Among the Celestials : vol.1 / Page 227 (Color Image)

0227	Among the Celestials : vol.1

CHAP. VII.] M. PETROVSKY. 187

manliness. They are men, and at any rate,

they are very good fellows to meet and talk

with as one could do in a Kashgar serai. It

was noticeable, too, that they never lost their

respect either for themselves or for the English-

man they were talking with, so that we

could converse perfectly freely and openly.

Altogether I much enjoyed my talk with

them.

I was rather out of sorts the day after my

arrival, but on the second I went to call on the

Russian consul. The Afghan Aksakal had an

idea that Russians and Englishmen were like

cats and dogs in their relation towards each

other, and that they could not meet without

fighting. So, just as I was mounting my pony

to go off, he caught me by the arm and

whispered confidentially to me, " Now, sahib,

do your best to be polite, and don't go fighting

with that Russian." I found M. Petrovsky,

the Russian consul, living in a native house,

which, by improvements, he had made very

comfortable. He and his secretary, M. Lutsch,

received me most cordially, and sent for a

missionary, M. Hendriks, who lived close by,

to corne and see me and hear the account of

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