Chapter VIII: Part II: Norwest John and the Voyage of the Juno (4)

In this way we continued night and day. On the 6th of September we passed through Krasnojarsk, where the Chamberlain Baron von Resanoff had died. We continued on without stopping, and on the 7th reached the town of Poim, where I halted a couple of hours to deliver a letter from the young man Chlabnekoff, whom I took as a passenger from Kamtchatka to Ochotsk, to his brother. He called on me, and insisted on my going to his house, if it was only for an hour. His family wanted to see me. I took Kutsnetsoff with me, and we gave them all the information we could about their brother. We found a splendid collation prepared for us, with Madeira wine such as we do not have in these days. After concluding the entertainment with a bottle of champagne, we started off; and whatever the facts may have been, we certainly felt much lighter than before. I merely mention this circumstance to show that there was no lack of “the good stuff” in Siberia. The Maine Law was not enforced there half a century ago.

On the 10th I reached the shire-town of Tomsk, and was constrained to acknowledge myself pretty well used up. I can assure those who have not made a trial of this mode of travelling, that to lay on one’s back in a carriage without any springs, for eight days and nights in succession, is no joke. When I alighted occasionally my whole frame was in a perfect tremor, yet the roads were not stony, but tolerably good. There was no regular hotel in the town, and so after a little inquiry we drove up to a large log-house, with a square enclosure in front, the owner of which was kind enough to entertain us. I immediately set Kutsnetsoff upon the lookout for a more easy and convenient carriage, and told him if he should find one to endeavor to dispose of my old one in part pay. In the mean time, having a letter from my friend Lieutenant Schwostoff to his uncle, who was Governor of the place, I waited on him. I was very cordially received, and invited to dine the next day.

In a short time Kutsnetsoff succeeded in finding a vehicle much better than the old one. It was quite a stylish affair, on springs, and two persons could ride in it conveniently; but I had to pay as much to boot, perhaps, as both carriages were worth. I called upon the Company’s agent to furnish me with 200 rubles, but he had received no particular instructions to advance me money, and was reluctant to do it. He was quite reasonable, however, and was willing to listen to my story. While I was explaining to him who I was, and why I wanted money, there were several persons standing by. Among them was a good-looking, well-dressed man, who spoke up and said he would let me have as large a sum as I wanted, at which the agent said he was willing to supply me. After I had finished my business the gentleman who made the kind offer of his purse informed me that he himself was going to Moscow, and, if I had no objections, would like to take a seat in my carriage, and share the expense. I hardly knew what to answer, and I scrutinized him very closely. His face wore an honest look, and he had about his person two conspicuous orders of merit; so I concluded to accept his proposition. I found no reason afterwards to regret it. He was a Greek by birth, and a merchant of high standing. His name was Dementy Simonitch, and he had done several meritorious acts, for which he received medals from the Emperor Alexander, and likewise a present from him of a splendid gold watch and chain.

Having arranged this matter, I repaired to the Governor’s to dine and take leave of him. I found a great many gentlemen there, but not one who spoke English, so that I was almost a dummy amongst them. I understood enough Russ, however, to learn that they were desirous of inquiring into the nature and organization of our government. I explained all the prominent points as well as I could, and they appeared to understand, for they praised our institutions highly. If I was able, under the circumstances, to form a correct opinion, there was a good deal of the spirit of reform among them. After taking leave of the Governor, I commenced preparations to start the next morning. As I saw but little of the town, I can say but little or nothing of it. It was quite a large place, the houses nearly all of wood, and the streets broad and in some places planked in the centre for the convenience of foot-travel, and yet in others so muddy that there was no comfort in moving round out of a carriage.

On the 12th of September I started with my new companion, and went on at the same breakneck pace as before. My new coach was far superior to the old one. We could sit up or lie down as we chose, and were not annoyed by the intolerable jarring of the body. My companion was very agreeable, and although he could not speak a word of English, and my vocabulary of Russ was too limited to hold a continued, intelligible conversation, we soon became accustomed to each other’s pantomimic gestures, and got along quite understandingly. On the 19th we arrived, without any casualties worthy of remark, at Tobolsk, the ancient capital of Siberia, and put up, as usual, at a private house.

