TRAVELS
IN
KAMTSCHATKA,
DURING THE YEARS 1787 AND 1788.
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH OF
M. DE LESSEPS, CONSUL OF FRANCE,
AND
INTERPRETER TO THE COUNT DE LA PEROUSE, NOW
ENGAGED IN A VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD, BY
COMMAND OF HIS MOST CHRISTIAN MAJESTY.
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOLUME II.
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR J. JOHNSON, ST. PAUL’S CHURCH-YARD.
1790.
CONTENTS TO VOL. II.
Page
Departure from Poustaretsk 1
Find some concealed provisions 4
Painful travelling 5
Am guilty of an imprudence that injures my health 6
Cured by exercise 9
Meet three convoys sent to M. Kasloff 10
River Penguina 12
Arrival at Kaminoi _ib_
Koriacs falsely accused of rebellion 13
Description of Kaminoi 16
Baidars, or large boats 17
M. Schmaleff is obliged to quit me 18
Gives me a soldier named Yegor-Golikoff _ib_
Tempest 20
Arrival of seven Tchouktchis 21
Conversation with their chief 22
Account of two women who accosted me 31
Arrival at the camp of the Tchouktchis 36
Description of the camp 39
Dress of the women 42
Features 43
Commerce of the Tchouktchis 44
Arrival at Pareiné 46
History of a woman of Ingiga 47
Alarmed by a Koriac chief, who wishes to detain me 49
Departure from Pareiné 59
Meet a horde of wandering Koriacs 63
Contest with my people respecting the weather 65
Surprise them by the use I made of my compass 67
Terrible hurricane 70
Arrival at Ingiga 74
Account of a Koriac prince called Oumiavin 79
Extent of the country 83
Population _ib_
Manners of the fixed Koriacs 84
Their inflexible courage 85
Mode of life 87
Occupations 88
Food 89
Drink 90
Features 92
Cradle in which the women carry their children 93
Marriages _ib_
Funerals 96
Religion 100
Idiom 105
Preparations for my departure from Ingiga 106
Superstition of my soldiers 113
Departure from Ingiga 115
Description of a Koriac sledge 117
Mode of travelling with deer 122
In danger of my life, from being my own charioteer 124
Receive a visit and present from prince Amoulamoula 130
Arrival at the yourt of Oumiavin’s brother 132
Details respecting my host 134
Flocks of rein deer 143
Yourts of the wandering Koriacs 147
Hot springs of Tavatoma 151
Mountain of Villegui 154
Ostrog of Toumané 157
Tempest 160
Take shelter in a deserted yourt 161
Plan of my journey 168
Bay of Iret 170
Arrival at Yamsk 172
Dress of the wandering Toungouses 174
Mountain called Babouschka, or grandmother 177
Ostrog of Srednoi 180
Of Siglann 181
Ola, a Toungouse ostrog 183
Toungouse yourts _ib_
Coquetry of the women 185
Features and character of the Toungouses 186
Perplexities to which we are reduced by the ice being
broken up 188
Obliged to pass over a cornice of ice that adhered to a
rock 190
Stop at the house of a Yakout 197
Fort of Taousk 200
Village of Gorbé _ib_
Of Iné 202
Arrival at Okotsk 204
Visit Mrs. Kasloff 208
Impossibility of procuring deer 210
Description of Okotsk 211
Departure from Okotsk 214
Dangerous situation on a river 215
Remonstrance of one of my guides 217
Obliged to return to Okotsk 219
News of the arrival of M. Kasloff at Ingiga 225
Historical details respecting the commerce of Okotsk 227
Its government 242
Expedition of M. Billings 246
Breaking up of the river Okhota 249
Famine occasioned by the length of winter 252
Preparations for my departure 254
Description of my wretched steeds 257
Salt work twelve wersts from Okotsk 259
Particulars of my journey 260
Manner of our halt 265
Food of the Yakouts 269
Meet a caravan of merchants 270
In danger of being drowned 272
Arrival at Ouratskoï-plodbisché 277
Custom observed by the Yakouts when they leave a horse in
the high way 279
Accident that happens to Golikoff 280
Arrival at the cross of Yudoma 281
Difficulties we experience from the wretched condition of
the boats 282
A cataract 286
Arm of the Yudoma, called the Devil’s arm 292
Enter the river Maya 294
Meet nine boats loaded with military stores for M.
