. Thirty-five years in Russia . herefore, actingon the opinion of my advisers and friends, in duecourse resigned my appointment into other hands. On leaving the Russian Steam Navigation Company,I almost immediately received an invitation from avery large firm of timber merchants, requesting meto go to Constantinople to inspect for them a largetug-boat named Napoleon III. They had been intreaty for this boat some time, intending to purchaseit on a favourable report, for the purpose of towingthe immense rafts of timber which during the springdescend the River Dnieper from the forest regions inth
. Thirty-five years in Russia . herefore, actingon the opinion of my advisers and friends, in duecourse resigned my appointment into other hands. On leaving the Russian Steam Navigation Company,I almost immediately received an invitation from avery large firm of timber merchants, requesting meto go to Constantinople to inspect for them a largetug-boat named Napoleon III. They had been intreaty for this boat some time, intending to purchaseit on a favourable report, for the purpose of towingthe immense rafts of timber which during the springdescend the River Dnieper from the forest regions inthe north. The agreement having been signed, I pro-ceeded to the Golden Horn, accompanied by thecaptain that they had appointed, and after visitingthe vessel we arranged for the vendors to have herdry-docked for thorough inspection. Following on ourreport, the vessel was purchased and thoroughly over-hauled, the various necessary repairs occupying aboutsix weeks. When she was ballasted and provided with a scratch 1 Now 48] RUSSIAN PEASANT. IN RUSSIA 49 crew, we made ready to sail. A long time previous tothis I had been increasingly anxious as to the sobrietyof our captain. On several occasions he had seemedto me to be subject to hallucinations and fits of depres-sion, but I was not prepared for the events whichensued during our voyage to Odessa. On leaving theBosphorus, we met with one of those sudden stormswhich so often arise in the Black Sea, and for a wholeweek we were being buffeted and tossed about by thewaves, in perfect ignorance of our position, with a coalsupply gradually diminishing ; but worst of all, thecaptain was lying drunk in his cabin nearly the wholetime. At last the men came to me and asked meto take charge of the vessel; but being ignorant of ourposition, and no sun appearing by which to take ourbearings, we drifted on. I had both the cabins and bunks searched for alcohol,and found in a locker a small barrelful, which Iordered to be carried up and
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