, two miles west of Najtskaj.
In the neighbourhood of Uelkantinop we were overtaken by a
reindeer-Chukch, who accompanied us to Najtskaj in order
there to purchase fish and seal-blubber. At noon we
reached Najtskaj, where our arrival had been announced by
a native, who, with his dog-team, had driven past us on
the way. Accordingly on our entrance we were surrounded by
the youth of the village, who deafened us with then
unceasing cries for bread (_kauka_), tobacco, _ram_, &c.
After some moments the begging urchins were joined both by
women and full-grown men. We entered a tent, which
belonged to a friend or perhaps relation of Notti. There
we were very well received. In the same tent the
reindeer-Chukch also lodged who had given us his company
on the way. He went into the sleeping chamber, threw
himself down there, took part in the family's evening
meal, all almost without uttering a word to the hostess,
and the next morning he started without having saluted the
host. Hospitality is here of a peculiar kind. It may
perhaps be expressed thus _To-day I eat and sleep in your
tent, to-morrow you eat and sleep in mine_; and
accordingly, as far as I saw, all, both rich and poor,
both those who travelled with large sledges, and those who
walked on foot, were received in the same way. All are
sure to find a corner in the tent-chamber.

[Illustration: CHUKCH LAMPS.
_a._ Wooden cup to place under the lamp.
_b._ Lamp of burned clay. One-fifth of the natural size. ]

"The tent-chamber, or _yaranga_, as this part of the tent
is called by the natives, takes up fully a third-part of
the whole tent, and is at the same time work-room,
dining-room, and sleeping chamber. Its form is that of a
parallelepiped; and a moderately large sleeping chamber
has a height of 1.80 metre, a length of 3.50, and a
breadth of 2.20 metres. The walls are formed of reindeer
skin with the hair inwards, which are supported by a
framework of posts and cross-bars. The floor consists of a
layer of grass undermost, on which a walrus skin is
spread. The grass and the skin do not form a very soft
bed, yet one on which even a tried European wanderer may
find rest. The interior of the sleeping-chamber is lighted
and warmed by lamps, whose number varies according to the
size of the room. A moderately large ch