'"""rr"""w Vi'/ai'c ike Title Pa either with hooks or nets.— Ceremony obferved when two parties of thofe people meet. — Diversions in common ulc.—A. lingular disorder which attacks fome of thofe people.—Their fuperflition with refpect to the death of their friends.—Ceremony obferved on thofe occafions.—Their ideas of the firft inhabitants of the world.—No form of religion among them.—Remarks on that circumftancc.—The extreme mifery to which old age is ex-pofed.—Their opinion of the Aurora Borealis, &c%—Some account of Matonabbee, and his fervices to his country, as well as to the Hudfon's Bay Company. — - - - Page 304. C II A P, > xviii C 0 N T E Nr T S. CHAP. X. An Account of the principal Quadrupeds found in the Northern Parts of Hud -fon's Bay.-The Buffalo, Moofe, Murtt-ox, Deer, and Beaver.—A capital Miftakc cleared up refpecting the We-was-kifh. Animals with Canine Teeth.--The Wolf—Foxes of various colours— Lynx, or Wild Cat—Polar, or White Bear—Black Bear—Brown Bear— Wolverene—Otter—Jackafh—Wejack—Skunk—Pine Martin—Ermine, or Stote. Animals with Cutting Teeth.--The Mufk Beaver—Porcupine—Varying Hare—American Hare—Common Squirrel—Ground Squirrel—Mice of various Kinds, and the Caftor Beaver. The Pinnated Quadrupeds with fin-like Feet, found in Hudfon's Bay, are but three in number, viz. the Warlus, or Sea-Horfe—Seal—and Sea-Unicorn. The Species of Fifth found in the Salt Water of Hudfon's Bay are alfo few in number j being the Black Whale—White Whale—Salmon—and Kepling. Shell-fifh, and empty Shells of feveral kinds, found on the Sea Coaft near Churchill River. Frogs of various fizes and colours ; alfo a great variety of Grubbs, and other Infects, always found in a frozen ftate during Winter, but when expofed to the heat of a flow fire, are foon re-animated. An Account of fome of the principal Birds found in the Northern Parts of Hudfon's Bay j as well thofe that only migrate there in Summer, as thofe that are known to brave the coldeft Winters :-Eagles of various kinds — Hawks of various fizes and plumage—White or Snowy Owl—Gray or mottled Owl—Cob-a-dee-cooch—Raven—Cinerious Crow—Wood Pecker —Ruffed Groufe—Pheafant —Wood Partridge—Willow Partridge—Rock Partridge— Pigeon—Red-breafted Thrufh—Grofbeak—Snow Bunting— White-crowned Bunting—Lapland Finch, two forts—Lark—Titmoufe— Swallow—Martin—Hopping Crane—Brown Crane—Bitron—Carlow, two forts—Jack Snipe—Red Godwart—Plover—Black Gullemet — Northern Diver—Black-throated Diver—Red-throated Diver—White Gull—Grey Gull—Black-head—Pelican—Goofander—Swans of two fpecies—Common Grey Grey Goofe_Canada Goofe—White or Snow Goofe—Blue Goofe—Horned Wavy—Laughing Goofe—Barren Goofe—Brent Goofe—Dunter Goofe— Bean Goofe. The fpecies of Water-Fowl ufually called Duck, that refort to thofe Parts annually, are in great variety; but thofe that are moft efteemed are, the Mallard Duck—Long-tailed Duck—Wigeon—and Teal. Of the Vegetable Productions as far North as Churchill River, particularly the moft ufefulj fuch as the Berry-bearing Bufhes, fcfV.-Goofeberry—Cranberry—Hcathberry—Dewater-berry—Black Currans—Juniper-berry—Par-trtdge-berry—Strawberry—Eye-berry—Blue-berry—and a fmall fpecies of Hips. Burridge, Coltsfoot—Sorrel—Dandelion. Wifh-a-capucca—Jackafhey-puck—Mofs of various forts—Grafs of feveral kinds—and Vetches. The Trees found fo far North near the Sea, confift only of Pines—Juniper—Small Poplar—Bufh-willows—and Creeping Birch. - Page 358 ERRATA. Page 68 line i6t for no read on. 79-\x\t.fcr poleos read poles. 89-22, dele we. 111-12, for Athapufco read Athapufcow. 202- 1, for North Well trod South WeiL INTRODUCTION. JfoR many years it was the opinion of all ranks of people, that the Hudfon's Bay Company were averfe to making difcoveries of every kind; and being content with tjie profits of their fmall capital, as it was then called, did not want to increafe their trade. What might have been the ideas of former members of the Company refpcaing the firfr. part of thefe charges I cannot fay, but I am well aflured that they, as well as the prefent members, have always been ready to embrace every plau-fible plan for extending the trade. As a proof of this affertion, I need only mention the vaft fums of money which they have expended at different times in endeavouring to eftablifh fifheries, though without fuccefs: and the following Journey, together with the various attempts made by Bean, Chriftopher, Johnfton, and Duncan, to find a North Weft paffage, are recent proofs that the prefent members are as defirous of making difcoveries, as they are of extending their trade. That air of myftery, and affectation of fecrecy, perhaps, which formerly attended fome of the Company's proceedings in the Bay, might give rife to thofe conjectures; and, the unfounded affertions and unjuft afperfions of Dobbs, c Ellis, Ellis, Robfon, Dragge, and the American Traveller, the only Authors that have written on Hudfon's Bay, and who have all, from motives of intereft or revenge, taken a particular pleafure in arraigning the conduct of the Company, without having any real knowledge of their proceedings, or any experience in their fervice, on which to found their charges, muft have contributed to confirm the public in that opinion. Moft of thofe Writers, however, advance fuch notorious abfurdities, that none except thofe who are already prejudiced againft the Company can give them credit *• Robfon, from his fix years refidence in Hudfon's Bay and in the Company's fervice, might naturally have been fup-pofedtoknow fomethingof the climate and foil immediately round the Factories at which he refided; but the whole of his book is evidently written with prejudice, and dictated lby a fpirit of revenge, becaufe his romantic and incon-fiftent fchemes were rejected by the Company. Befides, it is well known that Robfon was no more than a tool in the hand of Mr. Dobbs. The American Traveller, though a more elegant writer, has ftill lefs claim to our indulgence, as his affertions are * Since the above was written, a Mr. Umfreville has pnbliflied an account of Hudfon's Bay, with the fame ill-nature as the former Authors; and for no other reafon than that of being difappointed in fucceeding to a command in the Bay, though there was no vacancy for him. a greater a greater tax on our credulity. His faying that he dif-covered feveral large lumps of the fmeft virgin copper *, is fuch a palpable falfehood that it needs no refutation. No man, either Englifh or Indian, ever found a bit of copper in that country to the South of the feventy-firft degree of latitude, unlefs it had been accidentally dropped by fome of the far Northern Indians in their way to the Company's Factory. The natives who range over, rather than inhabit, the large track of land which lies to the North of Churchill River, having repeatedly brought famples of copper to the Company's Factory, many of our people conjectured that it was found not far from our fettlements; and as the Indians informed them that the mines were not very diftant from a large river, it was generally fuppofed that this river muft empty itfelf into Hudfon's Bay; as they could by no means think that any fet of people, however wandering their manner of life might be, could ever traverfe fo large a track of country as to pafs the Northern boundary of that Bay, and particularly without the afliftance of water-carriage. The following Journal, however, will fticw how much thofe people have been miftaken, and prove alfo the improbability of putting their favourite icheme of mining into practice. * American Traveller, page aj. The The accounts of this grand River, which fome have turned into a Strait, together with the famples of copper, were brought to the Company's Factory at Churchill River immediately after its firft eftabliftiment, in the year one thoufand feven hundred and fifteen; and it does not appear that any attempts were made to difcover either the river or mines till the year one thoufand feven hundred and nineteen, when the Company fitted out a lliip, called the Albany Frigate, Captain George Barlow *, and a floop, called * Captain Barlow was Governor at Albany Fort when the French went over land from Canada to befiege it in 1704. The Canadians and their Indian guides lurked in the neighbourhood of Albany for feveral days before they made the attack, and killed many of the cattle that were grazing in the marftSes. A faithful Home-Indian, who was on a hunting excurfion, difco-vering thofe ftrangers, and fuppofing them to be enemies, immediately returned to the Fort, and informed the Governor of the circumftance, who gave little credit to it. However, every meafure was taken for the defence of the Fort, and orders were given to the Mafter of a Hoop that lay at fome diftance, to come to the Fort with all poflible expedition on hearing a gun fired. Accordingly, in the middle of the night, or rather in the morning, the French came before the Fort, marched up to the gate, and demanded entrance. Mr. Barlow, who was then on the watch, told them, that the Governor was afleep, but he would get the keys immediately. The French hearing this> expected no oppofition, and flocked up to the gate as clofe as they could ftand. Barlow took the advantage of this opportunity, and rnftead of opening the gate, only opened two port holes, where two fix-pounders ftood loaded with grape mot, which were inftantly fired. This difcharge killed great numbers of the French, and among them the Commander, who was an Iriihman. Such an unexpected reception made the remainder retire with great precipitation i and the Mafter of the floop hearing the guns, made the beft of his way called the Difcovery, Captain David Vaughan. The fole command of this expedition, however, was given to Mr.1 James Knight, a man of great experience in the Company's fervice, who had been many years Governor at the different Factories in the Bay, and who had made the firft fettlement at Churchill River. Notwithstanding the experience Mr. Knight might have had of the Company's bufinefs, and his knowledge of thofe parts of the Bay where he had refided, it cannot be fuppofed he was well acquainted with the nature of the bufinefs in which he then engaged, having nothing to direct him but the flender and imperfect accounts which he had received from the Indians, who at that time were little known, and lefs under flood. way up to the Fort ; but fome of the French who lay Concealed under the banks of the river killed him, and all the boat's crew. The French retired from this place with reluctance ; for fome of them were heard fhooting in the neighbourhood of the Fort ten days after they were rcpulfed; and one man in particular walked up and down the platform leading from the gate of the Fort to the Launch for a whole day. Mr. Fullarton, who was then Governor at Albany, fpoke to him in French, and offered him kind quarters if he chofe to accept them; but to thofe propofals he made no reply, and only fhook his head. Mr. Fullarton then told him, that unlefs he would refign himfelf up as a prifoner, he would moft afTuredly fhoot him ; on which the man advanced nearer the Fort, and Mr. Fullarton fliot him our of his chamber window. Perhaps the hardfhips this poor man expected to encounter in his return to Canada, made him prefer death ; but his refilling to receive quarter from fo humane and generous an enemy as the Englim, is aftonifhing. • Thofe Thofe difadvantages, added to his advanced age, he being then near eighty, by no means difcouraged this bold adventurer; who was fo prepoflefled of his fuccefs, and of the great advantage that would arife from his difcoveries, that he procured, and took with him, fome large iron-bound chefts, to hold gold duft and other valuables, which he fondly flattered himfelf were to be found in thofe parts. The firft paragraph of the Company's Orders to Mr. Knight on this occafion appears to be as follows: " To Captain James Knight. cc SIR, 4th June, 1719. cc From the experience we have had of your abilities " in the management of our affairs, we have, upon your " application to us, fitted out the Albany frigate, Captain cc George Barlow, and the Difcovery, Captain David " Vaughan Commander, upon a difcovery to the North- " ward j and to that end have given you power and au- ct thority to act and do all things relating to the faid " voyage, the navigation of the faid fhip and floop only and as nothing material had happened during that part of my Journey, I thought there was not any neceffity for lending an ex-tradr. of my Journal j I therefore only fent a Letter to the Governor, informing him of my fituation with refpect to latitude and longitude, and fome account of the ufige which I received from the natives, &c. | By miftake in my former Journal and Draft called Ararhapefcow. e " is " is to meet you * in the Spring of one thoufand feven " hundred and feventy, in order to conduct you to a river " reprefented by the Indians to abound with copper ore, " animals of the furr kind, &>c. and which is faid to be " fo far to the Northward, that in the middle of the " Summer the Sun does not fet, and is fuppofed by the " Indians to empty itfelf into fome ocean. This river, c< which is called by the Northern Indians Neetha-fan- " fan-dazey, or the Far Off Metal River, you are, if " poffible, to trace to the mouth, and there determine " the latitude and longitude as near as you can ; but " more particularly fo if you find it navigable, and that particularly in times of fcarcity, that 1 was determined not to take them with me in future; though the former was very defirous to accompany me again, and was well calculated to encounter the hardfhips of * This was a propofal of the Governor's, though he well knew we could not do without their afliftance, both for hauling our baggage, as well as drefling fkins for clothing, pitching our tent, getting firing,, &c, fuch fuch an undertaking. Merriman was quite f ck of fuch excursions, and fo far from offering his fervice a fecond time, feemed to be very thankful that he was once more arrived in fafety among his friends; for before he got to the Factory he had contracted a moft violent cold. Having come to the above refolutions, and finally determined on the number of Indians that were to accompany us, we were again fitted out with a large fupply of ammunition, and as many other ufeful articles as we could conveniently take with us, together with a fmall fample of light trading goods, for prefents to the Indians,, as before. My inftrudtions on this occafion amounted to no more than an order to proceed as faft as poffible ; and for my conduct during the journey, I was referred to my former inftructions of November 6th, 1769. Every thing being in readinefs for our departure, on the twenty-third of February I began my fecond journey, accompanied by three Northern Indians and two of the home-guard (Southern) Indians. 1 took particular care, however, that Mackachy, though an excellent hunter, fhould not be of our party \ as he had proved himfelf, during my former journey, to be a fly artful villain. The fnow at this time was fo deep on the top of the ramparts, that few of the cannon were to be feen, otherwife February. 1770. otherwife the Governor would have faluted me at my February, departure, as before; but as thofe honours could not poffibly be of any fervice to my expedition, I readily relinquifhed every thing of the kind ; and in lieu of it, the Governor, officers, and people, infifted on giving me three cheers. After leaving the Factory, we continued our courfe in much the fame direction as in my former journey, till we arrived at Seal River ; when, inftead of cromng it, and walking on the barren grounds as before, we followed the courfe of the river, except in two particular places, where the bends tended fo much to the South, that by crofting two necks of land not more than five or fix miles wide, we faved the walking of near twenty miles each time, and flill came to the main river again. The weather had been fo remarkably boifterous and changeable, that we were frequently obliged to continue two or three nights in the fame place. To make up for this inconveniency, deer were fo plentiful for the firft eight or ten days, that the Indians killed as many as was neceflary ; but we were all fo heavy laden that we could not poflibly take much of the meat with us. This I foon perceived to be a great evil, which expofed us to fuch frequent inconveniences, that in cafe of not killing any thing for three or four days together, we were in great want of provifions ; we feldom, however, went to bed entirely fupperlefs till till the eighth of March ; when though we had only walked about eight miles that morning, and expended all the remainder of the day in hunting, we could not pro duce a fmgle thing at night, not even a partridge! nor had we difcerned the track of any thing that day, which was likely to afford us hopes or better fuccefs in the morning. This being the cafe, we prepared fome hooks and lines ready to angle for fifli, as our tent was then by the fide of a lake belonging to Seal River, which feemed by its fituation to afford fome profpedr. of fuccefs. Early in the morning we took down our tent, and moved about five miles to the Weft by South, to a part of the lake that feemed more commodious for fifhing than that where we had been the night before. As foon as we arrived at this place, fome were immediately employed cutting holes in the ice, while others pitched the tent, got firewood, etc. ; after which, for it was early in the morning, thofe who pitched the tent went a hunting, and at night one of them returned with a porcupine, while thofe who were angling caught feveral fine trout, which afforded us a plentiful fupper, and we had fome trifle left for breakfaft. Angling for fifh under the ice in winter requires no other procefs, than cutting round holes in the ice from one to two feet diameter, and letting down a baited hook, which is always kept in motion, not only to prevent 1770. prevent the water from freezing fo foon as it would do March. if fuffered to remain quite ftill, but becaufc it is found at the fame time to be a great means of alluring the fifli to the hole ; for it is always obferved that the fifh in thofe parts will take a bait which is in motion, much fooner than one that is at reft. Early in the morning we again purfued our angling, and all the forenoon being expended without any fuccefs, we took down our tent and pitched it again about eight miles farther to the Weftward, on the fame lake, where we cut more holes in the ice for angling, and that night caught feveral fine pike. The next day we moved about five miles to the South Weft, down a fmall river, where we pitched our tent; and having fet four fifhing nets, in the courfe of the day we caught many fine fifh, particularly pike, trout, tittymeg, and a coarfe kind of iifli known in Hudfon's Bay by the name of Mcthy*. To fet a net under the ice, it is firft necefTary to afcertain its exact length, by ftretching it out upon the ice near the part propofed for fetting it. This being done, a number of round holes are cut in the ice, at ten or twelve feet diftance from each other, and as many in number as will be fnfficient to ftrctch the net at its full length- A line is then palled under the ice, by means * The Mcthy are generally caught v/ith a hook; and the beft time for that fport is in the night j and if the night.be dark, the better. 4 of tyth. of a long light pole, which is firft introduced at one of 1770. the end holes, and, by means of two forked flicks, this ^mSST* pole is eafily conducted, or paned from one hole to another, under the ice, till it arrives at the laft. The pole is then taken out, and both ends of the line being properly fecured, is always ready for ufe. The net is made faft to one end of the line by one perfon, and hauled under the ice by a fecond; a large ftone is tied to each of the lower corners, which ferves to keep the net expanded, and prevents it riling from the bottom with every waft of the current. The Europeans fettled in Hudfon's Bay proceed much in the fame manner, though they in general take much more pains; but the above method is found quite fufficient by the Indians. In order to fearch a net thus fet, the two end holes only are opened *, the line is veered away by one perfon, and the net hauled from under the ice by another; after all the fifh are taken out, the net is eafily hauled back to its former ftation, and there fecured as before. As this place feemed likely to afford us a conftant 21 ft. fupply of fifh, my guide propofed to ftay here till the geefe began to fly, which in thofe Northern parts is feldom before the middle of May. His reafons for fo doing feemed well founded : c* The weather, he faid, " is at this time too cold to walk on the barren " grounds, and the woods from this part lead fo much D " to « of Indians was feen to the South Weft, on the large lake by the fide of which our tent flood. On their arrival at our tent we difcovered them to be the wives and families of the Northern Indian goofe-hunters, who were gone to Prince of Wales's Fort to attend the feafon. They were bound toward the barren ground, there to wait the return of their hufbands and relations from the Fort, after the termination of the goofe-feafon. E My 27th. 1770. My guide having for fome days paft determined to April move toward the barren ground, this morning we took down our tent, packed up our luggage, and proceeded to the Eaftward in the fame track we came ; but SoiTop being fo lame as to be obliged to be hauled on a fledge, I eafily prevailed on two of the Indians who had joined us on the 24th, and who were purfuing the fame road, to perform this fervice for him. 29th. After two days good walking in our old track, we ar- rived at a part of Seal River called She-than-nee, where we pitched our tent and fet both our fifhing-nets, intending to flay there till the geefe began to fly. Though we had feen feveral fwans and fome geefe flying to the North- 33th. ward, it was the thirteenth of May before we could procure any. On that day the Indians killed two fwans and three geefe. This in fome meafure alleviated our diftrefs, which at that time was very great; having had no other fubfiftence for five or fix days, than a few cranberries, that we gathered from the dry ridges where the fnow was thawed away in fpots; for though we fet our fifhing-nets in the beft judged places, and angled at every part that was likely to afford fuccefs, we only caught three fmall fifh during the whole time. Many of the Northern Indians, who had joined us on the 24th of April, remained in our company for fome time; and though I well knew they had had a plentiful winter, and had then good ftocks of dried meat by them, and were were alfo acquainted with our diftrefs, they never gave me or my Southern companions the leaft fupply, although they had in fecret amply provided for our Northern guides. By the nineteenth, the geefe, fwans, ducks, gulls, and other birds of paffage, were fo plentiful, that we killed every day as many as were fufficient for our fupport; and having flopped a few days to recruit our fpirits after fo long a faft, on the twenty-third we began once more to proceed toward the barren ground. SoiTop having now perfectly recovered from his late misfortune, every thing feemed to have a favourable appearance; efpecially as my crew had been augmented to twelve perfons, by the addition of one of my guide's wives, and five others, whom I had engaged to affift in carrying our luggage ; and I well knew, from the feafon of the year, that hauling would foon be at an end for the fummer. The thaws having been by this time fo great as to render travelling in the woods almoft impracticable, we continued our courfe to the Eaft on Seal River, about Sixteen miles farther, when we came to a fmall river, and a firing of lakes connected with it, that tended to the North. The weather for fome time was remarkably fine and pleafant. Game of all kinds was exceedingly plentiful, E 2 and 1770. and we continued our courfe to the Northward on the jUne. above river and lakes till the firft of June, when we arrived at a place called Beralzone. In our way thither, befide killing more geefe than was necefiary, we fhot two deer. One of my companions had now the misfortune to Shatter his hand very much by the burfting of a gun; but as no bones were broken, I bound up the wound, and with the afliftance of fome of Turlington's drops, yellow bafilicon, &c. which I had with me, foon reftored the ufe of his hand ; fo that in a very Short time he feemed to be out of all danger. 4th. After Slopping a few days at Beralzone, to dry a little venifon and a few geefe, we again proceeded to the Northward on the barren ground ; for on our leaving this place we foon got clear of all the woods. 5th. The fnow was by this time fo foft as to render walking in fnow-fhoes very laborious; and though the ground was bare in many places, yet at times, and in particular places, the fnow-drifts were fo deep, that we could not poflibly 6th. do without them. By the Sixth, however, the thaws were fo general, and the fnows fo much melted, that as our fnow-fhoes were attended with more trouble than fervice, 10th. we all confented to throw them away. Till the tenth, our fledges proved Serviceable, particularly in crofling lakes and ponds on the ice; but that mode of travelling now growing dangerous on account ol the great thaws, wc 3 determined determined to throw away our fledges, and every one to take a load on his back. This I found to be much harder work than the winter carriage, as my part of the luggage confiftcd of the following articles, viz. the quadrant and its ftand, a trunk containing books, papers, &c. a land-compafs, and a large bag containing all my wearing apparel ; alfo a hatchet, knives, files, &c. befide feveral fmall articles, intended for prefents to the natives. The aukwardnefs of my load, added to its great weight, which was upward of fixty pounds, and the exceflive heat of the weather, rendered walking the moft laborious tafk I had ever encountered ; and what confiderably increafed the hardfhip, was the bad-nefs of the road, and the coarfenefs of our lodging, being, on account of the want of proper tents, expofed to the utmoft feverity of the weather. The tent we had with us was not only too large, and unfit for barren ground fervice, where no poles were to be got, but we had been obliged to cut it up for fhoes, and each perfon carried his own fharc. Indeed my guide behaved both negligently and ungene-roufly on this occafion \ as he never made me, or my Southern Indians, acquainted with the nature of pitching tents on the barren ground; which had he done, we could eafily have procured a fet of poles before we left the woods. He took care, however, to procure a fet for him-felf and his wife ; and when the tent was divided, though he made fhift to get a piece large enough to ferve him for a com- '77°' a complete little tent, he never afked me or my Southern 7i^e~~ Indians to put our heads into it. Befide the inconvenience of being expofed to the open air, night and day, in all weathers, we experienced real diftrefs from the want of victuals. When provifions were procured, it often happened that we could not make a fire, fo that we were obliged to eat the meat quite raw; which at firft, in the article of fifh particularly, was as little relifhed by my Southern companions as myfelf. Notwithftanding thefe accumulated and complicated hardihips, we continued in perfect health and good fpirits; and my guide, though a perfect niggard of his provifions, especially in times of fcarcity, gave us the ftrongeft af-furance of foon arriving at a plentiful country, which would not only afford us a certain fupply of provifions, but where we fhould meet with other Indians, who probably would be willing to carry part of our luggage. This news naturally gave us great confolation; for at that time the weight of our conftant loads was fo great, that when Providence threw any thing in our way, we could not carry above two days provifions with us, which indeed was the chief reafon of our being fo frequently in want. 23d. From the twentieth to the twenty-third we walked every day near twenty miles, without any other fubfiftence than than a pipe of tobacco, and a drink of water when we 777°-pleafed : even partridges and gulls, which fome time before June, were in great plenty, and eafily procured, were now fo fcarce and ihy, that we could rarely get one; and as to geefe, ducks, Sec. they had all flown to the Northward to breed and molt. Early in the morning of the twenty -third, we fet out as ufual, but had not walked above feven or eight miles before we faw three mufk-oxen grazing by the fide of a fmall lake. The Indians immediately went in purfuit of them ; and as fome of them were expert hunters, they foon killed the whole of them. This was no doubt very fortunate; but, to our great mortification, before we could get one of them ilcinned, fuch a fall of rain came on, as to put it quite out of our power to make a fire ; which, even in the fineft weather, could only be made of mofs, as wc were near an hundred miles from any woods. This was poor comfort for people who had not broke their faft for four or five days. Neceflity, however, has no law; and having been before initiated into the method of eating raw meat, wc were the better prepared for this repaft: but this was by no means fo well relifhed, either by me or the Southern Indians, as either raw venifon or raw fifh had been : for the flefh of the mufk-ox is not only coarfe and tough, but fmells and tafr.es fo ftrong of mufk as to make it very diiagreeable when raw, though it is tolerable eating when properly cooked. The weather continued fo remark- 1770- remarkably bad, accompanied with conftant heavy rain, June. fnow, and fleet, and our neccflities were fo great by the time the weather permitted us to make a fire, that we had nearly eat to the amount of one buffalo quite raw. Notwithstanding I muftered up all my philofophy on this occafion, yet I muft confefs that my fpirits began to fail me. Indeed our other misfortunes were greatly aggravated by the inclemency of the weather, which was not only cold, but fo very wet that for near three days and nights I had not one dry thread about me. When the fine weather returned, we made a fire, though it was only of mofs, as I have already obferved; and having got my cloaths dry, all things feemed likely to go on in the old channel, though that was indifferent enough ; but I endeavoured, like a failor after a ftorm, to forget pan: misfortunes. None of our natural wants, if we except thirft, are fo diftrefling, or hard to endure, as hunger; and in wandering fituations, like that which I now experienced, the hardmip is greatly aggravated by the uncertainty with re-fpedr. to its duration, and the means moft proper to be ufed to remove it, as well as by the labour and fatigue we muft neceiTarily undergo for that purpofe, and the difap-pointmcnts which too frequently fruftrate our beft concerted plans and moft ftrenuous exertions: it not only enfeebles the body, but deprefles the fpirits, in fpite of every NORTHERN OCEAN. every effort to prevent it, Befides, for want of action, the ftomach fo far lofes its digeftive powers, that after long falling it refumes its ofHce with pain and reluctance. During this journey I have too frequently experienced the dreadful effects of this calamity, and more than once been reduced to fo low a ltate by hunger and fatigue, that when Providence threw any thing in my way, my ftomach has fcarcely been able to retain more than two or three ounces, without producing the moft oppreffive pain. Another difagreeable circumftance of long rafting is, the extreme difficulty and pain attending the natural evacuations for the firft time; and which is fo dreadful, that of it none but thofe who have experienced can have an adequate idea. To record in detail each day's fare fince the commencement of this journey, would be little more than a dull repetition of the fame occurrences. A fufficient idea of it may be given in a few words, by obferving that it may juftly be faid to have been either all feaft-ing, or all famine: fometimes we had too much, feldom juft enough, frequently too little, and often none at all. It will be only neceffary to fay that we have failed many times two whole days and nights; twice upwards of three days ; and once, while at She-than-nee, near feven days, during which we tailed not a mouthful of any thing, except a few cranberries, water, fcraps of old leather, and burnt bones. On thofe preffing occafions I have frequently feen the Indians examine their wardrobe, F which which confifted chiefly of /kin-clothing, and coniider what part could beft be fpared ; fometimes a piece of an old, half-rotten deer ilcin, and at others a pair of old fhoes, were facrificed to alleviate extreme hunger. The relation of fuch uncommon hardships may perhaps gain little credit in Europe; while thofe who are converfant with the hiftory of Hudfon's Bay, and who are thoroughly acquainted with the diftrefs which the natives of the country about it frequently endure, may coniider them as no more than the common occurrences of an Indian life, in which they are frequently driven to the neceiTity of eating one another *. Knowing * It i« the general opinion of the Southern Indians, that when any of their -tribe have been driven to the neceflity of eating human flefh, they become fo fond of it, that no perfon is fafc in their company. And though it is well known they are never guilty of making this horrid repaft but when driven to it by neceflity, yet thofe who have made it are not only fhunned, but lb uni-yerfally detefted by all who know them, that no Indians will tent with them, and they are frequently murdered flily. I have feen feveral of thofe poor wretches who, unfortunately for them, have come under the above defcription, and though they were perfons much efteemed before hunger had driven them to this a£l, were afterward fo univerfilly defpifed and negie&ed, that a fmile never graced their countenances: deep melancholy has been ieated on their brows, while the eye moft expreflively fpoke the dictates of the heart, and feemed to fay, " Why do you defpife me for my misfortunes ? the period " is probably not far diftant, when you may be driven to the like neceflity !" In the Spring of the year 1775, when I was building Cumberland Houfe, an Indian, whofe name was Wapoos, came to the fettlement, at a time when fifteen tents of Indians were on the plantations: they examined him very minutely, and found he had come a confidcrablc way by hirrifelf, without a gun, or ammunition. This made many of them conjecture he had met with, and killed, fome perfon by the way j and this was the more eafily credited, from Knowing that our conftant loads would not permit us ^JJ^ to carry much provifions with us, we agreed to continue 3uae-a day or two to refrefti ourfelves, and to dry a little meat in the fun, as it thereby not only becomes more portable, but is always ready for ufe. On the twenty-fixth, all 26th-that remained of the trtuflc-ot flefh being properly dried and fit for carriage, wc began to proceed on our journey Northward, and on the thirtieth of June arrived 30th. at a fmall river, called Cathawhachaga, which empties itfelf into a large lake called Yath-kyed-whoie, or White Snow Lake. Here we found feveral tents of Northern Indians, who had been fome time employed fpearing deer in their canoes, as they crolTed the above mentioned little river. Here alfo we met a Northern Indian Leader, or Captain, called Keel (hies, and a fmall party of his crew, who were bound to Prince of Wales's Fort, with furs from the care he took to conceal a bag of provifions, which he had brought with him, in a lofty pine-tree near the houfe. Being a ftranger, I invited him in, though I faw he had nothing for trade ; and during that interview, fome of the Indian women examined his bag, and gave it as their opinion that the meat it contained was human flefh : in con-fequence, it was not without the interference of fome principal Indians, whofe liberality of fentiment was more tjxrenfive than that in the others, the poor creature faved his life. Many of the men cleaned and loaded their guns j Others had their bows and arrows ready; and even the women took poffeffion of the hatchets, to kill this poor inofrenfive wretch, for no crime but that of travelling about two hundred miles by himfelf, ununified by fire-arms for fupport in his journey. F 2 and \ 1770. and other commodities for trade. When Keelfhies was. "~jiy. made acquainted with the intent of my journey, he readily offered his fervice to bring me any thing from the Factory that we were likely to ftand in need of; and though we were then in latitude 630 4' North, and longitude ;° 12 Weft from Churchill, yet he promifed to join us again, at a place appointed by my guide, by the fetting in of the Winter. In confequence of this offer, I looked over our ammunition and other articles; and finding that a little powder, fhot, tobacco, and a few knives, were likely to be of fervice before the journey could be completed, I determined to fend a letter to the governor of Prince of Wales's Fort, to advife him of my fituation, and to defire him to fend by the bearer a certain quantity of the above articles ; on which Keelfhies and his crew proceeded on their journey for the Factory the fame day. Cathawhachaga was the only river we had feen fince the breaking up of the ice that we could not ford ; and as we had not any canoes with us, we were obliged to get ferried acrofs by the ftrange Indians. When we arrived on the North fide of this river, where the Indians refided, my guide propofed to flop fome time, to dry and pound fome meat to take with us; to which I readily con-fented. We alfo fet our fifhing-nets, and caught a con-iijlcrable quantity of very fine fifh ; fuch as tittemeg, barbie, &c. The The number of deer which croffed Cathawhachaga, during our ftay there, was by no means equal to our expectations, and no more than juft fufficient to fupply our prefent wants; fo that after waiting feveral days in fruit-lefs expectation, we began to prepare for moving; and accordingly, on the fixth of July, we fet out, though we had not at that time as much victuals belonging to our company as would furnifh us a fupper. During our ftay here, we had each day got as much fifti or flefh as was fufficient for prefent expenditure ; but, being in hopes of better times, faved none. Before we left Cathawhachaga, I made feveral obfervations for the latitude, and found it to be 630 4 North. I alfo brought up my journal, and filled up my chart to that time. Every thing being now ready for our departure, my guide informed me that in a few days a canoe would be abfolutely neceflary, to enable us to crofs fome unford-able rivers which we fhould meet, and could not avoid. This induced me to purchafe one at the eafy rate of a fingle knife, the full value of which did not exceed one penny. It muft be obferved, that the man who fold the canoe had no farther occafion for it, and was glad to take what he could get; but had he been thoroughly acquainted with our neceflities, he moft affuredly would have had the confeience to have afked goods to the amount of ten beaver fkins at leaft. 