Account of a Voyage to Spltjla-gen. 149 



tarred, and perfectly tight. This is the manner of building 

 houfes in the country in Ruffia, particularly about Archangel. 



The furgeon gave me the following account of this Ruflian 

 colony in Smeerenburg's Harbour; 



Some aflbciated merchants at Archangel fit out a crabbla, 

 or vellel, every year, of about 100 tons, with a commander, 

 mate, furgeon, boatfwain, carpenter, cook, and about fifteen 

 hands, well provided with mufkcts, powder and fliot, good 

 large knives, and all kinds of utenlils for killing whales, 

 unicorns, rein-deer, bears, and foxes. 



With a fufficient ftock of rye-flour, brandy, clothing, 

 iixow (hoes, deal boards, carpenters tools, &:c. this \'eirel 

 fails every year in the month of May from Archangel, goes 

 round the North Cape of Norway, and arrives in June or 

 July at Smeerenburg's Harbour, where the new colony is left 

 on Ihore. The veflcl iiays two or three weeks in the har- 

 bour to refit, and carries the oM colony with their cargo 

 {confiding of whales' blubber, blades or fo called whalebone, 

 white bear fkins, white fox iKins, eiderdown and feathers, 

 unicorns' trunks, which is an ivory that never turns yellow, 

 and fmoked rein-deers' tongues,) home to Archangel. The 

 colonics have no wages, but receive thoufandth iliares for 

 what they bring home : the captain has filly fliares, the mattj 

 and furgeon thirty each ; the carpenter, boatfwain, and coolc, 

 ten each ; and each common man or boy has one fhare. The 

 furgeon told me that tb.e captain had above 1000 rubles due 

 to liim, and he himfclf about 600, and each common man 

 perhaps 50 or $0 : that when they returned fafe home, tlie 

 common men would be able to live a, whole year upon tlieir 

 money, and the ofiicers much longer, as the necelfaries of 

 life were very cheap at Archangel; and for the Company it 

 had hitherto anfwered extremely well. 



J{e told me this was his fecond trip, fo well had it an- 

 fwered his cxpeSations. *' During the fo called long nights," 

 iaid lie, " it feldom or never is fo dark that you cannot fee 

 tt'forc you, nor is it fo ihcadfully cold as it is at Peterlburg 

 L 3 e\ cry 