Billings’ expedition 295
A fortunate supply of horses 296
Yakout songs 298
Particulars of my journey as far as Amgui 299
My reception at Amgui 301
Description of a Yakout yourt 302
A drink called koumouiss 303
Customs and manners of the Yakouts 304
Fables 308
Funerals 310
Wooden images of a malicious divinity 314
Summer habitations of the Yakouts 315
Arrival at Yarmangui 316
Width of the Lena at Yakoutsk 317
Arrival at Yakoutsk 318
Sup with M. Billings 319
Description of Yakoutsk 321
Inhabitants 322
Navigation on the Lena 323
Persons employed in this service from stage to stage 324
Town of Oleckma 328
Meet a Toungouse _ib_
Toungouse canoes 329
Visit a horde of these people 330
Particulars respecting them 331
Town of Pelodui 334
Of Kiringui 336
Particulars of the Bratskis 338
Arrival at Irkoutsk 339
Commerce carried on between Russia and China 345
Desert of Barabniskoi-step 362
Adventure in this desert 364
Arrival at Tomsk 366
At Tobolsk 369
At Catherinebourg 370
Head dress of the Tcheremisses 371
Town of Casan 372
An accident that endangers my life 373
Nijenei-novogorod 377
Arrival at Moscow _ib_
At Petersburg 379
At Versailles 381
Vocabulary of the Kamtschadale, Koriac, Tchouktchi, and
Lamout languages 383
Vocabulary of the Kamtschadale language at St. Peter and
St. Pauls, and at Paratounka 404
TRAVELS IN KAMTSCHATKA, &c.
At length the 18 arrived, and I took leave of M. Kasloff. I shall
pass over our adieux; it will be supposed that they were equally
affectionate and distressing. I departed from Poustaretsk at eight
o’clock in the morning, in an open sledge drawn by seven dogs, which I
drove myself; the soldier appointed to escort me had eight harnessed
to his; and we were preceded by a guide chosen from the inhabitants of
this hamlet[1], whose sledge, loaded with the remainder of my effects,
and our provisions, was drawn by a team of twelve. I was accompanied
also by M. Schmaleff and the subaltern officers of his suite; but
instead of travelling together, as had been agreed, as far as Ingiga,
we separated a few days after.
Upon leaving Poustaretsk, we descended the gulf. We proceeded at first
with tolerable ease; the ice was solid and even, and in a few hours
we arrived at the mouth: there our progress was attended with more
difficulty. Obliged to travel upon the sea without leaving the coast,
we were every moment interrupted with piles of ice, that appeared like
so many rocks, against which we were to be dashed to pieces. It was
impossible to avoid them by turning and winding; an unequal chain of
these little mountains extended all along the coast, and intercepted
our passage; we had no resource but to attempt to surmount them, at the
risk of being overturned every step. More than once, in these falls, I
had a narrow escape from being dangerously wounded. My musquet, which
was fastened to my sledge, was bent to the shape of a bow; many of my
companions were severely bruised, and not an individual came off unhurt.
In the dusk of the evening we arrived at a hamlet situated upon the
border of the sea, consisting of two yourts and three balagans, in a
very wretched condition, and totally deserted. The only person who
lived in the yourt which we entered, had fled upon our approach[2]. I
was informed that this man was a chaman or magician: seized with terror
at the news that we were to arrive the next day, he flew immediately
for refuge to the Oluterians[3], where he would probably remain till M.
Kasloff had passed.
The Cossac who gave me this information, had been sent forward the
evening previous to our departure from Poustaretsk, by M. Schmaleff,
with orders to stop at this hamlet till we should arrive, and endeavour
in the mean time to discover some concealed store of fish. This
precaution was very serviceable to us. The Cossac, upon our arrival,
conducted us to a cave which we found to be well stocked. I took a
tolerable portion, having brought from Poustaretsk only provision
enough for two days.
The 19, early in the morning we pursued our route. This day’s journey
was still more fatiguing than the preceding one. The way was terrible.
Twenty times I saw my sledge ready to be shattered to pieces, which
would certainly have been the case, if I had not at last determined
to proceed on foot. I was compelled to this, in order to guard myself
against the danger of being overturned, and thus was I obliged to walk
almost the whole day; but I only avoided one misfortune to fall into
another.
In a few hours I felt myself so fatigued that I was going to remount
my sledge, when a sudden jolt instantly turned it upon its side, and
effectually cooled my desire. I had no resource but to drag myself
on as well as I could. My legs bent under me, I was in a profuse
perspiration, and a burning thirst still added to my weariness. The
snow was a poor relief, and I had nothing else with which to quench my
thirst. Unfortunately I perceived a little river; absolute necessity
conduced my steps to it, and, without reflecting upon the consequences
of my imprudence, I instantly broke the ice, and put a piece into my
mouth. This precipitation was purely mechanical, and I soon repented
it. My thirst was relieved; but from the excessive heat of which I
before complained, I passed to the contrary extreme; a universal chill
seized me, and all my limbs trembled.
The sharpness of the night increased my agueish feeling, and my
weakness at last was so extreme, that I was unable to proceed a step
farther. I entreated my companions to halt in the midst of this desert.
They complied out of pure civility to me, for the difficulty of
procuring wood was otherwise a sufficient reason to determine them to
proceed. Scarcely could they collect enough to place under a kettle;
it consisted of a few little shrubs, so green that it was almost
impossible to make them burn. How happy were we to succeed so far as to
be able to make tea!
