CHOOMS OF THE SAMOYEDES 



CHAPTER VI. 



THE ZYLMA AND ITS NEIGHBOURHOOD. 



The Samoyedes — Reindeer — The Tundra — Nomad Life — Diseases of 

 Reindeer — Samoyede National Character — Trip to Umskia — Bad Roads 

 — Paucity of Birds — Easter Holidays — Drunkenness — Heavy Snowfall 

 — Our First Bird's-nest— Excursion to an Island in the River. 



During this comparatively idle time we picked up what 

 information we could about the Samoyedes. Captain 

 Engel, who was a wild, harum-scarum, devil-may-care 

 fellow, and had been in most parts of the world, had 

 seen a good deal of the Samoyedes. Some years ago 

 he was wrecked in the lagoon of the Petchora, not 

 far from the island of Varandai, had been hospitably 

 received by these wandering people, had made his 

 way across country to Kuya, and had remained in the 

 district ever since. The information which we obtained 



