his birth.—enters the russian service.—scientific journey to kamchatka.—accompanies bering on his second voyage of discovery.—lands on the island of kaiak.—shameful conduct of bering.—shipwreck on bering island.—bering’s death.—return to kamchatka.—loss of property.—persecutions of the siberian authorities.—frozen to death at tjumen.
george william steller, one of the most distinguished naturalists of the past century, was born at winsheim, a small town in franconia, in the year 1709. after completing his studies at the universities of wittenberg and halle, he turned his thoughts to russia, which, since the reforms of czar peter the great, and the protection which that monarch and his successors afforded to german learning, had become the land of promise for all adventurous spirits.
having been appointed surgeon in the russian army, which at that time was besieging danzig, he went with a transport of wounded soldiers, after the surrender of that town, to st. petersburg, where he arrived in 1734. here his talents were soon appreciated; after a few years he was named a member of the imperial academy of sciences, and sent by government, in 1738, to examine the natural productions of kamchatka. the ability and zeal with which he fulfilled this mission is proved by the valuable collections which he sent to the academy, and by his numerous memoirs, which are still read with interest in the present day.
in 1741 he accompanied bering on his second voyage of discovery, the object of which was to determine the distance of america from kamchatka, and to ascertain the separation or the junction of both continents in a higher249 latitude—a question which his first voyage had left undecided. nothing could be more agreeable to a man like steller, than the prospects held out to him by an expedition to unknown regions; and we can easily imagine the delight with which the naturalist embarked on board of the “saint peter,” commanded by bering in person. accompanied by the “saint paul,” under tschirigow, they sailed on june 4 from the bay of avatscha.
the expedition had cost ten years of preparation, and brought misery and ruin upon many of the wild siberian tribes, for all that was necessary for the outfit had to be conveyed by compulsory labor from the interior of the continent over mountains and rivers, through dense forests and pathless wilds, and it seemed from the very beginning of the voyage as if the curses of the unfortunate natives clung to it. much valuable time had been lost, for the ships ought to have sailed at least a month earlier, and bering, who from illness constantly kept to his cabin, was by no means a fit commander for a scientific expedition.
after a few days a dense fog separated the vessels, which were never to meet again; and as the “st. peter” held her course too much to the south, the aleutic chain remained undiscovered, and the first land was only sighted after four weeks in the neighborhood of bering’s bay. during the whole of this passage steller had to endure all the vexations which arrogant stupidity could inflict upon a man anxious to do his duty. it was in vain that he repeatedly pointed out the signs which indicated the presence of land not far to the north, in vain that he entreated the commander to steer but one day in that direction. at last, on july 15, the high mountains of america were seen to rise above the horizon, and the vessel anchored on the 19th near to the small island of kaiak.
on the following day a boat was sent out to fetch some fresh water, but it was with the utmost difficulty that steller could obtain permission to join the party. all assistance was obstinately denied him, and accompanied by his only servant, a cossack, he landed on the unknown shore, eager to make the most of the short time allotted him for his researches. he immediately directed his steps towards the interior, and had scarcely walked a mile when he discovered the hollowed trunk of a tree, in which, a few hours before, the savages had boiled their meat with red-hot stones. he also found several pots filled with esculent herbs, and a wooden instrument for making fire, like those which are used by the inhabitants of kamchatka. hence he conjectured that the aborigines of this part of the american coast must be of the same origin as the kamchatkans, and that both countries must necessarily approach each other towards the north, as the inhabitants could not possibly traverse such vast extents of ocean in their rudely-constructed boats.
pursuing his way, steller now came to a path which led into a dense and shady forest. before entering, he strictly forbade his cossack to act without commands, in case of a hostile encounter. the cossack had a gun, with a knife and hatchet; steller himself only a jakut poniard, which he had taken with him to dig out plants or stones. after half an hour’s walking, they came to a place strewn with grass. this was immediately removed, and a roof or platform discovered, consisting of strips of bark laid upon poles and covered with250 stones. this platform opened into a cellar containing a large quantity of smoked fishes, and a few bundles of the inner bark of the larch or fir tree, which, in case of necessity, serves as food throughout all siberia. there were also some arrows, dyed black and smoothed, of a size far superior to those used in kamchatka.
after steller, in spite of the danger of being surprised by the savages, had accurately examined the contents of the cellar, he sent his cossack back again to the place where the boatmen were watering. he gave him specimens of the various articles which he had found, ordering him to take them to captain bering, and to request that two or three men might be sent to him for further assistance. in the mean time, though quite alone, he continued his investigations of the strange land, and having reached the summit of a hill, he saw smoke rising from a forest at some distance. overjoyed at the sight, for he now could hope to meet with the natives and to complete his knowledge of the island, he instantly returned to the landing-place with all the eagerness of a man who has something important to communicate; and as the boat was just about to leave, told the sailors to inform the captain of his discovery, and to beg that the small pinnace, with a detachment of armed men, might be sent out to him.
