Saturday, January 1, 1921 - Vladikavkaz - The City Hospital, Barrack #8
I am in the hospital, in bed, for the third day already! The barrack is a temporary one, because up to yesterday the illness had not been determined. By some symptoms, as well as by the logic of things, - it is spotted typhus. The temperature was 40.2 = 104.4 and the rash broke out heavily – all as it should be. And then the temperature fell suddenly and the head is clear. Now, it has been determined fully: inflammation of the right lung....Temperature is 38-39 = 100-102. Am feeling so far rather satisfactorily. There is strength. What is to come is uncertain. I have begun already to expect death....and this I am telling you, my friends, with enough calmness....
But to begin in order: Some move it was from Rostov to Vladikavkaz....a fine one indeed!!! At first everything adjusted itself rather well. Thanks to Muralov and the Military Staff-Commissar of the Staff of Caucasian Front, we were given a First Class coupe in the Staff train-car. There are four such coupes in the car. There is a Salon, servants, samovar, heat. There were in all 5 passengers and 5 servants. It would seem, one could wish for nothing better! Even in Nicholas’ (late Czar) times we did not travel in such style! But alas! – the sweet turned bitter. One reason – fate, the other of our own making.
We left Nahichevan on Saturday, December 18. The day was apparently not a propitious one. Stupidly we left in the evening, about 7 o’clock, figuring we would have enough time until the departure of the train (at 11 pm). It was dark, very cold. We started to walk behind the cart, loaded to capacity with our luggage, but could not endure it; took a cab and slowly rode behind the cart as if behind a hearse. The square in front of the station was dark and teamed with people. It was impossible to drive up to the station entrance. No porters. We were standing in the middle of the square and, like fools, were waiting for something.....Then after waiting for some time in vain, I left Mama with the cart-load and went to look for some helpers. I tried to find out about the hook-up of our train-car, but found out nothing, no one knew anything. For 20 times was I sent from one place to another but found out nothing, while Mama was freezing, staying with the baggage. It was finally established that the Staff-car was not going to be hooked up on Saturday, that day. That meant waiting until Monday (trains go only every other day). I went to look for the train car on the siding. I found it and explained to the conductor the situation and our intention to occupy the car. However, for that it was necessary to have a special permit........I had thought of checking our things, but in this I also did not succeed: only baggage of a certain size was being accepted, while ours proved to be too large....There was nothing left for us to do but to return home...in the night and cold, worn out, into an empty and unheated apartment!...!!!! We walked behind the loaded cart in order to protect ourselves against the wind. It was a long walk. We froze. Arrived at the house late in the night. The iron gates were locked...No bell...No one heard our knocking...We knocked furiously for half an hour. The driver was swearing...At last I started to shake the gate and broke the lock...It caused a scandal, but we drove in with the cart. We unloaded, leaving the heavy baggage in the courtyard, carrying the smaller things into the apartment. Then we ate some of the food prepared for the trip and went to bed. Mama lay down as she was, in her fur coat, and I went to the landlord’s. On Monday we made it to the station after having reduced our baggage considerably. This time we succeeded in installing ourselves in the Staff’s railroad car with our hand baggage, regardless of its numerous quantity. The large baggage I placed at the counter for the evening inspection. We began to bless heaven, already thinking that the main trials were behind us, not knowing that they were still ahead of us.