Account of the Russian Discoveries between Asia and America. William Coxe

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СКАЧАТЬ paying, besides the tribute which might be exacted, the tenth of all the furs. The Cossac Sila Sheffyrin went on board this vessel for the purpose of collecting the tribute. They sailed in August, 1749, from the Kamtchatka river; and re-entered it the 16th of the same month, 1753, with a large cargo of furs. In the spring of the same year, they had touched upon an unknown island, probably one of the Aleütians, where several of the inhabitants were prevailed upon to pay a tribute of sea-otter skins. The names of the islanders who had been made tributary, were Igya, Oeknu, Ogogoektack, Shabukiauck, Alak, Tutun, Ononushan, Rotogèi, Tschinitu, Vatsch, Ashagat, Avyjanishaga, Unashayupu, Lak, Yanshugalik, Umgalikan, Shati, Kyipago, and Oloshkot[33]; another Aleütian had contributed three sea-otters. They brought with them 320 best sea-otter skins, 480 of the second, and 400 of the third sort, 500 female and middle aged, and 220 medwedki or young ones.

      Voyage of Andrew Tolstyk to the Aleütian Isles, 1749.

      Andrew Tolstyk, a merchant of Selenginsk, having obtained permission from the chancery of Bolsheretsk, refitted the same ship which had made a former voyage; he sailed from Kamtchatka August the 19th, 1749, and returned July the 3d, 1752.

      According to the commander's account, the ship lay at anchor from the 6th of September, 1749, to the 20th of May, 1750, before Beering's Island, where they caught only 47 sea-otters. From thence they made to those Aleütian Islands, which were[34] first discovered by Nevodsikoff, and slew there 1662 old and middle-aged sea-otters, and 119 cubs; besides which, their cargo consisted of the skins of 720 blue foxes, and of 840 young sea-bears.

      The inhabitants of these islands appeared to have never before paid tribute; and seemed to be a-kin to the Tschuktski tribe, their women being ornamented with different figures sewed into the skin in the manner of that people, and of the Tungusians of Siberia. They differed however from them, by having two small holes cut through the bottom of their under-lips, through each of which they pass a bit of the sea-horse tush, worked into the form of a tooth, with a small button at one end to keep it within the mouth when it is placed in the hole. They had killed, without being provoked, two of the Kamtchadals who belonged to the ship. Upon the third Island some inhabitants had payed tribute; their names were reported to be Anitin, Altakukor, and Aleshkut, with his son Atschelap. The weapons of the whole island consisted of no more than twelve spears pointed with flint, and one dart of bone pointed with the same; and the Russians observed in the possession of the natives two figures, carved out of wood, resembling sea-lions.

      

      Voyage of Vorobieff, 1750.

      August 3, 1750, the vessel Simeon and John, fitted out by the above-mentioned Wsevidoff, agent for the Russian merchant A. Rybenskoi, and manned with fourteen Russians (who were partly merchants and partly hunters) and thirty Kamtchadals, sailed out for the discovery of new islands, under the command of the Cossac Vorobieff. They were driven by a violent current and tempestuous weather to a small desert island, whose position is not determined; but which was probably one of those that lie near Beering's Island. The ship being so shattered by the storm, that it was no longer in a condition to keep the sea, Vorobieff built another small vessel with drift-wood, which he called Jeremiah; in which he arrived at Kamtchatka in Autumn, 1752.

      Upon the above-mentioned island were caught 700 old and 120 cub sea-otters, 1900 blue foxes, 5700 black sea-bears, and 1310 Kotiki, or cub sea-bears.

      A voyage made about this time from Anadyrsk deserves to be mentioned.

      Voyage of Novikoff and Bacchoff from Anadyrsk.

