— 237 — 



pected this soil is very fertile , especially one kind of it, 

 which is well known under tlie name of Ischernosom and is 

 productive in the highest degree. — So far as regards the 

 soil therefore the steppes are everything that could be desired. 

 If the climale would give the soil the smallest chance, the 

 steppes would grow crops and trees as well as any country on 

 the face of the Earlh. 



The less fertile plains classed by professor Karl Koch un- 

 der the name of pampas are also perfectly productive when 

 supplied with water. — Nolhing in their soil is opposed to the 

 growth of forest trees. 



After the steppes and pampas the only remaining specially 

 distinclive soil is that of the sali déserts — but it is now per- 

 fectly well known that by the aid of fresh and running water 

 even the most strongly impregnaled sait soils can be made lo 

 grow plants as well as any other soil. — It bas been done on 

 a considérable scale in the Salt-lake district of Northwest Ame- 

 rica, and there is no reason to doubt that similar means would 

 produce like results in the Soulh of Russia. 



The great difficulty in the way of covering thèse plains 

 wilh woods and crops is the want of water, and at présent 

 there seems no olher source from which to procure water but 

 the rivers which pass ihro' the country. — There seems to be 

 no réservoir in the underlying slrala from which it could be 

 procured by boring — at least, according lo one présent infor- 

 mation, the chances are againsl this, altho' it may well be 

 worth while lo détermine how far this is ihe case by aclual 

 experimenl. — In some districts a year or more occasionally 

 passes wilhoul a shower of rain refreching the earlh, and 

 very generally nol a drop falls in the whole country from the 

 end of May to the middle of September. Il rains no doubt in 

 spring and aulumn, and snows in winler, but the country is 

 so uniformely level, and what is of more importance the sub- 

 jacent strata are so uniformely level, never having been dis- 



