Michael Strogoff; Or, The Courier of the Czar

  CHAPTER XII IRKUTSK

  IRKUTSK, the capital of Eastern Siberia, is a populous town, containing,in ordinary times, thirty thousand inhabitants. On the right side ofthe Angara rises a hill, on which are built numerous churches, a loftycathedral, and dwellings disposed in picturesque disorder.

  Seen at a distance, from the top of the mountain which rises at abouttwenty versts off along the Siberian highroad, this town, with itscupolas, its bell-towers, its steeples slender as minarets, its domeslike pot-bellied Chinese jars, presents something of an oriental aspect.But this similarity vanishes as the traveler enters.

  The town, half Byzantine, half Chinese, becomes European as soon ashe sees its macadamized roads, bordered with pavements, traversed bycanals, planted with gigantic birches, its houses of brick and wood,some of which have several stories, the numerous equipages which drivealong, not only tarantasses but broughams and coaches; lastly, itsnumerous inhabitants far advanced in civilization, to whom the latestParis fashions are not unknown.

  Being the refuge for all the Siberians of the province, Irkutsk wasat this time very full. Stores of every kind had been collectedin abundance. Irkutsk is the emporium of the innumerable kinds ofmerchandise which are exchanged between China, Central Asia, and Europe.The authorities had therefore no fear with regard to admitting thepeasants of the valley of the Angara, and leaving a desert between theinvaders and the town.

  Irkutsk is the residence of the governor-general of Eastern Siberia.Below him acts a civil governor, in whose hands is the administrationof the province; a head of police, who has much to do in a town whereexiles abound; and, lastly, a mayor, chief of the merchants, and aperson of some importance, from his immense fortune and the influencewhich he exercises over the people.

  The garrison of Irkutsk was at that time composed of an infantryregiment of Cossacks, consisting of two thousand men, and a body ofpolice wearing helmets and blue uniforms laced with silver. Besides,as has been said, in consequence of the events which had occurred, thebrother of the Czar had been shut up in the town since the beginning ofthe invasion.

  A journey of political importance had taken the Grand Duke to thesedistant provinces of Central Asia. After passing through the principalSiberian cities, the Grand Duke, who traveled en militaire rather thanen prince, without any parade, accompanied by his officers, and escortedby a regiment of Cossacks, arrived in the Trans-Baikalcine provinces.Nikolaevsk, the last Russian town situated on the shore of the Sea ofOkhotsk, had been honored by a visit from him. Arrived on the confinesof the immense Muscovite Empire, the Grand Duke was returning towardsIrkutsk, from which place he intended to retake the road to Moscow,when, sudden as a thunder clap, came the news of the invasion.

  He hastened to the capital, but only reached it just beforecommunication with Russia had been interrupted. There was time toreceive only a few telegrams from St. Petersburg and Moscow, and withdifficulty to answer them before the wire was cut. Irkutsk was isolatedfrom the rest of the world.

  The Grand Duke had now only to prepare for resistance, and this hedid with that determination and coolness of which, under othercircumstances, he had given incontestable proofs. The news of thetaking of Ichim, Omsk, and Tomsk, successively reached Irkutsk. It wasnecessary at any price to save the capital of Siberia. Reinforcementscould not be expected for some time. The few troops scattered about inthe provinces of Siberia could not arrive in sufficiently large numbersto arrest the progress of the Tartar columns. Since therefore it wasimpossible for Irkutsk to escape attack, the most important thing to bedone was to put the town in a state to sustain a siege of some duration.

  The preparations were begun on the day Tomsk fell into the hands of theTartars. At the same time with this last news, the Grand Duke heard thatthe Emir of Bokhara and the allied Khans were directing the invasionin person, but what he did not know was, that the lieutenant of thesebarbarous chiefs was Ivan Ogareff, a Russian officer whom he had himselfreduced to the ranks, but with whose person he was not acquainted.