7 This This additional piece of luggage obliged me to engage another Indian 3 and we were lucky enough at that time to meet with a poor forlorn fellow, who was fond of the office, having never been in a much better ftate than that of a beaft of burthen. Thus, provided with a canoe, and a man to carry it, we left Cathawhachaga, as has been obferved, on the fixth of July, and continued our courfe to the North by Weft, and North North Weft; and that night put up by the fide of a fmall bay of White Snow Lake, where we angled, and caught feveral fine trout, fome of which weighed not lefs than fourteen or fixteen pounds. In the night heavy rain came on, which continued three days; but the ninth proving fine weather, and the fun difplaying his beams very powerfully, we dried our clothes, and proceeded to the Northward. Toward the evening, however, it began again to rain fo ex-cefiively, that it was with much difficulty we kept our powder and books dry. On the feven teen th, we faw many mufk-oxen, feveral of which the Indians killed ; when we agreed to ftay here a day or two, to dry and pound * fome of the carcafes to take with us. The flefh of any animal, when it is thus prepared, is not only hearty food, but is always ready for * To prepare meat in this manner, it requires no farther operation than rutting the lean parts of the animal into thin dices, and drying it in the fun, or by a flow fire, till, after beating it between two flones, it is reduced to a coarle powder. ufe, nfe, and at the fame time very portable. In moft parts i7?°-of Hud ion's Bay it is known by the name of Thew-hagon, July, but amongft the Northern Indians it is called Achees. Having prepared as much dried flefh as we could transport, we proceeded to the Northward; and at our departure left a great quantity of meat behind us, which we could neither eat nor carry away. This was not the fuft time we had fo done; and however wafteful it may appear, it is a practice fo common among all the Indian tribes, as to be thought nothing of. On the twenty-fecond, we met feveral ftrangers, whom we joined 22d. in purfuit of the deer, Sec. which were at this time fo plentiful* that we got every day a fufficicnt number for our fupport, and indeed too frequently killed feveral merely for the tongues, marrow, and fat. After we had been fome time in company with thofe Indians, I found that my guide feemed to hefitate about proceeding any farther; and that he kept pitching his tent backward and forward, from place to place, after the deer, and the reft of the Indians. On my afking him his reafon for fo doing; he anfwered, that as the year was too fir advanced to admit of our arrival at the Coppermine River that Summer, he thought it more advifable to pafs the Winter with fome of the Indians then in company, and alleged that there could be no fear of our arriving at that river early in the Summer of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-one. As I could not pretend 177°* pretend to contradict him, I was entirely reconciled to July. his propofal; and accordingly we kept moving to the Weftward with the other Indians. In a few days, many others joined us from different quarters; fo that by the 3°th. thirtieth of July we had in all above feventy tents, which did not contain lefs than fix hundred perfons. Indeed our encampment at night had the appearance of a fmall town; and in the morning, when we began to move, the whole ground (at leaft for a large fpace all round) feemed to be alive, with men, women, children, and dogs. Though the land was entirely barren, and deftitute of every kind of herbage, except wifh-a-capucca * and mofs, yet the deer were fo numerous that the Indians not only killed as many as were fufficient for our large number, but often feveral merely for the fkins, marrow, ike. and left the carcafes to rot, or to be devoured by the wolves, foxes, and other beafts of prey. In our way to the Weftward we came to feveral rivers, which, though fmall and of no note, were fo deep as not to be fordable, particularly Doo-baunt River *f*. On thofe occafions only, we had recourfe to our canoe, which, though of the common fize, was too fmall to carry more * Wifh-a-capucca is the name given by the natives to a plant which is found all over the country bordering on Hudfon's Bay ; and an infufion of it is ufed as tea by all the Europeans fettled in that country. •f This river, as well as all others deferving that appellation which I crofted during this part of my journey, ran to the Eaft and North Eaft and both thein and the Jakes were perfectly frefh, and inhabited by fifh that are well known never to frequent fait water. than than two perfons; one of whom always lies down at full 177°* length for fear of making the canoe top-heavy, and the AuguftT other fits on his heels and paddles. This method of ferrying over rivers, though tedious, is the moft expeditious way thefc poor people can contrive ; for they are fome-times obliged to carry their canoes one hundred and fifty, or two hundred miles, without having occafion to make ufe of them ; yet at times they cannot do without them; and were they not very fmall and portable, it would be " impoflible for one man to carry them, which they are often obliged to do, not only the diftance above mentioned, but even the whole Summer, The perfon I engaged at Cathawhachaga to carry my 6th. canoe proving too weak for the talk, another of my crew was obliged to exchange loads with him, which feemed perfectly agreeable to all parties; and as we walked but fhort days journies, and deer were very plentiful, all things v/ent on very fmoothly. Nothing material happened till the eighth, when we were near lofing the quadrant and 8th. all our powder from the following circumftance : the fellow who had been releafed from carrying the canoe proving too weak, as hath been already obferved, had, after the exchange, nothing to carry but my powder and his own trifles; the latter were indeed very inconfiderable, not equal infize and weight to a foldier's knaplack. As I intended to have a little fport with the deer, and knowing his load to be much lighter than mine, I gave him the quadrant G and 1770. and [land to carry, which he took without the leaft hefi-Auguft. tation, or fceming ill-will. Having thus cafed myfelf for the prefent of a heavy and cumber fome part of my load, I fet out early in the morning with fome of the Indian men; and after walking about eight or nine miles, faw, from the top of a high hill, a great number of deer feeding in a neighbouring valley ; on which we laid down our loads and creeled a flag, as a fignal for the others to pitch their tents there for the night. We then purfued our hunting, which proved very fuccefsful. At night, however, when we came to the hill where we had left our haggage, I found that only part of the Indians had arrived, and that the man who had been entruftcd with my powder and quadrant, had fet off another way, with a fmall party of Indians that had been in our company that morning. The evening being far advanced, we were obliged to defer going in fearch of him till the. morning, and as his track could not be eafily difcovered in the Summer, the Southern Indians, as well as myfelf, were very uneafy, fearing we had loft the powder, which was to provide us with food and raiment the remainder of our journey. The very uncourteous behaviour of the Northern Indians then in company, gave me little hopes of receiving afliftance from them, any longer than I had wherewithal to reward them for their trouble and expence \ for during the whole time I had been with them, not one of them had offered to give me the leaft morfel of victuals, without afking fomething in exchange, which, in general, was three times the value of what what they could have got for the fame articles, had they car- 177°-ried them to the Factory, though feveral hundred miles Auguft. diftant. So inconfiderate were thofe people, that wherever they met me, they always expected that I had a great afibrtment of goods to relieve their neceilities; as if I had brought the Company's warehoufe with me. Some of them wanted guns; all wanted ammunition, iron-work, and tobacco; many were folicitous for medicine ; and others preffcd me for different articles of clothing : but when they found I had nothing to fpare, except a few nick-nacks and gewgaws, they made no fcruple of pronouncing me a " poor " fervant, noways like the Governor at the Factory, who, " they faid, they never faw, but he gave them fomething " ufeful." It is fcarcely poffible to conceive any people fo void of common underftanding, as to think that the fole intent of my undertaking this fatiguing journey, was to carry a large affortmcnt ot ufeful and heavy implements, to give to all that flood in need of them ; but many of them would aik me for what they wanted with the fime freedom, and apparently with the fame hopes of fuccefs, as if they had been at one of the Company's Factories. Others, with an air of more -generofity, offered me furs to trade with at the fame fl&rldard as at the Factory; without confidering how unlikely it was that I fhould increafe the enormous weight of my load with articles which could be of no more ufe to me in my prefent fituation than they were to themfelves. G 2 This This unaccountable behaviour of the Indians occafioned much ferious reflection on my part; as it fhewed plainly how little I had to expect if I fhould, by any accident, be reduced to the1 neceflity of depending upon them for fupport ; fo that, though I laid me down to reft, fleep was a ftranger to me that night. The following beautiful lines of Dr. Young I repeated above an hundred times: « Tired Nature's fweet reftorer, balmy Sleep j ec He, like the world, his ready vifit pays " Where fortune fmiles; the wretched he forfakes : " Swift on his downy pinions flies from woe, " And lights on lids unfully'd with a tear." Night Thoughts, 9th. After pafling the night in this melancholy manner, I got up at day-break, and, with the two Southern Indians, fet out in queft of our deferter. Many hours elapfed in fruitlefs fearch after him, as we could not difcover a Angle track in the direction which we were informed he had taken. The day being almoft fpent without the leaft appearance of fuccefs,, I propofed repairing to the place where I had delivered the quadrant to him, in hopes of feeing fome track in the mofs that might lead to the way the Indians were gone whom our deferter had accompanied. On our arrival at that place, we found they had ftruck down toward a little river which they had croffed the morning before; and there, to our great joy, we found the quadrant and the bag of powder lying on the top of a high ftone, but not a human being was to be feen. On examining examining the powder, we found that the bag had been opened, and part of it taken out; but, notwithftanding our lofs was very confiderable, we returned with light hearts to the place at which we had been the night before, where we found our baggage fife, but all the Indians gone : they had, however, been fo confiderate as to fet up marks to direct us what courfe to fteer. By the time we had adjufted our bundles, the day was quite fpent; feeing, however, a fmoke, or rather a fire, in the direction we were ordered to fteer, we bent our way towards it; and a little after ten o'clock at night came up with the main body of the Indians; when, after refrefhing ourfelves with a plentiful fupper, the firit morfel we had tafted that day, we retired to reft, which I at leaft enjoyed with better fuccefs than the preceding night. In the morning of the eleventh we proceeded on to the Weft, and Weft by South ; but on the twelfth did not move. This gave us an opportunity of endeavouring to afcertain the latitude by a meridian altitude, when we found the place to be in 630 10' North nearly. It proving rather cloudy about noon, though exceeding fine weather, I let the quadrant ftand, in order to obtain the latitude more exactly by two altitudes; but, to my great mortification, while I was eating my dinner, a fudden guft of wind blew it down; and as the ground where it flood was very 1770. very ftoney, the bubble, the fight-vane, and vernier, were A^guft. entirely broke to pieces, which rendered the inftrument ufelefs. In confequence of this misfortune I refolved to return again to the Fort, though we were then in the latitude of 630 10' North, and about io° 40' Weft longitude from Churchill River, C H A P. CHAP. III. Tranfactions from the Time the Quadrant was broken, till I arrived at the Factory. Several Jlrange Indians join us from the Northward.—They plundered me of all I had; but did not plunder the Southern Indians.—My guide plundered.—We begin our return to the Factory.—Meet with other Indians, who join our company.—Collect deer-jkins for clothing, but could not get them drcffed.—Suffer much hardffjip from the want of tents and warm clothing.—Moft of the Indians leave us.—Meet with Matonabbee.—Some account of him, and his behaviour to me and the Southern Indians.—We remain in bis company fome time.—His olferva-tions on my two unfucccfsful attempts.—We leave him, and proceed to a place to which he directed us, in order to make fuowfboes andfledges. —"Join Matonabbee again, and proceed towards the Factory in his company.—Ammunition runs fort.—Myfelf and four Indians ft off' pof for the Factory.—Much bewildered in a fnow form; my dog is frozen to death; we lie in a bufh of willows.—Proceed on our journey.—Great difficulty in croffing a jumble of rocks.-—Arrive at the Fort. HT1 H E day after I had the misfortune to break the qua- 1770. A drant, feveral Indians joined me from the Northward, fome of whom plundered mc and my companions of 13th" alimoft every ufeful article we had, among which was my gun ; and notwithftanding we were then on the point of returning to the Factory, yet, as one of my companions' guns was a little out of order, the lofs was likely to be feverely feverely felt; but it not being in my power to recover it again, we were obliged to reft contented. Nothing can exceed the cool deliberation of thofe villains ; a committee of them entered my tent *. The ringleader feated himfelf on my left-hand. They firft begged me to lend them my fkipertogan f to fill a pipe of tobacco. After fmoking two or three pipes, they afked me for feveral articles which I had not, and among others for a pack of cards; but on my anfwering that I had not any of the articles they mentioned, one of them put his hand on my baggage, and afked if it was mine. Before I could anfwer in the affirmative, he and the reft of his companions (fix in number) had all my treafure fpread on the ground. One took one thing, and another another, till at laft nothing was left but the empty bag, which they permitted me to keep. At length, confidering that, though I was going to the Factory, I fhould want a knife to cut my victuals, an awl to mend my flioes, and a needle to mend my other clothing, they read ly gave me thefe articles, though not without making me underftand that I ought to look upon * This only confided of three walking-fticks ftuck into the ground, and a blanket thrown over them. t Skipertogan is a fmall bng that contains a Bint and flee!, alfo a pipe and tobacco, as well as touchwood, &c. for making a fire. Some of thefe bags may be called truly elegant; being richly ornamented with beads, porcupine-quills, morfe-hair, &c. a work always performed by the women; and they arc, with much propriety, greatly eftecmed by moft Europeans for the neat-nefs of their workmanfhip. 2 it Auguft. it as a great favour. Finding them poffeffed of fo much i77°-generofity, I ventured to folicit them for my razors ; but L"^5t thinking that one would be fufhxient to fhave me during my paffage home, they made no fcruple to keep the other ; luckily they chofe the worft. To complete their generofity, they permitted me to take as much foap as I thought would be fufhcient to wafti and fhave me during the remainder of my journey to the Factory. They were more cautious in plundering the Southern Indians, as the relation of fuch outrages being committed on them might occafion a war between the two nations; but they had nothing of that kind to dread from the Englifh. However, the Northern Indians had ad-drefs enough to talk my home-guard Indians out of all they had : fo that before we left them, they were as clean fwept as myfelf, excepting their guns, fome ammunition, an old hatchet, an ice-chiffel, and a file to fharpen them. It may probably be thought ftrange that my guide, who was a Northern Indian, fhould permit his countrymen to commit fuch outrages on thofe under his charge; but being a man of little note, he was fo far from being able to protect us, that he was obliged to fubmit to nearly the fame outrage himfelf. On this occafion he aflumed a great air of generofity; but the fact was, he gave freely what it was not in his power to protect, H Early 5o A J 0 U R N E Y TO THE 1770. Early in the morning of the nineteenth, I fet out on my Attgurt. return, in company with feveral Northern Indians, who were bound to the Factory with furrs and other commodities in trade. This morning the Indian who took my gun, returned it to me, it being of no ufe to him, having no ammunition. The weather for fome time proved fine, and deer were very plentiful; but as the above ravagers had materially lightened my load, by taking every thing from me, except the quadrant, books, 6cc. this part of my journey was the eaficft and moft pleafant of any 1 had experienced fince my leaving the Fort, In our way wc frequently met with other Indians, fo that fcarcely a day pafTed without our feeing feveral fmokes made by other ftrangers. Many of thofe we met joined our party, having furrs and other commodities for trade. 3*ft- The deer's hair being now of a proper length for cloth- ing, it was neceiTary, according to the cuftom, to procure as many of their fkins, while in feafon, as would make a a fuit of warm clothing for the Winter: and as each grown perfon requires the prime parts of from eight to eleven of thofe fkins (in proportion to their fize) to make a complete fuit, it muft naturally be fuppofed that this addition to my burden was very conftderable. My load, however cumber fome and heavy, was yet very bear-Scptcmber. able; but, after I had carried it feveral weeks, it proved of no fervice; for we had not any women properly belonging to our company, confequently had not any perfon perfon to drefs them; and fo uncivil were the other In- 3 77°-dians, that they would neither exchange them for others September, of an inferior quality already drefied, nor permit their women to drefs them for us, under pretence that they were always employed in the like duty for themfelvcs and families, which was by no means the cafe ; for many of them had fufircient time to have done every little fervice of that kind that we could have required of them. The truth was, they were too well informed of my poverty to do any acts of generofity, as they well knew I had it not then in my power to reward them for their trouble. I never law a fet of people that pofleffed fo little humanity, or that could view the diftrefTes of their fellow-creatures with fo little feeling and unconcern ; for though they feem to have a great affe&ion for their wives and children, yet they will laugh at and ridicule the diftrefs of every other perfon who is not immediately related to them. This behaviour of the Indians made our fituation very dilagreeable ; for as the fall advanced, we began to feel the cold very feverely for want of proper clothing. We fufl'crcd alfo greatly from the inclemency of the weather, as wc had no tent to fhelter us. My guide was entirely exempted from all thofe inconveniences, having procured a good warm fuit of clothing; and, as one of his wives had long before joined our party, he was provided with a tent, and every other neceffary confiftent II 2 with 1770. with their manner of living: but the old fellow was fo September far from interefting himfelf in our behalf, that he had, for fome time before, entirely withdrawn from our company *9 and though he then continued to carry the greateft part of our little remains of ammunition, yet he did not contribute in the fmalleft degree towards our fupport. As deer,, however, were in great plenty, I felt little or no inconvenience from his neglect in this refpect. t7th, Provifions ftill continued very plentiful; which was a lingular piece of good fortune, and the only circum-ftance which at this time could contribute to our hap-pinefs or fafety; for notwithftanding the early feafon of the year, the weather was remarkably bad and feverely cold, at leaft it appeared fo to us, probably from having, no kind of fkin-clothing. In this forlorn ftate we continued our courfe to the South Eaft; and, to add to the gloominefs of our fituation, moft of the Northern Indians who had been in our company all the firft part of the fall, were by this time gone a-head, as we could not keep up with them for want of fnow-fhoes. 20th. In the evening of the twentieth, we were joined from the Weftward by a famous Leader^ called Matonabbee, mentioned in my inftructions ; who, with his followers, or gang, was alfo going to Prince of Wales's Fort, with furrr, and other articles for trade. This Leader, when a youth, refided feveral years at the above Fort, and was not not only a perfect mafter of the Southern Indian language, 1770. but by being frequently with the Company's fervants, had September, acquired feveral words of Englifh, and was one of the men who brought the lateft accounts of the Coppermine River; and it was on his information, added to that of one J-dot-le-ezey, (who is fince dead,) that this expedition was fet on foot. The courteous behaviour of this ftranger ftruck me very fenfibly. As foon as he was acquainted with our diftrefs, he got fuch fkins as we had with us drcflld for the Southern Indians, and furnifhed me with a good warm hi it of otter and other fkins: bur, as it was not in his power to provide us with fnow-fhoes, being then on the barren ground,) he direded us to a little river which he knew, and where there was a fmall range of woods, which, though none of the beft, would, he faid, furnifh us with temporary fnow-fhoes and fledges, that might materially aflift us during the remaining part of our journey. We odder, fpent feveral nights in company with this Leader, though we advanced towards the Fort at the rate of ten or twelve miles a day ; and as provifions abounded, he made a grand feaft for me in the Southern Indian ftile, where there was plenty of good eating, and the whole concluded with ringing and dancing, after the Southern Indian ftyle and manner. In this amufement my home-guard Indians bore no inconfiderable part, as they were both men of fome 8 confequence 1770. confequence when at home, and well known to Matonab-Oftobcr. bee: but among the other Northern Indians, to whom they were not known, they were held in no cftimation ; which indeed is not to be wondered at, when we coniider that the value of a man among thofe people, is always proportioned to his abilities in hunting ; and as my two Indians had not exhibited any great talents that way, the Northern Indians (hewed them as much refpedt as they do in common to thofe of very moderate talents among them-felves. During-my converfation with this Leader, he afked me very ferioufly, If I would attempt another journey for the difcovery of the Copper-mines ? And on my anfwering in the affirmative, provided I could get better guides than I had hitherto been furnifhed with, he faid he would readily engage in that fervice, provided the Governor at the Fort would employ him. In anfwer to this, I affured him his offer would be gladly accepted; and as I had already experienced every hardfhip that v/as likely to accompany any future trial, I was determined to complete the difcovery, even at the rifque of life itfelf. Matonabbee affured me, that by the accounts received from his own countrymen, the Southern Indians, and myfelf, it was very probable I might hot experience fo much hardfhip during the whole journey, as I had aheady felt, though fearcely advanced one third part of the journey. He He attributed all our misfortunes to the mifconducr. of my guides, and the very plan we purfued, by the defire of the Governor, in not taking any women with us on this journey, was, he faid, the principal thing that occafioncd all our wants: " for, faid he, when all the men are heavy " laden, they can neither hunt nor travel to any confider-" able diftance; and in cafe they meet with fuccefs in c< hunting, who is to carry the produce of their labour ? " Women, added he, were made for labour; one of November. 1770. that might have afforded us fome flicker, yet the wind November, blew fo hard, and the fnow drifted fo exceffively thick, that we could not fee ten yards before us the whole day. Between feven and eight in the evening my dog, a valuable brute, was frozen to death ; fo that his Hedge, which was a very heavy one, I was obliged to haul. Between nine and ten at night we arrived at a fmall creek, on which we walked about three quarters of a mile, when we came to a large tuft of tall willows, and two or three fets of old tent-poles. Being much jaded, we determined not to proceed any farther that night; fo we went to work, and made the beft defence againft the weather that the fituation of the place and our materials would admit. Our labour confifted only in digging a hole in the fnow, and fixing a few deer-fkins up to windward of us: but the moll difficult tafk was that of making a fire. When this was once accomplifhed, the old tent-poles amply fupplied us with fewel. By the time we had finifhed this bufinefs, the weather began to moderate, and the drift greatly to abate; fo that the moon and the Aurora Borealis fhonc out with great fplendor, and there appeared every fymp-tom of the return of fine weather. After eating a plentiful fuppcr of venifon, therefore, of which we had a fufficient ftock to laft us to the Fort, we laid down and got a little ^3/<-/mil ■ ' '//l, /•'tilllli ,1,'lflplutt ■ '/.>"/•/ o/" Timber j hrnt mill Ih.^Iii J in their proper •shape for ilnuii/ ■ - / Canoe << mi plait . V < / /"ll/tft/t . " .>>w/> ft? kill Beer with in i/„- Witter . 'I The method ofoarryirus tin Conor in .uttimu-i-. : a i fin I i « Reference to tin SktUhn . j Tin- Stem . ■i Stern fin.it . ,-fj'liii tiVW/ R,„l.tpl„,,,l between tkeTunherj,kthe Uirchrind 6 Tin Timber*. // /.,//>//• /Ami1, ////• .(tantv, fill iff Snlf.t are. jewed. l<> . t.