The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-12-08
AN ARCTIC VOLCANO.
Natives of the KUrIe Islands Destroyed by
Eruption.

Eruption.
San Francisco Chronicle.
The story recently published of the aston
ishing results of a volcanic eruption which
occurred near Ounalaska on Oct. 10 has not
only brought out confederation from another
source, but has evoked the recital OF other
phenomena of a similar character. The new
narrator is NJ. Malowanski who has been for
many years a resident of the trading post of
PetropauovskI and as the bulk OF the Incl
dents which he relates had their scene in the
Kurile islands, few words of description of
this almost unknown arch pelago will be
pertinent. The Kurle islands, then, droop
like chain of small links from Kamschatka
down to the japanese island of Yesso, so
closing in the OkhOtsk sea from the north
ern Pacific. Russia claimed them as part
OF her arctic possessions, but they have re-
Gently been coded by the Gar to the Mikado
In exchange for the large island of oaGhalleu.
Russia has profted by tie transaction, for
Saghalien affords excellent fishing grounds,
while the kurile islands rich rs they once
were with the costly fur of the sea-otter. are
now little more than barren reef The sea-
offers have been exterminated and the ku-
rileans have almost become extinct
The islanders are a small race, hardy,
honest and peaceable. BY the Aleuts they
are called the hairy men" but whether this
Is because they dress entirely in skins or be-
cause they are sparingly provided with that
Arctic rarity, beard, is not known. Any
thing more cherries and uniovely than the
lives of the Kurileaus can scarcely be i'm
agined. Living on what is not much more
than a succession of huge stepping-stones
from Kamscnatka to Japan, they are eX-
posed to the full fury and rigor OF the win
tiers of the far north. The late spring is
comparatively pleasant, but with the sum-
mer come on such fogs that an impenetrable
wall seems to be raised between the islands
and the rest of the world. The fogs clear off,
there is brief glimpse OF a low sun, and
then the bleak winter comes down blackly
again. Not thing grows on the islands ex
cept moss, the whole group being destitute
OF tree, or shrub, or blade of grass. For
food the natives depend upon whatever they
may catch in their fishing and hunting ex-
petitions, with the rare addition of a little
bears meat whenever bruu is adventurous
enough to swim off from the main land
Just as the islands are destitute OF foliage, so
they are of animals, the only creature on
them besides the natives being a breed of
small, swift foxes. The habits OF the Kuril-
cans are in keeping with their surroundings.
Hardy and adventurous, having no such
word as home in their meager language, and
no appreciation of such an institution, they
roam in their canoes from island TO island,
killing whatever breathes, putting up rude
huts when they are forced into winter quar-
tiers, but generally despising anything like
shelter and living in their boats. So little are
they used to the arts of construction, that,
unlike their fellow-natives, they do not build
skin canoes. but make up what are called
baidara, class of craft that is as primitive
as the rest of their habits. Wrecks are not
infrequent and the islanders wandering along
the shore pick up whatever driit-wood may
be scattered about, the women being gener-
ally engaged in this harvest of fotsam and
jetsam. The pieces are rudely tied together
with thongs in the shape OF long box, and
caulked with moss. The roughness of the
elements and the roughness of the work are
not particularly conducive to seaworthiuess,
and they generally spring a leak an hour
after they are launched. To keep them afOat
the Kurleans always put a load of moss and
a couple of women on board, the moss being
to stop up whatever cracks may open, and
the women being employed in this work with
bunch of moss and a piece Of stick, dauo-
ing any particularly obstinate crevice with
lump of seal fat.
Nomadic as they are. the Kurileans have
still some sort of a capital and make infre
quent and erratic visits to the village OF
Shumshu which, after all, is little more than
a collection of huts, now rapidly falling in to
decay, and nearly deserted Al some unre-
corded time or other few Jealous priests of
the Greek Church, fired with prosely tizng
zeal, made visit to the islands and converted
the quiet natives. They still OCCASIONALLY
kneel to the highly colored prints OF the Holy
huts, but no similar Jealous missionary has
ever returned to these inhospitable shores to
keep the faith alive. But it is not alone by
the priests that the Kurile islands have been
deserted. Time was when they were visited
by trading customers and steamers, when
the poor fur-hunters cheaply bartered the
sea-otter pelts for guns, powder lead and
knives. All that has ceased; the offers have
nearly disappeared, and the islands do not
contain twenty-five families of hunters. In
termarriage, a hard lot, and the dangers of
the chase have gradually brought the num-
bers down to this handful. disaster OF
terrible nature, however, occurred four years
ago, which more than decimated the already
sparse population.
According to the narrative of NJ, Malowan-
ski a great hunting expedition was to be
made on the island of Shiosh. katan and
the fourteen best hunters of the KurieS were
taken there by trading steamer with the
promise to call for them in a month. When
at the expiration of that time, the steamer,
returned her captain was unable to recognize
the spot The roadstead in which he had an
chored had disappeared and in its place was a
level stretch of scorie. a boats crew was
landed and the interior of the island was
as much altered as the configuration OF the
Shore The ground, instead of showing the
moss patches was covered with ashes and the
sailors had to plow through a soft gray dust
that was sometimes knee high. Roots great
and small, lay all around, and what had been
an almost level reef now sloped up to Il bare
hill OF far proportions. Mounting this, the
sailors found it to be astill rumbling volcano.
No trace OF the hunters could be seen, nor
were they ever afterward heard of, and the
conclusion was inevitable that crater bad
suddenly opened in the island and that un-
der IS terrible shower OF lava and pumice
they had been buried without chance OF
escape or the opportunity to Leave sign OF
their miserable fate. There they still lie and
will remain until some far future archeolo-
gist shall disinter them as evidences OF an
Arctic Herculaneam.
Ferdinand De Lesseps.