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KERGUELEN’S VOYAGE TO THE NORTH. 791
and the other Wanouta; a diftin¢tion minutely obferved among them. This colony
bears the name of Objondire ; another which adjoins it that of Tihijondire, while that
in the neighbourhood of Pouftozer oppofite to the ftrait of Wagatz, commonly called
Gougorfkoi, gives itfelf the name of Guaritzi. This favage nation occupies the ex-
tent of more than 30° of longitude, along the nothern coafts of the Ocean and Frozen
Sea, between 66° and 70° of north latitude, and reckoning from the river Me-
zene towards the eaft, beyond the Oby as far as Guenifée. All thefe Samoiedes, not-
withftanding their being difperfed over fo great an extent, and divided into different
families, have doubtlefs a common origin; as appears from their phyfiognomy, their
manners, their mode of living, and their language.
On the other fide of the White Sea the Laplanders inhabit a wide fpread country,
from Kandalax to Kola, and from the frontiers of Swedifh and Danifh Lapland to the
{traits of the White Sea; they occupy more than a thoufand werlts, or feven hundred
miles. Neverthelefs all this large track of country is peopled by no more than twelve
hundred families of Laplanders. I have united in this account the Laplanders and Sa-
moiedes for no other purpofe than to defignate the exact pofition of the country, and
the diftri€ts inhabited by each. Iam far from imagining with others, that thefe two
people compofe but one nation. The gentleman from whom I hold thefe particu-
lars, affures me of the contrary; and further he added, that M. Buffon is egregioufly
miftaken in his Natural Hiftory, when he reckons the Laplanders, the Zemblians,
the Borandians, the Samoiedes, and all the Tartars of the north to be the fame race of
people. On this fubject he obferved to me, that, in fpeaking of the Zemblians, he {poke
of an imaginary nation; it being well known, that the country denominated Nova
Zembla never had inhabitants, navigators miftaking for inhabitants of the country
the crews of fome Ruffian veflels; particularly as the Ruffians, who go there to fith
for feals, are accuftomed to drefs in the fame manner as the Samoiedes. Another
probability in favour of this opinion is, that the Ruflians who paffed the winter there,
never once met with the leaft trace of man, feeing no living creatures except white
bears, white foxes, and rein-deer, which fed on mofs and fifh that the fea threw on
fhore. As for the Borandians, the name is utterly unknown in the north. I have as
well been informed, that the crew of a veflel defirous of wintering there fome years
after, had entirely perifhed. ‘The twenty-four men of which it was compofed, were
found dead, on the {pot fixed upon for their winter quarters. For a long time it was
imagined that they perifhed from extreme cold ; but it was fatisfactorily fhewn, that it
was owing to the thick and unwholefome fogs, occafioned by the putrefaction of vege-
tables, and mofs on the fea-fhore; which poifoned and deftroyed them. What con-
firms this which I am ftating, is that a colony from Mezene, compofed of twenty per-
fons, who had eftablifhed their dwelling at a place twenty leagues from the others,
fuffered extremely from the fame fogs. Although none of them died, they were
all ill. The terrible peftilence, which in the middle of the fourteenth century depopu-
lated Iceland, was no other vifitation than one of thefe fogs.
Some authors relate that filver has been found in certain places of Nova Zembla. This
is not unlikely, fince it is current throughout Ruffia, that in the reign of the emprefs Ann
feveral rocks were difcovered in a defert ifland, encrufted with the fineft filver. Bars
of it were fent to Peterfburg. Great riches were looked for from this difcovery ; the
rocks were bored, but the interior was not found to contain any of this precious metal ;
that which had been met with being only a fimple crutt, poflibly as old as the creation.
The Samoiedes are for the moft part below the common fize, they have a ftout,
nervous frame, broad fhoulders, and fhort legs, {mall feet, a fhort neck, a very large head,
5¥2 a flat
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