Here my carriage-mate, Dementy, had acquaintances. He introduced me to the family of Mr. Zelinzoff, or Green, a highly respectable and wealthy merchant, and the proprietor of large iron-works at Ekatereinburg. He was himself absent from home, but, together with Dementy, I was invited by his son, who officiated as major-domo, to dine with his family while I remained in the city. I take pleasure in particularizing in regard to this family, on account of their marked civility and kindness to a stranger. It consisted of Madam Zelinzoff, three sons, a daughter, and a young man named Duro, who was a teacher of French, and spoke English fluently. They lived in splendid style, and spread a table for fifteen or twenty persons every day. Among the numerous invited guests was a French military officer in the Russian service, who spoke English well, and with whom I had a good deal of chat. After dinner the ladies and gentlemen retired to a large hall, where there was a billiard-table and a piano, violins and flutes, on which the amateurs displayed their skill. This was the agreeable practice daily while I was there.

Perhaps I may be allowed here to make a few remarks in regard to the city of Tobolsk, though I cannot give a minute description of it. It is very singularly divided into the upper and lower town. The lower town seems to have been once the bed of the river Irtich, which now, uniting with the Tobol, runs through the western part of the valley, leaving both the upper and lower town on the eastern side, but divided distinctly by a steep bank, which was probably in former days the margin of the stream. The lower town is sometimes, though rarely, inundated; and on the other hand the upper town is inconvenienced by a want of water. Taking both sections together they formed a very large place, with a numerous and mixed population of Tartars, Bucharians, and Kalmucks. The public buildings were mostly of stone, but the private houses, with few exceptions, of wood. It was the great mart of trade with the eastern part of the Empire, and all the caravans from China and the distant provinces concentrated here.

This place had formerly been the Botany Bay, or penal settlement, of the Russians, and from the descendants of convicts a great and flourishing city had sprung up, with its wealthy merchants, thrifty traders, and literary and scientific men. The German and French languages were taught and spoken by all the better classes. All kinds of provisions were so cheap, that the poorest inhabitant never need suffer for food; and I could see here, as throughout Siberia, the kindliest feelings manifested toward the lower orders of society.

Having remained at Tobolsk six days, we prepared to continue our journey. Two of the young Mr. Zelinzoffs were to accompany us as far as their father’s estate, at Ekatereinburg. Accordingly, after dining and making some preliminary arrangements for departure, the whole family, with their guests, assembled in the large room for a little chat and to take leave. Now this leave-taking was a somewhat formal piece of business, and I had misgivings as to how I should acquit myself with becoming gallantry. The custom with the gentlemen was for each to lay the right hand on the other’s back, and to kiss each other on both cheeks;[36] not unfrequently the noses came in rude collision. A lady presents you the back of the hand to kiss, and at the same time she kisses you on the cheek. Being all ready for action, the ladies and gentlemen placed themselves in a row round the room, and then the performance was commenced by the two sons who were going with us, and continued by my friend Dementy. By this time the perspiration had begun to start upon my forehead; but I saw it was of no use to be lagging, and so, summoning all my courage, I turned to, and went through the ceremony like a veteran courtier. The last of the ladies I came to was the daughter, a great beauty, and I was greatly tempted, in violation of Russian etiquette, to kiss her cheek, but I managed to restrain myself.

X.

Flying Ferry-Boat.--Ekatereinburg.--Kazan.--A
Dinner-Party.--Moscow.--St. Petersburg.--Good News.

After the ceremony described in the last chapter, we took to our carriages and proceeded to the ferry which crosses the Irtich, where we found what was called a flying ferry-boat, of sufficient size to transport several teams at once.[37] The hull of the craft did not swim deep in the water, but was furnished with a very deep keel along its whole length. It had a short mast, placed about as far forward as in sloops, and supported by shrouds. Now an anchor was sunk in the centre of the river some distance above, and from the anchor a rope, sustained on the surface by buoys, was extended and fastened to the bow of the boat. By means of a block and pulley this rope could be elevated about half the distance to the mast-head. When ready for starting, the bow, which was always pointed directly up stream at the landing-place, was pushed off a little, so that the current might strike the keel at an angle. This position was maintained by the use of the rudder; and as the boat could not drift down the river, on account of the anchor to which it was attached, it was driven sideways to the opposite shore. By this ingenious contrivance passengers and freight were carried across without the least trouble or labor.

