proceeded at a fair pace, but there were many vacuums of
language that required liquid filling. After endeavoring to lower his
price, I closed with him and we clenched the bargain with a drink.
Sleighs were in great demand, as many persons were setting out for
Russia, and I made sure of my purchase by paying on the spot and
taking a glass of nalifka. As a finale to the transaction, he urged me
to drink again, begged my photograph, and promised to put an extra
something to the sleigh.

The Siberian peasant classes are much like the Chinese in their manner
of bargaining. Neither begins at the business itself, but at something
entirely different. A great deal of time, tea, and tobacco is consumed
before the antagonists are fairly met. When the main subject is
reached they gradually approach and conclude the bargain about where
both expected and intended. An American would come straight to the
point, and dealing with either of the above races his bluntness would
endanger the whole affair. In many matters this patient angling is
advantageous, and nowhere more so than in diplomacy. Every one will
doubtless acknowledge the Russians unsurpassed in diplomatic skill.
They possess the faculty of touching gently, and playing with their
opponents, to a higher degree than any nation of Western Europe.
Other things being equal, this ability will bring success.

There are several descriptions of sleigh for Siberian travel. At the
head, stands the _vashok_, a box-like affair with a general
resemblance to an American coach on runners. It has a door at each
side and glass windows and is long enough for one to lie at full
length.

[Illustration: A VASHOK.]

Three persons with limited baggage can find plenty of room in a
vashok. A _kibitka_ is shaped much like a tarantass, or like a New
England chaise stretched to about seven feet long by four in width.
There is a sort of apron that can be let down from the hood and
fastened with straps and buckles to the boot. The boot can be buttoned
to the sides of the vehicle and completely encloses the occupants. The
vashok is used by families or ladies, but the kibitka is generally
preferred by men on account of the ability to open it in fine weather,
and close it at night or in storms.

A sleigh much like this but less comfortable is called a _povoska_. In
either of them, the driver sits on the forward part with his feet
hanging over the side. His perch is not very secure, and on a rough
road