ed travel. In Siberia the plan is particularly
valuable in keeping exiles on the spots assigned them.

At St. Petersburg and Moscow the police keep a directory and hold it
open to the public. When I reached the capital and wished to find some
friends who arrived a few days before me, I obtained their address
from this directory. Those who sought my whereabouts found me in the
same way.

The weather was steadily cold--about zero Fahrenheit--and was called
mild for the season by the residents of Irkutsk. I brought from New
York a heavy overcoat that braved the storms of Broadway the winter
before my departure. My Russian friends pronounced it _nechevo_
(nothing,) and advised me to procure a '_shooba,_' or cloak lined with
fur. The shooba reaches nearly to one's feet, and is better adapted to
riding than walking. It can be lined according to the means and
liberality of the wearer. Sable is most expensive, and sheepskin the
least. Both accomplish the same end, as they contain about equal
quantities of heat.

The streets of Irkutsk are of good width and generally intersect at
right angles. Most of the buildings are of wood, and usually large and
well built. The best houses are of stone, or of brick covered with
plaster to resemble stone. Very few dwellings are entered directly
from the street, the outer doors opening into yards according to the
Russian custom. To visit a person you pass into an enclosure through a
strong gateway, generally open by day but closed at night. A
'_dvornik_' (doorkeeper) has the control of this gate, and is
responsible for everything within it. Storehouses and all other
buildings of the establishment open upon the enclosure, and frequently
two or more houses have one gate in common.

The stores or magazines are numerous, and well supplied with European
goods. Some of the stocks are very large, and must require heavy
capital or excellent credit to manage them. Tailors and milliners are
abundant, and bring their modes from Paris. Occasionally they paint
their signs in French, and display the latest novelties from the
center of fashion. Bakers are numerous and well patronized.
'_Frantsooski kleb_,' (French bread,) which is simply white bread made
into rolls, is popular and largely sold in Irkutsk.

One of my daily exercises in Russian was to spell the signs upon the
stores. In riding I could rarely get more than half through a word
before I was whisked out of sight. I never before knew how conv