Then Father Basil, who is living till now in the Koi parish of the district of Kashin [Gov. of Tver], said to me in a rather solemn voice, "This night at three o'clock Nicholas Ivanovitch [Ponomareff] appeared to me and begged of me to reconcile him to you."
(Signed) Baron Basil Driesen.
Mr. Solovovo adds:—
The Baroness von Driesen is now dead, so that her evidence cannot be obtained....
I also saw Baron Basil von Driesen himself, and spoke with him about M. Ponomareff's ghost. He stated to me that if he were going to die to-morrow, he should still be ready to swear to the fact of his having seen the apparition, or something to this effect. I asked him to obtain for me the clergyman's account, to whom I had already written before seeing Baron von Driesen (though not knowing him), but without receiving an answer—which is but natural, after all. Baron von Driesen kindly promised to procure for me the account in question, as it was then his intention to visit different estates in Central Russia, including the one that had belonged to M. Ponomareff.
Baron Nicholas von Driesen—Baron Basil's son—called on me a few days ago. He stated, with regard to the case in question, that it was necessary to see the clergyman in order to induce him to write an account of what had happened to him.
Baron N. von Driesen afterwards sent a note to Mr. Solovovo, stating that his grandfather (M. Ponomareff) died on November 21st, 1860; and the testimony of the priest was obtained later. Mr. Solovovo, who had already ascertained independently that the Rev. Basil Bajenoff had been a priest at Koi in the year 1861, and was there still, writes:—
The following is the translation of the Rev. Basil Bajenoff's statement:—
"KOI, July 23rd [August 4th], 1891.
"To the account I heard from Baron B. F. Driesen in the presence of his wife's brothers, MM. N. N., A. N., and I. N. Ponomareff, as to how M. Nicholas I. Ponomareff appeared to him in the night of November 29-30th, 1860, having died nine days before, and begged of the Baron to be reconciled to him, I may add that to me also did he appear at the same time and with the same request, which fact, before hearing the Baron's narrative, I communicated to all those present at the liturgy for the rest of the soul of the late M. N. I. Ponomareff.