  First of all, as we have seen, the inhabitants of the province ofIrkutsk were compelled to abandon the towns and villages. Those whodid not take refuge in the capital had to retire beyond Lake Baikal, adistrict to which the invasion would probably not extend its ravages.The harvests of corn and fodder were collected and stored up in thetown, and Irkutsk, the last bulwark of the Muscovite power in theFar East, was put in a condition to resist the enemy for a lengthenedperiod.

  Irkutsk, founded in 1611, is situated at the confluence of the Irkutand the Angara, on the right bank of the latter river. Two woodendraw-bridges, built on piles, connected the town with its suburbs on theleft bank. On this side, defence was easy. The suburbs were abandoned,the bridges destroyed. The Angara being here very wide, it would not bepossible to pass it under the fire of the besieged.

  But the river might be crossed both above and below the town, andconsequently, Irkutsk ran a risk of being attacked on its east side, onwhich there was no wall to protect it.

  The whole population were immediately set to work on the fortifications.They labored day and night. The Grand Duke observed with satisfactionthe zeal exhibited by the people in the work, whom ere long he wouldfind equally courageous in the defense. Soldiers, merchants, exiles,peasants, all devoted themselves to the common safety. A week before theTartars appeared on the Angara, earth-works had been raised. A fosse,flooded by the waters of the Angara, was dug between the scarp andcounterscarp. The town could not now be taken by a coup de main. It mustbe invested and besieged.

  The third Tartar column--the one which came up the valley of the Yeniseion the 24th of September--appeared in sight of Irkutsk. It immediatelyoccupied the deserted suburbs, every building in which had beendestroyed so as not to impede the fire of the Grand Duke's guns,unfortunately but few in number and of small caliber. The Tartar troopsas they arrived organized a camp on the bank of the Angara, whilstwaiting the arrival of the two other columns, commanded by the Emir andhis allies.

  The junction of these different bodies was effected on the 25th ofSeptember, in the Angara camp, and the whole of the invading army,except the garrisons left in the principal conquered towns, wasconcentrated under the command of Feofar-Khan.

  The passage of the Angara in front of Irkutsk having been regardedby Ogareff as impracticable, a strong body of troops crossed, severalversts up the river, by means of bridges formed with boats. The GrandDuke did not attempt to oppose the enemy in their passage. He could onlyimpede, not prevent it, having no field-artillery at his disposal, andhe therefore remained in Irkutsk.

  The Tartars now occupied the right bank of the river; then, advancingtowards the town, they burnt, in passing, the summer-house of thegovernor-general, and at last having entirely invested Irkutsk, took uptheir positions for the siege.

  Ivan Ogareff, who was a clever engineer, was perfectly competentto direct a regular siege; but he did not possess the materials foroperating rapidly. He was disappointed too in the chief object of allhis efforts--the surprise of Irkutsk. Things had not turned out as hehoped. First, the march of the Tartar army was delayed by the battle ofTomsk; and secondly, the preparations for the defense were made far morerapidly than he had supposed possible; these two things had balked hisplans. He was now under the necessity of instituting a regular siege ofthe town.

  However, by his suggestion, the Emir twice attempted the capture of theplace, at the cost of a large sacrifice of men. He threw soldiers on theearth-works which presented any weak point; but these two assaults wererepulsed with the greatest courage. The Grand Duke and his officers didnot spare themselves on this occasion. They appeared in person; theyled the civil population to the ramparts. Citizens and peasants both didtheir duty.

  At the second attack, the Tartars managed to force one of the gates. Afight took place at the head of Bolchaia Street, two versts long, on thebanks of the Angara. But the Cossacks, the police, the citizens, unitedin so fierce a resistance that the Tartars were driven out.

  Ivan Ogare
ff then thought of obtaining by stratagem what he could notgain by force. We have said that his plan was to penetrate into thetown, make his way to the Grand Duke, gain his confidence, and, when thetime came, give up the gates to the besiegers; and, that done, wreakhis vengeance on the brother of the Czar. The Tsigane Sangarre, who hadaccompanied him to the Angara, urged him to put this plan in execution.

  Indeed, it was necessary to act without delay. The Russian troops fromthe government of Yakutsk were advancing towards Irkutsk. They hadconcentrated along the upper course of the Lena. In six days they wouldarrive. Therefore, before six days had passed, Irkutsk must be betrayed.Ogareff hesitated no longer.

