2^8 AVOYAGETO 



»779; falmon, which we faw pufhing, in ercat numbers, through 



S'ptcmber. * ° ° ° 



»*— ^ — - the furf into a imall river. I could not help oblerving, how 

 much inferior our Kamtfchadales were at this method of 

 fifliing, to the people at Oonalafhka ; nor were their inftru- 

 ments, although pointed with iron, near fo good for the 

 purpofe, nor to be compared in neatnefs, to thofe of the 

 Americans, though pointed only with bone. On inquiring 

 into the reafon of this inferiority, I was informed by the 

 corporal, who had lived many years amongft the Americans, 

 that formerly the Kamtfchadales made ufe of the fame kind 

 of darts and fpears with the Americans, headed and barbed 

 with bone, and were not lefs dexterous in the management 

 of them than the latter. We could not underfland one ano- 

 ther fufliciently for me to learn the caufe of this change ; 

 probably it was one of the not unufual effects of a forced 

 and imperfect ftate of improvement. It fell out very oppor- 

 tunely, that the water afforded us a little prey ; for befides 

 our ill fuccefs in the chace by land, we had alio been difap- 

 pointed in our expectations of lliooting wild fowl, on a 

 fupply of which we had in fome meafure depended for our 

 fubfnlence ; and on its failure, began to think that we had 

 been full long abfent from head-quarters. 



Our Kamtfchadales now difcovered, that the want of fuc- 

 cefs, in not meeting with game, was owing to the party 

 being too large, and to the unavoidable noife that was the 

 confequence of it. We therefore agreed to feparate ; Iva- 

 ikin, the corporal, and myfclf, forming one party ; Captain 

 Gore, and the reft of the company, the other. 



Accordingly, after paffing the night under our tent, wc 



Sunday 19. fet out on the morning of the 19th, by different routes, 



meaning to take a circuit round the country, and meet at 



Saint 



