same manner. Their yourts are not so large, and are covered with the
bark of the birch tree; there is no other difference. Every family
has a distinct yourt; the chief ornamental piece of furniture is a
small wooden idol of the human shape, but with an enormous head; it is
dressed in their cloaths, and decorated with rings, bells, and other
pieces of metal. They give to this image the name of Saint Nicholas, in
allusion to the patron saint of Russia.
I have already described the dress of the Toungouses, and have
therefore only to speak of their features, manners, and mode of
travelling.
They are not so large as the Yakouts, and have the sunk eyes, flat
nose, and broad face of the Kamtschadales. They are equally hospitable;
their characteristic qualities seem to be frankness and good-nature.
In religion, they have the stupid credulity of the Koriacs, believing
in all the absurdities of idolatry. The chamans equally obtain their
homage and confidence: these impostors govern every where by means of
the fears they inspire.
After fishing[95] and hunting, which in the season, oblige these
families to be a little more settled, nothing engages their attention
so much as their rein deer. These animals constitute all their wealth,
and repay with usury the care bestowed upon them. They not only provide
these people with food[96] and clothing, but docile to the hand that
guides them, they permit their masters, both men and women, to mount
their backs, and ride them at a swift pace wherever they please[97].
Instead of harnessing them to a sledge, like the Tchouktchis and
the Koriacs, they train them up to carry in this manner, and make
them obedient to the motions of a bridle twisted about their horns.
The saddle is ornamented, and of the same size as ours, but without
stirrups; it is fastened by a very weak girt, and the rider, when he
totters, has nothing to support him but a long stick with which he
strikes his steed: it is manifest that this exercise requires great
skill. The baggage is put into small panniers, covered with rein
deer-skin, and fixed to the saddle, which hang on each side against the
flank of the animal. During the stay of the Toungouses in any place,
the burdens are ranged methodically round their yourts.
My navigation became less disagreeable when I had reached Pelodoui, a
large village, the inhabitants of which are Russians, descended from
the first cultivators of Siberia, called _Starogili_. There I was
freed from the dangerous exiles, and had no other guides than honest
peasants, who were equally assiduous and complaisant. The houses
were not so distant from one another, and promised me at least some
resource. In each of these villages there are six men appointed to
conduct the business of the post: no privilege exempts them from this
service; like all the Russian peasants they are annexed to the glebe,
pay the same duties to the crown, and furnish recruits. The produce of
their harvests are not adequate to their maintenance during the whole
year; they are obliged to purchase and lay up a stock of corn. Rye is
no where so dear as in this place; it sells at seventy or eighty kopecs
the _poud_.
Vitim is the village nearest to the preceding one. As it resembles all
the Russian villages, I need not describe it; churches are less common
than the _cabacs_ or public-houses.
Birds are fond of the environs and the borders of the Lena, where they
very much abound. The clouds of gnats which cover it, account for this.
To keep off these insects, we had taken care to furnish ourselves with
a quantity of horse-dung, with which we keep up a continual fire in our
boat; but another unavoidable inconvenience on this river is the vermin
it engenders; the more we bathe, the faster they multiply.
Four hundred wersts from Peledoui I passed by a small town called
Kirinsk, or Kiringui, at the bottom of which the Lena flows, and
farther on the Kiringa. In the midst of the houses, none of which make
any figure, we could distinguish the church, which is built of stone.
The bank becoming wider and more sandy, we were frequently drawn by
horses[98]. The ropes were weak, but it gave me no uneasiness; the
pleasure of advancing inspired me with a blind confidence, for which I
was soon punished. In the night of the 29, my boat touched upon a rock,
which the darkness concealed from us. The rope broke with the violence
of the shock, and our boat was in a minute full of water; we had only
time to get out, in order to draw it upon the shore, which required
all our efforts. I immediately mounted one of the horses, with my box
before me. We were but four wersts from a village, and it was easy to
have speedy succour. My boat was refitted in the course of the day, and
the next morning I proceeded on my route.
