The New York herald., 1879-10-05
A STRANGE CORNER OF THE WORLD.

From the New York Tribune Of Octobor4 81
1t may bo some time yet before the full signih-
cance of tho daring voyage of the Vega along the
north of ASIA with reference to navigation is
fully known. Professor Nordenskj0ld has not yet
reported his Views upon that point. He has merely
told us few facts. For instance. he says he has
discovered that tho coast of Siberia west of tho Lena
is vast plain, devoid Of trees in the navigation to
which an encounter with impenetrable iceioea is
generally to be feared Thore are no great islands
out to sea there to prevent the wind from driving
the ice down toward tho land; aud there
vast distances whore few rivers empty into
the Polar Ocean. and, by their warm current pre-
serve spnce Of open water along the shore. For
several hundred miles in the vicinity Of the Lena.
however. great rivers pour into the ocean and large
islands lie OF to the northward. there is almost
no ice along shore. East of tho Kolims, toward
Behring Strait. there are no great rivers. and
although tho climate is nilder and the woodlands
creep down almost to the scs the frozen oes crowd
closer to the shore. and In tho tall and winter they
arp liable to bar the way to shipping They gave
Nordenskj0ld great trouble. and the 9th Of Sep
tember they left him unclaimed In solid leo . few
miles the open water north of Behring Strait.
and only 100 miles from the strait itself They kept
ham there eight weary months. While communicat-
ing these facts the daring Swode has not yet pub
lished his conclusions thereupon.
II he has left in the dark in regard to the COM
mercial navigation of the Siberian coast. however.
least taken the pains reveal tho interest
ing nature of tho region no has just passed
through. When the ico closed in upon the Vega,
and left the stout ship ensaved in those northern
soltudos. Professor Nordenskjold wrote letter to
DIR. Oscar Dickson the main Contributor toward the
fitting out OF the expedition, describing the
along the coast. The letter. despatched the 10th
- hao AZ las od }fa uaki
and is now published In tho London Standard.
Tho letter calls attention. in tho first place. to
group OF islands which very remarkable from o
scientific point Of Wow. These islands. the New
Siberian open the book OF the history of tho world
at place. The ground there 10 strewn with
wonderful fossils. Whole hiis are covered with the
bones of the mammoth. rhinoceros. horses. uri.
bison. oxen. sheep. &C. The washes mp ivory
upon tho shores. IL this group IL possibly to be
found the solution of tho question Of tho ancestry
of the Indian elephant. and important facts with
regard to the vertebrates which existed at tho time
OF mans first appearance upon earth. How
horses and sheep in q region now locked IN the fet
ters Of eternal winter, uninhsbitod by man. not
now supporting animal life in any form. and almost
impossible Of access! Professor Nordenskj0ld was
unable solve the question himself and he suggests
that it is of the utmost importance to science to
send light draught steel to those islands
| for thorough exploration.
| At Cape schelagskoT the Vega passed the point
where the siberian merchant schalawruff ended his
persistent and intrepid attempts to reach Behring
Strait from the River Lena by lonely death. with
| his whole company Of mon in hut the snow
clad shore. Upon rounding this cape Nordenskj0ld
met the arst natives secn along that whole coast
They spoke tongue utterly unknown. Not COM
prehensible sentence could they utter In any Euro
pean language They lived In tonts pitched on the
sand banks separating the lagoons peculiar to this
coast from tho hardy. jovsi. handsome race.
fur-clad, keen barter. ignorant OF the value Of
money, and proferring q rcd flannel shirt, few
brass buttons and tho piece of tin foil q cake Of
sosp to golden rubles and silver coins they 1.-Two an
active and healthy life. stone and bone imple
ments. and without trace of religion In their
| customs. Their tents double. within the
other. The children totally naked within tho
| inner tent, aud were ofton outside. running
about on the frozen ground with tho temperature
| down below 80 degrees Tho women nothing
whom within tho tents except Q girdie and tho mon
| have shaven heads. A remarkable similarity was
noticed between the implements. dresses and GUS
| toms of those people and those Of the Esquimaux
| and North American Indians. These people are the
Tschuktschers. Though armed with stone and
bone Weapons. and though wild and itin-
| Grant, they evidently have . history. They
drove on tho original tnhabitautS OF the
region 200 years ago. the Onkilons. whose
houses, places Of sacrifice. circles Of moss grown
bear skuls and Weapons still to be found almost
everywhere the coast. Lieutenant Nordqvist de-
voted himself to learning their language These
| Indians arc on the original highway betwoen tho
| cradle Of the human and tho home OF the
aborgines Of tho northern part Of North America,
and II is not thought that the resemblance between
them and the Greenlanders is accidental. Tho ar
rival Of tho Vega the Tschulitschsr coast an
! event like tho landing OF Columbus In the New
| World. 1t unprecedented occurrence. ana
| made sensation throughout the region.
East OF the Iona Professor Nordenskjo.d found on
shore no scattered blocks Of stone such dis
tr,butod over . continent by glaciers and such as
| arc found elsewhere in Siberia. This fact held
to point to tho absence Of land out to north Of
that coast aud It excics anticpations tho pos
sble discoveries which to DO made by the jean
nctte. Not the least of tho poculsrtiss Of this
strange region Is the fact that tho appears to
be rising slowly out of the The inhabitants
nsvo TO SHIFT their villages at times tho
edge of the water. which Is gradually receding from
them. Professor Nordonskj0lds letter is fun Of
facts like thosc and the scientific world will wait
with impatienco tho further publication OF the re-
suits OF his discoveries. t
A PECULIAR TRAGEDY.
| Two WOMEN TAKE FuUR OUNCES OF LAupA-