Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-01-08
THE ALASKAN COAST
Captain Healey's Visit to a
Strange Colony.
LIVING IN HOLES in ROCKS
Heif'nerasor N Which ThoY Keep Their Meats
Clothes Determine tho Prestige Of the
Caye-dwolIors - skin In
hunllnQ.

HANNNNs
:, In the vind.tossed waste Of waters Of
Boring Straits thirty niles on port Clar.
enc ana the shores OF Alaska, are about
sVV OF the most curious islanders that ever
i mere 1 1g' SAYS the san Francisco Exam
h,tr, Tue Island, or rock, thoy inhahit IA
nnout half mile vide aud q little more
tnan mat distance long aud "A known IA
di ~. is. snS Inc islanders are cave
and ,walrus meat A year ago Captain VI.
a. hcmey OF the United States cruiser
,ar nYnIu that the natives were on the
son eaten aud he sailed up IN these grim
waters 90 help thcn. lilo found them Ia a
s2psy plight indeed aud he humaaeiy lefe
ABUNDANT stores tO tide them through the
Arctic whit 'r. This year ne went M again
70 see how they were thriving. flo has
l9sl got back, aud he tells an Interesting
Tho barren island rises ike the rock OF
thhfeliNr IN the restless strults, and reaches
I2 y h"ghi OF about 300 feet. rs sides being
~ almost hAt Scarcely "a thing grows there,
even uf the most hardy kind ON the south.
sA.t siqe. closely nesuing against the elm.
~ pnllt over and undor the other, and 20
we rlght and LEFT. giving them a strange,
mn2ue{ appearance, not unlike the rccessos
Inhabited by bald eagles.
There are marrow caves excavnted into
the side OF tho crumhllng volcanic rock,
sh !" Wy ue'lnn OF rach ls some " the
which Ia sleep. AZ the mouth nf the cave
aug Just IN the Interior frea are Minded,
esn,a there they warm themselves IN winter.
skins OF different kinds are also suspended
outside to keep out the snow aud cold In
summgr the hardy natiyca come out of
lh,ir holes aud live Ia odd houses made OF
poles constructed near nj hand. on the edge
VI the elm. Those look something Ike the
nrst houses built ON n mountain side IA n
nun camp though much more primitive.
other. aud probably the highest Ia 200 foot
above The water. These arc all small novels
ma are covered with walrus aud seal skins
AheHv strange people arc usually ag strong
Qnu vigorous aH can be found anywhere.
Moreover, they are entirely consented aud
neg happy aa people in any OF the great
cities az America. They have no govern.
meut no chief and mo- need OF law. living
m families, nnd setting forth every day Ia
their ldnks for the whale, seal and wolves
they return each night 10 their caves or
pole tents caring nothing FOR the outside
odd 90 relate. however. the prestige OF a
native IS Determined by the clothes hn
wears ~ these consist OF skins aud con-
sutuie the wealth OF the iHlandera. 10 Will
Doc seen that they nro not in this respect
so much unlike civilized people But the
lnuu with more clothes than anybody else
has no more authority lie ~ respected
Tor hlH FngnCity, hut that ig all
a. for food no one will see another IN
wnnt What belongs TO one belongs 10 ALL
Moreover they always keep great refrlg.
hluhhcr % guard against the exigoncieH OF
winter Their refrigerator IL a natural one.
u w large cave, 100 feet long 100 feot
broad und 300 feet deep, aud fronts TO
the south on the ocean. AZ its ton is a
smnll hole through which the natives can
| lower themselves with n rope, In the pro-
feceptafIos IN which thc nntiyos store their
| whale huhbcr aud wnlrnH aud seal meat
| Every winter they store thousands OF pounds
| or PROVISIONS there aud whenever a native
| wants mont, VI hO hasn't gUt Il IN his own
! cnve dwelling, he goes 20 the refrigerator
ana gets H. Tho refrigerator ~ never
empty SumWer or winter the temperature
| there rs down tO frpo1ing point. This TEN.
| pctnturc does not bother a native. 10 n
! Just what HuilA him. He baskg va n aud
! enioyl H. The frozen meat which he gela
y toothHomo rclish. He fattcns and
thriyOg on 70.
Little has beon known Of the Islanders
| hitherto. For gront many years after
| the whniprs had been going 10 Berlng Straits
| unl the Great Mackengie u was supposed
| the huge brown rock was uninhahted. 10
/ was IKE beacon Ia the sea and hhouh
/ " nothing was 90 be seen nor heard except
! the roar ~ me waves aud the weird cries
| of the Wild fowl.
FINALLY somn ono dlacerned smoke nsocnd-
| lng from the side OF the rlin. A landing
was iundc and there the Islanders were
| found They said that they and their fore.
| fathers had been there always and that
| they knew no other world, though they
| had heard that there was one, Ihis wAA
| only dozen years ago Since then
them, for they liked the generous natives,
/ Who showed 40 many good traits. captain
! 1lenley, Lieutenant jarvis aud Or. y, j.
/ Call OF the Hear, who landed there during
| the recent cruise 10 see how they were He.
| cured number Of photographs OF the cave
! and summer dwellings, the big refrigerator
| and the island itself na Wei a. the natives.
| They are the hrat, Il IL believed. that have
| over been taken, and have attracted Rrcat
/ attention among those 90 whom they nave
| been shown.
~ found the natives IA excellent con-
| dit,nu," faid Captain Healey recently.
| "fhere are POI OF them, about equally d.
yidCd as To sex, and see 40 reason 10
! think that they will not continue 10 hriye
/ IA HERETOFORE. n NJ. however. struggle
! for existence They have 10 keep NO work
! an tho time catching seals nnd NnruH, aud
| getting what whale hlnbber they can 10
] lido them through, But they are very OK.
/ mort hunters hH all natives are who dwell
| Va isolated regions They are wei skilled
] IN the use Of the spear ana In managing
I warns 10 them as hc knows them better.
'frheir great cave refrigerator Ia the cllI
has nn entrance about sevcnty-ilye feep
/ above water You have 20 climb UP on a
! ledge and there within the cave are holes
! ln which their meat "a stored. / assure yOu
/ / was greatly Interested IN all ! saw.
There " much to Keep one thinking The
! natives are entirely happy. They are Of
/ goa ai2e healthy VI appearance They arc
| types OF The Esqumau sen In other parts
| ~ the Arctic, ana in every respect their
! ly island hom e,and ia the years to come
| their descendants win probably be found
there"