A Cruise to Riiss/an Lapland. 199 



XVII. — Notes on Birds observed in Russian Lapland, Kolr/uev, 

 and Novaya Zenilya, in 1895. By Henry J. Pearso.v. 

 With Introductory Remarks by Col. H. W. Feildex, 

 C.M.Z.S. 



A SHORT prefatory account of the cruise of tlie ' Saxon ' last 

 summer may interest some of the readers of 'The Ibis,' and 

 no doubt will be useful in the future to others who may 

 desire to carry out further investigations in the lands of the 

 Frozen North which we visited. 



The project of reaching Novaya Zemlya for ornithological 

 investigations originated entirely with Mr. H. J. Pearson, 

 who, with his brother, Mr. C. E. Pearson, chartered the 

 yacht, defrayed the expenses of the voyage, and invited the 

 Rev. H. H. Slater and the writer to accompany them. To 

 obtain a steam-yacht fitted for cruising in the ice-encum- 

 bered waters of Barents Sea is not an easy matter to effect. 

 Many yachts, steam-trawlers, and other descriptions of craft 

 were offered to Mr. Pearson, but on examination were not 

 deemed suitable, and at one time it seemed as if the pro- 

 jected cruise would fall through, owing to the difficulty 

 of finding a suitable vessel. As a last resource the steam- 

 yacht ' Saxon ' was chartered. She had made the voyage to 

 Kolguev and Novaya Zemlya in 1894 with Mr. Trevor- Batty e 

 and Mr. Mervyn Powys. Her small size and limited coal- 

 capacity, with weak steam-power, were great drawbacks : 

 fully recognized, however, before the vessel was hired. The 

 ' Saxon ' is a staunch little sea-boat of 50 tons registered 

 and 117 tons yacht measurement, and, though tried pretty 

 severely, behaved remarkably well in some tolerably heavy 

 weather. It will be seen in the sequel that the ' Saxon's ' 

 want of steam-power and coal-capacity greatly modified the 

 original plan of the voyage, which was to arrive in Novaya 

 Zemlya at the earliest possible date, and to carry out there 

 extended ornithological researches. The voyage from Bergen 

 through the inner fiords of the Norwegian coast, a run 

 through the Lofoden Islands, and our rambles in the birch- 

 woods around Tromsii, with a lovely day passed in the 



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