On the 24th we arrived at Ekatereinburg. During our stay here of one night, our young friends showed us about the iron-works, and we saw all the operations, from smelting the ore to working it up into bar-iron. Gold ore was dug here by the government, and the pure metal extracted by pulverizing, and washing it on an inclined plane covered with ridges, which stopped the gold, while the lighter substances were carried off with the water. It did not appear to be a very money-making process. The next day we took leave of our young friends, and pursued our journey westward to Kazan, on the river Volga, which we reached on the 30th. Here my carriage-mate, Dementy, was quite at home again, and we concluded to halt for a couple of days. The city was large and well built, and the most important place in the eastern part of Russia proper.

I had for some time experienced the good effects of Dementy’s badge of distinction, but it did us especial service here. It procured us an invitation to dine with the military Governor, who was himself of Greek extraction, and somewhat acquainted with my friend. I had no great desire to go among great folks, as my wardrobe was scanty, and the few clothes I possessed had grown pretty threadbare with the wear and tear of my three years’ cruise. I wished to decline, but Dementy said it would give offence. He had probably given an account of my adventures, and of my negotiation with the Chamberlain, Baron von Resanoff; and this, together with the mark of the Emperor’s approbation which he himself wore, had brought us into notice.

At the proper time the military carriage of the Governor came for us, and away we went in fine style. We found a great number of persons assembled at his house, including officers, military and civil, and many ladies. I was introduced as an American captain. I felt a little uncomfortable lest I should be questioned with regard to my official grade, as it might not have been good policy to have explained my claim to a captaincy. It was a splendid entertainment, however, and, as I could not converse very intelligibly, I had little else to do than ply the knife and fork, while Dementy, who had somehow picked up all the particulars about me and my business, gave them my whole story, much to my satisfaction. After dinner we retired to another room, where coffee was served. The ladies questioned me about our country, and to show that they had some knowledge of American history, they spoke of Washington and Franklin in high terms. We conversed upon the subject until I had exhausted my whole stock of Russ in eulogizing those men.

October 2d, we started on our route for Moscow, our next stopping-place. We met with nothing remarkable excepting muddy roads and frequent altercations at the post-stations. There was evidently less respect paid to my friend’s decorations, and less alacrity in attending to us. We, however, reached the great city of Moscow on the 8th, and passed within the first circle, which is called the Zemlänoigorod. We wound along through the streets, as it seemed to me, for miles. At last Dementy pointed out a public house, where we stopped awhile to brush up and make ourselves look respectable,--after which Dementy left us. Kutsnetsoff sought at once the whereabouts of the Company’s establishment, and we started again, passed through the Bale gate into the circle of that name, and drove to the Company’s house. I entered the spacious stone building with Kutsnetsoff, and met his brother, the Superintendent, on the great landing-stair. He was a splendid-looking man. After the brothers had embraced each other, and while tears were rolling down their cheeks, I was introduced. I was cordially welcomed, and led into a large hall, where I was presented to the Superintendent’s lady, and Kutsnetsoff to a sister he had never seen before. She was a very handsome woman, and richly dressed in the latest French style.

After exchanging mutual inquiries, I was told by the Superintendent that his house must be my home while I remained in the city. I replied that I was desirous of reaching St. Petersburg before the close of navigation, and consequently my stay must be short. They concluded that I could well spare a week. In that time I thought I could replenish my wardrobe with the latest European fashions, and at my request, a draper was sent for; he took my dimensions, and I was soon fitted out completely. My Kamtchatka sable-skins were converted into a lining for a great coat,--as something of that kind had now become necessary,--and they made a splendid article.

