ered a
good example of the economy, wants, and supplies of a Kamtchatdale
family. He assured Mr. Dobell that himself and his sons had killed
twelve bears, eleven mountain sheep, several reindeer, a large number of
geese, ducks, and tiel, and a few swans and pheasants. "In November,"
said he, "we shall catch many hares and partridges; and I have one
thousand fresh salmon, lately caught, and now frozen for our winter's
stock. Added to this, in my cellar there is a good supply of cabbages,
turnips, and potatoes, with various sorts of berries, and about thirty
poods of sarannas, the greater part of which we have stolen from the
field mice, who collect them in large quantities for the winter." In the
spring, the Kamtchatdales supply themselves with the skins of the hair
seals and other sea animals, from whose fat also they obtain oil. The
hunting of these is therefore a matter of no small importance, and
carries many of the Kamtchatdales down to the coast. It is accompanied
with great fatigue and occasional risk.

"The Toyune of Malka," says Mr. Dobell, "related to me a
curious adventure that occurred to him and two of his friends.
They repaired in the latter part of April to their usual
hunting place, where they found the sea still covered with ice
for a considerable extent. Each had a sledge and five dogs, and
although the wind blew strongly off shore, they did not
hesitate to go on the ice in search of seals, as it seemed
firmly attached to the shore, and they observed some
Kamtchatdales hunting on it farther up the coast. They
discovered some seals at a considerable distance out, and
repaired thither to kill them. Already had they killed two, and
were preparing to tie them with thongs on their sledges, when
one of the party, who staid a little behind, came to them of a
sudden, crying that the ice was moving, and that all the other
Kamtchatdales had gone to the shore! This news alarmed them so
much, that they left their seals on the ice, and seating
themselves on their sankas or sledges, pushed their dogs at
full speed to regain the shore. Unfortunately they arrived too
late; the ice had already separated from the land to the extent
of a hundred yards; and as it began to break into pieces, they
were obliged to return to the part that appeared to them the
strongest and thickest. As the wind now blew extremely hard