K A M T S C H A T K A. 697 
ftf. Sauer, wlio accompanied commodore Billings on a 
voyage of difcovery, by command of the late emprefs of 
Ruftia. “On the nth of Augbft, 1791, in the harbour 
of St. Peter and St. Paul, I obferved a number of fwallows 
flying about, apparently much frightened. They were 
red-breafted, a fpecies never remembered to have been feen 
here; and the inhabitants immediately predicted fome re¬ 
markable event. The next morning about five o’clock, 
vre were alarmed by a violent Ihock of an earthquake, 
preceded by a rumbling noife, little fhort of thunder. 
The motion of the earth was undulatory for nearly the 
fpace of a minute. I was dreffing myfelf, and was thrown 
down, which induced me to get out of the houfe as quickly 
as pofiible. The water in the bay was agitated like a 
boiling cauldron. The Ihock came from the north-eaft, 
and appeared to me to continue upwards of two minutes; 
but other gentlemen were of opinion that it did not fall 
more than one. A failor, one of the watchmen on-board 
the Ihip, was thrown out of his hammock. At Para- 
tounca it was more violent ; the earth opened in many 
places, and water and fand were thrown up to a confider- 
abie height; all the buildings in the village were more or 
lefs damaged ; one balagan was thrown down; fome-of 
the ovens (the only brick-work about the buildings) were 
alfo lhaken in.; and all the paintings, &c. in the church, 
except captain Clerke’s efcutcheon, were thrown from 
their faftenings. At Niznei Kamtfchatka the inhabitants 
were extremely terrified ; nor could they explain whether 
the noife or the (hock preceded. The fituation of the town 
is on a neck of land formed by the difcharge of the Ra- 
duga, a conliderable river, into the Kamtfchatka; the bed 
of the former was dry, and the inhabitants ran acrofs 
it towards the mountains. They, as well as the cattle, 
were thrown down; and the continuance of the trembling 
was, according to their account, near an hour; the earth 
opened in many places, and funk conliderably in fome. The 
volcano Klutflieflkoi emitted a vail column of black l’moke; 
a noife like thunder feemed to iffue from the bowels of 
the earth ; the bells of the two churches rang violently ; 
and the howling of the dogs, and fcreams of the people, 
furpafled all description, for the latter expected every mo¬ 
ment to fee the complete deftru< 5 lion of the town. But, 
when the Ihock was over, the loll water of the river re¬ 
fumed its former channel, and the inhabitants returned to 
their dwellings. Not a fingle brick chimney or oven 
was left Handing. The altar of one of the churches was 
feparated from it about a foot, inclining a contrary way; 
and the greater part of the balagans were thrown down. 
It is remarkable, that the inhabitants of the village at the 
foot of the burning mountain only heard the noife, and 
did not feel the Ihock ; nor did it crofs the mountains to 
the wellern Ihores of the peninfula.” 
We now return to the narrative of captain King. “ Of 
the trees which fell under our notice, the principal are 
the birch, the poplar, the elder, (with the bark of which 
they Itain their leather,) many fpecies of the willow, but 
all fmall, and two forts of dwqrfifh pines or cedar; one of 
thefe grows upoli the coaft, creeping along the ground, 
and feldom exceeds two feet in height. It was of this 
fort we made our effence for beer, and found it excellent 
for the purpofe. The birch was by far the molt common 
tree we faw; and of this we remarked three forts; two of 
them fit for timber, and differing only in the texture and co¬ 
lour of tliebark; the third, of a dwarfifh kind. Of the fhrub 
kind, as bark, juniper, the mountain-afli, wild rofe-trees, 
.and rafpberry-bufhes, the country produces great abun¬ 
dance; together with a variety of berries; blue-berries of 
two forts, round and oval, partridge-berries, cranberries, 
crowberries, and black-berries. Thefe the natives gather 
at proper feafons, and preferve by boiling them into a 
thick jam, without fugar; they make no iriconfiderable 
part of their winter provifions, and are ufed as fauce to 
their dried and fait fifh ; of which kind of food they are 
unqueflionably excellent correftives. They likewife eat 
them by themfelves, in puddings, and various other ways, 
Vox.. XI. No. 779. 
and make decodtions of them for their ordinary liquor. 
