At 5 o'clock in the afternoon we actually left the station - but two versts had not been traversed before the engine stopped - deliberately & decisively. Nothing but empty plains around us - we chatted listlessly. Then candles were lighted - a few of us read. We were still standing. From the horse-vans & trucks behind us - our soldiers commenced singing. They first sang merrily & vigorously & then the note of tragedy, never far away crept insistently into the music. Far into the night their voices still chanted sadly drawn-out melodies of an ancient people.