Scharaitzick, lying eastward beyond the Volga, together with the district immediately adjacent to the river Jaick; the second, named Cossum, had the territory lying between the rivers Kama, Jaick, and Volga; while the possessions of Schichmamai, the third brother, included a part of the province of Siberia, with the country immediately surrounding it. The meaning of the name Schichmamai, is holy or powerful. Nearly all these countries are covered with wood, except that which borders upon Scharaitzick, which is all champaign country.
Between the Volga and Jaick, in the neighbourhood of the Caspian Sea, formerly dwelt the kings of Savolha, of whom we shall say more hereafter. In connexion with these Tartars, I heard a wonderful and almost incredible story from one Dimitry Danielovich, a man who, considering that he was a barbarian, was of remarkable dignity and truthfulness. He stated that his father had been on a former occasion sent by the Prince of Moscow to the King of Savolha, and that in that embassy he had seen in the island a certain seed, somewhat larger and rounder, but not unlike the seed of a melon, from which, when planted, grew up something very like a lamb, of the height of five palms, and that it was called in their language "boranetz", which signifies a lambkin, for it had a head, eyes, ears, and everything else in the form of a lamb. He also stated, that it bore a very fine wool, which was used by many people in those countries for making caps; and, indeed, I was assured by many people, that they had seen wool of that kind. He said, moreover, that the plant, — if plant it could be called, — had blood in it, but no flesh; but in lieu of flesh, there was a kind of matter very like the flesh of crabs; it also had hoofs, not horny like those of a lamb, but covered with a hairy substance resembling horn. Its stem came to the navel, or middle of the belly; it continued alive until the grass around it was eaten away, so that the root dried up for want of nourishment.
