the samovars in the village were at
once put into commission and soon we were drinking strong draughts of
boiling hot tea. Some were successful in getting chunks of black bread
which they ravenously devoured. The writer was fortunate in locating an
old villager who earlier in the winter had been attached to the company
sledge transport and the old fellow brought forth some fishcakes to add
to the meagre fare. These cakes were made by boiling or soaking the vile
salt herring until it becomes a semi-pasty mass, after which it is mixed
with the black bread dough and then baked, resulting in one of the most
odoriferous viands ever devised by human hands and which therefore few,
if any, of us had summoned up courage enough to consume. On this
particular morning, however, it required no courage at all and we
devoured the pasty mass as though it were one of the choicest of viands.
The entire period of the halt was consumed in eating and getting ready
to continue the march.

At 10:00 a. m. we again fell in and the weary march was resumed. The
balance of the day was simply a repetition of the previous night with
the exception that it was now daylight and the footing was more secure.
At five o'clock that afternoon we arrived at Shegovari, where the little
garrison of Company "C" and Company "D", under command of Lieut. Derham,
was anxiously awaiting us, for after the attack of the preceding day,
which is described in the following paragraph, they were fearful of the
consequences in case they were compelled to continue holding the
position through the night without reinforcements.

Shortly after the drive had begun at Ust Padenga marauding parties of
the enemy were reported far in our rear in the vicinity of Shegovari. On
the night of January 21st some of the enemy, disguised as peasants,
approached one of the sentries on guard at a lonely spot near the
village and coldly butchered him with axes; another had been taken
prisoner, and with the daily reports of our casualties at Ust Padenga,
the little garrison was justly apprehensive. On the morning of January
23rd a band of the enemy numbering some two hundred men emerged from the
forest and had gained possession of the town before they were detected.
Fortunately the garrison was quickly assembled, and by judicious use of
machine guns and grenades quickly succeeded in repelling the attack and
retaining possession of the position, which thus kept the road clear for
the troops retr