After drinking a few cups, I retired to my tent[4], where I lay
down upon a small mattrass spread upon the snow, and covered myself
up with a number of furs, in order to revive perspiration. It was in
vain; I did not close my eyes during the whole night. To the anguish
of a dry and burning fever, were added a continual oppression, and
all the restlessness peculiar to the first symptoms of a disorder. I
conceived myself, I acknowledge, to be dangerously ill, particularly
when I found, upon getting up, that I could not articulate a single
sound. I suffered infinitely both in my breast and throat; the fever
was not abated; nevertheless the idea that a longer halt in this place
would be of no benefit to me, and that I could only hope for succour
by proceeding, determined me to conceal my extreme illness from M.
Schmaleff. I was the first to propose going on, but in this I consulted
my courage more than my strength.
I had advanced but a few wersts, when my sufferings became
insupportable. I was obliged to drive myself, and consequently to be in
continual motion; frequently also I was compelled from the badness of
roads, either to run by the side of my sledge, or call to the dogs to
make them proceed. My hoarseness prevented their hearing me; and it was
only by efforts that exhausted my strength, and tortured my lungs, that
I at last succeeded. This exercise however, painful as it was, proved
salutary to me; by degrees it created a perspiration; in the evening I
could breathe more freely; the fever left me; I had no complaint but
a violent cold, which was removed in a few days. Fatiguing exercise
was the only remedy I used. I took particular care to continue the
perspiration it occasioned, and to this I am persuaded I owe the
rapidity of my cure. My breast however was so sore, that I felt the
effects of it for a considerable time.
During this interval I had nothing to suffer from the rigour of
tempests; the air was calm, and the weather clear. We were blessed with
the finest days of winter, or I should perhaps never again have seen my
native country. Heaven seemed to favour my journey, that I might forget
my sufferings.
The most lively joy soon succeeded to the sorrow that had depressed
me. We met, in different detachments, three convoys sent by sergeant
Kabechoff to M. Kasloff. This unexpected succour gave me the more
pleasure, as the deplorable state in which I had left the governor,
was continually recurring to my mind. What a sudden change in his
situation! He was upon the point of receiving a supply of provisions,
together with an hundred and fifty dogs well fed and well trained. He
will be able, said I to myself, to proceed immediately on his journey;
and if I cannot flatter myself that I shall see him again, I know at
least that he will be extricated from his embarassment. This certainty
relieved the anxiety which I had felt on his account.
The soldier who conducted the convoys, offered me part of his
provisions; but I refused them. He had no profusion, and we were not in
want. I detained him therefore as short a time as possible.
Before he quitted us, he told me that prince Eitel, or chief of the
Koriacs of Kaminoi, who had been accused of rebellion, was advancing to
undeceive the governor, and prove the falsehood of the charge.
In pursuing our route, we perceived, beyond a small river bordered
with some shrubs, a chain of steep mountains, which it was necessary
to climb one after the other, in order to descend upon another river,
called Talofka. Its banks diverged as it approached the sea; they
were well wooded, and I perceived some trees of a tolerable size. We
left this river at a distance from Kaminoi, in order to traverse an
extensive heath, then a considerable lake; at length we crossed the
river Pengina, almost at its mouth, and in a direction from south-east
to north-west. Its breadth is striking, and the aspect of the heaps of
ice that covered it, and which were of an extreme height, would have
been still more picturesque, if we could have taken a more convenient
way; but we had no choice, and were reduced to the necessity of
hoisting, as I may say, our dogs and our sledges from heap to heap.
The difficulty and slowness of this manœuvre is easily conceived; it
required my utmost exertion and care to get off unhurt.
It was still near two hours before we reached Kaminoi, where we
arrived the 24 before noon. We were received by the inhabitants with
the utmost civility. In the absence of Eitel, another prince called
_Eila_, had the command. He came to meet us with a Russian detachment,
and we were conducted to the yourt of Eitel, which had been cleaned and
prepared a long time for the reception of M. Kasloff.
Eila conferred upon us every mark of respect; we had constantly a
centinel at our door, whose orders were to open it to such persons only
as we had no reason to distrust.
This was not owing to any doubts we entertained respecting the report
that had been spread of the rebellion of the Koriacs; it was evidently
false[5]. Their behaviour to us, and the reception they had prepared
for the governor, plainly proved what was their disposition at present.
Nor is it to be presumed that this was the effect of the arrival of
the soldiers sent from Ingiga[6]. Their wretched condition was little
calculated to awe men like the Koriacs, who are too little attached
to life, I understand, to be ever intimidated; and whom nothing can
restrain, if they have the least ground for discontent.
The sight however of the cannon, and of the Cossacs in arms, who had
entered the village without announcing any hostile intention, gave
them at first some alarm. Immediately advancing towards the subaltern
officer who commanded the troop, they called upon him to declare,
whether he was come to strike a blow at their liberty, and extirpate
them; adding, that if such were the project of the Russians, the
Koriacs would all die to a man, rather than submit. The officer removed
their fears, by artfully answering, that the occasion of his embassy
ought not to alarm them; that he was sent to meet M. Kasloff, which was
an honour due to his rank, and prescribed by the military regulations
of Russia towards their governors. This explanation was sufficient to
remove their suspicions; and the Koriacs and Russians lived together
upon terms of the best understanding. The confidence of the Koriacs was
so great, that they took no precautions against a surprise, and would
have paid no attention to the continued abode of these soldiers among
them, but for a famine, which began to render such guests burthensome.
