and fears of those sixteen other lives, that it came as a surprise to find the tears coursing down our cheeks, to regain our own identity as individual men and women, and to realize what the nervous strain had been, now that it was over.

14. As I went to my room, I took one last look at the sea. We were well under way again. The waters were black and angry. The heavens were overcast and sullen, but a brilliant streak of orange sunset-light glowed along the horizon, with the masts of the deserted vessel standing out against it, its signal of distress still fluttering as we first saw it. -Louisa Lee Schuyler.

ABOVE the pines, the moon was slowly drifting,

The river sang below;

The dim Sierras, far beyond, uplifting

Their minarets of snow.

2. The roaring camp-fire, with rude humor, painted
The ruddy tints of health

On haggard face and form that drooped and fainted
In the fierce race for wealth;

3. Till one arose, and, from his pack's scant treasure,
A hoarded volume drew,

And cards were dropped from hands of listless leisure
To hear the tale anew;

4. And, then, while round them shadows gathered faster, And, as the firelight fell,

He read aloud the book wherein the Master

Had writ of "Little Nell." 2

1 Camp of the gold miners of California.

2 Dickens's story of Little Nell.

5. Perhaps 't was boyish fancy, for the reader

But, as he read, from clustering pine and cedar,
A silence seemed to fall;

6. The fir-trees, gathering closer in the shadows, Listened in every spray,

While the whole camp, with "Nell" on English meadows, Wandered and lost their way.

Their cares dropped from them, like the needles shaken From out the gusty pine.

8. Lost is that camp, and wasted all its fire: And he who wrought that spell?

Ah, towering pine and stately Kentish spire,

Ye have one tale to tell!

9. Lost is that camp! but let its fragrant story
Blend with the breath that thrills

With hop-vines' incense all the pensive glory
That fills the Kentish hills.1

10. And, on that grave where English oak and holly And laurel wreaths entwine,

Deem it not all a too presumptuous folly,

This spray of Western pine!

BRET HARTE.

1 Dickens's residence was at Gadshill, Kent County, England.

CIV. A NIGHT RIDE IN SIBERIA.

MY departure from Irkutsk was delayed several days, owing to the difficulty in obtaining a comfortable kibitka,2 or traveling sleigh. This vehicle is of all sizes, entirely open, or with a hood behind, or completely covered. It has only a single pair of long runners, and, to prevent upsetting, is provided with a guardframe, which, starting from the body of the sleigh in front, spreads out twelve or eighteen inches from the sides at the back end. As soon as the vehicle tips, this frame-work touches the ground, and must break before the carriage can capsize.

2. Every part of the kibitka is thoroughly braced, in a manner to secure the greatest possible strength, as well as lightness, without too great rigidity. These precautions are absolutely necessary, since these sleighs are expected, before wearing out, to make several journeys of from two to four thousand miles, at the rate of ten, and sometimes even of fourteen miles per hour, over roads that are anything but smooth.

3. On the evening of the 6th of February, I left Irkutsk, and started on my lonely journey westward. Following the Russian custom, I had my baggage spread out over the bottom of the sleigh and covered with a quantity of straw. Placing over these a Japanese mattress and a number of fur robes, I secured a bed which was both soft and thick enough to deaden the shocks of rapid traveling over a rough road.

4. Several large pillows were placed at the back, to raise and support the shoulders and head, for the Russians have discovered that a half reclining posture is

1 Ir-kootska town in the northern part of Siberia, near lake Baikil.
2 Ki-bit-kă.

21

the most convenient in traveling, since every muscle is at rest, and yet the elevation of the head permits a view of the surrounding scenery.

5. Having learned by our rough experience in Tartary how necessary it is to clothe one's self in the manner which the natives of the country have found to be the best, I had taken every Russian precaution against the cold. Over a pair of thick and loose woolen

6. My feet were encased in very loose boots made of felt, and reaching nearly to the knee. A Chinese skull-cap of felt, with fur lappels, protected the head and ears, while a long knitted comforter, covering the whole face below the eyes, after being crossed behind the neck and tied under the chin, protected the nose, throat, and lungs.

7. On getting into the sleigh, the traveler puts on, over all his other garments, a wrapper of deer-skin, with the hair outside to break the force of the wind, and furnished with loose sleeves and a collar, which, when raised, envelopes the head and face. Lying down, and putting his feet and legs in a large wolf-skin bag, he pulls over him a fur sleigh-robe which reaches nearly to the chin. He is now ready to defy the greatest severities of even a Siberian winter.

8. The cold, which had been increasing every day, seemed, on the first night out of Irkutsk, to have reached a more intense degree than I had yet experienced; and, before midnight, my hands and feet were nearly frozen. At the first station, I stuffed my boots with dry hay, and was fortunate enough to find a woman with an ample muff, which I bought for a few roubles, and found to be preferable to any gloves.

9. After this, during the whole journey, I never for a minute suffered from cold. The nose is always the most difficult part of the body to protect; but, by pulling the comforter about an inch forward, and holding it there till it stiffens with the frozen breath, the whole face is kept warm by the heat of the breath.

10. Finding myself thoroughly defended against the severity of the weather, I now began to enjoy the wonderful night-scene which surrounded me. Three bounding horses carried the sleigh at almost railway