
 and announced in a loud singing tone and with many 
 flourishes of his elegant fan the order of performance and 
 the manner of the entertainment ; he then descended 
 piaking his bow to the audience ; soon another attendant 
 who appeared to be the property man of the establishment 
 came upon the ring, and in a loud voice, with a peculiar 
 flourish of his fan announced the names of the wrestlers 
 by pairs, who immediately, one from each side, stepped 
 upon the arena ; the last attendant remained to direct the 
 exercises and regulate the contest. The wrestlers walked 
 back and forth, took a sup of water from a small wooden 
 vessel, squatted upon their haunches, smoothed the sand 
 upon the arena with their hands, rubbed their bodies and 
 armpits with the sanded hand, scattered pinches of salt 
 or some other charm from a little bag hanging to the cor- 
 ner post of the arena, faced one another half squatting, 
 half standing, arid at the word agreed upon between them- 
 selves or given by the master, sprang like tigers at each 
 other's throats, with the guttural growling of bears. Now 
 they tug and strain, bending every muscle to the com- 
 bat, first at arms' length, then at under hold, again at 
 back and side hold — they are well matched, and are 
 blowing and puffing, and reeking with perspiration. 
 The attendant arrests them as they stand, unlocking 
 
328 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 their muscular and brawny arms from close embrace to 
 give them a few minutes respite — they take a sup of 
 water, spit it out, stretch their limbs, squat upon their 
 hocks, spread the sand with their hands, wipe their faces 
 with sheets of paper handkerchiefs hanging to the corner 
 posts of the arena, throw the soiled paper upon the ground, 
 spit, blow the nose, and wipe their faces again with paper. 
 The attendant now places them in exactly the position 
 they held at first, and the combat is renewed with fierce 
 and excited zeal ; a feint, a forward bend of the body, one 
 knee upon the sand, head thrust against the chest, and th^ 
 victim is flying over the head of the victor, and in an in- 
 stant his brawny body is rolling upon the sand or hurled 
 from the arena, amid an approving murmur from the audi- 
 ence ; the attendant elevates his fan, the victor bows with 
 his hands on his knees and leaves the ring. 
 
 This is repeated not only by the nine pair, but by a 
 second nine pair who make their appearance after a short 
 interval and who go through quite a similar performance. 
 During the play a variety of refreshments were hawked 
 round within the " Smo " as it is called by the Japanese ; 
 tea and fruits were served in private boxes, and famihes 
 partook of their meals during the performance. Our party 
 had tea served with some rice cakes and fruit ; and all 
 smoked who chose. Two-sworded soldiers served as police- 
 men during the entertainment, which was conducted with 
 decorum. Children played, laughed, and occasionally im- 
 itated the wrestlers ; old people smoked, drank their tea 
 and gossiped, while black-eyed, betel-chewing, red-lipped 
 girls looked a little curious out of the corners of their eyes. 
 
CHAPTEK LXII. 
 
 HAKODADI. 
 
 Several hundred persons visited the " Snao " daily. 
 An elevated box in one corner was appropriated for the 
 barbarians having henches to sit upon, a luxury not much 
 practised hy the Japanese ; they sit upon their hocks or 
 squat upon the ground ; shoes wooden-clogs and hark- 
 sandals are worn in the street, but taken off when enter- 
 ing a house or temple, left at the door or carried in the 
 hand ; fans, pipes, tobacco and tea are in constant re- 
 quisition. Betel-nut* is chewed by the women, who 
 
 * The diCTving of this preparation seems to be qtiite common among the 
 females of Japan : it colors the lips and month quite red ; and the manner of 
 stuflSng the quid outside of the front teeth gives their mouth a puffed (not to 
 say pouting) and unnatural appearance, and frequently when they open the 
 mouth or rather the lips, a roll of this preparation -will he seen protruding from 
 their lips as if they were sticking the tongue out from between the teeth, whUe 
 the lips are fairly dripping with the red juice from the masticated betel. They 
 appear to be quite as determined chewers as any of our male admirers of the 
 " honey-dew " or " Mrs. Myers' fine cut," and seem to be devoted to it, and 
 consider it more fashionable than dipping or snuffing appears to be among our 
 females, as they make no concealment of their quids. With the Japanese 
 belle, there is no disguise ; they chew on aU occasions ; there ia nothing how- 
 ever in the flavor of it at all unpleasant, but on the contrary it tends to sweeten 
 the breath, and it is that quality perhaps with its stimulating properties that 
 has given it such wide and extensive consumption in the East. 
 
330 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE 
 
 have rather agreeable faces and good formSj the effect of 
 which however is spoiled when they walk, their gait being 
 very ungraceful. Many of the girls and young women 
 have good teeth, white and regular, while the teeth of the 
 married women are all colored black. Prostitution is 
 licensed and regulated by strict laws ; houses of iU-fame 
 are paiated red with gratings in front, and latticed on the 
 verandas. Poor parents who cannot support their female 
 children, apprentice them to houses engaged in this traffic ; 
 they axe educated, and accomplished in music, dancing, 
 singing, conversation, embroidery, &c.j and after the years 
 of their bondage have been served out, they are free to 
 choose their future position. Many being chosen for their 
 high accomplishments and beauty by respectable persons 
 as wives, their former life is never spoken of ; they now 
 enter the society of their husbands, and a person casting 
 any reflection upon them in consequence of their former 
 life is considered rude and unmanly. They are said to 
 make the best of wives. Licentiousness is carried to the 
 highest pitch in Japan. The system of tea-houses is one 
 of the most notable features of this extraordinary country ; 
 the road side inns and post stations are red tea-houses, all 
 regulated by law. 
 
 While we lay at Hakodadi the bark Messenger-bird 
 came into the bay and anchored. The captain's wife was 
 on board with her two children, one a fat little cherub, 
 a baby of only a few months old, born on the passage since 
 leaving the Sandwich Islands. 
 
 I shall never forget the day on which the first Ameri- 
 can woman and Jier baby appeared on the streets of 
 Hakodadi. 
 
HAKODADI. 331 
 
 The popiilation, men, women and children, priests, 
 soldiers, barbers, merchants, all seem to have deserted 
 with one accord their various callings to gaze upon Mrs. 
 Homer and her infant. The baby excited the most in- 
 tense curiosity among the women and children; vdth gap- 
 ing mouths, outstretched necks and piercing eyes they fol- 
 lowed it through the streets ; every turn, every movement, 
 was watched ; pohce officers would occasionally drive them 
 off but it was only to give place to more eager faces ; at 
 the turn of every street troops would dash off and seek to 
 get a better view by appearing through other streets to 
 intercept her at the next corner. As we turned the cor- 
 ner of the street leading to the temple, on one side of 
 which the foreign bazaar was held, the crowd, men, women 
 and children, made a rush for the inner court to gain the 
 temple. There was a perfect stampede ; the clattering 
 of wooden-shod feet over the rocky pavement with the hum 
 of a thousand voices filled the air ; they piled upon the 
 steps, rushed pell-mell into the temple and crowded the 
 court, hoping to get a better view. In this they were 
 doomed to disappointment, except a favored few who 
 reached a back balcony, from whence they had a full view 
 of the lady and baby as they sat within the bazaar. 
 
 Upon her return the streets were again filled with 
 curious people following her to the gate of the custom- 
 house which led to the boat, in which she reached the 
 ship, eyed as she passed through a labyrinth" of junks by 
 the curious Japanese sailors, who beheld for the first time 
 a white woman. 
 
 The bath-houses are also a curiosity in their way in 
 Japan ; men, women, and children bathe promiscuously. 
 
332 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 They use the steam bath, retiring behind a screen into a 
 room reeking with steam, and then emerging to an outer 
 room, where they sit or squat, wiping, rubbing, combing, 
 and pouring bowls of water over their bodies, and again 
 retire to the steam or hot bath, and return, wipe and dress. 
 The people being strictly prohibited from trading 
 with foreigners, any article or commodity selected in the 
 shops or stalls must be sent tc^ the bazaar of the temple, 
 where officers of government arrange with you for pay- 
 ment. Here also was opened a shop or market for lac- 
 quered and fancy articles under the superintendence of 
 officials, who also had a word in arranging the price, which 
 was certainly high — the supposition is that the officials 
 pay the merchant his ordinary price and pocket the dif- 
 ference paid by the purchaser. The mart opened for com- 
 merce with foreigners during our stay was in the 
 Carp-fish-Temple buildings to the right of the main en- 
 trance, rather dark, but opening in the rear to the temple 
 grounds, where miniature lakes and mountains, dwarf trees, 
 and beautiful, trimmed shrubs and gravelled walks at- 
 test much taste and art in gardening. Many people with 
 a large sprinkling of children rushed before us into the 
 temple yard, upon our first vist to the bazaar, scampering 
 out of reach of the soldiers, who seemed to be conducting 
 us unashed. Many of the younger fry rushed through the 
 temple and took post behind paper screens on the rear 
 porch, to get a better view of us, while the officials, with 
 the interpreter were seated on a bench near the rear wall, 
 looking out on the tiny lake and the miniature mountains 
 in the garden. The merchandise was ranged along in 
 tiers on the floor, while the sober mute merchants, with 
 
HAKODADI. 333 
 
 their clerks, were on their knees, awaiting in tliis humble 
 posture the command, of the officers ; at a word one 
 or more were at the feet of the officials with a " hick " ! 
 "hick" ! and head to the earth in humhle reverence. 
 It turned out that the prices only were to be arranged 
 between the officers and merchants, and that the 
 wares would be for sale on the morrow ; but it was worth 
 an hour's loss of time to witness the figuring and 
 adjusting of the prices. I strolled into the temple, look- 
 ed at the images, the altars, the tablets and miniature 
 tombstones arranged on shelves, the paintings, the 
 figures, the screens, the inscriptions ; passed up through 
 a long back street, looked at another temple, walked into 
 a graveyard, returned to the " hall of trade," and found 
 them as busy as ever. Tea was served, and innumera- 
 ble pipes smoked, and upon walking into an adjoining 
 room I found cooks busily preparing rice-cakes, offerings 
 for the gods, and motley dishes for the priests. 
 
 We adjourned to Dr. Eice's quarters, talked over the 
 programme for the evening, went on board for dinner, re- 
 turned at 2 p. M. to the " Smo," where, in drinking tea 
 and looking at the wrestlers and fashions, we spent most 
 of the afternoon. 
 
 A lofty conical volcano was smoking steadily some 
 twenty miles to the north, the weather was mild and 
 pleasant, with occasional showers, and fresh sea breezes ; 
 the adjacent country looked pleasant ; fishermen daUy 
 and hourly plied their arts in entrapping the scaly 
 denizens of the bay ; gulls and ducks, were attending 
 industriously to their dinners, heavy lug-sailed, tub- 
 bowed, and two-story sterned junks were passing in and 
 
334 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 out or bobbing up and down at anchor in tbe barbor ; 
 boats with crews singing and tugging at tbeir oars were 
 skimming along tbe shores or towing some dull junk to sea 
 or to anchor ; the dull heavy sounding bells, and wooden 
 tomtoms were warning the devotees to prayers, the dead 
 to their graves or funeral pyres, or the young and happy 
 to the hymeneal altar ; shaven priests and mendicants 
 solicited the copper cash from the more charitable, shop- 
 men vended their wares, barbers were busy with shaven 
 pates and shining crown tails, pretty girls peeped from 
 the interstices of the latticed verandas, and two-sworded 
 samrays watched our strollings along the less frequented 
 streets. 
 
JHAPTEE LXIII. 
 
 TO KAMSCHATKA. 
 