I had intended to stay no longer at Kaminoi than was necessary to
rest my dogs; but on the night of the 24, the sky became obscured, and
frequent gusts of wind threatened an approaching tempest; the fear of
encountering it in the open field, made me defer my departure.
This ostrog is three hundred wersts from Poustaretsk, and is situated
upon an eminence near the sea coast, and at the mouth of the river
Pengina. It contains a great number of balagans and twelve yourts,
all of them very large, and built in a similar manner to those I have
already described. Though very near to one another, these habitations
occupy a considerable space of ground. The palisades which surround
them are fortified with spears, bows and arrows, and musquets. They are
thicker and higher than those placed round the Kamtschadale yourts.
Within these wretched fortifications the Koriacs consider themselves
as impregnable. Here they repel the attacks of their enemies, and
among others, the Tchoukchis, who are the most formidable of their
neighbours, both in point of number and courage[7].
The population at Kaminoi scarcely exceeds three hundred persons,
including men, women, and children. I shall say nothing of the manners
of the inhabitants till my arrival at Ingiga, which will I hope be in a
few days.
Before I left the village, I saw a dozen baidars, or boats, of
different sizes, similar to the one I mentioned upon coming out of
Khaluli[8], except that they were better constructed, and from their
superior lightness, had the advantage in sailing. I admired also their
remarkable breadth. Many of these baidars would hold from twenty-five
to thirty persons.
From the moment of our arrival, M. Schmaleff had foreseen that he
should not be able to accompany me from this village. Beset evening
and morning by the whole detachment of soldiers, who came to acquaint
him with the urgency of their wants, he considered it as his duty not
to abandon them, but to employ all the means which his office and
his perfect knowledge of the country afforded him for procuring them
assistance. He was equally impatient with myself to get to Ingiga,
where his brother had long expected him: but he resolved nevertheless
to let me depart without him.
He informed me of this circumstance with regret, and gave me at the
same time a confidential soldier, named _Yegor-Golikoff_[9]. He made
me, he said, in this man a valuable present; and we shall find in the
sequel that he was not deceived.
This kindness increased the reluctance I felt at being obliged so soon
to leave this good and gallant officer. My gratitude would lead me to
repeat in this place, what the English have written of his humanity
and politeness; but I leave to count de la Perouse the pleasure of
acquitting the debt which every individual in the expedition owes to M.
Schmaleff, for his assiduity in rendering it, while at Saint Peter and
Saint Paul’s, all the services that were in his power.
I came out of Kaminoi at eight o’clock in the morning of the 26, the
weather being tolerably calm[10]. At the distance of fifteen wersts, I
again met with the chain of mountains which I had before passed on this
side of the village. I traversed them a second time, and then crossed
a river called _Chestokova_, from a subaltern officer of that name,
who had been killed there at the head of a detachment sent to keep
the revolted Koriacs in awe. Under advantage of the night the Koriacs
had taken them by surprise upon the border of this river, and had not
suffered an individual to escape: all the Russians were massacred. I
halted in the same place.
I was roused from my sleep by the gusts of wind that blew with extreme
violence. The clouds of snow obscured the air to a degree, that it
was not easy to distinguish if it were day. In spite of this dreadful
hurricane I resolved to proceed; but I could not prevail on my guides
to make even the attempt. They persisted in not quitting the place,
from the apprehension of losing their way, and encountering other
dangers in such bad weather.
Opposed on all sides, I retired to my tent in no very pleasant humour.
At noon I was agreeably consoled by the arrival of seven Tchoukchis.
They were in sledges, similar to those of the wandering Koriacs, and
drawn in like manner by rein deer. I received them under my tent, and
invited them to remain till the storm was dissipated. Nothing could
have flattered them more, as I judged from the air of satisfaction
which my offer imparted to the countenance of every individual.
Among these Tchoukchis was the chief of the horde, called _Tummé_. He
addressed himself to me in order to express the gratitude they felt
for the reception I gave them. He assured me that ever since they had
heard of me, they had desired nothing so ardently as my acquaintance,
and had been greatly alarmed lest they should lose the opportunity. He
added, that they would never forget either my person or my kindnesses,
and that they would give an exact account of every thing to their
countrymen. I answered with a profusion of thanks, informing them that
I had been already made acquainted with their obliging curiosity, and
that I had not been less desirous of the present interview.
After this preface, we talked upon general subjects, particularly upon
their country and mine. My curiosity was equal to theirs, and the time
passed in perpetual questions. As I told them that, in returning to
France, I must pass through the town that was the residence of their
sovereign, they begged me to give her a faithful account of them, and
to lay at her feet the tribute of their respect and submission. They
added, that they were by so much the more happy in being tributaries
of Russia, as they every day found the Russians more easy of access,
and more affectionate in their behaviour. They spoke with particular
commendation of M. Gaguen, governor of Ingiga.
