filch trifles as we had .o g iv e , h e m . Moft o f
ready fo r d r y in g ; and feveral hundred w e igh t o f 11 was pro-
•cured fo r the two ihips.
In the afternoon, the mountains, for the firft time fince
•our entering the river, were clear o f clouds; and w e difcovered
a volcano in one o f thofe on the Weft fide. It is in the
latitude o f 6o° 23'; and is the firft h ig h mountain to the
North o f Mount St. Auguftine. T h e volcano is on that fide
o f it that is next the river, and not far from the fummit. It
did not now make any ftriking appearance, emitting only a
white fmoke, but no fire.
T h e wind remaining Southerly, w e continued to tide it
down the r iv e r ; and, on the 5th, in the morning, coming
to the place where w e had loft our kedge-anchor, made an
‘ but without fuccefs.attempt to recover it, Before we „ left
this place, fix canoes came o ff from the Eaft iho re; fome
con d u ced b y one, and others by two men. T h e y remained
at a little diftance from the ihips, v iew in g them, with a
kin d o f filent furprize, at leaft h a lf an hour, without exchan
gin g a fingle word with us, or with one another. At
length, they took courage, and came along f i d e ; began to
barter with our people ; and did not leave us till hey had
parted with every thin g they brought with them, confiding
o f a few ikins and fome falmon. And here it may not be
improper to remark, that all the people we had met with in
this river, feemed, b y every ftriking inftance o f refem-
blance, to be o f the fame nation with thofe who inhabit
Prince William’s Sound, but differing effentially from thofe
o f Nootka, or King George’s Sound, both in their perfons
and language. T h e languag e o f thefe is rather more gu ttural
;
tu ra l; but, lik e the others, they fpeak ftrongly and diftind,
in words w h ich feem fentences.
I have before obferved, that they are in poffeffion o f iro n ;
that is, they have the points o f their fpears and knives o f
this m e ta l; and fome o f the former are alfo made o f copper.
T h e ir fpears are lik e our fpontoons; and their knives, which
they keep in iheaths, are o f a confiderable length. Thefe
with a few glafs beads, are the only things we faw amongft
them that were not o f their own manufacture. I have already
offered m y conjedtures from whence they derive their
fore ign a rtic le s ; and ih a ll only add here, that, i f it were
probable that they found their way to them from fuch o f
their neighbours with whom the Ruffians may have efta-
bliihed a trade, I w ill be bold to fay, the Ruffians them-
felves have never been amongft them | for i f that had been
the cafe, w e ihould hardly have found them clothed in fuch
valuable ikins as thofe o f the fea-otter.
There is not the leaft doubt, that a ve ry beneficial fu r
trade migh t be carried on w ith the inhabitants o f this vaft
coaft. But unlefs a Northern paffage ihould be found practicable,
it feems rather too remote for Great Britain to receive
any emolument from it. It mull, however, be obferved,
that the moft valuable, or rather the only valuable
ikins, I faw on this Weft fide o f America, were thofe o f the
fea-otter. A ll their other ikins feemed to be o f an inferior
q u a lity ; particularly thofe o f their foxes and martins. It
mull alfo be obferved, that moft o f the ikins, which we pur-
chafed, were made up into garments. However, fome o f
thefe were in good condition; but others were old and ragged
en o u g h ; and all o f them very loufy. But as thefe poor
people make no other ufe o f ikins but for clothing them-
V ol. II. 3 F felves,