October, 1902.] 



KNOWLEDGE, 



223 



Tliis gentleman was very anxious tliat I sliould take his 

 portrait, and notwithstanding^ niv protestations that the 

 picture probably would be unsuccessful, afid at all events 

 small, he iiisisted upon dressing up in his full unitorni 

 which included a sword and a medal. One of the telegraph 

 line inspectors was proclaimed to be a great sportsman, 

 and was anxious to take us to some marshes at some 

 distance, which he reported to be the haunt of wild geese 

 and swans. We gladly accepted his services as guide, and 

 taking a few men and our tent we set off for the marshes. 

 The walk thither was most trying, as it was pouring with 

 rain, and we had to wade for miles uphill through slush 

 and soft moss. The marshes, however, were extensive, 

 and were the breeding haunts of a number of interesting 



Fig. 6, — The 'J'clegi-aph Sportsman and Gregori (interpreter) 

 at I'lilozero. 



wading birds, amongst others being the dusky redshank, 

 and the bar-tailed godwit, which were mentioued in my 

 last article. But we never saw a sign of a goose or 

 a swan, and our guide's sporting achievements were 

 none too brilliaat. He stayed for a long time at the 

 edge of a small lake, and fired many rounds at a fiock of 

 ducks fully two hundred yards away. Soon afterwards I 

 saw him fire twice at something on the ground, aud on 

 reachiuir him 1 saw that his mark was a fluffy little 

 greenshank. On catching the chick we found one of its 

 toes slightly injured by the shot. 



As we journeyed northwards from Pulozero the character 

 of the count ry gradually changed. The pine forest became 

 thinner, and the birch trees more numerous until the pine 

 trees eventually disappeared. Then the birch trees in 

 their turn Ix'come scarcer aud stuuted, aud the dwarf 

 bii'ch and many other kinds of creeping plants began to 

 get the upper hand, until at the coast the only trees were 

 a few wind-blown birches, while even the creeping plants 

 in manv places were unable to e.xist, and reindeer moss, 

 hoary and luxuriant, reigned in their stead. 



Tlie change in the vegetation had a marked effect upon 

 the bird life. For instance the capercaiDie disa|)peared 

 with the pine forest, and willow grouse* increased in 

 numbers as the country became more open. The plumage 

 of the willow grouse especially interested us. This bird 

 is familiar to all in its winter garb of white when it api>ears 



*Lagoput alhus. 



in the poulterers' shops under the name of ptarmigan. 

 In summer, however, its plumage is brown, much like that 

 of the red grouse, except that its wing feathers always 

 remain white. In high northern altitudes where spring, 

 summer, and autumn are crowded into a few months, the 

 bird often retains j)art of its white plumage, especially on 

 the breast, througliout the summer ; so that we were not 

 surprised to find all the willow grouse bearing old winter 

 feathers in August. But when we came to examine these 

 birds we discoven^d that they were still in the midst of 

 the " spring " moult, their breasts and backs being covered 

 with new and gi-owiug feathers, many of them unly just 

 peeping through the skin. It .seemed doubtful that these 

 birds would (jomplete this moult that year before the 

 winter plumage became necessary, for already new snow was 

 falling on the hills, the mosquitoes were fast dying, and 

 autumn had commenced. The exceptionally late summer 

 accounted, no doubt, for this curious state of plumage, and 

 as we journeyed north other anomalies caused by the 

 l)ackward season were apparent. 



Most of the willow grouse had broods of very small 

 chicks, and, like other gallinaceous birds, the parents were 

 active in using various devices to attract the intruder's 

 attention while their young ones were rapidly getting 

 under safe cover. To give a few instances. I was watching 

 a hen bird feeding her chicks which were jumping up to 

 her lieak and pecking bits of food from it. Suddenly she 

 saw nie, and uttering a harsh and low chuck she began to 

 run like a rat through the grass and undergrowth, but 

 keeping always in full view. Meanwhile her chicks had 

 scattered in every direction and had disappeared bke 

 magic. One old hen which I came upon very suddenly, 

 rushed up to me cocking her tail aud holding her head as 

 bravely as a bantam, she was so defiant, aud came .so 

 close, that I thought she was going to strike me. The 

 cock birds were as eager to protect their young as the 

 females. Once, on surprising two old birds together with 

 their brood, the hen immediately made off, but the cock 

 flew straight at me and fell over, as though shot, almost 

 at my feet. He quickly picked himself up, and, crouching 

 low, crept away dragging his drooping wings along the 

 ground. 



At Kitsa, where two log huts formed a " station," the 

 food question became acute. We had run matters rather 

 fiue in our desire to stay as long as possible in the country, 

 aud now we had hut a tin of tongue left for ourselves and 

 nothing f(n- our men. However, fortune favoured us, for 

 at the foaming junction of two rapid rivers we caught a 

 fine salmon, and higher up one of the rivers a good trout 

 and a pike. They were soon cooked, aud our men ceased 

 grumbling, while we were glad to have a substitute for 

 tinned food. Nevertheless, we hurried forward to Kola, 

 a small village of wooden houses, and the capital of 

 Kussian Lapland. 



Historically Kola is famed for having been bombarded 

 (inoffensive and unprotected fishing village as it is) by a 

 British gunboat during the Crimean war. It is prettily 

 situated at the base of a hill, flanked on both sides by 

 rivers flowing into-a fjord, which takes its name from the 

 village. Here we were once again in communication with 

 the outside world. We paid off our men, who set oS. back 

 to their homes by the way we had come. They had no 

 loads, but their" pockets were heavy, their pay being in 

 silver, and their hearts were glad, while as to their 

 heads I am afraid they were lighter even than usual, for 

 until Kola was reached the men had long abstained from 

 vodka. 



We fouud plenty to interest us during the two days 

 which we spent in Kola while waiting for a steamer to 

 take us down the fjord. Most of the inhabitants were 



