Note 5 — Chapter XXXIII · THE SILVER AND (SO-CALLED) QUICKSILVER MINES OF NERTCHINSK.

I have quite unexpectedly had the opportunity of submitting this chapter, in manuscript, to a second released exile, who was at the Nertchinsk mines at the time alluded to, and who, after expressing his great surprise at the accuracy of my account, confirmed it almost to the letter, adding, however, that he thought I underrated the number of political exiles; but he referred to the numbers deported in 1863 and during the present year, rather than to the average number for the intervening years.