^ciitl'\l-^-''tn"" 43 me, nor can I fay they were very clamorous for any thing I had. This was undoubtedly owing to Matonabbee's informing them of my true fituation ; which was, that I had not, by any means, fufBcient necefTaries for myfelf, much lefs to give away. The few goods which I had with me were intended to be referved for the Copper and Dog-ribbed Indians, who never vilit the Company's Factories. Tobacco was, however, always given away; for every one of any note, who joined us, expected to be treated with a few pipes, and on fome occafions it was fcarcely pofTible to get off without prelenting a few inches * to them ; which, with the conftant fupplies which I was obliged to furnifh my own crew, decreafed that article of my ftock fo fait, that notwithstanding I had yet advanced fo fmall a part of my journey, more than one half of my ftore was expended. Gun-powder and fhot alfo were articles commonly alked for by moft of the Indians we met; and in general thefe were dealt round to them with a liberal hand by my guide Matonabbee. I muft, however, do him the juftice to acknowledge, that what he diftributed was all his own, which he had purchafed at the Factory; to my certain knowledge he bartered one hundred and fifty martins' fkins for powder only; befides a great number of beaver, and other furrs, for fhot, ball, iron-work, and tobacco, purpofely to give away among his countrymen ; as he had certainly as many of thefe articles given to him as were, in * The tobacco ufed in Hudfon's Bay is the Brafil tobacco; which is twitted into the form of a rope, of near an inch diameter, and then wound into a large roll; from which it is taken by meafures of length, for the natives. O 2 his his opinion, fufficient for our fupport during our journey out and home. Matonabbee*s canoe having been repaired, on the twentieth we left Clowey, and proceeded Northward. That morning a fmall gang of ftrangers joined us, who informed my guide, that Captain Keelfhies was within a day's walk to the Southward. Keelfhies was the man by whom 1 had fent a letter to Prince of Wales's Fort, from Cathawhachaga, in the beginning of July one thoufand feven hundred and feventy ; but not long after that, having the misfortune to break my quadrant, I was obliged to return to the Fort a fecond time; and though we faw many fmokes, and fpoke with feveral Indians on my return that year, yet he and I miffed each other on the barren ground, and I had not feen or heard of him fince that time. As Matonabbee was defirous that I fhould receive my letters, and alfo the goods I had written for, he difpatched two of his young men to bring them. We continued our journey to the Northward; and the next day faw feveral large fmokes at a great diftance to the Eaftward on the barren ground, which were fuppofed to be made by fome parties of Indians bound to Prince of Wales's. Fort with furrs and other commodities for trade. On the twenty-fecond and twenty-third, we proceeded to the North, at the rate of fourteen or fifteen miles a-day; and in the evening of the latter, got clear of all the the woods, and lay on the barren ground. The fame evening the two young men who were fent for my letters, &c. returned, and told me that Keelfhies had pro-mifed to join us in a few days, and deliver the things to me with his own hand. The twenty-fourth proved bad and rainy weather, fo 34® that we only walked about feven miles, when finding a few blafted flumps of trees, we pitched our tents. It was well we did fo, for toward night we had exceffively bad weather, with loud thunder, ftrong lightning, and heavy rain, attended with a very hard gale of wind from the South Weft ; toward the next morning, however, the wind veered round to the North Weft, and the weather became intenfely cold and frofty. We walked that day about eight miles to the Northward, when we were obliged to put up, being almoft benumbed with cold. There we found a few dry ftumps, as we had done the dajr before, which ferved tis for fewel *, The * I have obferved, during my feveral journies in thofe parts, that all the way to the North of Seal River the edge of the wood is faced with old withered ftumps, and trees which have been blown down by the wind. They are moftly of the fort which is called here Juniper, but were feldom of any confiderable fize. Thofe blafted trees are found ia fome parts to extend to the diftance of twenty miles from the living woods, and detached patches of them are much farther off; which is a proof that the cold has been increafing in thofe parts for fome ages. Indeed, fome of the older Northern Indians have affured me,, that they have heard their fathers and grandfathers fay, they remembered the greateft part of thofe places where the trees are now blafted and dead, in a flourifhing 1771. The weather on the twenty-iixth was fo bad, with fnow Ti^T* ana* thick drifting fleet, that we did not move ; but the l7th] next morning proving fine and plcafant, we dried our things, and walked about twelve miles to the Northward ; moft of the way on the ice of a fmall river which runs into Pefhew Lake We then faw a fmoke to the Southward, which we judged to be made by Keelfhies, fo we put up for the night by the fide of the above-mentioned Lake, where I expected we fhould have waited for his xSch. arrival; but, to my great furprize, on the morrow we again fet forward, and walked twenty-two miles to the Northward on Pefhew Lake, and in the afternoon pitched our tents on an ifland, where, by my defire, the Indians made a large fmoke, and propofed to ftay a day or two for Captain Keelfhies. In the night, one of Matonabbee's wives and another woman eloped : it was fuppofed they went off to the Eaftward, in order to meet their former hufbands, from flourifhing ftate; and that they were remarkable for abounding with deer. It is a well-known fact, that many deer are fond of frequenting thofe plains where the juniper trees abound near barren grounds, particularly in fine weather during the Winter; but in heavy gales of wind they either take ihelter in the thick woods, or go out on the open plains. The Indians, who never want a reafon for any thing, lay, that the deer quit the thin ftraggiing woods during the high winds, becaufe the nodding of the trees, when at a confiderable diftance from each other, frightens them; but in the midft of a thick foreft, the conftant ruftling of the branches lulls them into fecurity, and renders them an eafy prey to a fkilful hunter. * Probably the fame with Partridge Lake in the Map. 2 whom whom they had been fometime before taken by force. This affair made more noife and buftle than I could have fuppofed ; and Matonabbee feemed entirely difcon-certed, and quite inconfolable for the lofs of his wife. She was certainly by far the handfomeft of all his flock, of a moderate fize, and had a fair complexion ; fhe apparently pofTefTed a mild temper, and very engaging manners. In fact, fhe feemed to have every good quality that could be expected in a Northern Indian woman, and that could render her an agreeable companion to an inhabitant of this part of the world. She had not, however, appeared happy in her late fituation; and chofe rather to be the fole wife of a fprightly young fellow of no note, (though very capable of maintaining her,) than to have the feventh or eighth fhare of the affection of the greateft man in the country. I am forry to mention an incident which happened while we were building the canoes at Clowey, and which by no means does honour to Matonabbee: it is no lefs a crime than that of having actually ftabbed the hufband of the above-mentioned girl in three places; and had it not been for timely afliftance, would certainly have murdered him, for no other reafon than becaufe the poor man had fpoken difrefpect fully of him for having taken his wife away by force. The cool deliberation with which Matonabbee committed this bloody adion, convinced me it had been a long premeditated de-fign; for he no fooner heard of the man's arrival, than he opened one of his wives' bundles, and, with the greateft compofure. 1771. compofure, took out a new long box-handled knife, went ~M#?• into the man's tent, and, without any preface whatever, took him by the collar, and began to execute his horrid dcfigii. The poor man anticipating his danger, fell on his face, and called for afliftance ; but before any could be had he received three wounds in the back. Fortunately for him, they all happened on the flioulder-blade, fo that his life was fpared. When Matonabbee returned to his tent, after committing this horrid deed, he fat down as compofedly as if nothing had happened, called for water to wafh his bloody hands and knife, fmokcd his pipe as ufual, feemed to be perfectly at eafe, and alked if I did not think he had done right ? It has ever been the cuftom among thofe people for the men to wreftle for any woman to whom they are attached j and, of courfe, the ftrongeft party always carries off the prize. A weak man, unlefs he be a good hunter and well-beloved, is feldom permitted to keep a wife that a ftronger man thinks worth his notice : for at any time when the wives of thofe ftrong wreftlers are heavy-laden either with furrs or provifions, they make no fcruple of tearing any other man's wife from his bofom, and making her bear a part of his luggage. This cuftom prevails throughout all their tribes, and caufes a great fpirit of emulation among their youth, who are upon all occafions, from their childhood, trying their ftrength and fkill in wreftling. This enables them to protect their property, and particularly their wives, from from the hands of thofe powerful ravifhers; fome of whom i77*« make almoft a livelihood by taking what they pleafe from May. the weaker parties, without making them any return. Indeed, it is reprefented as an aft of great generofity, if they condefcend to make an unequal exchange; as, in general, abufe and infult are the only return for the lofs whigh is fuftained. The way in which they tear the women and other property from one another, though it has the appearance of the greateft brutality, can fcarcely be called fighting. I never knew any of them receive the leaft hurt in thefe rencontres my the whole bufinefs confifts in hauling each other about by the hair of the head \ they are feldom known either to ftrike or kick one another. It is not uncommon for one of them to cut off his hair and to greafe his ears, immediately before the conteft begins. This, however, is done privately; and it is fometimes truly laughable, to fee one of the parties ftrutting about with an air of great importance, and calling out, " Where is he? Why does ** he not come out ?" when the other will bolt out with a clean fhorned head and greafed ears, rufh on his anta-gonift, feize him by the hair, and though perhaps a much weaker man, foon drag him to the ground, while the ftronger is not able to lay hold on him. It is very frequent on thofe occafions for each party to have fpies, to watch the other's motions, which puts them more on a footing of equality. For want of hair to pull, they P feize feize each other about the waift, with legs wide extended, and try their ftrength, by endeavouring to vie who can firft throw the other down. On thefe wreftling occafions the ftanders-by never attempt to interfere in the conteft ; even one brother offers-not to aflift another, unlefs it be with advice, which, as it is always delivered openly on the field during the conteft, may, in fact, be faid to be equally favourable to both parties. It fometimes happens that one of the wreftlers is fuperior in ftrength to the other; and if a woman be the caufe of the conteft, the wreaker is frequently unwilling to yield, notwithftanding he is greatly overpowered. When this happens to be the cafe, the relations and friends, or other bye-ftanders, will fometimes join to perfuade the weaker combatant to give up the conteft, left, by continuing it, he fhould get bruifed and hurt, without the leaft probability of being able,to protect what he is contending for. I obferved that very few of thofe people were diflatisfied with the wives which had fallen to their loty for whenever any confiderable number of them were in company, fcarcely a day pafied without fome overtures being made for contcfts of this kind; and it was often very unpleafant to me, to fee the object of the conteft fitting in penfive filence watching her fate, while her hulband and his rival were contending for the prize. I have indeed not only felt pity for thofe poor wretched victims, but the utmoft indignation, when I have have feen them won, perhaps, by a man whom they mor- 1771. tally hated. On thofe occafions their grief and reluctance ' MaTT^ to follow their new lord has been fo great, that the bufinefs has often ended in the greateft brutality; for, in the ftruggle, I have feen the poor girls ftripped quite naked, and carried by main force to their new lodgings. At other times it was pleafant enough to fee a fine girl led off the field from a hufband fhe difliked, with a tear in one eye and a finger on the other : for cuftom, or delicacy if you pleafe, has taught them to think it neceffary to whimper a little, let the change be ever fo much to their inclination. I have throughout this account given the women the appellation of girls, which is pretty applicable, as the objects of conteft are generally young, and without any family: few of the men chufe to be at the trouble of maintaining other people's children, except on particular occafions, which will be taken notice of hereafter. Some of the old men, who are famous on account of their fuppofed fkill in conjuration, have great influence in perfuading the rabble from committing thofe outrages; but the humanity of thefe fages is feldom known to extend beyond their own families. In defence of them they will exert their utmoft influence; but when their own relations are guilty of the fame crime, they feldom inter-' fere. This partial conduct creates fome fecret, and feveral open enemies; but the generality of their neighbours are deterred, through fear or fuperifition, from ew P 2 curing 0 » curing their revenge, and even from talking difrefpecl-fully of them, unlefs it be behind their backs ; which is a vice of which almoft every Indian in this country, without exception, is guilty. Notwithftanding the Northern Indians are fo covetous, and pay fo little regard to private property as' to take every advantage of bodily ftrength to rob their neighbours, not only of their goods, but of their wives, yet they are, in other refpefts, the mildeft tribe, or nation, that is to be found on the borders of Hudfon's Bay: for let their affronts or lofles be ever fo great, they never will feek any other revenge than that of wreftling. As for murder, which is fo common among all the tribes of Southern Indians, it is feldom heard of among them. A murderer is fhunned and detefted by all the tribe, and is obliged to wander up and down, forlorn and forfaken even by his own relations and former friends. In that refpecr. a murderer may truly be compared to Cain, after he had killed his brother Abel. The cool reception he meets with by all who know him, occafions him to grow melancholy,, and he never leaves any place but the whole company fay, " There goes the murderer I" The women, it is true, fometimes receive an unlucky blow from their hufbands for miibehaviour, which occafions their death ; but this is thought nothing of: and for one man or woman to kill another out of revenge, or through jealoufy, or on any other account, is fo extraordinary, that very few are now 2 exifting exifting who hwe been guilty of it. At the prefent moment I know not one, befide Matonabbee, who ever made an attempt of that nature; and he is, in every other refpect, a man of fuch univerfal good fenfe, and, as an Indian, of fuch great humanity, that 1 am at a lofs how to account for his having been guilty of fuch a crime, unlefs it be by his having lived among the Southern Indians fo long, as to become tainted with their blood-thirfty, revengeful, and vindictive difpofitiom Early in the morning of the twenty-ninth, Captain Keelfhies joined us. He delivered to me a packet of letters, and a two-quart keg of French brandy; but allured me, that the powder, fhot, tobacco, knives, 6cc. which he received at the Fort for me, were all expended. He endeavoured to make fome apology for this, by faying, that fome of his relations died in the Winter, and that he had, according to their cuftom, thrown all his own things away; after which he was obliged to have recourfe to my ammunition and other goods, to fupport himfelf and a numerous family. The very affecting manner in which he related this ftory, often crying like a child, was a great proof of his extreme forrow, which he wifhed to per-fuade me arofe from the recollection of his having embezzled fo much of my property; but I was of a different opinion* and attributed his grief to arife from the remembrance of his deceafed relations. However, as a fnaall recompence for my lofs, he prefented me with four ready- no A JOURNEY TO T EI E 1771* ready-dreffed moofe-fkins, which was, he faid, the only "May7~ retribution he could then make. The moofe-fkins, though not the twentieth part of the value of the goods which lie had embezzled, were in reality more acceptable to me, than the ammunition and the other articles would have been, on account of their great ufe as fhoe-leather, which at that time was a very fcarce article with us, whereas we had plenty of powder and fhot. On the fame day that Keelfhies joined us, an Indian man, who had been fome time in our company, infilled on taking one of Matonabbee's wives from him by force, un-lefs he complied with his demands, which were, that Matonabbee mould give him a certain quantity of ammunition, fome pieces of iron-work, a kettle, and feveral other articles; every one of which, Matonabbee was obliged to deliver, or lofe the woman ; for the other man far excelled him in ftrength. Matonabbee was more exafperated on this occafion, as the fame man had fold him the woman no longer ago than the nineteenth of the preceding April. Having expended all the goods he then pofleffed, however, he was determined to make another bargain for her 3 and as fhe was what may be called a valuable woman in their cftimation ; that is, one who was not only tolerably per-fonable, but reckoned very ffcilful in manufacturing the different kinds of leather, fkins, and furrs, and at the fame time very clever in the performance of every other domeftic duty required of the fex in this part of the World ; World; Matonabbee was more unwilling to part with her, 1771. efpecially as he had fo lately fuffered a lofs of the fame U~m^T"J kind. This difpute, which was after fome hours decided by words and prefents, had like to have proved fatal to my expedition ; for Matonabbee, who at that time thought himfelf as great a man as then lived, took this affront fa much to heart, efpecially as it was offered in my prefence, that he almoft determined not to proceed any farther toward the Copper-mine River, and was on the point of ftriking off to the Weftward, with an intent to join the Athapufco Indians, and continue with them : he being perfectly well acquainted with all their leaders, and moft of the principal Indians of that country, from whom, during a former refidence among them of feveral years, he faid he had met with more civility than he ever did from, his own countrymen. As Matonabbee feemed refolutely bent oil his delign, I had every reafon to think that my thirds expedition would prove equally unfuccefsful with the two former. I was not, however, under the leaft ap-prehenfion for my own fafety, as he promifed to take me with him, and procure me a paftage to Prince of Wales's Fort, with fome of the Athapufcow Indians, who at that time annually vifited the Factory in the way of trade. After waiting till I thought Matonabbee's paffion had a little abated, I ufed every argument of which I was mafter in favour of his proceeding on the journey ; afTuring him not 1771. not only of the future efteem of the prefent Governor of May. Prince of Wales's Fort, but alfo of that of all his fucceflbrs as long as he lived ; and that even the Hudfon's Bay Company themfelves would be ready to acknowledge his affi-duity and perfeverance, in conducting a bufinefs which had fo much the appearance of proving advantageous to them. After fome converfation of this kind, and a good deal of intreaty, he at length confented to proceed, and promifed to make all poffible hafte. Though it was then late in the 29th. afternoon, he gave orders for moving, and accordingly we walked about feven miles that night, and put up on another ifland in Pefhew Lake. The preceding afternoon the Indians had killed a few deer; but our number was then fo great, that eight or ten deer would fcarcely afford us all a tafte. Thefe deer were the firft we had feen fince our leaving the neighbourhood of Thelewey-aza-yeth; fo that we had lived all the time on the dried meat which had been prepared before we left that place in April. The thirtieth proved bad, rainy weather; we walked, however, about ten miles to the Northward, when we arrived on the North fide of Pefhew Lake, and put up. Here Matonabbee immediately began to make every ne-ceflary arrangement for facilitating the execution of our defign ; and as he had promifed to make all poffible hafte, he thought it expedient to leave moft of his wives and all his children in the care of feme Indians, then in our who had his. orders to proceed to the Northward 30th. Ward at their leifure ; and who, at a particular place appointed by him, were to wait our return from the Coppermine River. Having formed this refolution, Matonabbee felected two of his young wives who had no children, to accompany us; and in order to make their loads as light as poffible, it was agreed that we mould not take more ammunition with us than was really neceflary foi our fupport, till we might expect again to join thofe Indians and the women and children. The fame meafures were alfo adopted by all the other Indians of my party; particularly thofe who had a plurality of wives, and a number of children. As thefe matters took fome time to adjuft, it was near nine o'clock in the evening of the thirty-firft before we could fet out; and then it was with much difficulty that Matonabbee could perfuade his other wives from following him, with their children and all their lumber; for fuch was their unwillingnefs to be left behind, that he was obliged to ufe his authority before they would con fen t, confequently they parted in anger; and we no fooner began our march, than they fet up a moft woeful cry, and continued to yell moft piteouily as long as we were within hearing. This mournful fcene had fo little effect on my party, that they walked away laughing, and as merry as ever. The few who expreffed any regret at their departure from thofe whom they were to leave behind, con- fined fined their regard wholly to their children, particularly to the youngeft, fcarcely ever mentioning their mother. Though it was fo late when we left the women, we walked about ten miles that night before we flopped. In our way we faw many deer ; feveral of which the Indians killed. To talk of travelling and killing deer in the middle of the night, may at firft view have the appearance of romance ; but our wonder will fpeedily abate, when it is confidered that we were then to the Northward of 64.0 of North latitude, and that, in confequence of it, though the Sun did not remain the whole night above the horizon, yet the time it remained below it was fo fhort, and its de-preflion even at midnight fo fmall at this feafon of the year, that the light, in clear weather, was quite fufiicient for the purpofe both of walking, and hunting any kind of game-It fhould have been observed, that during our ftay at Clowey a great number of Indians entered into a combination with thofe of my party to accompany us to the Copper-mine River; and with no other intent than to murder the Efquimaux, who are underftood by the Copper Indians to frequent that river in confiderable numbers. This fcheme, notwithftanding the trouble and fatigue, as well as danger, with which it muft be obvioufly attended, was neverthelefs fo univerfally approved by thofe people, that for fome time almoft every man who joined us 114 1771. May. us propofed to be of the party. Accordingly, each vo- *771 • lunteer, as well as thofe who were properly of my party, May. prepared a target, or fhield, before we left the woods of Clowey. Thofe targets were compofed of thin boards, about three quarters of an inch thick, two feet broad, and three feet long; and were intended to ward off the arrows of the Efquimaux. Notwithstanding thefe preparations, when we came to leave the women and children, as has been already mentioned, only fixty volunteers would go with us; the reft, who were nearly as many more, though they had all prepared targets, reflecting that they had a great diftance to walk, and that no advantage could be expected from the expedition, very prudently begged to be excufed, faying, that they could not be fpared for fo long a time from the maintenance of their wives and families; and particularly, as they did not fee any then in our company, who feemed willing to encumber themfelves with fuch a charge. This feemed to be a mere evafion, for I am clearly of opinion that poverty on one fide, and avarice on the other, *vere the only impediments to their joining our party; had they poflefTed as many European goods to fquander away among their countrymen as Matonabbee and thofe of my party did, in all probability many might have been found who would have been glad to have accompanied us. When I was acquainted with the intentions of my companions, and faw the warlike preparations that were carrying on, I endeavoured as much as poflible to perfuade Q^2 them them from putting their inhuman delign into execution ; but fo far were my intreaties from having the wifhed-for effect, that it was concluded I was actuated by cowardice; and they told me, with great marks of derifion, that I was afraid of the Efquimaux. As I knew my per-fonal fafety depended in a great meafure on the favourable opinion they entertained of me in this refpect, I was obliged to change my tone, and replied, that I did not care if they rendered the name and race of the Efquimaux extinct; adding at the fame time, that though I was no enemy to the Efquimaux, and did not fee the necefTity of attacking them without caufe, yet if I fhould find it neceflary to do it, for the protection of any one of my company, my own fafety out of the queftion, fo far from being afraid of a poor defencelefs Efquimaux, whom I defpifed more than feared, nothing fhould be wanting on my part to protect all who were with me. This declaration was received with great fatisfaerion -y and I never afterwards ventured to interfere with any of their war-plans. Indeed, when I came to confider ferioufly, I faw evidently that it was the higheft folly for an individual like me, and in my fituation, to attempt to turn the current of a national prejudice which had fubfifted between thofe two nations from the earliefr. periods,, or at leaft as long as they had been acquainted with the exiftence of each other. Having got rid of all the women, children, dogs, heavy baggage, and other incumbrances, on the firft of June we purfucd purfued our journey to the Northward with great fpeed ; but VJfh the weather was in general fo precarious, and the fnow, **~~]^TJ fleet, and rain fo frequent, that notwithftanding we embraced every opportunity which offered, it was the Sixteenth of June before we arrived in the latitude of 6y° 30', 16th. where Matonabbee had propofed that the women and children fhould wait our return from the Copper-mine River. In our way hither we crofled feveral lakes on the ice; of which Thoy-noy-kyed Lake and4Thoy-coy-lyned Lake were the principal. We alfo crofled a few inconfiderable creeks and rivers, which were only ufeful as they furnifhed a fmall fupply of fifh to the natives. The weather, as I have before obferved, was in general difagreeable, with a great deal of rain and fnow. To make up for that inconvenience, however, the deer were fo plentiful, that the Indians killed not only a fufficient quantity for our daily fupport, but frequently great numbers merely for the fat, marrow, and tongues. To induce them to defift from this practice, I often interefted myfelf, and endeavoured, as much as poffible, to convince them in the clearefl terms of which I was mafter, of the great impropriety of fuch wafte 5 particularly at a time of the year when their fkins could not be of any ufe for clothing, and when the anxiety to proceed on our journey would not permit us to ftay long enough in one place to eat up half the fpoils of their hunting. As national cuftoms, however, are not eafily, n over- i77u overcome, my remonftrances proved ineffectual; and I joae. was always anfwered, that it was certainly right to kill plenty, and live on the beft, when and where it was to be got, for that it would be impofTible to do it where every thing was fcarce: and they infilled on it, that killing plenty of deer and other game in one part of the country, could never make them fcarcer in another. Indeed, they were fo accuftomed to kill every thing that came within their reach, that few of them could pafs by a fmall bird's neft, without flaying the young ones, orde-ftroying the eggs. sotk. From the feventeenth to the twentieth, we walked between feventy and eighty miles to the North Weft and North North Weft ; the greater part of the way by Cogead Lake; but the Lake being then frozen, we crofled all the creeks and bays of it on the ice. aift. On the twenty-firft we had bad rainy weather, with fo thick a fog that we could not fee our way : about ten o'clock at night, however, it became fine and clear, and the Sun ftione very bright; indeed it did not fet all that night, which was a convincing proof, without any obferva-tion, that we were then confiderably to the North of the Ardic Polar Circle. As foon as the fine weather began, we fet out and walked about feven or eight miles to the Northward, when we came came to a branch of Conge-ca-tha-wha-chaga River ; on the North fide of which we found feveral Copper Indians, who were aflembled, according to annual cuftom, to kill deer as they crofs the river in their little canoes* The ice being now broken up, we were, for the firft time this Summer, obliged to make ufe of our canoes to ferry acrofs the river ; which would have proved very tedious, had it not been for the kindnefs of the Copper Indians, who fent all their canoes to our aftiftance. Though our number was not much lefs than one hundred and fifty, we had only three canoes, and thofe being of the common fize, could only carry two perfons each, without baggage. It is true, when water is fmooth, and a raft of three or four of thefe canoes is well fecured by poles lafhed acrofs them, they will carry a much greater weight in proportion, and be much fafer, as there is fcarcely a poflibility of their overfetting; and this is the general mode adopted by the people of this country in croffr ing rivers when they have more than one canoe with them. Having arrived on the North fide of this river, we found that Matonabbee, and feveral others in our company, were pcrfonally acquainted with moft of the Copper Indians whom we found there. The latter feemed highly pleafed at the interview with our party, and endeavoured, by every means in their power, to convince our company of their readinefs to ferve us to the utmoft; fo that by the time 1771. time we had got our tents pitched, the ftrangers had pro-June. vided a large quantity of dried meat and fat, by way of a feaft, to which they invited moft of the principal Indians who accompanied me, as well as Matonabbee and myfelf, who were prefented with fome of the very beft. It is natural to fuppofe, that immediately after our arrival the Copper Indians would be made acquainted with the nature and intention of our journey. This was no fooner done than they exprefled their entire approbation, and many of them feemed willing and delirous of giving every afliftance -y particularly by lending us feveral canoes, which they allured us would be very ufeful in the remaining part of our journey, and contribute both to our eafe and dif-patch. It muft be obferved, that thefe canoes were not entirely entrufted to my crew, but carried by the owners themfelves who accompanied us; as it would have been very uncertain where to have found them at our return from the Copper River, Agreeably to my inftrucr. ions, I fmoked my calumet of peace with the principal of the Copper Indians, who feemed highly pleafed on the occafion ; and, from a converfation held on the fubjecT: of my journey, I found they were delighted with the hopes of having an European fettlement in their neighbourhood, and feemed to have no idea that any impediment could prevent fuch a fcheme from being carried into execution. Climates and feafons fcafons had no weight with them; nor could they fee 1771. where the difficulty lay in getting to them; for though ' juncT they acknowledged that they had never feen the fea at the mouth of the Copper River clear of ice, yet they could fee nothing that fhould hinder a fhip from approaching it; and they innocently enough obferved, that the water was always fo fmooth between the ice and fhore, that even fmall boats might get there with great eafe and fafety. How a fhip was to get between the ice and the more, never once occurred to them. Whether it was from real motives of hofpitality, or from the great advantages which they expected to reap by my difcoveries, I know not; but I muft confefs that their civility far exceeded what I could expect from fo uncivilized a tribe, and I was exceedingly forry that I had nothing of value to offer them. However, fuch articles as I had, I diftributed among them, and they were thankfully received by them. Though they have fome European commodities among them, which they purchafe from the Northern Indians, the fame articles from the hands of an Englifhman were more prized. As I was the firft whom they had ever feen, and in all probability might be the laft, it was curious to fee how they flocked about me, and exprefled as much delire to examine me from top to toe, as an Eur opean Naturalift would a non-defcript animal. They, however, found and pronounced me to be a perfect human being, except in the colour of my hair R and 1771. and eyes: the former, they faid, was like the ftained hair "hmeT" of a buffaloe's tail, and the latter, being light, were like thofe of a gull. The whitenefs of my fkin alfo was, in their opinion, no ornament, as they faid it re-fembled meat which had been fodden in water till all the blood was extracted. On the whole, I was viewed as fo great a curiofity in this part of the world, that during my ftay there, whenever I combed my head, fome or other of them never failed to afk for the hairs that came off, which they carefully wrapped up, faying, " When I fee " you again, you fhall again fee your hair." 23d. The day after our arrival at Congecathawhachaga, Matonabbee difpatched his brother, and feveral Copper Indians, to Copper-mine River, with orders to acquaint any Indians they might meet, with the reafon of my vifit-ing thofe parts, and alfo when they might probably expect us at that river. By the bearers of this meffage I lent a prefent of tobacco and fome other things, to induce any ftrangers they met to be ready to give us afliftance, either by advice, or in any other way which might be required. As Matonabbee and the other Indians thought it ad-vifable to leave all ihe women at this place, and proceed to the Copper-mine River without them, it was thought neceflary to continue here a few days, to kill as many deer as would be fufHcient for their fupport during our our abfence. And notwithstanding deer were fo plenti- l77l ful, yet our numbers were fo large, and our daily con- June, fumption was fo great, that feveral days elapfed before the men could provide the women with a fufficient quantity; and then they had no other way of preferving it, than by cutting it in thin Slices and drying it in the Sun. Meat, when thus prepared, is not only very portable, but palatable ; as all the blood and juices are Still remaining in the meat, it is very nourishing and wholefome food ; and may, with care, be kept a whole year without the lead danger of fpoiling. It is neceflary, however, to air it frequently during the warm weather, otherwise it is liable to grow mouldy: but as foon as the chill air of the fall begins, it requires no farther trouble till next Summer. We had not been many days at Congecathawhachaga before I had reafon to