meanwhile, exhausted with fatigue, he sat down on the beach, where he described in his pocket-book some of the more delicate plants he had collected, which he feared might speedily wither, and regaled himself with the excellent water. after waiting for about an hour, he at length received an answer from bering, telling him to return immediately on board, unless he chose to be left behind; and we can easily imagine the indignation of the disappointed naturalist at this shameful command.
on the morning of july 21, bering, contrary to his custom, appeared on deck, ordered the anchors to be weighed, and gave directions to sail back again on the same course. the continent he had discovered was not even honored with a single visit, so that steller could not help telling the russians they had merely come thus far for the purpose of carrying american water to asia. any conscientious commander would have continued to sail along the unknown shore, or, considering that the season was already far advanced, would have determined to winter there, and to pursue his discoveries next spring; but, unfortunately for bering and his companions, the course he adopted proved as disastrous as it was dishonorable.
three months long the ship was tossed about by contrary winds and storms; the islands of the aleutic chain, though frequently seen through the mists, were but seldom visited; the scurvy broke out among the dispirited, ill-fed crew, their misery increased from day to day, and their joy may be imagined when at length, on november 5, a land was seen which they firmly believed to be kamchatka—though in reality it was merely the desert of bering’s island, situated a hundred miles from that peninsula. even those who were nearly half dead crept upon deck to enjoy the welcome sight; every one thanked god, and the ignorant officer, convinced that they were at the entrance of the bay of avatscha, even named the several mountains; but251 their mistake soon became apparent when, on rounding a small promontory, some well-known islets were missed. as they had no doubt, however, that the land was really kamchatka, and the bad weather and the small number of hands fit to do duty rendering it difficult to reach the gulf of avatscha, it was resolved to run into the bay that lay before them, and to send notice from thence to nishne-kamchatsk of their safe arrival.
steller was among the first to land, and probably the very first of the party who discovered the mistake of the excellent navigators to whom the expedition had been intrusted. sea-otters came swimming to him from the land, and he well knew that these much-persecuted animals had long since disappeared from the coast of kamchatka. the number of arctic foxes, too, who showed no fear at his approach, and the sea-cows gambolling in the water, were sure signs that the foot of man had not often trodden this shore. steller was also the first to set the good example of making the best of a bad situation, instead of uselessly bewailing his misfortunes. he began to erect a hut for the following winter, and formed an association with several of the crew, who, whatever might await them, promised to stand by each other.
during the following days the sick were gradually conveyed on shore. some of them died on board as soon as they were brought into the open air, others in the boat, others as soon as they were landed. “on all sides,” says steller, in his interesting account of this ill-fated voyage, “nothing was to be seen but misery. before the dead could be buried, they were mangled by the foxes, who even ventured to approach the helpless invalids who were lying without cover on the beach. some of these wretched sufferers bitterly complained of the cold, others of hunger and thirst—for many had their gums so swollen and ulcerated with the scurvy as to be unable to eat.”
“on november 13,” continues the naturalist, “i went out hunting for the first time with messieurs plenisner and betge; we killed four sea-otters, and did not return before night. we ate their flesh thankfully, and prayed to god that he might continue to provide us with this excellent food. the costly skins, on the other hand, were of no value in our eyes; the only objects which we now esteemed were knives, needles, thread, ropes, etc., on which before we had not bestowed a thought. we all saw that rank, science, and other social distinctions were now of no avail, and could not in any way contribute to our preservation: we therefore resolved, before we were forced to do so by necessity, to set to work at once. we introduced among us five a community of goods, and regulated our housekeeping in such a manner as not to be in want before the winter was over. our three cossacks were obliged to obey our orders, when we had decided upon something in common; but we began to treat them with greater politeness, calling them by their names and surnames, and we soon found that peter maximowitsch served us with more alacrity than formerly petrucha (a diminutive of peter).
“nov. 14.—the whole ship’s company was formed into three parties. the one had to convey the sick and provisions from the ship; the second brought wood; the third, consisting of a lame sailor and myself, remained at home—the252 former busy making a sledge, while i acted as cook. as our party was the first to organize a household, i also performed the duty of bringing warm soup to some of our sick, until they had so far recovered as to be able to help themselves.
