CHAP. XI. 



PRICE OF PROVISIONS. 



121 



over us, and I recognised them as birds I had seen two or 

 three days before. By this time all the hooded crows and 

 magpies had gone into the woods to breed, and the town was 

 deserted by them. During the week there had apparently 

 been an arrival of house-sparrows in Ust-Zylma, for they 

 abounded in M. Znaminski's yard. Strangely enough, we 

 could not meet with any in other parts of the town. 



On the 26th the weather changed ; a cold north-east wind 

 blew. It was a day unpropitious to bird-shooting. So little 

 did we anticipate meeting with any, that we spent the 

 morning in buying provisions for our journey. It may be 

 useful to record the prices we paid : 



Salt beef 1.70 roubles per pud. (IJd. per Ib.) 

 Butter 6.50 (4|d. per Ib). 



Tea 2 per Ib. (5s. per Ib.) 



Coffee 0.55 (Is. 4d. per Ib). 



We also bought a nyelma, or white salmon, for our present 

 use. It weighed 15 Ibs., and cost 10 copecks per Ib. We 

 were told that, later on, the price would be 5 copecks per Ib. 

 This fish sometimes reaches the weight of 60 Ibs. We found 

 it very nice eating, but we failed to recognise its boasted 

 superiority to salmon. We acknowledge, however, that the 

 cooking may have been in fault. In its stomach were several 

 small fishes. 



In the afternoon we went out in the cold wind, not expect- 

 ing to shoot anything ; but to our astonishment we found 



ranean. Eastwards it ranges to Kam- 

 tchatka, wintering in Persia, India, 

 and China. In the valley of the Pet- 



chora we did not discover its breeding- 

 grounds, and met with it only at Ust- 

 Zylma on migration. 



