576 



THE YAKOUTS. 



tion and egotism dispense with knowledge and science in order to 

 corrupt mankind. 



The Ostiaks and the Samoiedes are great hunters of the white bear. 

 It is the same with the Yakouts, a people dwelling near the Bouriats, 

 and approaching, like them, to the Mongol type. It seems that the 

 object of the chase is not always to kill the animal, but to catch him 

 alive. Madame Felinska relates that she saw one day a considerable 



YAKOUT HUNTER WORRIED BV A WHITE BEAR. 



troop of bears conducted to BeVezov like a herd of tame cattle, and 

 apparently quite as inoffensive. She neglects to inform us, however, 

 by what means they had been reduced to this state of passive obedience. 

 The Ostiaks and the Yakouts frequently attack the white bears body 

 to body, without any other weapon than a hatchet or a long cutlass. 

 They need to strike the animal with extreme skill and vigour, to slay 

 him at the first blow, or otherwise they incur extreme peril. If he 



