Page:Voyage of discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, and round the world in the years 1791-95, volume 2.djvu/391

356 « 70;)- Auguil. The water was pciTcfUN' fVefli, extremely muclfly, and the whole furfare was flrewcd over with faimon, either dead, or in the laft (lages of their exiflence. Many had lif'o flilficient to give them motion, though want- ing vital pcwcrs to kc^p them beneath the furfaee of the water. In the courfe of this cxcurfion great numbers of thele filh had been leen, not only in all the arms, but in almoll every run of frefh water, particularly near the tcrminatious of the feveral inlets, where they were iniuimerablo, though moft of them were in a fiekly condition. We had no difticulty to take as many of thebeO; as we were inclined to make ule of; they however had little of the colour, and noihiug of the flavor of falnion, and werevcrv infipid and indiflerent food. Ihey were all fmall, of one fort, and were called by us hunch-backed falmon; from an excref- cence that rofc along the upper part of the backs of the male fidi, where the back fins are inferteti. This protuberance is much thinner than the body of the fifli, which below it takes nearly a cylindrical form. Thefe were the worft eating fiflv, the females were not fo deformed, though the mouths of both were made in a kind of hook, refembling the upper mandible of a hawk. The ficklv condition of thele filh appeared to be confequent on the feafon of their fpawning, and may poflibly be occafioncd by their exertions, in forcing their way up the runs of frcfli water, againfl the iinpetuofit" of the torrents that rufli into the fea ; by which means they had evidentlv received many bruilij-s and other inju- ries. If any jufl eoncIulioM is lO be drawn from the appearance of the immenfe numbers found dead, not only in the water, but lodged on the fhores below high water mark, it fhould feem that their death takes place immediately aftc r fpawning. Havmg tracetl the north-ead extent of this branch, and finding ii only to form a deep bay (which obtained the name of Bur rough's Bay.) w'c returned along the northern fhore, which took a diretlion fomewhat irregularly s. /J3 w. down the fouth- weflcriy branch, to a point on which I obferved the latitude to be 55" 54', longitude 228° 46'. At this flation, which I call Point Lf.is, the width of the fouth-wefl channel was de- creafed to lefs than a mile, and from hence its north-eafl point of en- trance, which I named I*oin 1 Wn i h v, lies m, 8 i. diflunt, miles. As