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nor do I know, indeed, positively, where these wandering 
tribes do spend that season, as I have not visited those 
regions myself. When the geographical position of the 
countries which we explored, is carefully considered, lying 
- from 47° to 54? north latitude, and at their northern bound- 
ary, from 99° to 105°, but on the south from 91? 30 to 
102° 30' east longitude, from Faro, no other prevailing 
forms of vegetation can really be expected, than such as have 
a general similarity to those of the northern and midland parts 
of Europe: for it is well known, whatever be the longitude, 
that corresponding degrees of latitude produce the same 
kind of vegetation, becoming more and more alike as they 
proceed from the equator towards the Poles. But we may 
reasonably conclude that many species, different from the 
European, occur in a country which is divided from Europe 
by a large chain of mountains, the Ural, running north and 
south, by immensely extended steppes, lying at the south 
and eastern foot of these, and which are even traversed by 
mountains whose elevated summits rise above the level of 
. the snowy region. It will not, therefore, be uninteresting 
to compare the Flora of these districts with that of an 
European country, occupying a nearly similar geographical 
position, Let this be Germany; which, situated under the 
same latitude, of nearly equal superficial extent; containing, 
likewise, towards the south-east, the highest mass of mount- 
ains, and watered by considerable rivers, appears 4o. be 
eminently adapted for comparison; although from its vicinity 
to the sea it presents a greater variety of physical situations. 
Germany has also been accurately investigated in a Botanical 
view. The same cannot be exactly said of the countries we 
have just Visited ; but so strong was the resemblance which. 
we found to exist in the Flora of the different mountains, 
varied only by a change of soil; so uniform were the vege- 
table productions of the steppes, that although not, strictly 
Speaking, entirely investigated, yet sufficient is known xA 
* Purposes of comparison. In the Altaic mountains, a 
Sining steppes, we collected about from 1,600 to 1,700 
- Germany, on the other hand, contains, 