We met with leveral whoiefoine vegetables in a wild Hate, 
and in great quantities, fuch as wild celery, angelica, 
chervil, garlic, and onions. Upon fome few' patches of 
ground, in the valleys, we found excellent turnips and 
turnip-radifhes. There are two plants, which, from the 
great ule made of them, merit a particular mention. The 
firll is called by the natives the fararme. The plant grows 
wild, and in conliderable abundance; the women are em¬ 
ployed in colledling the.roots, which are of the bulbous 
kind, at the beginning of Auguft, which are afterwards 
dried in the fun, and then laid up for ule. It is ufed in 
cookery in various ways. When roafted on embers, it 
fupplies the place of bread bette/than any thing the coun¬ 
try affords. After being baked in an oven, and pounded, 
it becomes an excellent fubllitute for flour and meal of 
every fort; and in this form is mixed in all their foups, 
and moil of their other difhes. It is efteemed extremely 
nourishing ; has a pleafant bitter tafte, and may be eaten 
every day without cloying. We ufed to boil thefe roots, 
and eat them as potatoes, either alone, or with our meat, 
and found them ve’ry wholefome and pleafant. The other 
plant alluded to is called the fwect-grafs. This plant was 
formerly a principal ingredient in the cookery of mod of 
the Kamtfchadale difhes; but, fince the Ruffians got pof- 
feflion of the country, it has been almolt entirely appro¬ 
priated to the purpofe of diflillation. The liquor is of the 
ilrength of brandy, and is called by the natives raka . 
Two pood (feventy-two pounds) of the plant yield gene¬ 
rally one vedro (twenty-five pints) of raka. The nettle, 
as the country produces neither hemp nor flax, fupplies 
the materials of which are made their fifhing-nets ; and 
without which they could not poffibly fubfill. For this 
purpofe they cut it down in Auguft; and, after hanging 
it up in bundles in the fhade, under their bailagans, the 
remainder of the fummer, treat it like hemp. They then 
fpin it into thread with their fingers, and twill it round a 
fpindle, after which they twine leveral threads together, 
according to the different purpofes for which it may be 
defigned. 
“ Though there is little doubt but that man}' parts of 
this peninfula would admit of fuch cultivation as might 
contribute confiderably to the comfort of the inhabitants, 
yet its real riches muff always confifl in the number of 
wild animals it produces ; and no labour can ever be turn¬ 
ed to fo good an account as what is employed upqn their 
furrieries. The animals, therefore, which fupply thefe, 
come next to be confidered ; and’ thefe are the common 
fox, the float or ermine, the fable, the arflic fox, the va¬ 
rying hare, the mountain-rat or earlefs marmot, the weafel, 
the glutton or wolverine, the argali or wild fineep, rein¬ 
deer, bears, wolves, &c. The coaft and hays are fre¬ 
quented by almoll every kind of northern fea-fo'wl; and 
amongll the reft are the fea-eagles, but not, as at Oona- 
lafka, in great numbers. The rivers inland (if I may 
judge from what I faw in our journey fo Bolcheretfk) are 
ftored with numerous flocks of wild ducks of various fpe¬ 
cies ; in the woods through which we pafted, were feen 
eagles of a prodigious fize ; this country likewife affords 
woodcocks, fnipes, and two forts of groufe or moor-game. 
Swans are alfo faid to be in great plenty. Fifh may be 
confidered as the ftaple article of food with which Provi¬ 
dence has fupplied the inhabitants of this peninfula; who, 
in general, mult never expect to draw any confiderable 
part of their fuflenance either .from grain or cattle.” 
The prefent inhabitants of Kamtfchatka are of three 
forts: the natives, or Kamtfchadales; the Ruffians and 
Ctifacs ; and a mixture of thefe two by marriage. Mr. 
Steller, who refided forr.e time in this country, and feems 
to have taken great pains to gain information on this 
l’ubjedl, is perfuaded that the true Kamtfchadaies are a 
people of great antiquity, and have for many age„s inha¬ 
bited this peninfula; and that they are originally de- 
fcended from the Mungalians, and not either from the 
Tongufian Tartars, as fome, or the Japanefe, as others, have 
7 N iiqagined. 
