THROUGH FINLAND. 
217 
effieiT, to drag it over the naked and Tandy foil, which funk under 
his feet with a fort of difagreeable crackling noife. We were 
every moment obliged to leave the fledge, and walk on foot till 
we came to ground covered with fnow, or to a frozen lake or 
river. This mode of travelling at laft became extremely tirefome, 
but having no alternative, we endeavoured to fubmit to it cheer¬ 
fully. In many places the fnow r had been melted on the middle 
of the road, but ftill remained on the Tides and at the edge of the 
ditches. In thofe fituations not infrequently the love of eafe in¬ 
duced us to try the expedient of rifking the fledge on the edge of 
the ditch, which conftantly gave way, and our indolence availed 
us nothing. The horfe was unable to keep in the precife line, 
and conftantly drawing to one fide or to the other, we were every 
now and then overturned in the ditch, and plunged over the ears 
in the fnow'. 
This fpecies of fledge, being extremely narrow, is very eafiiy 
overturned ; but as it is at the fame time very low, the fall is ac¬ 
companied with no manner of danger, and when the road is in 
a proper ftate it goes very fteadily and fafely ; but when the fun 
has begun to melt the fnow, and this partial thaw, as often hap¬ 
pens, is fucceeded by a frefh attack of the frofl:, then there is 
formed on the declivities of the road a polifhed mirror of ice, 
which occafions much trouble and difficulty to the traveller. The 
fledge in defending never keeps in a diredl line, but is hitched 
out of its proper direction by the fmallefl: accident: when turned 
fideways, it flips all at once out of the road, and is overturned 
Tol. I. F f cither 
