The universal geography : earth and its inhabitants

208 RUSSIA IN EUROPE.plains which stretch across Russia to the foot of the Urals and Caucasus. Inthe territory of the Finnish Lapps isolated and snowy masses rise amidst theforests lakes, and peat beds; but in the south the highest eminences are merehillocks, evidently worn by glacier action. The water-partings between thestreams flowing to the Gulfs of Finland and Bothnia, Lake Ladoga, and theWhite Sea have a mean elevation of from 500 to 650 feet, culminating southof Finnish Lapland with Mount Teiri-harju, north-east of Lake Ule.i. The ridgesurmounted by this hill throws off several irregular spurs, here and thereo'rouped under collective names, such as the Maan-Selka, or " Back of the Land,"between the Gulf of Bothnia and White Sea basins, and the Suomen-Selkii, orFig. 100.— Parjllelism or the Streams plowing to the Gulf of Bothnia.Scale 1 : 5,000,000." Back of Finland," running south-west of Lake U"le;1, parallel with, and at amean distance of 60 miles from, the Baltic coast. The south-west corner of theland, continued seawards by the Aland archipelago, is an uneven, almost moimtainoustract. Taken together, all these granitic ridges may be regarded as aplateau, whose backbone, lying nearer to the Gulf of Bothnia than to LakeLadoga, terminates abruptly on the Gulf of Finland."The hills in the south seem to have formerly been much higher than atpresent, for on the slopes and summit of the Valdai plateau, in the heart ofRussia, the detritus of quartz and other Finnish rocks has been found at a greater* Chief elevations of Finland :Finnish Lapland.Peldoivi .... 2,360 feet.Jeristumturi . . . 2,330 „. . . 2,130 „PeldovaddoSouth Finland, according to Gylden.Triri-harju . . . 1,093 Eeet.Saukko-waara . . 1,070 ,,Kiwes-waara