In the mean time, having leisure, I availed myself of the politeness of a young gentleman of the house, who offered to go round with me and show me the city. I made no note of what I saw at the time, and since then half a century has rolled by. I can only recall some of the leading features of the great metropolis, which may be interesting, as the date of my visit was but a few years before the conflagration which drove Napoleon from the country. The city is situated on an elevation which in shape resembles a turtle’s back. The river Moskva sweeps round nearly two thirds of it, and the land rises gently from the margin to the centre, which is so high as to command a splendid panoramic view of its whole extent. The city was divided into four departments or circles. The first, the Kremlin, situated on the crown of this eminence and enclosed with heavy ramparts of stone, formed a sort of fortress of very ample extent. It embraced within its walls magnificent cathedrals, palaces, and public buildings, all gorgeously decorated. Here also was the great bell, which stands on the ground, with a triangular piece broken out of the rim. Its weight is said to be four hundred thousand pounds.[38] The next circle was the Kitaigorod, or Chinese Town, also containing several cathedrals, convents, parish churches, and many noblemen’s houses, interspersed with mean-looking wooden buildings. The third circle, which surrounded the former, was the Beloigorod, or White Town, and had a white wall. This was the business part of the city, and the streets, though mostly paved, were muddy and filthy. There were here, however, many public edifices, and handsome private houses, the residences of the merchants and traders. The fourth circle, called Zemlänoigorod, or Land Town, was surrounded with an earthen embankment, and enclosed an area of nearly ten miles. In this as in the other circles, there was a great diversity in the cost of the different structures, the very extremes of magnificence and meanness being mingled together promiscuously. I was very much impressed with the grandeur and beauty of the whole city; spread over more than twenty square miles of ground, adorned with a countless number of costly and elegant buildings, with thousands of spires and cupolas covered with silver and gold, when viewed from the Kremlin it afforded one of the most pleasing spectacles I ever gazed upon.[39]

I was loath to leave when the time allotted for my stay had expired, but there was no help for it. So, equipped in the fashionable rig with which the draper furnished me, I turned my face toward St. Petersburg. The Superintendent was kind enough to propose that Kutsnetsoff should accompany me to my journey’s end, which proposal I gladly accepted. On the morning of the 17th, I took leave of the good friends who had shown me so much kindness, and stepped into my carriage, rode through the suburbs, and at noon emerged into the open country. We passed many villages and large towns, but continued on without stopping at any of them except to take our meals.

On the 21st of October, 1807, we reached the gates of St. Petersburg, and, after going through a thorough examination of passports, were permitted to go on. We drove at once to the Company’s establishment, where I was kindly received and entertained by Mr. Booldakoff, the first director of the Russian American Company. It was evening when I arrived, and as neither Mr. B. nor any one in the house could speak English, I remained partially ignorant of the business which most interested me until the next morning. A gentleman then came in who accosted me in good round English, and I was quite overjoyed at the sound. This was Mr. Benedict Cramer, a gentleman with whom I became very intimate in business afterwards. He was the senior partner of the house of Cramer, Smith, & Co., and was also one of the directors of the Company.

He soon threw light upon my whole business by saying that his partner, Mr. Smith, was in the United States, and had seen my owners and assured them that the bills of exchange, the duplicates of which had reached them through the hands of Mr. Moorfield, were good. Mr. Moorfield had been out with a ship in the course of the season, the bills had been accepted and paid with fifteen per cent advance, because Spanish dollars, in which they were payable, commanded that premium. The proceeds had been invested in hemp, iron, and manufactures and sent to America; and the business had been transacted through his house. “You have now nothing to do,” he concluded, “but to take all the pleasure you can while you remain with us.” I shook him heartily by the hand, and made him a low bow; after which we walked out together to his place of business. He introduced me to his brother and Mr. L. Harris, the American Consul, who was connected with his firm; and in the same way I became acquainted with a number of influential gentlemen, from whom I received many civilities.

Mr. Booldakoff, whose house I made my home, showed me every attention. He took me in his carriage to all the places of note in the city, and had an audience with the Count Ramansoff, the Prime Minister, to whom I was presented. In short, every mark of respect that could be accorded to a stranger was shown me.

