I sent the note below in a hurry and I forgot to say it is for you ( who can fill in the missing links, it is too vague for the list ).
Van last act is not related to the Crimea war or "capitulation", as it seems to have been my suggestion.  What I meant was that when his act ended ( with references to Russia, Argentina, Crimea ), the link bt. Russia/Artic/Argentina through Russian Admiral Lisiansky was severed by the Crimea capitulation.
 
No time for longer explanation... If you are interested I can send you more information on Lisiansky later.
 
 
----- Original Message -----
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
Sent: Monday, April 25, 2005 3:30 PM
Subject: Sultry skies of Argentina

Dear Don,
 
Still following the Mascodagama thread I discovered that the Russian various conquests during their Artic expeditions to find a link between Alaska and Siberia ( maritime exploits that also included Argentinian Patagonia in the "netherworld" of South America  ) were ended ( like Mascodagamaīs last act ) by the Crimea war. 
This might be the reason that the Crimea dancer sang in Russian about the sultry sun of Argentine...
 

After its defeat in the Crimean War, Russia did not want to cede its Alaskan territories to Great Britain and so transferred them to the United States in 1867. This marked the end of Russian presence in North America. Russian explorers contributed to making known the west coast and its people, from Alaska to California, including present-day British Columbia.


Remember Adaīs agonies in Patagonia, Captain Grantīs explorations of Cape Horn, Vanīs dreaming of three fabulous trains and one that went through Brazilia to Viedma ( Argentine & witch). 
The link is with Admiral Lisiansky ( he named the island where Demonīs plane crashed )