USA > Alaska > History of Alaska : 1730-1885 > Part 16
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10 Berg states that Drushinnin sent out these men and then resolved to visit the dwelling of the natives with the remainder of his men, Korelin, Bragin, Shevyrin, Kokovin, and one other. In the Neue Nachrichten we find an account of the occurrence differing considerably in its details. Drushinnin's name is not mentioned, while the number remaining at home is given as five, Shekalef, Korelin, Bragin, Shevyrin, and Kokovin. There is every reason to believe, however, that Berg was correct, as Drushinnin was with the party and does not appear in any account of subsequent events. Khronol. Ist., 59; Neue Nachr., 75-6.
11 Neue Nachr., 77; Coxe's Russian Discoveries, i. 38; Veniaminof, i. 22.
134
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE PROMYSHLENIKI.
their boat upon the beach, and set out across the hills to Kalekhtak, where they expected to find Khudiakof and his detachment. It was after dark when they reached the neighborhood. They fired signal-guns, but receiving no reply they wisely kept at a distance. Before long, however, they found themselves pursued by a horde of savages, and discovering an isolated, pre- cipitous rock near the beach which could be defended for a time, they concluded to make a stand there. With their fire-arms they finally beat off the pursuers and resumed their retreat, this time with but little hope of finding those alive who had remained with the ship. Presently an object caught their eyes which confirmed their worst apprehensions. It was the main-hatch lying on the beach, having been washed up by the waves. Without waiting further confirmation of their fears the four men took to the mountains, hiding in the ravines until nightfall. Under cover of darkness they approached the anchorage, only to find the ship broken up, and some stores with the dead bodies of their comrades scattered on the beach. Gathering a few packages of dried fish and some empty leather provision-bags they stole away into the hills, where a temporary shelter was hastily constructed. Thence they made occasional excursions at night to the scene of disaster, which must have occurred simultaneously with those of Inaluk and Kalekhtak, in search of such needed articles as had been left by the savages.12 The leather provision-bags, though cut open, were very acceptable as material for the construction of a small bidar.
From the 9th of December 1763 until the 2d of
12 Davidof tells a story of the manner in which the Aleuts secured a simul- taneous onslaught upon all three of the Russian detachments. According to him, they resorted to the old device of distributing among the chiefs of villages bundles of sticks, equal in number, one of which was to be burned each day till the last designated the day. Drukratnoie Puteshestoie, ii. 107. Veniaminof ridicules the story and declares it to be an invention of Davidof, as the Aleuts had numbers up to a thousand and could easily have appointed any day without the help of sticks. Veniaminof, Zapiski, i. 118. No mention of it is made in Neue Nachrichten. Berg also quotes Davidof. Shelikof's Voy- age, 97.
135
KOROVIN'S EXPEDITION.
February 1764 these unfortunates remained in hiding, but on the latter date their bidar was successfully launched, and before morning the party had emerged from Kapiton Bay, coasting to the westward in search of one of Trapeznikof's vessels commanded by Koro- vin.13 Though travelling only at night and hiding among the cliffs by day, they were soon discovered by the natives, and in the vicinity of Makushin village they were compelled to sustain a siege of five weeks in a cave, exposed to constant attacks.14 During this whole time they suffered intensely from hunger and thirst, and would certainly have succumbed had it not been for an ample supply of powder and lead which prevented their enemies from engaging them at close
quarters. At last on the 30th of March the fugitives succeeded in joining their countrymen under Korovin, who were then stationed on the southern shore of Makushin Bay. Shevyrin died at Unalaska during the same year; the other three, Korelin, Kokovin, and Bragin, recovered their strength, but only the former finally reached Kamchatka with Solovief's ves- sel, after passing through additional vicissitudes.
The ship Sv Troitska, which Korovin commanded, was fitted out in 1762 by Nikofor Trapeznikof,15 and
13 Veniaminof in relating this occurrence adds that a charitable native found the fugitives during the winter, and not only failed to betray them, but supplied them with provisions, paying them occasional stealthy visits at night. Veniaminof, Zap., i. 99.