XI.

I sail down the Baltic in a Dutch Galiot.--Take Passage at
Elsinore in the Mary for Portland.--Put in at Liverpool.--Home
again.--Conclusion.

Things went on so smoothly and pleasantly at St. Petersburg that I took no note of time. Six days had already slipped by before I began to think of making a further move. There were no American ships at Cronstadt when I arrived, but I was told that there were always opportunities till the last of November to obtain a passage to England, so that I felt quite easy. Just as I commenced preparations for starting, however, war was declared between Russia and England, and all foreign ships left Cronstadt. I now thought it doubtful whether I could obtain a passage to England, but I made all haste for the port, to make a trial, at least. Mr. Booldakoff gave me a letter to the harbor-master, the Consul one to his Vice, the Messrs. Cramer one to Messrs. Belfour, Ellah, & Co., at Elsinore. With these I took leave of my St. Petersburg friends, and started; but when I arrived at the Mole I was quite discouraged to find that there was not a merchant-vessel in sight. I called on the Vice-Consul, but he knew of no way to help me. Though thinking it would be useless, I determined to present my letter to the harbor-master. He read it, and after a little reflection, and a number of questions about my journey, said that I had better go down to the Mole head with him, and see what could be done.

We found, on inquiry, that there was one solitary vessel, a small galiot, lying at anchor below the Tolbeacon, about three miles off. She was bound for London, and he thought I could get a passage in her, if I were willing to try; at the same time he offered to send me aboard. I jumped at the proposition, and told Parker to get our goods and chattels into the boat as soon as possible. Thanking the harbor-master for his assistance, I started off for the galiot. She was a small craft, of seventy or eighty tons burden, loaded with tallow. The skipper was a little old Dutchman, short of five feet in height, and a mate and cook composed his crew. I asked him if he would take me as passenger to London. “Yaw,” says he. “And will you let my man work his passage?” “Yaw, goot,” says he. I paid the officer of the boat for his trouble, and he left us. Being now at leisure, I began to look round to see what kind of a ship and accommodations we had got. She was rather a flat-bottomed vessel, carrying lee-boards, to keep her from drifting to the leeward when sailing by the wind. I questioned the skipper about the provisions, and he believed that there were enough, such as they were. The cabin was a trunk, so called, above the deck, abaft the mainmast, in which there were two boxes with slide-doors. One was his berth, and the other the mate’s. He informed me that I must sleep with him, and my man must turn in and out with the mate. I thought this a fair arrangement, and so we settled it.

It was morning when I went on board; and after dinner, which consisted of beans and buckwheat pudding, we got under way. The wind was light but favorable, so that we crept along down the Gulf at about the same rate we used to go in our little Russian vessel. The weather was moderate and the sea smooth, and after so much land-travel I enjoyed the change very much. We continued to grope along until we reached the island of Bornholm, in the Baltic. Here we took a westerly gale, which would have put a stop to our progress if we had not fortunately got under the lee of the island, and continued sailing from one end to the other of it for two days, when the gale abated, and the wind changed. This enabled us to continue on our course, so that on the 13th of November we reached Elsinore. Here I presented my letters from the Messrs. Cramer, and was kindly received by Messrs. Belfour, Ellah, & Co.

Though the galiot was detained by contrary winds, as long as there was no alternative, I concluded to stick by her; but on the second day I was standing on the pier and looking up the sound towards Copenhagen, when I saw a ship coming down with a large American ensign flying, at the sight of which my heart leaped right up into my throat. I waited until she came to anchor, and then called a shore-boat and went off to her. She proved to be the Mary of Portland, Captain David Gray, and was homeward bound. This was joyful news, and affected me so deeply that I could hardly tell the Captain my story. At last, after making known who I was, and from whence I came, I asked him if he would take me as passenger, and he readily consented. I went immediately to the galiot to settle with the little Dutch skipper. To the question, how much was I to pay him, he answered that he only wanted “Was billig ist, das ist mir recht.” Not knowing exactly what that was, I tendered him twenty Spanish dollars, with which he was well satisfied, and made him a bonus of a pair of leather breeches, which he had worn ever since we left Cronstadt. Wishing him a prosperous voyage, I took my leave and my baggage and went on board the Mary. She was a fine ship, in ballast, and had a splendid cabin for the times. The captain was a social, clever fellow, and we soon became well acquainted. We left Elsinore on the 20th, and proceeded down the Kattegat. When we got down as far as Gottenburg, we found the wind blowing in heavily through the Sleeve, which obliged the pilot to put into Marstrand, a small port in Sweden. Here we lay two days.

