XI.] A REINDEER CHUKCH ENCAMPMENT. -409 



good-morning by gently rubbing his nose against his masters 

 hands. While this was going on the other reindeer stood 

 drawn up in well-ordered ranks, like the crew in divisions on 

 board a man-of-war. The owner then went forward and saluted 

 every reindeer ; they were allowed to stroke his hands with their 

 noses. He on his part took every reindeer by the horn and 

 examined it in the most careful way. After the inspection was 

 ended at a sign given by the master the whole herd wheeled 

 round and returned in closed ranks, with the old reindeer in 

 front, to the previous day's pasture. 



" The whole scene made a very favourable impression on us ; it 

 was not the grim hard savage showing in a coarse and barbarous 

 way his superiority over the animals, but the good master 

 treating his inferiors kindly, and having a friendly word for 

 each of them. Here good relations prevailed between man and 

 the animals. Rotschitlen himself was a stately young man, 

 with an intelligent appearance and a supple handsome figure. 

 His dress, of exceedingly good cut and of uncommonly fine 

 reindeer skin, sat close to his well-grown frame, and gave us an 

 opportunity of seeing his graceful and noble bearing, which was 

 most observable when he was in motion. 



" On our repeating our proposal to purchase reindeer we again 

 met with a refusal, on which we struck our tent and commenced 

 our return journey. We came on board on the 18th March 

 at 3 o'clock P.M., after a march of four hours and three- 

 quarters. 



" The way to the reindeer camp rose and fell gently. The 

 snow was hard and even, so that we could go forward rapidly. 

 On the way out four foxes and some ravens were seen. At one 

 place we found a large number of lemming passages excavated 

 through the snow in an oblique direction towards the ground. 

 Most of them were scratched up by foxes. The descent to an 

 untouched lemming nest was cylindrical, and four and a half 

 centimetres in diameter. During both days we had snow, and a 

 thick and foggy atmosphere, so that we could see only a short 

 distance before us ; we did not however go astray, thanks to the 

 good eyes and strongly developed sense of locality of our guide, 

 the native." 



Brusewitz's and Nordquist^s Excursion to Nutschoitjin. 



Of tliis Nordquist gives the following account : — 



" On the 20th March, at 9 o'clock A.M. Lieut. Brusewitz, 

 boatswain Lustig, the Norwegian hunters Johnsen and Sievertsen, 

 the Chukch Notti, and I, left the Vega. Our equipment, which 

 consisted of provisions for eight days, cooking apparatus, canvas 

 tent, india-rubber mattrasses, reindeer-skin jiesJcs, &c., we drew 



