|
|
This gave us an opportunity to make no less than seventy-seven sets of
lunar observations between the 6th and 7th inclusive. The mean result
of these made the longitude of the anchoring-place, on the west side
of the Sound, to be
197 deg. 13'
Latitude 64 31
Variation of the compass 25 45 east.
Dip of the needle 76 25
[Footnote 7: Afterwards Lord Grantley.]
Of the tides, it was observed, that the night-flood rose about two or
three feet, and that the day-flood was hardly perceivable.
Having now fully satisfied myself, that Mr Staehlin's map must be
erroneous; and having restored the American continent to that space
which he had occupied with his imaginary island of Alaschka, it was
high time to think of leaving these northern regions, add to retire to
some place during the winter, where I might procure refreshments for
my people, and a small supply of provisions. Petropaulowska, or the
harbour of St Peter and St Paul, in Kamtschatka, did not appear likely
to furnish either the one or the other for so large a number of men.
I had, besides, other reasons for not repairing thither at this time.
The first, and on which all the others depended, was the great dislike
I had to lie inactive for six or seven months; which would have been
the necessary consequence of wintering in any of these northern parts.
No place was so conveniently within our reach, where we could
expect to have our wants relieved, as the Sandwich Islands. To them,
therefore, I determined to proceed. But, before this could be carried
into execution, a supply of water was necessary. With this view I
resolved to search the American coast for a harbour, by proceeding
along it to the southward, and thus endeavour to connect the survey
of this part of it with that lying immediately to the north of Cape
Newenham. If I failed in finding a harbour there my plan was then
to proceed to Samganoodha, which was fixed upon as our place of
rendezvous, in case of separation.
SECTION 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 the 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 deg. 37'. Besborough, Island now bore N., 42 deg. E.; the
southernmost land in sight, which proved also to be an island, S., 66 deg.
W.; the passage between it and the main S., 40 deg. 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 deg. 35', and seventeen leagues from. Cape Denbigh, in the
direction of S., 27 deg. 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 deg. 33', and in longitude 197 deg. 41'. 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 a 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 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 plying 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 same 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 deg.. So that,
between this latitude and Shoal Ness, in latitude 60 deg., the coast is
entirely unexplored. Probably, it is accessible only to boats, or very
small vessels; or at least, if there be channels for large 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.[1]
[Footnote 1: Mr Arrowsmith has filled up the coast betwixt the two
points now mentioned, and supplied it also with rivers, according to
the conjecture of Captain Cook. But it is obvious, that this is not
sufficient authority; and therefore, unless better be given, Mr Coxe
seems to have done more correctly, in indicating the space by a dotted
line, the usual mark of an unexplored region.--E.]
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 north, 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 deg. 15', and in the
longitude of 190 deg. 30'. 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.[2]
[Footnote 2: It is somewhat singular, that neither Arrowsmith nor Coxe
mentions Anderson's Island. The former, on additional authority, has
marked but one island in the position specified, under the name of
Eivoogiena, or Clerke's Island.--E.]
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 north, 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 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 farther?
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 northward of this latitude.[3]
Four leagues from Cape Upright, in the direction of S., 72 deg. W., lies
a small island, whose elevated summit terminates in several pinnacled
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.
[Footnote 3: Mr Arrowsmith, as in the case of the island mentioned in
the last note, has given the native name to this island, viz. Matwi,
retaining also, however, the name of Gore.--E.]
