The political exiles, intelligent and educated, former criminals, creative and entrepreneurial, and freedom-loving Cossacks had intermarried and passed on their characteristics to their descendants. Thus, a new sort of people had come into existence, infinitely superior to the inhabitants of the central provinces. What is more, the bureaucracy was few and far between. And so, a down-trodden and humiliated population had become proud and independent, able to stand up for itself. Their qualities displayed themselves when the Russo-Japanese War broke out and Siberian troops showed their mettle.
At the time of which I write, the Trans-Siberian Railway had not yet been completed. Trains went only as far as Zima station, after which the bones of travellers were severely shaken by horse-drawn carriages as far as Stretensk. From Stretensk, further progress was by ship on the Amur River.
It took us eight days to get to Zima station. It was another two hundred versts to Irkutsk, i.e. a hundred and thirty miles. We just about managed to get there in one piece, every bone in our bodies aching from those damned post chaises. When we finally made it to Irkutsk, we decided to rest there.
We were interested in this city, close to so many gold mines, and decided this is where we would become acquainted with life in Siberia. We found a hotel room and settled in.
Soon enough, an incident occurred through which we were to become closely acquainted with the local gold mines and the way of life connected with them.
II
Sherlock Holmes and I had long since abandoned any attempt at travelling incognito. And since Russians as a people are curious by nature, there was no shortage of gawkers around us. Sherlock Holmes’s fame had penetrated Siberia and, wherever we would go, we were surrounded by curiosity seekers. There were even those who, for no apparent reason, invited us for a meal, probably to see for themselves the eating habits of an English detective.
So it wasn’t surprising that, on one occasion, sitting in our hotel room, we heard a knock on the door. In answer to our invitation to enter, there did so a well-dressed, purple-nosed robust man.
‘All the same, I do beg your pardon that, so to speak, I intrude and etc.,’ burst forth from him in a deep bass. As is customary with Siberians, his speech was peppered with ‘all the same’ and ‘as it is’.
‘How can I be of service?’ asked Holmes.
‘Have mercy on my plight and help me all the same,’ he said. ‘I am one of the owners of the so-called Brothers’ Gold Mine and I am here to seek your help.’
‘Do sit down, please,’ Sherlock Holmes invited him. ‘I have time to spare and there is no need for you to hurry.’
‘All the same, thank you,’ bowed the man.
He ran his hand through his beard, then through his hair and sat down. ‘As it is, the surname is Hromikh. We are two brothers, Sergey and me. I am Piotr Haritonovitch,’ he said giving his name and patronymic in the Russia manner. ‘That’s why our mine is called the “Brothers’ Mine”. The mine is quite a distance from here, all the same, the road is bearable, the gold takings are good, and the equipment as good as possible. All would be well, if it weren’t for the thieving. As it is, this thieving has developed so systematically and on such a scale that we hardly make ends meet. We have our own spies in the mine and they assure us that most of the gold is stolen and then smuggled out by our very own manager, a fellow named Zinovy Andreyevitch Seltzoff. But we can’t believe this to be so. On two occasions, driven out of our minds by what was happening, we intercepted him along the road as he was leaving and found not a grain of gold. As it is, our situation is dire, and we would ask you to take up our case. We are prepared to pay you a third of the value of the stolen gold, if only you were to find out how it is done.’ He fell silent and gave Sherlock Holmes a beseeching look.
‘How far is your mine?’ asked Holmes.
‘Just under eighty miles.’
‘And how many roads lead to it?’
‘As it is, just the one.’
‘Is there a place for us to stay?’
‘As it is, of course!’
‘Excellent,’ said Sherlock Holmes, ‘though I have to admit that I take your case mostly for the opportunity of visiting a gold mine and becoming acquainted with its running.’
‘Oh, if only you knew how grateful I am,’ exclaimed our visitor. ‘Well then, do let me express my appreciation by inviting you to dine with me.’
We accepted. A room was specially set aside for us in our hotel and to the amazement of Mr Piotr Haritonovitch Hromikh we changed for dinner. Over dinner, as was to be expected, we discussed the matter freely.
‘How long ago did you begin to notice the theft of the gold?’ asked Holmes, by the by.
‘That’s the whole point. Strange as it may seem, large-scale theft began three years ago, just when we appointed the new manager.
‘And the thieving is from the office?’
‘Oh, no,’ exclaimed the mine owner. ‘That would be daylight robbery. All the same, what I am speaking of is only of contraband.’
‘Explain yourself.’
‘This is how it works. All the mined gold has to be handed in to the office. Once the sand has been washed, the gold that remains is handed in to the office, nor can it be stolen from the equipment used for washing. But in addition to gold grains obtained by washing sand, there are also gold nuggets to be found. These nuggets are of differing sizes, some several pounds in weight, and they are found by labourers in trenches from which they dig out gold-bearing soil and transfer them on to wheelbarrows for washing. These nuggets are easily detected by the naked eye. The labourers may pick them up manually, but are obliged to place them in containers handily kept there. For these nuggets they are rewarded with a bonus of two and a half roubles per zolotnik of weight, i.e. just over four and a quarter grams. But, despite the most vigilant attention of the supervising staff, all the same, they still manage to steal nuggets and swap them for alcohol. The nominal price of gold is five and a half roubles per zolotnik. The men who steal this gold are pursued by the administration by every possible means, and if any is found when they are searched, it is confiscated. Our spies tell us that the manager himself buys up the stolen gold from the men and manages to get it out of the mine. He gives the men alcohol, confectionery and other forbidden stuff.’
‘Then how often does this manager leave the mine?’ asked Holmes.
‘Once only, at the end of the work year,’ said Hromikh.
‘At what time of year is that?’
‘Late in the autumn, like now.’
‘So he is ready to go.’
‘As it is, yes.’
‘Has anyone told on him this year?’
‘Yes, but my own opinion is that this is done to deflect suspicion. We were told this year that whoever stole the gold has bought forty-five Russian pounds of it in weight. Our gold is of superior quality and the treasury values it at 19,600 roubles per forty Russian pounds. This means that 22,000 roubles worth must be smuggled out. We think that the supervisor of one of the trenches actually buys up the gold and managed to deflect suspicion by having us think it is Seltzoff.’
‘Very likely,’ said Sherlock Holmes thoughtfully and poured champagne into his flute.
III
We parted long after midnight, having decided to set out in two days time. In the meantime, we explored the city.