His wife proved an excellent cook; and served us with fish and game of different sorts, and various kinds of heath-berries, that had been kept since the last year. Whilst we were at dinner in this miserable hut, the guests of a people, with whose existence we had before been scarce acquainted, and at the extremity of the habitable globe, a solitary, half-worn pewter spoon, whose shape was familiar to us, attracted our attention; and, on examination, we found it stamped on the back with the word _London_. I cannot pass over this circumstance in silence, out of gratitude for the many pleasant thoughts, the anxious hopes, and tender remembrances it excited in us. Those who have experienced the effects that long absence and extreme distance from their native country produce on the mind, will readily conceive the pleasure such trifling incidents can give. To the philosopher and the politician they may perhaps suggest reflections of a different nature. We were now to quit the river, and perform the next part of our journey on sledges; but the thaw had been too powerful in the day-time, to allow us to set out till the cold of the evening had again made the surface of the snow hard and firm. This gave us an opportunity of walking about the village, which was the only place we had yet seen free from snow, since we landed in this country. It stood upon a well wooded flat, of about a mile and a half in circumference. The leaves were just budding, and the verdure of the whole scene was strongly contrasted with the sides of the surrounding hills, which were still covered with snow. As the soil appeared to me very capable of producing all the common sorts of garden vegetables, I was greatly surprized not to find the smallest spot any where cultivated. If to this, we add that none of the inhabitants were possessed of cattle of any sort, nothing can be well conceived more wretched than their situation must be during the winter months. They were at this time removing from their _jourts_ into their _balagans_, which afforded us an opportunity of examining both these sorts of habitations; and they will be hereafter more particularly described. The people invited us into their houses with great good humour; a general air of cheerfulness and content was every where visible, to which the approaching change of season might probably not a little contribute.