Entry 32 - Fifth Letter to M. Goroshkin

32


(Fifth letter to M. Goroshkin)

"... a man by name Alexander Petrovich Mamaev from Novo-Nikolaevsk.
He has a plan of his own, which he wants to accomplish. He has some
people working for him, nothing serious, if I may judge. Mamaev's plan
is being worked out this way: his people will buy out the sentinels
and take the Emperor and the Heir (perhaps the Princesses, but, as he
says "the old woman will never be considered") and rush both eastward
by the old highway. On the stations Mamaev's people are now hiring
horses and coachmen. They have collected money amongst the merchants.
 
They plan to take the Emperor as far as Blagoveshchensk-on-Amur.
Thence to San-Haliang, on the Chinese side of the river. From
San-Haliang somewhere out of the country,--I never heard where to. The
organization works successfully in the region of Tomsk, where all is
ready for immediate action.

There is much imagination in Mamaev's plan, and though I know his
preparations are watched in Ekaterinburg, they do not meet with
approval at all. Captain Kaidalov of the Crimea Horse Regt. is now the
soul of Ekaterinburg and he does not approve. He is a fine fellow, I
know, and very courageous: he went to the local soviet, became their
confident and persona grata and I think is virtually the only one
who really understands the problems and realizes their difficulty and
their danger. Please let me know whether I should inquire any longer
about all of this!

Yours,

Alex. Syv."