The kindness they had experienced, made them regret the want of
opportunity to maintain a more frequent intercourse with the Russians.
The only mode, they said, of surmounting these difficulties, would be
for the subjects of the Czarina to form afresh their establishment
upon the river Anadir. They promised for the future that, far from
giving any interruption to the settlers, they would exert themselves
by every office of friendship to make them forget the injustice of
their past conduct. That conduct had originated in an error, under
which they laboured as well as the Koriacs, in having formerly figured
to themselves the Russians as consisting only of that small number of
individuals, who came in this adventurous manner to plant themselves
in their territory and neighbourhood. By a natural sentiment of
jealousy, they had regarded these emigrants as so many adversaries,
whose industry and activity were the objects of their suspicion; and
they conceived that nothing could be of more importance to them than to
rid themselves of the intruders, persuaded that in exterminating the
settlers they should destroy the race.
The Tchoukchis professed to have discovered their mistake, and their
folly as soon as they had been properly acquainted with the Russians.
It was in vain that they were now persuaded to revolt, they being
on the contrary disposed to counteract the seditious intrigues of a
prince, or chief of the Tchoukchis, whose residence was fixed, by name
_Kherourgui_, either by curtailing his authority, or even by delivering
him up to the Russians.
Not being able to conceive in what part of the world I was born,
they asked me if my country were not on the other side of the great
river. Before I answered them, I desired to know the meaning of their
question; and I found they imagined that beyond Russia, with which
country itself they had little acquaintance, there was a very large
river that divided them from another country inhabited by different
people.
It was not easy to instruct them upon this subject. I talked a long
while without their understanding a single word of my geographical
dissertation. They had no accurate idea either of number or extension.
It was not less difficult to give them a notion of the strength of
a state, or the riches and power of its sovereign. They had never
attempted an estimation even of that of Russia. That I might enable
them to judge of it, I was obliged to illustrate the abundance of its
commodities, its money, and its population, by comparisons drawn from
the number of animals they hunted, and the quantity of fish they caught
every year, without destroying the breed. This explanation, which I
exerted all my ability to make level to their capacities, extremely
pleased them. I adopted the same method to give them a notion of the
way measure extension. I began with the ground that my tent covered,
and the taking a sheet of paper, drew a sort of geographical chart, in
which I marked pretty nearly the situation and distances of Russia and
France, with respect to their country.
It was not without some labour that I made myself understood. But
for this I was indemnified by the eagerness and attention with which
they listened to me. In general I was astonished at the solidity of
their understanding, and the thirst they felt for the acquisition of
knowledge. Superior in these respects to the Koriacs, they appear both
to respect more upon what they say themselves, and what they hear
and behold. These two people have nearly the same idiom; the only
difference is, that I found in the Tchoukchis a habit of prolonging the
final syllables of words, and a pronunciation slower and sweeter than
that of the Koriacs. With the assistance of my guide, who served me for
an interpreter, I kept up the conversation tolerably well.
The attention with which I examined their dress, inspired them with a
desire of seeing the French habit[11], and I ordered my uniform to be
taken out of my portmanteau. At sight of it they expressed admiration
in every part of their attitude. Every one was eager to touch it,
every one exclaimed upon its singularity and its beauty. My buttons,
marked with the arms of France, were particularly inspected, and it was
necessary anew to exert my ingenuity to describe to them intelligibly,
what this figure represented, and what was its use. But they did not
allow me to finish. They eagerly reached out their hands, and intreated
me to divide them among them. I consented, upon the promise they gave
me to preserve them with extreme care. Their object in keeping them,
was to employ them as a mark of affection, which they might shew to all
the strangers that touched upon their coast, in hopes that among the
rest there might possibly arrive a Frenchman.
Their countrymen had seen the English some years before. “Why, said
they, do not the French also visit us? They might depend upon being
received by us with cheerfulness and cordiality.” I thanked them for
their obliging disposition, and represented to them that the distance
was an insuperable obstacle, and would not permit us to put their
kindness often to the proof. Meanwhile I promised to give a faithful
representation of it upon my arrival in France.
After regaling them in the best manner I could with tobacco, having
nothing that could afford them greater pleasure, we parted upon the
best terms of friendship. Upon leaving me, they said, that I should
probably soon met their equipages and their wives, whom they had left
behind in order to make the greater haste.
The wind became calm shortly after the departure of these Tchoukchis,
and I pursued my journey.
The next day, at the very moment when I was about to stop, upon seeing
a convenient place by the side of a wood, I perceived farther on before
me a numerous troop of rein deer browsing at liberty upon the top of a
mountain. Upon examining them more attentively, I distinguished some
men who appeared to be guarding them. I hesitated at first whether I
should avoid, or join them; but curiosity at length prevailed, and I
advanced to reconnoitre them.
By proceeding along the skirts of the wood I was told I should come up
with them. I conceived however that at the extremity I should be still
separated from them by a river, a small arm of which I had crossed a
quarter of an hour before: at this place it was tolerably wide. While I
was examining these people from one bank to the other, I was approached
by two women who were walking about. The eldest accosted me. How great
was my surprise to hear both her and her companion speak the Russian
language! They informed me that I was but two hundred yards from the
camp of the Tchoukchis, the view of which was intercepted by the wood.
