IT was fortunate that Michael Strogoff had left the posting-house so promptly2. The orders of Ivan Ogareff had been immediately transmitted to all the approaches of the city, and a full description of Michael sent to all the various commandants, in order to prevent his departure from Omsk. But he had already passed through one of the breaches3 in the wall; his horse was galloping4 over the steppe, and the chances of escape were in his favor.
It was on the 29th of July, at eight o’clock in the evening, that Michael Strogoff had left Omsk. This town is situated5 about halfway6 between Moscow and Irkutsk, where it was necessary that he should arrive within ten days if he wished to get ahead of the Tartar columns. It was evident that the unlucky chance which had brought him into the presence of his mother had betrayed his incognito7. Ivan Ogareff was no longer ignorant of the fact that a courier of the Czar had just passed Omsk, taking the direction of Irkutsk. The dispatches which this courier bore must have been of immense importance. Michael Strogoff knew, therefore, that every effort would be made to capture him.
But what he did not know, and could not know, was that Marfa Strogoff was in the hands of Ivan Ogareff, and that she was about to atone8, perhaps with her life, for that natural exhibition of her feelings which she had been unable to restrain when she suddenly found herself in the presence of her son. And it was fortunate that he was ignorant of it. Could he have withstood this fresh trial?
Michael Strogoff urged on his horse, imbuing9 him with all his own feverish10 impatience11, requiring of him one thing only, namely, to bear him rapidly to the next posting-house, where he could be exchanged for a quicker conveyance12.
At midnight he had cleared fifty miles, and halted at the station of Koulikovo. But there, as he had feared, he found neither horses nor carriages. Several Tartar detachments had passed along the highway of the steppe. Everything had been stolen or requisitioned both in the villages and in the posting-houses. It was with difficulty that Michael Strogoff was even able to obtain some refreshment13 for his horse and himself.
It was of great importance, therefore, to spare his horse, for he could not tell when or how he might be able to replace it. Desiring, however, to put the greatest possible distance between himself and the horsemen who had no doubt been dispatched in pursuit, he resolved to push on. After one hour’s rest he resumed his course across the steppe.
Hitherto the weather had been propitious14 for his journey. The temperature was endurable. The nights at this time of the year are very short, and as they are lighted by the moon, the route over the steppe is practicable. Michael Strogoff, moreover, was a man certain of his road and devoid15 of doubt or hesitation16, and in spite of the melancholy17 thoughts which possessed18 him he had preserved his clearness of mind, and made for his destined19 point as though it were visible upon the horizon. When he did halt for a moment at some turn in the road it was to breathe his horse. Now he would dismount to ease his steed for a moment, and again he would place his ear to the ground to listen for the sound of galloping horses upon the steppe. Nothing arousing his suspicions, he resumed his way.
On the 30th of July, at nine o’clock in the morning, Michael Strogoff passed through the station of Touroumoff and entered the swampy20 district of the Baraba.
There, for a distance of three hundred versts, the natural obstacles would be extremely great. He knew this, but he also knew that he would certainly surmount21 them.
These vast marshes of the Baraba, form the reservoir to all the rain-water which finds no outlet22 either towards the Obi or towards the Irtych. The soil of this vast depression is entirely23 argillaceous, and therefore impermeable24, so that the waters remain there and make of it a region very difficult to cross during the hot season. There, however, lies the way to Irkutsk, and it is in the midst of ponds, pools, lakes, and swamps, from which the sun draws poisonous exhalations, that the road winds, and entails25 upon the traveler the greatest fatigue26 and danger.
Michael Strogoff spurred his horse into the midst of a grassy27 prairie, differing greatly from the close-cropped sod of the steppe, where feed the immense Siberian herds28. The grass here was five or six feet in height, and had made room for swamp-plants, to which the dampness of the place, assisted by the heat of summer, had given giant proportions. These were principally canes29 and rushes, which formed a tangled31 network, an impenetrable undergrowth, sprinkled everywhere with a thousand flowers remarkable32 for the brightness of their color.
Michael Strogoff, galloping amongst this undergrowth of cane30, was no longer visible from the swamps which bordered the road. The tall grass rose above him, and his track was indicated only by the flight of innumerable aquatic33 birds, which rose from the side of the road and dispersed34 into the air in screaming flocks.
The way, however, was clearly traceable. Now it would lie straight between the dense35 thicket36 of marsh-plants; again it would follow the winding37 shores of vast pools, some of which, several versts in length and breadth, deserve the name of lakes. In other localities the stagnant38 waters through which the road lay had been avoided, not by bridges, but by tottering39 platforms ballasted with thick layers of clay, whose joists shook like a too weak plank40 thrown across an abyss. Some of these platforms extended over three hundred feet, and travelers by tarantass, when crossing them have experienced a nausea41 like sea-sickness.
