6 OUR ARCTIC PROVINCE. 



This Imperial impetus undoubtedly was the spur wliich caused 

 most of that cruel domination of the Russians over a simple people 

 whom they found at first in possession of their new fur-bearing 

 land ; the thrifty traders managed to do their business with an ex- 

 ceedingly small stock of goods, and, where no opposition was offered, 

 these unscrupulous commercial travellers ordered the natives out 

 to hunt and turn over all their booty, not even condescending to 

 pay them, except a few beads or strips of tobacco, " in return for 

 their good behavior and submission to the crown ! " Naturally 

 enough, the treacherous Koloshes of Sitka, the dogged Kadiakers, 

 the vivacious Eskimo or Innuits, and even the docile Aleutes, 

 would every now and then arise and slaughter in their rage and 

 despair a whole trading post or ship's crew of Russians ; but these 

 outbreaks were not of preconcerted plan or strength, and never 

 seriously interrupted the iron rule of Slavonian oppression. 



The rapidly increasing number of competitors in the fur trade, 

 however, soon began to create a scarcity of the raw material, and 

 then the jealousies and rivalries of the trading companies began in 

 turn to vent themselves in armed struggles against each other for 

 possession and gain. This order of affairs quickly threw the whole 

 region into a reign of anarchy which threatened to destroy the very 

 existence of the Russians themselves. Facing this deplorable con- 

 dition, one of the leading promoters of the fur-trading industry in 

 Alaska saw that, unless a bold man was placed at the head of the 

 conduct of his business, it would soon be ruined. This man he 

 picked out at Kargopol, Siberia, and on August 18, 1790, he con- 

 cluded a contract with Alexander Baranov, who sailed that day 

 from the Okotsk, and who finally established that enduring basis 

 of trade and Russian domination in Alaska which held till our pur- 

 chase in 1867 of all its vested rights and title. 



The wild savage life which the Russians led in these early days 

 of their possession of this new land — their bitter personal antago- 

 nisms and their brutal orgies — actually beggar description, and 

 seem well-nigh incredible to the trader or traveller who sojourns in 

 Alaska to-day. It is commonly regarded as a rude order of exist- 

 ence up there among ourselves now ; and when we come to think 

 back, and contrast the stormy past with the calm present, it is diffi- 

 cult to comprehend it ; yet it is not so strange if it be remem- 

 bered that they were pi-actically beyond all reach of authority, and 

 lived for many consecutive years in absolute non-restraint. 



