eless empire builder was again on the Pacific Coast in 1858. On
May 21, he founded Blagovestchensk and, after descending the river,
laid the foundation of Khabarofka, at the mouth of the Ussuri. In
October he was back at Kiakhta, arranging for the postal service
between St. Petersburg and the extreme east. On the 26th of August, he
was created Count Amoorsky, or Count of the Amoor, a promotion which
he had well earned. On the 31st of December, a remarkable ukase was
published, beginning "Now that Russia has regained possession of this
valuable region, etc." The entire territory of Eastern Siberia
contained 740,922 square miles, a territory equal to that of all the
Atlantic Coast States, together with Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia,
Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi. This did not include
the Amoor Province, which was placed under the administration of (p. 273)
a governor and eighteen officials, who received a combined annual
salary of $18,873.60, of which the governor received $4680.

Muravieff was back at his post in 1859. Both he and Poutiatine tried
to induce the Japanese to give up Karafuto (Saghalien), but without
success. At this time there was again trouble between China and the
allied British and French, and when in 1860, a British-French force
marched on Peking, Russia had sent another empire builder, General
Ignatieff, to watch if he could not secure something. He did; when the
allies entered Peking, Ignatieff sought Prince Kung and told him that
the "foreign devils" would surely seize the country unless some strong
power compelled them to leave. Russia was willing to do this, because
she had always been fond of China; and all she asked was a strip of
outlying territory of no value to China. Prince Kung gladly signed
away the whole east coast of Manchuria, six hundred miles long; and
Ignatieff redeemed his promise by visiting Lord Elgin and Baron Gros,
the British and French plenipotentiaries. After paying them some
flattering compliments, he made the remark that the Peiho river would
freeze in a few days, and if they did not get out at once, they would
have to stay all winter in Peking. The two gentlemen finished their
business in a hurry, packed up, and left, but not without thanking
Ignatieff for his kindness and reporting the matter to their
government, which did not hear of the Russian's diplomacy until a year
later. This is how Russia extended her empire on the Pacific Coast.

For many years