James Cook — The Three Voyages of Captain James Cook Round the World

CHAP. XI.

DISCOVERIES AFTER LEAVING NORTON SOUND.—STUART’S ISLAND.—CAPE STEPHENS.—POINT SHALLOW-WATER.—SHOALS ON THE AMERICAN COAST.—CLERKE’S ISLAND.—GORE’S ISLAND.—PINNACLE ISLAND.—ARRIVAL AT OONALASHKA.—INTERCOURSE WITH THE NATIVES AND RUSSIAN TRADERS.—CHARTS OF THE RUSSIAN DISCOVERIES, COMMUNICATED BY MR. ISMYLOFF.—THEIR ERRORS POINTED OUT.—SITUATION OF THE ISLANDS VISITED BY THE RUSSIANS.—ACCOUNT OF THEIR SETTLEMENT AT OONALASHKA.—OF THE NATIVES OF THE ISLAND.—THEIR PERSONS.—DRESS.—ORNAMENTS.—FOOD.—HOUSES, AND DOMESTIC UTENSILS.—MANUFACTURES.—MANNER OF PRODUCING FIRE.—CANOES.—FISHING AND HUNTING IMPLEMENTS.—FISHES AND SEA ANIMALS.—SEA AND WATER FOWLS, AND LAND BIRDS.—LAND ANIMALS AND VEGETABLES.—MANNER OF BURYING THEIR DEAD.—RESEMBLANCE OF THE NATIVES ON THIS SIDE OF AMERICA TO THE GREENLANDERS AND ESQUIMAUX.—TIDES.—OBSERVATIONS FOR DETERMINING THE LONGITUDE OF OONALASHKA.

Having weighed, on the 17th, in the morning, with a light breeze at east, we steered to the southward, and attempted to pass within Besborough Island; but though it lies six or seven miles from the continent, were prevented by meeting with shoal water. As we had but little wind all the day, it was dark before we passed the island; and the night was spent under an easy sail.

We resumed our course, at day-break on the 18th, along the coast. At noon we had no more than five fathoms’ water. At this time the latitude was 63° 37ʹ. Besborough Island now bore N. 42° E.; the southernmost land in sight, which proved also to be an island, S. 66° W.; the passage between it and the main S. 40° W.; and the nearest land about two miles distant. I continued to steer for this passage, until the boats, which were ahead, made the signal for having no more than three fathoms’ water. On this we hauled without the island; and made the signal for the Resolution’s boat to keep between the ships and the shore.

This island, which obtained the name of Stuart’s Island, lies in the latitude of 63° 35ʹ, and seventeen leagues from Cape Denbigh, in the direction of S., 27° W. It is six or seven leagues in circuit. Some parts of it are of a middling height, but in general it is low, with some rocks lying off the western part. The coast of the continent is, for the most part, low land; but we saw high land up the country. It forms a point opposite the island, which was named Cape Stephens, and lies in latitude 63° 33ʹ, and in longitude 197° 41ʹ. Some drift-wood was seen upon the shores, both of the island and of the continent; but not a tree was perceived growing upon either. One might anchor, upon occasion, between the N. E. side of this island and the continent, in the depth of five fathoms, sheltered from westerly, southerly, and easterly winds. But this station would be wholly exposed to the northerly winds, the land, in that direction, being at too great a distance to afford any security. Before we reached Stuart’s Island, we passed two small islands, lying between us and the main; and as we ranged along the coast, several people appeared upon the shore, and, by signs, seemed to invite us to approach them.

As soon as we were without the island, we steered S. by W., for the southernmost point of the continent in sight, till eight o’clock in the evening, when, having shoaled the water from six fathoms to less than four, I tacked, and stood to the northward, into five fathoms, and then spent the night lying off and on. At the time we tacked, the southernmost point of land, the same which is mentioned above, and was named Point Shallow Water, bore S. 1⁄2 E., seven leagues distant.

We resumed our course to the southward at day-break next morning; but shoal water obliged us to haul more to the westward. At length we got so far advanced upon the bank that we could not hold a N. N. W. course, meeting sometimes with only four fathoms. The wind blowing fresh at E. N. E., it was high time to look for deep water, and to quit a coast upon which we could no longer navigate with any degree of safety. I therefore hauled the wind to the northward, and gradually deepened the water to eight fathoms. At the time we hauled the wind, we were at least twelve leagues from the continent, and nine to the westward of Stuart’s Island. No land was seen to the southward of Point Shallow-Water, which I judge to lie in the latitude of 63°. So that between this latitude and Shoal Ness, in latitude 60°, the coast is entirely unexplored. Probably it is accessible only to boats or very small vessels; or, at least, if there be channels for larger vessels, it would require some time to find them; and I am of opinion that they must be looked for near the coast. From the mast head, the sea within us appeared to be chequered with shoals; the water was very much discoloured and muddy, and considerably fresher than at any of the places where we had lately anchored. From this I inferred that a considerable river runs into the sea in this unknown part.

As soon as we got into eight fathoms’ water, I steered to the westward, and afterward more southerly, for the land discovered on the 5th, which, at noon the next day, bore S. W. by W., ten or eleven leagues distant. At this time we had a fresh gale at N., with showers of hail and snow at intervals, and a pretty high sea, so that we got clear of the shoals but just in time. As I now found that the land before us lay too far to the westward to be Anderson’s Island, I named it Clerke’s Island. It lies in the latitude of 63° 15ʹ, and in the longitude of 190° 30ʹ. It seemed to be a pretty large island, in which are four or more hills, all connected by low ground; so that at a distance it looks like a group of islands. Near its east part lies a small island, remarkable by having upon it three elevated rocks. Not only the greater island, but this small spot was inhabited.

We got up to the northern point of Clerke’s Island about six o’clock, and having ranged along its coast till dark, brought to during the night. At day-break, next morning, we stood in again for the coast, and continued to range along it, in search of a harbour, till noon; when, seeing no likelihood of succeeding, I left it, and steered S. S. W., for the land which we had discovered on the 29th of July, having a fresh gale at N., with showers of sleet and snow. I remarked that as soon as we opened the channel which separates the two continents, cloudy weather, with snow showers, immediately commenced, whereas all the time that we were in Norton Sound, we had, with the same wind, clear weather. Might not this be occasioned by the mountains to the north of that place attracting the vapours, and hindering them to proceed any further?

