of passage generally arrive at the end of April or during May, and
leave in September or October.

It is a curious fact that they come later to Nicolayevsk than to the
town of Yakutsk, nine degrees further north. This is due to
differences of climate and the configuration of the country. The lower
Amoor is remarkable for its large quantities of snow, and at
Nicolayevsk it remains on the ground till the end of May. South of
the lower Amoor are the Shanalin mountains, which arrest the progress
of birds. On the upper Amoor and in Trans-Baikal very little snow
falls, and there are no mountains of great height.

The day after leaving Sofyesk I observed a native propelling a boat by
pulling both oars together. On my expressing surprise my companion
said:

"We have passed the country of the Gilyaks who pull their oars
alternately, and entered that of the Mangoons and Goldees. The manner
of rowing distinguishes the Gilyaks from all others."

The Mangoons, Goldees, and Gilyaks differ in much the same way that
the tribes of American Indians are different. They are all of
Tungusian or Mongolian stock, and have many traits and words in
common. Their features have the same general characteristics and their
languages are as much alike as those of a Cheyenne and Comanche. Each
people has its peculiar customs, such as the style of dress, the mode
of constructing a house, or rowing a boat. All are pagans and indulge
in Shamanism, but each tribe has forms of its own. All are fishers and
hunters, their principal support being derived from the river.