 September 14, 1857. Our stay was drawing to a 
 close. Mr. Gushing had satisfied himself as to commercial 
 affairs ; our little trade was nearly finished, aU hut pay- 
 ing the bill, which Mr. Gushing arranged ; our chickens, 
 potatoes, sey, and fancy boxes were on board. Doctor 
 Eice wished he could sail with us, as we said good-by ; 
 our anchor was atrip, and our graceful bark with bellying 
 canvas glided gaily out of the bay into the Straits of San- 
 gar — the broad Pacific was before us, and Petropaulosky 
 our next destined port. We sailed that evening along 
 the northern coast, and had a good view in the morning 
 of Volcano bay and smoking cone. 
 
 We had a fair voyage of eight days to the coast of 
 Kamschatka opposite the Bay of Avatcha. The burning 
 mountain of Avatcha was sending up a considerable 
 column of vapor, the sides were covered with snow, while 
 a coating of dusky brown covered the immediate cone of 
 the volcano, probably snow discolored by ashes thrown up 
 from the centre. The shores of the coast looked beautiful, 
 clothed in their fall gear of variegated foliage, while bare 
 
336 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 and precipitous mountains assumed according to the shade 
 various colors. 
 
 The whole country is evidently plutonic and presents 
 the appearance of a great caldron which has boiled over, 
 and cooling quickly, left the mountains in a solid state of 
 all forms and shapes. The gate or entrance to the bay is 
 really a gem in coast scenery, and will compare very 
 favorably with the Grolden Gate of San Francisco. 
 
 We sailed up the same evening we came in view of 
 the coast, towards the entrance of the Bay, hoping that 
 we should be able to enter before night with a slight 
 breeze which we hoped would be found constant enough to 
 waft us into the harbor. , Our Captain did not like to lie 
 too near the coast during the night for fear of foul weather 
 and a lee shore, and was determined if he could not pass 
 the heads before night, to stand off and await the coming 
 morning and perhaps more favorable breezes. 
 
 We stood up towards the heads with a very slight 
 breeze or rather just a breath of air, and were fanned along 
 to within two mUes of the entrance before dusk, and prob- 
 ably could have entered, but the tide was found to be 
 against us as we neared the shore, and as in this state of 
 things we might be becalmed under the southern headland, 
 our Captain very prudently turned his bow sea-ward and 
 stood off for more favorable breezes in the morning. 
 
 The look-out at the watch tower on the northern head 
 had lighted up a beacon which was repeated within the _ 
 bay and harbor in order to light and guide us on our way, 
 but the wind and tide which " waiteth for no man," ren- 
 dered his kindness of n'o avail. 
 
 The next morning we were standing on towards the 
 
TO KAMSCHATKA. 337 
 
 land again in the direction of the entrance to the bay. 
 The day was bright and pleasant with but little wind; we 
 had made considerable offing during the night, and with- 
 out favorable wind and a little more of it as the day ad- 
 vanced we became fearful that we would not be able to 
 reach the port of destination before dark, and would con- 
 sequently be compelled to stand to sea again. 
 
 We had ample leisure however, to study the wild 
 and majestic scenery of the coast, with three or four 
 smoking volcanoes in the foreground. We fanned along 
 very slowly and lazily until quite late in the afternoon, 
 when a more favorable breeze springing up we worked 
 along very slowly, and gaining the entrance we were car- 
 ried clear of the headland, which made available the 
 breeze from the west, which filling our sails, we stood 
 joyfully up the Bay towards the Port of Petropaulosky, 
 and cast anchor just outside of the harbor after sunset on 
 the 23d of September, 1857. 
 
 Two Americans connected with the house of Messrs. 
 Boardman & Co. of Boston, came off to us, accompanied by 
 the Grovernor of the country, and the next morning with 
 the assistance of several boats from the town furnished by 
 the Governor, we were towed into the harbor of Saint 
 Peter and Paul, Kamschatka, N. L. 53° E. L. 158° 16' 
 thirteen thousand three hundred and thirty-six versts 
 east of St. Pe,tersburg by land ; one thousand miles 
 north-east of Hakodadi and about the same distance east 
 'of the mouth of the Amoor Eiver, and about three thou- 
 sand three hundred north-west of San Francisco, Califor- 
 nia ; population since the war about two hundred and 
 fifty, previously one thousand. It is a regular Eussian 
 15 
 
.338 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 town, population, language, manners, customs, dress, 
 buildings, manner of living, churcli and religion — so close- 
 ly resembling European Kussia that one could scarcely 
 credit the fact, or realize that he was near nine thousand 
 miles from the seat of government, and that this was 
 the same race of people he had conversed with on the 
 shores of the Baltic Ocean a year and a half since. 
 
 The peninsula of Kamschatka was not discovered by 
 the Eussians until near the commencement of the eight- 
 eenth century, and then only nominally taken possession 
 of, by rendering some of the native tribes tributary. 
 Not long afterwards, however, a small detachment of 
 troops penetrated from the north and establishing posts, 
 the whole country was quickly subjugated and rendered 
 tributary. The peninsula is generally very mountainous, 
 yet there are some considerable valleys, and fine rolling 
 uplands, with mountain sides yielding excellent pasturage 
 where the soil is good ; but being liable to frequent frosts 
 even in summer, grain is not produced — ^yet cabbages, 
 turnips, radishes, beets, cucumbers and potatoes are 
 grown in favorable locations with great ease and in abun- 
 dance ; hemp and flax of late years have been introduced 
 wliich are likely to succeed well also. 
 
 The principal trade of the country is, however, in its 
 furs and skins ; the sable and ermine of Kamschatka are 
 considered equal if not superior to any, while the black 
 and silver-grey fox to the north and on the adjacent 
 islands are the best and rarest in the world. The fisheries 
 yield most abundantly; game is found in the forests, and 
 several kinds of berries grow in the valleys and mountains ; 
 while good hay to any amount can be cut from the natural 
 meadows. 
 
TO KAMSCHATKA. 339 
 
 The people are very hospitable, not much inclined to 
 labor, but prefer mostly to hunt and fish ; the women 
 generally cultivate the small gardens, assist in making 
 the hay, drawing the seines and rowing the boats. 
 
 The population about Petropaulosliy are mostly full 
 blooded Eussians, yet there are many who have a mixture 
 of the native Kamschadale blood in their veins. In the 
 interior there are yet considerable numbers of natives who 
 live in their primitive mode. 
 
 There are also at Petropaulosky some Eussian-BngHsh 
 and Eussian- American mixtures, the offspring of persons 
 settled there from either English or American trading or 
 whaling ships. 
 
 The population of the Peninsula is set down at about 
 eight thousand, how accurately I do hot know. The whole 
 trade is confined to a few vessels yearly, which bring as- 
 sorted nderchandise, taking furs and money in exchange. 
 There are at this time two American and three Eussian 
 commercial houses at Petropaulosky ; these keep up the 
 trade and furnish the foreign supplies to the interior, 
 sending out in summer small boats loaded with merchan- 
 dise, which coast along the shores or ascend the rivers, sup- 
 plying the interior villages, receiving furs and skins in 
 return. In the winter the more difficult interior portions 
 are visited with dog-sledges, and the natives from a great 
 distance also visit Petropaulosky, where the year's catch is 
 bartered for cloth, whiskey, and tobacco, powder, etc., etc. 
 
 During "my stay of a fortnight, I made several excur- 
 sions into the adjacent country ; one of which was to visit 
 a celebrated warm spring about fifty miles to the west. 
 After making all the necessary arrangements we started 
 
340 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 early one morning in a whale boat ; the party consisted 
 of Messrs. Hunter and Burling, recently from San Fran- 
 cisco, having established a trading-house here, Mr. Smith 
 in the employ of Messrs. Boardman & Co., Captain Morse, 
 and myself — aU. Americans. We had four oarsmen from 
 the town and a pilot from the opposite coast. We pulled 
 right across the bay of Avatcha to the mouth of a small 
 river which comes in from the north-west. We rowed and 
 pulled up this river, in places against a strong current, for 
 several miles until we came in such shoal water that our 
 boat touched the bottom, near which were a party of men 
 and women making hay ; the wife of our pilot was one of 
 the party. We landed on a large meadow, and the whole 
 hay-party joined us and walked up to the village about 
 two miles distant. We were ferried over the river by a 
 iemalB ferryman just below the village in a very shack- 
 ling pair of canoes, fastened together by poles laid across, 
 on which we sat to keep them from upsetting. 
 
OHAPTEE LXIV. 
 
 A WAEM SPRING. 
 
 Aeeiving at the village, we soon had the whole popu- 
 lation around us to proYide the necessary horses for the 
 expedition to the springs, fifteen or twenty mUes further 
 on. Having a good supply of provisions along, including 
 tea and sugar, we made, with the assistance of milk and 
 black bread furnished by the wife of our pilot, a hearty 
 dinner, and started off, well mounted on fat frisking little 
 horses, under the guidance of our river and bay pilot, now 
 turned pioneer, and two other peasants of the village, with 
 provisions, guns, and blankets. 
 
 The road, or rather path, led up and across the same 
 stream we had ascended in our boat, and then through 
 well-wooded bottom land, gradually rising into beautiful 
 table land, covered with fine birch trees, rank grass, 
 and high weeds. We had several shots at the black 
 pheasant of the country, which our pilot said were very 
 abundant xa the interior, as well as partridges and bears. 
 
 The road was a mere track, along which we passed in 
 Indian-file, getting an occasional view of lofty snow-covered 
 mountains to the south ; from the growth of the vegeta- 
 tion and the size and quality of the forest trees, the soil 
 
342 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 must he of superior quality ; and in these sheltered valleys 
 I should judge grain certainly could be produced ; the 
 country looks as well adapted to grain growing as in 
 similar latitude in Eussia. We rode along briskly, com- 
 ing to a very beautiful country of rolling woodland, which 
 extended for several miles to the edge of a considerable 
 valley destitute of timber, stretching up among the moun- 
 tains for many miles. After halting a few minutes to 
 enjoy the open view presented to us here, we rode on, and 
 turning down along the edge of the valley, soon came to 
 a single house, and then a long low building. This was 
 the hot springs and bath house ; it had been erected by 
 a former Grovernor of Kamschatka, for the accommoda- 
 tion of those visiting the springs for health. Our men 
 secured our horses, unpacked provisions, and prepared 
 every thing for our night's rest. By this time it was dark. 
 We entered the house and found two men, the only 
 occupants. We took possession of a vacant room where 
 there was a table and some board frames against the wall, 
 answering the purpose of bedsteads. While our men 
 were busy preparing our supper, to which we all thought 
 we could do ample justice, we visited the bath! There is 
 a covered way leading from the main building down to 
 the springs, at the end of which there is a small dressing- 
 room ; this opens immediately into the springs which you 
 reach by a few wooden steps. There is a screen of planks 
 extending on each side for twenty or thirty feet, open at 
 top as you enter the water, beyond which there is no in- 
 closure. The bath or basin, which has been formed by a 
 small dam to retain the water after it boils up just under 
 the bank where it runs off to unite with a little creek not 
 
A WARM SPKING. 343 
 
 many paces distant, is some thirty or forty feet in di- 
 ameter and from one to three feet deep. When jow first 
 enter the hath and step into it, the sensation is as if the 
 skin was ahout being removed, while the stones and mud 
 on the bottom fairly burn your feet ; added to which the 
 steam and gas, ascending from the caldron, fairly take 
 away your breath ; yet in a short time you turn red and 
 get used to it ; when the sensation is remarkably pleas- 
 ant and refreshing. The aches, jolts and thumps of the 
 day's excursion were all speedily removed, and the whole 
 party pronounced the bath the very (quintessence of luxu- 
 ry. Smith, one of our companions, called it " ecstatic," 
 all were highly delighted, and after a thorough scalding 
 we retired to our lodgings to drink hot tea, and after the 
 necessary delay to partake of our supper. 
 
