250 ALASKA. 



above the water. At AspeetsJde Point the Russians fouud a 

 stone slate which belonged to one of the first chiefs. The Rus- 

 sians also called the people living near this place "Aspeet." 



The points on the southern side of Ounalashka are not well 

 known ; they are not safe to approach, on account of reefs and 

 submerged rocks, which extend out to sea a long way, and the 

 water breaks very heavily on them and on the cliffs. 



Yegetation on Ounalashka is found everywhere, except on the 

 summits of the highest mountains and the faces of steep cliffs. 

 On the east side of the island, in Captain's Bay and part of 

 Beaver Bay, the small willow grows best, berries, mushrooms, 

 &c. 



Animals. — Foxes, mice, (brought by the Russians,) cows, and 

 rats; the latter came only in 1828, brought in the ship "Fin- 

 land," and in less than two years they increased so that they 

 got over to MaJcooshin settlement, a distance of over fifty 

 versts, in spite of high, snowy ridges and high streams between, 

 and attacks by foxes. The foxes on this island yield to the 

 hunters about 500 annually ; of these 100 are black, 250 cross, 

 and 150 red. Of the water- animals, in early times there were 

 great numbers of hair-seal, fur-seal, sea otter, and sea-lions, 

 but nowadays they come in such small numbers that from 

 them all hardly more than a hundred skins are taken per 

 annum. Sea-otters are found only on the southern side near 

 the beach, and in very small numbers, as they come from the 

 sea; sea-lions in less number and only in one place, on the 

 southern side, not far from OsofsJcie Bay, on a rock separated 

 from the beach by a narrow canal. Fur-seals used to come 

 into the bays here until the discovery of the Prybilov Islands, 

 and since then hardly a single one. 



The island was not known earlier than 1760. In 17C2 the 

 Russians, who first discovered this place, were unhappily nearly 

 exterminated, and in revenge for this the natives were nearly 

 all destroyed in 1763 by Solovayiat, and the rest in the follow- 

 ing year. 



There are only two hot springs on the island ; one on the 

 point near Makooshiu settlement has a little ruu of water and 

 is not very hot; the other near a small lake back from Indian 

 Bay, five versts from Illoulook, has a temperature of about 

 570 to 00°. 



From a lake known to and spoken of by the Aleuts, near 

 Malcrovslcol Gulf, high up in the mountains, under the cliffs on 



