Page:Siberia and the Exile System Vol 1.djvu/410

388 of Eastern Siberia, who saw the étapes along the great Siberian road at their best, describes them, in a report to the Tsar, as follows:

During my journey to Irkútsk I inspected a great number of penal institutions, including city prisons, forwarding prisons, and étapes; and I regret to have to say that most of them are in a lamentable condition. The étapes are particularly bad. With a very few exceptions they are tumble-down buildings, in bad sanitary condition, cold in winter, saturated with miasm, and offering very little security against escapes.

I have not myself said anything worse of étapes than this. If these buildings, after they had been pnt in the best possible condition for the governor-general's inspection, made upon him such an impression as this, the reader can imagine what impression they made upon me, when I saw them in their every-day aspect. I am quite content, however, to let Governor-general Anúchin's description stand as my own, with a few qualifications and exceptions. All of the étapes on the Tomsk-Irkútsk road are not of this character. I examined one at the village of Itátskaya, near Marínsk, which was clean, well cared for, and in perfect order, and I have little doubt that if I had had time to visit every exile station-house on the road, I should have found many to which the governor-general's description would not fairly apply. In the main, however, it is truthful and accurate.

The "lamentable condition" of the Siberian étapes seems to me to be mainly attributable to corrupt and incapable administration, and to the inherent defects of a bureaucratic system of government. For these very étapes, bad as they are, an immense amount of money has been appropriated; but the greater part of it has been divided between fraudulent contractors and corrupt Government officials. An inspector of exile transportation, who had excellent opportunities to know the facts, told me that it was hardly an