At day-break in the morning of the 23d, the land above mentioned appeared in sight, bearing S. W., six or seven leagues distant. From this point of view, it resembled a group of islands, but it proved to be but one, of thirty miles in extent, in the direction of N. W. and S. E.; the S. E. end being Cape Upright, already taken notice of. The island is but narrow, especially at the low necks of land that connect the hills. I afterward found that it was wholly unknown to the Russians; and therefore considering it as a discovery of our own, I named it Gore’s Island. It appeared to be barren, and without inhabitants; at least we saw none; nor did we see so many birds about it as when we first discovered it. But we saw some sea-otters, an animal which we had not met with to the north of this latitude. Four leagues from Cape Upright, in the direction of S., 72° W., lies a small island, whose elevated summit terminates in several pinnacle rocks. On this account it was named Pinnacle Island. At two in the afternoon, after passing Cape Upright, I steered S. E. by S., for Samganoodha, with a gentle breeze at N. N. W., being resolved to spend no more time in searching for a harbour amongst islands, which I now began to suspect had no existence; at least not in the latitude and longitude where modern map-makers have thought proper to place them. In the evening of the 24th, the wind veered to S. W. and S., and increased to a fresh gale.

We continued to stretch to the eastward till eight o’clock in the morning of the 25th, when, in the latitude of 58° 32ʹ, and in the longitude of 191° 10ʹ, we tacked and stood to the west; and soon after, the gale increasing, we were reduced to two courses, and close-reefed main top-sails. Not long after, the Resolution sprung a leak, under the starboard buttock, which filled the spirit-room with water, before it was discovered; and it was so considerable as to keep one pump constantly employed. We durst not put the ship upon the other tack, for fear of getting upon the shoals that lie to the north-west of Cape Newenham; but continued standing to the west till six in the evening of the 26th, when we wore and stood to the eastward, and then the leak no longer troubled us. This proved that it was above the water line, which was no small satisfaction. The gale was now over; but the wind remained at S. and S. W. for some days longer.

At length, on the 2d of October, at day-break, we saw the island of Oonalashka, bearing S. E. But as this was to us a new point of view, and the land was obscured by a thick haze, we were not sure of our situation till noon, when the observed latitude determined it. As all the harbours were alike to me, provided they were equally safe and convenient, I hauled into a bay that lies ten miles to the westward of Samganoodha, known by the name of Egoochshac; but we found very deep water; so that we were glad to get out again. The natives, many of whom lived here, visited us at different times, bringing with them dried salmon and other fish, which they exchanged with the seamen for tobacco. But a few days before, every ounce of tobacco that was in the ship had been distributed among them; and the quantity was not half sufficient to answer their demands. Notwithstanding this, so improvident a creature is an English sailor, that they were as profuse in making their bargains as if we had now arrived at a port in Virginia; by which means, in less than eight-and-forty hours, the value of this article of barter was lowered above a thousand per cent.

At one o’clock in the afternoon of the 3d, we anchored in Samganoodha Harbour; and the next morning the carpenters of both ships were set to work to rip off the sheathing of and under the wale, on the starboard side abaft. Many of the seams were found quite open, so that it was no wonder that so much water had found its way into the ship. While we lay here, we cleared the fish and spirit rooms, and the after-hold; disposing things in such a manner that, in case we should happen to have any more leaks of the same nature, the water might find its way to the pumps. And besides this work, and completing our water, we cleared the fore-hold to the very bottom, and took in a quantity of ballast.

The vegetables which we had met with, when we were here before, were now mostly in a state of decay; so that we were but little benefited by the great quantities of berries every where found ashore. In order to avail ourselves as much as possible of this useful refreshment, one third of the people, by turns, had leave to go and pick them. Considerable quantities of them were also procured from the natives. If there were any seeds of the scurvy in either ship, these berries, and the use of spruce beer, which they had to drink every other day, effectually eradicated them.

We also got plenty of fish, at first mostly salmon, both fresh and dried, which the natives brought us. Some of the fresh salmon was in high perfection, but there was one sort, which we called hook-nosed, from the figure of its head, that was but indifferent. We drew the seine several times, at the head of the bay, and caught a good many salmon trout, and once a halibut that weighed two hundred and fifty-four pounds. The fishery failing, we had recourse to hooks and lines. A boat was sent out every morning, and seldom returned without eight or ten halibut, which was more than sufficient to serve all our people; the halibut were excellent, and there were few who did not prefer them to salmon. Thus we not only procured a supply of fish for present consumption, but had some to carry with us to sea. This enabled us to make considerable saving of our provisions, which was an object of no small importance.

On the 8th, I received by the hands of an Oonalashka man, named Derramoushk, a very singular present, considering the place. It was a rye loaf, or rather a pye made in the form of a loaf, for it inclosed some salmon, highly seasoned with pepper. This man had the like present for Captain Clerke, and a note for each of us, written in a character which none of us could read. It was natural to suppose that this present was from some Russians now in our neighbourhood, and therefore we sent, by the same hand, to these, our unknown friends, a few bottles of rum, wine, and porter, which we thought would be as acceptable as any thing we had beside; and we soon knew that in this we had not been mistaken. I also sent along with Derramoushk, Corporal Lediard of the marines, an intelligent man, in order to gain some farther information, with orders, that if he met with any Russians, he should endeavour to make them understand that we were English, the friends and allies of their nation.