As soon indeed as I got down to the side of the river I could see their
sledges and their tents, and I entreated these women to conduct me
thither.
As we went on, I asked them of what country they were, their language
telling me that they were neither born, nor had always lived among
these people.
One of them informed me that she was a Russian, and had been induced
to accompany the Tchoukchis from a sentiment of maternal affection.
Dangers, fatigues, ill treatment, she had braved every thing, from the
sole motive of reclaiming her daughter, who was retained by them as an
hostage. She had lost her in the following manner.
This young woman was travelling, two years before, with her father
and a number of other Russians upon the river Pengina. Their caravan,
consisting of nine persons, was proceeding quietly along in the midst
of the Koriacs, threatened at that time by a party of Tchoukchis,
headed by this very Kherourgui whom we just now mentioned. To get rid
of their dangerous neighbours, the Koriacs conceived the design of
informing the Tchoukchis of the passage of these strangers[12], as a
prize that ought not to escape them. The artifice succeeded. Seduced by
the expectation of an immense booty in iron and tobacco, the Tchoukchis
followed these travellers. Their courage could not save them, and
four of them, with their arms in their hands, became the victims of a
fruitless resistance. The husband of this woman was killed in defending
his daughter, whom the conquerors carried off with the three remaining
companions of her misfortune. The Russians had incessantly demanded the
surrender of these prisoners, and the Tchoukchis had promised to send
them back; but only two of them had yet been released.
The affecting recital of this unfortunate mother, which was frequently
interrupted by her tears, interested me strongly in her favour.
Without knowing whether the mediation would have any weight with the
Tchoukchis, I felt myself disposed to join my intreaties to hers, and I
had the satisfaction to perceive that they were not nugatory.
The other woman told me that she was by birth a Tchoukchi. In her
infancy she had been taken by the Russians upon the river Anadir, and
carried to Yakoutsk, where they had given her the best education in
their power. She afterwards married a soldier, by whom she was in a few
years left a widow. At length, by order of government, she was sent
back to her own country with her children, to render an account of the
obligations that she owed to the Russians. It had been recommended to
her to give the minutest details to the Tchoukchis, even such as lived
to the greatest distance[13], and insinuate to them the innumerable
advantages they might derive from establishing a safe and peaceable
commerce with the Russians.
This woman spoke the Russian, the Yakout, and the Tchoukchi languages
with equal facility. She told me, that the little knowledge she
derived from her education, had gained her a sort of credit with her
compatriots; that she had already taken advantage of her ascendancy
over their minds, to destroy several of their prejudices; and she
flattered herself that by degrees they would be taught to see their
interest in its true light. Her hopes were chiefly founded upon the
character of this people, which she assured me was perfectly generous,
hospitable, mild, and preferable in every respect to that of the
Koriacs.
The conversation of these women had so engrossed my attention, that
I was in the camp of the Tchoukchis before I perceived it. Their joy
at seeing me was extreme, and I was surrounded in an instant. They all
addressed themselves to me at once, to prevail on me to spend the night
with them. I had no sooner answered that it was my intention, than
they saluted me with new transports and huzzas. I ordered my tent to
be erected at the extremity of the camp, and while it was performing
I invited the chiefs to visit me. Eager to accept my invitation, they
could not wait till I had entered my tent, and I found a more numerous
assembly than it could contain.
After the first compliments were over, we entered into conversation,
mutually desirous of receiving information. We talked in a summary way
of our respective countries, manners, and customs; and the questions
they asked me were nearly similar to those of Tummé and his companions.
They expressed their submission to Russia, their desire of forming an
alliance with that country by means of a commercial intercourse, and
of seeing the establishment upon the Anadir revived. They then entered
into particulars upon the motives of their journey. Their principal
inducement was to visit some relations who had intermarried with the
Russians, and settled at Ingiga. They had also, it was probable, some
commercial project in view, though from their own account, attachment
to their countrymen was their only motive; and in reality, this
patriotic sentiment was visible I thought in their attention to this
Tchoukchi woman, and the caresses they bestowed upon her children.
They frequently entreated me to banish all distrust from my mind, and
to rely upon their friendship. They seemed to suppose that I partook
of the reserve which the Russians discovered in their intercourse with
them; but not having the same reasons to fear them, I was a stranger
to suspicion. I wished them to understand this by my answer, which
was, that being unwilling to offend any individual I might meet with
in my way, I imagined that no one would be desirous of incommoding me,
particularly in the midst of a nation whose civility and rectitude were
already known to me. This mode of reasoning pleased them, and they
appeared to be flattered by my security. I conceived of course that I
ought to conceal my arms, and reject the proposal made by my soldiers
of placing a centinel before my tent.