 Captain Morse was the most sadly disappointed of any 
 mortal I had seen lately, in regard to a pan of baked pork 
 and beans that he had attempted to transport from the 
 cook-house of his ship to the interior of Kamschatka — he 
 had packed the delicious dish as he thought very carefully 
 and securely as well as some sea-biscuit, and gave the 
 package in charge to our worthy commissary and pilot, 
 who had transferred it, with bread, ham, boxes of sardines, . 
 bottles of porter, etc., all into a capacious leather bag 
 which he had lashed hard and fast upon his sumpter- 
 horse, without paying very strict regard to the hay used 
 in packing. We were all counting on the delicious pan 
 of pork and beans to be served up in the wilds of Kam- 
 schatka, but the Captain had in particular set his heart 
 on it, and the ride and fast during the day had not less- 
 ened the force of his desires. 
 
344 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 « 
 
 We all looked with interest to the opening of the 
 sack — out came a porter bottle minus the neck, contents 
 vanished, then came a ham badly jammed, next a loaf of 
 bread, a la flapjack, boxes of sardines aU right, other 
 bottles sound, tea and sugar damaged with porter ; but 
 worse than all, and under aU, the pan of pork and beans 
 was a mass of hay, straw, pork, beans, and bread, in a 
 conglomerate jumble, which if pressed and dried from the 
 amount of hay intermixed would have made good adobes. 
 The two Captains Hunter and Morse took turns about in 
 picking the straws from the mass. I was quite satisfied 
 with tea, ham, and bread. 
 
 I had neglected to take my thermometer along with 
 me, and consequently cannot state the temperature of the 
 water, but where it boils up out of the ground, the heat 
 is sufficient to scald a chicken — it certainly is hotter than 
 the celebrated Arkansas hot springs, and probably pos- 
 sessing the same or quite similar medical properties — 
 scorbutic, rheumatic, scrofulous and mercurial diseases 
 being relieved or entirely removed by the bath. 
 
 We slept in our cloaks and blankets, some on the floor 
 others on the wooden frames; the number of roaches and 
 other bugs were beyond computation ; but the day's jour- 
 ney and fatigue, winding up with the hot bath, ensured us 
 a good night's rest notwithstanding the vermin. I slept 
 well and soundly, and we were all up early in order to 
 enjoy the bath before our departure. 
 
 The view in the morning was very fine. The spring 
 is just on the edge of a great meadow, with forests in the 
 rear, and a large valley stretching off to the right and 
 
A WAEM SPRING. 345 
 
 left ; lofty wooded mountains in the foreground and to 
 the left. In the distance, in several places in this meadow, 
 columns of steam were ascending, marking the locality of 
 other hot springs. The morning was cool and cloudy, hut 
 not unpleasant, with indications of rain. 
 15* 
 
CHAPTEE LXV. 
 
 STAT AT PETKOPAULOSKY. 
 
 September 27. We saw but one woman about the 
 springs. She occupied a hut near by and furnished us 
 with tea. She and one of the men probably were the 
 custodians of the estabUshment. No compensation was 
 demanded. We, however, paid for the tea, black-bread, 
 and' fish, furnished. 
 
 After»brea]dast we had pistol and rifle-shooting at a 
 mark, as we found no game. Our horses being saddled, we 
 started for town. The grass and bushes were wet from the 
 frost over night, and a slight shower of rain rendered the 
 road a little unpleasant, but we hastened on to reach the 
 village of Nikolaivsky, near which our boat was waiting 
 to take us over the bay, for we feared that is the weather 
 appeared unsettled that we might be detained in case of 
 a snow storm, as the bay would be very rough. We had 
 an unsuccessful grouse hunt on the way back. We saw 
 a flock and pursued them in the woods some distance, but 
 they were too shy for us, and we gave up the chase. 
 
 Two revolvers were lost on the road, but found again. 
 We arrived back at the village where we had procured 
 our horses, and the wife of our guide had plenty of milk. 
 
STAY AT PETROPAULOSKY. 347 
 
 fish, and curds for us. This, with the ever-ready samovar, 
 and black-bread, gave us a good dinner. We were visited 
 by many of the villagers, among whom there were two 
 girls, quite good-looking — one a blue-eyed rosy-cheeked 
 lass, the other a brunette with black eyes and hair. Pis- 
 tol and rifle-shooting and crow-killing were practised after 
 dinner, and, after paying for our ride and provisions, we took 
 our departure to where our boat was, some distance below. 
 The day was now warm, and the walk through the rough 
 ground, over a boggy meadow-land, gave us a perfect 
 sweat-bath. We were aU glad enough to sit down on the 
 bank of the river and take a rest while the men were pre- 
 paring the boat. We were soon under way, and, assisted 
 by the current of the river, glided along down towards the 
 bay, with the volcano of Avatcha in the north presenting 
 a very beautiful view. We also had some very pretty 
 scenery on our way down on the right — high cliffs, where 
 two bald-headed eagles were perched. The captain sa- 
 luted them with his rifle, but without effect. 
 
 We entered the bay and rowed along the beach, and 
 among some low islands were flocks of ducks and thou- 
 sands of gulls fishing, while in the deeper water of the 
 bay many seals were showing their heads above water and 
 as quickly disappearing. As we came out into the open 
 bay the scenery was truly very beautiful. There were 
 four volcanoes smoking, three to the north and one to the 
 south-west. A large valley stretched far away to the 
 north of Avatcha, bounded by high snow mountains, 
 while the wooded hill sides and grassy valleys immediately 
 upon the bay were clothed in the variegated hues of au- 
 tumn. We puUed on stoutly across the bay and landed 
 
348 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 at Petropaulosky. Captain Hunter and Mr. Burling of 
 the party gave us a nice supper at their residence. We 
 spent a very agreeable evening after our day's work and 
 retired to the ship, where we lodged. 
 
 The next day Captain Morse and myself went plover- 
 shooting along the beach in the direction of a small village 
 a few miles up the bay. We killed a number and stopped 
 at the village to rest and refresh ourselves. We asked 
 permission of the good woman of the house to enter, which 
 was readily granted. The samovar was soon steaming, 
 ready for tea. We had provided ourselves with tea and 
 sugar before we left town, to which the hostess added raw 
 turnips, milk, curds, black-bread, and some berries. We 
 dined most sumptuously after our exercise and took several 
 lessons in Russian. Many of the words used here I found 
 to differ from those in Russia. There is, of course, a pro- 
 vincial idiom, and some little native language mixed up 
 with it. We made our way along the mountain side, as 
 the beach would not be practicable at night. There was 
 a well-beaten mountain path, and the walk was agreeable, 
 until we came within half a mile of the town, when we 
 had to ford the outlet to a lake that communicates with 
 the bay ; but as it was not more than two or three feet 
 deep, we only got moist to that extent. 
 
 Mr. Cushing was arranging his business affairs and 
 having his cargo discharged, while I determined to make 
 use of all the lay-days granted, and so the captain and 
 myself, through the cleverness of Mr. Whitfield, pro- 
 cured the only two horses in town, one belonging to 
 the priest, the other to the acting-governor. Captain 
 Grubaroff. We mounted, and rode in the direction of 
 
STAT AT PETKOPAULOSKT. 349 
 
 the bottom of tlie bay and by tbe village of Avatcba to 
 the foot of the volcano, or as near to it as we could pro- 
 ceed. Our route lay along over the spurs and foot-hills 
 skirting the bay, through the same village we had visited 
 before. There is plenty of timber and meadow-land, and 
 the soil on the hill-sides looks as though it would produce 
 grain if cultivated. _ We passed up beyond Avatcha until 
 we came to water and a dense tangled wood, beyond which 
 we did not think it safe to proceed without a guide. Here 
 we sat down and had a fine view of the mountain, which 
 was belching forth great volumes of dense white smoke. The 
 volcano had been in a state of eruption for several days, 
 and had sent forth flames and lava. We could now see 
 distinctly the stream of lava which had issued from the 
 crater, where it had taken its course down along a deep gorge, 
 which it nearly filled, and, having cooled on the top and 
 sides, formed a tunnel through which the hot lava was 
 pouring, some two thousand feet down the side of the 
 mountain, where, as it burnt out, a dense column of smoke 
 arose and went curling off along the side of the mountain, 
 until it formed into a cloud. We sat gazing for some 
 time, and saw two eruptions while there, the earth trem- 
 bling as if in an ague fit. 
 
 We rode back to Avatcha, and entering a cottage, 
 soon had, with our own tea and sugar, such a meal as a Kam- 
 schatka peasant's cabin would afford. There was a very 
 old man here, once of stalwart frame, but now sickly, to 
 whom the contents of our teapot, and a little from a black 
 bottle, gave much relief. His daughter, a stout, buxom 
 damsel, or dame, I don't know which, did the honors of 
 the house smilingly and pleasingly and seemed to be much 
 
350 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 taken with the captain, who was really a handsome man. 
 I joked the captain with taking away the maid's heart. 
 I asked her if she would like to take a voyage to sea. She 
 laughed and said, "paj'anlst " — ^if you please. We had a 
 very pleasant day. The people had been fishing, and 
 there were several canoes on the beach, loaded with fish, 
 aU alive and kicking. The dogs were being fed bountifdl- 
 ly on them. 
 
 All through this country dogs are used in the winter 
 in the place of horses. At every village you wiU see scores 
 of dogs tied about, generally a little outside, or along a 
 * creek near the village, where they are fed on fresh fish dur- 
 ing the summer and fall, and not allowed to hunt, as that 
 spoils them for draught, it being necessary to break them 
 from the pursuit of wild animals. They are fed on fish 
 the year round, which are caught in the summer and 
 dried for their winter use. Six to twelve dogs are gene- 
 rally used to a sleigh, and, when well fed and trained, 
 make most capital journeys. Government officers are 
 conveyed from Kamschatka entirely up around the Sea of 
 Okhotsk by Okhotsk and Ayan on the road which leads 
 by Yakutsk to Irkutsk, with dogs, until they strike the 
 reindeer or horses near Okhotsk. 
 
 I have seen two officers who have performed the jour- 
 ney from St. Petersburg to Petropaulosky by land, a dis- 
 tance of some ten thousand miles — Captains Martinoff 
 and Ayers. But it takes stout hearts and sturdy frames 
 to perform these journeys. Martinoff is now aid to Gen- 
 eral Mouravieff at Irkutsk, and Ayers is government in- 
 terpreter to Governor Kosakevitch at the Amoor. They 
 are always detailed on difficult and arduous service, and 
 
STAY AT PETEOPAULOSKY. 351 
 
 must rise to high employ in Siheria. They deserve it. 
 Both speak English well — Capt. Ayers perfectly — besides 
 French and German. We made our way back towards 
 St. Peter and Paul, but stopped to drink tea with our 
 friends in the little village of Serra Glaska, and rode into 
 town after night, not fearing the water this time, as our 
 horses did not mind wet feet. 
 
 The weather was very pleasant, and I spent the most 
 of the time in walks about the country and in hunting 
 birds. 
 
CHAPTBE LXVI. 
 
 THE BUENING MOUNTAIN. 
 
