INTRODUCTION. 3 



likely to leave St. Petersburg shortly for London, going by 

 Berlin, who was quite agreeable to allow me to travel with 

 him for a reasonable consideration ; but the time of his 

 departure did not depend upon himself; nor did the route 

 he should follow ; and time was of importance to me. I 

 then heard of a merchant going to Riga, desirous of some 

 one to share with him the expense of travelling post ; and 

 our arrangements were soon made. 



A sledge made of plane deal, with wooden runners, 

 and a canvas curtain in front, was purchased, a padorozh- 

 naya, or order for post horses was procured, and off we 

 set. Mr Mackenzie Wallace gives the following account 

 of the posting arrangements of Russia : 



' However enduring and long-winded horses may be, 

 they must be allowed sometimes, during a long journey, 

 to rest and feed. Travelling with one's own horses is 

 therefore necessarily a slow operation, and is already 

 antiquated. People who value their time prefer to make 

 use of the Imperial Post-organisation. On all the prin- 

 cipal lines of communication there are regular post- 

 stations, at from ten to twenty miles apart, where a 

 certain number of horses and vehicles are kept for the 

 convenience of travellers. To enjoy the privileges of 

 this arrangement, one has to apply to the proper autho- 

 rities for a " Podorozhnaya " a large sheet of paper 

 stamped with the Imperial Eagle, and bearing the name 

 of the recipient, the destination, and the number of 

 horses to be supplied. In return for this document a 

 small sum is paid for imaginary road repairs ; the rest of 

 the sum is paid by instalments at the respective stations. 

 Armed with this document, you go to the post-station 

 and demand the requisite number of horses. Three is 

 the number generally used, but if you travel lightly, and 

 are indifferent to appearances, you may modestly content 

 yourself with a pair. The vehicle is a kind of Tarantass, 

 but not such as I have elsewhere described. The essentials 

 in both are the same, but those which the Imperial 

 Government provides resemble an enormous cradle on 