On the 24th, we put to sea again. We passed the Naze of Norway, and steered for the Orkney Islands; but, owing to adverse winds and stormy weather, it was the 2d of December before we got through the Fair Isle Passage. We then encountered a series of westerly gales, in the course of which it was discovered that one of the ship’s rudder-braces had worked loose. It was deemed unsafe to pursue our course across the Atlantic, and Captain Gray accordingly altered his course for Liverpool, where we arrived on the 15th. This was a great disappointment to me, particularly as my pecuniary resources were exhausted, and I saw before me unavoidable expenses; at the same time, I had no relish for the storms of a northern passage and a winter’s coast. I reconciled myself, however, with the prospect of seeing England; and as Captain Gray offered to supply me with money until I reached Portland, I was quite content. I went with him to a boarding-house, where we remained while the ship was undergoing repairs. In the mean time, I made myself acquainted with the city and its environs. At the end of two months the Mary was ready for sea again, and having taken on board a quantity of salt, we sailed on the 7th of February. We had a pleasant voyage, and arrived at Portland on the 25th of March. Here I settled with the Captain, to whom I was indebted for my passage, board, and sundry loans, the whole amounting to the sum of two hundred and fifty dollars. I gave him a draft on Mr. John Park, of Boston, and it proved quite fortunate for him that I did so. His owners had failed just before our arrival, and, as they were indebted to him, he would have been a loser but for this draft.

You may suppose that I started with as little delay as possible for Bristol. I arrived there on the 1st of April, 1808, and thus terminated an absence of three years and eight months. In two years and six months from the time of my departure, the owners were in receipt of the proceeds of the voyage, which resulted in a clear profit of ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS.

* * * * *

I have now reached the end of my story; but before I lay down my pen, let me say a word more of the friends mentioned in the preceding pages. I continued in the Russian trade, in which I had made so successful a beginning, and returned to St. Petersburg in 1809. It so happened that I found Dr. Langsdorff and Lieutenants Schwostoff and Davidoff there. The latter two gentlemen, since we last met, had been engaged in the war with Sweden, and had become honorably distinguished. While I was visiting the Doctor, they came over to pass an evening with us, and we sat talking of old times until two in the morning. They then started for their own lodgings, which were on the other side of the river. Langsdorff and myself accompanied them to the drawbridge, which was open for ships to pass in the night. Our friends, therefore, passed over a plank which lay from the bridge to a vessel in the river and regained the other side of the bridge by another plank, calling to us and wishing us good-night, when they were safe over, and we then went back to our quarters. The next morning we received the melancholy intelligence that two naval officers had been drowned in the Neva during the night, and, upon further inquiry, we learned that they were our friends. After we had parted from them, they became desirous, God knows for what purpose, to return to us again, and, in order to get over quicker, they attempted to spring from the bridge upon a bark that was going through. They mistook a sail for the deck of the vessel, and both fell into the water. The people in the bark endeavored to rescue them, but the night was so dark, and the current so strong, that they went under before they received any assistance. Though fifty years have gone by since the death of these young men, I cannot forbear to recall their many virtues and lament their untimely end.

FOOTNOTES:

[23] Perry’s “History of the De Wolf Family,” p. 50.

