produce of the hunt, they were easily housed and clothed. Possessing within themselves every want, and trained from their infancy to the use of arms and horses, they were most formidable opponents; the immense hordes with which they advanced generally enabling them to carry all before them.
Scandinavians;
Muscovites
Previous to the tenth century all the nations, or
rather tribes, east of Germany were heterogeneously
classed as Scythians. Being almost entirely nomadic,
they as a rule disdained commerce, and held
peaceful arts, the certain signs of civilization, in
contempt. Those of them who were accustomed
to the sea made piracy their chief occupation, and
gloried in their marauding expeditions. Of these
the Scandinavians were among the most daring.
Impatient of a bleak climate, and narrow limits,
they were ever ready to make the most distant and
hazardous voyages, exploring every coast that promised
either spoil or settlement. Though the Baltic
was the first scene of their naval achievements, they
extended their operations far beyond those seas, and
were frequently found in the Euxine, where, with
others of the northern tribes, they committed considerable
havoc, and, from their superiority in arms
and discipline, were greatly feared. About the tenth
century there, however, arose among these barbarous
hordes of the north the Slavonians, a tribe then occupying
Lithuania, but soon better known as the Muscovites,
who directed their attention to commercial
pursuits. Occupying the chief ports of the Baltic,
these people traded in leather, wool, flax, hemp, lead,
and amber, receiving in exchange wine, manufactured
iron, with dry goods, and a limited supply
