were not long in seeking land, which we fortunately reached with everything which we thought we should need. By a special dispensation of Providence, the winds and waves threw the remains of our vessel on shore; we gathered them {228} together to try, with the aid of God, to put ourselves in a position to leave this sorry dwelling. The island where we now found ourselves was destitute of trees. We were, therefore, obliged to depend upon the wood that the sea brought us to build our cabins and warm ourselves. We gave to this desert place the name of Bering island, in honor of the chief of our expedition, and it was there that he died, on the 8th of December, of grief and sorrow at having to give up all hope of returning to Kamshatka. He refused to eat or drink, and disdained the shelter of our cabins; his advanced age could not rally under such a disaster. We young men kept our courage up, resisted with firmness all discouragement, made it a duty to still enjoy life and to make as much as we could out of our prison home. Before our arrival, Bering island was the refuge only of the inhabitants of the sea, who came there to breathe the air and deposit their young. We were, therefore, able at first to observe these creatures very closely without their taking fright. It was only after having seen several of their number fall before our guns that they fled at our approach. We killed a great number of them, as much to furnish us with food as for their skins. It was by these valuable spoils, splendid castor skins, that we were repaid in some measure for our sufferings. "At the approach of spring the following year we built of the remains of our vessel, as we had intended, a large covered boat, furnished with anchors and sails and able to live at sea if not exposed to storms. In this boat we confided ourselves to the sea, trusting in Providence, the 17th of August, 1742, and after nine days at sea, with beautiful calm weather, we arrived safely at Avatscha on the 26th, giving thanks to the Almighty, who had delivered us from such great dangers, and imbued us with gratitude such as time can never efface. "From this account we can correct the error of M. de l'Isle, who places Bering island at the 54th degree, only a short distance from Avatscha, whereas it is on the 56th parallel, sixty miles from Avatscha and forty Dutch miles from the mouth of the Kamshatka river.