 We had several beautiful exhibitions of the burning 
 mountain of Avatcha at night, when it burst forth with 
 columns of bright flame and a fiery river of lava pouring 
 down its side. On several occasions the earth shook con- 
 siderably, sufficient to make the houses crack and the 
 crockery and bottles rattle on the shelves and the bed- 
 steads to move. One night, while we were watching it 
 from the ship's deck, a great explosion took place, and an 
 immense ball of fire was seen to roU down the mountain. 
 Next morning we perceived that a section of the cone to 
 the north had been broken off, making a large notch, 
 where before it was rounded. 
 
 One evening, as we were walking towards the lake 
 near the town, we were arrested by a tremulous motion oi 
 the earth and a rumbling noise beneath our feet, with a 
 kind of indistinct report in the air, like the discharge of 
 small arms, and, on looking up, the mountain was belch- 
 ing flames and smoke. 'Twas said that the volcano) had 
 been quiet, until since our arrival, for many years, and I 
 think it was in 1838 that the inner harbor was made* dry 
 then by the quakings of the earth during an eruption. 
 
THE BURNING MOUNTAIN. 353 
 
 We were very much, delighted at the fortunate occurrence, 
 which we construed to he especially for our benefit, as we 
 had never hefore seen a veritable mountain belching flames, 
 fire, and smoke, and rocldng the earth like a cradle. We 
 therefore watched it very closely, and sometimes to a late 
 hour at night, in order not to be cheated of any of the 
 extraordinary exhibitions of fire-works. The mountain has 
 never been ascended by man — that is, the crater has not 
 been reached — owing to the great fissures and the rugged 
 nature of it at the top. It has a base of twenty miles 
 and a height of ten thousand feet. Kamschatka is vol- 
 canic, and has now the distinct craters of sixteen burning 
 mountains, many of them in action from time to time — 
 as before stated, within view from our ship's deck, there 
 were four smoking at once.* 
 
 * "Many traces of Tolcanoes have been observed in this peninsula; 
 and there are some mountains which, at present, are in a burning state. 
 The most considerable of these volcanoes is situated near the Lower 
 Ostrog. 
 
 " In 1762, a great noise was heard issuing from the inside of that 
 mountain, and flames of fire were seen to burst from different parts. 
 These flames were immediately succeeded by a large stream of melted 
 snow water, which flowed into the neighboring valley, and drowned two 
 Kamschatdales, who were there at that time upon a hunting party. The 
 ashes and other combustible matter thrown from the mountain, spread 
 to the circumference of three hundred miles. In 1 767, there was an- 
 other discharge, but less considerable. 
 
 "Every night flames of fire were observed streaming from the 
 mountain ; and the eruption which attended them, did no small 
 damage to the inhabitants of the Lower Ostrog. Since that year no 
 flames have been seen ; but the mountain emits a constant smoke. The 
 same phenomenon is also observed upon another mountain, called 
 Tabaet Skinskain." — Pallas. 
 
354 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 The town is in rather a dilapidated condition. The 
 Allies burned all the puhUc buildings, broke the glass in 
 private dwellings, mutilated the church, the people having 
 all withdrawn to the country, in 1854. When the fleet 
 came there first, the Kussian frigate Aurora guarded the 
 port, and batteries were erected to protect the town. Find- 
 ing they could not take it in front, they landed a force 
 upon the beach to the west of the town, where there is a 
 lake upon the left, which leaves a very narrow passage be- 
 tween the foot of the promontory lying between the town 
 and the bay. Along this narrow pass the Allies attempted 
 to enter the town by a flank movement, but, just as they 
 turned the point of the lake, a masked battery from the 
 ravine opened upon them, and the Eussians posted in the 
 bushes gave them a warm reception. They now made a 
 flank movement to the right up the mountain side, in 
 order to avoid the raking fire from the battery ; but here 
 they were met by bullets from every bush. The mountain 
 was inclined towards the town, but, on the sea side, pre- 
 cipitous. They retreated up and along the side until 
 they reached the top, where they again found leaden mes- 
 sengers from every bush. They were now seized with a 
 panic and threw themselves down the mountain-side in the 
 direction of their boats, the Eussians firing on them de- 
 liberately as they were fleeing and gathering on the beach, 
 and ■ getting into their boats. Many were killed and 
 crippled in the hurried descent over the craggy preci- 
 pice, while numbers were killed in the fight. The Allies 
 abandoned the beach as quickly as they could gather the 
 stragglers, took to their ships, and their ships to sea, leav- 
 ing Saint Peter and Paul in the possession of the Kam- 
 
THE BURNING MOUNTAIN. 3.55 
 
 schatdales. Some three hundred Allies, it is said, perished 
 in the fight and flight and about ten or fifteen Eussians. 
 The Eussians, however, abandoned the place and retreated 
 to the Amoor, which they fortified effectually. The fol- 
 lowing year the allied fleet returned and entered without 
 opposition, burning the public buildings, etc. 
 
 The captain of the port gave a dinner party while 
 I was there, which was quite a pleasant affair. We also 
 had other social parties. The time was very agreeably 
 occupied ; the weather mostly fine, but growing very fros- 
 ty at night ; Avatcha being covered with snow. 
 
 On Tuesday, 6th October, we took our last ramble in 
 the country. We were to leave with the first fair wind. 
 We were late getting into town that night, having walked 
 some distance in the country and stopped at Serra Glaska 
 to take tea and rest, so it was not till after night when we 
 started in. The bark had been hauled out into the bay 
 and we went immediately on board, but I fuUy expected to 
 have had another day on shore. Morning came ; it was cold 
 and cloudy and scattered flakes of snow falling. In a 
 short time a breeze sprang up from the north. The cap- 
 tain sent the boat on shore for Mr. Gushing, and orders 
 were given to unbend the sails and get the slack of the 
 chain in. This looked like a start. In the course of an 
 hour Mr. C. was on board, the anchor was a-trip, and we 
 were bound out of the Bay of Avatcha for the Sandwich 
 Islands. 
 
 Of all things in the world to me a sea voyage is the 
 most tedious. Waiting upon men in office ; waiting for 
 a rich uncle to die ; waiting for the decision of a suit in 
 chancery ; or for your turn at the post-office window of a 
 
356 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 rainy day in San Francisco in 1849 ; waiting for fame at 
 tlie foot of tlie ladder, witk one hand upon the first round, 
 looking up, hut not daring* to climh ; waiting for a hand- 
 some girl to pop the question to you, are all insignificant 
 in comparison to a voyage at sea. We had a boisterous 
 passage, head winds, head-beat seas, wind-storms, squalls, 
 rain-storms, and calms, but we had a good ship, com- 
 manded by a real sailor ; one who loved his profession and 
 who studied it ; careful of his ship, faithful to his owner's 
 interest. 
 
 We reached Honolulu on Monday, the 2d day of No- 
 vember, 1857, after a passage of twenty-seven days — 
 that is, it was Monday on land, so the people said, when 
 we arrived, but, according to my reckoiung, it should have 
 been Tuesday ; but we had crossed the 180° of longitude 
 east from Q-reenwich, and consequently had gained a day 
 in the economy of sunrising. 
 
CHAPTEK LXVII. 
 
 CHAEACTEB OF THE AMOOK COUNTRY. 
 
 The Kussian name " Amoor " is derived, I believe, 
 from the Tartar name of tlie river Kar-Amur-an or 
 Kar-amur-an-Oula, which, signifies, I was told, the 
 " Great Kiver of the Black Dragon." 
 
 The country bordering upon the Amoor has been very 
 imperfectly explored, but apparently it may be divided 
 into three sections in accordance with its vegetation. 
 
 First. — The upper or western section, commencing at 
 the head of the Amoor, Ouse-Strelkah, and extending 
 down or south-east to the river Zea. This country re- 
 sembles the better portions of the Trans-Baikal country 
 east of the Stanovey mountains, but evidently grows 
 milder in climate as you proceed to the south-east by the 
 course of the river. The extent of this region may be 
 roughly stated at one-third of the whole distance. 
 
 In this, the great western division, we find the river 
 running much of the way through a mountainous country 
 in numerous bends, having considerable fertile bottom 
 lands, first on one side and then on the other, covered 
 witb excellent grass, and well, but not heavily, timbered, 
 with white and black birch, pitch pine, fir and larch, in- 
 ferior oak and linden. 
 
358 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 With, the rapid advance of summer you find the cli- 
 mate, soil, and productions evidently changing for the 
 better, while the mountains are gradually receding from 
 the river as you descend, and large extents of country are 
 spreading off into extensive plains, and by the time you 
 have reached the Zea you find a country certainly adapted 
 to both agriculture and grazing purposes, with sufficient 
 timber for all necessary wants. 
 
 Second. — The southern division or the region from the 
 Zea to the Ousuree, again about one- third .of the whole 
 distance. This country has extensive prairies, with 
 plenty of wood upon the mountains. Here the Amoor 
 has made an immense sweep to the south, receiving the 
 mild air from that quarter unobstructed by mountains and 
 also the warmer waters of its more southern affluents, 
 and being besides well protected from the cold blasts of 
 the Frozen Ocean by the distant barriei- of the Altai, and 
 the country assumes quite a southern aspect. From the 
 Zea to the Songahree the mountains recede to the south, 
 forming an extensive plain, though which the Amoor 
 flows like a second Mississippi. 
 
 The son is generally good, and though nearly all tbe 
 varieties of timber heretofore enumerated grow in this di- 
 vision, yet they are not so plentiful. The forests consist 
 principally of birch, oak, ash, maple, cork, and elm ; good 
 timber for building purposes is only found upon the dis- 
 tant mountains, where cedar, pine, and larch grow to great 
 perfection and in abundance. But the best mode of sup- 
 plying this section with timber is to cut it on the streams 
 above and float it down in rafts, as practised on our west- 
 ern rivers. Innumerable flowers of rich and varied hue. 
 
CHAEACTEK OF THE AMOOK COUNTEY. 359 
 
 grape-vine, pea, clover, and grass, ricli and luxuriant, at- 
 test its fitness for the abode of civilized man. 
 
 Third. — From the Ousuree to the Straits of Tartary 
 will constitute the eastern division, again about one-third 
 of the whole distance from the head to its mouth. ThiB 
 region, on the south of the Amoor, is mostly covered with 
 dense forests ; the country gradually rising from the Ou- 
 suree to the Ocean forms a mountainous district, which 
 declines abruptly at the coast. This accounts for the fact 
 that no river of any considerable size enters the Sea of 
 Japan, for a distance covered by 15° of latitude south of 
 the Amoor towards Oorea. 
 
 The left or north bank is, on the contrary, compara- 
 tively speaking, an even or gently rolling country, and in 
 this part of the Amoor the growth and climate is so varied 
 that, in order to correctly understand and review it, it must 
 be subdivided as follows : 
 
 1st. The tract of country along the sea shore to the 
 south of the Amoor from Emperor's Harbor to Petrofsky, 
 north of the Amoor, and along the shores of the Amoor to 
 the high mountains lying in the neighborhood of the vil- 
 lages of Dary and Havandah, a distance by the coast, sea, 
 and river of about five hundred miles. 
 
 2d. The middle tract to the mouth of the Hongahree 
 River, or to the mountains of Bokee, a distance of one 
 hundred and sixty miles. 
 
 3d. The southern tract or region of ovate-leaved for- 
 ests, from the Hongahree to the Ousuree two hundred and 
 seventy miles. 
 
