62 ACCOUNT OF THE CALMUCS. 



MARY. 



In what part of Asia do the Calmucs live"? 



MRS. F. 



The inhabitants of the vast plains, or steppes, which extend 

 northward from the Black Sea and Mount Caucasus, on both 

 sides of the Volga, are known under the name of Calmucs. 

 They belong to the Mongolian race, are divided into five 

 hordes (in the Mogul language orrfa,) each governed by its 

 own khan or chief. Their wealth consists in their camels, 

 horses, oxen, sheep and goats; these supply all their wants, 

 or afford them the means of satisfying them. They live in 

 tents; 20,000 tents or families of Calmucs inhabiting the 

 government of Astrachan. In the winter they drive their 

 herds from the steppes into regions better furnished with 

 water. 



ESTHER. 



What dreary places these steppes must be! 



MRS. F. 



So, indeed, they are. The steppes of Asia extend over 

 more than 2000 leagues, and are the most vast and elevated 

 in the world. Those in the government of Astrachan are 

 among the most desert parts of the Russian empire. The soil 

 consists of a yellow clay, without stones, and abundantly im- 

 pregnated with various salts. Vegetation is extremely scanty, 

 consisting chiefly of wormwood, interspersed with tufts of 

 grass, which never entirely cover the ground, or form a uni- 

 form turf, the yellow clay being seen between. Here and 

 there are more fertile spots, covered with saline plants, or 

 adorned with the brilliant flowers of the Iris and the Tulip. 



ESTHER. 



Is the heat very great there? 



MRS. F. 



In the southerly steppes the thermometer often remains, 

 for weeks together, at 30 degrees of Reaumur,* and not a 



* See page 210. 