Michael Strogoff, whether the soil beneath his feet was solid or whether it sank under him, galloped42 on without halt, leaping the space between the rotten joists; but however fast they traveled the horse and the horseman were unable to escape from the sting of the two-winged insects which infest43 this marshy44 country.
Travelers who are obliged to cross the Baraba during the summer take care to provide themselves with masks of horse-hair, to which is attached a coat of mail of very fine wire, which covers their shoulders. Notwithstanding these precautions, there are few who come out of these marshes without having their faces, necks, and hands covered with red spots. The atmosphere there seems to bristle45 with fine needles, and one would almost say that a knight’s armor would not protect him against the darts46 of these dipterals. It is a dreary47 region, which man dearly disputes with tipulae, gnats48, mosquitos, horse-flies, and millions of microscopic49 insects which are not visible to the naked eye; but, although they are not seen, they make themselves felt by their intolerable stinging, to which the most callous50 Siberian hunters have never been able to inure51 themselves.
Michael Strogoff’s horse, stung by these venomous insects, sprang forward as if the rowels of a thousand spurs had pierced his flanks. Mad with rage, he tore along over verst after verst with the speed of an express train, lashing52 his sides with his tail, seeking by the rapidity of his pace an alleviation53 of his torture.
It required as good a horseman as Michael Strogoff not to be thrown by the plungings of his horse, and the sudden stops and bounds which he made to escape from the stings of his persecutors. Having become insensible, so to speak, to physical suffering, possessed only with the one desire to arrive at his destination at whatever cost, he saw during this mad race only one thing — that the road flew rapidly behind him.
Who would have thought that this district of the Baraba, so unhealthy during the summer, could have afforded an asylum54 for human beings? Yet it did so. Several Siberian hamlets appeared from time to time among the giant canes. Men, women, children, and old men, clad in the skins of beasts, their faces covered with hardened blisters55 of skin, pastured their poor herds of sheep. In order to preserve the animals from the attack of the insects, they drove them to the leeward56 of fires of green wood, which were kept burning night and day, and the pungent57 smoke of which floated over the vast swamp.
When Michael Strogoff perceived that his horse, tired out, was on the point of succumbing58, he halted at one of these wretched hamlets, and there, forgetting his own fatigue, he himself rubbed the wounds of the poor animal with hot grease according to the Siberian custom; then he gave him a good feed; and it was only after he had well groomed59 and provided for him that he thought of himself, and recruited his strength by a hasty meal of bread and meat and a glass of kwass. One hour afterwards, or at the most two, he resumed with all speed the interminable road to Irkutsk.
On the 30th of July, at four o’clock in the afternoon, Michael Strogoff, insensible of every fatigue, arrived at Elamsk. There it became necessary to give a night’s rest to his horse. The brave animal could no longer have continued the journey. At Elamsk, as indeed elsewhere, there existed no means of transport — for the same reasons as at the previous villages, neither carriages nor horses were to be had.
Michael Strogoff resigned himself therefore to pass the night at Elamsk, to give his horse twelve hours’ rest. He recalled the instructions which had been given to him at Moscow — to cross Siberia incognito, to arrive at Irkutsk, but not to sacrifice success to the rapidity of the journey; and consequently it was necessary that he should husband the sole means of transport which remained to him.
On the morrow, Michael Strogoff left Elamsk at the moment when the first Tartar scouts60 were signaled ten versts behind upon the road to the Baraba, and he plunged61 again into the swampy region. The road was level, which made it easy, but very tortuous62, and therefore long. It was impossible, moreover, to leave it, and to strike a straight line across that impassable network of pools and bogs63.
On the next day, the 1st of August, eighty miles farther, Michael Strogoff arrived at midday at the town of Spaskoe, and at two o’clock he halted at Pokrowskoe. His horse, jaded64 since his departure from Elamsk, could not have taken a single step more.
There Michael Strogoff was again compelled to lose, for necessary rest, the end of that day and the entire night; but starting again on the following morning, and still traversing the semi-inundated soil, on the 2nd of August, at four o’clock in the afternoon, after a stage of fifty miles he reached Kamsk.
The country had changed. This little village of Kamsk lies, like an island, habitable and healthy, in the midst of the uninhabitable district. It is situated in the very center of the Baraba. The emigration caused by the Tartar invasion had not yet depopulated this little town of Kamsk. Its inhabitants probably fancied themselves safe in the center of the Baraba, whence at least they thought they would have time to flee if they were directly menaced.
Michael Strogoff, although exceedingly anxious for news, could ascertain65 nothing at this place. It would have been rather to him that the Governor would have addressed himself had he known who the pretended merchant of Irkutsk really was. Kamsk, in fact, by its very situation seemed to be outside the Siberian world and the grave events which troubled it.
