Chapter II: FEATURES OF THE SITKAN REGION pp. 13-35

The Vast Area of Alaska.—Difficulty of Comparison, and Access
to her Shores save in the Small Area of the Sitkan Region.—Many
Americans as Officers of the Government, Merchants, Traders, Miners,
etc., who have Visited Alaska during the last Eighteen Years.—Full
Understanding of Alaskan Life and Resources now on Record.—Beautiful
and Extraordinary Features of the Sitkan Archipelago.—The Decaying
Town of Wrangel.—The Wonderful Glaciers of this Region.—The Tides,
Currents, and Winds.—The Forests and Vegetation Omnipresent in this
Land-locked Archipelago.—Indigenous Berries.—Gloomy Grandeur of
the Cañons.—The Sitkan Climate.—Neither Cold nor Warm.—Excessive
Humidity.—Stickeen Gold Excitement of 1862 and 1875.—The Decay of
Cassiar.—The Picturesque Bay of Sitka.—The Romance and Terror of
Baranov’s Establishment there in 1800-1805.— The Russian Life and
Industries at Sitka.—The Contrast between Russian Sitka and American
Sitka a Striking One.