LANDING ON BERING ISLAND 135 



idea originating from Bering's first expedition was too deeply- 

 rooted, that there could exist no island so near Kamchatka, 

 especially in this latitude where the sea was said to have been 

 explored for fifty miles from land.^^^ 



Accordingly they went, without further concern, straight 

 towards the land into the bay. When towards four o'clock in the 

 evening we were so near land that it appeared to be scarcely a 

 mile away from us, and for three hours no officer had shown 

 himself on deck, as was usual on all dangerous occasions, and all 

 were gently and sweetly sleeping, I went to the Captain Com- 

 mander and begged that he might order that at least one of the 

 ofificers should remain at his watch,307 since it looked as though 

 they were intending to run ashore without further precaution. 

 Both ofificers were indeed ordered on deck, but they evinced no 

 further concern than to order the course to be held straight for 

 land. When towards sundown we had arrived within two versts 

 of shore, they began to heave the lead and advanced about 

 another verst, where at last they anchored in nine fathoms. It 

 was now already night but very light on account of the moon, 

 and after the lapse of half an hour such a heavy surf, or bunm, 

 began to run at this place that the ship was tossed about like a 

 ball and threatened to strike against the bottom. It also snapped 

 the anchor cable, so that we expected nothing short of being 

 wrecked. The confusion became still greater by the constant 

 breaking of the waves, the shouting and the wailing, so that no 

 one an\- longer knew who should give or who should take orders. 

 All that the ofificers, terrified and seized with the fear of death, 

 did was to shout that the [cable of the] second anchor be cut 

 and a new [anchor] thrown over into the bunm. When they had 



306 Instead of "from land" the MS reads "to the east." On this sally, 

 made during the first expedition, see, above, footnote 223. In the earlier 

 passage of the journal (p, 100) it was said that no land was found within 

 thirty miles of Kamchatka. Possibly these somewhat divergent figures 

 may be due to a misreading by the copyist of the figure 30 as 50. 



307 In the MS the following clause is here inserted: "in order to decide 

 on the place to anchor." 