14 Berg, Khronol. Ist., 72; Dvukr. Put., ii. 113.
15 Berg succeeded in collecting the following data concerning the transac- tions of this enterprising citizen of Irkutsk. In the course of 25 years he despatched 10 vessels upon voyages of discovery to the eastward of Kam- chatka. His shitika Nikolaï made three voyages between 1762 and 1766. A small boat named the Fish returned in 1757 with an exceedingly rich cargo, valued at 254,900 rubles. The Sv Troitska, the Sv Petr i Sv Pavel, and one other vessel which returned in 1763 with a cargo valued at 105,730 rubles, also belonged to Trapeznikof. The sea-otter-skins alone brought by these expeditions numbered over 10,000. Berg concludes as follows: ‘It would be of interest to know how much wealth Trapeznikof realized out of all these enterprises. Ivan Savich Lapin told me that through losses sustained in some of his undertakings, and through the bankruptcy of some of his debtors, Trapeznikof suddenly found himself reduced from wealth to poverty.' His old age was passed in straitened circumstances, and he left barely enough to defray the expenses of his burial. Khronol. Ist., 62-3, App.
136
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE PROMYSHLENIKI.
sailed from the mouth of the Kamchatka River on the 15th of September, with a crew of thirty-eight Russians and six Kamchatkans. They passed the winter on Bering Island, remaining until the 1st of August of the following year. The ship fitted out by Protassof and commanded by Medvedef had also wintered there, and before sailing the two commanders made some exchanges in their crews. After sustain- ing some loss by death, Korovin had at the time of his departure from Bering Island thirty-seven men and Medvedef forty-nine. Both vessels made a short run to the Aleutian Islands, reaching the straits be- tween Umnak and Unalaska on the 15th of August. Medvedef concluded to remain on Umnak Island while Korovin selected an anchorage on the Unalaska shore. The native villages on the coast appeared to be deserted, but a short distance inland some inhabited dwellings were found. The chief of the settlement offered several small boys as hostages, and produced tribute receipts signed by the Cossack Ponomaref. Korovin evidently was satisfied with his reception, as he returned immediately to the ship, landed his whole cargo, erected a large hut of drift-wood, and built several bidars for his hunting parties.16
In a few weeks all the arrangements for the winter were made, and Korovin set out with two boats manned by nine men each, one of them commanded by Barnashef, who had visited the island previously with Glottof. They visited three villages in succes- sion, meeting everywhere with a friendly reception on the part of the chiefs, but nearly all the adult males appeared to be absent from home. After the safe return of this party another expedition was sent out to the east side of the island whence they also re- turned unmolested accompanied by some hostages, having met during their journey with some men of Drushinnin's party. Feeling now safe, Korovin sent out a hunting party of twenty-three under Barnashef,
16 Pallas, Nordische Beitrage, i. 274.
137
FURTHER HOSTILITIES.
in two bidars, to the west end of the island. Each boat carried eight muskets and every man had a pistol and a lance; provisions had been prepared for the winter.
At various times during the season letters were received from the detached parties reporting their safety, but about the middle of December Korovin received warning that a large force of natives was marching toward the ship with hostile designs. The Russian commander at once called his men under arms
1692
168º
167º
Harbor
Mekhta 166º
5
in
cal
NAČOOK I.
-Drusbinnin's track.
AMAKNAK
· Medvedef' H ..
Cave
Alliuliuk
PROMYSHLENIK & NATIVES ON THE ISLAND OF UMNAK & UNALASKA
Korovin's
Glottof's
Makushin
From 1763-1766.
From notes oollected on the spot by 1. Petrot in 1878.
30
ISLAND
Cherno
UMNAK
T.
LEGEND A. Drushinnin's first anchorage on Umnok I'd. ..
B.
" jo Captain Harbor.
C. Kalekhta village. Khudsokol's station.
D.Inalook village, Koroliu'e station.
E. Refuge of Korelin's party in the hills.
F. Cave where Korelin's party was besieged.
G. Korovin's winter anchorage. - later Soloviof # 53 headquarters,
H. Koroviu's first landing on Unelasks.
I.Scene of Korovin's wreck.
K. Glottof's headquarters and scene of. massa -. cre of Medvedef's party.
L. Winter quarters of Kororin afterthe/wreck Nativo Villages
163
167º
SCENE OF CONFLICT.
and kept a strict watch. The following day about seventy savages made their appearance carrying bun- dles of sea-otter skins in order to throw the promysh- leniki off their guard; but Korovin would allow only ten of them to approach his house at the same time. The savages perceiving that their design was known, and that surprise had become impossible, disposed of their furs quietly and retreated. On the same even- ing, however, three natives of Kamchatka came to the house in a great fright, reporting that they be-
54º
SCENE OF THE CONFLICT BETWEEN
-. Korelin'a line of retreat
UNALASKA
138
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE PROMYSHLENIKI.
longed to Kulkof's ship, that is to say Drushinnin's party, and that the vessel had been destroyed and all their comrades killed.