In quitting the village of Ustiug, I perceived a considerable salt pit
that was pointed out to me, and beyond it three _zavodes_ or copper
founderies.
My boat was broken a second time, and again hastily repaired; this
day also, which was 4 August, my rudder, which continually struck
against the bottom, was carried away, as well as a kind of keel that
was fastened under the boat, and I abandoned it without hesitation. It
became the perquisite of my faithful Golikoff.
I took horses at Toutoura, which is three hundred and seventy wersts
from Irkoutsk, and having passed through the large village of
Verkhalensk, I arrived the 5, at two o’clock in the afternoon, at that
of Katschouga, where it is common to land in order to avoid the elbow
of the Lena, and also because this river soon ceases to be navigable.
In this village travellers are provided with _kibitks_[99], or Russian
four wheel carriages, which are conducted by exiles, and from time to
time by the Bratskis.
Between Katschonga and Irkoutsk is a _step_ or uncultivated district,
inhabited solely by these Bratskis, a colony of shepherds, supposed
to be descended from the Tartars, so strongly do they resemble that
people. There is something ferocious and savage in their appearance;
they are extremely addicted to robberies, and I saw one of them
apprehended for stealing some cattle. Their flocks are numerous and
consist of oxen, cows, horses, but chiefly sheep. The speed with which
I travelled, prevented me from visiting their habitations, or making
more minute observations respecting them.
We passed over a number of mountains, through very horrible roads,
and which made my poor Golikoff frequently cry out, bruised by the
continual jolting of our infernal vehicle; it was the first time he
had experienced this mode of travelling. At length, having left the
monastery of Voznessenskoï at our right, whence Irkoutsk begins to be
visible, we came to a small arm of the river that winds along under
the walls of the town, and which we crossed without coming out of
the carriage. There I was stopped by a centinel, who was desirous,
agreeably to his office, of informing the governor; but satisfied with
my name and office, which I gave him in writing, he permitted me to go
before him. It was about eleven o’clock in the evening of 6 August,
when I entered this capital, having travelled, since I left Yakoutsk,
fifteen hundred and ninety-four wersts.
I alighted at the office of police, to enquire for a lodging. The
_kvarter-mester_, or superintendant of that department, led me to a
house, the master of which, far from obeying the orders injoined on
him to receive me, deigned not to rise from his seat to declare his
refusal. I saw the moment when the officer of the police, irritated
at so uncivil a behaviour, was on the point of avenging his insulted
authority. I succeeded however in pacifying him, and besought him
to chuse me another lodging. In the interval the _gorodnitsch_, or
commandant of the place, major Dolgopoloff, had heard of my arrival,
and the trifling mortification I had experienced; he came immediately
to the place, which I had scarcely taken possession of, made a
thousand apologies for my having been so indecently treated and so
badly accommodated, and in spite of all I could say in favour of my
apartment, he obliged me to quit it, and to go with him. I lost not by
the change: nothing could be more neat and elegant than the apartments
to which he conducted me. It was a suite of rooms perfectly furnished
and ornamented with paintings in fresco; but what pleased me most was
the zealous attention that was bestowed upon me, and by which all my
wishes were anticipated.
The next day M. Dolgopoloff presented me to the governor, major
general Arsénieff, and I gave him the dispatches of M. Kasloff, as
the governor general was then at Petersburg. I was highly flattered
by the manner in which M. Arsénieff received me. After loading me
with civilities, he insisted that I should have no table but his,
and introduced me to his family[100], whose harmony, good sense, and
cheerfulness, render his house a truly delightful habitation, and
communicate their own character to the society whom their merits
attract.
I profited of the disposition and obliging offers of the governor,
to recommend to him with warmth my soldier Golikoff. The innumerable
services which this brave fellow had rendered me, his fidelity, his
devotedness and zeal, which had stood every proof, pleaded more
strongly in his favour than my recommendation, and M. Arsénieff was
desirous of securing to himself so good a subject; but the ambition
of poor Golikoff[101] wished for nothing farther than the being
incorporated in the garrison of Yakoutsk, where he was attracted by
affection to his father, who lived in that town, and attachment to M.
