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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 1, 1884)
THE WEST SHORE. 235 THE DISCOVERY OP AT.ARTr a, SPAIN had taken possession of Florida, Mexico, Cen tral America, Peru and Chile, had colonized Lower California and established an enormous trans-Pacific commerce with the Indies; France had colonized Canada; the English, Dutch and Swedes had planted flourishing colonies on the Atlantio Coast, and the great Hudson's Bay Company had become firmly settled in its possession of the country surrounding the great inland sea from which it derives its name, before the first vessel's prow cleaved the waters of the North Pacific In 1578 Sir Francis Drake had sailed as fnr north on the coast of " New Albion " as the forty-third parallel, possibly the forty-eighth, and in 1G03 Martin de Aguilar had reachod and attempted to enter the Rogue, or Umpqua, River on the Oregon coast; but north of that all was blank. For more than a hundred years thereafter not the least effort was made by these rival .nations to establish thomsolvos on the Pacific Coast north of the Spanish possessions in California. Not a vessel cast its Bhadow upon the waters of the North Pacific, nor a Caucasian eye gaze upon the mountain peaks that Btand like anciont sentinels along our coast Suddenly interest in this region was revived, and the initial steps were taken by a Power previously supixwed to have no interest whatever in the American question. The sudden rise of Russia from oblivion to a high rank among the Powers of the world, a revolution wrought by the genius of the enlightened monarch, Peter the Great, is one of the marvels of history. Gradually he extended his power eastward across the snowy wastes of Siberia until his dominions were washed by the waters of the Pacific beating upon the peninsula of Kamtchatka. The fur trade of this vast solitude became a valuable one, and added to the great revenue of the Czar. Having reached the Pacific he became eager to extend his power still further eastward until it touched the western con fines of the dependencies of England, France and Spain in America. How far that was, or what was the nature of the region coveted, neither he nor any one else had the faintest glimmering of knowledge. It might be a great ocean of valueless water, a sea filled with islands, a conti nent of ice, or a land of plenty, " flowing with milk and honey." ' No one knew, but this powerful autocrat pro posed to find out His first step was to discover a water way into the Pacific from the Arctic Ocean which washod his dominions on the north, just such a passage as the English mariners had searched for in vain, though he expected to reach it by going east instead of to the west He ordered vessels to be constructed at Archangel, on the White Sea, for the purjxwe of coasting in the Arctic eastward along the shores of Siberia until an owning was discovered into the Pacific. Other vessels were to bo constructed on the coast of Kamchatka, which wero to take an opposite course and endeavor to pass northward into the Arctic. Peter died before his plans were exe cuted, and the project was held in abeyance for several years. The Empress Catherine was a worthy successor of her noble husband, and when firmly settled upon tho throno she turnod hor attention to completing the work ho had begun. In 1728, in accordance with her instructions, vessels were built on tho coast of Kamtchatka, which wero dispatchod in search of tho desired passage letwoon tho Arctio Ocoan and tho Pacific In command of tho expedition was Vitus Bohring, a Danish navigator of skill and oxporionco, in whoso ohargo tho former explora tion was to have boon placed by Peter. Russia was not a maritime nation and hor seamen wero in no manner Bciontifio navigators, hnnce tho selection of this skillful Dane for tho command of so important an expedition. Bohring sailed on tho 14th of July, and followed tho coast northorly in his little vessel until he found it trending steadily to tho westward From this fact ho becamo convinced that ho had already ontorod tho Arctic and was sailing along tho northern coast of Asia; and being unprepared for a long voyage, or the xsibility of being compelled to spend tho winter in the ice, he roturned at onco to tho xirt of embarkation. The highest point reachod was (!7 degrees 18 minutes, but tho longi. tudo is not given. Neither going nor returning through the straits did ho espy tho const lino of America, foggy and cloudy weather obscuring it from view, and const quently ho reported ujnm his return Unit a great omui sen lay to tho eastward of Asia, joining the Paeiflo Ocean with the Arctic Tho next year he endeavored to cross this ocean and reach tho shore of America by sailing directly eastward In this attempt he was baffled by head .winds and was driven by a galo into tho Gulf of Okotsk. Ho abandoned the effort and returned to fit Petersburg to rojort his discoveries. During tho few succeeding years a numlier of smaller oxeditiomi wero mado by Russian subjects, one of these lieing driven uKn the Alaskan count in 1732, and it was discovered that not an omn sea, but a strait, connected tho two great oceans. Upon this was bestowed tho name of tho Danish explorer, tho pioneer navigator of tho North Pacific Catherine died and after tho consequent delay her suncessortho Empress Anno, fitted out an oxedition for tho purposo of exploring on a moro extended sonlo than had previously Iston done. This consisted of two vessels, Bohring being in command of one, and Alexel Tchirikof, a Russian who hail Imon his lieutenant on tho first voy. age, of tho other. Anno died lstforo tho expedition was ready to sail, but Elizabeth, who succeeded to tho throne, ditl not interfere with tho plans which had lieen laid, mid tho two consorts sailed from the Bay of Avabtche on tho 4th of Juno, 1741. They wero soon separated in a gale, and wero not again united Tchirikofs veswj, the SI. Paul, returned on tho 8th of Oetolsr in a sad plight Sho had reached a group of islands in latitude 60 de grees, where sixteen of tho crow, who landed to mako a roconnoissauco, wero slaughtered by tho Indians. Bo sides these, twenty -ono moro succumUtd to tho ravages of tho scurvy before tho vessel found her way lmek to jsrt Sad as wero tho misfortunes that befel tho crew of tho St. riul, they were slight compared with tho disasters which crowded njxrn their comrades on IsMird the 67.