The promyshleniki, now thoroughly alarmed, pre- pared for defence. After remaining unmolested for two days, a large force attacked and besieged them closely for four days, during which time two Russians were killed with arrows, and five natives were counted dead on the field. On the fifth day the enemy re- treated to a cave near by, keeping up, however, a vigilant blockade, and making it dangerous to proceed any distance from the house. Worn out with con- stant watching and firing, Korovin at last concluded to bury his iron, the article most coveted by the savages, and his stores of blubber and oil under the house, and to retreat to the ship. His plan was car- ried out, and the ship anchored within a short distance of the shore. The danger of sudden attack was thus lessened, but hunger and the scurvy were there as relentless as the savages. At length, on the 26th of April, reënforced by the three fugitives from Dru- shinnin's command, Korovin put to sea, but so reduced was his crew that the ship could scarcely be worked. During a gale on the 28th the unfortunate promy- shleniki were wrecked in a cove on Umnak Island. Several of the sick died or were drowned, and eight of the hostages made their escape. The arms, am- munition, some sails, and a few sea-lion skins were all that could be saved. A temporary shelter and fortifi- cation was constructed of empty casks, sails, and skins, where the remaining sixteen, including three disabled by scurvy, the three hostages, and the faithful inter- preter, Kashmak, hoped to secure some rest before beginning a new struggle. Their hope was in vain. During the first night a large party of savages ap- proached stealthily from the sea and when within a few yards of the miserable encampment discharged their spears and arrows with terrible effect, piercing the tent and the barricade of sea-lion skins in many
139
THE RUSSIANS CLOSELY PRESSED.
places. Two of the Russians and the three hostages were killed, and all the other Russians severely wounded.17
The onslaught was so sudden that there was no time to get ready the fire-arms, but Korovin with four of the least disabled seized their lances and made a sortie, killing two of the savages and driving away the remainder. Covered with wounds, the five brave men returned to their comrades, now thoroughly dis- heartened. In the mean time the gale had continued unabated, breaking up the stranded vessel and scat- tering the cargo upon the beach. Soon after day- light the natives returned to resume the work of plunder, the Russians being too feeble to interfere. They carried off what booty they could and remained away two days, during which time such of the wounded promyshleniki as were still able to move about picked up what fragments of provisions and furs the savages had left, also a small quantity of iron.18 On the 29th died one of the wounded men, who was also suffer- ing from scurvy. Three days afterward one hundred and fifty islanders approached from the east and fired at the Russians with muskets, but the bullets fell wide of the mark.19 They then set fire to the dry grass in order to burn out the fugitives. A constant firing of the Russians, however, foiled their efforts, and at last the savages retired. The victors found themselves in such a state of prostration that they remained on the same spot until the 21st of July, when the few survivors, twelve in number, six of whom were natives of Kamchatka, embarked in a roughly constructed bidar in search of Medvedef's party. After ten days of coasting the sufferers arrived at a place where the charred remains of a burned vessel, of torn garments, sails and rigging, gave evidence of another disaster.
17 Veniamiof, Zap., i. 132-4; Sarychef, Putesh., ii. 30.
18 A portion of this iron was set aside as an offering to the shrine of the saint whose assistance they implored in their distress. Neue Nachr., 93-4.
19 This is the first instance recorded of the use of fire-arms by the native Aleutians. Neue Nachr., 95; Sgibnef, in Morskoi Sbornik, c. 46.
140
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE PROMYSHLENIKI.
Filled with alarm the fugitives landed and hastened up to a house which had escaped destruction. It was empty, but in an adjoining bath-house twenty dead bodies were found, among them that of the commander Medvedef. There was some indication of the corpses having been dragged to the spot with straps and belts tied around their necks, but no further details of the catastrophe could be obtained, and not a soul sur- vived to tell the tale.20 Necessity compelled Korovin to remain at this ghastly spot, and preparations were made to repair the house for the approaching winter, when Stepan Glottof, who in the mean time had ar- rived on the other side of Umnak Island, made his appearance with eight men. The so lately despairing promyshleniki were wild with joy, and forgetting on the instant their hunger and diseases, they planned further ventures, agreeing with Glottof to hunt and trade on joint account.
