226 SIBERIA. 



wliicli is ol riiiifli iififKirlanof is Ir'uii itic inontli ot rue J iiiit io tlio jiiiifiion «[ tlic- Triliol 

 with the Irtish. 'Jin- Irtish itself is iiavigjihle I'rom its inoulh to Semipalaiiiisk, a length nl 

 2,620 versts; in its long fonrse it intersects the feriili- jprovinee of Semipalatinsk, llie Kirghiz, 

 Ishirnsk and Barahinsk steppes, and ffirtilizes an enormous territory. This river conveys grain 

 freights, salt, cattle and animal products to Toholsk and Tinmen from even the far distant parts 

 of the province of Semireehinsk. Steam navigation was started here in 1862. 



Although the Dili is a very full stream from Samarov it flows through an almost 

 uninlialiited region, so that there is no regular service of steamers flown its c<jurse. There is 

 liowever a hrisk traffic on the upper part of it as far as Barnaoul, a distance of about 2,rX)0 

 versts. and sometimes as far as Uiisk. The Ohi is formeil liy the junclion of the Bey and the 

 Katuiia, and its principal tributaries are on the riglit. The most important of tliese are the 

 Tom which waters the rich district of Kuznetsk and the Chulym which is navigable although with 

 difficulty as far as Achinsk, a distance of 1,000 versts. The river Kct has also a considerable 

 commercial impoitance as a connecting link between the basins of the Obi and Yenisei, 

 through the Obi-Yenisei canal, now in course of construction. Steamers can go up the Ket as 

 far a'^ the settlement of ]\Iakovsk. 



' The above mentioned Obi-Yenisei canal is to connect the Ket, a tributary of the Obi, 

 with the Kass, a tributary of the Yenisei. The idea of connecting the basins of the Obi and 

 Yenisei originated a hundred years ago when a scheme was presented to the Emperor Paul for 

 joining these system by the Tyrn, a tributary of the Obi, and the Sym, a tributary of the 

 Yenisei. Schemes were next proposed for joining the Ket with the Kem, a tributary of the 

 Yenisei and the Vakh, a tributary of the Obi, with the Elagona, a tributary of the Yenisei, 

 but none of these projects were realized. Considerably later, in 1875, the new idea of joining 

 the Ket with the Great Kass sprang up. A Siberian merchant, Funtusov, at his own initiative 

 and expense investigated the ground between these two rivers, and finding that the scheme 

 was feasible, drew the attention of tlie Government to this subject. The engineers who were 

 sent over to study the question found that it was quite possible to carry out the work and 

 it was therefore resolved to commence the undertaking. The river Ozernaya falls into the 

 Ket at a distance of 550 versts from its mouth. The river Lomovataya flows into the Ozer- 

 naya and is connected with the river Yazevaya w^hich flows out of the lake Bolshoi. The 

 little Kass rises in the vicinity of this lake and falls into the big Kass which forms part of 

 the Yenisei system. The river Ozernaya forms part of the canal M'/a versts from its month. 

 The canal then follows the Lomovataya for 47V2 versts and the Yazevaya for 31''/^ versts up 

 to lake Bolshoi. From this point a canal has been excavated TV* versts long and 6 fathoms 

 wide at the bottom, which enters the little Kass and follows it for a distance of 89 versts to 

 the point where the big Kass commences at a distance of 192 versts from the Yenisei. The 

 navigable Angara joins the Yenisei near the mouth of the big Kass and flows from lake 

 Baikal on the shore of which Irkutsk is situated. The Obi- Yenisei canal will therefore open 

 up an enormous water way of 5,000 versts, connecting Tiumen with Irkutsk and intersecting 

 the whole of Western Siberia. This work was commenced at the expense of the Government in 

 1882 and is being earned on very energetically; a great deal has been done, and there is 

 every hope that the undertaking will shortly be brought to a successful termination. In 



