Douglas Island news., 1906-10-10
How Bogoslof Was Born

the Aleutlan archipelago, aud study Ing the volcanos of that region. He resor- rects from BaranoG,the Russian trader of the eighteenth century, the descrip- ton of the uplifting of Bogoslof island, near which two later volcanic islands have been thrown up the last early in the present summer.
 "On the 1st of May, l796, storm arose near Umnak Island and continu- ed for several days. It was very dark all the time and low noises resembling thunder were continually heard. On the third day the sky became clear very early, and a flame was seen arising from the sea between Unalaska and Umnak. North of the latter smoke was observed for ten dave. At the end of this time, from Unalaska round white mass was seen rising ont of the sea. Daring the night fire arose in the same locality, so that objects ten miles off were distinctly visible. An earth quake shook Unalaska, and was ac- companied by fearful noises. Rocks were thrown from the new volcano as far as Umnak. With sunrise the noises ceased, the fire diminished, and the new island was seen in the shape of a black cone. It was named after St. John, the observation-disclosures Bogos- Iowa.
 Yet, mark, as late as 1883 new island arose in Boring sea, precisely in the same manner, and ouly few miles from Bogoslof. It is called Grewingk.
 Grewingk was wise old German geographer, who about the middle of last century made an exhaustive study of the Alaskan volcanic belt, without visiting the region. Most accurate knowledge of its craters is traceable to him; but in no region of the world is such knowledge more unreliable. Grewingk at least had the sense to doubt that Mt. St. Elias was volcanic, although it was assumed to be so by Americans who visited it up to the early ninties, when Prof. Russell pricked up the illusion and placed St. Elias as a volcano among the great list of geographic hoaxes, from the mythi- cal Mount Itazahan of biblical days to Mounts Brown and Hooker,the modern l6,OO0 foot fakes of the Canadian Rock ies St. Elias was even stated to have been afre in 1899 and 1947. Grewingk names forty.one Alaskan cones active within the previous 100 years.
 The correspondent seems to approve of the picturesqueness of 'this archi- pelago of fog and surf and busy vol canoes, of which he writes;
 "aere are a thousand miles of snowy ash-cones and treeless bights, inces- sanity in fog, pounded from the south over uncharted reefs by the Pacific ocean which reaches almost unbroken to the south pole; on the north by the shallower and so harsher swells of the Boring Sea. Twelve to twenty-five days each month rain or snow falls, often more than 300 inches each y ear Only rare flashes of sunlight reveal the purple lupine and pale poppy flower ing on desolate volcanic ridges, sea lions glistening on the shelves of out lying Gibralters-murres, red-throated pufins. 4 tiny monthly steamer sweeps the eastern half of these wild shores, calling at about five harbors- such names as 8eIkofsky, Unga, Unak Chiguik-small gold mines. salmon canneries, Siwash trading posts,supply stores for lone prospectors, genuerally squawmen, who hope for wealth in coal or sulphur, for all vessels sailing by great circle to the Orient from our north coast must sight these islands at the exact middle of their voyage. And our national laws, which in Alaska, at least, are respected over into the new day beyond the sunset, demand that a miner must do hundred dollars worth of development" each year to hold his claim. Once year a light house tender visits the two new beacons on Unimak island, which is the most fire blasted of them all, with it's three live volcanoes in a stretch of fifty miles, and so turbulent that for de- cades, it is saidr no aborigines have lived there.