 In the first subdivision, or the region of pinnate- 
 leaved forests, the climate, particularly on the coast of 
 
360 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 the Sea and Straits of Tartary, and on the Amoor almost 
 to the village of MichaHovskey is very severe ; in the 
 winter snow falls to the depth of seven to ten feet, and 
 the storms are terrific and blinding, so that it is absolutely 
 at the risk of one's life to be caught in one of them, the 
 air being so perfectly filled with snow before a driving 
 wind that progress is impossible, and the only resort is to 
 bury yourself up in the drift and wait for it to pass over. 
 The country is mountainous, hence the shores of the 
 Amoor are abrupt and rocky, and for cultivation few fa- 
 vorable spots are found. The forests consist of pine, a 
 peculiar kind of pitch pine, and larch ; cedar only grows 
 in stunted bushes, mostly on mountains, and small red 
 oak, maple, and birch are found only on the borders 
 or skirts of the forests. The soil which produces the fir 
 and larch forests is generally clayish and wet ; meadows 
 on open spots are rare, except on islands and in partially 
 mountainous valleys. Above Michailovskey the country 
 becomes lower, leaving rather extensive even spots covered 
 with groves of aspen and birch. Small meadows are often 
 met with. The soil of the aspen and birch forests is less 
 marshy, and in the birch groves is covered with a rich 
 carpet of grass suitaTale for hay. All this country 
 abounds with berries peculiar to northern and middle 
 Eussia ; Turk's cap, wild garlic, and a peculiar kind of 
 hazlenut. On the opposite side of the lise-kee moun- 
 tains, linden and cedar are found, but they grow only in 
 the second subdivision. 
 
 2d subdivision. The right bank of the Amoor here is 
 generally mountainous, but there are a few even spots at 
 long intervals. The left bank is mostly masked by a 
 
CHARACTEE OF THE AMOOR COUNTRY. 361 
 
 chain of low islands. Here the country begins to partake 
 of the region towards the Ousuree and higher up the 
 Amoor. It is low and flat, with meadows cut up by small 
 creeks, bayous, and lakes, here and there crossed by chains 
 of hillocks covered with trees. Here cedar is the principal 
 forest tree, and it is found on hiU and valley, though the 
 tree is always larger and of better quality on the hills or 
 upland. Linden, ash, elm, oak, four kinds of maple, 
 birch, and aspen are found in abundance, while grapes 
 and berries, found occasionally in the first subdivision, 
 begin here only to grow in abundance. In this tract may 
 be included the country on the Hongahree and Gehrin, as 
 well as the upper parts of the river Tonjah. 
 
 3d subdivision or southern tract. The banks of the 
 Amoor form here a plain, only occasionally a mountain 
 ridge or spur from some distant ridge approaches the 
 river. The Amoor divides itself into a multitude or laby- 
 rinth of branches, channels, or chutes, forming islands, 
 lakes, and deep bays. Larch and fir are seldom seen, and 
 are met with only on mountains distant from the river. 
 Here dense forests are found, two species of elm, ash, oak, 
 four species of maple, white and black birch, two species 
 of linden, walnut, aspen, and poplar. The undergrowth 
 of hazel is such and the grape-vines so interlaced with 
 grass and weeds, that it is quite impossible to penetrate 
 into the country without cutting a track. On every open 
 spot a luxuriant growth of grass attests the richness of 
 the son and the mildness of the climate. Though in this 
 section there are plenty of locations suitable for coloniza- 
 tion, yet the clearing of the forests must be difficult, re- 
 quiring great labor, with the loss perhaps of the first year. 
 16 
 
362 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOB. 
 
 On islands above overflow and on tlie shores of lakes and 
 bays there are comparatively extensive meadows, and here 
 the natives begin to cultivate small gardens. 
 
 The principal trees in the forests of the Amoor 
 are : 
 
 1st. A peculiar kind of peach. 2d. Spruce-fir, or the 
 common fir of Siberia. 3d. Larches grow everywhere on 
 the shores of the northern Amoor and on the mountain 
 ridges of the southern section ; on plains and vaEeys pro- 
 tected from the wind and storms, they obtain considerable 
 dimensions. Trees of three feet diameter are often found, 
 particularly in the environs of the Gaseren Kiver and Bo- 
 garotskey village and on the right shore of the Hongah- 
 ree. 4th. The Siberian pitch ; but this is found only on 
 the Hingan mountains in abundance. 5th. Cedar grows 
 in bushes on the mountains of the upper Amoor and has 
 a diameter of five inches. (Where the diameter is men- 
 tioned it is always four feet from the ground.) As a tree 
 the cedar is found at Sam-ah-hag-due, a village eighty 
 miles from Kezee, three hundred and fifty miles from the 
 mouth. From this to the southward and westward it ap- 
 pears in every forest of the middle subdivision, but pre- 
 fers high land, where it constitutes entire forests without 
 other timber, The natives build their boats of this tim- 
 ber. It attains a diameter of twenty-eight to thirty 
 inches with a straight limbless trunk to the height of 
 thirty feet. This valuable tree grows in great abundance 
 and is seldom found defective. 6th. Yew grows in small 
 numbers, on mountain ridges in the middle subdivision. 
 On the shores of the Amoor it is seldom found, and not 
 more than two inches in diameter ; but, according to the 
 
CHAEACTEK OP THE AMOOR COUNTET. 363 
 
 statements of the natives, it attains on tlie mountains 
 the thickness of a foot. Its wood is dark, resembling the 
 cypress, and very hard. The Mangoons call it kin-dah- 
 lah. 7th. Mongolian oak ; Mangoon name, ho-ron-choo- 
 rah ; Goldee, ho-ron-ko-lah. This oak is met with on 
 the sea shore south of De Castries Bay, in the northern 
 part on the skirts of woods and on high stony declivities 
 or mountain slopes ; hut always of small growth. It is 
 found oftener in the middle section and frequently at the 
 south. Its trunk is seldom straight. At the height of 
 one to two fathoms it divides in crooked branches and at- 
 tains a thickness of eighteen inches, but generally hollow 
 or defective. In the north it is quite small, not more 
 than five inches ; grows oftener on the skirts of forests in 
 the middle division, but attains its full growth in the 
 southern subdivision, where it often reaches two feet in 
 diameter. It is found in the greatest abundance, partic- 
 ularly in forests between the villages of Khogds, Gowan, 
 and Doloy, as well as some forty miles above the mouth 
 of the Hongahree ort the right bank, where it attains 
 enormous dimensions. 8th. Walnut, G-oldee, kotch-dah, 
 is met with at the mouth of Hongahree about the village 
 of Jong-doe. It is found exclusively in ovate-leaved 
 forests of the south, where it sometimes abounds, as well 
 as ash, from which it is difficult to distinguish it, their 
 barks being quite the same. It has a diameter of eighteen 
 inches. 9th. White birch grows everywhere on the 
 shores of the Amoor, but not so plentifully in the south- 
 ern subdivision as elsewhere ; diameter eighteen inches. 
 10th. Black birch is scarce in the middle, but abundant 
 to the east. 11th. Linden, Goldee, Idll-dah, is found of 
 
364 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 two specieSj with small and long leaves. The latter 
 grows only about Ousuree, the former is found at lise-kee 
 mountains, as well as further south, where it has a diam- 
 eter of three to four feet. 12th. Selp-heal attains a di- 
 ameter of several inches, and is found in the northern and 
 middle divisions. 13th. Elm of two species, long and small 
 leaved. Both have hard and dark wood, and can be used 
 where oak is required. Grows but seldom in the northern 
 subdivision, and then small, but is found in the middle 
 subdivision, having four feet diameter. 15th and 16th. 
 Apple of two kinds, the common Siberian and a better 
 kind having a fruit of one inch diameter, grows only in 
 the most southerly bend of the Amoor. The first is found 
 everywhere. 17th. Hawthorn or whitethorn grows along 
 the whole length of the Amoor, and has a thickness of 
 ten inches. 18th. Service-tree is occasionally seen with 
 a diameter of six inches. 19 th. Common birch or rock 
 
 cherry grows everywhere. 20th. , Goldee, hat-too- 
 
 lah, grows on the islands and on the main shores in the mid- 
 dle subdivision, five inches thick, with a straight trunk of 
 five fathoms. 21st. Buckthorn, Goldee, a-mal-lah, grows 
 in the southern bends of the Amoor, where it is often 
 found a foot thick, the color a deep red, very hard, excel- 
 lent for cabinet work. 22d. Cork-tree ; Goldee, koch- 
 tah, grows in the most southern bends, has a diameter of 
 one foot. The bark is rough, with a thickness of something 
 over one inch. The natives use it on their fishing nets. 
 23d, 24th, 25th, 26th. Maple ; of which only one species 
 is found at the mouth of the Amoor ; the others grow in 
 the middle or southern division. Has a diameter of one 
 foot. 27th, 28th. Alder, gray and black ; the first small ; 
 
• CHAEACTEK OF THE AMOOK COUNTET. 365 
 
 the secoud grows in bushes on the more northern portions 
 of the Amoor. 29th. Aspen grows everywhere, best in 
 light soil. It is found in the central district in groves, 
 and attains a diameter of two to four feet. 30th. Poplar 
 is found mostly in the southern bends. 31st. A great va- 
 riety of willow. Between Ouse-Strelkah and the sea shore 
 are found more than thirty different species of this tree. 
 Eighteen belong to the northern Amoor. For building 
 purposes pitch, fir, and larch are considered as the most 
 useful. Though larch is considered good for ship timber, 
 it seldom attains the necessary thickness. In the eastern 
 section we find twenty species of trees, while in the more 
 southern parts we find twenty-nine species of all kinds, 
 of which seven are suitable for building purposes, to 
 which may be added walnut, ash, and elm. 
 
OHAPTEE LXVIII . 
 
 NATIVES ON THE AMOOR. 
 
 The upper Amoor, from Ouse-Strelkah, to the moutli 
 of tlie river Zea, is inhabited by a people resembhng the 
 northern Tonguse. Though they bear the name of Man- 
 agre yet they do not differ materially in language or in 
 habits from the great Tonguse family of more Northern 
 Asia. They are evidently a branch of the same stock, 
 having, from dissensions within the tribe, passed the great 
 Altai range of mountains that separate them from the 
 waters of the Frozen Ocean ; and an immense inhospitable 
 wilderness intervening, they have, in the course of many 
 generations, or perhaps ages, lost their original name, and 
 coming in contact with the Mongols or Manchoos, re- 
 ceived from some local or accidental circumstance a new 
 name. It is not attempted to enumerate this tribe ; in 
 fact, I could get no data from any Eussian officer in rela- 
 tion to them. They are essentially nomadic, and* not of 
 much force, though they are somewhat dangerous and 
 treacherous in their disposition, and require to be cautiously 
 dealt with, but not at all formidable to parties, even of 
 
NATIVES ON THE AMOOK. 367 
 
 our number and strength. They are great beggars, fond 
 of whiskey and tobacco, and not inclined to labor. 
 
 From the Zea to the Hingan Mountains, the shores of 
 the Amoor are occupied by Manchoo and Chinese. Both 
 are agriculturists, but the Chinese are either exiles or 
 their descendants, for this part of the Amoor or Dahou- 
 reya was erected into a penal colony by the Chinese gov- 
 ernment soon after the evacuation of Albasin by the Eus- 
 sian forces in 1680-'85. 
 
 Along the Hingan mountains to the north of the 
 Amoor wander a nomadic tribe, who possess horses. They 
 are also a branch of the Tonguse family, the Solonsee. 
 
 Two hundred mUes above the Songahree, and from 
 thence to below the Geren on the right, is inhabited by 
 the Goldee. Their language is a mixture of Manchoo- 
 Tartar and Tonguse, though partaldng more of the 
 former tongue. Like all the tribes inhabiting the middle 
 and lower Amoor they subsist mainly upon fish. In the 
 winter the men resort to the distant mountains to hunt 
 for for animals, and do not generally return to their fami- 
 lies until the approach of spring. 
 
