X,
July,
1826.
I. 1 ■ ! 1
CHAP. direction. This was occasioned by some large rivers emptying themselves
into the sound, the fresh water of which remained at the surface,
and flowed in a contrary direction to the tide of the ocean. Had this
occurred in an intricate channel it might have been dangerous; but
in Kotzebue Sound the bottom is quite even, and there is plenty of
room to drift about.
At four o’clock in the morning of the 25th we reached our appointed
rendezvous at Chamisso Island, five days later than had been
agreed npon by Captain Franklin and myself, but which, it appeared,
was quite early enough, as there were no traces of his having arrived.
On approaching the island we discovered, through our telescopes,
a small pile of stones upon its summit; and as every object of this kind
which was likely to be the work of human hands was interesting, from
the possibihty that it might be the labour of the party we were in
search of, it was not long in undergoing an examination; there w'as
nothing however to lead to its history, but conjecture attributed it to
Captain Kotzebue, who visited that spot in 1816.
The ship was anchored nearly as far up in Kotzebue Sound as a
vessel of her class can go, between Chamisso Island on the south, and
Choris peninsula on the north, with Escholtz Bay on the east, and an
open space in the west, in which the coast was too distant to be seen. The
land about this part of the Sound is generally characterised by rounded
hills from about six hundred feet to a thousand above the sea, with small
lakes and rivers; its surface is rent into deep furrows, which, until a very
late period in the summer, are filled with water, and being covered
W'ith a thick sw'ampy moss, and in some places with long grass or
bushes, it is extremely tedious to traverse it on foot. Early in the
summer myriads of moskitos infest this swampy shore, and almost
preclude the possibility of continuing any pursuit; but in August they
begin to die off, and soon afterwards entirely disappear.
Chamisso Island, the highest part of which is 231 feet above the
sea, is steep, except to the eastward, where it ends in a low sandy point,
upon which are the remains of some Esquimaux habitations; it has
the same swampy covering as the land just described, from which, until
late in the summer, several streams descend, and are very convenient c i^ P .
for procuring water. Detached from Chamisso, there is a steep rock
which by way of distinction we named Puffin Island, composed of
July,
mouldering granite, which has broken away in .such a manner that
the remaining part assumes the form of a tower. During the period of
incubation of the aquatic birds, every hole and projecting crag on the
sides of this rock is occupied by them. Its shores resound with the
chorus of thousands of the feathery tribe; and its surface presents a
curiously mottled carpet of brown, black, and white.
In a sandy bay upon the western side of the peninsula we found a
few Esquimaux who had hauled up their baidars, and erected a temporary
h u t; they were inferior in every respect to those we had seen
before, and furnished us with nothing new. In this bay we caught
enough salmon, and other fish, to give a meal to the whole of the ship’s
company, which w'as highly acceptable; but we had to regret that
similar success did not attend our subsequent trials.
By my instructions, I was desired to await the arrival of Captain
Franklin at this anchorage; but in a memoir drawn up by that officer
and myself, to which my attention was directed by the Admiralty, it
was arranged that the ship should proceed to the northward, and survey
the coast, keeping the barge in shore to look out for the land party,
and to erect posts as signals of her having been there, and to leave
directions where to find the ship.
1 was also desired to place a small party in occupation of Chamisso
Island during the absence of the ship; but this spot proved to be
so different from what we imagined, being accessible in almost every
quarter, instead of having only one landing place, that a small party
would have been of no use if the natives were inclined to be hostile, and
the numerical strength of the crew did not admit of a large detachment
being spared from her. But in order that Captain Franklin should not
want provision in the event of his missing the ship along the coast, and
arriving at the island in her absence, a tight barrel of flour w'as buried
upon Puffin Kook, which appeared to be the most unfrequented spot in
the vicinity, and directions for finding it were deposited in a bottle at
Chamisso Island, together with such other information as he might