88 STELLER'S JOURNAL 



and because the boat had to be loaded with the sick, the barrels 

 were left behind on shore. 



On September i the wind was still very strong and with steady 

 rain. The day was spent in anxious deliberations as to how the 

 Master was to be brought back to the vessel and how to get away 

 from the land. If he had not gone at all or if, on not meeting 

 anybody, he had returned betimes and thereby had not delayed 

 the watering by depriving us of the yawl, we could have gotten 

 out with the fair gale and been more than a hundred miles 

 farther on our course. But on his account we all had thus to 

 remain in danger near land without being able to take advantage 

 of the fair wind, which continued for five days after. Everyone 

 grumbled because whatever that man had touched, from Okhotsk 

 on until the return voyage, had gone wrong and had brought 

 misfortune. Similarly, at Cape St. Elias, by his long and fruitless 

 absence, he was also the cause of so many casks having to remain 

 empty because of the lack of the yawl for carrying the water, 

 thereby making it necessary to approach land a second time, 

 which step he also was the first to counsel. On the whole, he was 

 observed to be very anxious to give daring advice ^^^ but when 

 facing disaster to be without decision and wits and to complain 

 and try to hide himself.* 



On September 2 we got a southeast wind, and the large boat 

 with eight men was sent ashore to bring Master Khitrov and his 

 party on board, as of necessity the yawl had to be left behind. 

 In the meantime we weighed anchor and with the southeast 

 wind moved up along land farther towards the north, in order 

 to pick up the oncoming boat more easily, and there came to 

 anchor. It rained and blew very hard all day, so that for the 

 sake of greater safety the other anchor was also thrown over. 

 But, as towards evening there suddenly blew up from the south- 



198 The MS here has in addition: "leaving the execution to others." 



* How does this agree with what Steller says about him above and 



with the character attributed to this man in the "Sammlung Russ. 



Gesch."? — P. [The work referred to is the account of the expedition by 



G. F, Muller cited in the bibUography in Vol. i, p. 359, second item.] 



