260 FROM kotzebue's sound 



rent and our nearness to land, rendered our situ- 

 ation still more dangerous. 



On the 30th of August, at seven o'clock in the 

 morning, the storm abated, and the weather 

 became serene. Towards noon, the wind, which 

 was fresh, changed to the N., and, at eight o'clock 

 in the evening, blew strong from the W. The 

 waves ran high, but regularly. As I supposed we 

 M^ere in the neighbourhood of St. Lawrence Island, 

 I lay to, as 1 could not depend on our ship's reckon- 

 ing, on account of the current, and might easily 

 run foul of the island. On the 31st, at four 

 o'clock in the morning, we continued our course 

 to the S. S. E., witli a moderate W. wind. The 

 horizon was covered with thick impenetrable fog j 

 and, as the determination of the eastern side of St. 

 Lawrence Island was impossible without consider- 

 able loss of time, I resolved to sail past it. It was 

 too important for me to arrive in time at Oona- 

 lashka, as I should be obliged to send from thence 

 a messenger to Kodiac, for an interpreter for the 

 next year. Such a messenger goes in a baydare, 

 for three persons, along the southern coast from 

 Alashka. It is impossible to undertake this voy- 

 age at a later season of the year ; which, even in 

 summer; may be called a hazardous undertaking, 

 as it is not seldom that these boats, or posts, as they 

 are called at Oonalashka, are lost. 



At noon we had a glimpse of the sun j and 

 found the latitude dS"" 13', longitude, by the chro- 



