that a steamer could attain
in the valley of the Ob is on the river Ket. A canal about thirty
miles long would connect the Ket with the Yenesei, whence it was
proposed to follow the Angara, Lake Baikal, and the Selenga to Oust
Kiachta. But the swiftness of the Angara, and its numerous rapids,
seventy-eight in all, stood in the way of the project. At present no
steamers can ascend the Angara, and barges can only descend when the
water is high. To make the channel safely navigable would require a
heavy outlay of money for blasting rocks, and digging canals. I could
not ascertain that there was any probability of the scheme being
realized.

In 1866 twelve steamers were running between Tumen and Tomsk. These
boats draw about two feet of water, and tow one or more barges in
which freight is piled. No merchandise is carried on the boats.
Twelve days are consumed in the voyage with barges; without them it
can be made in a week. All the steamers yet constructed are for towing
purposes, the passenger traffic not being worth attention. The golovah
of Tomsk is a heavy owner in these steamboats, and he proposed
increasing their number and enlarging his business. A line of smaller
boats has been started to connect Tomsk with Achinsk. The introduction
of steam on the Siberian rivers has given an impetus to commerce, and
revealed the value of certain interests of the country. An active
competition in the same direction would prove highly beneficial, and
bye and bye they will have the railway.

During my ride about the streets the isvoshchik pointed out a large
building, and explained that it was the seminary or high school of
Tomsk. I was told that the city, like Irkutsk, had a female school or
"Institute," and an establishment for educating the children of the
priests. The schools in the cities and large towns of Siberia have a
good reputation, and receive much praise from those who patronize
them. The Institute at Irkutsk is especially renowned, and had during
the winter of 1866 something more than a hundred boarding pupils. The
gymnasium or school for boys was equally flourishing, and under the
direct control of the Superintendent of Public Instruction for Eastern
Siberia. The branches of education comprise the ordinary studies of
schools everywhere--arithmetic, grammar, and geography, with reading
and writing. When these elementary studies are mastered the higher
mathematics, languages, music, and painting follow. In the primar