[24] Three months before this vessel had brought into Bristol the first cargo received from a Chinese port.--_Ed._

[25] Ever since Captain Robert Gray of Tiverton, R. I., master of the ship Columbia of Boston, had, in 1792, sailed his vessel into the great river to which he gave the name of his ship, the trade of the northwest coast had been almost entirely in the hands of Boston merchants. The natives called all traders “Boston Men.” So, in the days of the Crusades, the Saracens called all Crusaders “Franks” because of the overwhelming predominance of the French nation. The Crusades were the “Gesta Dei per Francos.” Captain Gray’s act laid the foundation for the American title to Oregon.--_Ed._

[26] Cooper seized upon this well known fact for some striking passages in his novel “Afloat and Ashore.”--_Ed._

[27] Duffel, a coarse woollen cloth named from the town near Antwerp in which it was manufactured.--_Ed._

[28] Leather canoes. They consist of a skeleton of wood, over which is stretched a covering made of the skins of sea-lions. They are long and narrow, and hold from one to three persons. Each person sits in a round hole just fitted to the size of the body.--[Author’s note.]

[29] George von Langsdorff was born in Heidelberg in the Grand Duchy of Baden in 1774, his father being at that time Chancellor of the University of Heidelberg. Having taken the degree of Doctor of Medicine at the University of Göttingen, he shortly afterward went with Prince Waldeck to Lisbon as his physician. On the death of the Prince he returned by way of England to his home. At the age of thirty he accompanied Admiral Krusenstern, as botanist, on a voyage around the world. Emperor Alexander I of Russia made him a Knight of the Order of St. Anne with the rank of Aulic Councillor, and also made him a Baron. Later he appointed him Consul General at the port of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a post which he held with honor for many years. He died at Freiburg, Baden, in 1852, in the seventy-eighth year of his age. Besides other volumes he published an account of his trip around the world under the title “Bemerkungen auf einer Reise um die Welt in den Jahren 1803 bis 1807 von Copenhagen nach Brasilien, der Sudsee, Kamtschatka, und Japan.” The second volume treats of his journey “Von Kamtschatka nach der Insel St. Paul, Unalaska, Kodiak, Sitcha, Neu Albion, Kamtschatka, Ochotsk und durch Sibirien nach St. Petersburg.” Captain DeWolf must have had a translation of this volume at hand when he wrote his own story. The German naturalist and the American sea captain were evidently “two of a kind.” How highly the American esteemed his friend may be judged from the fact that he named his only son John Langsdorff. The boy was always called Langsdorff.--_Ed._

[30] In the Russian Church all the priests are called Popes, _i.e._, Fathers, Papa = Father. So in the Latin Church all priests were Popes until the supremacy of the Pope of Rome was established. Cf. the development of the English “Parson.”--_Ed._

[31] Dr. Langsdorff in his “Reise” devotes much space to the treatment of the Arctic dogs.--_Ed._

[32] Even in the great Cathedral of Kazan, in Petrograd, the arrangements for a christening seem, to a foreigner, somewhat primitive. There not a tub is used for the immersion but an iron basin supported upon a tripod. Captain De Wolf had forgotten many features of the beautiful ceremony.--_Ed._

[33] Dr. Langsdorff’s account of this incident shows Captain De Wolf’s character in a very beautiful light: “I cannot pass over in silence an affecting scene which occurred just before his departure. The three Aleutians whom I have frequently spoken of as serving as sailors on our ship, came to Captain De Wolf, and, with tears running down their cheeks, threw themselves at his feet and begged him to take them with him to his native land. ‘We will serve you without pay. We will ask only for a little bread and fish. We will follow your horses, even though we must go on foot a great part of the way. We would rather go with you than return to our own country.’ Mr. De Wolf was greatly troubled because he could not grant their request.” Langsdorff, Reise, vol. 2, page 292.--_Ed._

[34] A verst is 212⅕ rods, or, roughly, five eighths of a mile.--[Author’s note.]

[35] It will be noted that Captain De Wolf nowhere speaks of vodka.--_Ed._

[36] Our traveller was as much impressed with this habit of kissing as was Erasmus on his first landing in England. The Dutch scholar was pleased with the English fashion, which is, on the whole, far superior to the Russian style.--_Ed._

[37] Flying ferry boats not unlike these may be seen on some California rivers today.--_Ed._

[38] At least 448,000 pounds.--_Ed._

[39] This was five years before the burning of Moscow in the Napoleonic War.--_Ed._