grations are very frequent in the Siberian forests, caused
either by lightning, the woodmen, or hunters, and sometimes spreading
over vast spaces till arrested by rivers, lakes or morasses. One
of the pleasures of Siberian travelling is the faint odour of the
woods burning in the distance.

The native flora is extremely rich in berries of every kind, supplying
food for men and animals.

The extreme eastern regions of the Amur basin and Russian Manchuria,
being warmer, more humid and fertile, also abound more in animal
life than the other parts of Asiatic Russia. On the other hand,
the Siberian bear, deer, roebuck, hare, squirrel, marmot and mole
are about one-third larger, and often half as heavy again as their
European congeners. This is doubtless due partly to the greater
abundance of nourishment along the rivers and shores of Siberia,
and partly to the fact that for ages the western species have been
more preyed upon by man, living in a constant state of fear, and
mostly perishing before attaining their full development.

The Arctic Seas abound probably as much as the Pacific Ocean with
marine animals. Nordenskjoeld found the Siberian waters very rich
in molluscs and other lower organisms, implying a corresponding
abundance of larger animals. Hence fishing, perhaps more than
navigation, will be the future industry of the Siberian coast
populations. Cetacea, fishes, molluscs, and other marine organisms
are cast up in such quantities along both sides of Bering Strait
that the bears and other omnivorous creatures have here become
very choice as to their food. But on some parts of the coast in the
Chukchi country whales are never stranded, and since the arrival
of the Russians certain species threaten to disappear altogether.
The _Rhytina stelleri_, a species of walrus formerly frequenting
Bering Strait in millions, was completely exterminated between the
years 1741-68. Many of the fur-bearing animals, which attracted
the Cossacks from the Urals to the Sea of Okhotsk, and which were
the true cause of the conquest of Siberia, have become extremely
rare. Their skins are distinguished, above all others, for their
great softness, warmth, lightness, and bright colours. The more
Alpine or continental the climate, the more beautiful and highly
prized become the furs, which diminish in gloss towards the coast
and in West Siberia, where the south-west winds prevail. The sables
of the North Urals are of small value, while thos