THE SAIMA SEE. 13 



of Kuopia. From the south bank issues the river Pielis, 

 conveying its waters into Lake Orivesi. Lake Puruvesi 

 is situated to the south of Orivesi. It is 24 miles long 

 from north-east to south-west, and 18 miles in breadth. 



A little below Nyslot we met two Finnish timber-rafts 

 containing each, it was estimated by a Finnish gentleman, 

 about 5000 logs; and above Nyslot other two containing, 

 according to the estimate of a Finnish engineer engaged 

 extensively in the manufacture of machinery for saw- 

 mills and other purposes in Nyslot, 10,000 logs each. I 

 have called these Finnish timber-rafts. The movement 

 of all the Finnish timber-rafts seen by me on the Saima 

 See was effected by a boat carrying out an anchor to a 

 considerable distance a-head, and the raft being warpt 

 thither by a windlass on the raft, to which motion was 

 given by a horse on board. The men had on board a fire 

 for cooking, and a small hut for shelter. The largest 

 rafts were destined for Messrs Hood & Co.'s saw-mill at 

 Nyslot. 



In regard to the form of the raft which is known in 

 Northern Russia, if not also here, as the koshell, M. 

 Judrae, a distinguished Member of the Imperial Forest 

 Service in Russsia, gives the following information : 



'Up to 1860, logs designed for floatage on the lake 

 were generally made up into rafts at considerable expense; 

 but in 1861, a peasant, a native of Finland, devised the 

 system of floatage in the so-called koshell. These koshells 

 are of two kinds, designed respectively for transit by lake 

 and by sea. The former are of a less complicated struc- 

 ture than the latter. The lake koshell consists of two 

 parts, a head and a body. The head is a simple raft of 

 logs of ordinary size, one row deep. On this the navi- 

 gators take their places, and sometimes horses, together 

 with a windlass or other machinery for winding up rope to 

 which an anchor is attached. The head is formed of logs 

 arranged lengthwise in a regular row, the number varying 

 with the intended size of the koshell. It goes foremost, and 



