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[[line]] Wednesday May 8th,1867 [[line]]
Skin a goose and two snowbirds which Kurill brings in Go down to the Nulato River in the afternoon. Write up notes and trace a copy of map of Nulato for Smith

[[line]] Thursday May 9th [[line]]
Morning. Rain & snow, very chilly. I am afraid that there will be a late breakup this year. Go up to the woods and cut a tree and hew it for a cross to put near where Kennicott died, on the bank below the fort. 
Work on map and skin a black goose & cut part of an inscription for the cross when it shall be erected

[[line]] Friday May 10 [[line]]
Work on maps for Dyer. Kurilla gets five geese and a duck. Write up catalogue and notes, get a good hot bath
Skin a black goose, put away some specimens.

[[line]] Saturday May 11 [[line]]
Morning.  Skin a goose, and a small snipe and duck which Kurilla gets.  Finish inscription for Kennicotts cross. Hacytotantinones brother comes down from Koyoukuk with some reindeer meat.  He agrees to go up to Fort Youkon with us. Plenty of geese up there, but doubtful if it will pay to send Kurilla up with us as there is water on both sides of the river along the bank and it is raining hard.

[[line]] Sunday May 12 [[line]]
Early in the morning Kurilla brings in a brace of geese and a lark the last of which [[overwritten]] he [[/overwritten]] I skin and set aside two geese.  Ivan starts to go over to the island when the Nulato River breaks up sending a flood of water up the Youkon and breaking up the ice all along shore nearly half way to the little river.  In coming back Ivan gets in, and is paddling about in the water when Paspilkoff sees him and gives the alarm.  I hear the row and hearing that Ivan

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is drowning grab two paddles and make for the beach where Pickett and antoshka are already in one canoe and Aloshka in another, all calling for paddles & the Ruskies running about, like hens when a chicken hawk is around, and doing nothing.  They get him out safely, however.  Go up to the Nulato with Dyer & Whymper and come back and sit on the roof during the evening.  The musquitoes have come, and now farewell to all comfort at night.  They are awfully big, and very audacious.  Kurill goes over in a birch to the island to shoot all night.  A year ago today Tarentof was saved from drowning by the Major.

[[line]] Monday, May 13 [[line]] 
[[vertical lines on either side of text for this entry boxing Monday's entry]]
Morning half clear, and rather warm.  Skin three ducks and a goose.  Kurilla brings in 4 geese and two ducks and a small bird having shot 30 times. Get Paspilkoff to finish cross and Antoshka to dig the hole and in the afternoon put it up about 100 yards from where the Major's body was found a year ago this morning. Antoshka brings in a duck.  The inscription, cut by  myself on an oak tablet is, In Memory of Robert Kennicott, Naturalist, who died near this place, May 13, 1866, aged thirty.

[[line]] Tuesday May 14 [[line]]
Morning, got up to the little River which now a roaring torrent.  Get a few landshells &c.  Dyer and Whymper pace off the poles for the telegraph line. The swallows have come.  Afternoon skin diver birds mostly geese and ducks. Kurill brings in ten ducks & geese.  Get the bidarra under weigh.  Pickett digs 3 holes.  The Russian bidarra is finished except putting on the skin.  Get some more fossils on the beach and some alder blossoms.

 

Transcription Notes:
bidarra = type of skin boat