FUEL' — PEAT. 47 



add to the fresh-meat supply, and at the same time promote the rapid increase of the 

 herd. In 1896 15 reindeer were killed for food, sex not stated. 



It is not improbable that the reindeer might do well on Copper Island, in spite of 

 the smaller size of the island, but I am inclined to the belief that the introduction of 

 a suitable, hardy race of goats would be a better investment. 



A few hens and tame ducks are kept in the villages on both islands, but on 

 Bering Island they are not doing' well on account of the dogs. 



A glance at the meteorological tables, pages 22-26, will show that any agricul- 

 ture, in the proper sense of the word, is out of the question. On Bering Island there 

 is a halfhearted, half- successful attempt at raising a few vegetables. Formerly most of 

 the qative families had "gardens" at Staraya Gavan, where turnips and potatoes were 

 raised with varying success. The place was entirely too far from the main village, 

 however, and new gardens have been started at Fedoskia, on the west coast, a few 

 miles south of Nikolski. In 1895 there was only one man who still had a vegetable 

 patch at Staraya Gavan. I believe that this industry could be made more successful 

 if the natives were taught proper methods. One common error now committed is that 

 .all the vegetables are planted entirely too close together. It would also be necessary 

 to look out for hardy plant seeds and seed potatoes raised in a northern climate. 



The fuel used by the natives consists of coal and birch wood, the latter brought 

 from Kamchatka and sold by the company, and of driftwood collected by the natives 

 along the beaches. The latter article is very uncertain and is now often very scarce, 

 though formerly abundant enough. Coal, on account of the long transportation, is 

 expensive, and, like the birch wood, requires cash to purchase it. A couple of ship- 

 loads of the latter are required every year, and while the supply in Kamchatka is 

 almost limitless at the present time, yet it is not so accessible now at places where 

 there are people to cut it and where it can be loaded into a vessel. With the 

 decreasing number of seals affecting the revenues both of the natives and of the 

 company, the day does not seem distant when the former will be unable to buy, while 

 the latter may find it unprofitable to have a steamer constantly plying between the 

 islands and Kamchatka. Knowing, moreover, that the fuel question was a grave one 

 on the other Aleutian "Islands and that peat bogs may be expected to be found on 

 many of the latter, as they occur on Bering Island, I undertook, in 1883, to investigate 

 them, and to bring samples of peat home for analysis. East of Nikolski, behind the 

 shell^ering hills and sand dunes, a large swamp extends back to the foot of the three 

 Saranna Baidar Mountains, covering several square miles. In suitable localities large 

 beds of peat of excellent quality are found. On June 16, 1883,- 1 had a couple of men 

 cut about 350 pieces of peat from near the surface. The pieces, averaging about 2 

 by 16 by 8 inches, were spread out on a hillside to drain, and ten days later they 

 were stacked in pyramids in such a manner that the Intervals between the pieces gave 

 the air uninterrupted circulation between them. 



When leaving the island in the autumn, I found the pieces of good consistency 

 and took a fair quantity with me to have the properties of the peat tested. They 

 were turned over to Dr. Fred. P. Dewey, then curator of metallurgy at the United 

 States National Museum, who kindly furnished me with a report of his analysis of 

 the peat, which he found of good quality. It should be observed that the peat was 

 from the surface, and therefore not nearly so good as it would have been if it had been 

 taken deeper down. Dr. Dewey's report has never been printed, arid, in view of the 