On the 10th, Lediard returned with three Russian seamen, or furriers, who, with some others, resided at Egoochshac, where they had a dwelling-house, some store-houses, and a sloop of about thirty tons burthen. One of these men was either master or mate of this vessel, another of them wrote a very good hand and understood figures, and they were all three well behaved, intelligent men, and very ready to give me all the information I could desire; but for want of an interpreter, we had some difficulty to understand each other. They appeared to have a thorough knowledge of the attempts that had been made by their countrymen to navigate the Frozen Ocean, and of the discoveries which had been made from Kamtschatka, by Beering, Tscherikoff, and Spangenberg; but they seemed to know no more of Lieutenant Syndo [87] , or Synd, than his name. Nor had they the least idea what part of the world Mr. Stæhlin’s map referred to, when it was laid before them. When I pointed out Kamtschatka, and some other known places upon that map, they asked whether I had seen the islands there laid down, and on my answering in the negative, one of them put his finger upon a part of this map where a number of islands was represented, and said, that he had cruised there for land, but never could find any. I then laid before them my own chart, and found that they were strangers to every part of the American coast, except what lies opposite this island. One of these men said, that he had been with Beering, in his American voyage, but must then have been very young, for he had not now, at the distance of thirty-seven years, the appearance of being aged. Never was there greater respect paid to the memory of any distinguished person, than by these men to that of Beering. The trade in which they are engaged is very beneficial, and its being undertaken and extended to the eastward of Kamtschatka, was the immediate consequence of the second voyage of that able navigator, whose misfortunes proved to be the source of much private advantage to individuals, and of public utility to the Russian nation. And yet, if his distresses had not accidentally carried him to die in the island which bears his name, and from whence the miserable remnant of his ship’s crew brought back sufficient specimens of its valuable furs, probably the Russians never would have undertaken any future voyages which could lead them to make discoveries in this sea, toward the coast of America. Indeed, after his time, government seems to have paid less attention to this, and we owe what discoveries have been since made, principally to the enterprising spirit of private traders, encouraged, however, by the superintending care of the court of Petersburg. The three Russians having remained with me all night, visited Captain Clerke next morning, and then left us, very well satisfied with the reception they had met with, promising to return in a few days, and to bring with them a chart of the islands lying between Oonalashka and Kamtschatka.

On the 15th, in the evening, while Mr. Webber and I were at a village at a small distance from Samganoodha, a Russian landed there, who, I found, was the principal person amongst his countrymen in this and the neighbouring islands. His name was Erasim Gregorioff Sin Ismyloff. He arrived in a canoe carrying three persons, attended by twenty or thirty other canoes, each conducted by one man. I took notice, that the first thing they did after landing, was to make a small tent for Ismyloff, of materials which they brought with them; and then they made others for themselves of their canoes and paddles, which they covered with grass, so that the people of the village were at no trouble to find them lodging. Ismyloff having invited us into his tent, set before us some dried salmon and berries, which, I was satisfied, was the best cheer he had. He appeared to be a sensible intelligent man, and I felt no small mortification in not being able to converse with him, unless by signs, assisted by figures, and other characters, which however were a very great help. I desired to see him on board the next day, and accordingly he came, with all his attendants. Indeed, he had moved into our neighbourhood for the express purpose of waiting upon us.

I was in hopes to have had by him the chart which his three countrymen had promised; but I was disappointed. However, he assured me I should have it; and he kept his word. I found that he was very well acquainted with the geography of these parts, and with all the discoveries that had been made in them by the Russians. On seeing the modern maps, he at once pointed out their errors. He told me he had accompanied Lieutenant Syndo, or Synd as he called him, in his expedition to the north; and, according to his account, they did not proceed farther than the Tschukotskoi Nos, or rather than the bay of St. Laurence, for he pointed on our chart to the very place where I landed. From thence, he said, they went to an island in latitude 63°, upon which they did not land, nor could he tell me its name. But I should guess it to be the same to which I gave the name of Clerke’s Island. To what place Synd went after that, or in what manner he spent the two years, during which, as Ismyloff said, his researches lasted, he either could not or would not inform us. Perhaps he did not comprehend our enquiries about this, and yet, in almost every other thing, we could make him understand us. This created a suspicion that he had not really been in that expedition, notwithstanding his assertion.

Both Ismyloff and the others affirmed, that they knew nothing of the continent of America to the northward; and that neither Lieutenant Synd, nor any other Russian had ever seen it of late. They call it by the same name which Mr. Stæhlin gives to his great island, that is Alaschka. Stachtan Nitada, as it is called in the modern maps, is a name quite unknown to these people, natives of the islands as well as Russians; but both of them know it by the name of America. From what we could gather from Ismyloff and his countrymen, the Russians have made several attempts to get a footing upon that part of this continent that lies contiguous to Oonalashka and the adjoining islands, but have always been repulsed by the natives, whom they describe as a very treacherous people. They mentioned two or three captains, or chief men, who had been murdered by them; and some of the Russians shewed us wounds which they said they had received there.

Some other information, which we got from Ismyloff, is worth recording, whether true or false. He told us, that in the year 1773, an expedition had been made into the Frozen Sea in sledges, over the ice, to three large islands that lie opposite the mouth of the river Kovyma. We were in some doubt whether he did not mean the same expedition of which Muller gives an account [88] , and yet he wrote down the year, and marked the islands on the chart. But a voyage which he himself had performed, engaged our attention more than any other. He said, that on the 12th of May, 1771, he sailed from Bolscheretzk, in a Russian vessel, to one of the Kuril islands, named Mareekan, in the latitude of 47°, where there is a harbour and a Russian settlement. From this island he proceeded to Japan, where he seems to have made but a short stay. For when the Japanese came to know that he and his companions were Christians, they made signs for them to be gone, but did not, so far as we could understand him, offer any insult or force. From Japan he got to Canton, and from thence to France, in a French ship. From France, he travelled to Petersburg; and was afterward sent out again to Kamtschatka. What became of the vessel in which he first embarked, we could not learn, nor what was the principal object of the voyage. His not being able to speak one word of French, made this story a little suspicious. He did not even know the name of any one of the most common things that must have been in use every day, while he was on board the ship and in France. And yet he seemed clear as to the times of his arriving at the different places, and of his leaving them, which he put down in writing.

The next morning he would fain have made me a present of a sea-otter skin, which he said was worth eighty roubles at Kamtschatka. However, I thought proper to decline it; but I accepted of some dried fish, and several baskets of the lily or saranne root, which is described at large in the History of Kamtschatka. [89] In the afternoon, Mr. Ismyloff, after dining with Captain Clerke, left us with all his retinue, promising to return in a few days. Accordingly, on the 19th, he made us another visit, and brought with him the charts before mentioned, which he allowed me to copy; and the contents of which furnish matter for the following observations.

