Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the GospelYeardley, John
Religion
Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel
Yeardley, John
Clergy -- United States -- Biography; Quakers -- Biography; Yeardley, John, 1786-1858
22_nd_ [?]. "In thee, O Lord, do I put my trust; let me never be
ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. Bow down thine ear to me;
deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for a house of defence to
save me."--(Ps. xxxi. 1, 2.) "Hear the right, O Lord, attend unto my cry;
give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips."--(Ps.
xvii. 1.) The above sweet words were brought home to my heart with power
this morning after a time of conflict in spirit. Lord, grant me faith and
patience to the end of the race, when I shall have to say, Now, Lord,
lettest thou thy servant depart in peace. Amen.
Providing themselves with food, and with small change of money for the
journey--two things indispensable to Russian travel--John Yeardley and
William Rasche left Moscow on the 23rd, by _malle-poste_ for Orel.
They stopped some hours at Toula: the land south of this town they found
to be well-cultivated, and the harvest had begun; it consisted mostly of
rye. The journey to Orel occupied forty-four hours. Among their
fellow-travellers was a resident of Moscow, Charles Uyttenhoven, who spoke
English, German, French and Russ, and who, like themselves, was going to
Kharkov. He was a pleasant and gentlemanly companion, and was of great
service to them in acting as spokesman on the road.
From Orel there was no _malle-poste_ in which they could continue
their journey, and they were obliged to hire a _tarantas_, or
posting-carriage, a very inferior kind of conveyance. In consequence,
besides, of the fair at Pultowa, every vehicle of this description had
been taken up except one, which was of course the worst in the town. When
they had loaded their luggage and spread hay to lie upon, they started;
but before they were out of sight of the stable the crazy vehicle broke
down, and they were detained till nearly eleven o'clock at night, whilst
it was being repaired. In this new kind of conveyance they experienced
great discomfort: they could neither sit nor lie with ease, as the space
was much too small for three passengers. The country they passed, through
was very rich; it may be called the granary of Russia; they found the
harvest more advanced the farther they penetrated into the south.
At Koursk they hired a fresh _tarantas_. The roads were inferior to
those along which they had travelled, but the country was more
picturesque, still fertile, and producing much wheat; the weather was very
hot, as it had been all the way from Petersburg. On the 27th, at midnight,
they reached Kharkov.
We have travelled, says John Yeardley, four days and nights in succession
from Moscow to this place. The conveyances of the country are exceedingly
bad; they almost shook our bones asunder.
The next day they visited Pastor Landesen, to whom they had a letter of
introduction from Pastor Dietrich. They spent the day with the family of
this intelligent and pious man. Tea was spread in the garden, to which
meal a number of Christian friends were invited.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account