ACCOUNT OF KAY ISLANDS. 
29 
saw three islands ahead of us, one of which was called Kadjak, 
or according to Cook, Kay. It is mountainous and woody, 
standing out beyond the other contiguous islands, stretching 
in length from north-east to south-west, and having on the 
latter side a particularly remarkable mountain that declines to 
the sea, with a steep declivity, which is so white, as to be 
hardly distinguishable from snow. On the southern side only 
it appears so steep ; but on the eastern and western, almost 
entirely level. At some distance we perceived a lofty kekur , 
or pyramidal stone pillar, rising above the water; and on 
the shore we descried, among the ridge of mountains, one re¬ 
markably lofty, and covered with eternal snow, to which Captaiu 
Cook gave the name of Cape St. Elias. This then was the 
place to search for the cape, denominated by Commodore 
Behring, the Cape St. Elias, for the position of the island 
Kadjak, its kekur, its lofty mountain, or crater; and the coinci¬ 
dence of the latitude with that mentioned in Behring’s journal, 
evince that the first ship which the Americans spoke of to us, as 
having been seen by their fathers at that island, was Behring’s ship. 
Our stock of sea provisions at this time ran very low, and as 
we had now no prospect of recruiting it any where, but in the 
harbour of Petropaulousk, it was unanimously resolved to bend 
our course back to Kamtschatka, which was a voyage of not 
less than two months. Here we expected to find the necessary 
supplies provided for us, from Ochotsk, during the summer. 
Had it, however, been contrived for the provisions to have been 
sent us to the island of Kadjak, or Schugatskish Bay, our re¬ 
turn to Kamtschatka for the winter, would have been rendered 
superfluous, and our time might have been usefully employed, 
in surveying the southern shores of America, and returning in 
March again to the north. 
Captain Billings resolved on an immediate and direct return 
to Kamtschatka, without stopping any where, which was in fact 
rendered necessary by a want of water and biscuit; on which 
account our people were kept to half allowance. Thinking 
ourselves however, on the 29th, in the neighbourhood of Lna« 
Jaschka, Captain Billings consulted with the officers, whether 
we should touch at that place to take in fresh water; upon 
which it was agreed, that, from the lateness of the season, it 
was most advisable not to lose any time in hastening to Petro- 
paulousk. We were indeed bound by our promise to restore the 
Aleutians, whom we had taken with us as Interpreters from 
Unalaschka, to their homes ; and, battered with this expectation, 
they were perfectly contented, until they found we were bend-? 
ing our course direct to Kamtschatka, when their satisfaction 
was changed into the most poignant distress, in a lit of de- 