The voyage of Glottof, covering the four years from 1762 to 1765 inclusive, was by far the most important of the earlier expeditions to the islands, and constitutes an epoch in the swarming of the pro- myshleniki.
A new vessel to which was given the old name of Andreian i Natalia21 was built in the Kamchatka River by Terentiy Chebaievski, Vassili and Ivan Popof, and Ivan Lapin, and sailed on the 1st of October 1762, under command of Glottof, wintering at Copper Isl- and. 22
20 Neue Nachr., 105; Veniaminof, Zap., i. 98; Berg, Khronol. Ist., 70.
21 Ship nomenclature in Alaskan waters at this time is confusing. St Peter and St Paul were the favorites, but there were other names continued from one ship to another, and the same name was even given to two ships afloat at the same time.
22 Sarychef, Putesh., ii. 37. During the winter Yakof Malevinskoi, with 13 men, was sent to Bering Island in a bidar with instructions to gather up what useful material still remained of Bering's vessel, which seems to have been a magazine of naval stores for the promyshleniki for nearly a quarter of a cen- tury. Malevinskoi, who died shortly after his voyage to Bering Island, was very successful in his mission. He secured between cight and nine hundred pounds of old iron, 400 pounds of rigging and cable, some lead, several thou- sand strings of beads, and some copper. Neue Nachr., 105. For a time the
141
VOYAGE OF GLOTTOF.
On the 26th of July 1763 Glottof again put to sea, and after a tedious and stormy voyage sighted Um- nak on the 24th of August. Having previously visited this island and Unalaska, whence he brought the first black foxes to Kamchatka, the commander concluded not to loiter there, but to sail on in search of new discoveries. Passing eight large islands and a multitude of smaller ones, Glottof finally anchored on the 8th of September off the coast of a large and mountainous island, called Kikhtak by the natives, but now known as Kadiak. The first meeting of the Russians with the inhabitants of this isle was not promising. A few of the savages approached the ship in their kyaks, but the Aleut interpreter, Ivan Glottof, a godchild of the commander, could not con- verse with them, and when on landing some habita- tions were discovered, they were found to be deserted. A few days later a party came to the Russian camp with an Aleutian boy who had been captured several years before during a hostile descent of the Kadiak people upon the island of Sannakh, and through him intercourse was held. Glottof endeavored to per- suade the savages to pay tribute to the imperial gov- ernment and to furnish hostages, but they refused. The natives here were of fiercer aspect, more intelli- gent and manly, and of finer physique than those of
authorities at Kamchatka had forbidden the promyshleniki to visit Copper Island, under the impression that valuable deposits of copper were located there. In 1755 Peter Yakovlef, a mining engineer, was ordered to the island to investigate the matter. On the north-west point, where the native copper had been reported to exist, was a narrow reef of rocks some 20 or 30 fathoms in width, partially covered at flood tide, but Yakovlef stated that he could not discover any indication of copper there. On another reef, running still farther ont into the sea, he noticed two veins of reddish and greenish appear- ance, but the metal had long since been removed with the aid of picks and adzes. At the foot of this reef, however, he found pieces of copper evidently smoothed by the action of the sca. Captain Krenitzin in 1768 reported that much copper was found on the island, that it was washed up by the sea in such quantities that ships could be loaded with it. Pallas, Nord. Beitr., i. 253. The author, however, remarks that at the time of his writing, 1780, the copper had greatly diminished in quantity and but few pieces larger than a bean could be found. Zaïkof, another navigator, reported about the same time that copper was washed upon the beach, but that one of the promontories presented every appearance of a copper-mine.
142
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE PROMYSHLENIKI.
the more western isles. At first they would not even allow the interpreter to remain temporarily with the Russians, but a few days later the boy made his appearance in the Russian camp, and subsequently proved of great service to his new patrons.23 Under such circumstances Glottof deemed it best not to dis- charge the cargo, but to keep the ship moored in a bay near the mouth of a creek, where she floated at every high tide. A strict watch was kept night and day. Early one morning a large body of armed islanders crept up to the anchorage unobserved, and sent a shower of arrows upon the Russian sentinels hidden behind the bulwarks on the deck. The guards discharged their muskets, and the deafening sound sent the savages scattering. In their wild alarm they left on the ground rude ladders, packages of sulphur, dried moss, and birch bark, a proof of their intention to fire the ship, and also of the fact that the Kadiak people were a race more warlike and more dangerous to deal with than the Aleuts. They were certainly fertile in both offensive and defensive devices; for only four days after the first attack, previous to which they had been unacquainted with fire-arms, they again made their appearance in large force, and pro- vided with ingeniously contrived shields of wood and wicker-work intended to ward off the Russian's bullets. The islanders, however, had not had an opportunity of estimating the force of missiles propelled by powder, for the Russians had purposely fired high during their attack, and another rout was the result of a second charge.