Kasloff, under whose orders he considered it as a happiness to serve.
Such sentiments increased the interest which my account of him had
inspired, and my protégé instantly obtained the favour I solicited for
him.
I afterwards made a visit to M. Poskatschinn, the intimate friend of
M. Kasloff, whose recommendation procured me every species of civility.
I found at his house a catholic priest, sent into Siberia to assist the
Christians of the church of Rome, by his ministry. His usual residence
is at Irkoutsk.
This town, the capital of the government of Irkoutsk and Kolivania, is
situated on the border of the Angara, and near the mouth of the Irkout,
from which it takes its name. Within its vast circumference many stone
edifices are seen, and churches built with bricks; the wooden houses
are large and commodiously distributed; its population is numerous,
and its society brilliant; the multitude of officers and magistrates
who reside there, have introduced the modes and customs of Petersburg.
Every person in office has an equipage; rank and quality regulate the
number of horses that draw their carriages, which are similar to ours.
I have already observed, that all the tribunals of the neighbouring
provinces are under the jurisdiction of those of this town; it is
also the see of an archbishop, a venerable prelate, who exercises the
functions of that office through the whole extent of this part of the
Russian empire.
But it is to commerce that this capital is chiefly indebted for its
splendour. By its situation, it is the entrepôt of that which is
carried on between Russia and China. It is known that an intercourse is
kept up by land; sometimes active, sometimes languishing; frequently
interrupted, it has undergone so many variations, that it is necessary,
in my opinion, to go back to the origin of this connection to judge of
its consistence, and the improvements of which it is capable.
The first accounts are dated in the middle of the last century, about
the time of the invasion of the Mantchew Tartars, who, having for a
long time ravaged the northern provinces of the Chinese empire, at
last subjugated it entirely. It was to a governor of Tobolsk, that
Russia was indebted for the first idea of effecting this commerce, in
consequence of an attempt made at Pekin by persons of confidence whom
he sent thither. Far from being discouraged by the trifling success
of these emissaries, Russian and Siberian merchants united together
to profit, if it were possible, by their discoveries. They sent out
a caravan in the year 1670, which brought back new lights upon the
subject, and unequivocal proofs of the possibility of succeeding. From
that time companies multiplied, the journeys became more frequent, and
establishments increased.
This progress alarmed the Chinese, who resolved to set bounds to it.
Forts were erected to restrain a neighbour, who, advancing nearer every
day, by the river Amour, the Eastern Sea, and the Selinga, insensibly
approached the frontiers of China. These defensive measures were the
source of very warm disputes between the two empires upon the subject
of their respective boundaries; a few hostilities took place, and at
last an open rupture. Many years were spent in besieging places, in
demolishing and erecting them in turns, till the year 1689, when the
two courts, by the mediation of father Gerbillon and father Pereira,
Jesuits, authorised by the emperor of China, signed, at Nertschinsk, a
treaty of peace and perpetual alliance[102], which was to be engraven
on two stones or posts erected on the confines of each empire.
By this reciprocity, there was a free commerce secured to all the
subjects of the two powers, who were furnished with passports by their
courts. Meanwhile China had taken care to be paid for her condescension
by the surrenders she demanded of Russia, who lost not only an
important part of its possessions, but the navigation of the river
Amour as far as the Eastern Sea.
To make amends, or with a view of deriving greater advantages from
this commerce, Tzar[103] Peter the Great commissioned, in 1692, Isbrand
Ives, a Dutchman, in his service, to ask of the court of Pekin,
the same privilege for caravans, which the late treaty granted to
individuals. The result of the embassy corresponded with the desires of
the court of Petersburg; the caravans were admitted; and as the court
reserved to itself the exclusive right of sending them, it received
the whole of the profit[104]. These journeys lasted three years;
caravanseries, for the exchange of their commodities, were appointed
for the Russian merchants who composed the caravans, and during their
stay at Pekin their expences were discharged by the emperor.
