St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1897-09-03


the tropics the other birds abov,
mentioned do not migrate, and so t HI
accumulations of their droppings in
crease more rapidly. 1t is known
that more than century is required
to add one inch in depth to sheet o
guano. When it is considered thai
deposits of guapo are sometimes a.
much as fifty and even sixty feet
deep, it will be realized what an enor
morus length of time must have beer
needed to form such beds.
In the neighborhood of the West
Indies and off the coast of Yucca tar
and the Nicaragua are several other
euano islands that belong to the
United States. There are eleven Of
them in all, namely, Anchor Key,
BOBBY Key, Navassa, Sand Key,
Northeast Key, North Key, North
Rock, Serrana Key, and the three
Triangle Keys. Nearly all Of them
are small and the guano is of second
rate quality because there's too much
rainfall. However, most OF the val
liable guano was long ago removed
from nearly all of the islands de-
scrbed and Uncle Sam has no very
important use at present for these
places of water-bound real estate.
Nearly all of them are uninhabited,
though few primitive Polynesians
get scanty living on some of our
annexed ocean property in the Pa
cihc, cocoanut trees and screw pines
yielding the most important part of
the food supply. The natives adopt
very interesting expedient for the
purpose OF making an artificial soil.
They dig down to the coral bedrock
and into the hole they throw all sorts
OF refuse, such as dead fish, garbage
and leaves, with occasionally a little
sand. In the soil thus formed they
plant taro.
Not a few of the Pacific islands be-
longing to the United States are
atolls, like Christmas island, already
spoken of. An atoll is supposed by
some authorities to be the result of
volcanic action, a mountain being
upliited from the bottom of the sea
and sinking later on, so as to leave
behind it the rim OF coral reefs by
which it is surrounded. A typical
guano isle is Malpelo, which is an
isolated rock about mile long and
half mile wide. 1t is covered with
the excrement OF sea birds, which oc
cupy it in vast numbers. There is no
vegetation on it save a few low and
leafless bushes. Probably the plants
which would otherwise grow there
are killed by the droppings of the
birds. The most remarkable feature
of Malpelo, however, is cave on the
northwest side which has never been
explored. Ga one occasion a boat
from the United States Fish Commits
sion steamer, Albatross, entered it
for distance OF 200 yards. The en-
trance is an arch Is feet high and the
cavern within expands into a sym.
metrical dome.
But Uncle Sans ocean empire in
cludes a great many islands of far
greater importance than the guano
isles referred to. In Behring Sea there
are several very large islands, besides
the Little Pribolof Group, TO which
the fur seals resort. On one of these
islands dreadful catastrophe &C.
Cured few years ago. Traders fur
nished the natives with a barrel of
rum and, instead of devoting their
attention to the procurement and
storing Of food during the hunting
and fishing season, the wretched peo-
pie got drunk and stayed so. Next
year white people came and found
not soul alive; all had starved to
death during the winter. This coun.
try owns the entire chain of Aleutian
islands, which separates Behrlng Sea
from the North Pacific. The inhabi.
tants of these islands, called Aleuts,
are particularly intelligent; much
more civilized than the Eskimo, and
bear close resemblance physically
to the japanese. On the coast of
southern Alaska is a group of islands
of great size, on some of which live
the Thlinket Indians. These Indians
are the most artistic savages in the
world, being very skillful wood
carvers.
On the coast of southern California
is the Santa Barbara Group, COM
prising number of large islands.
Formerly these were inhabited by a
large population, which was at
tracted by the many natural advan
tages possessed by them. There were
quarries of sandstone from which
suitable mortars for the grinding of
corn were obtained. and plenty of the
finest soapstone in the world was at
hand for the manufacture of pots and
primitive utensils. There was plenty
OF food tor nothing, as one might say ,
the fishing being excellent. The dead
were usually buried in graves marked
with the jawbones of whales that
had been thrown up and stranded on
the beach. The people were happy
and prosperous; but Jesuits came
and ordered things differently, COM
pelling the natives to move over to
the mainland, opposite, where they
now reside. At present the islands
are used for raising sheep.
Thus it will be seen that this ma
ton, when it has annexed Hawaii,
will possess quite an extensive and
widely-distributed oceanic realm, in.