“the barracks being this day ready to receive the sick, many of them were transported under roof; but for want of room, they lay everywhere on the ground, covered with rags and clothes. no one could assist the other, and nothing was heard but lamentations and curses—the whole affording so wretched a sight, as to make even the stoutest heart lose courage. on november 15 all the sick were at length landed. we took one of them, named boris sänd, into our hut, and by god’s help he recovered within three months.
“the following days added to our misery, as the messengers we had sent out brought us the intelligence that we were on a desert island, without any communication with kamchatka. we were also in constant fear that the stormy weather might drive our ship out to sea, and along with it all our provisions, and every hope of ever returning to our homes. sometimes it was impossible to get to the vessel for several days together, so boisterous was the surge; and about ten or twelve men, who had hitherto been able to work, now also fell ill. want, nakedness, frost, rain, illness, impatience, and despair, were our daily companions.”
fortunately the stormy sea drove the ship upon the strand, better than it could probably have been done by human efforts. successively many of the scorbutic patients died, and on december 8 the unfortunate commander of the expedition paid his debt to nature.
titus bering, by birth a dane, had served thirty-six years with distinction in the russian navy, but age and infirmities had completely damped his energies, and his death is a warning to all who enter upon undertakings above their strength.
in the mean time the whole ship’s company had established itself for the winter in five subterranean dwellings; the general health was visibly improving, merely by means of the excellent water, and by the fresh meat furnished by sea-otters, seals, and manatees; and the only care now was to gain sufficient strength to be able to undertake the work of deliverance in spring.
in april the shipwrecked mariners began to build a smaller ship out of the timbers of the “st. peter,” and, such was the alacrity with which all hands set to work, that on august 13 they were able to set out.
“when we were all embarked,” says steller, “we first perceived how much we should be inconvenienced for want of room; the water-casks, provisions, and baggage taking up so much space, that our forty-two men (the three ship’s officers and myself were somewhat better off in the cabin) could hardly creep between them and the deck. a great quantity of the bedding and clothing had to be thrown overboard. meanwhile we saw the foxes sporting about our deserted huts, and greedily devouring remnants of fat and meat.
“on the 14th, in the morning, we weighed anchor, and steered out of the253 bay. the weather being beautiful, and the wind favorable, we were all in good spirits, and, as we sailed along the island, pointed out to each other the well-known mountains and valleys which we had frequently visited in quest of game or for the purpose of reconnoitring. towards evening we were opposite the farthest point of the island, and on the 15th, the wind continuing favorable, we steered direct towards the bay of avatscha. about midnight, however, we perceived, to our great dismay, that the vessel began to fill with water from an unknown leak, which, in consequence of the crowded and overloaded state of the vessel, it was extremely difficult to find out. the pumps were soon choked by the shavings left in the hold, and the danger rapidly increased, as the wind was strong and the vessel badly built. the sails were immediately taken in; some of the men removed the baggage to look for the leak, others kept continually pouring out the water with kettles, while others again cast all superfluous articles overboard. at length, after the lightening of the ship, the carpenter succeeded in stopping the leak, and thus we were once more saved from imminent danger.... on the 17th we sighted kamchatka, but as the wind was contrary, we did not enter the harbor before the evening of the 27th.
“in spite of the joy we all felt at our deliverance, yet the news we heard on our arrival awakened in us a host of conflicting emotions. we had been given up for lost, and all our property had passed into other hands, and been mostly carried away beyond hope of recovery. hence joy and sorrow alternated within a few moments in our minds, though we were all so accustomed to privation and misery, as hardly to feel the extent of our losses.”
in the year 1744 steller was ordered to return to st. petersburg; but his candor had made him powerful enemies. having reached novgorod, and rejoicing in the idea of once more mixing with the civilized world, he was suddenly ordered to appear before the imperial court of justice at irkutsk, on the charge of having treacherously sold powder to the enemies of russia. thus obliged to return once more into the depths of siberia, he was at length dismissed by his judges, after waiting a whole year for their verdict.
once more on his way to st. petersburg, he had already reached moscow, when he was again summoned to appear without delay before the court of irkutsk. a journey to siberia is, under all circumstances, an arduous undertaking; what, then, must have been steller’s feelings when, instead of enjoying the repose he had so well merited, he saw himself obliged to retrace his steps for the fourth time, for the purpose of vindicating his conduct before a rascally tribunal? on a very cold day his cossack guards stopped to refresh themselves with some brandy at an inn by the road-side, and steller, who remained in the sledge waiting for their return, fell asleep, and was frozen to death.
he lies buried near the town of tjumen, and no monument apprises the naturalist, whom the love of knowledge may lead into the siberian wilds, that his unfortunate predecessor was thus basely requited after years of exertion in the interests of science.
