. Siberia and the exile system. MINES OF NERCHINSK 303 The air in it was damp and comparatively warm, waterdripped from the roofs of the galleries into little pools hereand there on the floors, and the ladders in the main shaftwere slippery with mud. Why it should thaw in this mineand freeze in the mine of Algachi, only four miles away, Icould not understand, nor did Mr. Nesterof seem to be ableto give me a satisfactory explanation. In the mine ofAlgachi there was no water, and the galleries for seventy-five or a hundred feet together were lined with frost-crys-tals and ice. In the mine of Pok
. Siberia and the exile system. MINES OF NERCHINSK 303 The air in it was damp and comparatively warm, waterdripped from the roofs of the galleries into little pools hereand there on the floors, and the ladders in the main shaftwere slippery with mud. Why it should thaw in this mineand freeze in the mine of Algachi, only four miles away, Icould not understand, nor did Mr. Nesterof seem to be ableto give me a satisfactory explanation. In the mine ofAlgachi there was no water, and the galleries for seventy-five or a hundred feet together were lined with frost-crys-tals and ice. In the mine of Pokrofski there was no ice atall, and the shaft and galleries were dripping with air in the Pokrofski mine seemed to be pure, and ourcandles everywhere burned freely. Only a few men wereat work, and they seemed to be engaged in hauling up orein small buckets by means of a cable and a primitive hand-windlass. After climbing up and down slippery ladders until I wascovered with mud, and walking in a bent posture through. THE POKE6FSKI PRISON. low galleries until my back ached, I told Mr. Nesterof thatI was satisfied, and we returned, tired and bathed in per-spiration, to the tool-house. The convict who had accom-panied us through the mine blew out his tallow candle,and without taking the trouble completely to extinguishthe wick laid it, still all aglow, in a small wooden box, 304 SIBERIA which contained among other things a dynamite cartridgebig enough to blow the whole tool-house into the air. Idid not regard myself as naturally timorous or nervous,but when the convict shut down the lid of that box overthe long glowing wick of a tallow candle and a dynamitecartridge with fuse attached, I had business I thought time enough had elapsed for the wick togo out, I reentered the house, washed my muddy handsin the grindstone trough, inspected Mr. Frosts sketches,and asked Mr. Nesterof a long series of questions about themines. The silver-bearing veins or lodes
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