fit themselves for the fatigues of that day's journey.

But it did not end so; for the next day came a great multitude of the
country people, not only of this village, but of a hundred more, for
aught I know, to the town-gates; and in a most outrageous manner
demanded satisfaction of the Russian governor, for the insulting their
priests, and burning their great Cham-Chi-Thaungu; such a hard name they
gave the monstrous creature they worshipped. The people of Nertzinskay
were at first in a great consternation; for they said the Tartars were
no less than thirty thousand, and that in a few days more they would be
one hundred thousand stronger.

The Russian governor sent out messengers to appease them, and gave them
all the good words imaginable. He assured them he knew nothing of it,
and that there had not a soul of his garrison been abroad; that it could
not be from any body there; and if they would let him know who it was,
he should be exemplarily punished. They returned haughtily, That all the
country reverenced the great Cham-Chi-Thaungu, who dwelt in the son,
and no mortal would have dared to offer violence to his image, but some
Christian miscreant; so they called them, it seems; and they therefore
denounced war against him, and all the Russians, who, they said, were
miscreants and Christians.

The governor, still patient, and unwilling to make a breach, or to have
any cause of war alleged to be given by him, the czar having straitly
charged him to treat the conquered country with gentleness and civility,
gave them still all the good words he could; at last he told them, there
was a caravan gone towards Russia that morning, and perhaps it was some
of them who had done them this injury; and that, if they would be
satisfied with that, he would send after them, to inquire into it. This
seemed to appease them a little; and accordingly the governor sent after
us, and gave us a particular account how the thing was, intimating
withal, that if any in our caravan had done it, they should make their
escape; but that whether they had done it or no, we should make all the
haste forward that was possible; and that in the meantime he would keep
them in play as long as he could.

This was very friendly in the governor. However, when it came to the
caravan, there was nobody knew any thing of the matter; and, as for us
that were guilty, we were the least of all suspected; none so much as
asked us the question; however, the captai