RETURN TO KERTCH. 183 



dead beat, and every effort they made almost pulled 

 the wheels off in the heavy clay. The four passed 

 us in the darkness with a jeer from their yemst- 

 chik. But they too had had enough of it, and as 

 the lights of the post-station were now in sight, 

 they were content to keep just in front of us, going 

 like ourselves almost at a foot pace. 



A bright idea struck me. The first ' podorojna ' 

 presented gets the team, if both ' podorqjnas ' are of 

 equal urgency, and there is only one team to have. 

 We were now not many hundred yards from the 

 station. Touching my driver on the back, I told 

 him to take no notice of me : so ridding 1 myself of 



O %/ 



my wraps, with the travelling ticket in my hand, I 

 slipped off the tarantasse into the mud, and making 

 a considerable detour to escape observation which, 

 owing to the darkness and the triumphant security 

 of the others, was not difficult I ran my best, and 

 arriving considerably before the Russian officer, 

 handed in my ' podorojna,' and had the yemstchik 

 out after the fresh team before my rival entered the 

 office. When he met me coming out his face was 

 good to behold ; but when 1 had explained how 

 I had done him, he took his beating like a man, 

 and invited me to share his basket of provisions 

 and a bottle of wine before parting company. I 

 hope he had not long to wait lor horses. 



( >n the steamer which took me from Taman to 

 Kertch was a cargo of fish for the Kertch ba/aar, 