be greatly concerned at the behaviour of feveral of my crew to the Copper Indians. They not only took many of their young women, furrs, and ready-dreffed Skins for clothing, but alfo feveral of their bows and arrows, which were the only implements they had to procure food and raiment, for the future fupport of themfelves, their wives, and families. It may probably be thought, that as thefe weapons are of fo Simple a form, and fo eafily constructed, they might foon be replaced, without any other trouble or expence than a little labour; but this fuppofition can only hold good in places where proper materials are eafily procured, which was not the cafe here: R 2 if 1771. if it had, they would not have been an object: of plunder. ""juwT" In the midft of a foreft of trees, the wood that would make a Northern Indian a bow and a few arrows, or indeed a bow and arrows ready made, are not of much value ; no more than the man's trouble that makes them : but carry that bow and arrows feveral hundred miles from any woods and place where thofe are the only weapons in ufe, their intrinfic value will be found to increafe, in the fame proportion as the materials which are made are lefs attainable *. To do Matonabbee juftice on this occafion, I muft fay that he endeavoured as much as poffible to perfuade his countrymen from taking either furrs, clothing, or bows, from the Copper Indians, without making them fome fatisfaclory return; but if he did not encourage, neither did he endeavour to hinder them from taking as many women as they pleafed. Indeed, the Copper Indian women feem to be much efteemed by our Northern traders; for what reafon I know not, as they are in reality the fame people in every refpect; and their language differs not fo much as the dialects of fome of the neareft counties in England do from each other. It is not furprifing that a plurality of wives is cuf-tomary among thefe people, as it is fo well adapted to * Sec Pottle thwayt on the article of Labour. their their fituation and manner of life. In my opinion no I77** race of people under the Sun have a greater occafion for ]mt, fuch an indulgence. Their annual haunts, in queft of furrs, is fo remote from any European fettlement, as to render them the greateft travellers in the known world ; and as they have neither horfe nor water carriage, every good hunter is under the neceflity of having feveral perfons to aflift in carrying his furrs to the Company's Fort, as well as carrying back the European goods which he receives in exchange for them. No perfons in this country are fo proper for this work as the women, becaufe they are inured to carry and haul heavy loads from their childhood, and to do all manner of drudgery -y fo that thofe men who are capable of providing for three, four, five, fix, or more women, generally find them humble and faithful fervants, affectionate wives, and fond and indulgent mothers to their children. Though cuftom makes this way of life fit apparently eafy on the generality of the women, and though, in general, the whole of their wants feem to be comprized in food and clothing only, yet nature at times gets the better of cuftom, and the fpirit of jealoufy makes its appearance among them: however, as the hufband is always arbitrator, he foon fettles the bufinefs, though perhaps not always to the entire fatisfaclion of the parties. Much does it redound to the honour of the Northern Indian women when I affirm, that they are the mildeft and moft virtuous females I have feen in any part of North America; 1771. America; though fome think this is more owing to habit, "T^T"i cuftom, and the fear of their hufbands, than from real inclination. It is undoubtedly well known that none can manage a Northern Indian woman fo well as a Northern Indian man ; and when any of them have been permitted to remain at the Fort, they have, for the fake of gain, been eafily prevailed on to deviate from that character; and a few have, by degrees, become as abandoned as the Southern Indians, who are remarkable throughout all their tribes for being the moft debauched wretches under the Sun. So far from laying any reftraint on their fenfual appetites, as long as youth and inclination laft, they give themfelves up to all manner of even inceftuous debauchery ; and that in fo beaftly a manner when they are intoxicated, a ftate to which they are peculiarly addicted, that the brute creation are not lefs regardlefs of decency. I know that fome few Europeans, who have had little opportunity of feeing them, and of enquiring into their manners, have been very lavifh in their praife: but every one who has had much intercourfe with them, and penetration and in-duftry enough to ftudy their difpofitions, will agree, that no accomplimments whatever in a man, is fufficient to conciliate the affections, or preferve the chaftity of a Southern Indian woman *. The * Notwithstanding this is the general character of the Southern Indian women, as they are called on the coafts of Hudfon's Bay, and who are the fame tribe with the Canadian Indians, I am happy to have it in my power to infcrt a few lines to the memory of one of them, whom I knew from her infancy, The Northern Indian women are in general fo far from 177l-being like. thofe I have above defcribed, that it is very June. uncom- fancy, and who, I can truly affirm, was directly the reverfe of the picture I have drawn. Mary, the daughter of Moses Norton, many years Chief at Prince of Wales's Fort, in Hudfon's Bay, though born and brought up in a country of all others the leaft favourable to virtue and virtuous principles, poiTeffed them, and every other good and amiable quality, in a moft eminent degree. Without the afliftance of religion, and with no education but what fhe received among the diftblute natives of her country, fhe would have fhone with fuperior luftre in any other country : for, if an engaging perfon, gentle manners, an eafy freedom, arifing from a confeioufnefs of innocence, an amiable modefty, and an unrivalled delicacy of fentiment, are graces and virtues which render a woman lovely, none ever had greater pretenfions to general efteem and regards while her benevolence, humanity, and fcrupulous adherence to truth and honeflf, would have done honour to the moft enlightened and devout Chriftian. Dutiful, obedient, and affectionate to her parents; fteady and faithful to her friends; grateful and humble to her benefactors; eafily forgiving and forgetting injuries; careful not to offend any, and courteous and kind to all; fhe was, neverthelefs, fuffered to perifh by the rigours of cold and hunger, amidft her own relations, at a time when the griping hand of famine was by no mean?; feverely felt by any other member of their company ; and it may truly be faid that fhe fell a martyr to the principles of virtue. This happened in the Winter of the year 1782, after the French had deftroyed Prince of Wales's Fort; at which time fhe was in the twenty-fecond year of her age. Human nature fhudders at the bare recital of fuch brutality, and reafon fhrinks from the talk of accounting for the decrees of Providence on fuch occafions as this: but they are the ftrongeft affurances of a future ftate, fo infinitely fuperior to the prefent, that the enjoyment of every pkafure in this world by the moft worthlefs and abandoned wretch, or the moft innocent and virtuous 1771. uncommon to hear of their ever being guilty of iacoati-juhe. nency, not even thofe who are confined to the fixth or even eighth part of a man. It is true, that were I to form my opinion of thofe women from the behaviour of fuch as I have been more particularly acquainted with, I (liould have little reafon to fay much in their favour ; but impartiality will not virtuous woman perifhing by the moft excruciating of all deaths, arc matters equally indifferent. But, Peace to the allies, and the virtuous mind, Of her who lived til peace with all mankind ; Learn'd from the heart, unknowing of difguife, Truth in her thoughts, and candour in her eyes; Stranger alike to envy and to pride, Good fenfe her light, and Nature all her guide*, But now removed from all the ills of life, Here refts the pleafing friend and faithful wife. Waller. Her father was, undoubtedly, very blamable for bringing her up in the tender manner which he did, rendering her by that means not only incapable of bearing the fatigues and hardfhips which the reft of her countrywomen think little of, but of providing for herfelf. This is, indeed, too frequent a pradice among Europeans in that country, who bring up their children in fo indulgent a manner, that when they retire, and leave their offspring behind, they find themfelves fo helplefs, as to be unable to provide for the few wants to which they are fubject. The late Mr. Ferdinand Jacobs, many years Chief at York Fort, was the only perfon whom I ever knew that acted in a different manner j though no man could poffibly be fonder of his children in other refpects, yet as there were fome that he could not bring to England, he had them brought up entirely among the natives ■ fo that when he left the country, they fcarcely ever felt the lofs, though they regretted the abfence of a fond and indulgent parent. permit permit me to make a few of the word characters a ftandard for the general conduct of all of them. Indeed it is but reafonable to think that travellers and interlopers will be always ferved with the worft commodities, though perhaps they pay the beft price for what they have. It may appear ftrange, that while I am extolling the chaftity of the Northern Indian women, I (hould acknowledge that it is a very common cuftom among the men of this country to exchange a night's lodging with each other's wives. But this is fo far from being confidered as an act which is criminal, that it is efteemed by them as one of the ftrongeft ties of friendfhip between two families j and in cafe of the death of either man, the other confiders himfelf bound to fupport the children of the deceafed. Thofe people are fo far from viewing this engagement as a mere ceremony, like moft of our Chriftian god-fathers and god-mothers, who, notwithftanding their vows are made in the moft folemn manner, and in the prefence of both God and man, fcarcely ever afterward remember what they have promifed, that there is not an inftance of a Northern Indian having once neglected the duty which he is fup-pofed to have taken upon himfelf to perform. The Southern Indians, with all their bad qualities, are remarkably humane and charitable to the widows and children of departed friends ; and as their fituation and manner of life enable them to do more acts of charity with lefs trouble S than than falls to the lot of a Northern Indian, few widows or orphans are ever unprovided for among them. Though the Northern Indian men make no fcruple of having two or three filters for wives at one time, yet they are very particular in obferving a proper diftance in the confanguinity of thofe they admit to the above-mentioned intercourfe with their wives. The Southern Indians arc lefs fcrupulous on thofe occafions y among them it is not at all uncommon for one brother to make free with another brother's wife or daughter *; but this is held in abhorrence by the Northern Indians. * Moft of the Southern Indians, as well the Athapufcow and Neheaway tribes, are entirely without fcruple in this refpect. It is notorioufly known* that many of them cohabit occalionally with their own mothers, and frequently efpoufe their fifters and daughters. I have known feveral of them who, after having lived in that ftate for fome time with their daughters, have given them to their fons, and all parties been perfectly reconciled to it. In fact, notwithstanding the feverity of the climate, the licentioufnefs of the inhabitants cannot be exceeded by any of the Eaftern nations, whofe luxurious manner of life, and genial clime, feem more adapted to excite extraordinary paftions, than the fevere cold of the frigid Zone. It is true, that few of thofe who live under the immediate protection of the Englifh ever take either their fifters or daughters for wives, which is probably owing to the fear of incurring their difpleafure; but it is well known that acts of inceft too often take place among them, though perhaps not lb frequently as among the foreign Indians. By June. By the time the Indians had killed as many deer as they thought would be fufficient for the fupport of the women during our abfenee, it was the firft of July ; and during this time I had two good obfervations, both by meridional and double altitudes; the mean of which determined the latitude of Congecathawhachaga to be 68° 46' North; and its longitude, by account, was 240 2 Weft from Prince of Wales's Fort, or 118° 15' Weft pf the meridiari, of London. On the fecond, the weather proved very bad, with much fnow and fleet; about nine o'clock at night, however, it grew more moderate, and fomewhat clearer, fo that we fet out, and walked about ten miles to the North by Weft, when we lay down to take a little fleep. At our de~ , parture from Congecathawhachaga, feveral Indians who had entered the war-lift, rather chofe to ftay behind with the women, but their lofs was amply fupplied by Copper Indians, who accompanied us in the double capacity of guides and warriors. On the third the weather was equally bad with that of the preceding day; we made fhift, however, to walk ten or eleven miles in the fame direction we had done the day before, and at laft were obliged to put up, not being able to fee our way for fnow and thick drift. By putting up, no more is to be underftood than that we got to leeward of a S 2 great 1771. great ftone, or into the crevices of the rocks, where we ^"jui^r- regaled ourfelves with fuch provifions as we had brought with us, fmoked our pipes, or went to fleep, till the weather permitted us to proceed on our journey. 4th. On the fourth, we had rather better weather, though conftant light fnow, which made it very difagreeable under foot. We neverthelefs walked twenty-feven miles to the North W7eft, fourteen of which were on what the Indians call the Stony Mountains; and furely no part of the world better deferves that name. On our firft approaching thefe mountains, they appeared to be a confufed heap or ftones, utteily inacceilible to the foot of man : but having fome Copper Indians with us who knew the beft road, we made a tolerable fhift to get on, though not without being obliged frequently to crawl on our hands and knees. Notwithftanding the intricacy of the road, there is a very vifible path the whole way acrofs thefe mountains, even in the moft difficult parts: and alfo on the fmooth rocks, and thofe parts which are capable of receiving an imprefiion, the path is as plain and well-beaten, as any bye foot-path in England. By the fide of this path there are, in different parts, feveral large, flat, or table ftones, which are covered with many thoufands of fmall pebbles. Thefe the Copper Indians fay have been gradually increafed by paffengers going to and from the mines; and on its being obferved to us that it was the uni- verfal Verfal cuftom for every one to add a ftone to the heap, each of us took up a fmall ftone in order to increafe the number, for good luck. Juft as we arrived at the foot of the Stony Mountains, three of the Indians turned back ; faying, that from every appearance, the remainder of the journey feemed likely to be attended with more trouble than would counterbalance the pleafure they could promife themfelves by going to war with the Efquimaux. On the fifth, as the weather was fo bad, with conftant fnow, fleet, and rain, that we could not fee our way, we did not offer to move : but the fixth proving moderate, and quite fair till toward noon, we fet out in the morning, and walked about eleven miles to the North Weft ; when perceiving bad weather at hand, we began to look out for fhclter among the rocks, as we had done the four preceding nights, having neither tents nor tent-poles with us. The next morning fifteen more of the Indians deferted us, being quite fick of the road, and the uncommon badnefs of the weather. Indeed, though thefe people are all enured to hardfhips, yet their complaint on the prefent occafion was not without reafon ; for, from our leaving Congecathawhachaga we had fcarcely a dry garment of any kind, or any thing to fkreen us from the inclemency of the weather, except rocks and caves; 1771. caves; the beft of which were but damp and unwholefome juiy. lodging. In fome the water was conftantly dropping from the rock that formed the roof, which made our place of retreat little better than the open air; and we had not been able to make one fpark of fire (except what was fufficient to light a pipe) from the time of our leaving the women on the fecond inftant; it is true, in fome places there was a little mofs, but the conftant fleet and rain made it fo wet, as to render it as impoffible to fet fire to it as it would be to a wet fpunge. We had no fooner entered our places of retreat, than we regaled ourfelves with fome raw venifon which the Indians had killed that morning; the fmall ftock of dried provifions we took with us when we left the women being now all expended. Agreeably to our expectations, a very fudden and heavy gale of wind came on from the North Weft, attended with fo great a fall of fnow, that the oldeft Indian in company faid, he never faw it exceeded at any time of the year, much lefs in the middle of Summer. The gale was foon over, and by degrees it became a perfect calm: but the flakes of fnow were fo large as to furpafs all credibility, and fell in fuch vaft quantities, that though the fhower only lafted nine hours, we were in danger of being fmothered in our caveso On On the feventh, we had a frefh breeze at North Weft, with fome flying fliowers of fmall rain, and at the fame time a conftant warm funfhine, which foon diflblved the greateft part of the new-fallen fnow. Early in the morning we crawled out of our holes, which were on the North fide of the Stony Mountains, and walked about eighteen or twenty miles to the North Weft by Weft. In our way we crofted part of a large lake on the ice, which was then far from being broken up. This lake I diftinguifhed by the name of Buffalo, or Mufk-Ox Lake, from the number of thofe animals that we found grazing on the margin of it; many of which the Indians killed, but finding them lean, only took fome of the bulls' hides for fhoe-foals. At night the bad weather returned, with a ftrong gale of wind at North Eaft, and very cold rain and fleet. This was the firft time we had feen any of the muflc-oxen fince we left the Factory. It has been obferved that We faw a great number of them in my firft unfuccefsful attempt, before I had got an hundred miles from the Factory ; and indeed I once perceived the tracks of two of thofe animals within nine miles of Prince of Wales's Fort. Great numbers of them alfo were met with in my fecond journey to the North: feveral of which my companions killed, particularly on the feventeenth of July one thoufand feven hundred and feventy. They are alfo found at times in confiderable numbers near the fea-coaft of Hudfon's Bay, 4 all 1771- all the way from Knapp's Bay to Wager Water, but are July. moft plentiful within the Arctic Circle. In thofe high latitudes I have frequently feen many herds of them in the courfe of a day's walk, and fome of thofe herds did not contain lets than eighty or an hundred head. The number of bulls is very few in proportion to the cows; for it is rare to fee more than two or three full-grown bulls with the largeft herd: and from the number of the males that are found dead, the Indians are of opinion that they kill each other in contending for the females. In the rutting feafon they are fo jealous of the cows, that they run at either man or bcaft who offers to approach them; and have been obferved to run and bellow even at ravens, and other large birds, which chanced to light near them. They delight in the moft ftony and mountainous parts of the barren ground, and arc feldom found at any great diftance from the woods. Though they are a beaft of great magnitude, and apparently of a very unwieldy inactive ftructure, yet they climb the rocks with great eafe and agility, and are nearly as fure-footed as a goat; like it too, they will feed on any thing; though they feem fondeft of grafs, yet in Winter, when that article cannot be had in fufficient quantity, they will eat mofs, or any other herbage they can find, as alfo the tops of willows and the tender branches of the pine tree. They take the bull in Auguft, and bring forth their young the latter end of May, or beginning of June; and they never have more than one at a time, The The mufk-ox, when full grown, is as large as the ge- J771-nerality, or at leaft as the middling fize, of Englifh black *"*JuV" cattle *; but their legs, though large, are not fo long; nor is their tail longer than that of a bear; and, like the tail of that animal, it always bends downward and inward, fo that it is entirely hid by the long hair of the rump and hind quarters : the hunch on their fhoulders is not large, being little more in proportion than that of a deer: their hair is in fome parts very long, particularly on the belly, fides, and hind quarters; but the longeft hair about them, particularly the bulls, is under the throat, extending from the chin to the lower part of the cheft, between the fore-legs; it there hangs down like a horfe's mane inverted, and is full as long, which makes the ani*-mal have a moft formidable appearance. It is of the hair from this part that the Efquimaux make their mufketto * Mr. Dragge fays, in his Voyage, vol. ii. p. a6o, that die mufk-ox is lower than a deer, but larger as to belly and quarters which is very far from the truth; they are of the fize I have here defcribed them, and the Indians always eftimate the flefh of a full-grown cow to be equal in quantity to three deer. I am forry alio to be obliged to contradict my friend Mr. Graham, who fays that the flefh of this animal is carried on fledges to Prince of Wales's Fort, to the amount of three or four thoufand pounds annually. To the amount of near one thoufand pounds may have been purchafed from the natives in fome particular years, but it more frequently happens that not aruounce is brought one year out of five. In fact, it is by no means cfteemcd by the Company's fervants, and of courfe no great encouragement is given to introduce it; but if it had been otherwife, their general fituation is fo remote from the fettle-raenr, that it would not be worth the Indians while to haul it to the Fort. So that, in fact, all that has ever been carried to Prince of Wales's Fort, has motf atfuredly been killed out of a herd that has been accidentally found within a moderate diftance of the fettlement j perhaps an hundred miles, which is only thought a ftep by an Indian. T wigs, *771- w!gs, and not from the tail, as is afTerted by Mr. Ellis * ; """"July. their tails, and the hair which is on them, being too fhort for that purpofe. In Winter they are provided with a thick fine wool, or furr, that grows at the root of the long hair, and fhields them from the intenfe cold to which they are expofed during that feafon ; but as the Summer advances, this furr loofens from the fkin, and, by frequently rolling themfelves on the ground, it works out to the end of the hair, and in time drops off, leaving little for their Summer clothing except the long hair. This feafon is fo fhort in thofe high latitudes, that the new fleece begins to appear, almoft as foon as the old one drops off; fo that by the time the cold becomes fevere, they are again provided with a Winter-drefs. The flefh of the mufk-ox noways refembles that of the Weftern buffalo, but is more like that of the moofe or elk ; and the fat is of a clear white, flightly tinged with a light azure. The calves and young heifers are good eating; but the flefh of the bulls both fmells and taftes fo ftrong of mufk, as to render it very difagreeable: even the knife that cuts the flefh of an old bull will fmell fo ftrong of mufk, that nothing but fcowring the blade quite bright can remove it, and the handle will retain the fcent for a long time. Though no part of a bull is free from this fmell, yet the parts of generation, in particular the urethra, are by far the moft ftrongly impregnated. The * Voyage to Hudfon's Bay, p. 232. urine urine itfelf muft contain this fcent in a very great degree; for the fheaths of the bull's penis are corroded with a brown gummy fubftance, which is nearly as high-fcented with mufk as that faid to be produced by the civet cat; and after having been kept for feveral years, feems not to lofe any of its quality. On the eighth, the weather was fine and moderate, though not without fome fhowers of rain. Early in the morning we fet out, and walked eighteen miles to the Northward. The Indians killed fome deer; fo we put up by the fide of a fmall creek, that afforded a few willows, with which we made a fire for the firft time fince our leaving Congecathawhachaga; confequently it was here that we cooked our firft meal for a whole week. This, as may naturally be fuppofed, was well relifhed by all parties, the Indians as well as myfelf. And as the Sun had, in the courfe of the day, dried our clothing, in fpite of the fmall fhowers of rain, we felt ourfelves more comfortable than we had done fince we left the women. The place where we lay that night, is not far from Grizzled Bear Hill; which takes its name from the numbers of thofe animals that are frequently known to refoit thither for the purpofe of bringing fortli their young in a cave that is found there. The wonderful defcription which the Copper Indians gave of this place exciting the curiofity of feveral of my companions as well as myfelf, we went to view it; but on our arrival at it T z found 1771 • found little worth remarking about it, being no more than July. a high lump of earth, of a loamy quality, of which kind there are feveral others in the fame neighbourhood, all ftanding in the middle of a large marfh, which makes them refemble fo many iflands in a lake. The (ides of thefe hills are quite perpendicular; and the height of Grizzled Bear Hill, which is the largeft, is about twenty feet above the level ground that furrounds it. Their fummits are covered with a thick fod of mofs and lonp: grafs, which in fome places projects over the edge; and as the fldes are conftantly mouldering away, and walhing down with every fhower of rain during the fhort Summer, they muft in time be levelled with the marfh in which they are fituated. At prefent thofe iflands, as I call them, are excellent places of retreat for the birds which migrate there to breed; as they can bring forth their young in perfect fafety from every beaft except the Qiie-quehatch, which, from the fharpnefs of its claws and the amazing ftrength of its legs, is capable of afcending the moft difficult precipices. On the fide of the hill that I went to furvey, there is a large cave which penetrates a confiderable way into the rock, and may probably have been the work of the bears, as we could difcover vifible marks that fome of thofe beafts had been there that Spring. This, though deemed very cu -rious by fome of my companions, did not appear fb to me, as it neither engaged my attention, nor raifed my furprife, furprife, half fo much as the fight of the many hills and I77I« dry ridges on the Eaft fide of the marfli, which are turned layover like ploughed land by thofe animals, in fearching for ground-fquirrels, and perhaps mice, which conftitute a favourite part of their food. It is furprifing to fee the extent of their refearches in queft of thofe animals, and ftill more to view the enormous ftones rolled out of their beds by the bears on thofe occafions. At firft I thought thefe long and deep furrows had been effected by lightning; but the natives affured me they never knew any thing of the kind happen in thofe parts, and that it was entirely the work of the bears feeking for their prey. On the ninth, the weather was moderate and cloudy, 0th. with fome flying fhowers of rain. We fet out early in the morning, and walked about forty miles to the North and North by Eaft. In our way we faw plenty of deer and mufk-oxen: feveral of the former the Indians killed, but a fmart fhower of rain coming on juft as we were going to put up, made the mofs fo wet as to render it impracticable to light a fire. The next day proving fine and 10th. clear, we fet out in the morning, and walked twenty miles to the North by Weft and North North Weft ; but about noon the weather became fo hot and fultry as to render walking very difagreeable; we therefore put up on the top of a high hill, and as the mofs was then dry, lighted a fire, and fhould have made a comfortable meal, and been otherwife tolerably happy, had it not been for 1771. for the mufkettoes, which were uncommonly numerous, July. and their ftings almoft infufferable. The fame day Matonabbee fent feveral Indians a-head, with orders to proceed to the Copper-mine River as faft as poffible, and acquaint any Indians they might meet, of our approach. By thofe Indians I alfo fent fome fmall prefents, as the fureft means to induce any ftrangers they found, to come to our afliftance. nth. The eleventh was hot and fultry, like the preceding day, In the morning we walked ten or eleven miles to the North Weft, and then met a Northern Indian Leader, called Oule-eye, and his family, who were, in company with feveral Copper Indians, killing deer with bows and arrows and fpears, as they crofled a little river, by the fide of which we put up, as did alfo the above-mentioned Indians *. That afternoon I fmoked my calumet of peace with thefe ftrangers, and found them a quite different fet of people, at leaft in principle, from thofe I had feen at Congecathawhachaga: for though they had great plenty of provifions, they neither offered me nor my companions a mouthful, and would, if they had been permitted, have taken the laft garment from off* my back, and robbed me of every article I poftefled. Even my Northern companions could not help taking notice of fuch unaccountable behaviour. Nothing but their poverty pro- * This river runs nearly North Eaft, and in all probability empties itfelf into the Northern Ocean, not far from the Capper River. teded tccted them from being plundered by thofe of my crew ; l77l* and had any of their women been worth notice, they July, would moft affuredly have been preffed into our fervice. The twelfth was fo exceedingly hot and fultry, that "th. we did not move ; but early in the morning of the thir- *3th-teenth, after my companions had taken what dry provifions they chofe from our unfociable ftrangers, we fet out, and walked about fifteen or fixteen miles to the North and North by Eaft, in expectation of arriving at. the Copper-mine River that day; but when we had reached the top of a long chain of hills, between which we were told the river ran, we found it to be no more than a branch of it which empties itfelf into the main river about forty miles from its influx into the fea. At that time all the Copper Indians were difpatched different ways, fo that there was not one in company who knew the fhorteft cut to the main river. Seeing fome woods to the Weftward, and judging that the current of the rivulet ran that way, we concluded that the main river lay in that direction, and was not very remote from our prefent fituation. We therefore directed our courfe by the fide of it, when the Indians met with feveral very fine buck deer, which they deftroyed; and as that part we now traverfed afforded plenty of good fire-wood, we put up, and cooked the moft comfortable meal to which we had fat down for fome months. As fuch favourable opportunities of indulging the appetite happen but feldom, it is a general 5 rule 1771. rule with the Indians, which we did not neglect, to exert ~juiy.~~ every art in drefling our food which the moft refined fkill in Indian cookery has been able to invent, and which confifts chiefly in boiling, broiling, and roafting: but of all the difties cooked by thofe people, a beeateey as it is called in their language, is certainly the moft delicious, at leaft for a change, that can be prepared from a deer only, without any other ingredient. It is a kind of haggis, made with the blood, a good quantity of fat flired fmall, fome of the tendered: of the flefh, together with the heart and lungs cut, or more commonly torn into fmall fhivers; all which is put into the ftomach, and roafted, by being fufpended before the fire by a ftring. Care muft be taken that it does not get too much heat at firft, as the bag would thereby be liable to be burnt, and the contents be let out. When it is fufficiently done, it will emit fleam, in the fame manner as a fowl or a joint of meat; which is as much as to fay, Come, eat me now : and if it be taken in time, before the blood and other contents are too much done, it is certainly a moft delicious morfel, even without pepper, fait, or any other feafoning. After regaling ourfelves in the moft plentiful manner, and taking a few hours reft, (for it was almoft impoflible to fleep for the mu fleet toes,) we once more fet forward, directing our courfe to the North Weft by Weft; and after walking about nine or ten miles, arrived at that long wifhed-for fpot, the Copper-mine River, CHAP. VI. Tranfa&ions at the Copper-mine River, and till we joined all the women to the South of Cogead Lake. Some Copper Indians join us.—Indians fend three fpies down the river.— Begin my furvey.—Spies return, and give an account of fve tents of Efquimaux.—Indians confult the befl method to feal on them in the night, and kill them while afeep.—Crofs the river.—Proceedings of the Indians as they advance towards the Ffquimaux tents.—The Indians begin the maffacre while the poor Ffquimaux are qfleep, and fay them all.—Much affebled at the fight of one young woma?i killed clofc to ?ny feet.—The behaviour of the Indians on this occafon.—Their brutifl) treat" merit of the dead bodies.—Seven more tents feen on the oppofte fde of the river.—The Indians harafs them, till they fly to a fljoal in the river for fafety.—Behaviour of the Indians after killing thofe Ffquimaux.