Seattle daily post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, W.T. [Wash.]) 1881-1888, 1883-10-13
A SEASON II Tmg AxCruC OCEA~
Victoria Colonist.


Capt. Cdrthcut, of the schooner San
Diego which came into Victoria yester-
day, reports that they sailed from San
Francisco on the 20sh of March last for
the Behrinx Sea on a whaling cruise.
There were on board 13 hands all told,
consisting of Captain Carthcut, Mr..
Mclean, the mate, the steward. three
hunters, and crew. Neah Bay was left
early III April, and from that time until
touching at Prince of Wales Island, on
October Sd. the crew saw no white men
other than themselves. Taken alto
gether, the season may be said to have
been stormy and generally unpropi-
tious. No vessels of any description
we're sighted, aud wairus and whales
were very scarce. On their way north,
in the middle of June, when near st.
Matthew and Hall islands. long. 100
deg. w., lat. GO deg. N, the schooner
passed through a large number of ice
foes which crashed and ground against
each other in a manner that would have
been considered grand had it not threat
ened the safety of those who beheld it.
The bergs consisted of those large
masses of ice which are annually de-
taehed from the ice fields of the North
by the warmth of the Arctic summer
On some of them were seen many large
walrds, all unconscious of their destina-
tion and the inevitable capsiZing Of
their ocean homes. The rays of the
sun which broke through the clouds are
described as having given most
sublime effect to the ioebergs {some of
them most fanoiful in shape) which
acted AS immense prisms and reflected
the most gorgeous hues. The next
morning, the schooner being anchored
little off shore, two or three of the
hands were sent ashore to forage for
any edible game. The party landed,
beached their boat, and had not pro-
oeeded far along the shore when one of
the hunters, Perkins, shot and killed a
polar bear measuring over eight feet in
length. In endeavoring to re-launoh
the boat, the surf, which was breaking
heavily on the beach, broke over and
swamped the boat, which contained all
the rifles and shotguns. At this mo-
ment one Of the Grew called attention to
large polar bear that had jumped from
a passing mass of ice aud was swim
ming to the shore in the direction of
the boat. The rifles ware thoroughly
wet, but luckily Perkins had "a dry cart
ridge in his pocket, and, seizing his
damp tirearm, he loaded it and fired at
the bear, which was then not many feet
from shore and already swapping its
teeth at the strangers. The ball struck
the animal Just above the eye, instantly
killing him, and, as the bears life blood
and brains crimsoned the water, the
latter bec .me sufficiently calm, owing
to the oily oonsistence of the animal
matter thus disseminated, to allow the
boat 10 be again launched. Seeing that
something WAS amiss, the Captain sent
another boat tn the scene, which towed
the first boat and the Carcass of the
bear off to the vessel. After being dried
the skin was exactly II feet inches in
length.
st. Mathews Island. which is now in
tho possession Of the United States, WAS
settled upon sOma years ago by num-
ber Of Russians, but SO numerous were
the polar bears that il WAS found i'm
possible to form colony and the island
became once more uninhabited, and 1t
in said that more of the Russians were
killed by these savage animals than left
it. Several cinnamon bears were
shot by the hunters on the
Alaska peninsula, and during the
cruise 800 seals fell To their unerring
aim. On Sept. l4th the Captain de-
clared the cruise to be us, and passing
through Oanamik Pass the staunch lit
tie craft Was headed for the abodes Of
civilization and came to an anchor as
stated. yesterday afternoon. with all
well ON board and right glad to once
more get ashore after long and rather
tedious cruise.