There were two of them, both manuscripts, and bearing every mark of authenticity. The first comprehended the Penshinskian Sea; the coast of Tartary, as low as the latitude of 41°; the Kuril Islands; and the peninsula of Kamtschatka. Since this map had been made, Wawseelee Irkechoff, Captain of the fleet, explored, in 1758, the coast of Tartary from Okotsk, and the river Amur, to Japan, or 41° of latitude. Mr. Ismyloff also informed us, that great part of the sea-coast of the peninsula of Kamtschatka had been corrected by himself; and described the instrument he made use of, which must have been a theodolite. He also informed us, that there were only two harbours fit for shipping on all the east coast of Kamtschatka, viz. the bay of Awatska and the river Olutora, in the bottom of the gulf of the same name; that there was not a single harbour upon its west coast; and that Yamsk was the only one on all the west side of the Penshinskian Sea, except Okotsk, till we come to the river Amur. The Kurile islands afford only one harbour; and that is on the north-east side of Mareekan, in the latitude of 471⁄2°; where, as I have before observed, the Russians have a settlement.

The second chart was to me the most interesting, for it comprehended all the discoveries made by the Russians to the eastward of Kamtschatka, toward America, which, if we exclude the voyage of Beering and Tscherikoff, will amount to little or nothing. The part of the American coast with which the latter fell in is marked in this chart, between the latitude of 58° and 581⁄2°, and 75° of longitude from Okotsk, or 2181⁄2° from Greenwich; and the place where the former anchored in 591⁄2° of latitude, and 631⁄2° of longitude from Okotsk, or 207° from Greenwich. To say nothing of the longitude, which may be erroneous from many causes, the latitude of the coast discovered by these two navigators, especially the part of it discovered by Tscherikoff, differs considerably from the account published by Mr. Muller, and his chart. Indeed, whether Muller’s chart, or this now produced by Mr. Ismyloff, be most erroneous in this respect, it may be hard to determine, though it is not now a point worth discussing. But the islands that lie dispersed between 52° and 55° of latitude, in the space between Kamtschatka and America, deserve some notice. According to Mr. Ismyloff’s account, neither the number nor the situation of these islands is well ascertained. He struck out about one-third of them, assuring me they had no existence; and he altered the situation of others considerably, which, he said, was necessary, from his own observations. And there was no reason to doubt about this. As these islands lie all nearly under the same parallel, different navigators, being misled by their different reckonings, might easily mistake one island, or group of islands, for another; and fancy they had made a new discovery, when they had only found old ones in a different position from that assigned to them by their former visitors.

The islands of St. Macarius, St. Stephen, St. Theodore, St. Abraham, Seduction Island, and some others, which are to be found in Mr. Muller’s chart, had no place in this now produced to us; nay, both Mr. Ismyloff, and the others assured me, that they had been several times sought for in vain. And yet it is difficult to believe, how Mr. Muller, from whom subsequent map-makers have adopted them, could place them in his chart without some authority. Relying, however, on the testimony of these people, whom I thought competent witnesses, I have left them out of my chart; and made such corrections amongst the other islands as I was told was necessary. I found there was wanting another correction; for the difference of longitude, between the Bay of Awatska, and the harbour of Samganoodha, according to astronomical observations, made at these two places, is greater by five degrees and a half, than it is by the chart. This error I have supposed to be infused throughout the whole, though it may not be so in reality. There was also an error in the latitude of some places; but this hardly exceeded a quarter of a degree.

I shall now give some account of the islands; beginning with those that lie nearest to Kamtschatka, and reckoning the longitude from the harbour of Petropaulowska, in the Bay of Awatska. The first is Beering’s Island, in 55° of latitude, and 6° of longitude. Ten leagues from the south end of this, in the direction of east by south, or east south-east, lies Maidenoi Ostroff, or the Copper Island. The next island is Atakou, laid down in 52° 45ʹ of latitude, and in 15° or 16° of longitude. This island is about eighteen leagues in extent, in the direction of east and west; and seems to be the same land which Beering fell in with, and named Mount St. John. But there are no islands about it, except two inconsiderable ones, lying three or four leagues from the east end, in the direction of east north-east.

We next come to a group, consisting of six or more islands; two of which, Atghka and Amluk are tolerably large; and in each of them is a good harbour. The middle of this group lies in the latitude of 52° 30ʹ, and 28° of longitude from Awatska; and its extent, east and west, is four degrees. These are the isles that Mr. Ismyloff said were to be removed four degrees to the east, which is here done. And in the situation they have in my chart, was a group, consisting of ten small islands, which, I was told, were wholly to be struck out; and also two islands lying between them and the group to which Oonalashka belongs. In the place of these two, an island called Amoghta (which in the chart was situated in the latitude of 51° 45ʹ, and 4° of longitude to the west) was brought.

Nothing more need be said to show how erroneous the situation of many of these islands may be; and for which I am in nowise accountable. But the position of the largest group, of which Oonalashka is one of the principal islands, and the only one in which there is a harbour, is not liable to any such errors. Most of these islands were seen by us; and consequently their latitude and longitude were pretty exactly determined; particularly the harbour of Samganoodha in Oonalashka, which must be looked upon as a fixed point. This group of islands may be said to extend as far as Halibut Isles, which are forty leagues from Oonalashka toward the east north-east. Within these isles, a passage was marked in Ismyloff’s chart, communicating with Bristol Bay; which converts about fifteen leagues of the coast, that I had supposed to belong to the continent, into an island, distinguished by the name of Ooneemak. This passage might easily escape us, as we were informed that it is very narrow, shallow, and only to be navigated through with boats, or very small vessels.

It appeared by the chart, as well as by the testimony of Ismyloff and the other Russians, that this is as far as their countrymen have made any discoveries, or have extended themselves, since Beering’s time. They all said, that no Russians had settled themselves so far to the east as the place where the natives gave the note to Captain Clerke; which Mr. Ismyloff, to whom I delivered it, on perusing it, said, had been written at Oomanak. It was, however, from him that we got the name of Kodiak [90] , the largest of Schumagin’s Islands; for it had no name upon the chart produced by him. The names of all the other islands were taken from it, and we wrote them down as pronounced by him. He said, they were all such as the natives themselves called their islands by; but if so, some of the names seem to have been strangely altered. It is worth observing, that no names were put to the islands which Ismyloff told us were to be struck out of the chart; and I considered this as some confirmation that they have not existence.

