i o Captain Burney on the geography of the 
than of any other people, as well on account of the greater 
facilities possessed by them for prosecuting the discovery, as 
for the superior benefit they would derive from a practicable 
navigation round their coasts to the Tartarian and Indian sea, 
should such be found. 
The memorable voyage of Semoen Deschnew and his 
companions in 1648, by which the Russians first discovered 
the sea east of Kamschatka, (for before that time the river 
Anadir was supposed to run into the Icy sea ) , is the princi- 
pal circumstance which has been admitted as proof of a com- 
plete separation of Asia and America. It is important to 
remark, that this admission is not so old as the expedition on 
which it is founded, by nearly a century ; for no certainty of 
an absolute navigation having been performed round a north- 
eastern promontory and extremity of Asia was pretended till 
after the year 1736, when it was inferred by Professor 
Muller, from some original writings found at that time in 
Siberia, concerning DescUnew's voyage. Baron de Strahlen- 
berg, who had lived many years in Siberia, and whose de- 
scription of that country is of earlier date than Muller's pub- 
lication, says of the expedition of 1648, that some Russians 
departed from the river Lena in boats towards tho east, and 
by that route discovered Kamtschatka. But it was not un- 
derstood to have been by a clear navigation round the N. E. 
of Asia; for in a description subsequently written, he says, 
“ a class of people, to whom has been given the denomination 
“ of Tartars, inhabit the north-eastern extremity of Asia, 
“ concerning which a Kossak officer, named Atlassow, re- 
“ ported, that between the Kolyma and the Anadir were two 
“ great promontories, which he affirmed could not both be 