Besides, Michael Strogoff showed himself little, if at all. To be unperceived was not now enough for him: he would have wished to be invisible. The experience of the past made him more and more circumspect66 in the present and the future. Therefore he secluded67 himself, and not caring to traverse the streets of the village, he would not even leave the inn at which he had halted.
As for his horse, he did not even think of exchanging him for another animal. He had become accustomed to this brave creature. He knew to what extent he could rely upon him. In buying him at Omsk he had been lucky, and in taking him to the postmaster the generous mujik had rendered him a great service. Besides, if Michael Strogoff had already become attached to his horse, the horse himself seemed to become inured68, by degrees, to the fatigue of such a journey, and provided that he got several hours of repose69 daily, his rider might hope that he would carry him beyond the invaded provinces.
So, during the evening and night of the 2nd of August, Michael Strogoff remained confined to his inn, at the entrance of the town; which was little frequented and out of the way of the importunate70 and curious.
Exhausted71 with fatigue, he went to bed after having seen that his horse lacked nothing; but his sleep was broken. What he had seen since his departure from Moscow showed him the importance of his mission. The rising was an extremely serious one, and the treachery of Ogareff made it still more formidable. And when his eyes fell upon the letter bearing upon it the authority of the imperial seal — the letter which, no doubt, contained the remedy for so many evils, the safety of all this war-ravaged country — Michael Strogoff felt within himself a fierce desire to dash on across the steppe, to accomplish the distance which separated him from Irkutsk as the crow would fly it, to be an eagle that he might overtop all obstacles, to be a hurricane that he might sweep through the air at a hundred versts an hour, and to be at last face to face with the Grand Duke, and to exclaim: “Your highness, from his Majesty72 the Czar!”
On the next morning at six o’clock, Michael Strogoff started off again. Thanks to his extreme prudence73 this part of the journey was signalized by no incident whatever. At Oubinsk he gave his horse a whole night’s rest, for he wished on the next day to accomplish the hundred versts which lie between Oubinsk and Ikoulskoe without halting. He started therefore at dawn; but unfortunately the Baraba proved more detestable than ever.
In fact, between Oubinsk and Kamakore the very heavy rains of some previous weeks were retained by this shallow depression as in a water-tight bowl. There was, for a long distance, no break in the succession of swamps, pools, and lakes. One of these lakes — large enough to warrant its geographical74 nomenclature — Tchang, Chinese in name, had to be coasted for more than twenty versts, and this with the greatest difficulty. Hence certain delays occurred, which all the impatience of Michael Strogoff could not avoid. He had been well advised in not taking a carriage at Kamsk, for his horse passed places which would have been impracticable for a conveyance on wheels.
In the evening, at nine o’clock, Michael Strogoff arrived at Ikoulskoe, and halted there over night. In this remote village of the Baraba news of the war was utterly75 wanting. From its situation, this part of the province, lying in the fork formed by the two Tartar columns which had bifurcated76, one upon Omsk and the other upon Tomsk, had hitherto escaped the horrors of the invasion.
But the natural obstacles were now about to disappear, for, if he experienced no delay, Michael Strogoff should on the morrow be free of the Baraba and arrive at Kolyvan. There he would be within eighty miles of Tomsk. He would then be guided by circumstances, and very probably he would decide to go around Tomsk, which, if the news were true, was occupied by Feofar-Khan.
But if the small towns of Ikoulskoe and Karguinsk, which he passed on the next day, were comparatively quiet, owing to their position in the Baraba, was it not to be dreaded77 that, upon the right banks of the Obi, Michael Strogoff would have much more to fear from man? It was probable. However, should it become necessary, he would not hesitate to abandon the beaten path to Irkutsk. To journey then across the steppe he would, no doubt, run the risk of finding himself without supplies. There would be, in fact, no longer a well-marked road. Still, there must be no hesitation.
Finally, towards half past three in the afternoon, Michael Strogoff left the last depressions of the Baraba, and the dry and hard soil of Siberia rang out once more beneath his horse’s hoofs78.
He had left Moscow on the 15th of July. Therefore on this day, the 5th of August, including more than seventy hours lost on the banks of the Irtych, twenty days had gone by since his departure.
One thousand miles still separated him from Irkutsk.