We continued to stretch to the eastward, till eight o'clock in the
morning of the 25th, when, in the latitude of 191 deg. 10', 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 N.W. 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 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 was 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 a 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 anything we had besides; 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, 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.[4]
[Footnote 4: We must be allowed to notice some particulars in the
history of this remarkable enough man, well known, it is probable,
to most readers, who have been interested in the operations of the
African Association, but, perhaps, not immediately recognised in
the humble situation of a corporal of marines. Some years after this
voyage, viz. in 1786, Lediard, by birth an American, resolved on a
pedestrian excursion across his native continent; for which purpose,
he, first of all, fixed on travelling to Siberia, whence he expected
to be able to obtain a passage to its north-west coast. Sir Joseph
Banks, and other gentlemen, favouring his project, subscribed a sum of
money, not much exceeding fifty pounds, to enable him to put it into
execution. He proceeded to Hamburgh; from thence to Copenhagen; and,
as the gulf of Bothnia was not frozen over, actually walked round its
shores by the way of Tornea, till he arrived at Petersburgh, in the
beginning of March 1787. Here he remained till May, when he obtained
permission to go with a convoy of military stores, intended for
Captain Billings, formerly his ship-mate in Cook's voyage, and now
waiting for it to commence his own examination of the American
coast, &c. With this convoy, Lediard, in the month of August, reached
Irkutsk, in Siberia, at which place, after having gone to Yakutsk,
where he met with Billings, he purposed to remain a part of the
winter, till an opportunity occurred of going to Ochotsk, from which
his passage to America seemed very practicable. So far, then, he
had to congratulate himself on his success. But his enterprise was
speedily interrupted, and all his hopes frustrated, by an order from
the empress; in consequence of which he was arrested, and, under the
guard of an officer and two soldiers, hurried off in a sledge for
Moscow, without being suffered to carry with him either his clothes,
his money, or his papers. The reason of this extraordinary conduct has
not been explained in the communication made by Sir Joseph Banks
to the Biographia Britannica, from which we have collected these
particulars. We are told, however, that the disappointed adventurer
was successively conveyed from Moscow to Moialoff, in White Russia,
and Tolochin, in Poland; at which last place, he was informed, that
the empress had directed he should never enter her dominions again
without her express permission. During the whole of his route, since
he had been made a prisoner, he suffered extreme hardship from ill
health, fatigue, and mortification. At last he reached Konigsberg;
and, to use his own words, in a letter to his patron, after "a
miserable journey, in a miserable country, in a miserable season, in
miserable health, and with a miserable purse," arrived in England.
The ardour of his mind, however, was still entire; and he appeared
as ready as ever to engage in any service, however perilous, which
promised to gratify his own curiosity, and was recommended by men
whose judgment he respected. Accordingly, almost immediately on his
return, it was proposed to him to undertake the first speculative
excursion which the society alluded to projected. On this occasion it
was, as is noticed by the ingenious Mr Forster, in his valuable Essay
on Decision of Character, that he surprised the official person,
who put the Question to him, "When he would be ready for his African
journey?" by instantly answering, "To-morrow!" It may be doubted,
if his acquirements were altogether equally well suited to this
undertaking, as his undaunted spirit and enterprising disposition.
These, indeed, promised interest; and no one could hesitate to
believe, that he would zealously employ every faculty he possessed in
accomplishing the objects committed to him. It was appointed him to
traverse the continent of Africa from east to west, in the latitude of
the river Niger. But this he never accomplished; as, on his arrival at
Cairo, he was seized with a bilious disorder, which terminated in his
death. So much, it seemed but justice to record in this place, of the
person now employed by Captain Cook.--E.]
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 Spanberg. But they seemed to know no more of
Lieutenant Syndo, or Synd, than his name.[5] Nor had they the least
idea what part of the world Mr Staehlin'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 are
represented, and said, that he had cruized 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.[6] 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.
[Footnote 5: See the little that is known of Synd's voyage,
accompanied with a chart, in Mr Coxe's Russian Discoveries, p.
300.--D.]
[Footnote 6: This may be considered as a very decisive testimony to
the truth of the character given of him in Mr Coxe's publication.
We are indebted to the same work for ample evidence in proof of the
following remarks of Captain Cook--E.]
On the 14th, 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 Noss, 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 deg.,
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. They call it by
the same name which Mr Staehlin 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; and yet he wrote down the
year, and marked the islands on the chart.[7] 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 deg., where there is a harbour, and a Russian settlement.
