Directory_and_Chronicle_1897 — Page 42

EASTERN SIBERIA

WLADIVOSTOCK

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, soap, and sweetmeats. Wladivostock 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 ot 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 tine 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 hills, 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 closed by ice from about Christmas till the beginning of April, but even then ships may safely approach the entrance by making either for Diomed Bay or some of the numerous sheltered anchorages along the castern shore of Dundas Island. The transit of cargo is then effected to Wladivostock over the ice. There is a floating dock capable of taking in vessels up to 3,000 tons, and a fine graving dock is in course of construction. The dimensions of this new dock will be:-Length over all, 625 feet; length at bottom, 555 feet; breadth 120 feet; breadth at entrance, 90 feet; depth, 30 feet.

The

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 Wladivostock, 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. town is built on the southern slope of the hills running along the northern shore of the harbour. 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 good roads. 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 l'ublic 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 summier. There is a Naval Club, to which civilians are admitted 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 upwards of 20,000, most of whom are of European extraction. A large garrison is maintained, and the total number of troops in Wladivostock and the neighbourhood is believed to amount to not much less than 100,000, but exact figures are not obtainable. In June, 1891, the Czurewitch cut the first sod of the Wladivostock section of the Siberian Railway, which section will shortly be completed.

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. 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 a pla-

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