—Crofs the river, and proceed to the tents on that fide.—Plunder their tents, and deflroy their utenfls.—Continue my furvey to the river s mouth.— Remarks there.—Set out on my return.—Arrive at one of the Copper-mines.—Remarks on it.—Many attempts rnade to induce the Copper Indians to carry their own goods to market.—Obfaclcs to it.—Villany and cruelty of Keel/hies to fome of thofe poor Indians.—Leave the Coppermine, and walk at an amazing rate till we join the women, by the fide of Cogead Whoie.—Much foot-foundered.—The appearance very alarm?-ing, but foon changes for the better.—Proceed to the Southward, and join the remainder of the women and children.—Many other Indians arrive with them. \\7E had fcarcely arrived at the Copper-mine River when four Copper Indians joined us, and brought with them two canoes. They had feen all the Indians who ^re fent from us at various times, except Matonabbee's U brother, brother, and three others that were firft difpatched from Congecathawhachaga. On my arrival here I was not a little furprifed to find the river differ fo much from the defcription which the Indians had given of it at the Factory ; for, inftead of being fo large as to be navigable for {hipping, as it had been reprefented by them, it was at that part fcarcely navigable for an Indian canoe, being no more than one hundred and eighty yards wide, every where full of fhoals, anl no lefs than three falls were in fight at firft view. Near the water's edge there is fome wood ; but not one tree grows on or near the top of the hills between which the river runs. There appears to have been formerly a much greater quantity than there is at prefent; but the trees feem to have been fet on fire fome years ago, and, in con-fequence, there is at prefent ten fticks lying on the ground, for one green one which is growing befide them. The whole timber appears to have been, even in its greateft pro-fperity, of fo crooked and dwarfifh a growth as to render it of little ufe for any purpofe but fire-wood. Soon after our arrival at the river-fide, three Indians were fent off as fpies, in order to fee if any Efquimaux were inhabiting the river-fide between us and the fea. After walking about three quarters of a mile by the fide of the river, we put up, when moft of the Indians went a hunting. minting, and killed feveral mufk-oxen and fome deer. They were employed all the remainder of the day and night in fplitting and drying the meat by the fire. As we were not then in want of provifions, and as deer and other animals were fo plentiful, that each day's journey might have provided for itfelf, I was at a lofs to account for this unufual ceconomy of my companions; but was foon informed, that thofe preparations were made with a view to have victuals enough ready-cooked to ferve us to the river's mouth, without being obliged to kill any in our way, as the report of the guns, and the fmoke of the fires, would be liable to alarm the natives, if any fhould be near at hand, and give them an opportunity of efcaping. Early in the morning of the fifteenth, we fet out, when I immediately began my furvey, which I continued about ten miles down the river, till heavy rain coming on wc were obliged to put up ; and the place where we lay that night was the end, or edge of the woods, the whole {pace between it and the fea being entirely barren hills and wide open marines. In the courfe of this day's furvey, I found the river as full of fhoals as the part which I had feen before; and in many places it was fo greatly diminifhed in its width, that in our way we pafTed by two more capital falls. Early in the morning of the fix teen th, the weather being fine and pleafant, I again proceeded with my furvey, and continued it for ten miles larther down the river; U 2 hut 1771. but ftill found it the fame as before, being every where L""jdy. ~ full of falls and {hoals. At this time (it being about noon) the three men who had been fent as fpies met us on their return, and informed my companions that five tents of Efquimaux were on the weft fide of the river. The fituation, they faid, was very convenient for furprifing them ; and, according to their account, I judged it to be about twelve miles from the place we met the fpies. When the Indians received this intelligence, no farther attendance or attention was paid to my furvey, but their whole thoughts were immediately engaged in planning the beft method of attack, and how they might fteal on the poor Efquimaux the enfuing night, and kill them all while afleep. To accomplifh this bloody defign more effectually, the Indians thought it neceflary to crofs the river as foon as poffible ; and, by the account of the fpies, it appeared that no part was more convenient for the purpofe than that where we had met them, it being there very fmooth, and at a confiderable diftance from any fall. Accordingly, after the Indians had put all their guns, fpears, targets, &c. in good order, we croffed the river, which took up fome time. When we arrived on the Weft fide of the river, each painted the front of his target or fhield; fome with the figure of the Sun, others with that of the Moon, feveral with different kinds of birds and beafts of prey, and many with the images of imaginary beings, which, according / ing to their filly notions, are the inhabitants of the different elements, Earth, Sea, Air, &c. On enquiring the reafon of their doing fo, I learned that each man painted his ffiield with the image of that being on which he relied moft for fuccefs in the intended engagement. Some were contented with a fingle reprefent-ation ; while others, doubtful, as I fuppofe, of the quality and power of any fingle being, had their fhields covered to the very margin with a group of hieroglyphics quite unintelligible to every one except the painter. Indeed, from the hurry in which this bufinefs was necefTarily done, the want of every colour but red and black, and the deficiency of (kill in the artift, moft of thofe paintings had more the appearance of a number of accidental blotches, than " of any thing that is on the earth, or in " the water under the earth ;■" and though fome few of them conveyed a tolerable idea of the thing intended, yet even thefe were many degrees worfe than our country fign-paintings in England. When this piece of fuperftition was completed, we began to advance toward the Efquimaux tents; but were very careful to avoid crofling any hills, or talking loud, for fear of being feen or overheard by the inhabitants; by which means the diftance was not only much greater than it otherwife would have been, but, for the fake of keeping in. the loweft grounds, we were obliged to walk through 2 entire entire fwamps of ftiff marly clay, fometimes up to the knees. Our courfe, however, on this occafion, though very ferpentine, was not altogether fo remote from the river as entirely to exclude me from a view of it the whole way: on the contrary, feveral times (according to the fituation of the ground) we advanced fo near it, as to give me an opportunity of convincing myfelf that it was as unnavigable as it was in thofe parts which I had fur-veyed before, and which entirely correfponded with the accounts given of it by the fpies. It is perhaps worth remarking, that my crew, though an undifciplined rabble, and by no means accuftomed to war or command, feemingly acted on this horrid occafion with the utmoft uniformity of fentiment. There was not among them the leaft altercation or feparate opinion ; all were united in the general caufe, and as ready to follow where Matonabbee led, as he appeared to be ready to lead, according to the advice of an old Copper Indian, who had joined us on our firft arrival at the river where this bloody bufinefs was firft propofed. Never was reciprocity of intereft more generally regarded among a number of people, than it was on the prefent occafion by my crew, for not one was a moment in want of any thing that another could fpare; and if ever the fpirit of difintcrefted friendfhip expanded the heart of a Northern Indian, it was here exhibited in the moft ex- tenfive tenfive meaning of the word. Property of every kind that could be of general ufe now ceafed to be private, and every one who had any thing which came under that defcription, feemed proud of an opportunity of giving it, or lending it to thofe who had none, or were moft in want of it. The number of my crew was fo much greater than that which five tents could contain, and the warlike manner in which they were equipped fo greatly fuperior to what could be expected of the poor Efquimaux, that no lefs than a total mafTacre of every one of them was likely to be the cafe, unlefs Providence fhould work a miracle for their deliverance. The land was fo fituated that wc walked under cover of the rocks and hills till we were within two hundred yards of the tents. There we lay in ambuih for fome time, watching the motions of the Efquimaux; and here the Indians would have advifed me to ftay till the fight was over, but to this I could by no means confent; for I con-fidered that when the Efquimaux came to be furprifed, they would try every way to efcape, and if they found me alone, not knowing me from an enemy, they would probably proceed to violence againft me when no perfon was near to aflift. For this reafon I determined to accompany them, telling them at the fame time, that I would not have any hand in the murder they were about to commit, unlefs A JOURNEY TO T EI E unlefs I found it neceflary for my own fafety. The Indians were not difpleafed at this propofal; one of them immediately fixed me a fpear, and another lent me a broad bayonet for my protection, but at that time I could not be provided with a target; nor did I want to be encumbered with fuch an unneceffary piece of lumber. While we lay in ambufli, the Indians performed the laft ceremonies which were thought neceflary before the engagement. Thefe chiefly confifted in painting their faces; fome all black, fome all red, and others with a mixture of the two ; and to prevent their hair from blowing into their eyes, it was either tiod before and behind, and on both fides, or elfe cut fhort all round. The next thing they confidered was to make themfelves as light as poffible for running; which they did, by pulling off their ftockings, and either cutting off the fleeves of their jackets, or rolling them up clofe to their arm-pits ; and though the muf-kettoes at that time were fo numerous as to furpafs all cre-bibility, yet fome of the Indians actually pulled off their jackets and entered the lifts quite naked, except their breech-cloths and Ihoes. Fearing I might have occafion to run with the reft, I thought it alfo advilable to pull off my ftockings and cap, and to tie my hair as clofe up as poffible. By the time the Indians had made themfelves thus completely frightful, it was near one o'clock in the morning ing of the feventeenth ; when finding all the Efquimaux quiet in their tents, they rufhed forth from their ambuf-cade, and fell on the poor unfufpecting creatures, unper-ceived till clofe at the very eves of their tents, when they foon began the bloody maffacre, while { flood neuter in the rear. In a few feconds the horrible fcene commenced; it was mocking beyond defcription ; the poor unhappy victims were furprifed in the midft of their fleep, and had neither time nor power to make any refiftance ; men, women, and children, in all upward of twenty, ran out of their tents ftark naked, and endeavoured to make their efcape; but the Indians having poffcffion of all the land-fide, to no place could they fly for fhelter. One alternative only remained, that of jumping into the river ; but, as none of them attempted it, they all fell a facrifice to Indian barbarity! The fhrieks and groans of the poor expiring wretches were truly dreadful; and my horror was much increafed at feeing a young girl, feemingly about eighteen years of age, killed fo near me, that when the firft fpear was ftuck into her fide fhe fell down at my feet, and twifted round my legs, fo that it was with difficulty that I could difengage myfelf from her dying grafps. As two Indian men pur-fued this unfortunate victim, I folicited very hard for her life; but the murderers made no reply till they had X ftuck 1771. ftuck both their fpears through her body, and transfixed juiy. her to the ground. They then looked me fternly in the face, and began to ridicule me, by afking if I wanted an Efquimaux wife; and paid not the fmalleft regard to the fhrieks and agony of the poor wretch, who was twining round their fpears like an eel! Indeed, after receiving much abufive language from them on the occafion, I was at length obliged to defire that they would be more expeditious in drfpatching their victim out of her mifery, other-wife I fhould be obliged, out of pity, to aflift in the friendly office of putting an end to the exiftence of a fellow-creature who was fo cruelly wounded. On this re-queft being made, one of the Indians haftily drew his fpear from the place where it was firft lodged, and pierced it through her breaft near the heart. The love of life, however, even in this moft miferable ftate, was fo predominant, that though this might juftly be called the moft merciful act that could be done for the poor creature, it feemed to be unwelcome, for though much exhaufted by pain and lofs of blood, fhe made feveral efforts to ward off the friendly blow. My fituation and the terror of my mind at beholding this butchery, cannot eafily be conceived, much lefs defcribed ; though I fummed up all the fortitude I was mafter of on the occafion, it was with difficulty that I could refrain from tears ; and I am confident that my features muft have feelingly expreffed how fincerely I was affected at the barbarous fcene I then wit- neffed; nefled; even at this hour I cannot reflect on the tranf-a&ions of that horrid day without fhedding tears. The brutifh manner in which thefe favages ufed the bodies they had fo cruelly bereaved of life was fo fhock-ing, that it would be indecent to defcribe it; particularly their curiofity in examining, and the remarks they made, on the formation of the women; which, they pretended to fay, differed materially from that of their own. For my own part I muft acknowledge, that however favourable the opportunity for determining that point might have been, yet my thoughts at the time were too much agitated to admit of any fuch remarks; and I firmly believe, that had there actually been as much difference between them as there is faid to be between the Hottentots and thofe of Europe, it would not have been in my power to have marked the diftinction. I have reafon to think, however, that there is no ground for the affertion; and really believe that the declaration of the Indians on this occafion, was utterly void of truth, and proceeded only from the implacable hatred they bore to the whole tribe of people of whom I am fpeaking. When the Indians had completed the murder of the poor Efquimaux, feven other tents on the Eaft fide the river immediately engaged their attention: very luckily, however, our canoes and baggage had been left at a little diftance up the river, fo that they had no way of X 2 crofling croffing to get at them. The river at this part being little more than eighty yards wide, they began firing at them from the Weft fide. The poor Efquimaux on the oppofite fhore, though all up in arms, did not attempt to abandon their tents; and they were fo unacquainted with the nature of fire-arms, that when the bullets ftruck the ground, they ran in crowds to fee what was fent them, and feemed anxious to examine all the pieces of lead which they found flattened againft the rocks. At length one of the Efquimaux men was fhot in the calf of his leg, which put them in great confufion. They all immediately embarked in their little canoes, and paddled to a fhoal in the middle of the river, which being fomewhat more than a gun-fhot from any part of the fhore, put them out of the reach of our barbarians. When the favages difcovered that the furviving Efquimaux had gained the fhore above mentioned, the Northern Indians began to plunder the tents of the deceafed of all the copper utenfils they could find ; fuch as hatchets, bayonets, knives, &c. after which they afTembled on the top of an adjacent high hill, and Handing all in a clufter, fo as to form a folid circle, with their fpears erect in the air, gave many fhouts of victory, conftantly clafhing their fpears againft each other, and frequently calling out titna I timet * / by way of derifion to the poor furviving Efqui- * Tima in the Efquimaux language is a friendly word fimilar to what cheer ? i maux* maux, who were {landing on the fhoal almofl knee-deep l77u in water. After parading the hill for fome time, it was July, agreed to return up the river to the place where we had left our canoes and baggage, which was about half a mile dillant, and then to crofs the river again and plunder the feven tents on the Eaft fide. This refolution was immediately put in force; and as ferrying acrofs with only three or four canoes * took a confiderable time, and as we were, from the crookednefs of the river and the form of the land, entirely under cover, feveral of the poor furviving Efquimaux, thinking probably that we were gone about our bufinefs, and meant to trouble them no more, had returned from the fhoal to their habitations. When we approached their tents, which we did under cover of the rocks, we found them bufily employed tying up bundles. Thefe the Indians feized with their ufual ferocity; on which, the Efquimaux having their canoes lying ready in the water, immediately embarked, and all of them got fafe to the former fhoal, except an old man, who was fo intent on collecting his things, that the Indians coming upon him before he could reach his canoe, he fell a facrifice to their fury : I verily believe not lefs than twenty had a hand in his death, as his whole body was like a cullender. It is here necefTary to obferve that the fpies, * When the fifteen Indians turned back at the Stony Mountains, they took two or three canoes with them; fome of our crew that were fent a-head as meffengers had not yet returned, which occafioned the number of our canoes to be fo fmall. when 1771. when on the look-out, could not fee thefe feven tents, juiy. though clofe under them, as the bank, on which they flood, flretched over them. It ought to have been mentioned in its proper place, that in making our retreat up the river, after killing the Efquimaux on the Weft fide, we faw an old woman fitting by the fide of the water, killing falmon, which lay at the foot of the fall as thick as a fhoal of herrings. Whether from the noife of the fall, or a natural defect in the old woman's hearing, it is hard to determine, but certain it is, fhe had no knowledge of the tragical fcene which had been fo lately tranfa&ed at the tents, though fhe was not more than two hundred yards from the place. When we firft perceived her, fhe feemed perfectly at eafe, and was entirely furrounded with the produce of her labour. From her manner of behaviour, and the appearance of her eyes, which were as red as blood, it is more than probable that her fight was not very good ; for fhe fcarcely difcerned that the Indians were enemies, till they were within twice the length of their fpears of her. It was in vain that fhe attempted to fly, for the wretches of my crew transfixed ner to the ground in a few feconds, and butchered her in the moft favage manner. There was fcarcely a man among them who had not a thruft at her with his fpear; and many in doing this, aimed at torture, rather than immediate death, as they not only poked out her eyes, but but (tabbed her in many parts very remote from thofe which are vital. It may appear ftrange, that a perfon fuppofed to be almoft blind mould be employed in the bufinefs of fifhing, and particularly with any degree of fuccefs ; but when the multitude of fifh is taken into the account, the wonder will ceafe. Indeed they were fo numerous at the foot of the fall, that when a light pole, armed with a few fpikes, which was the inftrument the old woman ufed, was put under water, and hauled up with a jerk, it was fcarcely poffible to mifs them. Some of my Indians tried the method, for curiofity, with the old woman's ftafF, and feldom got lefs than two at a jerk, fometimes three or four. Thofe fifh, though very fine, and beautifully red, are but fmall, feldom weighing more (as near as I could judge) than fix or feven pounds, and in general much lefs. Their numbers at this place were almoft incredible, perhaps equal to any thing that is related of the falmon in Kamfchatka, or any other part of the world. It does not appear that the Efquimaux have any other method of catching the fifh, unlefs it be by fpears and darts; for no appearance of nets was difcovercd either at their tents, or on any part of the fhore. This is the cafe with all the Efquimaux on the Weft fide of Hudfon's Bay; fpearing in Summer, and angling in Winter, are the only methods they have yet devifed to catch fifh, though at 5 times times their whole dependance for fupport is on that article *. When * When the Efquimaux who refide near Churchill River travel in Winter, it is always from lake to lake, or from river to river, where they have formed magazines of provifions, and heaps of mofs for firing. As fome of thofe places are at a confiderable diftance from each other, and fome of the lakes of confiderable width, they frequently pitch their tents on the ice, and inftead of having a fire, which the feverity of the climate fo much requires, they cut holes in the ice within their tents, and there fit and angle for fifh; if they meet with any fuccefs, the fifh are eaten alive out of the water; and when they are thirfty, water, their ufual beverage, is at iiand. When I firft entered into the employment of the Hudfon's Bay Company, it was as Mate of one of their floops which was employed in trading with the Efquimaux; I had therefore frequent opportunities of obferving the mifer-able manner in which thofe people live. In the courfe of our trade with them we frequently purchafed feveral feal-fkin bags, which we fuppofed were full of oil; but on opening them have fometimes found great quantities of venifon, feals, and fea-horfe paws, as well as falmon; and as thefe were of no ufe to us, we always returned them to the Indians, who eagerly devoured them, though fome of the articles had been perhaps a whole year in that ftate; and they feemed to exult greatly in having fo over-reached us in the way of trade, as to have fometimes one third of their bargain returned. This method of preferving their food, though it effectually guards it from the external air, and from the flies, does not prevent putrefaction entirely, though it renders its progrefs very flow. Pure train oil is of fuch a quality that it never freezes folid in the coldeft Winters; a happy circumftance for thofe people, who are condemned to live in the moft rigorous climate without the afliftance of fire. While thefe magazines laft, they have nothing more to do when hunger affails them, but to open one of the bags, take out a fide of venifon, a few feals, fea-horfe paws, or fome half-rotten falmon, and without any preparation, fit down and make a meal; and the lake or river by which they pitch their tent, affords them water, which is their conftant drink. Befides the extraordinary food already mentioned, they have feveral When the Indians had plundered the feven tents of all the copper utenfils, which feemed the only thing worth their veral other diflies equally difgufting to an European palate; I will only mention one, as it was more frequently part of their repaft when I vifited their tents, than any other, except fifh. The dim I allude to, is made of the raw liver of a deer, cut in fmall pieces of about an inch fquare, and mixed up with the contents of the ftomach of the fame animal; and the farther digeftion has taken place, the better it is fuited to their tafte. It is impoffible to defcribe or cconeive the pleafure they feem to enjoy when eating fuch unaccountable food : nay, I have even foen them eat whole handfuls of maggots that were produced in meat by fly-blows; and it is their conftant cuftom, when their nofes bleed by any accident, to lick their blood into their mouths, and fwallow it. Indeed, if we confider the inhofpitable part of the globe they are deftined to inhabit, and the great diftreffes to which they are frequently driven by hunger in confe-quence of it, we fhall no longer be furprifed at finding they can relifli any thing in common with the meaneft of the animal creation, but rather admire the wifdom and kindnefs of Providence in forming the palates and powers of all creatures in fuch a manner as isbeft adapted to the food, climate, and every other circumftance which may be incident to their refpective fituations. It is no lefi true, that thefe people, when I firft knew them, would not eat any of our provifions, fugar, raifins, figs, or even bread ; for though fome of them would put a bit of it into their mouths, they foon fpit it out again with evident marks of diflike; fo that they had no greater relifli for our food than we had for theirs. At prefent, however, they will eat any part of our provifions, cither frefti or falted; and fome of them will drink a draft of porter, or a httle brandy and water; and they are now fo far civilized, and attached to the Englifh, that I am perfuaded any of the Company's fervants who could habituate themfelves to their diet and manner of life, might now live as ft cure under their protection, as under that of any of the tribes of Indians who border on Hudfon's Bay, They live in a ftate of perfect freedom; no one apparently claiming the fuperiority over, or acknowledging the leaft fubordinatfon to another, Y - except 1771- their notice, they threw all the tents and tent-poles into juiy. the river, deftroyed a vaft quantity of dried falmon, mufk-oxen flefh, and other provifions; broke all the ftone kettles ; and, in fad, did all the mifchief they poftibly could to diftrefs the poor creatures they could not murder, and who were ftanding on the fhoal before mentioned, obliged to be woeful fpectators of their great, or perhaps irreparable lofs. After the Indians had completed this piece of wanton-nefs we fat down, and made a good meal of frefh falmon, which were as numerous at the place where we now refted, as they were on the Weft lide of the river. When we had finilhed our meal, which was the firft we had enjoyed for many hours, the Indians told me that they were again ready to aflift me in making an end of my furvey. It was then 17th. about five o'clock in the morning of the feventeenth, the . fea being in fight from the North Weft by Weft to the North Eaft, about eight miles diftant. I therefore fet in-ftantly about commencing my furvey, and purfued it to the mouth of the river, which I found all the way fo full of fhoals and falls that it was not navigable even for a boat, and that it emptied itfelf into the fea over a ridge or bar. except what is due from children to their parents, or fuch of their kin as take care of them when they are young and incapable of providing for themfelves. The re is, however, reafon to think that, when grown up to manhood, they pay fome attention to the advice of the old men, on account of their experience. 2 The The tide was then out; but I judged from the marks which I faw on the edge of the ice, that it flowed about twelve or fourteen feet, which will only reach a little way within the river's mouth. The tide being out, the water in the river was perfectly frefli; but I am certain of its being the' fea, or fome branch of it, by the quantity of whalebone and feal-fkins which the Efquimaux had at their tents, and alfo by the number of feals which I faw on the ice. At the mouth of the river, the fea is full of iflands and fhoals, as far as I could fee with the afliftance of a good poeket telefcope. The ice was not then broke up, but was melted away for about three quarters of a mile from the main more, and to a little diftance round the iflands and fhoals. By the time I had completed this furvey, it was about one in the morning of the eighteenth ; but in thofe high latitudes, and at this feafon of the year, the Sun is always at a good height above the horizon, fo that we had not only day-light, but fun-ftiine the whole night: a thick fog and drizzling rain then came on, and finding that neither the river nor fea were likely to be of any ufe, I did not think it worth while to wait for fair weather to determine the latitude exactly by an obfervation; but by the extraordinary care I took in obferving the courfes and diftances when I walked from Congecathawhachaga, where I had two good obfervations, the latitude may be depended upon within twenty miles at the utmoft. For the fake of form, Y 2 however, however, after having had fome confultation with the Indians, I erected a mark, and took poffeiTion of the coaft., on behalf of the Hudfon's Bay Company. « Having finifhed this bufinefs, we fet out on our return, and walked about twelve miles to the South by Eaft, when we flopped and took a little fleep, which was the firft time that any of us had clofed our eyes from the fifteenth inftant, and it was now fix o'clock in the morning of the eighteenth. Here the Indians killed a mufk-ox, but the mofs being very wet, we could not make a fire, fo that we were obliged to eat the meat raw, which was intolerable, as it happened to be an old beaft. Before I proceed farther on my return, it may not be improper to give fome account of the river, and the country adjacent; its productions, and the animals which con-ftantly inhabit thofe dreary regions, as well as thofe that only migrate thither in Summer, in order to breed and rear their young, unmolefted by man. That I may do this to better purpofe, it will be neceflary to go back to the place where I firft came to the river, which was about forty miles from its mouth. Befide the ftunted pines already mentioned, there are fome tufts of dwarf willows ; plenty of Wifhacumpuckey, (as the Englifh call it, and which they ufe as tea); fome jacka- oj 'the v E R -Mix k H ivkr -2 ////vty/ >/ /'// 9 A Scale ;'/' Engjish Sen Miles, 6o too. Degree. jackafheypuck, which the natives ufe as tobacco; and a few cranberry and heathberry bufhcs ; but not the leaft appearance of any fruit. The v/oods grow gradually thinner and fmaller as you approach the fea; and the laft little tuft of pines that I faw is about thirty miles from the mouth of the river, fo that we meet with nothing between that fpot and the fea-fide but barren hills and marfhes. The general courfe of the river is about North by Eaft; but in fome places it is very crooked, and its breadth varies from twenty yards to four or five hundred. The banks are in general a folid rock, both fides of which cor-refpond fo exactly with each other, as to leave no doubt that the channel of the river has been caufed by fome terrible convulfion of nature; and the ftream is fupplied by a variety of little rivulets, that rufti down the fides of the hills, occafioned chiefly by the melting of the fnow. Some of the Indians fay, that this river takes its rife from the North Weft fide of Large White Stone Lake, which is at the diftance of near three hundred miles on a ftraight line ; but I can fcarcely think that is the cafe, unlefs there be many intervening lakes, which are fupplied by the vaft quantity of water that is collected in fo great an extent of hilly and mountainous country: for were it otherwife, I fhould imagine that the multitude of fmall rivers, which muft empty themfelves into the main ftream in the courfe of fa great great a diftance, would have formed a much deeper and ftronger current than I difcovered, and occafioned an annual deluge at the breaking up of the ice in the Spring, of which there was not the leaft appearance, except at Bloody Fall, where the river was contracted to the breadth of about twenty yards. It was at the foot of this fall that my Indians killed the Efquimaux ; which was the reafon why I diftinguifhed it by that appellation. From this fall, which is about eight miles from the fea-lide, there are very few hills, and thofe not high. The land between them is a ftiff loam and clay, which, in fome parts, produces patches of pretty good grafs, and in others tallifh dwarf willows : at the foot of the hills alfo there is plenty of fine fcurvy-grafs. The Efquimaux at this river are but low in ftature, none exceeding the middle fize, and though broad fet, are neither well-made nor ftrong bodied. Their complexion is of a dirty copper colour; fome of the women, however, are more fair and ruddy. Their drefs much re-fembles that of the Greenlanders in Davis's Straits, except the women's boots, which are not ftiffencd out with whalebone, and the tails of their jackets are not more than a foot long. Their arms and fifhing-tackle are bows and arrows, fpears, lances, darts, Sec. which exactly refcmble thofe made ufe of by the Efquimaux in Hudfon's Straits, and which which have been well defcribed by Crantz *; but, for want of good edge-tools, are far inferior to them in work-manfhip. Their arrows are either fhod with a triangular piece of black ftone, like ftate, or a piece of copper ; but moft commonly the former. The body of their canoes is on the fame conftruftion as that of the other Efquimaux, and there is no unneceffary prow-projection beyond the body of the veflll; thefe, like their arms and other utenfils, are, for the want of better tools, by no means fo neat as thofe I have feen in Hudfon's Bay and Straits. The double-bladed paddle is in univerfal ufe among all the tribes of this people. Their tents are made of parchment deer-fkins in the hair, and are pitched in a circular form, the fame as thofe of the Efquimaux in Hudfon's Bay. Thefe tents are undoubtedly no more than their Summer habitations, for I faw the remains of two mifcrable hovels, which, from the fituation, the ftructure, and the vaft quantity of bones, old fhoes, fcraps of fkins, and other rubbifli lying near them, had certainly been fome of their Winter retreats. Thefe houfes were fituated on the South fide