 It is only noticed that between the Songahree and 
 Ousuree rivers they cultivate gardens to any extent, and 
 also have horses and cattle, though there is some cultiva- 
 tion for a short distance below the Ousuree. 
 
 The Olcha or Mangoon inhabit both above and below 
 the river Geren, which comes in from the north. In lan- 
 guage and habits they resemble the Goldee, have their 
 villages and regular houses, and ma|jfe some pipvision 
 against both climate and starvation. They probably have 
 
368 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 also horses and cattle, but resort to the use of dogs in the 
 winter. 
 
 Between the Amoor, the Ousuree, and the coast of 
 Tartary, south of De Castries, are a semirnomadic peo- 
 ple, calling themselves Oh-roch-cha, or natives of the 
 coast. They are sparsely scattered over a wild and exten- 
 sive country, and were never brought under the absolute 
 dominion of the Manchoos, but are probably like the north- 
 eastern Chuck-chi, who have maintained their independence 
 of the Kussian yoke ; the supposition is, that they are 
 influenced in their social relations by the Corean tribes to 
 the south, and have little or no affinity with the real 
 natives of the Amoor. 
 
 North of the Amoor along the river Geren are a 
 tribe known as the So-mah-gar-see, and stiU further to 
 the north, on the Amgoon, some one hundred and fifty 
 miles from the Straits of Tartary, are the Ne-ga-dal-sey, 
 who are, from the best information, settled Tonguse. The 
 latter tribe particularly ^re considered an important and 
 valuable tribe, as they are tractable and inclined to civili- 
 zation and Christianity. I saw at Nikolaivsky a Greek 
 priest and a Kussian artist who had been among them, 
 and who reported very favorably as to their gentleness 
 and kindly disposition. The priest was very much en- 
 couraged with his prospects of evangelizing the whole 
 tribe and inducing them to cultivate the soil and raise 
 cattle and horses. The country of the Amgoon was also 
 described as being really a very beautiful country, and one 
 well adapted to agriculture and stock. Seeds had been 
 distributed and inducements held out by the governor to 
 bring them to the cultivation of the soil. 
 
NATIVES ON THE AMOOK. 369 
 
 Along the coast of the Amoor, from the Russian vil- 
 lage of Bogrotskey half way between the Amgoon and the 
 (jreren to the sea, and along the coasts of the Leman to 
 De Castries south and the village of Petrofsky north, as 
 well as along the northern coasts of the Island of Sak- 
 hahlin, the country is inhabited by the Gelack or Gelan, 
 a tribe in power perhaps more formidable than the Goldee, 
 though not so numerous. 
 
 This tribe differs entirely in language and in many of 
 their habits and customs from any of the tribes upon the 
 Amoor. 
 
 The southern coast of Sakhahlin is inhabited by I-nee 
 or Kou-rel-see, who are quite similar to the inhabitants 
 of the Kurile Islands ; and on the mountains of Sakhah- 
 lin are a nomadic people having reindeer, probably of the 
 Tongusean stock — the Oh-ro-ka-te ; but as they are very 
 shy little is known of them. 
 
 The traits common to all the tribes inhabiting the 
 valley of the Amoor and adjacent coasts and islands of 
 the sea, are idolatry and Schamanism, independence of 
 every male person, polygamy, slavery, and oppression of 
 females and purchase of wives. Upon the females de- 
 volve all the labor and drudgery incident to the lowest 
 state of savage life. The lords of creation only hunt, 
 fish, and trade. 
 
 The Goldee, and people having consanguinity with 
 them, rank in intelligence above the Gelack, who have not 
 had much intercourse with the Manchoos or Chinese. 
 This intercourse with the Manchoos has given to the G-ol- 
 dee some notions of God as the supreme ruler of the 
 universe ; yet they worship idols representing certain visi- 
 
370 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 ble living evil creatures ; as, for instance, the tiger, the 
 panther, a large snake, and a fish represented as living 
 upon human flesh. 
 
 The Schamans, or priests, are considered as powerful 
 mediators between the people and the evil spirits, while 
 the true Grod is adored or worshipped without the assist- 
 ance of the Schamans ; hut this act of adoration takes 
 place hut once in each year — in the autumn — and then 
 by the whole community in mass. 
 
 The soul of the dead is represented as passing under- 
 ground, lighted and guided there by its own sun and moon, 
 and continues to lead, there in its spiritual abode, the same 
 manner of life and pursuits as when in the flesh of this hfe. 
 
 There exists no hell or place of torment or punish- 
 ment for the common people ; but the Schamans are not so 
 fortunate ; they have a place of torment' awaiting them, 
 if in ease they have abused or misused their power 
 over the evil spirits, whereby a fellow-being has suffered 
 misfortune or evil. In this case, the wicked Schaman 
 descends into hell, dark and damp, filled with gnawing 
 reptiles. 
 
 In their funeral rites among the Groldee and Mangoon, 
 the dead body is deposited in a coffin^ which is placed on 
 a low frame, while with the Oh-ro-ka-te three posts are 
 buried in the ground upon which the coffin rests. So soon 
 as the relatives of the deceased have been able to gather 
 means commensurate to the solemn occasion, they make 
 po-inn-Jeee, offerings, upon the grave. They then deliver 
 over the tomb prayers for the the trancjuiUity and happi- 
 ness of the soul of the deceased, eating and drinking at 
 intervals, and making presents to their neighbors. 
 
NATIVES ON THE AMOOB. 371 
 
 In character, the Goldee resemble the Tonguse. They 
 are cheerful, but timid and lazy, and but little given to 
 enterprise or adventure. They occupy themselves in 
 the summer in fishing, while in the winter they hunt fur 
 animals, principally sable and ermine, upon the moun- 
 tains. They live in houses resembling those of their 
 Manchoo masters, each house containing generally four 
 families. In the spring, they remove into huts or mova- 
 ble bark or skin lodges, conical in shape, situated in loca- 
 tions near the river or upon the shores of islands desirable 
 for their fishing stations. The Oh-ro-ka-te live con- 
 stantly in these huts. 
 
 The Gelack, it appears, have no idea of the true Grod , 
 for they worship only idols representing evil spirits. 
 These spirits or demons they endeavor to bribe by the aid 
 of their Schamans, in order to avert their wrath. Unlike 
 the Goldee, they consider the bear a personified evil spirit, 
 keep it alive, feed and bring it up from the cub with great 
 care, and finally kill it with much ceremony. This curious 
 custom prevails also among the Mangoon and Inees on 
 Sakhahlin. 
 
 The Gelack have the same idea of future life as the 
 Goldee ; they, however, burn their dead on funeral pyres, 
 and build a low frame house over the carefully gathered 
 ashes. The ceremonies over the tomb differ in some re- 
 spects from those of the Goldee. 
 
 The Goldee, after the death of relatives, make a wooden 
 idol under the belief that the soul of the deceased enters 
 it. They then place food near the idol, besmearing its 
 face with oil, offering up prayers and other ceremonies 
 upon the tomb, and after some peculiar service has been 
 
37'2 
 
 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 performed by the SchamanSj the soul of the dead is sup- 
 posed to have departed from the idol to Paradise, where- 
 upon the idol is broken and cast away. 
 
 The Grelack, on the contrary, take the favorite dog of 
 the deceased, feed it with choice food for some time, and 
 after the prayers of the Schamans, when it is supposed 
 that the soul of the deceased has departed out of the dog 
 (where they believe it had been residing up to this time) 
 and gone to Paradise, they then sacrifice the dog upon 
 the grave. 
 
 The character of the Gelack is harsh and austere. 
 They are active, fond of gain, enterprising, and disposed 
 to trade — except those living on Sakhahlin, who are in- 
 clined to pillage and murder, and are in a very rude and 
 barbarous state. The probability is that the G-elack on 
 the Amoor, though now free from the Manchoo yoke, were 
 formerly under their control, or, if not, have either been 
 taught by straggling Manchoos, or borrowed from them or 
 their serfs, the Groldee, the art of building their houses. 
 
 The houses of the Gelack on the Amoor resemble 
 those of the Goldee, while those on Sakhahlin have coni- 
 cal huts half buried in the ground, with an opening in 
 the top for the smoke to escape, all going to prove that 
 those on the Amoor, being on the borders of Tartar civili- 
 zation, have very likely borrowed a little from them. 
 
 In the summer, the Gelack are exclusively occupied 
 in fishing, but in the winter they make trading voyages 
 to Sakhahlin with their sleighs, drawn by' dogs, in order 
 to trade with the Inees and Japanese, as well as to the 
 coast of Tartary, to the south of De Castries. Some- 
 times they also proceed by the Amoor to visit the Man- 
 
NATIVES ON THE AMOOE. 373 
 
 ctoos ia order to trade their furs for Cliinese merchandise, 
 whicli they again barter with great profit to their more 
 southern neighbors. 
 
 The number of native inhabitants upon the lower 
 Amoor (I use this term native in contradistinction to the 
 great khans or hordes of Manchoo and Mongul) may be 
 deduced from the following facts : 
 
 From the mouth up, to the distance of two hundred 
 and fifty miles, occupied by G-elack, there are, on the 
 right side, twenty-six, and on the left thirteen villages, 
 containing in all about one hundred and forty houses. 
 Counting four families to each house and three persons in 
 each family, will give twelve persons to each house. It is 
 true that in some houses as many as twenty-five persons 
 are found, but in others only five or six. Therefore, mul- 
 tiplying one hundred and forty by twelve will give the 
 total population of the Gelack sixteen hundred and eighty. 
 
 In the distance of three hundred miles from Bogort- 
 skoy to Geren, occupied by Mangoon, we find forty vil- 
 lages, thirty-six on the right and four on the left shore, 
 with a total of one hundred and ten houses ; but the 
 number in each house is less than with the Gelack ; but 
 we must take ten to each house, and we have as the 
 number of this tribe eleven hundred. 
 
 The Goldee, in a distance of eight hundred miles, 
 until you come to the borders of the Manchoos above the 
 Songahree, have one hundred and fourteen villages, con- 
 taining three hundred and twenty houses ; but their houses 
 are smaller than those of the Mangoon, so that only eight 
 persons reside in each house, which will give twenty-five 
 hundred and sixty as the sum total. 
 
374 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 These villages are so distributed that in the distance 
 of three hundred miles from Geren, up and between Ou- 
 suree and Songahree rivers, the greater portion of the 
 population is found, while below the Ousuree, for two 
 hundred and fifty miles, it is much less, according to 
 distance. 
 
 From De Castries, south to Emperor's Harbor, in about 
 49° north latitude, it is calculated that there are no more 
 than five hundred souls. The So-mah-gar-see and Ne-ga- 
 dal-sey, one thousand souls ; roving Tonguse seventy- 
 five families of four each. 
 
 RecapituliVtion. 
 
 Number. Houses. Villages. 
 
 Gelaok 1,680 UO 39 
 
 Mangoon 1,100 110 40 
 
 Goldee 2,560 320 114 
 
 Coast Indians 600 
 
 Ne-ga-dal-sey j jq^^ 
 
 So-mah-gar-see ) 
 
 Tonguse, roving. 300 
 
 7,140 570 193 
 
 The population increases as you approach the mouth, 
 and the right shore is more densely settled than the left. 
 The first circumstance can reasonably be ascribed to the 
 fact that the lower Amoor is richer in fish than higher up 
 the stream ; and again, the population being greater be- 
 tween the Ousuree and the Songahree, may be attributed 
 to the fact of their planting gardens and keeping cattle 
 and horses, and the possibility' of procuring grain for bread- 
 stuff from the Manchoos of the Songahree, which makes 
 them less dependent upon fish for their subsistence. 
 