I have already observed, that the American continent is here called, by the Russians, as well as by the islanders, Alaschka; which name, though it properly belong only to the country adjoining to Ooneemak, is used by them when speaking of the American continent in general, which they know perfectly well to be a great land.

This is all the information I got from these people, relating to the geography of this part of the world; and I have reason to believe that this was all the information they were able to give. For they assured me, over and over again, that they knew of no other islands, besides those which were laid down upon this chart; and that no Russian had ever seen any part of the continent of America to the northward, except that which lies opposite the country of the Tschutskis.

If Mr. Stæhlin was not grossly imposed upon, what could induce him to publish a map, so singularly erroneous; and in which many of these islands are jumbled together in regular confusion, without the least regard to truth? And yet, he is pleased to call it a very accurate map [91] . Indeed, it is a map to which the most illiterate of his illiterate sea-faring countrymen would have been ashamed to have set his name.

Mr. Ismyloff remained with us till the 21st, in the evening, when he took his final leave. To his care I entrusted a letter to the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty; in which was enclosed a chart of all the northern coasts I had visited. He said there would be an opportunity of sending it to Kamtschatka, or Okotsk, the ensuing spring; and that it would be at Petersburgh the following winter. He gave me a letter to Major Behm, Governor of Kamtschatka, who resides at Bolscheretsk; and another to the commanding officer at Petropaulowska. Mr. Ismyloff seemed to have abilities that might entitle him to a higher station in life, than that in which we found him. He was tolerably well versed in astronomy, and in the most useful branches of the mathematics. I made him a present of an Hadley’s octant; and though, probably, it was the first he had ever seen, he made himself acquainted, in a very short time, with most of the uses to which that instrument can be applied.

In the morning of the 22d, we made an attempt to get to sea, with the wind at south-east, which miscarried. The following afternoon, we were visited by one Jacob Ivanovitch Soposnicoff, a Russian, who commanded a boat, or small vessel, at Oomanak. This man had a great share of modesty; and would drink no strong liquor, of which the rest of his countrymen, whom we had met with here, were immoderately fond. He seemed to know more accurately what supplies could be got at the harbour of Petropaulowska, and the price of the different articles, than Mr. Ismyloff. But, by all accounts, every thing we should want at that place was very scarce, and bore a high price. Flour, for instance, was from three to five roubles the pood [92] ; and deer, from three to five roubles each. This man told us that he was to be at Petropaulowska in May next; and, as I understood, was to have the charge of my letter. He seemed to be exceedingly desirous of having some token from me to carry to Major Behm; and, to gratify him, I sent a small spying-glass.

After we became acquainted with these Russians, some of our gentlemen, at different times, visited their settlement on the island; where they always met with a hearty welcome. This settlement consisted of a dwelling-house, and two store-houses. And, besides the Russians, there was a number of the Kamtschadales, and of the natives, as servants, or slaves, to the former. Some others of the natives, who seemed independent of the Russians, lived at the same place. Such of them as belonged to the Russians were all males; and they are taken, or, perhaps, purchased from their parents when young. There were, at this time, about twenty of these, who could be looked upon in no other light than as children. They all live in the same house; the Russians at the upper end, the Kamtschadales in the middle; and the natives at the lower end; where is fixed a large boiler for preparing their food, which consists chiefly of what the sea produces, with the addition of wild roots and berries. There is little difference between the first and last table, besides what is produced by cookery, in which the Russians have the art to make indifferent things palatable. I have eat whale’s flesh of their dressing, which I thought very good; and they made a kind of pan-pudding of salmon roe, beaten up fine, and fried, that is no bad succedaneum for bread. They may, now and then, taste real bread, or have a dish in which flour is an ingredient; but this can only be an occasional luxury. If we except the juice of berries, which they sip at their meals, they have no other liquor besides pure water; and it seems to be very happy for them that they have nothing stronger.

As the island supplies them with food, so it does, in a great measure, with clothing. This consists chiefly of skins, and is, perhaps, the best they could have. The upper garment is made like our waggoner’s frock, and reaches as low as the knee. Besides this, they wear a waistcoat or two, a pair of breeches; a fur cap; and a pair of boots, the soles and upper leathers of which are of Russian leather; but the legs are made of some kind of strong gut. Their two chiefs, Ismyloff and Ivanovitch, wore each a calico frock; and they, as well as some others, had shirts, which were of silk. These, perhaps, were the only part of their dress not made amongst themselves.

There are Russians settled upon all the principal islands between Oonalashka and Kamtschatka, for the sole purpose of collecting furs. Their great object is the sea beaver or otter. I never heard them inquire after any other animal; though those, whose skins are of inferior value, are also made part of their cargoes. I never thought to ask how long they have had a settlement upon Oonalashka, and the neighbouring isles; but, to judge from the great subjection the natives are under, this cannot be of a very late date. [93] All these furriers are relieved, from time to time, by others. Those we met with arrived here from Okotsk, in 1776, and are to return in 1781; so that their stay at the island will be four years at least.

It is now time to give some account of the native inhabitants. To all appearance, they are the most peaceable, inoffensive people, I ever met with. And, as to honesty, they might serve as a pattern to the most civilized nation upon earth. But from what I saw of their neighbours, with whom the Russians have no connection, I doubt whether this was their original disposition; and rather think that it has been the consequence of their present state of subjection. Indeed, if some of our gentlemen did not misunderstand the Russians, they had been obliged to make some severe examples [94] , before they could bring the islanders into any order. If there were severities inflicted at first, the best apology for them is, that they have produced the happiest consequences; and, at present, the greatest harmony subsists between the two nations. The natives have their own chiefs in each island, and seem to enjoy liberty and property unmolested. But whether or no they are tributaries to the Russians, we could never find out. There was some reason to think that they are.

Natives of Oonalashka and their Habitations.

These people are rather low of stature, but plump and well shaped; with rather short necks; swarthy chubby faces; black eyes; small beards; and long, straight, black hair; which the men wear loose behind, and cut before, but the women tie up in a bunch.