of a hill; one half of them were under-ground, and the upper parts clofely fet round with poles, meeting at the top in a conical form, like their Summer-houfes or tents. Thefe tents, * See Hift. of Greenland/ vol. i, p. 132—156. when when inhabited, had undoubtedly been covered with flans; and in Winter entirely overfpread with the fnow-drift, which muft have greatly contributed to their warmth. They were fo fmall, that they did not contain more than fix or eight perfons each ; and even that number of any other people would have found them but miferable habitations. Their houfehold furniture chiefly confifts of ftone kettles, and wooden troughs of various fizes; alfo difhes, fcoops, and fpoons, made of the buffalo or mufk-ox horns. Their kettles are formed of a pepper and fait coloured ftone; and though the texture appears to be very coarfe, and as porous as a drip-ftone, yet they are perfectly tight, and will found as clear as a China bowl. Some of thofe kettles are fo large as to be capable of containing live or fix gallons ; and though it is impoflible thefe poor people can perform this arduous work with any other tools than harder ftones, yet they arc by far fuperior to any that I had ever feen in Hudfon's Bay ; every one of them being ornamented with neat mouldings round the rim, and fome of the large ones with a hind of flute-work at each corner. In fbape they were a long fqu.ire, fomething wider at the top than bouom, like a knife-tray, and ftrong handles of the folid ftone were left at each end to lift them up. Their hatchets arc made of a thick lump of copper, about five or fix inchvs long, and from one and a half to two inches fquare \ they arc bevelled away at one end like a mortice- mortice-chifTel. This is lafhed into the end of a piece of i77'« wood about twelve or fourteen inches long, in fuch a man- July, ner as to act like an adze: in general they are applied to the wood like a chifiel, and driven in with a heavy club, inftead of a mallet. Neither the weight of the tool nor the fharpnefs of the metal will admit of their being handled either as adze or axe, with any degree of fuccefs. The men's bayonets and women's knives are alfo made of copper; the former are in fhape like the ace of fpades, with the handle of deers horn a foot long, and the latter exactly referable thofe defcribed by Crantz. Samples of both thefe implements I formerly fent home to James Fitzgerald, Efq. then one of the Hudfon's Bay Committee. Among all the fpoils of the twelve tents which my companions plundered, only two fmall pieces of iron were found; one of which was about an inch and a half long, and three eighths of an inch broad, made into a woman's knife; the other was barely an inch long, and a quarter of an inch wide. This laft was rivetted into a piece of ivory, fo as to form a man's knife, known in Hudfon's Bay by the name of Mokeatoggan^ and is the only inftrument ufed by them in fhaping all their woodwork. Thofe people had a fine and numerous breed of dogs, with fharp erect ears, {harp nofes, bufhy tails, &c. ex- Z aftly 1771. actly like thofe feen among the Efquimaux in Hudfon's juiy. Bay and Straits. They were all tethered to ftones, to prevent them, as I fuppofe, from eating the fifti that were fpread all over the rocks to dry. I do not recollect that my companions killed or hurt one of thofe animals; but after we had left the tents, they often willed they had taken fome of thofe fine dogs with therm Though the drefs, canoes, utenlils, and many other articles belonging to thefe people, are very fimilar to thofe of Hudfon's Bay, yet there is one cuftom that prevails among them—namely, that of the men having all the hair of their heads pulled out by the roots—which pronounces them to be of a different tribe from any hitherto feen either on the coaft of Labradore, Hudfon's Bay, or Davis's Straits. The women wore their hair at full longth, and exactly in the fame ftile as all the other Efquimaux women do whom I have feen. When at the fea-lide, (at the mouth of the Copper Riverj) befides feeing many feals on the ice, I alfo obferved feveral flocks of fea-fowl flying about the fhores; fuch as, gulls, black-heads^ loons, old wives, ha-ha-wie'&, dunter geefe, arctic gulls, and willicks. In the adjacent ponds alfo were fome fwans and geefe in a moulting ftate, and in the marfhes fome curlews and plover; plenty of hawks-eyes, (i. e. the green plover,) and fome yellow-legs ; alfo feveral other fmall birds, that vifit thofe Northern parts in the Spring Spring to breed and moult, and which doubtlefs return 1771-Southward as the fall advances. My reafon for this conjee- ^JuiyT ture is founded on a certain knowledge that all thofe birds migrate in Hudfon's Bay; and it is but reafonable to think that they are lefs capable of withftanding the rigour of fuch a long and cold Winter as they muft neceflarily experience in a country which is fo many degrees within the Ardic Circle, as that is where I now faw them. That the mufk-oxen, deer, bears, wolves, wolvarines, foxes, Alpine hares, white owls, ravens, partridges, ground-fquirrels, common fquirrels, ermins, mice, &c. are the conftant inhabitants of thofe parts, is not to be doubted. In many places, by the fides of the hills, where the fnow lay to a great depth, the dung of the mulk-oxen and deer was lying in fuch long and continued heaps, as clearly to point out that thofe places had been their much-frequented paths during the preceding Winter. There were alfo many other fimilar appearances on the hills, and other parts, where the fnow was entirely thawed away, without any print of a foot being vifible in the mofs; which is a certain proof that thefe long ridges of dung muft have been dropped In the fnow as the beafts were pafting and repafling over it in the Winter. There are likewife fimilar proofs that the Alpine hare and the partridge do not migrate, but remain there the whole year: the latter we found in confiderable flocks among the tufts of willows which grow near the fea. Z 2 it It is perhaps not generally known, even to the curious, therefore may not be unworthy of obfervation, that the dung of the mufk-ox, though fo large an animal, is not larger, and at the fame time fo near the fhape and colour of that of the Alpine hare, that the difference is not eafily diftinguifhed but by the natives, though in general the quantity may lead to a difcovery of the animal to which it belongs. I did not fee any birds peculiar to thofe parts, except what the Copper Indians call the " Alarm Bird," or for by the accounts of the Indians, they have always experienced a great fcarcity of deer, and every other kind of game, in the direction they propofed we fhould go when we left Point Lake. Toward the middle of the month, the weather became quite mild and open, and continued fo till the end of it; but there was fo much conftant and incefiant rain, that it iStll rotted moft of our tents. On the twenty-eighth, however, the wind fettled in the North Weft quarter, when 3oth. tne weather grew fo cold, that by the thirtieth all the ponds, lakes, and other ftanding waters, were frozen over fo hard, that we were enabled to crofs them on the ice without danger. Among the various fuperftitious cuftoms of thofe people, it is worth remarking, and ought to have been mentioned in its proper place, that immediately after my companions had killed the Efquimaux at the Copper River, they con-fidered themfelves in a ftate of uncleannefs, which induced them to practife fome very curious and unufual ceremonies. 10 In In the firft place, all who were abfolutely concerned in 1771. the murder were prohibited from cooking any kind of s^tembl victuals, either for themfelves or others. As luckily there were two in company who had not fhed blood, they were employed always as cooks till we joined the women. This circumftance was exceedingly favourable on my fide; for had there been no perfons of the above defcription in company, that talk, I was told, would have fallen on me; which would have been no lefs fatiguing and troublefome, than humiliating and vexatious. When the victuals were cooked, all the murderers took a kind of red earth, or oker, and painted all the fpace between the nofe and chin, as well as the greater part of their cheeks, almoft to the ears, before they would tafte a bit, and would not drink out of any other difh, or fmoke out of any other pipe, but their own ; and none of the others feemed willing to drink or fmoke out of theirs. We had no fooner joined the women, at our return from the expedition, than there feemed to be an univerfal fpirit of emulation among them, vying who fhould firft make a fuit of ornaments for their hufhands, which confifted of bracelets for thewrifts, and a band for the forehead, compofed of porcupine quils and moofe-hair, curioufly wrought on leather. The cuftom of painting the mouth and part of the cheeks before each meal, and drinking and fmoking out of 1771* of their own utenfils, was ftricTly and invariably obferved, .September, till the Winter began to fet in ; and during the whole of that time they would never kifs any of their wives or children. They refrained alfo from eating many parts of the deer and other animals, particularly the head, entrails, and blood; and. during their uncleannefs, their victuals were never foddcn in water, but dried in the fun, eaten quite raw, or broiled, when a lire fit for the purpofe could be procured. When the time arrived that was to put an end to thefe ceremonies, the men, without a female being prefent, made a fire at fome diftance from the tents, into which they threw all their ornaments, pipe-ftems, and difties, which were foon confumed to aihes; after which a feaft was prepared, confiding of fuch articles as they had long been prohibited from eating; and when all was over, each man was at libery to eat, drink, and fmoke as he pleafed ; and alfo to kifs his wives and children at difcretion, which they feemed to do with more raptures than I had ever known them do it cither before or fince. o&ober. October came in very roughly, attended with heavy 6th. falls of fnow, and much drift. On the fixth at night, a heavy gale of wind from the North Weft put us in great diforder; for though the few woods we paffed had furnifhed us with tent-poles and fewel, yet they did not afford us the leaft flicker whatever. The wind blew with fuch violence, violence, that in fpite of all our endeavours, it overfet feveral of the tents, and mine, among the reft, fhared the difafter, which I cannot fufficicntly lament, as the but-ends of the weather tent-poles fell on the quadrant, and though it was in a ftrong wainfcot cafe, two of the bubbles, the index, and feveral other parts were broken, which rendered it entirely ufelefs. This being the cafe, I did not think it worth carriage, but broke it to pieces, and gave the brafs-work to the Indians, who cut it into fmall lump?, and made ufe of it inftead of ball. On the twenty-third of October, feveral Copper and a few dog-ribbed Indians came to our tents laden with furrs, which they fold to fome of my crew for fuch ironwork as they had to give in exchange. This vifit, I afterwards found, was by appointment of the Copper Indians whom we had feen at Congecathawhachaga, and who, in their way to us, bad met the Dog-ribbed Indians, who were alfo glad of fo favourable an opportunity of purchafing fome of thofe valuable articles, though at a very extravagant price : for one of the Indians in my company, though not properly of my party, got no lefs than forty beaver fkins, and fixty martins, for one piece of iron which he had ftole when he was laft at the Fort *. One * The piece of iron above mentioned was the coulter of a new-fafliioned plough, invented by Captain John Fowler, late Governor at Churchill River, with which he had a large piece of ground ploughed, and afterwards fowed with 1771. One of thofe ftrangers had about forty beaver fkins, October. with which he intended to pay Matonabbee an old debt; but one of the other Indians feized the whole, notwith-Handing he knew it to be in fact Matonabbee's property. This treatment, together with many other infults, which he had received during my abode with him, made him renew his old refolution of leaving his own country, and going to refide with the Athapufcow Indians. As the moft interefting part of my journey was now over, I did not think it neceflary to interfere in his private affairs; and therefore did not endeavour to influence him either one way or the other: out of complaifance, therefore, rather than any thing elfe, I told him, that I thought fuch behaviour very uncourteous, efpecially in a man of his rank and dignity. As to the reafon of his determination, I did not think it worth while to enquire into it; but, by his difcourfe with the other Indians, I foon un-derftood that they all intended to make an excurfion into the country of the Athapufcow Indians, in order to kill moofe and beaver. The former of thofe animals are never found in the Northern Indian territories; and the latter are fo fcarce in thofe Northern parts, that during the whole Winter of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy, with oats: but the part being nothing but a hot burning fand, like the Spanifli lines at Gibraltar, the fuccefs may eafily be guelTed j which was, that it did not produce a fingle grain. I did I did not fee more than two beaver houfes. Martins are alfo fcarce in thofe parts; for during the above period, I do not think that more than fix or eight were killed by all the Indians in my company. This exceedingly fmall number, among fo many people, may with great truth be attributed to the indolence of the Indians, and the wandering life which they lead, rather than to the great fcarcity of the martins. It is true, that our moving fo frequently from place to place, did at times make it not an object worth while to build traps; but had they taken the advantage of all favourable opportunities, and been poffeffed of half the induftry of the Company's fer-vants in the Bay, they might with great eafe have caught as many hundreds, if not fome thoufands; and when we confider the extent of ground which we walked over in that time, fuch a number would not have been any proof of the martins being very plentiful. Except a few martins; wolves, quiquehatches, foxes, and otters, are the chief furrs to be met with in thofe parts, and few of the Northern Indians chufe to kill either the wolf or the quiquehatch, under a notion that they are fomething more than common animals. Indeed, I have known fome of them fo bigotted to this opinion, that having by chance killed a quiquehatch by a gun which had been fet for a fox, they have left it where it was killed, and would not take off its fkin, Notwithftanding this E e filly *77J* filly notion, which is too frequently to be obferved among Od^ober. thofe people, it generally happens that there are fome in every gang who are lefs fcrupulous, fo that none of thofe furrs are ever left to rot; and even thofe who make a point of not killing the animals themfelves, are ready to receive their fkins from other Indians, and carry them to the Fort for trade. 30th. By the thirtieth of October, all our clothing, fnow- fhoes, and temporary fledges, being completed, we once November more began to prepare for moving > and on the following day fet out, and walked five or fix miles to the Southward. 5th. From the firft to the fifth of November we walked on the ice of a large lake, which, though very confiderable both in length and breadth, is not diftinguifhed by any general name; on which account I gave it the name of No Name Lake. On the South fide of this lake we found fome wood, which was very acceptable, being the firft that we had feen fince we left Point Lake. No Name Lake is about fifty miles long from North to South, and, according to the account of the Indians, is thirty-five miles wide from Eaft to Weft. It is faid to abound with fine fifh; but the weather at the time we crofled it was fo cold, as to render it impoflible to fit on the ice any length length of time to angle. A few exceedingly fine trout, l77l-and fome very large pike, however, were caught by my November, companions. When we arrived on the South fide of the above lake, we fhaped our courfe to the South Weft; and though the weather was in general very cold, yet as we every night found tufts of wood, in which we could pitch our tents, we were enabled to make a better defence againft the weather, than we had had it in our power to do for fome time paft. On the tenth of November, we arrived at the edge of *°th. of the main woods; at which time the Indians began to make proper fledges, fome fnow-fhoes, &*c. after which we proceeded again to the South Weft. But deer and all other kinds of game were fo fcarce the whole way, that, except a few partridges, nothing was killed by any in company : we had, neverthelefs, plenty of the provifion which had been prepared at Point Lake. On the twentieth of the fame month, we arrived at 20th. Anaw'd Whoie, or the Indian Lake. In our way we crofled part of Methy Lake, and walked near eighty miles on a fmall river belonging to it, which empties itfelf into the Great Athapufcow Lake *. While we were walking * The courfe of this river is nearly South Weil. E e 2 on 1771- on the above little river, the Indians fet fifhing-nets under November, the ice every night; but their labour was attended with fo little fuccefs, that all they caught ferved only as a delicacy, or to make a little change in our diet; for the quantity was too trifling to occafion any confiderable faving of our other provifions. Anaw'd Lake, though fo fmall as not to exceed twenty miles wide in the broadeft part, is celebrated by the natives for abounding with plenty of fifh during the Winter; accordingly the Indians fet all their nets, which were not a few, and met with fuch fuccefs, that in about ten days the roes only were as much as all the women could haul after them. Tittimeg and barbie, with a few fmall pike, were the only fifh caught at this part; the roes of which, particularly thofe of the tittimeg, are more efteemed by the Northern Indians, to take with them on a journey, than the fifh itfelf; for about two pounds weight of thefe roes, when well bruifed, will make near four gallons of broth, as thick as common burgoe ; and if properly managed, will be as white as rice, which makes it very pleafing to the eye, and no lefs agreeable to the palate. The land round this lake is very hilly, though not mountainous, and chiefly confifts of rocks and loofe ftones; there muft, however, be a fmall portion of foil 6 on 011 the furface, as it is in moft parts well clothed with tall 177*-poplars, pines, fir, and birch; particularly in the vallies, November, where the poplars, pine, and birch feem to thrive beft; but the firs were as large, and in as flouriftiing a ftate, on the very fummit of the hills, as in any other part. Rabbits were here fo plentiful, particularly on the South and South Eaft fide of the lake, that feveral of the Indians caught twenty or thirty in a night with fnares; and the wood-partridges were fo numerous in the fir trees, and io tame, that I have known an Indian kill near twenty of them in a day with his bow and arrows. The Northern Indians call this fpecies of the partridge Day ; and though their flefh is generally very black and bitter, occafioned by their feeding on the brufli of the fir tree, yet they make a variety, or change of diet, and are thought exceedingly good, particularly by the natives, who, though capable of living fo hard, and at times eating very ungrateful food, are neverthelefs as lond of variety as any people whom I ever faw ; and will go as great lengths, according to their circumftances, to gratify their palates, as the greateft epicure in England. As a proof of this afTertion, I have frequently known Matonabbee, and others who could afford it, for the fake of variety only, fend fome of their young men to kill a few partridges at the expence of more ammunition than would have killed deer fufficient to have maintained their families many days; whereas the partridges were always eaten up at one meal: and to heighten *771' heighten the luxury on thefe occafions, the partridges are November, boiled in a kettle of fheer fat, which it muft be allowed renders them beyond all defcription finer flavoured than when boiled in water or common broth. I have alfo eat deer-fkins boiled in fat, which were exceedingly good. As during our ftay at Anaw'd Lake feveral of the Indians were fickly, the doctors undertook to adminifter relief ; particularly to one man, who had been hauled on a fledge by his brother for two months. His diiorder was the dead palfey, which affected one fide, from the crown of his head to the fole of his foot. Befides this dreadful diforder, he had fome inward complaints, with a total lofs of appetite ; fo that he was reduced to a mere fkeleton, and fo weak as to be fcarcely capable of fpeaking. In this deplorable condition, he was laid in the center of a large conjuring-houfe, made much after the manner as that which has been already defcribed. And that nothing might be wanting toward his recovery, the fame man who deceived me in fwallowing a bayonet in the Summer, now offered to fwallow a large piece of board, about the fize of a barrel-ftave, in order to effect his recovery. The piece of board was prepared by another man, and painted according to the direction of the juggler, with a rude re-prefentation of fome beaft of prey on one fide, and on the reverfe was painted, according to their rude method, a re- mblance of the fky. * Without Without entering into a long detail of the preparations 1771-for this feat, I fhall at once proceed to obferve, that after November, the conjurer had held the neceflary conference with his invifible fpirits, or fhadows, he afked if I was prefent; for he had heard of my faying that I did not fee him fwallow the bayonet fair : and on being anfwered in the affirmative, he defired me to come nearer; on which the mob made a lane for me to pafs, and I advanced clofe to him, and found him ftanding at the conjuring-houfe door as naked as he was born. When the piece of board was delivered to him, he propofed at firft only to fhove one-third of it down his throat, and then walk round the company afterward to move down another third ; and fo proceed till he had fwallowed the whole, except a fmall piece of the end, which was left behind to haul it up again. When he put it to his mouth it apparently flipped down his throat like lightning, and only left about three inches flicking without his lips; after walking backwards and forwards three times, he hauled it up again, and ran into the conjuring-houfe with great precipitation. This he did to all appearance with great eafe and compofure; and notwithftanding I was all attention on the occafion, I could not detect the deceit * and as to the reality of its being a piece of wood that he pretended to fwallow, there is not the leaft reafon to doubt of it, for I had it in my hand, both before and immediately after the ceremony. To 2i6 A JOURNEY t O T H E l77l* To prevent a variety of opinions on this occafion, and Novunber. to leflen the apparent magnitude of the miracle, as well as to give fome colour to my fcepticifm, which might otherwife perhaps appear ridiculous, it is neceflary to obferve, that this feat was performed in a dark and excef-fively cold night; and although there was a large fire at fome diftance, which reflected a good light, yet there was great room for collufion : for though the conjurer himfelf was quite naked, there were feveral of his fraternity well-clothed, who attended him very clofe during the time of his attempting to fwallow the board, as well as at the time of his hauling it up again. For thefe reafons it is neceflary alfo to obferve, that on the day preceding the performance of this piece of deception, in one of my hunting excurfions, I accidentally came acrofs the conjurer as he was fitting under a bufh, feveral miles from the tents, where he was bufily employed fhaping a piece of wood exactly like that part which ftuck out of his mouth after he had pretended to fwallow the remainder of the piece. The fhapc of the piece which I faw him making was this, * which exactly refembled the forked end of the main piece, the fhape of which was tms> L I I "r^» So that when his attendants had con- cealed the main piece, it was eafy for him to flick the fmall point into his mouth, as it was reduced at the fmall end to a proper fize for the purpofe. Similar Similar proofs may eafily be urged againft his fwallow- *77!-ing the bayonet in the Summer, as no perfon lefs ignorant NovcmbcrT than themfelves can poflibly place any belief in the reality of thofe feats; yet on the whole, they muft be allowed a confiderable fhare of dexterity in the performance of thofe tricks, and a wonderful deal of perfeverance in what they do for the relief of thofe whom they undertake to cure. Not long after the above performance had taken place, fome of the Indians began to afk me what I thought of it. As I could not have any plea for faying that I was far off, and at the fame time not caring to affront them by hinting my fufpicions of the deceit, I was fome time at a lofs for an anfwer: I urged, however, the impoftibility of a man's fwallowing a piece of wood, that was not only much longer than his whole back, but nearly twice as broad as he could extend his mouth. On which fome of them laughed at my ignorance, as they were pleafed to call it; and faid, that the fpirits in waiting fwallowed, or otherwife concealed, the ftick, and only left the forked end apparently flicking out of the conjurer's mouth. My guide, Matonabbee, with all his other good fenfe, was fo bigotted to the reality of thofe performances, that he affured me in the ftrongeft terms, he had feen a man, who was then in company, fwallow a child's cradle, with as much eafe as he could fold up a piece of paper, and put it into his mouth; and that when he hauled it up again, not the F f mark 1771. mark of a tooth, or of any violence, was to be difcovered November, about it. This ftory fo far exceeded the feats which I had feen with the bayonet and board, that, for the fake of keeping up the farce, I began to be very inquifitive about the fpirits which appear to them on thofe occafions, and their form; when I was* told that they appeared in various fhapes, for almoft every conjurer had his peculiar attendant; but that the fpirit which attended the man who pretended to fwallow the piece of wood, they faid, generally appeared to him in the fhape of a cloud. This I thought very a-propos to the prefent occafion; and I muft confefs-that I never had fo thick a cloud thrown before my eyes before or fince; and had it not been by accident, that I faw him make a counterpart to the piece of wood faid to be fwallowed, I fhould have been ftill at a lofs how to account for fo extraordinary a piece of deception, performed by a man who was entirely naked. As foon as our conjurer had executed the above feat, and entered the conjuring-houfe, as already mentioned, five other men and an old woman, all of whom were great profeffors of that art, ftripped themfelves quite naked and followed him, when they foon began to fuck, blow, fing> and dance, round the poor paralytic ; and continued fo to do for three days and four nights, without taking the leaft reft or refrefhment, not even fo much as a drop of water. When When thefe poor deluding and deluded people came out of 1771-the conjuring-houfe, their mouths were fo parched with thirft as to be quite black, and their throats fo fore, that they were fcarcely able to articulate a (ingle word, except thofe that ftand for yes and no in their language. After fo long an abftinence they were very careful not to eat or drink too much at one time, particularly for the firft day ; and indeed fome of them, to appearance, were almoft as bad as the poor man they had been endeavouring to relieve. But great part of this was feigned; for they lay on their backs with their eyes fixed, as if in the agonies of death, and were treated like young children ; one perfon fat conftantly by them, moiftening their mouths with fat, and now and then giving them a drop of water. At other times a fmall bit of meat was put into their mouths, or a pipe held for them to fmoke. This farce only lafted for the firft day; after which they feemed to be perfectly well, except the hoarfenefs, which continued for a confiderable time afterwards. And it is truly wonderful, though the ftricteft truth, that when the poor fick man was taken from the conjuring-houfe, he had not only recovered his appetite to an amazing degree, but was able to move all the fingers and toes of the fide that had been fo long dead. In three weeks he recovered fo far as to be capable of walking, and at the end of fix weeks went a hunting for his family. He was one of the perfons * parr * His name was Cof-abyagh, the Northern Indian name for the Rock Partridge. F f 2 ticularly 1771* ticularly engaged to provide for me during my journey ; November, and after his recovery from this dreadful diforder, accompanied me back to Prince of Wales's Fort in June one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-two; and fince that time he has frequently vilited the Factory, though he never had a healthy look afterwards, and at times feemed troubled with a nervous complaint. It may be added, that he had been formerly of a remarkable lively difpofltion ; but after his laft illnefs he always appeared thoughtful, fometimes gloomy, and, in fact, the diforder feemed to have changed his whole nature ; for before that dreadful paralytic ftroke, he was diftinguifhed for his good-nature and benevolent difpofltion ; was entirely free from every appearance of avarice; and the whole of his wifhes feemed confined: within the narrow limits of pofTefting as many goods as were abfolutely neceflary, with his own induftry, to enable him to fupport his family from feafon to feafon ; but after this event, he was the moft fractious, quarrelfome, difcon-tented, and covetous wretch alive. Though the ordinary trick of thefe conjurers may be eafily detected, and juftly exploded, being no more than the tricks of common jugglers, yet the apparent good effect of their labours on the fick and difeafed is not fo eafily accounted for. Perhaps the implicit confidence placed in them by the fick may, at times, leave the mind fo perfectly at reft, as to canfe the diforder to take a favourable turn ; and a few fuccefsful cafes are quite fuf-ficient to eftablifh the doctor's character and reputation: 3 But But how this coniideration could operate in the cafe I have I77I-juft mentioned I am at a lofs to fay 3 fuch, however, was November, the fact, and I leave it to be accounted for by others. When thefe juggler? take a diflike to, and threaten a fecret revenge on any perfon, it often proves fatal to that perfon f as, from a firm belief that the conjurer has power over his life, he permits the very thoughts of it to prey on his fpirits, till by degrees it brings on a diforder which puts an end to his exiftence * : and fometimes a threat of this kind * As a proof of this, Matonabbee, (who always thought me pofleflcd of this art,) on his arrival at Prince of Wales's Fort in the Winter of 1778, informed me, that a man whom I had never feen but once, had treated him in fuch a manner that he was afraid of his life ; in confluence of which he prefTed me very much to kill him, though I was then feveral hundreds of miles diftant. On which, to pleafe this great man to whom I owed fo much, and not expecting that any harm could poffibly arife from it, I drew a rough fketch of two human figures on a piece of paper, in the attitude of wreflling: in the hand of one of them, I drew the figure of a bayonet pointing to the bread of the other. This is me, faid. I to Matonabbee, pointing to the figure which was holding the bayonet; and the other, is your enemy. Oppofi.e to thofe figures I drew a pine-tree, over which I placed a large human eye, and out of the tree projected a human hand. This paper I gave to Matonabbee, with inft ructions to make it as publicly known as poffible. Sure enough, the following year, when he came in to trade, he informed trie that the man was dead, though at that time he was not lefs than three hundred miles from Prince Wales's Fort. He affured me that the man was in perfect health when he heard of my defign againft him; but almoft immediately afterwards became quite gloomy, and refilling all kind of fuftenance, in a very few days died. After this I was frequently applied to on the fame account, both by Matonabbee and other leading Indians, but never thought proper to comply with their requefb; by which means I not only preferved the credit I gained on the firft. attempt, but always kept them in awe, and in fome degree-of refpect and obedience I771* kind caufes the death of a whole family ; and that without November, any blood being fhed, or the leaft apparent moleftation being offered to any of the parties. Having dried as many fifh and fifh-roes as we could conveniently take with us, we once more packed up our December ftoreSj ^nd, on the firft day of December, fet out, and continued our courfe to the South Weft, leaving Anaw'd Lake on the South Weft. Several of the Indians being out of order, we made but fhort days journies. From the firft to the thirteenth, we walked along a courfe of fmall lakes, joined to each other by fmall rivers, or creeks, that have communication with Anaw'd Lake. In our way we caught daily a few fifh by angling, and faw many beaver houfes; but thefe were generally in fo difficult a fituation, and had fo many ftones in the com-pofition of them, that the Indians killed but few, and that at a great expence of labour and tools. i3th On the thirteenth, one of the Indians killed two deer, which were the firft that we had feen fince the twentieth obedience to me. In fact, ftrange as it may appear, it is almoft abfolutely neceflary that the chiefs at this place fhould profefs fomething a little fuperna-tural, to be able to deal with thofe people. The circumftance here recorded is a fact well known to Mr. William Jefferfon, who