can get good furs at a lower price from the Russians than from the Alaskan natives. Besides, the Russians. have a reputation of making better footgear than their American cousins.

Among all these Siberian tribes the women and girls tattoo their faces, wear rings and beads in their ears. and neatly plat their long black hair. Some of the women pierce the ligaments of the nose and wear in the aperture a steel or ivory needle about three inches long. Some of the men pierce the lower lip near the angle of the mouth and wear labrets about one inch in length and one-half inch in circumferencè. The labrets are made principally from jade, a green-colored mineral spoken of by St. John in the Apocalypse. Their complexions are similar to the Indians of the West, and their habits and customs a good deal the same. Their hair is jet black and straight. The men have little if any beards. In stature and in other physical characteristics both the men and women will compare favorably with the Anglo-Saxon race, and are not the puny folk as one would be led to expect from descriptions in some books of travel. Like all other tribes that inhabit the northern coast, they are purely littoral, wandering about the rivers and seashore. They are fast dying out. It will not be many years hence when this peculiar people, who once defied the mighty power of the Russian empire, will have passed the way of all the earth.

One of the principal causes of the waning of these tribes is American rum. Their bleared eyes, inflamed cheeks and emaciated forms tell too well the story of their decadence and the cause thereof. The women seemed to be more demoralized from strong drink than the men. They all had furs, plenty of them, but they wanted whisky and nothing else in exchange for them,

and seemed surprised that the white man would come to trade without a good supply of intoxicants.

Some of the boys had a few bottles of case goods which they had brought along for their "stomach's sake," and taking about one-half of the whisky out of each bottle and filling it with water would offer the diluted spirits to a native in exchange for some article of clothing. The native, with an eye single to the tricks of the Yankee, would take the bottle, turn its neck downward, carefully noticing if the "bead" would rise to the top. If it would not, he would hand the bottle back to the white man apparently in disgust. Others taking out the cork and pouring a little whisky into the palm of the hand would light a match and try to ignite it. If the whisky would not burn, they would shake their heads, muttering "poor stuff; bad whisky," and returning the bottle, would quickly pick up their furs and move off to another part of the vessel.

Next to spirits to cheer the hearts of the Siberian Eskimos is tobacco.. Men, women and children use it to excess, and will barter anything they have, except whisky, for the weed. Little tots not over six years of age followed us around continually, begging persistently for "tu-bak.”

We got under way again early in the morning of the 2nd, shaping our course for Cape Prince of Wales, on the American side.

CHAPTER X.

OFF CAPE PRINCE OF WALES-BOAT RIDE ON THE BERING SEA-A LONG PULL-THE MISSION SCHOOL AT THE CAPE-MISSIONARY LOPP AND HIS FAMILY-MURDER OF MISSIONARY THORNTON-MONUMENT OVERLOOKING THE STRAITS INTELLECTUAL AND MORAL QUALITIES OF THE NATIVES COMPARED THE ESKIMO BULLETIN— DISTANCE BETWEEN UNITED STATES AND RUSSIA LITTLE AND BIG DIOMEDE ISLANDS-LINE OF DEMARCATION BETWEEN RUSSIA AND AMERICA-NATIVES ON THE DIOMEDES-A COMING RAILROAD.

Sunday morning, July 3, found us in sight of Cape Prince of Wales, latitude about 65 deg. 30 min. north. We had some supplies on board for the missionary station located at this point, and it was necessary for the ship to anchor close inshore in order to discharge them. The wind was contrary, and the ship hovered twenty miles off shore for several hours waiting for a favorable breeze to reach the cape.

In company with two California boys I rowed ashore. A heavy fog settled over the ocean soon after leaving the ship, yet the sea was calm, and after a pull of five hours we were skirting the shore-line of the little Indian village at the cape. The surf was breaking with such force on the beach that it was dangerous to attempt to land without assistance. The resident missionary took in the situation at a glance and accompanied by two or three natives, came down into the water to assist us, and with their timely help we succeeded in getting over the breakers without mishap. The mission school here is under the supervision of

the Congregational Denomination.

Mr. W. P. Lopp

is in charge, ably assisted by his most estimable wife. The native population is about three hundred.

Mr. Lopp, with his wife and four little children, live in a log cabin near the water's edge, scantily fur

W. P. Lopp

inscribed the following:

nished but comfortable. There is one very good frame dwelling here, built in a modern way and nicely painted, but for some reason it remains unoccupied. It was erected by Mr. Harrison R. Thornton, a missionary of the Friends' denomination, who was killed by three natives in August of '93. A monument has been erected to his memory, which stands on the hillside facing Bering Strait, on which is

HARRISON R. THORNTON, BORN JANUARY 25, 1858. DIED AUGUST 19, 1893.

A GOOD SOLDIER OF CHRIST JESUS.

ERECTED BY FRIENDS IN SOUTHPORT, CONN.

The natives here at the cape, with respect to their moral and intellectual qualities, are among the best to be seen along either the Russian or American coast. Educational influences and the principles of our Christian civilization are being instilled into the minds of this primitive people under the wise leadership of Mr. Lopp. One need not be a very close observer to note

the fact that the natives at Cape Prince of Wales have more cleanly habits, are better clothed and are generally more thrifty and desirous of the comforts of life than any we had yet visited. They knew the value of the articles which they had for barter, and then wanted useful articles in exchange for them, such as clothing, calico, flour, bacon, sugar, etc. Very few, if any, wanted to exchange their wares for whisky.

I saw here a number of natives wearing labrets of stone and glass in their upper lips, but Mr. Lopp tells me the hideous custom is dying out among the members of the tribe. The women still tattoo the chin generally with three vertical lines on arriving at the age of puberty, and some increase the number of lines after marriage. The marks are indelible, about one-eighth of an inch wide, color black, made by puncturing the skin with a sharp needle and drawing through the puncture a coarse thread saturated with nicotine.

They live mostly in subterranean houses, as described at length in another chapter. Some of the young men are good carvers, and remarkably fine engravers. Missionary Lopp has a small printing press here, and publishes a little newspaper annually, called the Eskimo Bulletin. In the edition of 1898 is a well executed wood cut of the reindeer station near the cape, the work being done by one of the natives. The mechanical work on the newspaper is all done by the natives, and the workmanship is very clever.

Cape Prince of Wales is situated between the 67th and 68th parallels of north latitude and the 166th and 167th meridians of west longitude. Cape Nuniamo is situated between the 67th and 68th parallels of north latitude and the 170th and 171st meridians of west longitude. Cape Prince of Wales belongs to the United States, Cape Nuniamo to the Russian Empire.