a single sea-lion, the only
one of these animals we saw during our voyage.

For a payment of forty roubles I induced the chief of the village to
skeletonise four of the half putrefied carcases of the sea-bear left
lying on the grass, and I afterwards obtained, by the good-will of
the Russian authorities, and without any payment, six animals, among
them two living young, for stuffing. Even the latter we were
compelled to kill, after in vain attempting to induce them to take
some food. One of them was brought home in spirits for anatomical
examination.

The part of Behring Island which we saw forms a high plain resting
on volcanic rocks,[370] which, however, is interrupted at many
places by deep kettle valleys, the bottoms of which are generally
occupied by lakes which communicate with the sea by large or small
rivers. The banks of the lakes and the slopes of the hills are
covered with a luxuriant vegetation, rich in long grass and
beautiful flowers, among them an iris cultivated in our gardens, the
useful dark reddish-brown Sarana lily, several orchids, two species
of rhododendron with large flowers, umbellifera as high as a man,
sunflower-like synanthea, &c. Quite another nature prevailed on the
island lying off the haven, regarding which Dr. Kjellman and Dr.
Stuxberg make the following statements:--

"Toporkoff Island is formed of an eruptive rock, which
everywhere rises along the shore some scores of feet from
high-water mark, in the form of steep cracked walls from
five to fifteen metres in height, which is different at
different places. Above these steep rock-walls the surface
of the island forms an even plain; what lies below them
forms a gently sloping beach.

"This gently sloping beach consists of two well-marked
belts; an outer devoid of all vegetation, an inner
overgrown with _Ammadenia peploides, Elymus mollis_, and
two species of umbellifera, _Heracleum sibiricum_, and
_Angelica archangelica_, the two last forming an almost
impenetrable thicket fifty metres broad and as high as a
man, along the slope. The steep rock-walls are coloured
yellow at some places by lichens, mostly _Calopaca murorum_
and _Cal. crenulata_; at other places they are covered
pretty closely with _Cochlearia fenestrata_. The uppermost
level plain is covered with a close and luxuriant turf,
over which single stalks of the two species of umbellifera
nam