Their dress has been occasionally mentioned. Both sexes wear the same in fashion; the only difference is in the materials. The women’s frock is made of seal skin; and that of the men, of the skins of birds; both reaching below the knee. This is the whole dress of the women. But, over the frock, the men wear another made of gut, which resists water; and has a hood to it, which draws over the head. Some of them wear boots; and all of them have a kind of oval-snouted cap, made of wood, with a rim to admit the head. These caps are dyed with green and other colours; and round the upper part of the rim, are stuck the long bristles of some sea-animal, on which are strung glass beads; and on the front is a small image or two made of bone.

They make use of no paint; but the women puncture their faces slightly; and both men and women bore the under lip, to which they fix pieces of bone. But it is as uncommon at Oonalashka to see a man with this ornament, as to see a woman without it. Some fix beads to the upper lip, under the nostrils, and all of them hang ornaments in their ears.

Their food consists of fish, sea-animals, birds, roots, and berries; and even of sea-weed. They dry large quantities of fish in summer, which they lay up in small huts for winter use; and, probably, they preserve roots and berries for the same time of scarcity. They eat almost every thing raw. Boiling and broiling were the only methods of cookery that I saw them make use of; and the first was probably learnt from the Russians. Some have got little brass kettles; and those who have not, make one of a flat stone, with sides of clay, not unlike a standing pye.

I was once present when the chief of Oonalashka made his dinner of the raw head of a large halibut just caught. Before any was given to the chief, two of his servants eat the gills, without any other dressing, besides squeezing out the slime. This done, one of them cut off the head of the fish, took it to the sea and washed it; then came with it, and sat down by the chief; first pulling up some grass, upon a part of which the head was laid, and the rest was strewed before the chief. He then cut large pieces off the cheeks, and laid these within the reach of the great man, who swallowed them with as much satisfaction as we should do raw oysters. When he had done, the remains of the head were cut in pieces, and given to the attendants, who tore off the meat with their teeth, and gnawed the bones like so many dogs.

As these people use no paint, they are not so dirty in their persons as the savages who thus besmear themselves; but they are full as lousy and filthy in their houses. Their method of building is as follows: They dig in the ground an oblong square pit, the length of which seldom exceeds fifty feet, and the breadth twenty; but in general the dimensions are smaller. Over this excavation, they form the roof of wood which the sea throws ashore. This roof is covered first with grass, and then with earth; so that the outward appearance is like a dunghill. In the middle of the roof, toward each end, is left a square opening, by which the light is admitted; one of these openings being for this purpose only, and the other being also used to go in and out by, with the help of a ladder, or rather a post, with steps cut in it. [95] In some houses there is another entrance below; but this is not common. Round the sides and ends of the huts, the families (for several are lodged together) have their separate apartments, where they sleep, and sit at work; not upon benches, but in a kind of a concave trench, which is dug all round the inside of the house, and covered with mats; so that this part is kept tolerably decent. But the middle of the house, which is common to all the families, is far otherwise. For, although it be covered with dry grass, it is a receptacle for dirt of every kind, and the place for the urine trough; the stench of which is not mended by raw hides, or leather being almost continually steeped in it. Behind and over the trench are placed the few effects they are possessed of; such as their clothing, mats, and skins.

Their household furniture consists of bowls, spoons, buckets, piggins or cans, matted baskets, and perhaps a Russian kettle or pot. All these utensils are very neatly made, and well formed; and yet we saw no other tools among them but the knife and the hatchet; that is, a small flat piece of iron, made like an adze, by fitting it into a crooked wooden handle. These were the only instruments we met with there, made of iron. For although the Russians live amongst them, we found much less of this metal in their possession than we had met with in the possession of other tribes on the American continent, who had never seen, nor perhaps had any intercourse with the Russians. Probably a few beads, a little tobacco and snuff, purchase all they have to spare. There are few, if any of them, that do not both smoke and chew tobacco, and take snuff; a luxury that bids fair to keep them always poor.

They did not seem to wish for more iron, or to want any other instruments, except sewing-needles, their own being made of bone. With these they not only sew their canoes, and make their clothes, but also very curious embroidery. Instead of thread, they use the fibres of sinews, which they split to the thickness which each sort of work requires. All sewing is performed by the women. They are the taylors, shoemakers, and boat-builders, or boat-coverers; for the men, most probably, construct the frame of wood over which the skins are sewed. They make mats and baskets of grass, that are both beautiful and strong. Indeed there is a neatness and perfection in most of their work that shews they neither want ingenuity nor perseverance.

I saw not a fire-place in any one of their houses. They are lighted as well as heated by lamps, which are simple, and yet answer the purpose very well. They are made of a flat stone, hollowed on one side like a plate, and about the same size, or rather larger. In the hollow part they put the oil, mixed with a little dry grass, which serves the purpose of a wick. Both men and women frequently warm their bodies over one of these lamps, by placing it between their legs, under their garments, and sitting thus over it for a few minutes.

They produce fire both by collision and by attrition; the former by striking two stones one against another; on one of which a good deal of brimstone is first rubbed. The latter method is with two pieces of wood; one of which is a stick of about eighteen inches in length, and the other a flat piece. The pointed end of the stick they press upon the other, whirling it nimbly round as a drill; thus producing fire in a few minutes. This method is common in many parts of the world. It is practised by the Kamtschadales, by these people, by the Greenlanders, by the Brazilians, by the Otaheiteans, by the New Hollanders; and probably by many other nations. Yet some learned and ingenious men have founded an argument on this custom to prove, that this and that nation are of the same extraction. But accidental agreements, in a few particular instances, will not authorize such a conclusion; nor will a disagreement, either in manners or customs, between two different nations, of course, prove that they are of different extraction. I could support this opinion by many instances besides the one just mentioned.

