MATTHIAS ALEXANDER GASTRIN. 



177 



ede dialects, proceeded down the river to Dudinka, and finally, in November, to 

 Tolstoi Noss, whose pleasant climate may be judged of by the fact that it is sit- 

 uated in the latitude of 71°. This last voyage was performed in a "balok," or 

 close sledge, covered with reindeer skins. The tediousness of being conveyed 

 like a corpse in a dark and narrow box, induced hhn to exchange the " balok " 

 for an open sledge ; but the freezing of his feet, of his fingers, and of part of his 

 face, soon caused him to repent of his temerity. As soon as this accident was 

 discovered at the next station, Castren crept back again into his prison, and was 

 heartily glad when, after a nine days' confinement, he at length arrived at Tolstoi 

 ^^oss, which he found to consist of four wretched huts. Here again he spent 

 several weeks studying by torchlight, for the sun had made his last appearance 

 in ISTovember, and the day was reduced to a faint glimmering at noon. In Jan- 

 uary we find him on his return-voyage to Turuchansk, a place which, though not 

 very charming in itself, appeared delightful to Castren after a six months' resi- 

 dence in the tundras beyond the Arctic Circle. 



Turuchansk can boast at least of seeing some daylight at all seasons of the 

 year, and this may be enjoyed even within-doors, for Turuchansk possesses no 

 less than four houses with glass windows. Longing to reach this comparative- 

 ly sunny place, Castren, against his usual custom, resolved to travel day and 

 night without stopping, but his impatience well-nigh proved fatal to him. His 

 Samo ede guide had not perceived in the dark that the waters of the Jenissei, 

 over which they were travelling, had oozed through fissures in the ice, and in- 

 undated the surface of the river far and wide. Thus he drove into the water, 

 which of course was rapidly congealing ; the reindeer were unable to drag the 

 sledge back again upon the land, and Castren stuck fast on the river, with the 

 agreeable prospect of being -frozen to death. From this imminent danger he 

 was rescued by a wonderful circumstance. Letters having arrived from the 

 Imperial Academy of St. Petersburg, a courier had been dispatched from Turu- 

 chansk to convey them to Castren. This courier fortunately reached him while 

 he was in this perilous situation, helped him on land, and conducted him to a 

 Samoiede hut, where he was able to warm his stiffened limbs. 



After such a journey, we can not wonder that, on arriving at Turuchansk, 

 he was so tormented with rheumatism and toothache as to be obliged to rest 

 there several days. With sore joints and an aching body, he slowly proceeded 

 to Jeniseisk, where he arrived on April 3, 1847, in a wretched state of health, 

 which however had not interrupted his Ostiak studies oa the way. I rapidly 

 glance over his subsequent travels, as they are but a repetition of the same 

 privations and the same hardships, all cheerfully sustained for the love of knowl- 

 edge. Having somew^hat recruited his strength at Jeniseisk, he crossed the 

 Sajan Mountains to visit some Samo'iedes beyond the Russian frontier — a jour- 

 ney which, besides the usual fatigues, involved the additional risk of being ar- 

 rested as a spy by the Chinese authorities ; and the year after he visited Trans- 

 baikalia, to make inquiries among the Buriat priests ?bout the ancient history 

 of Siberia. 



Having thus accomplished his task, and thoroughly investigated the wild na- 

 tions of the Finnish race from the confines of the Arctic Sea to the Altai — a task 



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