The defeated enemy allowed three weeks to pass by without molesting the intruders, but on the 26th of October there was yet another attack. The elaborate preparations now made showed wonderful ability for savages. Seven large portable breastworks, conceal-
23 This boy was subsequently taken to Kamchatka and baptized under the name of Alexander Popof. Neue Nachr., 106; Veniaminof, Zap., i. 102. For manners and customs of the aborigines see Native Races, vols. i. and iii., this series.
143
THE RUSSIANS AT KADIAK.
ing from thirty to forty warriors each, were seen ap- proaching the vessel early one morning, and when near enough spears and arrows began to drop like hail upon the deck. The promyshleniki replied with vol- ley after volley of musketry, but this time the shields appeared to be bullet-proof and the enemy kept on advancing until, as a last resort, Glottof landed a body of men and made a furious charge upon the islanders, who were growing more bold and defiant every moment. This unexpected attack had the desired effect, and after a brief struggle the savages dropped their shields and sought safety in flight. The result of this third battle caused the natives to despair of driving off the Russians, and to withdraw from the neighborhood.24
Deeming it dangerous to send out hunting parties, Glottof employed his men in constructing a house of drift-wood and in securing a good supply of such fish as could be obtained from a creek and a lagoon in the immediate vicinity of the anchorage. Late in Decem- ber two natives made their appearance at the Russian camp. They held a long parley with the interpreter from a safe distance, and finally came up to the house. Kind treatment and persuasion seemed to have no effect; nor did presents even; instinctively these most intellectual of savages felt that they had met their fate. They went away with some trifling gifts, and not another native was seen by the disappointed Glot- tof till April of the following year. Four men then came to the encampment and were persuaded to sell some fox-skins, taking glass beads in payment. Ah, the vanity of humanity! Cotton and woollen goods had no attractions. Ornament before dress. They appeared at last to believe in Glottof's professions of friendship, and went away promising to persuade their people to come and trade with the Russians. Shortly
24 Neue Nachr., 109-10; Berg, Khronol. Ist., 66. The point at which Glottof made his first landing was near the southern end of the island, probably near the present village of Aiakhtalik.
.
144
FURTHER ADVENTURES OF THE PROMYSHLENIKI.
afterward a party brought fox and sea-otter skins, accepting glass beads; and friendly intercourse ensued until Glottof was ready to sail from the locality, where his party had suffered greatly from disease without deriving much commercial advantage.25
Glottof felt satisfied, however, that he was near to the American continent, because he noticed that the natives made use of deer-skins for dress. In the im- mediate vicinity of the Russian encampment there was no timber, but the natives said that large forests grew in the northern part of the island.26
Through Holmberg's researches in Kadiak we pos- sess the deposition of a native of the island, which evidently refers to Glottof's sojourn on Kadiak. Holmberg states that he passed two days in a hut on the south side of the island, and that he there listened to the tales of an old man named Arsenti Aminak, whom he designates as the "only speaking monument of pagan times on Kadiak." A creole named Panfilof served as interpreter, and Holmberg took down his translation, word for word, as follows: " I was a boy of nine or ten years, for I was already set to paddle in a bidarka, when the first Russian ship with two masts appeared near Cape Aliulik. Before that time we had never seen a ship; we had inter- course with the Aglegnutes of Aliaska peninsula, with the Tnaianas of the Kenai peninsula, and with the Koloshes; and some wise men even knew something of the Californias; but ships and white men we did not know at all. When we espied the ship at a dis- tance we thought it was an immense whale, and were curious to have a better look at it. We went out to sea in our bidarkas, but soon discovered that it was no whale, but another unknown monster of which we were
25 During the winter the scurvy broke out among the crew and nine Rus- sians died. Neue Nachr., 111; Berg, Khronol. Ist., 66; Sarychef, Putesh., ii. 38. 26 On the 25th of April Glottof sent Luka Vtorushin, with 11 men, in search of material to make hoops for water-casks; he returned the following day with a supply, and reported groves of alder and willow at a distance of about 30 miles. Neue Nachr., 115.
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