ound very little
difference between that country and the Mogul Tartary; the people mostly
Pagans, and little better than the savages of America; their houses and
towns full of idols, and their way of living wholly barbarous, except in
the cities as above, and the villages near them; where they are
Christians, as they call themselves, of the Greek church; but even these
have their religion mingled with so many relics of superstition, that it
is scarce to be known in some places from mere sorcery and witchcraft.

In passing this forest, I thought indeed we must, after all our dangers
were, in our imagination, escaped, as before, have been plundered and
robbed, and perhaps murdered, by a troop of thieves: of what country
they were; whether the roving bands of the Ostiachi, a kind of Tartars,
or wild people on the banks of the Oby, had ranged thus far; or whether
they were the sable-hunters of Siberia, I am yet at a loss to know; but
they were all on horseback, carried bows and arrows, and were at first
about five-and-forty in number. They came so near to us as within about
two musket shot; and, asking no questions, they surrounded us with their
horses, and looked very earnestly upon us twice. At length they placed
themselves just in our way; upon which we drew up in a little line
before our camels, being not above sixteen men in all; and being drawn
up thus, we halted, and sent out the Siberian servant who attended his
lord, to see who they were: his master was the more willing to let him
go, because he was not a little apprehensive that they were a Siberian
troop sent out after him. The man came up near them with a flag of
truce, and called to them; but though he spoke several of their
languages, or dialects of languages rather, he could not understand a
word they said: however, after some signs to him not to come nearer to
them at his peril, so he said he understood them to mean, offering to
shoot at him if he advanced, the fellow came back no wiser than he went,
only that by their dress, he said, he believed them to be some Tartars
of Kalmuck, or of the Circassian hordes; and that there must be more of
them on the great desert, though he never heard that ever any of them
were seen so far north before.

This was small comfort to us; however, we had no remedy: there was on
our left hand, at about a quarter of a mile's distance, a little grove
or clump of trees, which stood close together, and very near the road; I
immedi