ulogne. But
Madame V---- the bride of a Government official had arrived here too
recently to acquire the mildewed appearance (I can use no other term),
which every woman seems to acquire after a prolonged residence in
Yakutsk. The meal was a merry one and was followed by music and dancing
until nightfall, when another repast was served. By the way, although
the pangs of hunger had often assailed us on the road, the frequency of
meals here was our greatest trial. For they seemed to continue at short
intervals throughout the twenty-four hours. The house of our host, the
Chief of Police, was, for Yakutsk, an extremely quiet and orderly one,
and yet I never once succeeded in getting to bed before 4 o'clock in the
morning, chiefly because the principal meal of the day was only served
at midnight. Breakfast at 9 A.M. consisted of such dainties as black
bread, smoked fish, and _cheese_! This was followed at mid-day by a
heavier meal, where wines, beer, and fiery _vodka_ played an important
part. At 3 P.M. a dinner of several courses was discussed, and at 8 P.M.
tea (accompanied by sweets and cakes) was again partaken of. The
midnight supper aforementioned wound up the day. A sideboard in the
dining-room was laid out with salt fish, ham, _caviar_, raw cucumber,
&c., for snacks at odd moments! There was seldom more than about three
or four hours sleep, but a siesta was generally indulged in from 4 to 7
P.M., and a stay of ten days here convinced me of the wisdom of this
arrangement. Most of the men passed their evenings in gambling at cards,
but the women appeared to have absolutely no occupation of a rational
kind. The entire city only boasted of three pianos, but nearly every
house possessed a gramophone, which generally provided the music after
dinner, when the ladies would sit in a silent circle and listen to the
ruthless assassination of Massenet and Mascagni, while the men played
cards or walked up and down the room chatting and smoking, and
frequently adjourning to the buffet, which in Yakutsk is seldom far
distant. Once a month an amateur performance is given at the club, and
we attended one of these entertainments, which was of a wearisome
description, commencing at about 6 P.M. and lasting till long after
midnight. Of course there was, as usual, plenty to eat and drink between
the acts.[19]

[Footnote 19: The Russian Admiral Von Wrangell (who visited Yakutsk in
1820) wrote: "The inhabitants are not in an advanced state