"The best travelling I ever heard of with a dog-team," continued Mr. Hegeman, "was when a courier was sent to carry to Petropavlovsk the announcement of the Crimean War. Without changing teams he went from Boltcheresk to Petropavlovsk (one hundred and twenty-five miles) in twenty-three hours!"
One of the youths asked what the dogs lived upon.
"They live almost entirely upon fish," was the reply, "and they eat it in any condition--fresh, dried, or half decayed. Salmon are very abundant in Kamtchatka, and the cheapest thing for feeding the dogs. One fish a day is the ordinary allowance for a dog; but while he is on a journey he receives only half his usual ration. The natives all say that these animals travel better half fed than when fully nourished, and many persons do not give them anything whatever for an entire day before they are to start on a journey."
Many anecdotes about the dogs of Kamtchatka were given, and Frank and Fred were so interested in the subject that they forgot to note down what was said. When questioned about it afterwards, Frank said he learned that it requires much experience to drive a dog-team; that the man who is to drive must feed his own dogs and make them know he is their master; that they will run away whenever they have the opportunity; and they have a treacherous, thieving disposition. They are brave in large numbers, but always cowardly when alone. Epidemics among them are frequent, and sometimes whole tribes of natives are thus deprived of their dogs and unable to move about.
"For further canine particulars," said Frank, "we refer you to 'The Voyage of the _Vivian_ to the North Pole and Beyond.' The youths who made that remarkable journey had considerable practical experience with dogs, and they personally visited Kamtchatka on their way to the Pole."
"Kamtchatka has about seven thousand inhabitants altogether," said Mr. Hegeman. "Twelve or fifteen hundred are Russians, and the rest belong to aboriginal tribes. They are chiefly engaged in hunting and fishing; there is very little agriculture in the country, as the climate is too cold to permit the cultivation of grain or garden vegetables. Kamtchatka is chiefly useful for its fur products. Five or six thousand sables are killed there every year, and considerable numbers of ermine, foxes, and other fur-bearing animals. Bears are numerous and dangerous, and so are wolves, which are very fierce in winter, though not at all troublesome in the summer-time. Earthquakes are not unfrequent in Kamtchatka, but they do little damage, and are looked upon more as amusements than anything else.