348 



A BUSY WEEK ON THE KUREIKA 



side of the river ; hundreds of acres of ice had drifted 

 into the forests, and when the water subsided frozen 

 blocks would probably be stranded among the trees and 

 gradually melt on the ground. 



The villagers of the other side of the river brought 

 us a few birds which they had secured, so Glinski thought 

 he would try how many he could skin in one day. He 

 began at nine a.m. and finished at two the next morning. 



OSTIAK ARROW-HEADS 



Allowing a couple of hours for meals and a " papiross " 

 afterwards, this would make fifteen working hours, during 

 which he skinned forty-six birds. I labelled them all, 

 and o;ave them the last finishing- touch. I had arrang-ed 

 to pay all his expenses, and to give him ten kopecks a 

 skin in addition to his twenty roubles a month ; so he 

 made a very good thing of the bargain. 



The ice was still straggling down, but slowly, on 

 the 14th. The wind was south in the morning, with 

 rain, but it cleared up at noon, and the evening was 

 bright, with scarcely any wind. I had three rounds in 

 the forest. Before breakfast I shot a ruby -throated 

 warbler [Eriihacus calliope). He had a wonderfully fine 

 song, decidedly more melodious than that of the blue- 

 throat, and very little inferior to that of the nightingale. 

 When I first heard him sing I thought I was listening to 

 a nightingale; he had his back towards me when I shot 

 him, and I was astonished to pick up a bird with a scarlet 

 throat. The feathers were as glossy as silk, and when I 