fucceeded me at Churchill Factory, as well as to all the officers and many of the common men who were at Prince of Wales's Fort at the time. of of October. So that during a period of near two months, *77r* we had lived on the dried meat that we had prepared at December* Point Lake, and a few fifh; of which the latter was not very confiderable in quantity, except what was caught at Anaw'd Lake. It is true, we alfo caught a few rabbits, and at times the wood-partridges were fo plentiful, that the Indians killed confiderable numbers of them with their bows and arrows; but the number of mouths was fo great, that all which was caught from our leaving Point Lake, though, if enumerated, they might appear very confiderable, would not have afforded us all a bare fiibfiftence; for though I and fome others experienced no real want, yet there were many in our company who could fcarcely be faid to live, and would not have exifted at all, had it not beea for the dry meat wc had with. us. When wc left the above-mentioned lakes we fiiaped a courfe more to the Southward, and on the twenty-fourth, 24th. arrived at the North fide of the great Atliapufcow Lake. In our way we faw many Indian deer, and beaver were very plentiful, many of which the Indians killed; but the days were fo fhort, that the Sun only took a circuit of a few points of the compafs above the horizon, and did not, at its greateft. altitude, rife half-way up the trees. The brilliancy of the Au rorci Borecilis, however, and of the Stars, even without the afiiftance of the Moon, made fome amends for that deficiency ; for it was frequently fo light all night, that I could fee to read a very fmall prints The. 1771- The Indians make no difference between night and day December, when they are hunting of beaver; but thofe noBurnal lights are always found inefficient for the purpofe of hunting deer or moofe. I do not remember to have met with any travellers into high Northern latitudes, who remarked their having heard the Northern Lights make any noife in the air as they vary their colours or pofition; which may probably be owing to the want of perfect filence at the time they made their ob-fervations on thofe meteors. I can pofitively affirm, that in ftill nights I have frequently heard them make a ruffling and crackling noife, like the waving of a large flag in a frefti gale of wind. This is not peculiar to the place of which I am now writing, as I have heard the fame noife very plain at Churchill River ; and in all probability it is only for want of attention that it has not been heard in every part of the Northern hemifphere where they have been known to fhine with any confiderable degree of luftre. It is, however, very probable that, thefe lights are fometimes much nearer the Earth than they are at others, according to the ftate of the atmofphere, and this may have a great effect on the found: but the truth or falfehood of this conjecture I leave to the determinations of thofe who are better fkilled in natural philofophy than I can pretend to be. Indian deer (the only fpecies found in thofe parts, except the moofe) are fo much larger than thofe which frequent quent the barren grounds to the North of Churchill River, t771* that a fmall doe is equal in fize to a Northern buck. The December, hair of the former is of a fandy red during the Winter; and their horns, though much ftronger, are not fo long and branchy as are thofe of the latter kind. Neither is the flefh of thofe deer fo much eflcemed by the Northern Indians, as that of the fmaller kind, which inhabit the more Eaftern and Northern parts of the country. Indeed, it muft be allowed to be much coarfer, and of a different flavour ; inafmuch as the large Lincolnfhire mutton differs from grafs lamb. I muft acknowledge, however, that I always thought it very good. This is that fpecies of deer which are found fo plentiful near York Fort and Severn River. They are alfo at times found in confiderable numbers near Churchill River ; and I have feen them killed as far North, near the fea-fide, as Seal River : But the fmall Northern Indian deer are feldom known to crofs Churchill River, except in fome very extraordinary cold feafons, and when the Northern winds have prevailed much in the preceding hill ; for thofe vifits are always made in the Winter. But though I own that the flefh of the large Southern deer is very good, I muft at the fame time con-fefs that the flefh of the fmall Northern deer, whether buck or doc, in their proper feafon, is by far more delicious, and the fined I have ever eaten, either in this country or any other ; and is of that peculiar quality, that it never cloys. I can affirm this from my own experience ; G g for, 1771. for, after living on it entirely, as it may be faid, for twelve Dumber, or eighteen months fucceflively, I fcarcely ever wifhed for a change of food ; though when fifh or fowl came in my way, it was very agreeable. The beaver being fo plentiful, the attention of my companions was chiefly engaged on them, as they not only furni/hed delicious food, but their fkins proved a valuable acquiiition, being a principal article of trade, as well as a ferviceable one for clothing, c^rY. The fituation of the beaver-houfes is various. Where the beavers are numerous they are found to inhabit lakes, ponds, and rivers, as well as thofe narrow creeks which connect the numerous lakes with which this country abounds; but the two latter are generally chofen by them when the depth of water and other circumftances are fuit-able, as they have then the advantage of a current to convey wood and other neceffaries to their habitations, and becaufe, in general, they are more difficult to be taken, than thofe that are built in Handing water. There is no one particular part of a lake, pond, river5 or creek, of which the beavers make choice for building their houfes on, in preference to another ; for they fometimes build on points, fometimes in the hollow of a bay, and often on fmall iflands; they always chufe, however, thofe thofe parts that have fuch a depth of water as will refift 1771-the frofl in Winter, and prevent it from freezing to the D^krT bottom. The beaver that build their houfes in fmall rivers or creeks, in which the water is liable to be drained off when the back fupplies are dried up by the froft, are wonderfully taught by inftincr. to provide againft that evil, by making a dam quite acrofs the river, at a convenient diftance from their houfes. This I look upon as the moft curious piece of workmanfhip that is performed by the beaver ; not fo much for the neatnefs of the work, as for its ftrength and real fervice; and at the fame time it difcovers fuch a degree of fagacity and forefight in the animal, of approaching evils, as is little inferior to that of the human fpecies, and is certainly peculiar to thofe animals. The beaver-dams differ in lhape according to the nature of the place in which they are built. If the water in the river or creek have but little motion, the dam is almoft ftraight; but when the current is more rapid, it is always made with a conilderable curve, convex toward the ftream. The materials made ufe of in thofe dams are drift-wood, green willows, birch, and poplars, if they can be got; alfo mud and ftones, intermixed in fuch a manner as muft evidently contribute to the ftrength of the dam ; but in thefe dams there is no other order or method obferved, ex- G g 2 cept *77L> cept that of the work being carried on with a regular fweep5 December, and all the parts being made of equal ftrength. In places which have been long frequented by beaver undifturbed, their dams, by frequent repairing, become a folid bank, capable of refilling a great force both of water and ice; and as the willow, poplar, and birch generally take root and fhoot up, they by degrees form a kind of regular-planted hedge, which I have feen in fome places fo tall, that birds have built their nefts among the branches. Though the beaver which build their houfes in lakes and other {landing waters, may enjoy a fufficient quantity of their favourite element without the afliftance of a dam, the trouble of °;ettinp; wood, and other neceiTaries to their habitations without the help of a current, muft in. fome meafure counterbalance the other advantages which are reaped from fuch a fituation ; for it muft be obferved,.that the beaver which build in rivers and creeks, always cut their wood above their houfes, fo that the current, with little trouble, conveys it to the place required. The beaver-houfes are built of the fame materials as their dams, and are always proportioned in fize to the number of inhabitants, which feldom exceed four old, and fix or eight young onesthough, by chance, I have feen above double that number. Thefe Thefe houfes, though not altogether unworthy of ad- 1771* miration, fall very fhort of the general defcription given De^Sbe^ of them; for inftcad of order or regulation being obferved in rearing them, they are of a much ruder ftructure-than their dams. Thofe who have undertaken to defcribe the iniide of beaver-houfes, as having feveral apartments appropriated to various ufes; fuch as eating, fleeping, ftore-houfes for provifions, and one for their natural occafions, clfY. muft have been very little acquainted with the fubjecT:; or, which is ftill worfe, guilty of attempting to impofe on the credulous, by reprefenting the. greateft falfehoods as real fads. Many years conftant refidence among the Indians, during which I had an opportunity of feeing feveral hundreds of thofe houfes, has enabled me to affirm that every thing of the kind is entirely void of truth; for, notwithftanding the fagacity of thofe animals, it has never been obferved that they aim at any other conveniencies in their houfes, than to have a dry place to lie on ; and there they ufually eat their victuals, which they occasionally take out of the water. It frequently happens, that fome of the large houfes are found to have one or more partitions, if they deferve that appellation ; but that is no more than a part of the main building, left by the fagacity of the beaver to fupport the roof. On fuch occafions it is common for thofe different. i77T* different apartments, as fome are pleafed to call them, to December, have no communication with each o her but by water ; fo that in fact they may be called double or treble houfes, rather than different apartments of the fame houfe. I have feen a large beaver-houfe built in a fmall ifland, that had near a dozen apartments under one roof: and, two or three of thefe only excepted, none of them had any communication with each other but by water. As there were beaver enough to inhabit each apartment, it is more than probable that each family knew its own, and always entered at their own door, without having any farther connection with their neighbours than a friendly intercourfe; and to join their united labours in erecting their feparate habitations, and building their dams where required. It is difficult to fay whether their intereft on other occafions was anyways reciprocal. The Indians of my party killed twelve old beaver, and twenty-five young and half-grown ones out of the houfe above mentioned ; and on examination found that feveral had efcaped their vigilance, and could not be taken but at the expence of more trouble than would be fufKcient to take double the number in a lefs difficult fituation *, Travellers who affcrt that the beaver have two doors to their houfes, one on the land-fide, and the other next the * The difficulty here alluded to, was the numberlefs vaults the beaver had in the fides of the pond, and the immenfc thicknefs of the houfe in fome parts. water, water, feem to be lefs acquainted with thofe animals than *77l-others who aflign them an elegant fuite of apartments. December. Such a proceeding would be quite contrary to their manner of life, and at the fame time would render their houfes of no ufe, either to protect them from their enemies, or guard them againft the extreme cold in Winter. The quiquehatches, or wolvereens, are great enemies to the beaver ; and if there were a paffage into their houfes on the land-fide, would not leave one of them alive where-ever they came. I cannot refrain from fmiling, when I read the accounts of different Authors who have written on the oeconomy of thofe animals, as there feems to be a conteft between them, who fhall moft exceed in fiction. But the Compiler of the Wonders of Nature and Art feems, in my opinion, to have fucceeded beft in this refpect; as he has not only collected all the fictions into which other writers on the fubject have run, but has fo greatly improved on them, that little remains to be added to his account of the beaver, befide a vocabulary of their language, a code of their laws, and a iketch of their religion, to make it the moft complete natural hiftory of that animal which can poflibly be offered to the public. There cannot be a greater impofition, or indeed a v. fer infult, on common underftanding, than the wiili 7 to 1771- ^:o make us believe the ftones of fome of the works afcribcd December, to the beaver; and though it is not to be fuppofed that the compiler of a general work can be intimately acquainted with every fubjeel: of which it may be neceflary to treat, yet a very moderate fhare of underftanding is furely iuf-ficient to guard him againft giving credit to fuch marvellous tales, however fmoothly they may be told, or however boldly they may be after ted, by the romancing traveller. To deny that the beaver is poiTefied of a very confiderable degree of fagacity, would be as abfurd in me, as it is in thofe Authors who think they cannot allow them too much. I fhall willingly grant them their full fhare; but it is im-poflible for any one to conceive how, or by what means, a beaver, whofe full height when ftanding erect, does not exceed two feet and a half, or three feet at moft, and whofe fore-paws are not much larger than a half-crown piece, can " drive ftakes as thick as a man's leg into the " ground three or four feet deep." Their " wattling thofe M ftakes with twigs," is equally abfurd ; and their " plaif-" tering the infide of their houfes with a compofition of " mud and ftraw, and fwimming with mud and ftones on " their tails," are ftill more incredible. The form and fize of the animal, notwithstanding all its fagacity, will not admit of its performing fuch feats; and it would be as impoflible for a beaver to ufe its tail as a trowel, except on the furface of the ground on which it walks, as it would would have been for Sir James Thornhill to have painted J771-the dome of St. Paul's cathedral without the afliftance of December! fcafFolding. The joints of their tail will not admit of their turning it over their backs on any occafion whatever, as it has a natural inclination to bend downwards; and it is not without fome confiderable exertion that they can keep it from trailing on the ground. This being the cafe, they cannot fit erect like a fquirrel, which is their common pofture ; particularly when eating, or when they are cleaning themfelves, as a cat or fquirrel does, without having their tails bent forward between their legs ; and which may not improperly be called their trencher. So far are the beaver from driving ftakes into the ground when building their houfes, that they lay moft of the wood crofswife, and nearly horizontal, and without any other order than that of leaving a hollow or cavity in the middle; when any unneceflary branches project inward, they cut them ofF with their teeth, and throw them in among the reft, to prevent the mud from falling through the roof. It is a miftaken notion, that the wood-work is firft completed and then plaiftered ; for the whole of their houfes, as well as their dams, are from the foundation one mafs of wood and mud, mixed with ftones, if they can be procured. The mud is always taken from the edge of the bank, or the bottom of the creek or pond, near the door of the houfe; and though their fore-paws arc fo fmall, yet it is held clofe up between them, under their throat, II h that 177s* that they carry both mud and ftones; while they always December, drag the wood with their teeth. All their work is executed in the night; and they are fo expeditious in completing it, that in the courfe of one night I have known them to have collected as much mud at their houfes as to have amounted to fome thoufands of their little handfuls ; and when any mixture of grafs or ftraw has appeared in it, it has been, moft afluredly, mere chance, owing to the nature of the ground from which they had taken it. As to their defignedly making a composition for that purpofe, it is entirely void of truth. It is a great piece of policy in thofe animals, to cover, or plaiftcr, as it is ufually called, the outiide of their houfes every fall with frefh mud, and as late as poflible in the Autumn, even when the froft becomes pretty fevere ; as by this means it foon freezes as hard as a ftone, and prevents their common enemy, the quiquehatch, from disturbing them during the Winter. And as they are frequently feen to walk over their work, and fometimes to give a flap with their tail, particularly when plunging into the water, this has, without doubt, given rife to the vulgar opinion that they ufe their tails as a trowel, with which they plaifter their houfes ; whereas that flapping of the tail is no more than a cuftom, which they always preferve, even when they become tame and domeftic, and more particularly fo when they are ftartled, 5 . Their Their food chiefly confifts of a large root, fomething *773* refembling a cabbage-ftalk, which grows at the bottom December, of the lakes and rivers. They eat alfo the bark of trees, particularly that of the poplar, birch, and willow; but the ice preventing them from getting to the land in Winter, they have not any barks to feed upon during that feafon, except that of fuch flicks as they cut down in Summer, and throw into the water opposite the doors of their houfes; and as they generally eat a great deal, the roots above mentioned conftitute a chief part of their food during the Winter. In Summer they vary their diet, by eating various kinds of herbage, and fuch berries as grow near their haunts during that feafon. When the ice breaks up in the Spring, the beaver always leave their houfes, and rove about the whole Summer, probably in fearch of a more commodious fituation; but in cafe of not fucceeding in their endeavours, they return again to their old habitations a little before the fall of the leaf, and lay in their Winter ftock of woods. They feldom begin to repair the houfes till the froft commences, and never finifh the outer-coat till the cold is pretty fevere, as hath been already mentioned. When they fhift their habitations, or when the increafe of their number renders it neceflary to make fome addition to their houfes, or to ercft new ones, they begin felling H h 2 the I77I* the wood for thefe purpofes early in the Summer, but December, feldom begin to build till the middle or latter end of Auguft, and never complete their houfes till the cold weather be fet in. Notwithstanding what has been fo repeatedly reported of thofe animals alTembling in great bodies, and jointly erecting large towns, cities, and commonwealths, as they have fometimes been called, I am confident, from many circumstances, that even where the greateft numbers of beaver are situated in the neighbourhood of each other, their labours are not carried on jointly in the erection of their different habitations, nor have they any reciprocal intereft, except it be fuch as live immediately under the fame roof; and then it extends no farther than to build or keep a dam which is common to feveral houfes. In fuch cafes it is natural to think that every one who receives benefit from fuch dams, fhould aflift in erecting it, being fenfible of its utility to all. Perfons who attempt to take beaver in Winter fhould be thoroughly acquainted with their manner of life, other-wife they will have endlefs trouble to effect their purpofe, and probably without fuccefs in the end ; becaufe they have always a number of holes in the banks, which ferve them as places of retreat when any injury is offered to their houfes; and in general it is in thofe holes that they are taken. When When the beaver which are fituated in a fmall river of 177*. creek are to be taken, the Indians fometimes find it ne- ^Dc^bcT' ceffary to ftake the river acrofs, to prevent them from pafling; after which, they endeavour to find out all their holes or places of retreat in the banks. This requires much practice and experience to accomplifh, and is performed in the following manner : Every man being furnifhed with an ice-chifel, lafhes it to the end of a fmall ftaff about four or five feet long; he then walks along the edge of the banks, and keeps knocking his chifels againft the ice. Thofe who are well acquainted with that kind of work well know by the found of the ice when they are oppofite to any of the beavers' holes or vaults. As foon as they fufpedt any, they cut a hole through the ice big enough to admit an old beaver; and in this manner proceed till they have found out all their places of retreat, or at leaft as many of them as poffible. While the principal men are thus employed, fome of the underftrappers, and the women, are bufy in breaking open the houfe, which at times is no eafy tafk; for I have frequently known thefe houfes to be five and fix feet thick ; and one in particular, was more than eight feet thick on the crown. When the beaver find that their habitations are invaded, they fly to their holes in the banks for fhelter; and on being perceived by the Indians, which is eafily done, by attending to the motion of the water, they block up the entrance with ftakes of wood, and then haul the beaver out of its hole, cither by hand, if they can reach it, or with a large hook made made for that purpofe, which is fattened to the end of a long flick. In this kind of hunting, every man has the fole right to all the beaver caught by him in the holes or vaults; and as this is a conftant rule, each perfon takes care to mark fuch as he difcovers, by flicking up the branch of a tree, or fome other diftinguifhing poft, by which he may know them. All that are caught in the houfe alfo are the property of the perfon who finds it. The fame regulations are obferved, and the fame procefs ufed in taking beaver that are found in lakes and other {landing waters, except it be that of flaking the lake acrofs, which would be both unneceflary and impoflible. Taking beaver-houfes in thefe situations is generally attended with lefs trouble and more fuccefs than in the former. The beaver is an animal which cannot keep under water long at a time ; fo that when their houfes are broke open, and all their places of retreat difcovered, they have but one choice left, as it may be called, either to be taken in their houfes or their vaults: in general they prefer the latter; for where there is one beaver caught in the houfe, many thousands are taken in their vaults in the banks. Sometimes they are caught in nets, and in the Summer very frequently in traps. In Winter they are very fat and delicious; delicious; but the trouble of rearing their young, the '771-thinnefs of their hair, and their constantly roving from De^embeTT place to place, with the trouble they have in providing againft the approach of Winter, generally keep them very poor during the Summer feafon, at which time their flefh is but indifferent eating, and their fkins of fo little value, that the Indians generally finge them, even to the amount of many thoufands in one Summer. They have from two to five young, at a time. Mr, Dobbs, in his Account of Hudfon's Bay, enumerates no lefs than eight different kinds of beaver ; but it muft be understood that they are all of one kind and fpecies : his distinctions arife wholly from the different feafons of the year in which they are killed, and the different ufes to which their fkins are applied, which is the fole reafon that they vary fo much in value. Jofeph Lefranc, or Mr. Dobbs for him, fays, that a good hunter can kill fix hundred beaver in one feafon, and can only carry one hundred to market. If that was really the cafe in Lefranc's time, the canoes muft have been much fmaller than they are at prefent; for it is well known that the generality of the canoes which have vifited the Company's Factories for the laft forty or fifty years, are capable of carrying three hundred beaver-fkins with great cafe, exclufive of the Indians luggage, provifions, 82P c* If 1771* If ever a particular Indian killed fix hundred beaver in December, one Winter, (which is rather to be doubted,) it is more than probable that many in his company did not kill twenty, and perhaps fome none at all; fo that by distributing them among thofe who had bad fuccefs, and others who had no abilities for that kind of hunting, there would be no neceflity of leaving them to rot, or for ringing them in the fire, as related by that Author. During my residence among the Indians I have known fome individuals • kill more beaver, and other heavy furrs, in the courfe of a Winter, than their wives could manage; but the overplus was never wantonly destroyed, but always given to their relations, or to thofe who had been lefs fuccefsful -y fo that the whole of the great hunters labours were always brought to the Factory. It is indeed too frequently a cuftom among the Southern Indians to finge many otters, as well as beaver ; but this is feldom done, except in Summer, when their fkins are of fo little value as to be fcarcely worth the duty ; on which account it has been always thought impolitic to encourage the natives to kill fuch valuable animals at a time when their fkins are not in feafon. The white beaver, mentioned by Lefranc, are fo rare, that instead of being " blown upon by the Company's Factors," as he aflerts, I rather doubt whether one-tenth of them ever faw one during the time of their residence in this country. In the courfe of twenty years experience in the countries about about Hudfon's Bay, though I travelled fix hundred miles l77*-to the Weft of the fea-coaft, I never faw but one white December, beaver-fkin, and it had many reddifhand brown hairs along the ridge of the back, and the fides and belly were of a gloffy filvery white. It was deemed by the Indians a great curiofity; and I offered three times the ufual price for a few of them, if they could be got; but in the courfe of ten years that I remained there afterward, I could not procure another ; which is a convincing proof there is no fuch thing as a breed of that kind, and that a variation from the ufual colour is very rare. Black beaver, and that of a beautiful glofs, arc not uncommon : perhaps they are more plentiful at Churchill than at any other Factory in the Bay ; but it is rare to get more than twelve or fifteen of their fkins in the courfe of one year's trade. Lefranc, as an Indian, muft have known better than to have informed Mr. Dobbs that the beaver have from ten to fifteen young at a time ; or if he did, he muft have deceived him wilfully: for the Indians, by killing them in all ftages of geftation, have abundant opportunities of ascertaining the ufual number of their offspring. I have feen fome hundreds of them killed at the feafons favourable for thofe obfervations, and never could difcover more than fix young in one female, and that only in two in- I i fiances; I771- fiances; for the ufual number, as I have before obferved, December, is from tWO to five. Befides this unerring method of afcertaining the real number of young which any animal has at a time, there is another rule to go by, with refpect to the beaver, which experience has proved to the Indians never to vary or deceive them, that is by direction ; for on examining the womb of a beaver, even at a time when not with young, there is always found a hardifh round knob for every young fhe had at the laft litter. This is a circumftance I have been particularly careful to examine, and can affirm it to be true, from real experience. Moft of the accounts, nay I may fay all the accounts now extant, refpecting the beaver, are taken from the authority of the French who have refided in Canada ; but thofe accounts differ fo much from the real flate and oeco-nomy of all the beaver to the North of that place, as to leave great room to fufpect the truth of them altogether. In the firft place, the affertion that they have two doors to their houfes, one on the land-fide, and the other next the water, is, as I have before obferved, quite contrary to fact and common fenfe, as it would render their houfes of no ufe to them, either as places of fhelter from the inclemency of the extreme cold in Winter, or as a retreat from their common enemy the quiquehatch. The only thing 10 that that could have made M. Du Pratz, and other French *77*- writers, conjecture that fuch a thing did cxift, muft have ^De^™^ been from having feen fome old beaver-houfes which had been taken by the Indians; for they are always obliged to make a hole in one fide of the houfe before they can drive them out; and it is more .than probable that in fo mild a climate as Canada, the Indians do generally make thofe holes on the land-fide *, which without doubt gave rife to the fuggeftion. In refpecl: to the beaver dunging in their houfes, as fome perfons aflert, it is quite wrong, as they always plunge into the water to do it. I am the better enabled to make this aflertion, from having kept feveral of them till they became fo domefticated as to anfwer to their name, and follow thofe to whom they were accuftomed, in the fame manner as a dog would do; and they were as much pleifcd at being fondled, as any animal I ever faw. I had a houfe built for them, and a fmall piece of water before the door, into which they always plunged when they wanted to eafe nature; and their dung being of a light fubftance, immediately rifes and floats on the furface, * The Northern Indians think that the fagacity of the beaver directs them to make that part of their houfe which fronts the North much thicker than any other part, with a view of defending themfelves from the cold winds which ncrally blow from that quarter during the Winter j and for this reafon the Northern Indians generally break open that fide of the beaver-houfes which exa&ly front the South. I i 2 then 1771- then separates and subsides to the bottom. When the December. Winter fets in fo as to freeze the water folid, they ftill continue their cuftom of coming out of their houfe, and dunging and making water on the ice; and when the weather was fo cold that I was obliged to take them into my houfe, they always went into a large tub of water which I fet for that purpofe: fo that they made not the leaft dirt, though they were kept in my own fitting-room, where they were the conftant companions of the Indian women and children, and were fo fond of their company, that when the Indians were abfent for any confiderable time, the beaver difcovered great figns of un-eafinefs, and on their return fhewed equal marks of pleasure, by fondling on them, crawling into their laps, laying on their backs, fitting erect like a fquirrel, and behaving to them like children who fee their parents but feldom. In general, during the Winter they lived on the fame food as the women did, and were remarkably fond of rice and pkim-pudding: they would eat partridges and frefh venifon very freely, but I never tried them with fifh, though I have heard they will at times prey on them. In fact, there are few of the granivorous animals that may not be brought to be carniverous. It is well known that our domestic poultry will eat animal food: thoufands of geefe that come to London market are fattened on tallow-craps; and our horfes in Hudfon's Bay would not only eat all kinds of animal food, but alfo drink freely of the wafh, or pot-liquor, intended for the hogs. hogs. And we are allured by the moft authentic Authors, 1771. that in Iceland, not only black cattle, but alfo the fheep, December, are almoft cntitely fed on fifh and fifh-bones during the Winter feafon. Even in the Ifles of Orkney, and that in Summer, the fheep attend the ebbing of the tide as regular as the Efquimaux curlew, and go down to the fhore which the tide has left, to feed on the fea-weed. This, however, is through neceflity ; for even the famous Ifland of Pomona * will not afford them an exiftence above high-water-mark. With refpect to the inferior, or flave-beaver, of which fome Authors fpeak, it is, in my opinion, very difficult for thofe who are beft acquainted with the oeconomy of this animal to determine whether there are any that defence that appellation or not. It fometimes happens, that a beaver is caught, which has but a very indifferent coat, and which has broad patches on the back, and {boulders almoft wholly without hair. This is the only foundation for afferting that there is an inferior, or flave-beaver, among them. And when one of the above defcription is taken, it is perhaps too haftily inferred that the hair is worn off from thofe parts by carrying heavy loads: whereas it is moft probable that it is caufed by a diforder that attacks them fomewhat fimilar to the mange; for * This being the largeft of the Orkney Iflands, is called by the Inhabitants the Main Land, were 1771. were that falling off of the hair occaiioned by perform-December, ing extra labour, it is natural to think that inftances of it would be more frequent than there are; as it is rare to fee one of them in the courfe of feven or ten years. I have feen a whole houfe of thofe animals that had nothing on the furiace of their bodies but _the fine foft down; all the long hairs having molted off. This and every other deviation from the general run is undoubtedly owing to fome particular diforder. CHAP. CHAP. VIII. Tranfadions and Remarks from our Arrival on the South Side of the Athapufcow Lake, till our Arrival at Prince of Wales's Fort on Churchill River. Crofs the Athapufcozv Lake.—Defcription of it and its produclions, as far as could be difcovered in Winter, when the fnow was on the ground. Fi/h found in the lake.—Defcription of the buffalo;—of the moofe or elk, and the method of di~ejfing their fkins.