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TRAVELS OF EHRENMALM. 361
not proceed onit for more than two miles, though it is three and a half in length, with
an unequal breadth, varying from a quarter to a whole mile. _ It {tretches from the N. E.
to the S. W., and empties itfelf into the Aughermanna towards the S. W. The bed
of this lake and its fifhery, are the fame as all the others.
Arriving there, we perceived at the diftance of fix miles on the weftern fide, the
mountains called Akick-fiall. The heights near the mouth of the lake, are fufficiently
fertile, asis part of the furrounding land, But the woods are nearly all burned. We
felled the largeft fir we could find in this place. By the number of circles which
appeared from its fection, it muft have been a hundred and fixty-two years old. _ Its
femi-diameter contained thirteen hundred and thirty-one parts of the geometrical fcale,
or about fix inches, three lines and afourth. The foil in which this tree had grown
was ftoney., The pines of thefe environs were of a tolerable height and covered
with mofs. In thefe far removed countries from the fun, nature employes ages to
produce little. The inhabitants live toa great age, but what a life! without ever feeling
the pleafures of the fenfes or the imagination, which yield to the foul a lively and folid
enjoyment ; without experiencing that inward and continual action and re-action,
which bind men to every thing in nature, by fenfation, defire and enterprife ; without
any tafte which may attach a being to himfelf and to thofe around him. Thus, the
manners of thefe people, inclofed by frozen feas and mountains of {now, poflefs not the
leaft of animation, or of vigour. Society there is dull, monotonous, without paflion,
without incitement. The inhabitants like the trees, are almoft ifolated, though placed
by the fide of each other. Love has no branches; friendfhip no name. ‘They are
perfect ftrangers to ideas of protection, afliftance, compaflion, beneficence and charity.
But ye fenfelefs beings, who glory in thefe inerefting names, do ye.know how much
they coft to human nature; and that thofe virtues are created at the expence of the
vices, crimes and misfortunes of your fellow creatures ?
We left the lake Malgomai, and afcended a fmall rivulet for halfa mile N. W. to-
wards Tetfio, where we landed, and left our barks. We were obliged to perform the
remainder of our journey on foot, among the higheft mountains.
The firft diftrict we had to traverfe had been fet on fire. The foil was fandy and
mixed with ftones. We afterwards entered a wood of very fmall pines, which ex-
tended to the top of the mountain, a mile anda half diftant. Thefe trees were to-
lerably frefh; moft of their branches lay horizontally. ‘They were lower and {maller
than thofe of Afehle.
The fir will not thrive among pines, itis of too elevated a {truCture. The fmall num-
ber which is feen of thefe majeitic trees, created to defy the winds of the land and ocean,
are of a dwarfifh fpecies. But we obferved that the fmoother and more marfhy the
country was, the greater number of birch trees and poplars grew, always fmall and
low, with a many branches and few leaves.. The birch trees appeared of two different
fpecies; the one had {mall leaves, of the ordinary form of this tree; the leaves of the
other were larger, thicker, more curled, and being of greater fubftance ; they formed
a-medium between the leaves of the birch, aud thofe of the goofeberry buth. In thefe
marthy places we alfo faw fome thickets of both the hawthorns, but neither of them
having any fruit: ;
In thefe marfhes ‘there grows a fhrub called Myr-ri/s ; that is: Moor’s-fhrub. The
branches are {trait, without fuckers. The woods firong. Near the root the bark is
_ grey; towards the fummit it is of the brown of young birch trees. The leaves are
arranged three by three, very near the branch, and are roundifh like thofe of clover.
VOL. I. 3a The
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