Fish may be considered as the staple article of food with which Providence hath supplied the inhabitants of this peninsula, who in general must never expect to draw any considerable part of their sustenance either from grain or cattle. It is true, the soil, as has been remarked, affords some good and nourishing roots, and every part of the country abounds in berries; but though these alone would be insufficient for the support of the people, yet, at the same time, they are necessary correctives of the putrescent quality of their dried fish. In short, fish may, with much greater justice, be here called the staff of life, than bread is in other countries; since it appears, that neither the inhabitants, nor the only domestic animal they have, the dog, could exist without it. Whales are frequently seen, both in the sea of Okotsk and on the side of the eastern ocean, and when caught are turned to a variety of uses. Of the skin they make the soles of their shoes, and straps and thongs for various other purposes. The flesh they eat, and the fat, is carefully stored, both for kitchen use and for their lamps. The whiskers are found to be the best materials for sewing together the seams of their canoes; they likewise make nets of them for the larger kind of fish; and, with the under jaw-bones, their sledges are shod. They likewise work the bones into knives; and formerly the chains with which their dogs are tied were made of that material, though at present iron ones are generally used. The intestines they clean, then blow and dry like bladders, and it is in these their oil and grease is stored; and of the nerves and veins, which are both strong and slip readily, they make excellent snares; so that there is no part of the whale which here does not find its use. From the middle of May till our departure on the 24th of June, we caught great quantities of excellent flat-fish, trout, and herrings. Upward of three hundred of the former, besides a number of sea-trout, were dragged out at one haul of the seine, the 15th of May. These flat-fish are firm, and of a good flavour, studded upon the back with round prickly knobs, like turbot, and streaked with dark brown lines, running from the head toward the tail. About the end of May the first herring season begins. They approach in great shoals, but do not remain long on the coast. They had entirely left the bay before we sailed out of it the first time, but were beginning to revisit it again in October. It has been already mentioned, that the herrings were remarkably fine and large, and that we filled a great part of our empty casks with them. The beginning of June, large quantities of excellent cod were taken, a part of which were likewise salted. We caught too, at different times, numbers of small fish, much resembling a smelt, and once drew out a wolf-fish.