On leaving Jassy, the frost having set in with increased severity, we rolled onward
with great rapidity, as if our postilion was running a race against time; and although the
horses were small, they went at the rate of fifteen wersts an hour. While we
remained within a few miles of the town, cultivated fields, villages and hamlets, neat
gardens and vineyards, alternately met the view; but these pleasing objects once past,
there was the same want of population we before observed, and the country increased in
solitary wildness when we entered the mountain district. At one time our route lay through
a dense forest, then along the banks of a charming lake; now we wound round a steep
precipice, then plunged into a dark and dismal abyss, to emerge into a beautiful valley,
watered with the meandering stream or rushing torrent, given by the bountiful hand of
nature to fertilize the soil.
What might not be done here, if this highly favoured country were occupied by a colony
of our scientific husbandmen from Western Europe! Every one of these sunny slopes would
then be laid out in vineyards; the valley in cornfields, pastures and meadows; and the
hills and mountains stripped of their impenetrable forests, to make way for numerous herds
of cattle and flocks of sheep. Still, the desolate aspect of the country does not prevent
many a Boyar from adding considerable to his revenue by the sale of leeches, which are
found in some of the rivers and marshes of this mountain district.
Hitherto our journey had been most prosperous, >till
arriving at the vast forest that separates Moldavia from the Bukowina, we were overtaken
by one of those sudden snow storms so fatal to the traveller in this wild inhospitable
district. Happily our postilion, prognosticating from the lowering aspect of the heavens
to the danger that threatened us, galloped madly toward a ruined chalet, the usual
resting-place of such caravans as journey in this direction. On arriving at our place of
refuge, we found it to be a miserable wooden hut, surrounded by a dilapidated paling,
filled with travellers, their packs, horses, and a flock of sheep,and as continuing our
route to Boyana, the next poststation, was completely out of the question, we made
preparations to pass the night. Our poor horses being badly off for shelter, our first
care was to repair the shed with a quantity of loose timber, in which operation we were
aided by the snow when making a roof, for it froze as fast as it fell.
With respect to provender for man and beast, we had taken good care to provide an ample
supply in case of an accident, and as the other travellers felt inclined to be merry, a
fat sheep was selected and roasted for the occasion; we were moreover favoured by a change
in the weather, for the night became clear and bright, though it still continued to freeze
hard. The reader must now suppose we had supped, and smoked the chibouque, but
before retiring to rest we took precautions, lest any stray wolf should pay us a visit
during the night---and to guard against this mishap, it was determined that our whole
party should in turn mount guard, and replenish the blazing fire we had made in the centre
of the enclosure, intented for the twofold purpose of keeping our cattle warm, and scaring
away any dangerous intruder.
Things went on very well 'till about the
middle of the night, when we were awoke from the land of dreams by the discharge of
firearms, and, lo! our young pandour rushed into the hut, exclaiming he had fired
at a wolf and wounded him, and that the animal fled howling back to the forest.
"Rash, foolish boy!" cried our of our fellow travellers, jumping up from his
lair of sheepskins, "we shall have the whole hungry pack down upon us in less than
half an hour, for they will devour him, and then track his blood to the place where he was
wounded." Unfortunately for our slumbers the old man was right, and now we had to
make preparations as quickly as possible for the encounter.
We have already said that our night quarters was a miserable hut, a few feet from the
ground; consequently our first object was to barricade it with pieces of wood, so as to
render it, in case of need, sufficiently strong to resist any attack that might be made
upon it by the wolves; but our poor horses and the flock of sheep in the open shed were
exposed to certain destruction, and our next care was to take measures in their defense.
On inspecting our fortress, we found several breaches had been made in the paling of the
enclosure; these we filled up with piles of wood, and then placed our little garrison as
sentinels at different points, to beat back our enemies should they attempt to climb over
the enclosure. Our party consisted of seven: a butcher and his help, the owner of the
flock of sheep, from Tchernowitz; two caravan rivers with their packs of wool, on their
way to Jassy; the postilion, the pandour, and ourselves. As to weapons of defence, our
fellow-travellers had none other than the long knife and light hatchet they carried in
their belt; this we remedied by converting pieces of wood into ponderous clubs. As for the
pandour and ourselves, we were armed to the teeth, with plenty of ammunition at hand if
necessary.
Half an hour or more had probably elapsed, when we first perceived the enemy, in
greater force than we considered agreeable, stealthily marching around the glare of the
immense fire we kept blazing in the centre of the enclosure, as if debating whether it
would be prudent to cross the gleaming boundary. At length a powerful fellow made his
appearance, probably the commander-in-chief, who, after reconnoitering our position, being
no doubt strongly tempted by bleating sheep and neighing horses---the unerring instinct of
the poor animals telling them that danger was near---dashed boldly forward, followed by
the whole pack, and with a bound attempted to clear the paling. Stout hearts and strong
clubs, however, soon drove them back, laying many sprawling on the ground; we reserved our
fire, in obedience to the advice of our captain, the old shepard, who recommended us not
to use our firearms unless an opportunity should be afforded of inflicting certain death,
in order that none might escape again to the forest, and bring back a reinforcement.
Our ferocious assailants, not liking the blows from our clubs, retreated, and
apparently, after holding a consultation, it was resolved to attack the enclosure in
different directions, and in some places where it was weak two or three succeeded in
climbing over the fence, when they were instantly despatched by our firearms and the long
knives and hatchets of our fellow combatants, when we hurled them over the fence to be
devoured by their famishing comrades beneath. The fate of our first invaders, however, did
not deter others from following their example, and in the morning we counted the skeletons
of eight or nine who had become the victims of their temerity. Happily the dawn of day
caused our unwelcome visitors to return to their woods, leaving us at liberty to pursue
our journey, and with mutual congratulations for our providential escape our party
separated. The day was fine, the snow as hard as a bed of ice, and after a drive of a
couple of hours we came to the long-wished-for Boyana.