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1
marshes
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| n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 ) | |
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promptly
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| adv.及时地，敏捷地 | |
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breaches
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| 破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背 | |
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galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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situated
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| adj.坐落在...的，处于某种境地的 | |
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halfway
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| adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途 | |
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incognito
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| adv.匿名地；n.隐姓埋名；adj.化装的，用假名的，隐匿姓名身份的 | |
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atone
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| v.赎罪，补偿 | |
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imbuing
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| v.使（某人/某事）充满或激起（感情等）( imbue的现在分词 )；使充满；灌输；激发（强烈感情或品质等） | |
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feverish
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| adj.发烧的，狂热的，兴奋的 | |
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impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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conveyance
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| n.(不动产等的)转让，让与；转让证书；传送；运送；表达；（正）运输工具 | |
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13
refreshment
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| n.恢复，精神爽快，提神之事物；（复数）refreshments:点心，茶点 | |
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propitious
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| adj.吉利的；顺利的 | |
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devoid
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| adj.全无的，缺乏的 | |
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hesitation
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| n.犹豫，踌躇 | |
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melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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possessed
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| adj.疯狂的；拥有的，占有的 | |
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destined
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| adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的 | |
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swampy
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| adj.沼泽的，湿地的 | |
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surmount
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| vt.克服；置于…顶上 | |
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outlet
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| n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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impermeable
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| adj.不能透过的，不渗透的 | |
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entails
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| 使…成为必要( entail的第三人称单数 )； 需要； 限定继承； 使必需 | |
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fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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grassy
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| adj.盖满草的；长满草的 | |
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herds
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| 兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众 | |
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canes
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| n.（某些植物，如竹或甘蔗的）茎( cane的名词复数 )；（用于制作家具等的）竹竿；竹杖 | |
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cane
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| n.手杖，细长的茎，藤条；v.以杖击，以藤编制的 | |
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tangled
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| adj. 纠缠的，紊乱的 动词tangle的过去式和过去分词 | |
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remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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aquatic
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| adj.水生的，水栖的 | |
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dispersed
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| adj. 被驱散的, 被分散的, 散布的 | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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thicket
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| n.灌木丛，树林 | |
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winding
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| n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈 | |
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stagnant
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| adj.不流动的，停滞的，不景气的 | |
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tottering
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| adj.蹒跚的，动摇的v.走得或动得不稳( totter的现在分词 )；踉跄；蹒跚；摇摇欲坠 | |
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40
plank
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| n.板条，木板，政策要点，政纲条目 | |
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nausea
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| n.作呕，恶心；极端的憎恶(或厌恶) | |
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42
galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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43
infest
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| v.大批出没于；侵扰；寄生于 | |
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marshy
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| adj.沼泽的 | |
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bristle
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| v.（毛发）直立，气势汹汹，发怒；n.硬毛发 | |
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46
darts
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| n.掷飞镖游戏；飞镖( dart的名词复数 )；急驰，飞奔v.投掷，投射( dart的第三人称单数 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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47
dreary
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| adj.令人沮丧的，沉闷的，单调乏味的 | |
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gnats
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| n.叮人小虫( gnat的名词复数 ) | |
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49
microscopic
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| adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的 | |
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50
callous
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| adj.无情的，冷淡的，硬结的，起老茧的 | |
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51
inure
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| v.使惯于 | |
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52
lashing
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| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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53
alleviation
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| n. 减轻，缓和，解痛物 | |
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54
asylum
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| n.避难所，庇护所，避难 | |
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blisters
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| n.水疱( blister的名词复数 )；水肿；气泡 | |
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56
leeward
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| adj.背风的；下风的 | |
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pungent
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| adj.（气味、味道）刺激性的，辛辣的；尖锐的 | |
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succumbing
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| 不再抵抗（诱惑、疾病、攻击等）( succumb的现在分词 )； 屈从； 被压垮； 死 | |
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groomed
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| v.照料或梳洗（马等）( groom的过去式和过去分词 )；使做好准备；训练；（给动物）擦洗 | |
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scouts
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| 侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员 | |
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61
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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tortuous
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| adj.弯弯曲曲的，蜿蜒的 | |
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bogs
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| n.沼泽，泥塘( bog的名词复数 )；厕所v.（使）陷入泥沼， （使）陷入困境( bog的第三人称单数 )；妨碍，阻碍 | |
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64
jaded
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| adj.精疲力竭的；厌倦的；（因过饱或过多而）腻烦的；迟钝的 | |
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65
ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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circumspect
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| adj.慎重的，谨慎的 | |
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67
secluded
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| adj.与世隔绝的；隐退的；偏僻的v.使隔开，使隐退( seclude的过去式和过去分词) | |
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inured
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| adj.坚强的，习惯的 | |
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repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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importunate
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| adj.强求的；纠缠不休的 | |
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exhausted
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| adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的 | |
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72
majesty
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| n.雄伟，壮丽，庄严，威严；最高权威，王权 | |
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prudence
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| n.谨慎，精明，节俭 | |
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geographical
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| adj.地理的；地区(性)的 | |
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utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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76
bifurcated
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| a.分为两部分 | |
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dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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