No such thing as an offensive or even defensive weapon was seen amongst the natives of Oonalashka. We cannot suppose that the Russians found them in such a defenceless state; it is more probable that for their own security they have disarmed them. Political reasons too may have induced the Russians not to allow these islanders to have any large canoes; for it is difficult to believe they had none such originally, as we found them amongst all their neighbours. However we saw none here but one or two belonging to the Russians. The canoes made use of by the natives are the smallest we had any where seen upon the American coast; though built after the same manner, with some little difference in the construction. The stern of these terminates a little abruptly; the head is forked; the upper point of the fork projecting without the under one, which is even with the surface of the water. Why they should thus construct them is difficult to conceive; for the fork is apt to catch hold of every thing that comes in the way; to prevent which they fix a piece of small stick from point to point. In other respects their canoes are built after the manner of those used by the Greenlanders and Esquimaux; the framing being of slender laths, and the covering of seal-skins. They are about twelve feet long; a foot and a half broad in the middle; and twelve or fourteen inches deep. Upon occasion they can carry two persons; one of whom is stretched at full length in the canoe; and the other sits in the seat, or round hole, which is nearly in the middle. Round this hole is a rim or hoop of wood, about which is sewed gut skin, that can be drawn together, or opened like a purse, with leathern thongs fitted to the outer edge. The man seats himself in this place, draws the skin tight round his body over his gut frock, and brings the ends of the thongs, or purse-string, over the shoulder to keep it in its place. The sleeves of his frock are tied round his wrists; and it being close round his neck, and the hood drawn over his head, where it is confined by his cap, water can scarcely penetrate either to his body or into the canoe. If any should, however, insinuate itself, the boatman carries a piece of spunge, with which he dries it up. He uses the double-bladed paddle, which is held with both hands in the middle, striking the water with a quick regular motion, first on one side and then on the other. By this means the canoe is impelled at a great rate, and in a direction as straight as a line can be drawn. In sailing from Egoochshak to Samganoodha, two or three canoes kept way with the ship, though she was going at the rate of seven miles an hour.

Their fishing and hunting implements lie ready upon the canoes, under straps fixed for the purpose. They are all made, in great perfection, of wood and bone; and differ very little from those used by the Greenlanders, as they are described by Crantz. The only difference is in the point of the missile dart; which, in some we saw here, is not above an inch long; whereas Crantz says that those of the Greenlanders are a foot and a half in length. Indeed these darts, as well as some other of their instruments, are so curious that they deserve a particular description; but as many of them were brought away on board the ships, this can be done at any time, if thought necessary. These people are very expert in striking fish, both in the sea and in rivers. They also make use of hooks and lines, nets and wears. The hooks are composed of bone, and the lines of sinews.

The fishes, which are common to other northern seas, are found here; such as whales, grampusses, porpoises, sword-fish, halibut, cod, salmon, trout, soals, flat-fish; several other sorts of small fish; and there may be many more that we had no opportunity of seeing. Halibut and salmon seem to be in the greatest plenty; and on them the inhabitants of these isles subsist chiefly; at least they were the only sort of fish, except a few cod, which we observed to be laid up for their winter store. To the north of 60°, the sea is, in a manner, destitute of small fish of every kind; but then whales are more numerous.

Seals, and that whole tribe of sea-animals, are not so numerous as in many other seas. Nor can this be thought strange, since there is hardly any part of the coast, on either continent, nor any of the islands lying between them, that is not inhabited, and whose inhabitants hunt these animals for their food and clothing. Sea-horses are indeed in prodigious numbers about the ice; and the sea-otter is, I believe, no where found but in this sea. We sometimes saw an animal with a head like a seal’s, that blew after the manner of whales. It was larger than a seal, and its colour was white, with some dark spots. Probably this was the sea-cow, or manati.

I think I may venture to assert, that sea and water-fowls are neither in such numbers, nor in such variety, as with us in the northern parts of the Atlantic Ocean. There are some, however, here that I do not remember to have seen any where else; particularly the alca monochroa of Steller, before mentioned; and a black and white duck, which I conceive to be different from the stone-duck described by Krasheninikoff. [96] All the other birds seen by us are mentioned by this author, except some that we met with near the ice; and most, if not all of these, are described by Martin in his voyage to Greenland. It is a little extraordinary that penguins, which are common in many parts of the world, should not be found in this sea. Albatrosses too are so very scarce, that I cannot help thinking that this is not their proper climate.

The few land-birds that we met with are the same with those in Europe; but there may be many others which we had no opportunity of knowing. A very beautiful bird was shot in the woods at Norton Sound, which, I am told, is sometimes found in England, and known by the name of chatterer. Our people met with other small birds there, but in no great variety and abundance; such as the wood-pecker, the bull-finch, the yellow-finch, and a small bird called a tit-mouse.

As our excursions and observations were confined wholly to the sea-coast, it is not to be expected that we could know much of the animals or vegetables of the country. Except musquitoes, there are few other insects, or reptiles, that I saw, but lizards. There are no deer upon Oonalashka, nor upon any other of the islands. Nor have they any domestic animals, not even dogs. Foxes and weasels were the only quadrupeds we saw; but they told us that they had hares also, and the marmottas mentioned by Krasheninikoff [97] . Hence it is evident that the sea and rivers supply the greatest share of food to the inhabitants. They are also obliged to the sea for all the wood made use of for building, and other necessary purposes; for not a stick grows upon any of the islands, nor upon the adjacent coast of the continent.

The learned tell us, that the seeds of plants are, by various means, conveyed from one part of the world to another; even to islands in the midst of great oceans, and far remote from any other land. How comes it to pass that there are no trees growing on this part of the continent of America, nor any other of the islands lying near it? They are certainly as well situated for receiving seeds, by all the various ways I have heard of, as any of those coasts that abound in wood. May not nature have denied to some soil the power of raising trees without the assistance of art? As to the drift wood, upon the shores of the islands, I have no doubt that it comes from America. For although there may be none on the neighbouring coast, enough may grow farther up the country, which torrents in the spring may break loose, and bring down to the sea. And not a little may be conveyed from the woody coasts, though they lie at a greater distance.

There are a great variety of plants at Oonalashka; and most of them were in flower the latter end of June. Several of them are such as we find in Europe, and in other parts of America, particularly in Newfoundland; and others of them, which are also met with in Kamtschatka, are eat by the natives both there and here. Of these Krasheninikoff has given us descriptions. The principal one is the saranne, or lily root; which is about the size of a root of garlick, round, made up of a number of small cloves, and grains like groats. When boiled, it is somewhat like saloop; the taste is not disagreeable, and we found means to make some good dishes with it. It does not seem to be in great plenty, for we got none but what Ismyloff gave us.