  One evening, the 2d of October, a council of war was held in the grandsaloon of the palace of the governor-general. This palace, standing atthe end of Bolchaia Street, overlooked the river. From its windows couldbe seen the camp of the Tartars, and had the invaders possessed guns ofwider range, they would have rendered the palace uninhabitable.

  The Grand Duke, General Voranzoff, the governor of the town, andthe chief of the merchants, with several officers, had collected todetermine upon various proposals.

  "Gentlemen," said the Grand Duke, "you know our situation exactly. Ihave the firm hope that we shall be able to hold out until the arrivalof the Yakutsk troops. We shall then be able to drive off thesebarbarian hordes, and it will not be my fault if they do not pay dearlyfor this invasion of the Muscovite territory."

  "Your Highness knows that all the population of Irkutsk may be reliedon," said General Voranzoff.

  "Yes, general," replied the Grand Duke, "and I do justice to theirpatriotism. Thanks to God, they have not yet been subjected to thehorrors of epidemic and famine, and I have reason to hope that they willescape them; but I cannot admire their courage on the ramparts enough.You hear my words, Sir Merchant, and I beg you to repeat such to them."

  "I thank your Highness in the name of the town," answered the merchantchief. "May I ask you what is the most distant date when we may expectthe relieving army?"

  "Six days at most, sir," replied the Grand Duke. "A brave and clevermessenger managed this morning to get into the town, and he told me thatfifty thousand Russians under General Kisselef, are advancing by forcedmarches. Two days ago, they were on the banks of the Lena, at Kirensk,and now, neither frost nor snow will keep them back. Fifty thousand goodmen, taking the Tartars on the flank, will soon set us free."

  "I will add," said the chief of the merchants, "that we shall beready to execute your orders, any day that your Highness may command asortie."

  "Good, sir," replied the Grand Duke. "Wait till the heads of therelieving columns appear on the heights, and we will speedily crushthese invaders."

  Then turning to General Voranzoff, "To-morrow," said he, "we will visitthe works on the right bank. Ice is drifting down the Angara, whichwill not be long in freezing, and in that case the Tartars might perhapscross."

  "Will your Highness allow me to make an observation?" said the chief ofthe merchants.

  "Do so, sir."

  "I have more than once seen the temperature fall to thirty and fortydegrees below zero, and the Angara has still carried down drifting icewithout entirely freezing. This is no doubt owing to the swiftness ofits current. If therefore the Tartars have no other means of crossingthe river, I can assure your Highness that they will not enter Irkutskin that way."

  The governor-general confirmed this assertion.

  "It is a fortunate circumstance," responded the Grand Duke."Nevertheless, we must hold ourselves ready for any emergency."

  He then, turning towards the head of the police, asked, "Have younothing to say to me, sir?"

  "I have your Highness," answered the head of police, "a petition whichis addressed to you through me."

  "Addressed by whom?"

  "By the Siberian exiles, whom, as your Highness knows, are in the townto the number of five hundred."

  The political exiles, distributed over the province, had been collectedin Irkutsk, from the beginning of the invasion. They had obeyed theorder to rally in the town, and leave the villages where they exercisedtheir different professions, some doctors, some professors, eitherat the Gymnasium, or at the Japanese School, or at the School ofNavigation. The Grand Duke, trusting like the Czar in their patriotism,had armed them, and they had thoroughly proved their bravery.

  "What do the exiles ask?" said the Grand Duke.

  "They ask the consent of your Highness," answered the head of police,"to their forming a special corps and being placed in the front of thefirst sortie."

  "Yes," replied the Grand Duke with an emotion which he did not seek tohide, "these exiles are Russians, and it is their right to fight fortheir country!"

  "I believe I may assure your Highness," said the governor-general, "youwill have no better soldiers."

  "But they must have a chief," said the Grand Duke, "who will he be?"

  "They wish to recommend to your Highness," said the head of police, "oneof their number, who has distinguished himself on several occasions."

