94 KAMSCHATKA. [chap. 



stampede. These occurrences, though common enough during 

 the earlier part of our journey, became less and less frequent as we 

 advanced, and before we reached our destination had altogether 

 ceased to trouble us. We did not regret it, for no amount of re- 

 petition accustomed us to them, and it needed an almost super- 

 human patience to take them philosophically. We were now 

 passing along a fairly well-marked trail, and, a short time after we 

 were once more in marching order, we met four miserably ragged 

 and dirty natives who seemed to be moving house. They were 

 mounted, and drove before them a couple of cows. We inquired if 

 they had any furs for sale or barter, but they were unable to under- 

 stand us, and thinking we wanted milk, produced a few drops of 

 that liquid tied up in a small piece of the intestines of a recently- 

 killed bear. This delicacy, however, we declined with thanks. A 

 little later we came upon the new addition to our cavalcade for 

 which we had arranged at Stari-ostrog — three ponies, each of which 

 was accompanied by "her foal. We formed now a party of some 

 size, composed of eleven men and twenty-six horses, and the playful 

 gambols of the little foals, though somewhat pro^^ocative of stam- 

 23edes, served to counteract the gloom of the monotonous birch- 

 forests through which we passed. The height of the undergrowth 

 of grass and other coarse herbage was enormous ; such, indeed, as I 

 could not have conceived possible for annuals to attain in these 

 northern climes. In many places it was two or three feet above 

 our heads as we rode. There was but little game to be looked for, 

 or at least to be easily obtained, among such rank vegetation, and 

 we pressed on without delay, as our rate of progress since leaving 

 Petropaulovsky had been anything but satisfactory. 



Our new horseboy, though in other ways a great improvement 

 on his fellows, was unluckily a somewhat sleepy individual, and 

 signalised hunself during the course of the afternoon by causing 

 the most disastrous stampede we had yet experienced. The pack- 

 horses, as I have already mentioned, were lashed together in strings 

 of four, the leading animal carrying a horseboy in addition to his 



