i:or.\.\\ <»r \ \ki I \r i;\\. \L\^k\. 



I.— FIKLD KKF'ORT. 

 Its > Ki:i>i:i:ii K I I N>iu.N 



III :i< ronlaiu'c with my roniiiiissioii and Ictti-t ••! m^i i m i i<in> lo pn) 



• «■<! tit \;ikiitat Ha\ , Alaska, and make* a (-iilliM-tion ot' tin* plants of 

 that vit-inity, I tiHik passa^'u tVoni San I'lancisro on tlit'l'oast Survey 

 NttMnitT Ilimslvr. having; pnnhasrd a catnii outfit and ImpmI a lahorer to 

 ai-t oinpany nir on tlio trip as «ook and ^tMu-ial <aiiip iMnidoyct*. Tin* 

 Ihtsshr saili'd April H», is'.»i», and on \\v\ way n<»itli touclu-d at I'rut 

 Townsi'inl. N'u'toiia, !)r|»arture Hay, Tort Simpson, and Sitka, jurivin^f 

 at Vakutat Hay May 11», after a voyajje of thiitytliree days. On the 

 nij:lit followin;; our arrival then' aros«« a heavy southeasterly wind, 

 ueom|)ani»(l l»y rain, whi«-h eontinin-d with ;cr«*at violence for five days; 



• that it was not until May _.'» that 1 was ahle toestahlish my eani[> on 

 shoir. In order to hav«' some plare snitahh* for storing; supplies and 

 « arin;,' tor specimens, I r«'nted iVom the natives a hoii^c situated in the 



nailer of their two villap'S, on Khantaak Island; the lai-y:er village 

 hein;,' on the niainhind, distant ahont a mil*-. 



The lndi:ins, o( whom almut two hundred li\i* in the xicinity of 

 N akutat Hay, belonf^ to the Thiiuket tribe and are uneivilize<l, though 

 app:irently well disposed towanl white pe«)ple who eome among them. 

 They live in rude houses ol their »»wn (on.Ntruetion, and sub>isf mostly 

 on tish, li<»th fr<>sh and Huioked, shelltish, erabs, and other marine aiii- 

 nmls, besides the tlcsh and oil of the hair seal. Seal oil seems to be 

 their st;in of lite, as it is e;iten with nearly all kinds of IimhI. both ani- 

 mal and veget:d»le. During the summer season the Imlians use large 

 <|Uantitii'S of berries, and also utilize several edible i)lants, t«) b»* men- 

 tion«'d hereafter. 



ImnuMliately on establishing my <amp I began the work of collecting, 

 though at this .swison but few plants were in tlower. I endeavoreil to 

 obtain twenty sheets of dried specinu'ns of each spe«ies, but in .some 

 <*ascs oidy a partial ^piies could be secur«Ml on account of the scarcity 

 of tlie plant. The drying p:ip»'rs were «'hanged two or three times 



\ t ly d;iy and dried by hand over a lire before they were returned to the 

 juessrs, this work being rendered necessary by the great humidity of 

 the atmosphen' and the almost thiily rains. During the >eason about 

 H» cords of wood were used in keeping up these lires, 



325 



