b o o k country as the afylum f o r the Ruffian fovereigns in cafes of
. . infurreftion and danger, and is more particularly known to
foreigners for the refuge it afforded to Peter the Great, when
he put an end to the adminiftration of his lifter Sophia *.
The diftance from Mofcow to the monaftery being forty
miles, we ordered poft-horfes to be ready at five in. the morning,
witffian intention,of: viewing the convent, and returning
to this city by night. We thought: that we fhould eaftly
have made this excurfion in. the time propofed; but qbftaQles
continually occur in foreign countries, Unforefeen by thofe
who are not. fufficiently acquainted with the manners of the
natives ; and the mod trivial circumftances, which if known
are readily obviated* produce,, when unknown, confiderable
embarrafsments. Some petty diftreffes of this defcription
lengthened our expedition: from one to three days*
We rofe at five in the morning, but w.ere detained by the
want of poft-horfes, which we found great difficulty in procuring,
notwithftanding that our orders for them were figned
by the governor of the province and the governor of the city,
and although we importuned the poft-mafter with, repeated
meffages. The cafe is, that as the price for the hire of
horfes is very inconiiderable, the owners, can employ them
in other fervices to greater advantage : and on this account
a ftranger, unlefs he is accompanied with a Ruffian foldier to
quicken the expedition of thofe who furniffi the poll, muft
neceffarily meet with infinite delays in travelling through
this country. We were, indeed, ftrongly advifed by fome
of our acquaintance to ufe this precaution ; but, thinking
. that we Ihould have no occafion for it during fo ihort a
journey, we imprudently omitted it, to our great inconvenience,
as we foon experienced.
After
After waiting nine hours we at length thought ourfelves CHAP-
fortunate in feeing the- poft-horfes make their appearance > VL ■
about two in the afternoon ; and fat off with an expectation
o f proceeding without interruption toBretofihina, where
we knew that a relay was waiting' for us. But our drivers
flopped at a village only four miles from Mofcow, and peremptorily
refufed to carry us any farther. In vain we produced
our order for horfes; they contended that it authorized
us only to take them from village to village ; and upon
the ftrength o f that conftruction returned without further
ceremony to Mofcow. Two hours more were nowrem-
ployed, and much broken Ruffian fpoken by our Bohemian
interpreter, before we-were able to prevail upon the inhabitants
of the place to fupply us with horfes, who depofited
us in' a village about the diftance of three -miles ; where all
the old procefs of altercation, threats, and: promifes, were
again renewed. In this manner we continued wrangling
and proceeding from village to village, which unfortunately
lay very thick in this part of the country, until near mid-
might, when we found ourfelves at Klifma, only feventeen
miles from Mofcow, where we took up our abode in a pea-
fant’s cottage. Our Bohemian fervant having fortunately
devoted great part of the night in rambling to different
houfes, and adjufting the difficult negotiation for freffi
horfes, we were able to depart almoft by day-break; and
had the ftill farther fatisfacftion to pafs over the immenfe
fpace of feven miles without either halt or delay ; fo that by
eight in the morning we reached, much to our furprize,
Bretoffhina, which ftands about half-way between Mofcow
and the convent. Here we found a,Ruffian feijeant, whom
prince Volkoniki had obligingly fent forwards to procure the
Z z 2 horfes,