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Chapter V. 



living creature. Our view was blocked by a wall of fog 

 whichever way we turned. There were plenty ot 

 reindeer tracks, but of course they were only those of 

 the Samoyedes' tame reindeer. This is the land of the 

 Samoyedes and oh ! but it is desolate and mournful ! 

 The only one of us that bagged anything was the 



AY Otto 



THE PLAIN OF YALMAL. 



\_froin fi Photograph. 



botanist. Beautiful flowers smiled to us here and there 

 among the sand mounds the one message from a 

 brighter world in this land of fogs. We went far in 

 over the Mats, but came only to sheets of water, with 

 low spits running out into them, and ridges between. 

 We often heard the cry of loons on the water, but could 





