ORDER I. BEETLES. 25 



a great variety of the most beautiful insects, offered me an 

 immense field for collecting plants and insects, a catalogue 

 of which I published in St. Petersburg in 1827. On the 

 first excursion I made in that country, I was followed at 

 a distance by a dozen mysterious-looking young Tartars, 

 who, as soon as they perceived me picking up those violet- 

 colored carabs from under the stones, and putting them 

 into a vial, suddenly all disappeared. But judge of my as- 

 tonishment, on my return in the evening, in finding a crowd 

 of Tartars in front of my house. Had I been less ac- 

 quainted with the kind feeling of those people, and par- 

 ticularly their hospitality toward strangers, I should cer- 

 tainly have witnessed that crowd with some alarm. But 

 as I approached the house, a number of them walked sol- 

 emnly toward me, the right hand on the breast, as a sign 

 of salutation, and with the left presented me jars filled 

 with these splendid carabs, as a token of their affection for 

 me. 



Nor was this all ; for two days after, when I left Baidar 

 for Theodosia, and when almost ten miles distant from the 

 former place, I heard behind me the swift trotting of horse- 

 men, and, turning round, met one of those friendly Tartars 

 of Baidar, who had followed me for the purpose of present- 

 ing me another jar full of those carabs. No persuasion 

 could induce any one of these Mohammedans to accept the 

 least recompense for any service or for my board ; and in 

 all their villages and towns I was exceedingly annoyed by 

 the inhabitants, for every one offered his house as my resi- 

 dence, from the tolerant Mullah, or Mohammedan priest, 

 to the unsophisticated country peasant of Jenicale and 

 Kertsch the industrious manufacturers in the cities of 

 Baktschiserai or Achmetschet, as well as the opulent mer- 

 chant of Kosloff, All vied with each other in showing 

 hospitality and munificence to the stranger. Would that 

 stranger could repay them ! 



B 