NATIVES ON THE AMOOE. 375 
 
 But again, where fish are scarce there also the population 
 is small ; as, for instance, from the entrance of the river 
 Hongahree to the entrance of the Ouldjab, a distance of 
 one hundred and fifty miles, only one hundred and 
 twenty persons are living ; while on the lower Amoor, in 
 the same distance of coast, there are more than nine hun- 
 dred and eighty Gelack inhabitants. The same is the 
 case along Ousuree. The water on the right shore of the 
 Amoor being generally the deepest and better for fish may 
 again suggest another reason for its greater population. 
 
CHAPTEE LXIX. 
 
 TEADE AND KESOUECES OF SIBERIA. 
 
 SiBEEiA is comparatively a free country. There are 
 no landed proprietors, no serfdom. The land belongs to 
 the crown, and is given to the settlements or villages in 
 the country or to individuals in cities. Public sentiment 
 and speech are quite free also ; in fact, the reins of gov- 
 ernment seem to set lightly on her people. The people 
 are hardy and robust, accustomed, like our own frontiers- 
 men, to a rough and active life, have the rifle and use it 
 well, as the mountaius of furs and skins seen in the cities 
 and market-towns fully attest. 
 
 Though the extent of Siberia is very great — greater 
 than that of the United States— yet the population is 
 comparatively confined to a small portion of her vast ter- 
 ritory. Leaving the Ural at Ekatherinburg and pene- 
 trating east you find the great proportion o'f the popula- 
 tion settled along between the parallel of 52° and 58° 
 north latitude, while, in fact, the whole population, with 
 but a very small fraction, is between 50° and 60° north 
 latitude, stretching over about two thousand miles in 
 longitude, which will make the country covered by popu- 
 
TRADE AND EESOUKCES OF SIBERIA. 377 
 
 lation, in extent one million two Imndred thousand sc[iiare 
 miles. The population being twelve millions, will give 
 ten to the mile square. This population, as to density, 
 is greater than that of our territories ; in fact, more than 
 equal to some of our states. 
 
 The whole extent of Siberia or Asiatic Kussia, accord- 
 ing to recent estimates, is seven million two hundred 
 thousand square miles, about double the superficial ex- 
 tent of the United States, or about equal to one hundred 
 and forty-four of such states as New York. Much of 
 this country is susceptible of sustaining a population of 
 fifty to the square mile. I may say, in fact, that two 
 millions of square miles of it can well support a popula- 
 tion of fifty to the square mile ; that would give a popu- 
 lation of one hundred millions to that extent. That the 
 country is fully capable of supporting such a population 
 I have no doubt. But even put it at ten to the square 
 mile upon the whole, and you have a population of seventy- 
 two millions. 
 
 Siberia reaches from the Ural Mountains to the Pacific 
 Ocean, a distance of 100° of longitude, and from the Great 
 Altai chain to the Frozen Ocean, about 25° north latitude. 
 To which, in a commercial point of view, must now be 
 added the Amoor country, the whole of Tartary, Bucharia, 
 Thibet, and Northern China. These countries contain 
 more than thirty millions of people, who will become 
 tributary to the commerce of the Amoor. It is the only 
 outlet they have to the Ocean, and foreign commerce will 
 naturally seek that channel in the hands of civilized steam 
 communication. 
 
 Persons generally who have drank tea in Russia, if 
 
378. VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 ttey have any taste, liking, or partiality to the Chinese 
 leaf, have remarked the richness and flavor of the better 
 sort of teas found in Eussia. And here it will he as well 
 to remark, that in western and southern Kussia it is not 
 always "caravan tea" that the voyager will find upon 
 the road, as, jpar excellence, the Kyachta tea is called ; 
 hut the greater prohahility is that he wiU be served with 
 the very poorest, meanest, and dirtiest black tea, via 
 London, that has found its stealthy way over the Prus- 
 sian or Polish borders. 
 
 In the first place, it will be well to state that aU the 
 tea lawfully entering Eussia must come overland from 
 China \'ia Pekin and Kyachta, with the exception of one 
 cargo of seven hundred chests imported by sea yearly by 
 " The Imperial American Company of Eussia," under a 
 special and exclusive grant in their charter. 
 
 The argument in favor of the superiority of " caravan 
 tea " over other tea in Europe, is, that the sea voyage, with its 
 salt atmosphere, the heat and dampness consequent upon a 
 double passage through the tropics and across the equator, 
 the alternation of heat and cold, the sweating, dampness, 
 and confined air, all tend to exhaust and deteriorate from 
 the delicacy of flavor, and add perhaps to it some- 
 thing of the flavor of bilge water and the double sweat- 
 bath it has gone through. And again, the sea-going 
 tea has grown to such an enormous bulk that less pains 
 are taken in its selection, preparation and quality from 
 year to year, besides which adulteration has stepped 
 in to iacrease the bulk of the poorer qualities of the 
 leaf. 
 
 Again, climate, soil, and air, as we know, in many 
 
TRADE AND EESOUECES OF SIBERIA. 379 
 
 vegetable productions produce wonderful changes and 
 operate very singularly on the quality of plants. To- 
 bacco, cotton, rice, sugar-cane, the vine, are all affected 
 by very little change in climate, soil, proximity to the sea, 
 or when withdrawn far inland, and this when reproduced 
 from the same seed, plants, graftings, or cuttings. Havana 
 tobacco ceases to be the delicate-flavored plant when 
 transplanted to Missouri. Virginia seed will not produce 
 the " Old Virginia leaf " in Louisiana ; the Gulf Hills' 
 seed loses its texture, color, and silkiness in Tennessee ; 
 Carolina seed will not reproduce " Carolina rice " on the 
 banks of the Mississippi, nor will " Sea Island cotton " 
 reproduce its like in Alabama. ■ The cane of Louis- 
 iana refuses to produce crystallized sugar further north, 
 while it is widely known that the different faces of a hill 
 from the same vine produce two kinds of wine. 
 
 Why should not tea be governed by the same general 
 laws, aside from all other considerations ? 
 
 But again, this Eusso-Chinese tea trade has been, as 
 it were, a kind of monopoly and one of regular and steady 
 growth, not subject to those fluctuations or demands or 
 speculations to which the sea-going commerce has been 
 subjected. The taste of the Eussians was formed steadily ; 
 perhaps certain districts more adjacent to Pekin, having 
 its peculiar soil and climate, at first engaged this com- 
 merce and supplied the demand ; the peculiar mode of 
 picking, drying, curing, packing, have all concurred to 
 give it uniformity and quality. 
 
 Then if you choose the overland passage, the most 
 of the time in an open dry atmosphere, free from damp- 
 ness, mould, must, salt air, bilge water, or sweat, and in 
 
380 VOYAGE DOWir THE AMOOE. 
 
 a very cold atmosphere the most of the time, the outer 
 packages enveloped in raw hide ; all these considerations, 
 after drinking real "caravan tea," to one who has a 
 taste for it, wiU furnish the pros and cons of the argu- 
 ment, and, I think, must determine a judge to decide in 
 favor of Kyachta, Mia-mat-tschin, and PeMn tea. 
 
 The tea of Kyachta heing the leading article of im- 
 port from China, becomes the pivot upon which all other 
 trade turns. Formerly the most of the trade was one of 
 barter, by treaty only, one-third of the value being paid 
 in silver ; woollen cloths, Siberian and Kamschatka furs in 
 the main settling the balance. This more properly pre- 
 vailed in early times, when the caravans were composed 
 of camels and made their voyages at stated and regular 
 periods. But as the country of Siberia became more 
 populous and merchants increased, and the tea of China 
 became to be really an article of prime necessity in Eussia, 
 a very considerable change grew by degrees to be engrafted 
 into this commerce. What was once considered as a 
 great desert and only traversable at stated and appointed 
 times, and that only with camels, has, as commerce in- 
 creased, come to be a great thoroughfare and highway, 
 traversable at all seasons of the year, and now by oxen 
 drawing loaded carts across this once great desert, and by 
 degrees the appointed time of trade from a few days has 
 increased to several months, during which the merchan- 
 dise arrives, and consequently trade has grown to be more 
 a regular business than a fair. Be sure the merchants 
 have their particular seasons, according to the mode of 
 conveyance and the necessities of the trade in which the 
 bulk of their commerce takes place ; nevertheless there is 
 
TRADE AND RESOUECES OF SIBERIA. 381 
 
 always trade at Kyachta and Mia-mat-tscliin if you have 
 silver or valuable furs. Now, however, under the late 
 Mouravieff Igoon Treaty the whole trade and intercourse 
 has been remodeled on a new and liberal basis to suit 
 the advanced state of commerce and the more intimate 
 relations hereafter to exist between the two empires. 
 
 The road is left open and free at all seasons of the year, 
 and commerce will take its own time and tide to suit its 
 own wants and to accommodate itself to its greatest profits. 
 
 A regular monthly mail is to run from Kyachta to 
 Pekin, and merchants from either side wiU be allowed to 
 visit the different countries. A Eussian Embassy has ere 
 this taken up its quarters in Pekin, and their superior 
 power and weight upon the north, their intimate know- 
 ledge through their old established religious mission at 
 Pekin, their internal commerce in the provinces of Tar- 
 tary, and the knowledge and use of Eussian merchandise 
 for two hundred years past, must give them an influence in 
 the interior of China that no other nation can attain to ; 
 added to which, and perhaps more important than all, 
 and more valuable than all else, a large corps of young 
 Eussians speaking the Chinese language like natives. 
 
 There is a very great misapprehension concerning the 
 fall of snow in high northern latitudes. The fall in 
 depth is not so great, as a general rule, as in the more 
 temperate latitudes. There are peculiar locations where 
 snow falls to a great depth or where the drift is very great, 
 but take it on an average between the parallels of 50° and 
 60° north latitude, and I do not think the general snow 
 level will be found to be over three feet. That the faU 
 of snow or the severity of the frost would not interfere se- 
 riously with the working of a railroad in these high lati- 
 
382 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOR. 
 
 tudes is evident from the roads from St. Petersburg 
 to Moscow, over four hundred miles, from St. Peters- 
 burg to Peterboff, St. Petersburg to Luga, completed 
 one hundred and thirty-three miles, on the line to War- 
 saw, of one thousand and seventy-seven miles, St. Peters- 
 burgh to Paulosk and Tzars-ko-Oeilo, and the road from 
 Warsaw to Cracow. 
 
 Now all these roads are north of 50°, and those about 
 St. Petersburg in near 60°, yet we find no unusual diffi- 
 culty in their working or any objection to their building 
 on account of climate or snow ; nay, I have no hesita- 
 tion in saying that these lines are cheaper and more 
 readily worked than those in tropical countries. 
 
 From my own observation in European Russia and an 
 entire winter spent between Moscow and the Altai Moun- 
 tains in Siberia along on a parallel not much different 
 from Moscow, I have not the least hesitation in saying 
 that railroads are quite as practicable in Siberia and from 
 Europe across the Ural and Altai Mountains to the head 
 waters of the Amoor as they are from St. Petersburg to 
 Moscow or from Moscow to Warsaw. A line of railroad 
 striking the Amoor from Moscow via Nijne, Kazan, Eka- 
 terinburg, Omsk, Tomsk, and Irkutsk to Kyachta, Would 
 be quite as manageable as some of our hues over the Alle- 
 ghany Mountains or the more northern roads in Canada ; 
 and if the severity of the climate and the fall of snow as 
 a hindrance to the building of a railroad from the head of 
 the Amoor to the sea is all that is to be taken into con- 
 sideration, and no other or greater difficulties presented 
 themselves to be overcome, a railroad from Moscow to 
 Peldn and the Pacific Ocean might be considered as a fact 
 accomplished. 
 
