viil] loss of our photographic plates. 163 



thirty souls only. Landing to rest, we noticed here, for the Urst 

 time, a fox trap of simple construction, which is said nevertheless 

 to be very effective. A broad mortice is cut in an ordinary rough 

 log, and in the longitudinal hole thus produced a spring is placed, 

 composed of two pieces of raw hide twisted together, which impels 

 a barbed prong. This is discharged by means of a trigger, to which 

 a string is attached leading across the animal's usual track. 

 Although Kamschatka is a country which would appear to be 

 peculiarly adapted for trapping, it seemed to us that it was not 

 undertaken to anything like the extent that might be expected. 



We camped eighteen versts below Uskovska, in good spirits at 

 the improved condition of our affairs and our rate of progress down 

 the river. We had need of them, for after dinner, on inspecting 

 our last case of photographic plates, which had been packed with 

 all possible care in blankets, we found that the greater number of 

 them had been Ijroken to atoms. Such are the results of pack- 

 horse travelling ! Of the whole lot but two remained, and these, 

 with one or two we had left over from another case, were all we 

 had to last us for the rest of our journey ! It was a cruel dis- 

 appointment. We were in the midst of scenery which for magni- 

 ficence was almost without parallel, and which we could never 

 have a hope of seeing again. For some days the volcanoes, 

 which at this season of the year are often invisible, had shown 

 themselves without a cloud. And now, just as we were approach- 

 ing them, and arriving at the very part of our journey of which we 

 most desired to have a record, we were doomed to failure — a failure 

 the harder to be borne from the fact that our limited time pre- 

 cluded any possibility of sketching. 



It was blowing hard from the W.S.W. as we embarked at 

 daylight on the following morning, and before long the wind had 

 freshened considerably. The thermometer was not lower than usual, 

 but the keen wind penetrated our garments and froze us to the bone. 

 It was in our favour, and hoisting a portion of one of the tents as 

 a sail, we sped along merrily. Soon, liowever, it became evident 



