KAMTSCHATKA, a large peninsula of Asia, which runs out from the north-east coast in a southern direction about 600 or 700 miles, from lat. 59. to 51. N., whilst its greatest breadth is not above half as much. It forms part of the Russian government of Irkoutsk, to which it is joined at its northern extremity. On the east it is bounded by the North Pacific Ocean, and on the west by that large gulf called the Sea of Okhotsk. The country is of a very unequal surface. A chain of elevated mountains with numerous lofty peaks extends from north to south along the whole length of the peninsula, from which numerous rivers spring, and find their way to the ocean. The chief of these, and the only stream that is navigable, is the Kamtschatka, which admits vessels of 100 tons burden fifty miles up the stream. The country also contains many lakes of a considerable size, and so numerous that all intercourse between the several parts of the peninsula during spring, summer, and autumn, is effectually precluded. The mountains are volcanic, and of very great height; the most remarkable is one situated near Nijni Kamtschatsk, which, it is said, is visible at the distance of nearly 200 miles, and which, in this case, must rise to an enormous height. This mountain is an active volcano, subject to frequent eruptions, which often continue for a fortnight without interruption, [7:12:672] Covering the whole country for thirty miles round with ashes to the depth of several inches; torrents of flame and lava continually bursting forth, and melting the snows with which the mountain is at all times covered. The years 1737, 1762, and 1767, were distinguished by dreadful eruptions from this volcano.

The climate is ungenial, and cold to a degree scarcely accounted for by the latitude, and is probably owing to the snow-clad mountains, and to the heavy rains and still heavier fogs which settle upon this land from the seas by which it is surrounded. Winter may be said to occupy more than one half of the year, the snow lying upon the ground for seven or eight months; spring and summer the other half. The winters are not so severe as in Siberia, the thermometer never descending in the southern parts of the peninsula below 20° of Reaumur, and seldom below 12° and 15°. Spring is the finest season of the year, the summer being extremely disagreeable, owing to the rains and fogs already mentioned. The greatest heat is in July, when the thermometer is 27° and 28° of Reaumur. Owing to the absence of heat, the variable nature of the climate, the prevalence of rain and of heavy fogs, and to the short and imperfect summer, joined to the stony character of the soil, the country is unproductive, and can hardly be made to yield grain even in the smallest quantity. Its produce is confined to wild vegetables. Wild berries, wild garlic, and roots abound, and greens, turnips, and radishes might with care be everywhere produced. One of the most valuable productions is a root called duranne, which grows wild, and supplies in some degree the place of bread; also a plant called sweet grass, which is used in cookery, and from which a spirituous liquor is distilled, equal in strength to brandy. The trees are numerous, though stunted in their size; the birch is most common, also the willow and some kinds of dwarf pines and cedars. Shrubs are more plentiful. But the chief riches of Kamtschatka consist in the variety and abundance of wild animals which range over its unproductive wastes, and in the great numbers of fish which swarm in all its rivers. The animals of the chase are found in prodigious numbers; and, as in all cold climates, they are provided with a covering of the richest furs. The animal from which the sable is procured is even more plentiful than in Siberia, though the fur is not quite so beautiful. There are several species of the arctic fox, particularly one called the ogneska, or the fiery-red fox of Kamtschatka, which is the finest species. The other animals are the beaver, the hare, the marmot, sea and river otters. Bears, wolves, rein-deer, and mountain sheep, and sometimes a few lynxes, are to be found; and hunting, especially of the bear, constitutes one of the chief occupations of the Kamtschadales. The dogs of Kamtschatka, which are trained to useful occupations, are much valued. These faithful animals are employed to transport fish, supply the house with water and the cattle with hay, and to do all the work for which horses are employed in England. They are fed well or ill according to circumstances, but are always left to shift for themselves from June to October. They are of a coarse appearance, in shape resembling the common housedog; but are endowed with uncommon sagacity. The fish, which swarm in the rivers and around the coasts, supply the chief article of food to the inhabitants. The salmon, herrings, and different kinds of shell-fish, are of particular excellence; and great benefit accrues from the numerous whales which are cast upon the shores. Independently of fish and wild animals, the Kamtschadales derive also a considerable benefit from the surprising quantities of geese, ducks, swans, snipes, and wild cocks, which are found in their country. They are preserved either by salting, or by being dipt in water, which freezes and keeps them fresh whilst the winter continues. The ducks and snipes are excellent; also the geese, swans, and wild sheep, which are considered as venison. With all these resources for their subsistence, fish, flesh, and fowl, wild berries, and roots in great variety and abundance, with immense quantities of furs of the warmest and most durable kind for clothing, and, for firing and building, wood in profusion for their limited wants, the inhabitants of Kamtschatka have an ample supply of the necessaries of life placed at their disposal.

