LOSS OF THE ST. PETER. 285 
of the ship. Beside this, the weather was almost always foggy, " 
so that they were sometimes two or three weeks without see- 
ing- either sun or stars, and consequently without being- able 
to take the altitude or correct their reckoning. It is easy to 
conceive the inquietude which they must have experienced, 
wandering in such uncertainty in an unknown sea. " I know 
not (says one of the officers) if there be a situation in the 
world more disagreeable than that of navigating an unknown 
sea. I speak from experience, and I can say with truth, that 
during the five months of our -voyage I had very few hours of 
tranquil sleep, being incessantly involved in danger and anx- 
iety in regions heretofore unknown." 
The crew struggled with contrary winds and tempests till 
the 24th of September, when they again came in sight of the 
land. To one of the lofty mountains which were discovered 
upon it, they gave the name of St. John the Baptist. A brisk 
gale from the south rendering it dangerous for them to remain 
near the coast, they resolved to keep the ship to the wind, 
which soon turned to the west, increased to a violent storm, 
and drove the vessel very far to the S. W. This tempest con- 
tinued seventeen days without intermission, and was so furi- 
ous, that Andrew Hesselberg, the pilot, acknowledged that, 
during the forty years in which he had served at sea, in va- 
rious parts of the world, he had never seen any thing equal 
to it. They shortened sail as much as possible, that they might 
not be carried too far ; but, notwithstanding this precaution, 
they lost much way till the 12th of October, when the tem- 
pest abated. 
The disease which already prevailed among the crew be- 
came worse, and the scurvy extended its ravages more and 
more. A day seldom passed without a death, and scarcely 
men enough were left in health to navigate the vessel. In 
this melancholy situation they were undecided whether to re- 
turn to Kamtschatka, or to seek some port in which they 
might winter on the American coast. The lateness of the sea- 
son, the want of fresh water, and the great distance from Pe- 
tropawlowska, appeared to render the latter measure indis- 
pensable. In a council held on board, it was, however, re- 
solved to attempt the former. A favorable wind springing up, 
they set sail, steering to the north at first, and after the 15th 
of October to the west. They passed an island to which 
they gave the name of St. Macarius, and on the 29th and 
30th of October they came in sight of two others, which by 
their situation, size, and figure, they took to be the two first 
