32 OUR ARCTIC PROVINCE. 



yet the journey to its crest is one that taxes the best physical ener- 

 gies of strong men. The forest is so dense, so damp, the under- 

 brush so thick and so tangled, that the walk requires a supreme 

 bodily effort, if the trip be made up there and back in the same day. 



This view from " Yahponskie " gives an exceedingly good idea of 

 the ultra-mountainous character of Baranov Island, much better 

 than any power of verbal description can. It also illustrates the 

 futility of land travel in the Sitkan archipelago, and affords ample 

 reason for the utter absence of all roads, even footpaths, in that en- 

 tire region ; it also preserves the somewhat imposing front which 

 the extensive warehouses and official quarters of the Russian Ameri- 

 can Company presented in 1866, before their transfer to us, and 

 the ravages of fire and that decay which has since well-nigh de- 

 stroyed them ; it recalls the shipyards and the brass and iron foun- 

 dries and machine-shops that have not even a vestige of their ex- 

 istence on that ground to-day, and it outlines a larger Indian village 

 than the one we find there now. 



For the objects of self -protection and comfort the Russians 

 built large apartment-houses or flats, and lived in them at Sitka. 

 Several of these dwellings were 150 feet in length by 50 to 80 

 feet in depth, three stories high, with huge roof-attics. They 

 were constructed of big spruce logs, smoothly trimmed down 

 to 12' x 12' timbers. These were snugly dovetailed at the corners, 

 and the expansive roof covered with sheet-iron. The exteriors 

 were painted a faint lemon-yellow, while the iron roof everywhere 

 glistened with red-ochre. The windows were uniformly small, but 

 fitted very neatly in tasteful casemates, and usually with double 

 sashes. Within, the floors were laid of whipsawed planks, tongued 

 and grooved by hand and highly polished. The inner walls were 

 " ceiled " up on all sides and overhead by light boards, and usually 

 papered showily. The heavy, unique Russian furniture was moved 

 in upon rugs of fur and tapestry, and then these people bade defi- 

 ance to the elements, no matter how unruly, and led therein the 

 most enjoyable of physical lives. The united testimony of all trav- 

 ellers, who were many, and who shared the hospitality of the Rus- 

 sians at Sitka, is one invariable tribute to the excellence and the 

 comfort of their indoor living at New Archangel. 



The shipyard of Sitka was as complete as any similar establish- 

 ment in the Russian Empire. It was actively employed in boat and 

 sail-vessel building, being provided with all sorts of workshops and 