The inhabitants of this peninsula formerly lived in the filthy and famished condition of savages, and since they have come under the dominion of the Russians they are not greatly improved; so difficult is it to change the moral habits of a people. They are in general of low stature, with broad shoulders and a large head and short legs; the face, and particularly the nose, long and flat, with small and sunk eyes, thin lips, and scarcely any beard, which is a complete Tartar portrait, both in figure and features, and proves them to have sprung from this great Asiatic stock. They are now, as mentioned by Captain Cochrane, who traversed so large a portion of Asia on foot, established in villages, all built in the old Russian style, which are clean and comfortable. During the summer or fishing season they leave their winter residences for the places which they use for drying fish. The summer is thus occupied in providing food for the winter, which is mostly employed in the chase. But though the above traveller represents the inhabitants of this wild and inhospitable country as amiable and honest in their dispositions, he still characterises the Kamtschadale, after providing his winter store, as being, beyond this, “the same lazy, drunken, servile animal as formerly.”^[1. Narrative of a Pedestrian Journey through Russia and Siberian Tart ary, by Captain John Dundas Cochrane, II. N. vol. ii. p∙ 42. ] Their ancient language is not forgotten, though most of them speak rhe Russian. The number of real Kamtschadales who retain their ancient usages is small. They reside on the northern coasts, beyond Tygil and Ñijni Kamtschatsk. Hospitality, the virtue of all rude nations, is the most striking feature in their character, though they are also remarkable for their strict adherence to truth. Their character is represented by other travellers as mild and hospitable, living together in general in great harmony, and even, when necessary, notwithstanding their usual habits of laziness, assisting each other in their labours. They are a healthy race, enjoying, notwithstanding the rudeness of the climate, great vigour of constitution, so that they are subject to but few maladies, and generally reach an advanced age. Since they have been subjected to the Russian dominion, they are prohibited from going to war, though formerly wars were frequent amongst them, and were carried on with all the characteristic cunning and cruelty of savages. It was not their common practice to engage in regular battle, but the hostile parties laid ambuscades for each other; and when they succeeded they killed the men and children, and carried off the women. Sometimes a party, surprised by their enemies, would, in their desperation, first kill their women, and then themselves. Their arms are clubs, lances, and arrows pointed with bone. Now that they are compelled to remain at peace, they have sunk into indolence and the coarsest sensuality; they devour their fish, which is their principal food, raw, with eager avidity, and without the slightest regard to cleanliness or delicacy. Salmon is their greatest delicacy, and they bury it in the ground till it become putrid, when they consider it as in the best state to be eaten. Their w hole habits, both in eating and in every other part of their domestic economy, are filthy in the extreme; no part of their body is ever washed, neither their face, hands, nor [7:12:673]feet. Their manners, however, are lively and cheerful; they delight in dancing, which causes them entirely to shake off their natural indolence; their songs are full of rude mirth; they have agreeable voices, though their tunes are very rude; and they are fond of feats of mimicry, in which they excel. One of their favourite dances is the imitation of the gestures and attitudes of a bear in moving quietly along, or in the act of seizing its prey. All these they represent to the life; and in the distortions into which they throw themselves in order to perform these uncouth exhibitions, they undergo a degree of labour which astonishes all travellers, considering their natural indolence and aversion to all bodily exertion. The admiration which the spectators express on beholding these performances, rude as they are, is unbounded. These social meetings of the Kamtschadales are not always, however, the most pure. Licentiousness prevails, and the females are by no means scrupulous in their conduct. It is their practice to go out at a particular season to collect roots and vegetables for winter consumption; and they celebrate this time, which is a holiday festival, with all the unbounded license of bacchanalian revellers. Like all rude nations, they are extremely superstitious. They formerly relied for aid, in all extremities, on their own priests, the Shamanes; but they have now transferred their veneration to the Russian priests, to whom they give presents of furs, whilst all that was exacted by the former for their spiritual aid was a hearty meal.

