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64 CHAPTER 4 Historic Names FROM ITS VERY BEGINNINGS, VLADIVOSTOK HAS HOSTED NUMEROUS prominent visitors. Before the Trans-Siberian Railway functioned regularly in the late 1890s,1 transport from Saint Petersburg and Moscow to East Siberia , while not impossible, was achieved in three complicated ways. One could travel eastward along the old prisoners’ track and the rivers of southern Siberia; westward and south by ship from the Baltic Sea, around Europe and Africa (or, from 1869, through the Suez Canal), then east across the Indian Ocean and northward around Southeast Asia; or by ship due west over the Atlantic Ocean, then by train and ship across the United States and the Pacific. To those living in the Russian capitals, Vladivostok seemed situated in another world. But to those undertaking the immense journey, the Far East offered alluring prospects. East Siberia’s vast natural resources beckoned, and the new telegraph and steamer lines—including the Volunteer Fleet, which from 1879 offered regular runs between Vladivostok and Odessa—encouraged both Russian and foreign entrepreneurs to venture into the region. Thus aided by modern communications, Vladivostok was becoming the hub of diverse projects with a corresponding enhancement of its status: appointed the home of the Siberian Flotilla in 1873, it was upgraded to the status of city in 1880, and to fortress in 1889. Prominent entrepreneurs settled in Vladivostok, began to develop additional resources for the city, and also built their own fortunes, for example, in shipping (Iulii Bryner), retail commerce (Gustav Kunst, Gustav Albers, Adolph Dattan), and the navy yard, with its wharves and dry dock (Otto Historic Names ✴ 65 Lindholm). Eleanor Pray mentions Governor-General Chichagov’s proposal to beautify the messy streets: “He called a meeting [of] the principal merchants and asked them to undertake the contract, and it was awarded as follows: from Aleutskaia [Street] to the railroad crossing, Skidelskii; from the crossing to Toong Lee’s, Langelütje; from Toong Lee’s to Startsev’s, Dattan; in front of Startsev’s, Suvorov; and then Dattan as far as the admiral’s, I think. Naturally there will be a sharp competition as to the quality of the work and . . . it would be safe to bet on Mr. Dattan’s part” (24 April 1900 to Sarah). Other historic personages came just to visit, look around, and move on. Their appearances amounted to a form of guest roles on a provincial stage, but in a theater providing the appropriate props and a keen audience. Mrs. Pray enjoyed a view, live, from the gallery, of one leading actor: “Yesterday the tea party was with Mrs. Rasmussen, and we spent a very pleasant afternoon on her veranda which overlooks the Aleutskaia. We saw the Bourbon prince, who is, I believe, a son of Don Carlos, and who is one of Alekseev’s suite.2 He had on such an amazing pair of red trousers that I forgot to look at the man himself. Consequently I have no idea what a Spanish Prince looks like, but I should recognize those trousers among a thousand” (28 August 1904 to Clara). Supported by city leaders committed to trade, and twelve foreign (including honorary) consulates by mid-1909,3 both visitors and residents with political, military, and mercantile connections explored new opportunities in Vladivostok. A Republican to the core, Eleanor Pray had never assumed that her life would include royalty, and she was particularly impressed with the humble demeanor of a relation of Prince Petr A. Kropotkin , the anarchist: “I wonder what you at home would think of an advertisement there was in the paper this morning to the effect that Prince L. A. Kropotkin, a repairing mechanic, was ready to do anything in his line, etc., etc. This is a prince of a very old and high Russian family. Fred knows him and his work, but I never happened to come across his ad before” (24 January 1899 to Home). Instead of being off the beaten track, Vladivostok was a vibrant center in the Far East. MAGNIFICENT SHIPS In the 1890s and early 1900s, the impressive warships of Russia’s Pacific Fleet regularly visited the Bay of the Golden Horn, immeasurably exalting “the season” with their beautiful lines and nattily attired officers. Focusing on 66 ✴ Chapter 4 entertainment along with their maneuvers, these summer guests were considered “better” than those of the army, and their presence at tennis parties, elegant picnics, and sumptuous balls added substantial glamour to Vladivostok ’s high society. Imbibing this hospitable, opulent...

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