In the afternoon, having three hours calm, our people caught upwards of a hundred halibuts, some of which weighed a hundred pounds, and none less than twenty pounds.  This was a very seasonable refreshment to us.  In the height of our fishing, which was in thirty-five fathoms water, and three or four miles from the shore, a small canoe, conducted by one man, came to us from the large island.  On approaching the ship, be took off his cap, and bowed, as the other had done, who visited the Discovery the preceding day.  It was evident that the Russians must have a communication and traffic with these people, not only from their acquired politeness, but from the note before mentioned.  But we had now a fresh proof of it; for our present visitor wore a pair of green cloth breeches, and a jacket of black cloth or stuff, under the gut-shirt or frock of his own country.  He had nothing to barter, except a grey fox skin, and some fishing implements or harpoons, the heads of the shafts of which, for the length of a foot or more, were neatly made of bone, as thick as a walking cane, and carved.  He had with him a bladder full of something, which we supposed to be oil, for he opened it, took a mouthful, and then fastened it again.

His canoe was of the same make with those we had seen before, but rather smaller.  He used a double bladed-paddle, as did also those who had visited the Discovery.  In his size and features, he exactly resembled those we saw in Prince William’s Sound, and in the Great River, but he was quite free from paint of any kind, and had the perforation of his lips made in an oblique direction, without any ornament in it.  He did not seem to understand any of the words commonly used by our visitors in the Sound, when repeated to him.  But, perhaps, our faulty pronunciation, rather than his ignorance of the dialect, may be inferred from this.

The weather was cloudy and hazy, with now and then sunshine, till the afternoon of the 22d, when the wind came round to the S.E., and, as usual, brought thick rainy weather.  Before the fog came on, no part of the main land was in sight, except the volcano, and another mountain close by it.  I continued to steer W. till seven in the evening, when, being apprehensive of falling in with the land in thick weather, we hauled the wind to the southward, till two o’clock next morning, and then bore away W. We made but little progress, having the wind variable, and but little of it, till at last it fixed in the western board, and at five in the afternoon, having a gleam of sunshine, we saw land bearing N. 59 deg.  W., appearing in hillocks like islands.

At six in the morning of the 24th, we got a sight of the continent, and at nine it was seen extending from N.E. by E. to S.W. by W. 1/2 W., the nearest part about four leagues distant.  The land to the S.W. proved to be islands, the same that had been seen the preceding evening.  But the other was a continuation of the continent, without any islands to obstruct our view of it.  In the evening, being about four leagues from the shore, in forty-two fathoms water, having little or no wind, we had recourse to our hooks and lines, but only two or three small cod were caught.