The Kamtschadales had formerly their winter and their summer habitations, the former sunk some feet under ground for the sake of warmth, the walls formed of trees laid over each other and plastered with clay, the roof slanting, and covered with coarse grass or rushes: their houses now exactly resemble those of their conquerors, and a Kamtschadale is a counterpart of a Russian village. It is extremely dirty and uncomfortable, and the intercourse with the Russians has in no respect reformed the original habits of the inhabitants. The dirt, and stench, and soot, issuing from the lamp of a Kamtschadale cottage, are what only a native could endure, “They seem,” says Cochrane, “a race disburdened of all care and consideration for the future, and are entirely resigned to any fate which may await them, whether it be oppression, starvation, or disease.” The summer house is raised to the height of twelve or thirteen feet from the ground, by a number of posts, which support a platform made of rafters and covered with clay, which serves as the floor, whence the house ascends in the form of a cone, covered with thatch or dried grass; and here the whole family eat and sleep. The purpose of raising up the house upon these posts is to afford a space sheltered from the sun and the rain, where they can conveniently dry the fish, which are accordingly attached to the posts and ceiling for this purpose.

The Kamtschadales have few domestic animals. According to the last census, Captain Cochrane informs us that the number of horses throughout the whole peninsula did not exceed 109, and the number of horned cattle 968, two thirds of which are in the hands of the Russians, and about 400 head of cattle in the possession of 3400 Kamtschadales and Koriaks. The cattle left by Captain King have not multiplied as was expected, which is a great loss to the inhabitants, as the introduction of horses and horned cattle would tend to ameliorate the condition of the people. The extensive meadows of Kamtschatka would afford ample pasture for large herds of cattle, nor is the climate too severe; and the neglect, therefore, of supplying the country with these is ascribed by Cochrane to the interested views of the Russian chiefs, more intent on their own selfish objects than on the public good. At present, the large species of dog, which rather resembles the mountain or shepherd dogs of Europe, is the only beast of burden which the inhabitants use; and there is no individual, either Russian or native, who has less than five. These dogs are harnessed to a sledge, two and two abreast, with one peculiarly well trained and intelligent placed in front as a leader. They have different cries to encourage and spur them on, or to direct their course. The cry of “ tag, tag,” turns them to the right; that of “kongha, kongha,” to the left; “ah, ah.” stops them; and “ ha” hastens their departure. A sledge for personal convenience is drawn by four or five dogs, one for baggage by ten. The travelling sledge is in the form of an oblong basket, three feet in length and one foot in breadth, and raised three feet from the ground; and both extremities are elevated in a curve. On this vehicle the rider sits astride, or more commonly sideways; and it is reckoned the perfection of charioteering to drive standing on one foot. Whilst the vehicle is passing over uneven ground, it is extremely difficult to maintain the balance; and inexperienced riders are consequently in great danger of being thrown out and of overturning the carriage. The only instrument they use is a stick, which they throw at the dogs, and catch again with amazing dexterity.