We must reckon amongst the food of the natives some other wild roots; the stalk of a plant resembling angelica, and berries of several different sorts; such as bramble-berries, cran-berries, hurtle-berries, heath-berries, a small red berry, which, in Newfoundland, is called partridge-berry; and another brown berry, unknown to us. This has somewhat of the taste of a sloe, but is unlike it in every other respect. It is very astringent, if eaten in any quantity. Brandy might be distilled from it. Captain Clerke attempted to preserve some; but they fermented, and became as strong as if they had been steeped in spirits.

There were a few other plants which we found serviceable, but are not made use of by either Russians or natives; such as wild purslain, pea-tops, a kind of scurvy-grass, cresses, and some others. All these we found very palatable, dressed either in soups or in sallads. On the low ground, and in the valleys, is plenty of grass, which grows very thick, and to a great length. I am of opinion that cattle might subsist at Oonalashka all the year round, without being housed. And the soil, in many places, seemed capable of producing grain, roots, and vegetables. But, at present, the Russian traders and the natives seem satisfied with what nature brings forth.

Native sulphur was seen amongst the inhabitants of the island; but I had no opportunity of learning where they got it. We found also ochre; a stone that gives a purple colour, and another that gives a very good green. It may be doubted whether this last is known. In its natural state, it is of a greyish green colour, coarse and heavy. It easily dissolves in oil; but when put into water, it entirely loses its properties. It seemed to be scarce in Oonalashka; but we were told that it was in greater plenty on the island of Oonemak. As to the stones about the shore and hills, I saw nothing in them that was uncommon.

The people of Oonalashka bury their dead on the summits of hills, and raise a little hillock over the grave. In a walk into the country, one of the natives who attended me pointed out several of these receptacles of the dead. There was one of them by the side of the road leading from the harbour to the village, over which was raised a heap of stones. It was observed, that every one who passed it, added one to it. I saw in the country several stone hillocks that seemed to have been raised by art. Many of them were apparently of great antiquity.

What their notions are of the Deity, and of a future state, I know not. I am equally unacquainted with their diversions; nothing having been seen that could give us an insight into either.

They are remarkably cheerful and friendly amongst each other, and always behaved with great civility to us. The Russians told us, that they never had any connections with their women, because they were not Christians. Our people were not so scrupulous; and some of them had reason to repent that the females of Oonalashka encouraged their addresses without any reserve, for their health suffered by a distemper that is not unknown here. The natives of this island are also subject to the cancer, or a complaint like it, which those whom it attacks are very careful to conceal. They do not seem to be long-lived. I no where saw a person, man or woman, whom I could suppose to be sixty years of age, and but very few who appeared to be above fifty. Probably their hard way of living may be the means of shortening their days.

I have frequently had occasion to mention, from the time of our arrival in Prince William’s Sound, how remarkably the natives on this north-west side of America, resemble the Greenlanders and Esquimaux, in various particulars of person, dress, weapons, canoes, and the like. However, I was much less struck with this than with the affinity which we found subsisting between the dialects of the Greenlanders and Esquimaux, and those of Norton’s Sound and Oonalashka. This will appear from a table of corresponding words, which I put together, and will be inserted in the course of this work. [98] It must be observed, however, with regard to the words which we collected on this side of America, that too much stress is not to be laid upon their being accurately represented; for, after Mr. Anderson’s death, we had few who took much pains about such matters, and I have frequently found, that the same words written down by two or more persons, from the mouth of the same native, on being compared together, differed not a little. But still, enough is certain, to warrant this judgment, that there is great reason to believe that all these nations are of the same extraction; and if so, there can be little doubt of there being a northern communication of some sort, by sea, between this west side of America and the east side, through Baffin’s Bay; which communication, however, may be effectually shut up against ships, by ice and other impediments. Such, at least, was my opinion at this time.

I shall now quit these northern regions, with a few particulars relative to the tides and currents upon the coast, and an account of the astronomical observations made by us in Samganoodha Harbour.

The tide is no where considerable but in the great river. [99]

The flood comes from the south or south-east, every where following the direction of the coast to the north-westward. Between Norton Sound and Cape Prince of Wales, we found a current setting to the north-west, particularly off the cape, and within Sledge Island. But this current extended only a little way from the coast; nor was it either consistent or uniform. To the north of Cape Prince of Wales, we found neither tide nor current, either on the American or on the Asiatic coast, though several times looked for. This gave rise to an opinion entertained by some on board our ships, that the two coasts were connected either by land or by ice; which opinion received some strength, by our never having any hollow waves from the north, and by our seeing ice almost the whole way across.

The following are the results of the several observations made ashore, during our stay in the harbour of Samganoodha.

The latitude, by the mean of several observed meridian altitudes of the sun

53°

5ʹ

0ʺ

The longitude

By the mean of twenty sets of lunar observations, with the sun east of the moon

193

By the mean of fourteen sets, with the sun and stars west of the moon

193

The mean of these

193

The longitude assumed

193

By the mean of equal altitudes of the sun, taken on the 12th, 14th, 17th, and 21st, the time-keeper was found to be losing on mean time 8ʺ, 8 each day; and on the last of these days, was too slow for mean time 13h 46m 43s, 98. Hence the time-keeper must have been too slow, on the 4th, the day after our arrival, by 13h 44m 36s, 62.; and the longitude, by Greenwich rate, will be 13h 23m 53s, 8

200

By King George’s (or Nootka) Sound rate 12h 56m 40s, 4

194

The 30th June, the time-keeper, by the same rate gave

193

The error of the time-keeper at that time was

At this time, its error was

The error of the time-keeper, between our leaving Samganoodha and our return to it again, was

On the 12th of Oct. the variation

A. M.

20°

17ʹ

2ʺ

Mean 19°

59ʹ

15ʺ

By the mean of three compasses

P. M.

Dip of the needle

Unmarked end

Dipping face east

68°

45ʹ

Face West

69°

30ʹ

Marked end

Mean of the dip of the north end of the needle 69° 23ʹ 30ʺ.