This calm did not long continue between the two powers. New troubles,
occasioned by the misconduct, drunkenness, and insolent proceedings of
some Russians, in the midst even of the Chinese capital, had nearly
annihilated their commerce. The embassy of Ismaïloff saved it. By
the skill of this negociator, captain of the guards to the Tzar, the
disorders were stopped, and the complaints suppressed; security and
confidence succeeded to this misunderstanding. To preserve this happy
disposition, Laurent Lange remained at Pekin, under the denomination of
agent to the Russian caravans.
Upon, the departure of this resident, affairs continually declined and
the enormities of the Russians increased. They excited the pride and
distrust, natural to the Chinese. The refusal to deliver up a number of
hordes of Mongouls, who were become tributary to the Tzar, completed
the indignation of the emperor; every Russian was banished from his
territories, and there was no longer any communication between the two
nations.
In 1727, count Ragouzinskoi, ambassador from Russia to the successor of
the vindictive Kam-hi, effected the renewal of these commercial ties by
a new treaty, that fixed irrevocably the bounds of each empire[105],
and subjected the merchants to an invariable regulation, calculated for
ever to remove all source of division.
The court of Russia was permitted to send a caravan to Pekin once in
three years, and the number of merchants was limited to two hundred.
On their arrival at the frontiers of China, they were to inform the
emperor, that a Chinese officer might be sent to escort them to the
metropolis, where their expences would be defrayed during the time
of their traffic. It was agreed also that the merchandize belonging
to individuals should not pass the frontier, and that they should
no longer enjoy the privilege of trading in any of the Chinese or
Mongoul territories. Of consequence, two places were assigned them on
the confines of Siberia, the one called _Kiakhta_, from a stream that
waters the environs, the other _Zurukhaire_[106], situated on the left
bank of the Argoun, and they were obliged to deposit their merchandize
in the magazines of these two settlements.
In spite of the solemn ratification of all the clauses of this
compact, its execution encountered various impediments; the leaven of
resentment fermented, or dishonesty gave birth to fresh knaveries. Be
this as it may, in the space of twenty seven years, only six caravans
sat out from Russia; and after the last envoy this commerce fell into a
state of languor consequent upon the loss of credit.
I suppress the detail of grievances alledged by the Chinese against
the Russians. Many well known historians have given an account of the
complaints that occasioned the successive emigrations of the Kalmouk
Tartars, and a multitude of Toungouses, who were all received by the
court of Petersburg; we have seen its subtle policy, moderate and
threatening in turns, always evading the satisfaction demanded by China.
These disputes continued till the accession of the reigning empress.
No sooner had Catherine II. ascended the throne, than she renounced, in
favour of her subjects, the monopoly of furs, and the exclusive right
of sending caravans to Pekin. This act of justice and beneficence,
worthy the genius and heart of this empress, was still insufficient to
give to this commerce its antient vigour. The enmity between the two
nations was farther heightened by the fickleness of these Toungouses,
who, tired or discontented with their new establishment, suddenly
eloped from the dominion of Russia, and returned to their country to
replace themselves under the Chinese authority.
It has since been seen that the two nations, discarding all animosity,
entered into a sincere connection, and that the intercourse between
the merchants became every day more active and interesting. As the
Russian factories multiplied at Kiakhta, which is peopled, enlarged,
and fortified, the Chinese resorted to the settlement of Zurukhaire or
Naïmatschinn; the commissaries on each side presided in the exchange
of commodities, and the Mongoul language was adopted in the contracts
which were made by interpreters.
The Russians have not the advantage in this commerce. The Chinese, who
trade in a body, are infinitely more watchful over their interests and
circumspect in their dealings; they know how to discover the real value
of the Russian commodities, and they have the skill to sell their own
at the price they first fix, and from which they never depart. Tea, for
instance, procures them an immense profit[107]; they sell it so dear
that the purchasers are afterwards obliged to get rid of it with loss.
To indemnify themselves the Russians endeavour to raise the price of
their skins, of which the Chinese are extremely fond; but the cunning
of these people puts them on their guard against this trick.
