ct disarm wrath at the rare little liberties which
they take. Even their way of addressing their former masters by the
familiar "thou" betokens respectful affection, not impertinence.

Our men soon wearied of pulling against the powerful current, dodging
the steamers and the tug-boats with their strings of barks signaled by
constellations of colored lanterns high in air. Perhaps they would have
borne up better had we been able to obtain some Astrakhan watermelons
from the steamer wharves, which we besieged in turn as we passed. They
proposed to tow us. On Piotr's assurance that it would be a far swifter
mode of locomotion, and that they would pay no more visits to "their
gardens," we consented. They set up a mast through an opening in one of
the thwarts, passed through a hole in its top a cord the size of a
cod-line, fastened this to the stern of the boat, and leaped ashore with
the free end. Off they darted, galloping like horses along the old
tow-path, and singing vigorously. Piotr remained on board to steer. As
we dashed rapidly through the water, we gained practical knowledge of
the manner in which every pound of merchandise was hauled to the great
Fair from Astrakhan, fourteen hundred and forty miles, before the
introduction of steamers, except in the comparatively rare cases where
oxen were made to wind windlasses on the deck of a bark. It would have
required hours of hard rowing to reach our goal; but by this means we
were soon walking across the yielding sands to Piotr's cottage. Our
cunning rogues of boatmen took advantage of our scattered march to
obtain from us separately such installments of tea-money as must, in the
aggregate, have rendered them hilarious for days to come, if they paid
themselves for their minstrelsy in the coin which they had suggested to
us before breakfast.

Piotr's smiling wife, who was small, like most Russian peasant women,
had baked us some half-rye, half-wheat bread, to our order; she made it
remarkably well, much better than Osip. We secured a more lasting
memento of her handiwork in the form of some towel ends, which she had
spun, woven, drawn, and worked very prettily. Some long-haired heads
were thrust over the oven-top to inspect us, but the bodies did not
follow. They were better engaged in enjoying the heat left from the
baking.

It was two o'clock in the morning when we drove through the village
flock of sheep, that lay asleep on the grassy street. With hand on
pistol, to