Douglas Island news., 1900-09-26
KILLIsNOO KINKS.

Since my last letter to the News there has not much transpired of interest in the quiet village of Kilisnoo. The oil and guano works are still doing good business in the way of plenty of oil and quano. They also salt and barrel a great quantity of salmon and ship them to Seattle. The last time the Queen called here she took 15o tons of salt salmon. This season has not been as good season for salmon as some others, I am told. Yet the Dolphin and the Favorite, the two large boats of the company, go out each day to return we'll loaded with fish. Herring are very plentiful, and these are what they use mostly for making oil and guano.
 There has been one very important and beneficial step taken by Father Sobalef, the priest of the Russian church here. He has organized a tenn perance society for the natives. He has tried every other means to keep them from drinking to excess. Since the jail has been built, they arrest them and put them in it and fine them. While he has had some influence in checking them, yet it don't prohibit drinking. The Indians think it great honor to join a lodge, like white man, but when Father Sobaleff asks them to sign their name in the book they don't like that so we'll. He has to do great deal of talking to get them to understand they are not signing their rights away. They are of a very suspicious nature; always afraid that the white man is going to cheat them. 1 don't know as they are to be blamed for that; for surely their lands have been taken from them, and they have been driven from place to place, and in many parts of Alaska companles are building canneries and taking their fish from them without any compensation. A very small sum satisfies them. $50 or S10O is a large sum of money for them. They are per fectly satisfied with that amount. At Basket bay, about twenty-five miles from here, the fishing streams are claimed by an Indian called Metlakaht- la Jim. A company from Wraugel came up there to fish for salmon. They pay him $50 for the privilege of fishing and give him g day to boss the other Indians they employ to fish for them. He is perfectly satisfied and they do we'll, as they often catch six thousand fish at haul. They get 10 cents fish. It is no more than justice that they be paid something for the privilege of fishing in the streams and bays, where the Indians have for many years caught and dried fish. That is the main thing they live on. Most of them. plant some potatoes and turnips but sell the great CT part of them. Father Sobalef is do ing a good work among the natives here He tries every plan he can think of to get them to live good,, honest lives. He and his good wife devote much time and labor to them, not sparing themselves in the least. If they don't receive much compensation here, they will get their reward in their Fathers kingdom, after they pass over on the other shore. We all have much such work to do in this world if we do our christian duty. Work for sweet Charity's sake. We are told in Gods word, "It is more blessed to give than to receive" 1 am sure anyone who has helped others, even in small way, has found that to be true.
 Please allow me to correct an error in the issue of Aug. 29th, where you said MT. Baker had two fine axes. l in tended, if ] did not write it plain enough, to say he has two fine oxen, which do all his blowing and hauling. We received large bag of potatoes this week from his ranch; the finest l ever saw. I weighed several of them; some weighing a pound, and others a pound and quarter. The flavor is su- perior to those in the states.
 MRS. c. E. VAN HUEBNER.
 Killisnoo, Sept. 18th, 1900
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