      August 24, 1749, Simeon Novikoff of Yakutsk, and Ivan Bacchoff of Ustyug, agents for Ivan Shilkin, sailed from Anadyrsk into the mouth of the Kamtchatka river. They assigned the insecurity of the roads as their reason for coming from Anadyrsk to Kamtchatka by sea; on this account, having determined to risk all the dangers of a sea voyage, they built a vessel one hundred and thirty versts above Anadyr, after having employed two years and five months in its construction.

      Narrative of te Voyage.

      The narrative of their expedition is as follows. In 1748, they sailed down the river Anadyr, and through two bays, called Kopeikina and Onemenskaya, where they found many sand banks, but passed round them without difficulty. From thence they steered into the exterior gulph, and waited for a favourable wind. Here they saw several Tschutski, who appeared upon the heights singly and not in bodies, as if to reconnoitre; which made them cautious. They had descended the river and its bays in nine days. In passing the large opening of the exterior bay, they steered between the beach, that lies to the left, and a rock near it; where, at about an hundred and twenty yards from the rock, the depth of water is from three to four fathoms. From the opening they steered E. S. E. about fifty versts, in about four fathom water; then doubled a sandy point, which runs out directly against the Tshuktshi coast, and thus reached the open sea.

      From the 10th of July to the 30th, they were driven about by tempestuous winds, at no great distance from the mouth of the Anadyr; and ran up the small river Katirka, upon whose banks dwell the Koriacs, a people tributary to Russia. The mouth of the river is from sixty to eighty yards broad, from three to four fathoms deep, and abounds in fish. From thence they put again to sea, and after having beat about for some time, they at length reached Beering's Island. |Shipwreck upon Beering's Island.| Here they lay at anchor from the 15th of September to the 30th of October, when a violent storm blowing right from the sea, drove the vessel upon the rocks, and dashed her to pieces. The crew however were saved: and now they looked out for the remains of Beering's wreck, in order to employ the materials for the constructing of a boat. They found indeed some remaining materials, but almost entirely rotten, and the iron-work corroded with rust. Having selected however the best cables, and what iron-work was immediately necessary, and collected drift-wood during the winter, they built with great difficulty a small boat, whose keel was only seventeen Russian ells and an half long, and which they named Capiton. In this they put to sea, and sailed in search of an unknown island, which they thought they saw lying North-east; but finding themselves mistaken, they tacked about, and stood far Copper Island: from thence they sailed to Kamtchatka, where they arrived at the time above-mentioned.

      The new constructed vessel was granted in property to Ivan Shilkin as some compensation for his losses, and with the privilege of employing it in a future expedition to the New Discovered Islands. Accordingly he sailed therein on the 7th of October, 1757, with a crew of twenty Russians, and the same number of Kamtchadals: he was accompanied by Studentzoff a Cossac, who was sent to collect the tribute for the crown. An account of this expedition will be given hereafter[35].

      Voyage of Durneff, in the St. Nicholas, 1754.

      August, 1754, Nikiphor Trapesnikoff fitted out the Shitik St. Nicholas, which sailed from Kamtchatka under the command of the Cossac Kodion Durneff. He first touched at two of the Aleütian Isles, and afterwards upon a third, which had not been yet discovered. He returned to Kamtchatka in 1747. His cargo consisted of the skins of 1220 sea-otters, of 410 female, and 665 cubs; besides which, the crew had obtained in barter from the islanders the skins of 652 sea-otters, of 30 female ditto, and 50 cubs.

      Narrative of the Voyage.

      From an account delivered in the 3d of May, 1758, by Durneff and Sheffyrin, who was sent as collector of the tributes, it appears that they sailed in ten days as far as Ataku, one of the Aleütian Islands; that they remained there until the year 1757, and lived upon amicable terms with the natives.

      Description of the Aleütian Isles.

      The second island, which is nearest to Ataku, and which contains the greatest number of inhabitants, is called Agataku; and the third Shemya: they lie from forty to fifty versts asunder. |Account of inhabitants.| Upon all the three islands there are (exclusive of children) but sixty males, whom they made tributary. The inhabitants СКАЧАТЬ