THE VAKIOUS EXPEDITIONS. 155 



account of the approaching autumn and the great dis- 

 tance from home, to start immediately on the return voy- 

 age to Kamchatka. That is to say, they had not then 

 made a start. Until the 11th of August, for three weeks 

 after their departure from Kayak, Bering pursued his 

 task of nautical discovery along the new coast, and it 

 would seem that he can be blamed for nothing more than 

 considering this work of the expedition more important 

 than that of the physico-geographical investigation which 

 Steller represented. This was but natural. It was merely 

 accidental that Steller accompanied Bering, and through 

 him the expedition received a modern cast, which was not 

 at all designed, and which Bering desired to make use of 

 only under favorable circumstances. We may regret his 

 haste, and we may especially regret the fact that so keen 

 and clever a naturalist as Steller did not get an opportu- 

 nity to explore the regions west of Mount St. Elias before 

 European trade and white adventurers put in an appear- 

 ance ; but it hardly seems a question of doubt whether 

 anyone for that reason has a right to make accusations 

 against the chief of the expedition. 



It was very early on the morning of July 21 that the 

 chief suddenly, and contrary to his custom, appeared on 

 deck and gave the command to weigh anchor and stand 

 out to sea. In doing this he set aside his instructions 

 from headquarters to act in accordance with the ship^s 

 council. He acted as a sovereign chief, and notwith- 

 standing the fact that both of his lieutenants thought it 

 wrong to leave the newly discovered coast without an 

 adequate supply of water, he overruled all objections 

 and informed them that he assumed all responsibility for 



