392 



RUSSIAN AMERICA. — THE ESQUIMAUX. 



5 Climate. The climate is remarkably cold, and in the winter intensely ssvere. At this 

 lime wine is frozen into a solid mass, and brandy coagulated into a species of thick oil ; the 

 breath is condensed as it leaves the mouth, and, when in bed, forms on the blankets a kind of 

 hoar frost. In winter, the aurora borealis is very frequent. 



CHAPTER XLIX. RUSSIAN AMERICA. 



This country comprises the northwestern part of the American continent. It is bounded 

 N. by the Arctic Ocean, E. by the British possessions, S. by Oregon Territory and the Pa- 

 cific Ocean, and W. by the Pacific and Behring's Straits. This district is generally of a very 

 alpine and sterile character. The celebrated mountain of St. Elias, on the shore of the Pacific, 

 is probably a volcanic peak, and is calculated to be 17,850 feet above the level of the sea. *La 

 Perouse estimated the range of mountains which terminates at Cross Sound, to be upwards of 

 10,000 feet in height. The primitive mountains of granite or slate, in some places rise imme- 

 diately from the sea, and have their summits constantly covered with snow. 



The general appearance of this region is thus vividly described by Malte Brun : " Above a 

 range of hills covered with pines and birch, rise naked mountains, crowned with enormous masses 

 of ice, which often detach themselves, and roll down with a dreadful noise into the valleys be- 

 low, which they entirely fill up, or into the rivers and bays, where, remaining without melting, 

 they rise in banks of crystal. When such a mass falls, the crashing forests are torn up by the 

 roots, and scattered to a distance ; the echoes resound along the shores with the noise of thun- 

 der ; the sea rises up in foam, ships experience a violent concussion, and the afli-ighted navi- 

 gator witnesses, almost in the middle of the sea, a renewal of those terrific scenes which some- 

 times spread such devastation in alpine regions. Between the foot of these mountains and the 

 sea, there extends a strip of low land, the soil of which is almost everywhere a black and 

 marshy earth. This ground is only calculated for producing coarse though numerous mosses, 

 very short grass, vaccinias^ and some other little plants. Some of these marshes, hanging on 

 the side of the hills, retain the water like a sponge, while their verdure makes them appear like 

 solid ground ; but in attempting to pass them, the traveler sinks up to the mid-leg. Neverthe- 

 less, the pine tree acquires a great size upon these gloomy rocks. Next to the fir, the most 

 common species is that of the alder. In many places nothing is to be seen but dwarf trees and 

 shrubs. Upon no coast with which we are acquainted, have there been remarked such rapid 

 encroachments of the sea upon the land. The trunks of trees, that had been cut down by 

 European navigators, have been found and recognised, after a lapse of 10 years. These trunks 

 are found sunk in the water, with the earth which supported them." The inhabitants of the 

 districts towards the north, are Esquimaux. There are only about 1,000 Russians in the coun- 

 try, who are engaged in the fur trade with the natives. Their principal settlement is Sitka, at 

 the entrance of Norfolk Sound. There are estabhshments at Kodiac, and at Illuluk, on thj 

 island of Oonalashka. 



CHAPTER L. THE ESQUIMAUX. 



This race of people, which is spread over nearly the whole of the northern coast of America, 

 differs much in form, manners, and customs from any other tribes of the continent. They re- 

 semble more some of the natives of the north of Europe, than the American Indians. In sta- 

 ture they are below the Europeans generally. Those to the northwest of Hudson's Bay, are 

 of a larger size than those of Labrador, but all are dwarfish. Although they are diminutive, 

 they are well-formed and hardy. Their faces are round and full, their eyes small and black, 

 and their noses small, but not much flattened. Some of them seen by Parry had Roman noses, 

 but in others, the cheeks were as prominent as the nose. Their eyes are not horizontal, but 

 the lowest point is nearest the nose. Their teeth are short and regular, and, in the young, very 

 white. Their complexions are clear, and their skins smooth ; Captain Parry remarks, that in 

 this respect there is between this people and Europeans, "more shades of dirt than of any other 

 difference." Their hair is black and straight ; the men wear it long and loose, but the women, 

 who take pride in it, separate it into two portions, and tie it so that one part hangs over each 

 shoulder. Some of the men wear the beard on the upper lip and chin, and '"ut the hair on the 