I distributed tobacco to the most distinguished of these Tchoukchis,
and afterwards treated them with tea and rye biscuit. Their chief, or
prince, named _Chegouiaga_, of the same rank and authority as Tummé,
two of his relations, and the two women who served as interpreters,
supped with me. The repast was perfectly frugal but very gay, and my
guests were as well pleased as if they had fared ever so sumptuously.
The necessity of taking rest obliged us to separate.
As soon as I was alone, I embraced the opportunity of writing down
the notes with which their conversation and my own observations had
furnished me.
The camp of these Tchoukchis was pitched upon the border of the
river, by the side of their equipages, and at the back of the wood
which I mentioned. It contained about a dozen tents ranged in a line
along the bank. They were of a square form, and made of rein deer skin,
suspended by leathern straps to four poles erected at the four corners.
Bundles of spears and arrows, fixed in the snow before every tent, seem
to guard the entrance[14], which is very low, and shuts _hermetically_.
The tents are extremely hot. The partitions and the covering being made
of deer skin, the air cannot penetrate, and there is besides a stove in
the middle of each of them. The bed resembles that of the Kamtschadales
when they halt, and consists of small branches of trees spread on the
snow like litter, and covered with deer skins. Here a whole family will
lie down and sleep together without distinction of age or sex. The
space is so narrow that it is astonishing how so many people can crowd
into it. The air and filthiness occasioned by it are insupportable;
let it suffice to say, that they feel no disgust at seeing their food
and their drink close to the most offensive objects, for no words can
describe the excess of their indolence.
Among these Tchoukchis, whose number amounted to about forty, there
were fifteen or sixteen women[15], and nearly as many children, who are
employed in preparing the tents and provisions. Every principal person
has valets in his service to take care of the deer, and guard them
during the night from the wolves with which these coasts abound.
The dress of the women is very remarkable. It consists of a single
deer skin that is fastened round the neck, where it has an opening both
before and behind, and which descends in the shape of large breeches
below the knee. This garment is put on by means of the opening at the
neck, and there is no other way of taking it off but by loosening the
strings which tie it under the chin, when it instantly falls from the
body, and leaves the woman naked. The inconvenience of this habit
may easily be imagined, from the frequent necessity there must be of
divesting themselves of it. When they travel, they wear a _kouklanki_
over their common dress, and their feet have no other covering than
boots made of the legs of rein deer. Their hair is of a deep black.
Sometimes it is turned up in tufts behind, but it is oftener separated
upon the forehead, and hangs in long braids on each side. Their ears
and their neck are loaded with ornaments of glass beads of different
colours; and when they are cold, the hood of their parque serves them
for a head-dress.
Their countenance is by no means agreeable; the features are coarse,
though their nose is not flat, nor their eyes sunk in their head like
the Kamtschadales. They resemble them in these respects less than do
the Koriac women. They are also taller, but not slender. The thickness
and bulk of their dress give them an appearance the very opposite
to alert. In the mean time they perform the most laborious offices,
such as lighting fire, cutting wood, fetching water, and other things
required in their domestic œconomy. These cares devolve principally
upon the oldest.
The features of the men seemed to be more regular, and not at all
Asiatic. Their complexion, like that of the women, is very tawny; and
their dress, their sledges, and in short, all their customs are exactly
similar to those of the wandering Koriacs. I shall take an opportunity
of describing them together.
These Tchoukchis at present go every year to Ingiga. They leave
their country in the beginning of autumn, and do not arrive at this
settlement till March. As soon as their business is transacted, which
only requires a few days, they set out upon their return, that they may
not lose the advantage of travelling in sledges; but they seldom reach
their home till the latter end of June.
The merchandise they take with them consists chiefly of sable and
fox-skin parques, and moose teeth, which afford a very fine ivory.
They receive in exchange kettles, tobacco, lances, musquets, knives,
and other iron instruments. As yet they are little accustomed to the
musquet, and scarcely make any use of it; but they are very expert in
shooting an arrow, and managing a lance, which are therefore their
principal arms.
Like all the northern people, they have an astonishing propensity to
drunkenness. Their love of brandy is so extreme, that if you once let
them taste it, you must repeat your kindness till they are perfectly
intoxicated, or they would consider themselves as insulted, and
probably have recourse to menaces and violence, to obtain their ends.
As incessant smokers as the Koriacs, they have the same pipes and the
same method of using them.
Being unwilling to prolong my stay, I went as soon as it was light to
take leave of these Tchoukchis in their tents, but the unwholesome
air and the heat soon obliged me to withdraw. Our parting was very
affectionate; each in his turn overwhelmed me with embraces. It may be
supposed I did not fall short in my compliments, nor could I in reality
too highly extol the reception of this hospitable people.
I set off early enough to travel this day thirty wersts. About half way
I found upon the sea coast two balagans and a yourt, inhabited by a
Koriac family, and an hour after I reached the ostrog of Pareiné.
This village is less than Kaminoi, but more populous and well
situated. It is upon a river, from which it takes its name, and about
three wersts from where it pours its waters into the sea of Pengina,
which forms at this place so narrow a gulf, that in clear weather one
can see from one shore to the other.
