8 PREFACE 



district covers 144,140 square miles, an area nine 

 times as large as Switzerland. 



The present voluffie claims no more than to give 

 an account of ai winter exploration of the Altai 

 Mountains. It m^akes no scientific pretensions, 

 beyond redording the ascertained altitudes of the 

 mountains, describing the passes and glaciers, and 

 placing on the taap those of the mountains which it 

 was my privilege to discover and ascend. The 

 remaining portion of the book records my personal 

 impressions of the journey across Siberia. 



My main object in visiting Siberia was business, 

 but, business concluded, and the journey having 

 carried me within 400 miles of the highest Altai 

 Mountains, I decided to devote the remainder of 

 my stay to the exploration of that unknown region 

 which includes the highest mountain range of South 

 Central Siberia — Katunskie-Belki (Alps). Eventually 

 it was my privilege to stand on the summit of the 

 highest, discovered mountain in Siberia. 



It is my conviction that exploration and commerce 

 should be in intimate relation, and that the explorer 

 who fails to do something towards promoting the 

 trade of the country he visits falls short of the main 

 purpose of exploration. I propose, therefore, to 

 describe Siberia's chief industry— the dairy industry— 

 which owes its rapidly-growing prosperity to the 

 unique geographical ct)nditions of the country : moun- 

 tains for the grazing of cattle more ideal than those 

 of Switzerland; a rich virgin soil and succulent grass 

 of the steppes richer than that of any Canadian 

 prairie and more valuable than the gold mines of 

 Klondyke or South Africa. 



The views and opinions to which I venture frolH 

 time to time to give expression are offered with all 

 humility. Having thought and read extensively about 

 Russia and Siberia, and having been in the very 



