TT.] RUSSIANS AND SAMOYEDS. C3 



mainland. For thirty years back the Siberian plague has 

 raged severely among the reindeer. A Russian informed me 

 that he now owned but two hundred, while some years ago he 

 had a thousand ; and this statement was confirmed by the other 

 Russians. Men too are attacked by this disease. Two or three 

 days before our arrival a Samoyed and his wife had eaten the 

 flesh of a diseased animal, in consequence of which the woman 

 died the following day, and the man still lay ill, and, as the 

 people on the spot said, would not probably survive. Some of 

 the Samoyeds are considered rich, for instance the ' eldest ' 

 (starschina) of the tribe, who owns a thousand reindeer. The 

 Samoyeds also employ themselves, like the Russians, in fishing. 

 During winter some betake themselves to Western Siberia, 

 where ' corn is cheap,' and some go to Pustosersk. 



" The nine Russians form a company (artell) for whale-fishing. 

 There are twenty-two shares, two of which fall to the holy 

 Nicholas, and the other twenty are divided among the share- 

 holders. The company's profit for the fishing season commonly 

 amounts to 1,500 or 2,000 pood train oil of the white whale 

 [Beluga), but this season there had been no fishing on account 

 of disagreements among the shareholders. For in the Russian 

 ' artell ' the rule is, ' equal liability, equal rights,' and as the 

 rich will never comply with the first part of the rule, it was 

 their arrogance and greed which caused contention here, as 

 everywhere else in the world. 



" Neither the Russians nor the Samoyeds carry on any agri- 

 culture. The former buy meal for bread from Irbit. The price 

 of meal varies ; this season it costs one rouble ten copecks per 

 pood in Pustosersk. Salt is now brought from Norway to 

 Mesen, where it costs fifty to sixty copecks per pood. The Samo- 

 yeds buy nearly everything from the Russians. There were 

 many inquiries for gunpowder, shot, cheap fowling-pieces, rum, 

 bread, sugar, and culinary vessels (teacups, &c.). The Samo- 

 yed women wear clothes of different colours, chiefly red. In 

 exchange for the goods enumerated above there maybe obtained 

 fish, ti'ain oil, reindeer skins, walrus tusks, and furs, viz., the skins 

 of the red, white, and brown fox, wolf, Polar bear, and glutton. 



" The Russians in question are ' Old Believers,' but the 

 difference between them and the orthodox consists merely in 

 their not smoking tobacco, and in their making the sign of the 

 cross with the thumb, the ring finger, and the little finger, 

 while the orthodox Russians, on the other hand, make it with 

 the thumb, the f<jrefinger, and the middle finger. All Samo- 

 yeds are baptised into the orthodox faith, but they worship their 

 old idols at the same time. They travel over a thousand versts 

 as pilgrims to their sacrificial places. There are several such 

 places on Vaygats, where their idols are to be found. The 



