1779- THE PACIFIC OCEAN. SSJ 



there are about fourteen vessels employed by the 

 merchants in the fur trade, amongst the islands to 

 the eastward. One of these we found frozen up in 

 the harbour of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which was 

 to sail on a trading voyage to Oonalashka, as soon as 

 the season would permit. 



It is here to be observed, that the most consider- 

 able and valuable part of the fur-trade is carried on 

 with the islands that lie between Kamtschatka and 

 America. These were first discovered by Beering, 

 in 174*1, and being found to abound with sea-otters, 

 the Russian merchants became exceedingly eager in 

 searching for the other islands seen by that navigator, 

 to the south-east of Kamtschatka, called, in Muller's 

 map, the Islands of Seduction, St. Abraham, &c. 

 In these expeditions they fell in with three groups of 

 islands. The first, about iWteen degrees to the east 

 of Kamtschatka, in 53° N. latitude ; the second, 

 about twelve degrees to the eastward of the former ; 

 and the third, Oonalashka, and the islands in its 

 neighbourhood. These trading adventurers advanced 

 also as far east as Shumagin's Islands (so called by 

 Beering), the largest of which is named Kodlak. But 

 here, as well as on the continent at Alaska, they met 

 with so warm a reception, in their attempts to 

 compel the payment of a tribute, that they never 

 afterward ventured so far. However, they con- 

 quered and made tributary the three groups before 

 'mentioned. 



In the Russian charts, the whole sea between 

 Kamtschatka and America is covered with islands ; 

 for the adventurers in these expeditions frequently 

 falling in with land, which they imagined did not 

 agree with the situation of other laid down by pre- 

 ceding voyagers, immediately concluded it must be 

 a new discovery, and reported it as such on their 

 return ; and since the vessels employed in these ex- 

 peditions were usually out three or four years, and 

 oftentimes longer, these mistakes were not in the 



VOL. VII. z 



