Both Kennan and De Windt were used to travelling to exotic destinations off the beaten track under difficult circumstances, but for Chekhov, the voyage to Sakhalin was a novel experience. All three authors mention taking notes along the way to keep record of their experiences and observations. They consulted the notes after the journey at the time they started writing their books.
In a letter to Suvorin on 20 May 1890, Chekhov writes that he is keeping a short diary in pencil (Reeve, 2013). Chekhov admits to finding note taking along the way more difficult than he had anticipated, due to difficult travelling conditions and fatigue resulting from a long, hard stretch on the road. Kennan used his own shorthand and occasionally Morse code when taking notes, most likely to save time but possibly also to confuse an unsanctioned reader. Although De Windt frequently complained about transport arrangements, accommodation and food on his journey, he did not mention experiencing problems when recording his impressions.
Chekhov intended to produce a scientific work upon the completion of his journey and approached the project in a methodical way, reading extensively before he set off. According to Reeve (2013, 455) Chekhov ‘hurled himself into a study of the geography, history, nature and ethnography of the island, as background material to his study of the penal settlement.’ Once on his way, in addition to taking notes, Chekhov collected a copious amount of information in the form of census questionnaires which he completed for almost
138 the entire exile population on Sakhalin Island.194 Chekhov claimed to have done all the research on his own, with only occasional help form other persons (Reeve, 2013).
Hundley argues that Kennan too approached all his writing in a scholarly way with The Siberian Exile System being no exception. He would research a topic well before embarking on a project.195 Hundley also raises the issue of Kennan’s knowledge of Russian, which undoubtedly served as an advantage when gathering information.
De Windt claimed to have read numerous reports, articles and books on the exile system, disagreeing vehemently with those that were critical of the system. In the preface to his first volume, he mentions two sources that he had consulted prior to his departure. In the preface to the second volume, he stated that he did not want to bore the reader with statistics, relying on his own, personal experiences instead.
The element of surprise, to prevent authorities from anticipating their visits, was important to all three travellers. They stated that they did not want local officials to make special preparations in order to impress them. Kennan went to extraordinary lengths to try to mislead local officialdom, taking alternative routes and travelling off the beaten track, extending his journey considerably in the process. De Windt also tried to arrive at prisons unannounced. He was usually allowed to enter but on occasion asked to come back later at a more convenient time for the authorities.
In addition to trying to surprise the authorities by arriving unexpectedly at the next, sometimes undisclosed destination, Kennan was calculating in his approach once he had arrived at a new location. He would try to call as early as possible on the chief of police, and bombard him with all kinds of information concerning himself and his plans. In this way Kennan tried to pre-empt any suspicions the official might have about the new arrival and his artist companion. To intimidate the ordinary policemen, Kennan would appear in public as often as possible in the company of their superiors.
Another diversionary tactic in Kennan’s effort to create the impression that he was visiting Siberia for scientific reasons was to visit the local schools, conspicuously taking notes, pretending to have an interest in popular education. His illustrator Frost formed part of the charade, sketching in the streets, collecting flowers and butterflies, or lecturing to the local
194
Gentes (2012) states that around 10 000 standardised questionnaires of Chekhov’s census are currently archived in the Russian State Library, Moscow.
195
Hundley, H. George Kennan and the Russian Empire: How America’s Conscience Became an Enemy of Tsarism. Kennan Institute Occasional Papers 277. Washington DC, 2000.
139 population on geography and astronomy. Although Kennan was convinced that they had managed to dupe everybody, it was becoming harder to conceal the increasing number of compromising papers and documents he had been accumulating along the way. He started to secrete the most important ones in a leather belt around his body; but eventually got rid of some of them.
Neither Chekhov nor De Windt acted in a way that compromised their status as legitimate visitors to the region, remaining within the limits set down by the agreements they had undertaken when setting off on their respective journeys. They therefore did not have to take the same precautionary measures as Kennan.
Once back home, Chekhov was the writer who had by far the biggest amount of material to work through. However, he was not in a hurry to publish his work and constantly had to placate his publisher who had a greater sense of urgency about seeing the work in print. Kennan immediately started producing his magazine articles as he was always in need of funds and could not afford to delay the publication of his work. De Windt, like Chekhov, does not appear to have been working towards a deadline and could write at his own pace.
On an extended journey across difficult terrain under trying circumstances, it is essential for a travel writer to take accurate notes for later reference. It appears as if all three writers applied this technique, but Kennan admitted to having discarded possible incriminating material. Filling the gaps from memory opens up the possibility of inaccurate reporting. Kennan was also constantly side-tracked by ploys to keep his real mission secret and could have ended up focusing on a restricted number of issues at the expense of others. He also faced time pressure when producing his final manuscripts which could further have negatively affected the accuracy of the contents. De Windt did not have to be concerned about the time factor, but an aspect influencing the quality of his work could have been lack of sufficient research prior to the journey and relying instead almost solely on his own observations. Chekhov struck a healthy balance between preparation, on site gathering of information and digesting the data at a comfortable pace before submitting his work to be published.