110 THE FISHERIES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



these animals are killed yearly on this and the neighboring Copper island ; those are the animals from which is 

 obtained the brown, silky, soft seal-skin, which of late has become so fashionable. In order to watch over the 

 interest of the Russian government and to maintain order, there are also a few Eussian officers stationed here. 



SKETCH OP THE VILLAGE. A half dozen convenient wooden houses are here erected, used for warehouses and 

 stores, also for the use of servants of the Russian government and of the company. The natives live partly in 

 adobe houses, quite roomy and not unpleasant inside; partly in small wooden houses which the company are 

 gradually endeavoring to introduce, instead of turf houses, by yearly importing and giving away a few such houses 

 to the most deserving ones of the inhabitants. A church for Greek-Catholic service is also there, and a roomy school- 

 house intended for children of the Aleutians. Unfortunately, the school was now closed, but to judge from the 

 copy-books which were lying around in the school-room, the teaching here is not to be despised. At least the writing 

 proofs were conspicuous for their cleanliness, absence of school blots, and an exceedingly even and beautiful 

 handwriting. At the "colony" the houses are collected in one place in a village, which, from the sea, has the 

 appearance somewhat of a small Norwegian fisherman village. Beside these, a few scattered houses are to be found 

 here and there on other parts of the island, as, for instance, on the northeast side, where cultivation of potatoes is 

 carried on on a small scale, at the hunting- place on the north side, where a couple of large warehouses and a number 

 of very small underground houses are to be found, and are used only during the killing-season. 



DISCOVERY OP THE ISLAND. Geographically, as well as in regard to natural history, Bering. island is one of 

 the most curious islands in the northern part of the Pacific ocean. It was here where Bering, after his last 

 disastrous voyage in this sea, which now bears his name, on the 19th of December, 1741, finished his long career as a 

 discoverer, shortly after his ship, during a storm, crushed against the cliffs on the north coast of the island. Many 

 of his fellow-travelers survived him, among them the learned naturalist Steller, who left a masterly description, 

 seldom, equaled, of the natural history of this island, where he involuntarily spent his time from the middle of 

 November, 1741, to the end of August, 1742. 



As far as is known, Bering island had never before been visited by man. It was the desire to obtain for our 

 museums the skins and skeletons of the many curious marniniferous animals existing here, as also to compare the 

 present condition of the island, since it has nearly a century and a half been mercilessly exposed to hunting and the 

 cupidity of mankind, with the vivacious and striking description left by Steller, which prompted me to put down 

 on our traveling plan a visit to the island. The news I gathered on Bering island from American papers, about the 

 uneasiness which our wintering in the Arctic had created in Europe, really prevented me from remaining here as 

 long as I should have wished; but, nevertheless, our collections and observations are exceedingly valuable. 



CHANGES SINCE STELLEB'S TIME. Since the time of Steller, the animal life has undergone a considerable 

 change on the island. Foxes (or, more correctly, "fjellrackor", Swedish) existed then in unusual numbers. Not 

 alone did they eat up everything that could be eaten at all which was left outside, but they forced themselves in the 

 houses during the day as well as night, and carried away anything they could, even articles that could be of no 

 use to them, such as knives, sticks, sacks, shoes, and socks. It became necessary, when doing certain things out of 

 doors, to drive them away with sticks, and at last they became through the slyness and cunning with which they 

 managed to consummate their thieving, and the cleverness with which they combined their efforts to attain objects 

 .which they- alone could not accomplish really dangerous, mischief-making animals for the castaways. Since then 

 thousands upon thousands have been taken here by fur-hunters. Now they are so rare that duiiug our stay here 

 we did not see a single animal. The remaining ones are said not to have the formerly so commonly-seen black- 

 blue coat, but the white, which is not very costly. On the neighboring Copper island there are still considerable 

 numbers of black blue foxes. 



Steller and his fellow-travelers killed here in 1741-'42, seven hundred sea-otters. This animal, known for its 

 very costly and fine fur, is now entirely driven from Bering island. 



Of sea-lions, Otaria Stelleri, which were formerly very numerous, but few now visit this place; also sea-bears, 

 Otaria ursina, and finally, the most curious of all the former mammalia on Bering island, the great sea-cow, is 

 now altogether extinct. 



MARINE "NEAT CATTLE". Steller's sea-cow, Bhytina Stelleri, took the place, in a certain way, of the hoofed 

 animal among the sea-mammalia. It was of a nut-brown color and covered with hair which had grown together 

 into an outer hide, much like the bark of an old oak tree. Its length was, according to Steller, even to 35 feet, and 

 its weight almost five hundred hundred weight. The head was large, neck short, hardly distinguishable, forepart 

 of body very thick, but suddenly narrowing backward. It had two short fore-legs, which terminated abruptly 

 without any fingers or nails, but with close-gathered bristle hair; hind-legs were missing altogether and replaced by 

 a tail-fin, something like the whale. Teats, which were very rich in milk with the females, had their places between 

 the forelegs. The flesh and milk resembled very much that of neat-cattle ; it was even better than the latter, 

 according to Steller. 



" 8c;i-bcars" of Bering island, often occurs sadly to my mind in this connection ; for, undoubtedly, had he lived then to have reached St. 

 Petersburg, whither he was bonnd, he would have enlarged and polished these items, which now appear in the Proceedings of tJie 

 Imperial Academy, 1751, just as he had roughly drafted them in the field, May and June, 1742. This revision of his field jottings would 

 have undoubtedly supplied many links now missing to the disconnected history of the seal-life on the Commander islands, as it presents 

 itsel/to us at this late day. H. W. E. 