  "Is he a Russian?"

  "Yes, a Russian from the Baltic provinces."

  "His name?"

  "Is Wassili Fedor."

  This exile was Nadia's father. Wassili Fedor, as we have already said,followed his profession of a medical man in Irkutsk. He was clever andcharitable, and also possessed the greatest courage and most sincerepatriotism. All the time which he did not devote to the sick he employedin organizing the defense. It was he who had united his companionsin exile in the common cause. The exiles, till then mingled with thepopulation, had behaved in such a way as to draw on themselves theattention of the Grand Duke. In several sorties, they had paid withtheir blood their debt to holy Russia--holy as they believe, and adoredby her children! Wassili Fedor had behaved heroically; his name had beenmentioned several times, but he never asked either thanks or favors, andwhen the exiles of Irkutsk thought of forming themselves into a specialcorps, he was ignorant of their intention of choosing him for theircaptain.

  When the head of police mentioned this name, the Grand Duke answeredthat it was not unknown to him.

  "Indeed," remarked General Voranzoff, "Wassili Fedor is a man of worthand courage. His influence over his companions has always been verygreat."

  "How long has he been at Irkutsk?" asked the Duke.

  "For two years."

  "And his conduct?"

  "His conduct," answered the head of police, "is that of a man obedientto the special laws which govern him."

  "General," said the Grand Duke, "General, be good enough to present himto me immediately."

  The orders of the Grand Duke were obeyed, and before half an hour hadpassed, Fedor was introduced into his presence. He was a man over forty,tall, of a stern and sad countenance. One felt that his whole life wassummed up in a single word--strife--he had striven and suffered. Hisfeatures bore a marked resemblance to those of his daughter, NadiaFedor.

  This Tartar invasion had severely wounded him in his tenderestaffections, and ruined the hope of the father, exiled eight thousandversts from his native town. A letter had apprised him of the death ofhis wife, and at the same time of the departure of his daughter, who hadobtained from the government an authorization to join him at Irkutsk.Nadia must have left Riga on the 10th of July. The invasion had begunon the 15th of July; if at that time Nadia had passed the frontier, whatcould have become of her in the midst of the invaders? The anxietyof the unhappy father may be supposed when, from that time, he had nofurther news of his daughter.

  Wassili Fedor entered the presence of the Grand Duke, bowed, and waitedto be questioned.

  "Wassili Fedor," said the Grand Duke, "your companions in exile haveasked to be allowed to form a select corps. They are not ignorant thatin this corps they must make up their minds to be killed to the lastman?"

  "They are not ignorant of it," replied Fedor.

  "They wish to have you for their captain."

  "I, your Highness?"

&nb
sp; "Do you consent to be placed at their head?"

  "Yes, if it is for the good of Russia."

  "Captain Fedor," said the Grand Duke, "you are no longer an exile."

  "Thanks, your Highness, but can I command those who are so still?"

  "They are so no longer!" The brother of the Czar had granted a pardon toall Fedor's companions in exile, now his companions in arms!

  Wassili Fedor wrung, with emotion, the hand which the Grand Duke heldout to him, and retired.

  The latter, turned to his officers, "The Czar will not refuse to ratifythat pardon," said he, smiling; "we need heroes to defend the capital ofSiberia, and I have just made some."

  This pardon, so generously accorded to the exiles of Irkutsk, was indeedan act of real justice and sound policy.

  It was now night. Through the windows of the palace burned the fires ofthe Tartar camp, flickering beyond the Angara. Down the river driftednumerous blocks of ice, some of which stuck on the piles of the oldbridges; others were swept along by the current with great rapidity.It was evident, as the merchant had observed, that it would be verydifficult for the Angara to freeze all over. The defenders of Irkutskhad not to dread being attacked on that side. Ten o'clock had juststruck. The Grand Duke was about to dismiss his officers and retire tohis apartments, when a tumult was heard outside the palace.

  Almost immediately the door was thrown open, an aide-de-camp appeared,and advanced rapidly towards the Grand Duke.

  "Your Highness," said he, "a courier from the Czar!"