Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - XIII. A Ruined Family
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He was to bid farewell to all that was dear to his heart,
but he was also to escape from the unendurable horrors
of his solitary cell. He longed to see people, to hear
the sound of their voices, to watch their daily occupation,
and divert his painful thoughts by the study of Nature,
which in its cruellest moods is kinder than the savagery of
men.
It took him four months to reach his destination, a wretched
little village in the province of Irkutsk, about 200 kilometres
from the capital. Here he must spend eight years without
going out of bounds. By a great stroke of fortune his
former room-mate was sent to the same place, and they could
at least converse on matters of common interest to both, and
keep up each other’s courage by the exchange of their most
intimate thoughts. Otherwise their seclusion without books
or papers would have been but few removes from that of their
solitary cells.
A small portion of land was given them, which they
cultivated, and they began to make shoes, in order to earn
their living. There were, however, two obstacles that proved
fatal to this occupation: they could neither procure the
needful material nor sell their finished products. One thing
after another they tried, but they were so fettered by restriction
that want and despair frequently stared them in the face.
Only twice a year or so could they receive news from home;
the mail took three months in winter-time, when the roads
were good, and in spring and autumn six months. Not only
so, but all missives and packages addressed to prisoners had
to pass through the hands of the police. So it happened that
things for winter use, despatched in time, would reach them
the following summer, when they were of no use. Through
this delay and irregularity Alexander and his comrade
frequently suffered hunger and cold, for want of the money
and goods detained on the way.
They petitioned the authorities for permission to settle in
some place nearer a town, where they could, at least, earn
something for their support. This was finally allowed them,
with increased stringency of police supervision. Still they
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