From this island, he proceeded to Japan, where be 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 Petersburgh, 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.[8]
[Footnote 7: The latest expedition of this kind, taken notice of by Mr
Muller, was in 1724. But in justice to Mr Ismyloff, it may be proper
to mention, which is done on the authority of a MS. communicated by
Mr Pennant, and the substance of which has been published by Mr
Coxe, that, so late as 1768, the Governor of Siberia sent three young
officers over the ice in sledges to the islands opposite the mouth of
the Kovyma. There seems no reason for not supposing, that a subsequent
expedition of this sort might also be undertaken in 1773. Mr Coxe, p.
324, places the expedition on sledges in 1764, but Mr Pennant's MS.
may be depended upon.--D.]
[Footnote 8: There is nothing at all unlikely in the voyage now spoken
of. According to Captain Krusenstern, whose information is in all
probability quite unexceptionable, the Kuril islands and Jesso have
been often visited by Russian merchants since 1741, when Spanberg
and Walton reached the coast of Japan; though without any positive
advantage, he says, accruing either to science or commerce from their
visits.--E.]
The next morning, he would fain have made me a present of a sea-otter
skin, which, he said, was worth eighty rubles 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.[9] 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 _Penschinskian Sea_, the
coast of Tartary, as low as the latitude of 41 deg., the Kuril islands,
and the peninsula of Kamtschatka. Since this map had been made,
Wawseelee Irkecchoff, captain of the fleet, explored, in 1758, the
coast of Tartary, from Okotsk, and the river Amur, to Japan, or 41 deg.
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 Penschinskian Sea, except Okotsk, till we come to the river Amur.
The Kuril islands afford only one harbour, and that is on the N.E.
side of Mareekan, in the latitude of 47-1/2 deg., where, as I have before
observed, the Russians have a settlement.
[Footnote 9: English translation, p. 83, 84.]
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 deg. and 58-1/2 deg., and 75 deg. of longitude
from Okotsk, or, 218-1/2 deg. from Greenwich; and the place where the
former anchored, in 59-1/2 deg. of latitude, and 63-1/2 deg. of longitude from
Okotsk, or 207 deg. 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 deg. and
55 deg. 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
this 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 deg. of latitude, and 6 deg. of longitude. Ten
leagues from the south end of this, in the direction of E. by S., or
E.S.E., lies _Meidenoi Ostroff_, or the Copper Island. The next island
is _Atakou_, laid down in 52 deg. 45' of latitude, and in 15 deg. or 16 deg. of
longitude. This island is about eighteen leagues in extent, in the
direction of E. and W., 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 E.N.E.
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 deg. 30', and 28 deg. of longitude from Awatska, and its extent, E. and W.,
is four degrees. These are the isles that Mr Ismyloff said were to be
removed four degrees to the E., which was 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 deg. 45', and 4 deg. of longitude to the W.)
was brought.
Nothing more need be said to shew 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
maybe said to extend as far as Halibut Isles, which are forty leagues
from Oonalashka toward the E.N.E. 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.[10]
[Footnote 10: This passage is marked on all the modern maps, no doubt
on the somewhat scanty authority here given. With respect to most of
the islands now alluded to, the opinion entertained of their utter
insignificance, will account for and perhaps justify the sparing
solicitude we have used to ascertain their number and position. Some
less suspicious data than are to be met with in the accounts of early
Russian voyages, would be requisite, to induce much attention to a
subject of even greater importance.--E.]
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_, the largest of Schumagin's Islands; for it had no
name upon the chart produced by him.[11] 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 no
existence.
[Footnote 11: A Russian ship had been at Kodiak in 1776, as appears
from a MS. obligingly communicated by Mr Pennant.--D.]
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 Oonemak, 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 Staehlin 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
little map_.[12] Indeed, it is a map to which the most illiterate of
his illiterate sea-faring countrymen would have been ashamed to set
his name.
[Footnote 12: Staehlin's New Northern Archipelago, p. 15.]
Mr Ismyloff remained with us till the 21st, in the evening, when he
took his final leave. To his care I intrusted a letter to the Lords
Commissioners of the Admiralty, in which was inclosed 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 Petersburg 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 S.E., 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,[13] 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.
[Footnote 13: 36 lb.]
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 was, 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, Ismyoff
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
enquire after any other animal; though those, whose skins are of
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