Of the origin and history of the Kamtschadales we have no accurate accounts; and very little is known of them beyond the last 130 years. The country was visited in 1649 by some Russians, whose vessel was wrecked on the coast. They lived in peace with the natives for a considerabletime; butafterwards quarrelling among themselves, were murdered. It was not till the year 1696 that a body of Cossacks from Anadirsk penetrated into the country. From that time they were involved in perpetual hostilities with the natives. Successive expeditions were sent into this inhospitable country, and the Russians advanced farther and farther, erecting forts and levying tribute, until all Kamtschatka was, in 1706, surveyed and occupied by them. From this period it has been governed by Russia; and though the sway of the emperor has been mild, yet the inhabitants have been severely oppressed by their own magistrates, each of whom is a petty despot within his own district. Each ostrog or district is permitted to choose its own magistrates, the chief of whom is called a toion, who is merely a peasant like those whom he governs, and has no outward mark of distinction. He has another magistrate under him, called yesaoul, who assists him in his functions, and in his absence acts as his deputy. These magistrates have a general charge over the peace of the district; they are besides collectors of the tax, and possess large discretionary powers, which they often abuse in oppressing the inhabitants. The yasack is an inconsiderable pecuniary tax, which is paid by a contribution of furs from each village, but is rendered odious and oppressive from the arbitrary manner in which it is collected. The furs are often undervalued, especially if the toion or chief of a village does not properly compliment the chief officers on his annual visit. Cochrane mentions that he had seen sables valued at 2s. 6d., for which merchants would have given 12s. These furs, though of the finest quality, and worth 40s. a pair, are never averaged at more than lüs. This tax is payable to the emperor, and also to his deputies; so that, by their arbitrary exactions, it is often paid five times over. Besides this, there is a capitation tax of 7d. on each individual; and to enforce the collection of this tax the most arbitrary measures are often employed. The property of defaulters may be seized and sold in a moment; such as axes, knives, nets, guns, kettles, or the clothing of the family; and it has often happened that the poor natives are ruined by the illegal dues added to this tax by the collectors. There are other oppressions to which the inhabitants are liable, namely, forced and gratuitous services, such as forwarding of the post, the transport of flour and salt, and the forced levies of horses or dogs to officers and favourites. Any favourite or officer, who may wish to trade, is furnished with a free billet, [7:12:674]which authorizes him, on the plea of public duty, to call out any supply of men and dogs that he may deem expedient; and besides this, he may purchase as many sables as the poor native happens to possess, and at any price which he himself chooses to fix.

The trade carried on with Russia consists in the exchange of furs for such articles as are in demand amongst the inhabitants. Captain Cochrane estimates the annual number of animals caught in the peninsula at 30,000, worth at least 200,000 rubles, or L. 10,000. For these are received bread, flour, oatmeal, tea, sugar, tobacco, coarse cottons, nankeens, ribbons, handkerchiefs, &c.; woollens, linens, axes, knives, kettles, twine, &c. But the article most desired by the inhabitants, and which is ruinous alike to their morals and their health, is spirits, supplied to them by the Russian traders. For a glass of spirits these miserable creatures will sell the last sable they are possessed of. No less than 16,000 bottles of this pernicious stuff are consumed in the short period of three or four months, by 600 or 700 people, and at a most exorbitant price. This, with the introduction of European vices, carrying with them the seeds of other diseases, has contributed greatly to the desolation of the country. The population was greatly thinned by continual wars and insurrections; and these were followed by the introduction of the small-pox, which, in the year 1768, carried off no less than 6000 persons. Vaccination has been introduced, but a want of vaccinating matter has prevented this improvement from being generally introduced. St Peter’s and St Paul’s is the chief city of Kamtschatka, which contains forty-two dwellings, besides fifteen edifices belonging to the government, an old church, and the foundation of a new one. There is a school in this place, governed by a priest and a regular schoolmaster; but they are neither of them highly qualified for their duties. The children of the natives receive no education, and the children of the Russians but little more. The number of convicts who are sent here is also a serious grievance, as they obtain an ascendency over the natives, which is exercised in a most intolerant and infamous manner. They frequently desert, and commit every species of villany and outrage, even to the fomenting of insurrections.

Kamtschatka has been divided, since 1783, into four districts: lsr, Bolcheretsk; 2d , Tiguilok; 3d, Nijni Kamtschatsk; 4∕7z, Verschnei Kamtschatsk. Since 1802 a commandant-general or governor has been appointed over the peninsula, who formerlyresided atVerschnei Kamtschatsk, but has since been removed to St Peter’s and St Paul’s, and is, says Coehrane, again to be removed. According to his account, no improvement can be brought about in the condition of this desolate country, as long as its governors are sent for five years only. The general mode of occupying the allotted term, he adds, is for the first year to look about and to form plans for the improvement of the country, the second is passed in making reports, stating opinions; the third year brings the reply of the government, directing or authorizing the mode of administration; the fourth is employed in preparing, or at most in acting upon, such orders; and the fifth and last year in preparing to return to Europe, and in levying a parting contribution; the whole five years being indeed taken up more or less with accumulating as much money as possible. The population of Kamtschatka, according to the last census, amounts to 2208 Kamtschadales, 498 Koriaks, and 1260 Russians, amounting, along with the addition of other straggling hordes, to 4574 men, women, and children. (f J Islands in the Sea of Kamtschatka. See Aleutian Islands.