DOMESTIC REINDEER INTO ALASKA. 29 



The first Kusso-Greek priest arrived at the new settlement in 1816. 

 Before the transfer to the United States, the Kusso-Greek Church had 

 a resident bishop with 15 priests, deacons, and followers; also a cathe- 

 dral, church, and Episcopal residence. The Lutheran Church had its 

 minister and church building, both the Greek and Lutheran churches 

 being sustained by the imperial treasury. 



With the American occupation, a great change came over the scene. 

 Shipbuilding ceased, and the shipyard was filled up to make a parade 

 ground for American soldiers. Manufactories, foundries, and all other 

 industries were closed, only two sawmills and a beer brewery remain- 

 ing. The skilled mechanics and Eussians largely returned to Siberia. 

 The bishopric and theological seminary were removed to San Francisco. 

 The books of the public library were "lost, strayed, or stolen ; " no trace 

 of them now remains. Three of the large Russian buildings, includ- 

 ing the castle and hospital, have been destroyed by fire. The Lutheran 

 church, condemned as unsafe, has been torn down. The clubhouse, 

 too, has been adjudged unsafe, and, with some of the warehouses and 

 other buildings, will have to be torn down. The civilized, industrious 

 population of several thousand has dwindled down to several hundred, 

 and where thousands earned a living by their trades, the few hundred 

 that remain are largely dependeut, directly or indirectly, upon the 

 salaries of the Government officials and the summer patronage of 

 curio-buying tourists. 



For a short time after the transfer Sitka had a boom, as wide-awake 

 speculators rushed in, anticipating the creation of a large city. A 

 region several miles square, reaching from the sea to the tops of the 

 mountains, was mapped on paper into streets, parks, and city lots. A 

 municipal government was organized, with a mayor and common coun- 

 cil. A newspaper, the Sitka Times, was started and published weekly 

 for eighteen months. But the enterprising speculators, failing to real- 

 ize their hopes, one after another returned south, and the withdrawal 

 of the troops in 1877 seemed to complete the decline of Sitka. The 

 census of 1880 revealed the presence of but 157 Americans and 219 

 Creoles in the deserted city. The same census, however, showed a 

 native Thling-get population of 540. 



The Thling-get village of Sitka is about as large to-day as in Russian 

 times, and in much better condition. Largely under the influence and 

 teaching of the mission and school maintained among them since 1880 

 by the Home Missionary Society and the Woman's Executive Com- 

 mittee of Home Missions — both of the Presbyterian Church — the 

 Thling-gets have made considerable advance in civilization. The old 

 damp, dark, and smoky native buildings with their bark roofs are giv- 

 ing place to modern buildings with windows, doors, wooden floors, chim- 

 neys, and shingle roofs. Stoves are taking the place of a fire on the 

 floor in the center of the room; chairs, tables, dishes, and bedsteads 

 are becoming common. And on Sundays the crowds that wend their 



