The Elbert County tribune., 1905-10-05

in fact. it is very "oid
1o< quarrel" Prior to 1876
Sakhaiien was called Kara
futo by the Japanese, and was then
exclusively inhabited by Nippons and
Chinese. 1t was navigator from he
Rising Sun. Mania Rimo, who first, in
the year 1901. located its safe anchor
ages which had, however already been
roughly noted by the Frenehman. La
Perouse, in 1777. SO far back as 1856
the japanese protested against n CON
vention which was ratified and exc
cuted in 1859. in virtue of which the
Sakhalien Island was shared between
Japan and Russia, the 50th parallel
of latitude forming the limit OF the
zones Of influence. Later. in 1875. un-
der the treaty of St Petersburg. the
Japanese part OF the island also be
came Russia's property in exchange
for the mediocre archipelago of the
Kuriles, the yield of which is nil from
an economical point of view, and on
that occasion Japan lodged another
protest. Sakhalien is situated to the
north of Japan, strait dividing it
from Yeso. The Russians converted ii
into penitentiary colony. where the
conviets and their issue numbered
about 10000. They were given the
charge of colonizins the island. task
that they performed with as little
eagerness as success.
The natives are very primitive and
very wild, but at the same time quite
harmless; they are known by the uane
of the Guiliaks and the Amos; and they
camp along the large rivers of the isl
ias6, that is to say. the Tyne and the
Psronai. The width of Sakhalien
varies between sixteen and 100 miles.
but so long is the island (over $50
niles, that its area equals the sixth
miles. The island is particularly
wealthy in gold, silver, timber. amber,
iron, plumbagine, furs. coal and petrol
cum deposits. the latter being more ex-
telsive than those of the United States,
and it is now known that the petroleum
springs found in the vicinity of the
Nooteva River. which is one of the
main streams of the island. are more
important than those of Baku.
Although the island is covered with
snow for so long every year. and dur
ing July ice is still found at Il distance
of less than one yard from the surface
of the earth. the Japanese were espe-
cially anxious to take Sakhalien be
cause fish is the National food in
Japan. and since the beginning of the
war they have had to get ii from the
Formosa and 1ndo-China coasts. And
Japan is not naturally rich country;
its principal agricultural products ere
rice. mulberr.es. vegetables and indigo
in limited quantities; and so poo is
the soil that it requires more manmn
than that of any other country in the
world. Consequently. fish is not simply
one of the chief foods of the Japanese,
but it supplies them with an excellent
fertilizing material for their fields. In
oden times the Japanese agriculinrists
10 enrich their lands and rice fields
made use of bean shells. which were
imported from the ports of China and
Korea, Shanghai and Chefoo Fusan
and Chemulpo. The bean manure had
the advantage of being very cheap,
its cost being only fifth of the price
of the fish manure, but the latter has
a chemical power incomparably
stronger, and the fields amended by its
employment yield very rich crops. so
that the most skeptical Japanese, hay
ing been taught by experience during
the war against China. are now con-
WINGED that it is advanta geous to use
fish fertilizer, in spite of its higher
price.
In past times, fish used to come in
great numbers on the shores and in
the japanese rivers. and could be cas-
ilz captured. The Yeso Island was es-
pecially famous for its fish, but those
fine days are gone. for salmon have
little by little deserted the rivers ow-
ing to the irrational and immoderate
fishing. The herring has abandoned
the japanese waters. having nndoubt-
edly been frightened by the boats,
which became more and more numer-
Gus. They like quietness and dislike
noise and sometimes the firing of
gun is quite enough to make whole
shoal leave the bay where ii had taken
up its quarters. All this, however. does
not mean that fish are scarce in the
seas and rivers of Japan, but they are
sensibly fewer than in the past. Fish,
on the other hand, are more numerous
than ever in the Russian seas of the
Far East. In Kamtchatka they arrive
in shoals so compact that they have
been known to capsize boats on their
In the hays, which are so
on the continent. the natives
catch fish in abundance, which, peIns
dried in the sun and stored, supply
them with food during the winter; and
at Sakhalien, at the time the salmon
reascend the rivers. they are so numer-
Gus that the natives are often able
to catch them with the hand. and
shoals of herring are occasionally
stranded on the shore.