At the first look which we took of our quarters, we thought that we
had seen the sun for the last time, for although without, the day was
clear and bright, yet within almost total darkness reigned.
Imagine a four cornered shed, five and twenty paces long, fifteen
wide, and some twelve feet high, three sides of which were walled up
without the smallest opening, and the fourth covered with a strong
wooden grating made of bars placed about four inches from each other.
In the grating was a door and little gate, but both securely bolted.
In the middle of the shed stood a couple of cages, likewise made of
wooden bars, and separated from each other and the wall, by narrow
passages. One of these cages was six feet square and ten high; the
other was of the same heighth and breadth, but only eight feet high.
In the latter were the sailors, and in the former, Moor, Chleb Nikow,
and I. The entrance to each of them was so narrow that one was obliged
to creep through it. The door was made of thick beams and fastened by
means of a strong iron bolt, over which was a little opening through
which they put our food, when they gave it to us. The wall of each
cage, which was opposite that of the other, was made of boards, so
that we could not see the sailors nor they us. Outside of the grating
which formed one side of the shed, was a sentry box, in which two
soldiers kept a continual watch. They could see us all, and did not
take their eyes off us for a single moment.
During the night they entered the shed every half hour, walked around
our cages and looked in through the bars. From sunset until the break
of day, numerous watchmen went the rounds with lanterns, and struck
the hours with a couple of sticks.
At night our prison was still more dreary, for we had neither light
nor fire. A lamp set in a paper lantern, burned in the guard-house,
and threw a pale, sickly light into the shed, which it would not have
been sufficient to illumine, under any circumstances. Except the
scanty portion which the rays of this light fell on, all the shed was
shrouded in impenetrable darkness. The rattling which ensued from the
opening and shutting of doors, whenever the guards visited us, broke
through the deep silence of night, and added to the discomforts of our
situation. It was out of our power to enjoy a calm refreshing sleep,
for besides the noise, frightful phantoms of every kind drove it
away.
The shed, cages, guard-houses, and hedges, by which they were
surrounded, were all quite new, and had so lately been finished, that
the chips and shavings had not yet been carried away. The building,
which was large, and made of beautiful wood, must have cost the
Japanese government no trifling sum; greater indeed, we imagined, than
they would have devoted to such an object, had their intention been
soon to set us free. For a sojourn of two or three years, they might
easily have found some suitable building already constructed, and the
security and arrangements of this place, seemed to denote that it was
to be our abode for a long while, perhaps during life. These
reflections tormented us fearfully. For a long while we sat silently
gazing at each other, considering ourselves as victims to our own
imprudence. On the fourth day after our arrival at Matsmai, the
Japanese took us out of our cages, in order, as they told us, to
present us to the governor. We went bound in the old way, with
soldiers holding the ropes. The road to the fort was through a dirty
street, which they had covered with boards, and as it commenced
raining, they held umbrellas over our heads. We were led into a roomy
court-yard within the fort, which was covered with pebbles, and were
placed in a row on a bench which stood within a small building. After
we had remained here about an hour, a door was opened, and we were
taken through a second court into a third, where the soldiers who
accompanied us, laid aside their sabres, daggers, and the straw
sandals which they wore instead of shoes, and at the same time, pulled
off our boots. We were now taken into an immense hall, the floor of
which was covered with magnificently worked carpets. The doors and
windows were made of beautiful wood elaborately carved. On the
curtains which according to the Japanese custom, formed the partition
walls between the rooms, and could be removed at pleasure, were
paintings set in golden frames, and ornaments representing beasts and
birds. On both sides of the room were seated Japanese officers, armed
with swords and daggers. They laughed and joked among themselves until
a noise was heard, and a voice cried, "Hush!" when a deep silence
prevailed.
A servant now entered the apartment, kneeled down at the door, laid
the palms of his hands on the ground, and bowed his head. The governor
then made his appearance, clad in a plain black robe, on the sleeves
of which was embroidered his crest, as is customary in Japan. At his
girdle hung a dagger, but his sabre was carried by a servant, who had
it rolled up in a cloth, that his hands might not touch it. After the
governor had taken his seat, the Japanese all made him a reverence,
laying the palms of their hands on the floor, and bowing so profoundly
that their foreheads touched it, in which position they remained for
several seconds. He replied to their salutation by bowing low, his
hands placed on his knees. We also saluted him, in the European
fashion, and he nodded his head to us, smiling all the while, as if to
assure us that his intentions towards us were friendly.
He now drew from his bosom a sheet of paper, and called over the names
of each one of us, according to his rank. We replied singly, by a bow,
and each time he bent his head. He then spoke to a man who was
sitting by his side, and who held the post of interpreter, and
commanded him to translate to us what he was about to say. But this
individual did not seem to have the slightest knowledge of the Russian
language, and began with the words:
"I am a man, thou art a man, another is a man, tell me what kind of a
man?"
When we, astounded at the fellow's impudence, managed to explain to
them that we did not understand in the least what he was trying to
say, and the officers, after some trouble, had made him confess that
he did not know even the commonest phrases in the Russian language,
they began to laugh, drove him away, and made use of our interpreter,
Alexis, who had hitherto remained a prisoner with us. After an
examination, during which the same questions were put to us as had
been formerly asked by them, the governor, or "Bunjo," as the Japanese
term him, told us that if we had any request to make, we might now do
so.
"We wish only for two things," we replied, "either to return to our
native land, or if that is impossible, to die."
At this unexpected declaration, the governor made a long and earnest
speech, in which he laid particular emphasis on the fact that the
Japanese were men, and had feelings like the rest of mankind, and
that, therefore, we need not doubt them, nor have any fear, for as
soon as it was proved that it was not by the command of the Russian
Emperor, that our countrymen had committed violence in Japanese
territory, but of their own accord, we should be sent home,
abundantly supplied with all things necessary. Until that time, they
would take care that we wanted for nothing, and if we needed clothes
or any thing else, we must not be ashamed to ask for them.
The Bunjo then left us, and we returned to our cages with the hope, at
least, that through favorable circumstances we might escape from our
imprisonment.