CHAPTEK LXX. 
 
 THE AMOOK KAILEOAD. 
 
 During my stay at Chetali I had many conversations 
 witli Governor Korsackoff touching the natural resources, 
 navigation, and future prospects of Siheria as connected 
 with the opening of the country to foreign commerce by 
 way of the Amoor. 
 
 In my conversations I proposed the plan of uniting 
 the Amoor by railroad with the city of Kyachta and 
 Irkutsk, thereby connecting two systems of internal water- 
 communication and creating a line of transit to the very 
 heart of Siberia. These conversations, which related 
 chiefly to railroads, telegraph, and steamboats, led to the 
 following correspondence : 
 
 Chetah, March 9th, 1857. 
 SiE, — Herewith you will find a proposition to con- 
 struct a railroad from Chetah to Irkutsk. After having 
 passed over the greater part of the country through which 
 the road would naturally pass, and from information which 
 I believe reliable, there can be no doubt but that the 
 construction of a railroad is highly practicable. Chetah, 
 
384 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 situated on the Ingodah at a point which maybe relied upon 
 as the head of steamboat navigation on the waters of the 
 Amoor Kiver, presents a favorable point from whence to 
 cross the country in order to reach Irkutsk by the nearest 
 practicable route. The Stamovey Mountains present no 
 very great obstacle to the enterprise ; in fact the country, 
 generally speaking, so far as I have been able to see myself, 
 and from the information obtained from the most reliable 
 authority, presents very great facilities for such an enter- 
 prise. The Amoor must become in the hands of Eussia 
 a very important country, through which a great trade 
 will flow, opening Siberia to the commerce of the world. 
 What is necessary then is to assist nature a little, and, by 
 building this road, make the heart of Siberia easily ac- 
 cessible to commerce, so that her products can be quickly 
 and readily exchanged or transported to the ocean by way 
 of this railroad and the Amoor, where a ready market 
 can be found. With steam upon the Amoor, and this 
 railroad constructed, aside from commercial views, the 
 road would be highly valuable to Eussia in the develop- 
 ment and protection of her possessions on the Pacific 
 coast, both in Asia and America. 
 
 But it is unnecessary to enter more at large at present 
 into the great advantages Eussia must derive from perfect- 
 ing speedy and certain communications to the Pacific. All 
 that is necessary is to regard the map, which will at once 
 speak more than I can write. 
 
 I remain, very truly. 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 P. McD, Collins. 
 
 To Q-ENEEAL KOESACKOFF, 
 
 Governor of Trans-Baikal, Eastern Siberia. 
 
THE AMOOE RAILROAD. 385 
 
 Proposition to construct a railroad from Chetali to 
 Irkutsk, by " The Amoor Eailroad Company." 
 
 1st. The right of way, with alternate sections of 
 land, six versts deep by three versts long, on each side of 
 the road, to be donated to the company. 
 
 2d. The company to have the right to take from the 
 goTernment lands, free of charge, stone and other mate- 
 rials necessary for the construction of the road and its ap- 
 purtenances. 
 
 3d. The government of Kussia to furnish the iron 
 necessary to the construction of the road from the Im- 
 perial Works in Trans-Baikal, at a stipulated price, which 
 shall be reasonable, for which amount the government to 
 become stockholders in the road. 
 
 4th. All objects for the use of the government to be 
 transported at reasonable and stipulated rates. 
 
 5th. The stock of the company to be divided into 
 shares of one hundred rubles each, and books of subscrip- 
 tion to be opened in Siberia, where any person may be en- 
 titled to subscribe for any number of shares by paying ten 
 per cent, on the value of the stock subscribed for, and the 
 remainder in five equal annual instalments of eighteen 
 kopycks on the ruble. 
 
 6th. If it be found impracticable to procure the ne- 
 cessary laborers in Siberia to construct the road, the com- 
 pany to have the right to import them upon contract from 
 China or elsewhere to aid in its construction. The com- 
 pany to be responsible for their conduct, and if, upon the 
 conclusion of the contract, the government is unwilling 
 that they should remain in the country, the company to 
 
 remove them. 
 17 
 
386 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 7th. If it sliould. be practicable, and the government 
 willing to furnish the necessary laborers from European 
 Eussia, then it may be done on the following conditions, 
 viz. : The company will require twenty thousand effective 
 men. Within the first year after the conclusion of the 
 contract the government must furnish five thousand, to be 
 delivered to the company at Irkutsk, and the remaining 
 fifteen thousand the year following ; otherwise the sixth 
 article to remain in full force. In removing the laborers 
 from Eussia a man and his family to be counted as two 
 persons. The cost of removing the laborers to be agreed 
 upon at St. Petersburg before the conclusion of the con- 
 tract. 
 
 8th. The government to have the right at any time, 
 by guaranteeing seven per cent, on the cost of the road, 
 to purchase it, payable in twenty years. 
 
 9th. The road and its appurtenances to be forever 
 free from any tax or exaction of any nature on the part 
 of the local authorities or of the imperial government. 
 
 10th. When it shall occur that there may be minerals 
 on any of the lands belonging to the company, then said 
 company to have the right to work them subject to the 
 laws of the country ; and in case the mineral lands are 
 prohibited to be worked, then the company to be com- 
 pensated in other lands of equal extent in other sections. 
 
 11th. In case the government cannot fiirnish all the 
 iron required by the company, then said company to have 
 the right to construct the necessary works upon such 
 mineral lands as they may choose in order to manufacture 
 the deficiency after the completion of the road, the gov- 
 ernment to have the right to purchase the works erected 
 by the company at a price to be agreed upon, at which 
 
THE AMOOE EAILKOAD. 387 
 
 time it shall also be adjusted what compensation the gov- 
 ernment shall receive for the use of the mines, which 
 shall go towards the payment of the purchase of the com- 
 pany's works. 
 
 P. McD. Collins. 
 
 Chktah, Eastern Siberia, 
 Government of Trans-Batkal, 
 March 9t.h, 1857. 
 
 In order that the contract may be concluded as early 
 as possible in 1858, it will be necessary that I shall re- 
 ceive a favorable answer in July at Nicolaivsky. 
 
 P. McD. Collins. 
 
 Translation of General Korsackoff's Reply. 
 
 City of Ohetah, 14th March, 1857. 
 Deak Sik, — Having received your letter of March 
 9th, with the propositions for the construction of a rail- 
 road from the city of Chetah to that of Irkutsk, and fully 
 recognizing aU the advantages that must result from such 
 an enterprise to the Trans-Baikal province under my ad- 
 ministration if your proposition might be realized by our 
 government: — I reported on this subject by a special cou- 
 rier to the governor-general of Eastern Siberia, Lieutenant- 
 Greneral Mouravieff the III. 
 
 I shall not fail to transmit to you His Excellency's an- 
 swer so soon as it reaches me. 
 
 Keceive, Dear Sir, the assurance of the distinguished 
 consideration with which I have the honor to be, 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 Michael Koesackoff, 
 To Me. Collins, 
 
 Consular Agent, &c., U. S. A. 
 
388 VOYAGE T)OWN THE AMOOE. 
 
 From General Mouravieff. 
 
 Irkutsk, Marcli 26th, 1857. 
 SiEj — It is to my greatest satisfaction that I have re- 
 ceived from General Korsackoff the project of a railro^td 
 which you have the intention to build in the Trans-Baikal 
 country. 
 
 I have already sent it with a courier to St. Pe- 
 tershurg, and I do not doubt that you will receive an an- 
 swer to your proposal before your departure to America. 
 
 I sincerely wish our government may give its consent 
 to an enterprise in which I take the most lively interest, 
 and in which I wish you all possible success. * * * 
 
 May I take the liberty to pray you. Sir, to have the 
 kindness of rendering to Eear-Admiral Kosakevitch the 
 papers I have written to him in relation to you. 
 
 In hopes that I shall see you on the Amoor next year, 
 I have the honor to remain. Sir, 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 Nicholas Moueavieff. 
 To Peeey McD. Collins, &c. 
 
 To General Mouravieff'. 
 
 Chetah, Trans-Baikal, April 4th, 1857. 
 
 SiE, — Tour favor of the 26th ultimo was received by 
 the hand of Captain Booeved a few days since, after my 
 return from a visit to the mines of Nerchinsk. "■•'•" * ® 
 
 I should have forwarded by return of the courier the 
 acknowledgment of your favor, but a sudden illness pre- 
 vented. 
 
THE AMOOK BAILEOAD. 389 
 
 It is witli great satisfaction that I receive the advice 
 under your own hand of the favorahle estimate of the 
 Amoor railroad project, and of the despatch that you have 
 given it to St. Petersburg. 
 
 In looking over this vast and truly interesting country, 
 one is more and more impressed with the necessity of 
 communication by the Amoor ; without this it is a coun- 
 try closed to the commerce of the world. 
 
 After my arrival here and a sojourn of some days with 
 our truly noble friend. General Korsackoff, and having 
 made all possible inquiry and investigation concerning the 
 navigability of the Ingodah from this point to its entrance 
 into the Schilkah, I came to the conclusion that it is en- 
 tirely practicable to navigate the Ingodah with steamboats 
 to this city. 
 
 I also became anxious to see the whole length of the 
 river from this place. In anticipation of my wishes, and 
 to facilitate the voyage, General Korsackoff generously 
 proposed that I should embark from this point, and has 
 had the goodness to order the construction of a boat for this 
 purpose, so that I am now here awaiting the breaking up 
 of the ice in the river and shall absolutely embark at this 
 point. 
 
 This gives me the most profound satisfaction, for I shall 
 then be able to see with my own proper eyes this whole 
 system of navigation to the ocean. Having now seen my- 
 self that from the navigable waters of Lake Baikal to 
 those of the Amoor it is less than four hundred versts 
 direct, which absolutely comes within my estimate before 
 I visited the country, I feel entirely certain that a railroad 
 will be built — for within a few years, with the Amoor open 
 
390 VOYAGE DOWN THE AMOOK. 
 
 to commerce, the imperious necessities of the country will 
 demand it. 
 
 So that, even if we find it cannot be accomplished 
 through our efforts, we shall have the rememhrance (sat- 
 isfactory to ourselves) of having known the wants of the 
 country only a little in advance of the times. 
 
 Of course the road must reach Irkutsk, from whence 
 would be distributed the whole trade and enterprise of 
 Siberia, making Irkutsk a great city, as it is justly en- 
 titled to be — the centre and capital not only of Eastern 
 Siberia but of Northern Asia — ^from whence in a very few 
 years after the completion of this enterprise, a commerce 
 of fifty millions of rubles would flow annually. 
 
 The papers you have had the kindness to forward to 
 Eear- Admiral Kosakevitch concerning me I will deliver*- 
 in person, and for them you have my thanks. 
 
 I have received this day, by the hand of your courier, 
 the letter to my address from St. Petersburg as well as 
 your note of 2d instant. Kest assured. Sir, that I have 
 not the least uneasiness in regard to the accidental open- 
 ing of the letter ; it is readily to be perceived that it arose 
 from the manner of its superscription by the person who 
 addressed it to you at St. Petersburg. America has no 
 secrets she would conceal from so noble a friend as she 
 finds in you. 
 
 In conclusion allow me to subscribe myself your 
 much indebted and 
 
 Very obedient servant, 
 Peery McD. Collins. 
 
 To His Excellency 
 
 Lieutenant-Genekal Moukavieff III., 
 
 Governor-General of Eastern Siberia, Irkutsk. 
 
■?asiii