Omsk-From Omsk to Tomsk-Sledging-Birds-Tomsk-Tomsk to Krasnoyarsk -Birds-Krasnoyarsk-Prices-Beaten by the south wind-Frost again-Birds -Yenesaisk-Our visitors -Scientific expeditions-Birds-Our lodgings-Easter-day festivities-I hire a young Jew-Lessons in Bird-skinning-New sledges ---Down the precipices-Russian hospitality-Special couriers-Deceptive appearance of the road-Winding roads-Epidemic among the horses-Race with the south wind--The Kahmin Pass-Stopped by the rain-The Kahmin Pass in December-The Pass in April-The south wind beaten.

I HAD a letter of introduction from General Timarscheff, the Minister of the Interior, to the Governor-General of West Siberia in Omsk. Unfortunately the Governor was from home, but his lady received us very kindly. Her excellency spoke good French and German, and had an English

governess for her children.

M. Bogdanoff, in St. Peters

burg, had given me a letter of introduction to Professor Slofftzoff, who found for us a friend of his, M. Hanson, a Dane, as an interpreter. Professor Slofftzoff is an enthusiastic naturalist. He showed us a small collection of birds in the museum. Among these were several which have not hitherto been recorded east of the Ural Mountains, for example, the Blackcap, the Garden-Warbler, and the Icterine TreeWarbler; but as there are no special labels with these examples to authenticate the localities, the fact of their really having been shot in the neighbourhood of Omsk must be accepted with hesitation. In museums, which profess to be local museums only, birds from distant localities continually creep in by accident, and many errors in geographical distribution are thus propagated.

I gave the Professor some Sheffield cutlery in exchange for a curiously inlaid pipe of mammoth ivory, and a flint and steel, the latter inlaid with silver and precious stones. He told me that both were made by the Burryats in the Transbaical country, but the pipe is not to be distinguished from those made on the tundras of the north, and I suspect it to be of Samoyade origin.

Twenty years ago Omsk was only a village, now it is much larger than Tyu-main', and has thirty to forty thousand inhabitants. This increase is very largely accounted for by the fact that the seat of government has in the meantime been removed from Tobolsk to Omsk. From Omsk to Tomsk is 877 versts, or 585 miles, which we accomplished in eighty-five hours, including stoppages, an average of 101

versts an hour. We changed horses thirty-seven times. We had now got into the full swing of sledge travelling; snow, wind, rain, sunshine, day, night, good roads, bad roads, nothing stopped us; on we went like the wandering Jew, only with this difference, that we had a fixed goal. However rough the road might be, I could now sleep soundly as in a bed. My sledge fever was entirely gone. I began actually to enjoy sledge travelling. I found a pleasant lullaby in the never-ceasing music of the "wrangling and the jangling of the bells." After having sledged 2762 versts, or 1841 miles, one begins to feel that the process might go on ad infinitum without serious results.

The weather was mild, with no absolute thaw, but now and then we had snow-storms, generally very slight. Our way lay across flat steppes with scarcely a tree visible, until we came within 150 miles of Tomsk, when we again passed through a hilly well-wooded country like an English park. We saw the same birds as heretofore, with an occasional Hazel Grouse * and Great Tit. On the steppes SnowBuntings were, as before, very common. On the whole the roads were good, in the flat district very good.

In Omsk I had seen some very curious Kirghis' arms, at Professor Slofftzoff's, and I had vainly tried to purchase some. In Tomsk I learned that Barnaul was the place to obtain them. There is a museum in that town. I was told that M. Bogdanoff, a mining engineer, and M. Funck, a shotmaker, spoke German, and further, that there is an antiquary of the name of Goulaieff. Tomsk is a very business

*See Siberia in Europe,' page 80.

like place, apparently about the same size as Omsk. From Tomsk to Kras-no-yarsk' is 554 versts, or 369 miles, which we accomplished in sixty-four hours and in twenty-seven stages. The weather was very mild, and we had several slight falls of snow. The country was generally hilly, and well-wooded, and the roads on the whole good, but occasionally we had them extremely bad. After the 27th of May (15th Russian style) we had to pay for an extra horse, and upon entering the Yen-e-saisk' Government, the cost of each horse was doubled. Magpies were as common as ever. Jackdaws much less so. Hooded Crows disappeared soon

than before.

after leaving Tomsk. Ravens were rather more numerous Bullfinches were plentiful in the woods, and Snow-Buntings on the plains. The Great Tit was only occasionally seen. House-sparrows were very common, but we saw no Tree-Sparrows. We reached Kras-no-yarsk' on Monday the 2nd of April, and paid a visit, first to M. Dorset, the government "Vet." of the district. He was a German, and kindly placed himself at our disposal as interpreter. He introduced me to a M. Kibort, a Polish exile, who engaged to procure me skins of birds, and send them to England. We visited the governor, who gave me a Crown padarozhna, and an open letter of introduction to all the officials. In Kras-no-yarsk' prices were as follows:

We spent the evening at the house of Sideroff's agent, M. Glayboff. We also bought some fine photographs of the gold mines, &c.

A warm south-west wind blew all Sunday, and continued during the night. In Kras-no-yarsk' we found the streets. flooded, and everybody travelling upon wheels. In the evening the post refused us horses, on the plea that sledging was impossible. There was nothing for it but to go to bed. In the morning the south-west wind was as warm as ever. The red hills of Kras-no-yarsk' were almost bare. We were obliged to take to wheels, and organise a little caravan. Equipage No. 1 was a "Rosposki," on which our empty pavoska" was mounted, a yems'-chik standing on the box at the back, and driving his three horses over the top. Equipage No. 2 was a "Tarantass,” with two horses, drawing our luggage. Equipage No. 3 was another tarantass, containing our two selves. We got away about 11 A.M., and trundled along over snow, mud, grass, or gravel up the hill, through a series of extempore rivers, and across the steppes, a wild bleak country, like a Yorkshire moor, for 35 versts, at an expense of fifteen roubles. The next stage was 28

66

versts. The road was a little better. We dismissed the rosposki, and travelled in the otherwise empty sledge, but retained one tarantass for our luggage. This stage cost us six roubles. Night came on, and after a squall of wind, snow, and sleet, it grew a little colder. The next stage was 23 versts. We travelled as on the last, but transferred our luggage from the tarantass to a sledge. We had reached the forest, the roads soon became better, the wind got more