It would be too tedious to enumerate in this place all the articles
that enter into these exchanges. I refer the curious reader to Coxe or
Pallas, who are both diffuse on the subject. By a calculation which
they made of exports and imports at Kiakhta, in the year 1777, the
amount of this commerce was estimated at four millions of roubles; but
since that time, various accounts deserving of credit assert that it
has considerably lessened, and at present it may be said to be reduced
to nothing[108].
I had no preparation to make for my departure, but that of purchasing
a kibitk[109]. I no longer troubled myself about provisions, as I
was sure of finding wherewith to subsist myself at every stage. The
governor gave me a _poradojenei_, or a passport, as far as Petersburg.
It was resolved that I should be escorted by a soldier of the garrison,
whose courage and fidelity were known, and that one of the couriers
of the governor general, who had particularly recommended him, should
accompany me to assist me by his services and experience.
I took leave of M. Arsénieff; his son and M. Dolgopoloff insisted upon
conducting me to the first stage, in spite of all my remonstrances. We
were seated in the carriage, where my honest Golikoff came with tears
in his eyes, conjuring me to permit him to accompany me as far as these
gentlemen; it was, he said, the sweetest recompence I could bestow on
him. This last instance of attachment affected me, and I felt that in
complying with his request, my pleasure was not less than his.
Having crossed in a ferry boat the river Angava[110], we soon arrived
to the place of our separation. While I repeated my thanks, and took
leave of my two friends, Golikoff, concealed behind my carriage,
endeavoured to hide his tears, and recommended me to the care of the
soldier who succeeded him. His despair burst forth when my horses were
harnessed; he embraced my knees, and exclaimed that he would never quit
me. It was to no purpose I repeated that, as he well knew, I had no
right to take him; my reasonings, my caresses, nothing could prevail
on him to leave his hold; it was necessary to force him from my feet,
then from the carriage, which he seized on being torn from me. Never,
I believe, had my sensibility experienced a more violent shock; I
departed with a wounded heart. The regret of not having been able to
follow the dictates of my gratitude[111] still torments me, and I can
only hope that he may be informed of it, for I cannot flatter myself
that I shall ever see him again.
I am obliged at present to discontinue my practice of making notes
every day. My journey to Petersburg was so rapid, that is, from 10
August to 22 September, that it was impossible to observe the same
accuracy; for this reason also the reader will pardon the brevity
of my observations. The country through which I passed has beside
been described by so many accurate and intelligent pens, and these
travellers have given so much attraction and interest to their
recitals, that I should only be accused of presumption, or plagiarism,
if I attempted to enlarge on a subject, which they profoundly
studied, while I had scarcely time to skim the surface. Many of these
performances[112] are recent, and the curiosity of the reader may be
amply satisfied by them. I shall only speak of what relates to myself.
I first passed through a small canton inhabited by Bratskis. Are not
these the same people described by other French writers, under the
appellation of _Burates_? Beyond Oudinsk I came to Kransnoyark, where I
stopped twenty-four hours to repair the axle-trees of my carriage. This
town derives its name from the red and steep bank of the Yenisei, which
runs under its wall.
I afterwards entered the desert, called _Barabinskoi-step_. The post
service is performed by exiles of every description, whose settlements
are at the distance of twenty-five, and sometimes fifty wersts from
one another. These unfortunate beings live in the same manner as those
who conducted me from Yakoutsk to Peledoui; they are neither more
serviceable nor less ferocious, and their indolence is still more
mortifying.
Accustomed to the fertile and rich country about Irkoutsk, cultivated
by the laborious Starogili, the eye cannot survey, without pain, this
barren waste. We are disposed to ascribe this melancholy contrast to
the sloth of the perverse inhabitants, though it is acknowledged that
the soil yields them no return. One might say, that in conformity with
the vindictive hand that pursues them, Nature acts towards them as
a step-mother; the earth, to which justice has banished them, seems
to feel a reluctance in bearing them; its withered bosom refuses all
success to their culture.