EASTERN SIBERIA
VLADIVOSTOCK
This port, on some charts still called Port May, lies in latitude 43 deg. 7 min. N. and longitude 131 deg. 54 min. E., at the southern end of a long peninsula reaching into Peter the Great Bay. Of the ports in East Siberia, it is by far the most important both as a military and commercial centre. It is a free port except that duties have to be paid on the following articles:-Alcoholic liquors, tobacco, matches, kerosine oil, varnishes, sugar, leaf tea, and sweetmeats. Vladivostock is one of the most magnificent harbours in the East. From its peculiar long and narrow shape and the once sup- posed hidden treasures in the slightly auriferous soil of its surrounding hills, it has not inappropriately been called the Golden Horn. The entrances to the harbour are hidden by Dundas Island, which divides the fairway into two narrow passages. This fine sheet of water first runs for about half a mile in a northern direction and then suddenly bends to the east for a distance of about one mile. On all sides it is surrounded by hills, low on the southern and higher on the northern shore, and which slope sharply down to the water's edge. These bills, once verdant with foliage, have been completely denuded of trees by reckless felling. The harbour, capable of accommodating an almost unlimited number of vessels of deep draught and large capacity, affords a safe anchorage. It is usually icebound in January an1 February, but steamers can almost always find their way in with the assistance of an ice-breaker. There is a floating dočk capable of taking in vessels up t 3,000 tons, and a fine graving dock was opened on the 13th October, 1897. The dimensions of this new dock are :— Length over all, 625 feet; length at bottom, 555 feet; breadth, 120 feet; breadth at en- trance, 90 feet; depth, 30 feet.
The port, the chief naval station of Russia on the Pacific, is commanded by an Admiral appointed from home, and there is also a military Governor, residing at Vladivostock, who is in command of the forces spread over the South Ussuri district. The municipal affairs of the town are managed by a Mayor and Town Council elected by and from among the Russian civil community. The town is built on the southern slope of the hills running along the northern shore of the harbour, and handsome brick residences have been erected in recent years, replacing the older wooden structures. The entire area, with the exception of some unoccupied lots intervening here and there, is covered by buildings; and the town is well laid out with wide but ill-kept roads. The sanitary arrangements are bad, though the town is fairly healthy. Most conspicuous among the buildings are the government offices, the barracks, the railway station, the museum, the Russian church, the Governor's residence and that of the Admiral Commanding, which is surrounded by a Public Garden, while the houses of the more affluent merchants are well and substantially built. In the Public Garden the naval band plays twice a week during the summer. There is a Naval Club, to which civilians are adimitted as non-voting members, two or three hotels, a gymnasium or school for boys, an institute for girls, and military and naval hospitals. The town has a population of about 30,000, most of whom are of European extraction. The retail trade is principally in the hands of Germans and Chinese and the port is one of importance, British, German and Japanese Steamers doing most of the carrying trade, and the port is the terminus of the Russian Volunteer Fleet. A large garrison is maintained, and the total number of troops in Vladivostock and the neighbourhood is believed to amount to not much less than 100,000, but exact figures are not obtainable. In June, 1891, the Czarewitch cut the first sod of the Vladivostock section of the Siberian Railway, which is now approaching completion. The railway extends to a distance of about 250 miles, the accommodation and service are very good, and the fares very reasonable.
NICOLAJEWSK
The port and settlement of Nicolajewsk, founded in 1851 by Admiral Nevelskoi, is situated on the river Amur, about 29 miles from its mouth. The Amur is here about nine miles in width, with a depth in mid stream of eight to nine fathoms and a current of three to four knots, though the river is very shallow in parts, even in mid-stream. It is navigable for vessels of light draught for more than 2,000 miles, and vessels of 12 feet draught can get up 600 miles. The town is built on à plateau 50 feet above the sea level and gradually slopes down to the river to the eastward.
1*