253 



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 

 Europaean, 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 unintei-esting 

 to compare the Flora of these districts with that of an 

 Europaean 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 to 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 for 

 the purposes of comparison. In the Altaic mountains, and 

 adjoining steppes, we collected about from 1,600 to 1,700 

 Phanerogamce. Germany, on the other hand, contains, 



