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our boats up stream in the fall, but the mosquitoes tormented them so, that they tore the hair entirely off their backs with their teeth and could neither eat nor sleep.

Though mosquitoes were very bad, the men told me that, soon another insect would appear much worse, than they.

It is a small fly with spotted legs, whose bite is very painful, and though the inhabitants wear gloves and have their clothing of skins, bound with cords around their necks, wrists, waists and ankles, it is impossible to escape them.

[[left margin]](20)[[/left margin]]  They are compelled to keep their dogs in their houses, which are filled with smoke, to protect them, as not infrequently they are killed by the "Maskus", which penetrate their ears and nostrils. We fortunately reached the mouth of the river, before they became very numerous, where they rarely appear. 

I think mosquitoes in summer will be almost as great an obstacle, as the cold in winter, though fortunately they are not usually very troublesome for more than a month and a half. July and a part of August.

We left Oochastica the next day, but after proceeding about 10 versts, were forced to tie up, on account of a strong wind,