the herd passed, and
then took to the river again. The effect of sunset on the snow was
marvellous--the spotless mounds and drifts, far and near, being stained
with soft rose colour, until they resembled nothing so much as heaps of
strawberry ice. At Kardis the people sent for an interpreter, who was a
young man, entirely blind. He helped us to get our horses, although we
were detained an hour, as only one horse is kept in readiness at these
stations, and the neighbourhood must be scoured to procure another. I
employed the time in learning a few Finnish words--the whole
travelling-stock, in fact, on which I made the journey to Muonioniska.
That the reader may see how few words of a strange language will enable
him to travel, as well as to give a sample of Finnish, I herewith copy
my whole vocabulary:

one ux
two cax
three kolma
four nelia
five viis
six oos
seven settima
eight kahexa
nine ohexa
ten kiumene
a half puoli
horses hevorste
immediately varsin
ready walmis
drive on! ayo perli!
how much? guinga palia
a mile peligorma
bread leba
meat liha
milk maito
butter voy
fire valkar
a bed sangu (Swedish)
good huva
bad paha

We kept on our way up the river, in the brilliant afternoon moonlight.
The horses were slow; so were the two _skjutsbonder_, to whom I cried in
vain: "Ayo perli!" Braisted with difficulty restrained his inclination
to cuff their ears. Hour after hour went by, and we grew more and more
hungry, wrathful and impatient. About eight o'clock they stopped below a
house on the Russian side, pitched some hay to the horses, climbed the
bank, and summoned us to follow. We made our way with some difficulty
through the snow, and entered the hut, which proved to be the abode of a
cooper--at least the occupant, a rough, shaggy, dirty Orson of a fellow,
was seated upon the floor, making a tub, by the light of the fire. The
joists overhead were piled with seasoned wood, and long bundles of thin,
dry fir, which is used for torches during the winter darkness. There was
neither chair nor table in the hut; but a low bench ran around the
walls, and a rough bedstead was built against one corner. Two buckets of
sour milk, with a wooden ladle, stood beside the door.