The first person I saw in the village was an old woman of a mixed
breed, whose melancholy appearance struck me. Either from compassion
or curiosity, I instantly approached her. Upon my questioning her
respecting the cause of her distress, she uttered a loud shriek, and
answered me only by her tears. My intreaties, and the sympathy I
discovered, at last drew from her the recital of her misfortune.
About a fortnight before, she had left Ingiga with her husband, her
son, and a number of friends, to visit some relations at Pareiné.
Overtaken in their way by one of those terrible hurricanes, whose fatal
effects I have been twenty times upon the verge of experiencing, these
travellers had strayed from the road, and been separated from one
another. The father and son were in the same sledge. Having wandered
a long time in pursuit of a shelter, or to discover some vestiges of
the road, they were at length totally lost. After two days search,
they were found buried in the snow, and dead with cold. Their bodies
were completely frozen, and their posture indicated, that these two
unfortunate beings, no longer able to drag themselves on, had lain down
close together to keep themselves warm, and died in each others arms.
More successful than her husband, this woman had found a shelter by the
side of a river, fifteen wersts from Pareiné, where she had arrived
with her companions, exhausted with fatigue, and half dead with grief.
She added, that during this tempest it was impossible to see either
the heavens or the earth. The snow, frozen in the air, grew thicker
as it fell, and was like a shower of icicles. Their clothes had been
so pierced by it as to be perfectly useless. But what still increased
this woman’s affliction, was the inability in which she found herself
of returning to her country. No person seemed disposed to supply her
with the means, which she continually solicited, but without effect.
Upon this she burst into a flood of tears. I said every thing that
compassion suggested to me to console her; and quitted her with regret,
at not being able to afford her any relief, and showing her only a
fruitless pity.
While I was conversing with her, the inhabitants of Pareiné crowded
about me. Their chief or prince, called _Youltitka_, approached to
invite me to pass the night in the village. His sinister countenance
confirmed every thing that had been said of his perfidy, and I gave
him to understand, that I had no desire to stop. Upon my refusal, he
mentioned the impossibility of procuring me dogs and provisions till
the next morning. The reasons he assigned plainly discovered his ill
will[16], and betrayed, I thought, some fatal intention. Resolved to
escape, whatever it might cost me, I replied, that I could very well do
without what I was unable to obtain, but that no consideration should
induce me to stay. He feigned not to comprehend me, and alledged some
new obstacle, regarding me at the same time with a bitter smile, that
seemed to defy me to proceed. I felt that I must arm myself with the
utmost firmness, or patiently submit to whatever law it might please
this wretch to impose upon me. The whole village was present. Two
hundred men at least pressed tumultuously about me, either to inspire
me with terror, or to observe my embarassment. In this perilous
conjuncture, I conceived the design of addressing myself to them in the
Russian language, hoping that there might be some among them who would
understand me, and who might be less unmanageable than their chief.
My harangue was short, but vehement. I enforced the consideration of
my character as a stranger, my claims upon their assistance, my desire
of meriting it by my behaviour towards them, and the kindness I had
received from their countrymen in the course of my journey. I added,
that except in the present instance, I had never had occasion to demand
the succours of which I stood in need; far from waiting till I produced
my orders, they had showed the utmost readiness to anticipate my
wishes, before I could make them known.
At the mention of the word order, I perceived that they looked with
a kind of astonishment upon one another. In proportion as my address
made an impression upon them, I assumed more warmth and assurance. Then
drawing on a sudden my passport from my pocket, and fixing my eyes with
an air of displeasure upon Youltitka, I presented it to him, declaring
at the same time that I meaned to depart in two hours at latest. This
abrupt conclusion disconcerted him. He perceived that he could not
avoid complying with my wishes, without rendering himself criminal;
and the mandate of the governor was too formal and too authoritative
for him to dare to oppose it. He therefore ordered that the quantity
of fish which I wanted, should immediately be collected, intreating me
at the same time to have some regard to the smallness of their stock,
which I should very considerably diminish. It was this idea, he said,
that had induced him to make any difficulties, as he was afraid that I
should totally exhaust their caves. This was a mere subterfuge, as I
was soon convinced that they were abundantly stored.
In the mean time, that he might be thought desirous of making some
amends for his uncivil reception, or perhaps with a view of making me
repent the having forced him in his last intrenchments, he invited
me to wait in his yourt, till my people had made the necessary
preparations for my departure. To refuse would have shown a degree of
inquietude; I wished, on the contrary, fully to convince him of my
intrepidity. It was besides the hour for dining, and with the hope of
imperceptibly gaining the traitor, I accepted his invitation, offering
to treat him with a better repast than it was in his power to provide
for me. I followed him with a countenance as tranquil as if I had felt
myself in perfect security. To speak the truth, however, I was not
without trouble, when, upon coming to his yourt, I found it necessary
to descend forty feet under ground. The extraordinary depth of this
retreat delivered me entirely to the mercy of my host. My companions
could neither have heard nor assisted me. I shuddered at my own
imprudence, but it was too late to draw back. I was well armed, and I
prepared to defend myself as well as I could in case of an insult.