26 THROUGH RUSSIA OAT A MUSTANG. 



latter gentleman handed me a card, on which his name 

 and profession were set forth modestly as follows: 



" Neil Ivanovitch Bogdanoffsky, correspondent Nor- 

 thern Telegraph Agency, of the gazette Novosti, and 

 of the Society of Russian Dramatic Authors and 

 Operatic Composers, Novgorod. Own house and own 

 horse." 



The last item of Mr. Bogdanoffsky's identity meant 

 that he lived in his own house and rode his own horse ; 

 that is to say, he was a free-lance as distinct from Mr. 

 Sergie Riskin and kindred members of the profession, 

 who are employees at a few rubles a month and a 

 house to live in, and who, when called upon to under- 

 take a horseback journey, have to ride a hired animal 

 or one belonging to the newspaper. 



Mr. Riskin did most of the talking. Alluding to 

 the Cossack's taciturnity : " Paishkoff is a man of 

 deeds," said he, " rather than words. He is small in 

 stature, yet bigger than all the Cossacks of his escort 

 put together." 



Riskin had accompanied the Cossack from Nijni- 

 Novgorod, sending daily reports of his progress to the 

 Listok. Whether a man of deeds himself, he was most 

 decidedly a man of words. He was jolly, yet in de- 

 spair. His paper, he said, had given him 1500 rubles 

 to cover expenses from Nijni-Novgorod to St. Peters- 

 burg, and, " posheevnoi ! ' he had but eighty left. All 

 the money had gone drinking vodka and having good 

 times with police officers and others along the route ; 

 and now what would he be able to do at St. Peters- 

 burg, where, for the honor and glory of his paper, he 

 was expected to drive out in grand style to meet 