—'Find a woman alone that had not feen a human face for more than feven months.—Her account how fje came to be in that fituation; and her curious method of pro-curing a livelihood.—Many of my Indians wrefled for her.—Arrive at the Great Athapufcow River.—Walk along the fide of the River for feveral days, and then flrikc off to the Eaflward.—Difficulty in getting through the woods in many places.—Meet with fome f range Northern. Indians on their return from the Fort.—Meet more ft1 rangers, whom my companions plundered, and from whom they took one of their young women--Curious manner of life which thofe f rangers lead, and the reafou they gave for roving fo far from their ufual refdencc.—Leave the fine level country of the Athapufcows, and arrive at the Stony Hills of the Northern Indian Country.—Meet fome frange Northern Indians, one of whom carried a letter for me to Prince of Wales's Fort, in March one t hoifand feven hundred and feventy-one, and now gave me an anfwer to it, dated twentieth of June following.—Indians begin preparing wood-work and birch-rind for canoes.—The equiuoclial gale very feverc. —Indian method of running the moofe deer down by fpeed of foot._ Arrival at Theeleyaza River.—See fine f rangers.—The brutality of my companions.—A tremendous gale and fiow-drift.—Meet with more f rangers ;—remarks on it.—Leave all the elderly people and children, and and proceed direclly to the Fort.—Stop to build canoes, and then advance. —Several of the Indians die through hunger, and many others are obliged to decline the journey for want of ammunition.—A violent form and inundation, that forced us to the top of a high bill, where we fufi fered great difrefs for more than two days.—Kill feveral deer.—The Indians method of preferving the flefh without the afjifance of fait.— See feveral Indians that were going to Knapfs Bay.—Game of all kinds remarkably plentiful.—Arrive at the Factory. AFTER expending fome days in hunting beaver, wc proceeded to crofs the Athapufcow Lake; but as we had loft much time in hunting deer and beaver, which were very plentiful on fome of the iflands, it was the ninth of January before we arrived on the South fide. This lake, from the beft information which I could get from the natives, is about one hundred and twenty leagues long from Eaft to Weft, and twenty wide from North to South. The point where wc crpfjed it is faid to be the narrower!. It is full of iflands ; moft of which are clothed with fine tall poplars, birch, and pines, and are well flocked with Indian deer. On fome of the large iflands we alfo found feveral beaver ; but this muft be underftood only of fuch iflands as had large ponds in them ; for not one beaver-houfe was to be feen on the margin of any of them. The lake is ftored with great quantities of very fine fifh; particularly between the iflands, which in fome parts oth. A WINTER VIEW in the AJ!MA¥VBCOWl^AKM,l^SAM^MBAI^S9 1771 . I„ttim J'u/\i,1,111 //;}>■'<.fir1\i,M X- Bqtmt,.iWrf. 545 848373 -O 7T 48088311 parts are fo dole to each other channels, like little rivers, in angling for fifh) a confiderable Eaft. ward. as to form very narrow I772- which I found (when January. current fetting to the The fifh that are common in this lake, as well as in moft of the other lakes in this country, are pike, trout, perch, barbie, tittameg, and methy ; the two laft are names given by the natives to two fpecies of fifh which are found only in this country. Befides thefe, we alfo caught another kind of fifh, which is faid by the Northern Indians to be peculiar to this lake ; at leaft none of the fame kind have been met with in any other. The body of this fifh much refembles a pike in fhape ; but the fcales, which are very large and ftiff, are of a beautifully bright filver colour: the mouth is large, and fituated like that of a pike ; but when open, much refembles that of a fturgeon; and though not provided with any teeth, takes a bait as ravenoufly as a pike or a trout. The fizes we caught were from two feet long to four feet. Their flefh, though delicately white, is very foft, and has fo rank a tafte, that many of the Indians, except they are in abfolute want, will not eat it. The Northern Indians call this fifh Shees. The trout in this lake are of the largeft fize I ever faw: fome that were caught by my companions could not, I think, be lefs than thirty-five or forty pounds weight. Pike are alfo of an incredible fize in this cxtenfive water; here they are feldom mo- K k lefted, 1772'^ lefted, and have multitudes of fmaller fifh to prey upon, January. If I fay that I have feen fome of thefe fifh that were upwards of forty pounds weight, I am fure I do not exceed the truth. Immediately on our arrival on the South fide of the Athapufcow Lake, the fcene was agreeably altered, from an entire jumble of rocks and hills, for fuch is all the land on the North fide, to a fine level country, in which there was not a hill to be feen, or a ftone to be found : fo that fuch of my companions as had not brafs kettles, loaded their fledges with ftones from fome of the laft iflands, to boil their victuals with in their birch-rind kettles, which will not admit of being expofed to the fire. They therefore heat ftones and drop them into the water in the kettle to make it boil. Buffalo, moofe, and beaver were very plentiful; and we could difcover, in many parts through which we paffed, the tracks of martins, foxes, quiquehatches, and other animals of the furr kind ; fo that they were by no means fcarce : but my companions never gave themfelves the leaft trouble to catch any of the three laft mentioned animals; for the buffalo, moofe, and beaver engaged all their attention ; perhaps principally fo on account of the excellency of their flefh ; whereas the flefh of the fox and quiquehatch are never eaten by thofe people, except when they are in the greateft diftrefs, and then merely to fave life. life. Their reafons for this mail be given in a fubfequent part of my Journal. The buffalo in thofe parts, I think, are in general much larger than the Englifh. black cattle ; particularly the bulls, which, though they may not in reality be taller than the largeft fize of the Englifh oxen, yet to me always appeared to be much larger. In fact, they are fo heavy, that when fix or eight Indians are in company at the fkinning of a large bull, they never attempt to turn it over while entire, but when the upper fide is fkinned, they cut off the leg and moulder, rip up the belly, take out all the inteftines, cut off the head, and make it as light as poffible, before they turn it to fkin the under fide. The fkin is in fome places of an incredible thicknefs, particularly about the neck, where it often exceeds an inch. The horns are fhort, black, and almoft ftraight, but very thick at the roots or bafe. The head of an old bull is of a great fize and weight indeed: fome which I have feen were fo large, that I could not without difficulty lift them from the ground *; * It is remarked by Mr. Catefby, in .his defcription of this animal, that no man can lift one of their heads. Thofe I faw in the Athapufcow country are fuch as I have defcribed; and I am affured by the Company's fervants, as well as the Indians who live near Hudfon's Houfe, that the buffalos there are much fmallcn fo that the fpecies Mr. Catefby faw, or wrote of, muft have been much larger, or have had very large heads; for it is well known that a man of any tolerable ftrength can lift two and a half, or three hundred pounds weight. I think that the heads of his buffalos are too heavy for the bodies, as the bodies of thofe I faw in the Athapufcow country appear to have been of equal weight with his. K k 3 but *772- but the heads of the cows are much fmaller. Their tails January, are, in general, about a foot long, though fome appear to be, exclufive of the long brufh of hair at the end, longer. The hair on the tails of the bulls is generally of a fine glofTy black ; but the brufh at the end of the cows' tails is always of a rufty brown, probably owing to being itained with their urine. The hair of the body is foft and curled, fomewhat approaching to wool; it is generally of a fandy brown, and of an equal length and thicknefs all over the body: but on the head and neck it is much longer than it is on any other part. The Indians, after reducing all the parts of the fkin to an equal thicknefs by fcraping, drefs them in the hair lor clothing; when they are light, foft, warm, and durable. They alfo drefs fome of thofe fkins into leather without the hair, of which they make tents and fhoes; but the grain is remarkably open and fpungy, by no means equal in goodnefs to that of the fkin of the moofe : nor am I certain that the curriers or tanners in Europe could manufacture thefe fkins in fuch a manner as to render them of any confiderable value ; for, to appearance, they are of the fame quality with the fkins of the mufk-ox, which are held in fo little eftimation in England, that when a number of them was fent home from Churchill Factory, the Company iffued out orders the year following, that unlefs they could, be purchafed from the Indians at the rate of four fkins fkins for one beaver, they would not anfwer the expence of fending home; a great proof of their being of very little value. The buffalos chiefly delight in wide open plains, which in thofe parts produce very long coarfe grafs, or rather a kind of fmall flags and rufhcs, upon which they feed; but when purfued they always take to the woods. They are of fuch an amazing ftrength, that when they fly through the woods from a purfuer, they frequently brufh down trees as thick as a man's arm ; and be the fnow ever fo deep, fuch is their ftrength and agility that they are enabled to plunge through it fafter than the fwifteft Indian can run in fnow-fhoes. To this I have been an eye-wit-nefs many times, and once had the vanity to think that I could have kept pace with them ; but though I was at that time celebrated for being particularly fleet of foot in fnow-fhoes, I foon found that I was no match for the buffalos, notwithftanding they were then plunging through fuch deep fnow, that their bellies made a trench in it as large as if many heavy facks had been hauled through it. Of all the large beafts in thofe parts the buffalo is eaiiefl to kill, and the moofe are the moft difficult ; neither are the deer very eafy to come at, except in windy weather : indeed it requires much practice, and a great deal of patience, to flay any of them, as they will by no means fuffer a direct approach, unlefs the hunter be entirely fheltered by woods or willows. The flefh of the buffalo 2 is 1772' is exceedingly good eating; and fo entirely free from any January, difagreeable fmell or tafte, that it refembles beef as nearly as poffible: the flefh of the cows, when fome time gone with calf, is efteemed the fineft; and the young calves, cut out of their bellies, are reckoned a great delicacy indeed. The hunch on their backs, or more properly on their moulders, is not a large flefhy lump, as fome fuppofe, but is occafioned by the bones that form the withers being continued to a greater length than in moft other animals. The flefh which furrounds this part being fo equally intermixed with fat and lean, is reckoned among the niceft bits. The weight, however, is by no means equal to what has been commonly reported. The tongue is alfo very delicate; and what is moft extraordinary, when the beafts are in the pooreft ftate, which happens regularly at certain feafons, their tongues are then very fat and fine ; fome fay, fatter than when they are in the beft order: the truth of which, I will not confirm. They are fo efteemed here, however, that many of them are brought down to the Company's Factory at York as prefents, and are efteemed a great luxury, probably for no other reafon but that they are far-fetched ; for they are by no means fo large, and I think them not fo fine, as a neat's tongue in England. The moofe deer is alfo a large beaft, often exceeding the largeft horfe both in height and bulk ; but the length of the legs, the bulk of the body, the fhortnefs of the neck, and and the uncommon length of the head and ears, without any appearance of a tail, make them have a very aukward appearance. The males far exceed the females in fize and differ from them in colour. The hair of the male which is long, hollow, and foft, like that of a deer, is at the points nearly black, but a little way under the fur-face it is of an afh-colour, and at the roots perfectly white. The hair of the female is of a fandy brown, and in fome parts, particularly under the throat, the belly, and the flank, is nearly white at the furface, and moft delicately fo at the root. Their legs are fo long, and their necks fo fhort, that they cannot graze on level ground like other animals, but are obliged to brouze on the tops of large plants and the leaves of trees during the Summer ; and in Winter they always feed on the tops of willows, and the fmall branches of the birch-tree ; on which account they are never found during that feafon but in fuch places as can afford them a plentiful fupply of their favourite food : and though they have no fore-teeth in the upper-jaw, yet I have often feen willows and fmall birch-trees cropped by them, in the fame manner as if they had been cut by a gardener's fheers, though fome of them were not fmaller than common pipe-ftems ; they feem particularly partial to the red willow. In Summer they are generally found to frequent the banks of rivers and lakes, probably with no other view than than to have the benefit of getting into the water, to avoid the innumerable multitudes of mufkettos and other flies that pefter them exceedingly during that feafon. There is alfo a variety of water-plants, of which the moofe are very fond, and which are adapted to their neceffities in a peculiar manner during the Summer feafon, as they can eafily brouze on them when nearly emerged in water, to avoid the torment of the flies. The head of the moofe is, as I have obferved, remarkably long and large, not very unlike that of a horfe ; but the nofe and noftrils are at leaft twice as large. The ears are about a foot long, and large; and they always ftand creel:. Their faculty of hearing is fuppofed to be more acute than either their fight or fcent; which makes it very difficult to kill them, efpecially as the Indians in thofe parts have no other method of doing it but by creeping after them, among the trees and bullies, till they get within gun-fhot; taking care always to keep to leeward of the moofe, for fear of being overheard. In Summer, when they frequent the margins of rivers and lakes, they are often killed by the Indians in the water, while they are crofting rivers, or fwimming from the main to iflands, &>c. When purfued in this manner, they are the moft inof-fenfive of all animals, never making any refifiance; and the young ones are fo fimple, that I remember to have feen an Indian paddle his canoe up to one of them, and take it by the poll without the leaft oppolition : the poor harmlefs harmlefs animal feeming at the fame time as contented along-fide the canoe, as if fwimming by the fide of its dam, and looking up in our faces with the fame fearlefs innocence that a houfe-lamb would, making ufe of its fore-foot almoft every inftant to clear its eyes of muf-kettoes, which at that time were remarkably numerous. I have alfo feen women and boys kill the old moofe in this fituation, by knocking them on the head with a hatchet; and in the Summer of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-five, when I was on my paffage from Cumberland Houfe to York Fort, two boys killed a fine buck moofe in the water, by forcing a flick up its fundament ; for they had neither gun, bow, nor arrows with them. The common deer are far more dangerous to approach in canoes, as they kick up their hind legs with fuch violence as to endanger any birch-rind canoe that comes within their reach; for which reafon all the Indians who kill deer upon the water are provided with a long flick that will reach far beyond the head of the canoe. The moofe are alfo the eafieft to tame and domefticate of any of the deer kind. I have repeatedly feen them at Churchill as tame as fheep *, and even more fo; for they * The moofe formerly fent to his Majefty was from that place. A young male was alfo put on board the fhip, but it died on the paflage, othcrwife it is probable they might have propagated in this country. L 1 would *772' would follow their keeper any diftance from home, and January, at his call return with him, without the leaft trouble, or ever offering to deviate from the path *. The flefti of the moofe is very good, though the grain is but coarfe, and it is much tougher than any other kind of venifon. The nofe is moft excellent, as is alfo the tongue, though by no means fo fat and delicate as that of the common deer. It is perhaps worth remarking, that the livers of the moofe are never found, not even at any time of the year; and, like the other deer, they have no gall. The fat of the inteftines is hard, like fuet; but all the external fat is foft, like that of a breaft of mutton, and when put into a bladder, is as fine as marrow. In this they differ from all the other fpecies of deer, of which the external fat is as hard as that of the kidnies. * Since the above was written, the fame Indian that brought all the above* mentioned young moofe to the Factory had, in the year 1777, two others, fo tame, that when on his paffage to Prince of Wales's Fort in a canoe, the moofe always followed him along the bank of the river ; and at night, or on any other occafion when the Indians landed, the young moofe generally came and fondled on them, in the fame manner as the moft domeftic animal would have done, and never offered to ftray from the tents. Unfortunately, in crofling a deep bay in one of the lakes, {on a fine day,) all the Indians that were not interefted in the fafe-landing of thofe engaging creatures, paddled from point to point; and the man that owned them, not caring to go fo far about by himfelf, accompanied the others, in hopes they would follow him round as ufual -3 but at night the young moofe did not arrive; and as the howling of fome wolves was heard in that quarter, it was fuppofed they had been devoured by them, as they were sever afterward feen. 7 The The moofe in all their actions and attitudes appear 1772. very uncouth, and when difturbed, never run, only make ^January'-a kind of trot, which the length of their legs enables them to do with great fwiftnefs, and apparently with much cafe ; but were the country they inhabit free from under-wood, and dry under-foot, fo that horfemen and dogs might follow them, they would become an eafy prey, as they are both tender-footed and fhort-winded: But of this more hereafter *. The fkins of the moofe, when drefTed by the natives, make excellent tent-covers and moe-leather; and in fad every other part of their clothing, Thefe, like the fkins of the buffalo, are of very unequal thicknefs. Some of the Indian women, who are acquainted with the manufacture of them, will, by means of fcraping, render them as even as a piece of thick cloth, and when well dreffcd they are very foft; but not being dreffed in oil, they always grow hard after being wet, unlefs great care be taken to keep rubbing them all the time they are drying. The fame may be faid of all the Indian-dreffed leather, except that of the wewaikifh, which will wafh as well as fhammoy-leather, and always preferve its foftnefs. * Mr. Du Pratz, in his defcription of this animal, fays, it is never found farther North than Cape Breton and Nova Scotia; but I have feen them in great numbers in the Athapufcow Country, which cannot be much ihort of 6o° North latitude. L 1 2 The i772- The female moofe never have any horns, but the males January, have them of a prodigious fize and weight, and very different in fhape from thofe of the common deer. The extremity of each horn is palmated to the fize of a common (hovel, from which a few fhort branches fhoot out; and the fhaft of the horn is frequently as large as a common man's wrifl. They fhed them annually like the common deer. The horns of the moofe are frequently found to exceed fixty pounds weight; and their textufe, though of a large fize and of fuch rapid growth, is much harder than any other fpecies of deer-horns in thofe parts. Though the flefh of the moofe is efteemed by moft Indians both for its flavour and fubftance, yet the Northern Indians of my crew did not reckon either it or the flefh of the buffalo fubftantial food. This I fhould think entirely proceeded from prejudice, efpecially with refpect to the moofe; but the flefh of the buffalo, though fo fine to the eye, and pleafing to the tafte, is fo light and eafy of digeftion, as not to be deemed fubftantial food by any Indian in this country, either Northern or Southern. The moofe have from one to three young at a time, and generally bring them forth in the latter end of April, or beginning of May. Soon after our arrival on the South-fide of Athapufcow Lake, Matonabbee propofed continuing our courfe in the South South Weft quarter, in hopes of meeting fome of the *772-Athapufcow Indians; becaufe I wifhed, if poffible, to January, purchafe a tent, and other ready-dreffed fkins from them; as a fupply of thofe articles would at this time have been of material fervice to us, being in great want both of tents and fhoe-leather: and though my companions were daily killing either moofe or buffalo, the weather was fo ex-ceffively cold, as to render dreffing their fkins not only very troublefome, but almoft impracticable, efpecially to the generality of the Northern Indians, who are not well acquainted with the manufacture of that kind of leather. To drefs thofe fkins according to the Indian method, a lather is made of the brains and fome of the fofteft fat or marrow of the animal, in which the fkin is well foaked, when it is taken out, and not only dried by the heat of a fire, but hung up in the fmoke for feveral days; it is then taken down, and well foaked and warned in warm water, till the grain of the fkin is perfectly open, and has imbibed a fufEcient quantity of water, after which it is taken out and wrung as dry as poffible, and then dried by the heat of a flow fire; care being taken to rub and ftretch it as long as any moifture remains in the fkin. By this fimple method, and by fcraping them afterwards, fome of the moofe fkins are made very delicate both to the eve and the touch. On 1772. *On the eleventh of January, as fome of my companions January Were hunting, they faw the track of a ftrange fnow-fhoe, which they followed ; and at a confiderahle diftance came to a little hut, where they difcovered a young woman fitting alone. As they found that fhe underftood their language, they brought her with them to the tents. On examination, fhe proved to be one of the Weftern Dog-ribbed Indians, who had been taken prifoner by the Athapufcow Indians in the Summer of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy ; and in the following Summer, when the Indians that took her prifoner were near this part, fhe had eloped from them, with an intent to return to her own country; but the diftance being fo great, and having, after fhe was taken prifoner, been carried in a canoe the whole way, the turnings and windings of the rivers and lakes were fo numerous, that fhe forgot the track; fo fhe built the hut in which we found her, to protect her from the weather during the Winter, and here fhe had refided from the firft fetting in of the fall. From her account of the moons paft fince her elopement, it appeared that fhe had been near feven months without feeing a human face; during all which time fhe had fupported herfelf very well by fharing partridges, rabbits, and fquirrels; fhe had alfo killed two or three beaver, and fome porcupines. That fhe did not feem to have been in want is evident, as fhe had a fmall flock of provifions provifions by her when fhe was difcovered ; and was in good health and condition, and I think one of the fineft women, of a real Indian, that I have feen in any part of North America. The methods praftifed by this poor creature to procure a livelihood were truly admirable, and are great proofs that neceflity is the real mother of invention. When the few deer-finews that fhe had an opportunity of taking with her were all expended in making fnares, and fewing her clothing, fhe had nothing to fupply their place but the finews of the rabbits legs and feet; thefe fhe twifted together for that purpofe with great dexterity and fuccefs-The rabbits, &c. which fhe caught in thofe fnares, not only furnifhed her with a comfortable fubfiftence, but of the fkins fhe made a fuit of neat and warm clothing for the Winter. It is fcarcely poffible to conceive that a perfon in her forlorn fituation could be fo compofed as to be capable of contriving or executing any thing that was not abfolutely neceffary to her exiftence; but there were fufficient proofs that fhe had extended her care much farther, as all her clothing, befide being calculated for real, fervice, fhewed great tafte, and exhibited no little variety of ornament. The materials, though rude, were very curi-oufly wrought, and fo judicioufly placed, as to make the whole of her garb have a very pleafing, though, rather romantic appearance. Her 1772. Her leifurc hours from hunting had been employed January^ in twilling the inner rind or bark of willows into fmall lines, like net-twine, of which fhe had fome hundred fathoms by her ; with this fhe intended to make a fiftiing-net as foon as the Spring advanced. It is of the inner bark of willows, twifted in this manner, that the Dog-ribbed Indians make their fifhing-nets; and they are much perferable to thofe made by the Northern Indians *. Five or fix inches of an iron hoop, made into a knife, and the fhank of an arrow-head of iron, which ferved her as an awl, were all the metals this poor woman had with her when fhe eloped ; and with thefe implements fhe had made herfelf complete fnow-fhoes, and feveral other ufeful articles. Her method of making a fire was equally lingular and curious, having no other materials for that purpofe than two hard fulphurous ftones. Thefe, by long friction and hard knocking, produced a few fparks, which at length communicated to fome touchwood; but as this method was attended with great trouble, and not always with fuccefs, fhe did * The Northern Indians make their fifhing-nets with fmall thongs cut from raw deer-fkinswhich when dry appear very good, but after being foaked in water fome time, grow fo loft and fiippery, that when large fifh ftrike the net, the hitches are very apt to flip and let them efcape. Befide this inconvenience, they are very liable to rot, unlefs they be frequently taken out of the water and dried. not not fuffer her fire to go out all the Winter. Hence we l772* may conclude that fhe had no idea of producing fire by January* friction, in the manner practifed by the Efquimaux, and many other uncivilized nations; becaufe if fhe had, the above-mentioned precaution would have been unneceffary. j ».' The Angularity of the circumftance, the comelinefs of her perfon, and her approved accomplifhments, occafioned a ftrong conteft between feveral of the Indians of my party, who fhould have her for a wife \ and the poor girl was actually won and loft at wreftling by near half a fcore different men the fame evening. My guide, Matonabbee, who at that time had no lefs than feven wives, all women grown, befides a young girl of eleven or twelve years old, would have put in for the prize alfo, had not one of his wives made him afhamed of it, by telling him that he had already more wives than he could properly attend. This piece of fatire, however true, proved fatal to the poor girl who dared to make fo open a declaration ; for the great man, Matonabbee, who would willingly have been thought equal to eight or ten men in every refpect, took it as fuch an affront, that he fell on her with both hands and feet, and bruifed her to fuch a degree, that after lingering fome time fire died. When the Athapufcow Indians took the above Dog-ribbed Indian woman prifoner, they, according to the uni-verfal cuftom of thofe favages, furprifed her and her party in M m the I77-* the night, and killed every foul in the tent, except herfelf January, and three other young women. Among thofe whom they killed, were her father, mother, and hufband. Her young child, four or live months old, fhe concealed in a bundle of clothing, and took with her undifcovered in the night ; but when fhe arrived at the place where the Athapufcow Indians had left their wives, (which was not far diftant,) they began to examine her bundle, and finding the child,, one of the women took it from her, and killed it on the fpot. This laft piece of barbarity gave her fuch a difguft to thofe Indians, that notwithftanding the man who took care of her treated her in every refpecr. as his wife, and was, fhe faid, remarkably kind to, and even fond of her \ fo far was fhe from being able to reconcile herfelf to any of the tribe, that flic rather chofe to expofe herfelf to mifery and want, than live in cafe and affluence among perfons who had fo cruelly murdered her infant *. The poor * It is too ceinmon a cafe with moft of the tribes of Southern Indians for the women to defire their hufbands or friends, when going to war, to bring them a flave, that they may have the pleafure of killing it-> and fome of thefe inhuman women will accompany their hufbands, and murder the women and • children as faft as their hulbands do the men. When I was at Cumberland Houfe, (an inland fettlement that I eftablifhed for the Hudfon's Bay Company in the year 1774,) I was particularly acquainted with a very young lady of this extraordinary turn; who, when I defired fome Indians that were going to war to bring me a young flave, which \ intended to have brought up as a domefttc, Mifs was equally clefirous that one might poor woman's relation of this fhocking ftory, which fhe delivered in a very affecting manner, only excited laughter among the favages of my party. In a converfation with this woman foon afterward, fhe told us, that her country lies fo far to the Weftward, that fhe had never feen iron, or any other kind of metal, till fhe was taken prifoner. All of her tribe, fhe obferved, made their hatchets and ice-chifels of deer's horns, and their knives of ftones and bones ; that their arrows were fhod with a kind of ftate, bones, and deer's horns; and the inftruments which they employed to make their woodwork were nothing but beavers' teeth. Though they had frequently heard of the ufeful materials which the nations or tribes to the Eaft of them were fupplied with from the Englifh, fo far were they from drawing nearer, to be in the way of trading for iron-work, &c. that they were obliged to retreat farther back, to avoid the Athapufcow Indians, who made furprifing flaughter among them, both in Winter and Summer. On the fixteenth, as we were continuing our courfe in the South Weft quarter, we arrived at the grand Atha- might be brought to her, for the cruel purpofe of murdering it. It is fcarcely poffible to exprefs my aftonifhment, on hearing fuch an extraordinary requeft made by a young creature fcarcely fixteen years old; however, as foon as I recovered from my furprife, I ordered her to leave the fettlemcnt, which fhe did, with thofe who were going to war; and it is therefore probable fhe might not be difappointed in her requeft. The next year I was ordered to the command of Prince of Wales's Fort, and therefore never faw her afterward. M m 2 pufcow 267 1772. January. i772' pufcow River, which at that part is about two miles January, wide, and empties itfelf into the great lake of the fame name we had fo lately crofled, and which has been already defcribed. The woods about this river, particularly the pines and poplars, are the talleft and ftouteft I have feen in any part of North America. The birch alfo grows to a confiderable fize, and fome fpecies of the willow are likewife tall ; but none of them have any trunk, like thofe in England. The bank of the river in moft parts is very high, and in fome places not lefs than a hundred feet above the ordinary furface of the water. As the foil is of a loamy quality, it is very fubjecl: to moulder or wafh away by heavy rains, even during the fhort Summer allotted to this part of the globe. The breaking up of the ice in the Spring is annually attended with a great deluge, when, I am told, it is not uncommon to fee whole points of land warned away by the inundations; and as the wood grows clofe to the edge of the banks, vaft quantities of it are hurried down the ftream by the irrefiftible force of the water and ice, and conveyed into the great lake already mentioned; on the fhores and iflands of which, there lies the greateft quantity of drift wood I ever faw. Some of this wood is large enough to make mails for the largeft fhips that are built. The banks of the river in general are fo ftecp as to be in-acceflible to either man or beaft, except in fome flacks, or gulleys, that have been wore down by heavy rains, backwaters, waters, or deluges; and even thofe flacks are, for the moft *772-part, very difficult to afcend, on account of the number January, of large trees which lie in the way. There are feveral low iflands in this river, which are much frequented by the moofe, for the fake of the fine willows they produce, which furnifh them with a plentiful fupply of their favourite food during the Winter. Some of thofe iflands are alfo frequented by a number of rabbits ; but as larger game could be procured in great plenty, thofe fmall animals were not deemed worthy our notice at prefent. Beflde the grand river already mentioned, there are feveral others of lefs note, which empty themfelves into the great Athapufcow Lake: There are alfo feveral fmall rivers and creeks on the North Eaft fide of the Lake that carry off the fuperfluous waters, fome of which, after a variety of windings through the barren grounds to the North of Churchill River, are loft in the marfhes and low grounds, while others, by means of many fmall channels and rivulets, are difcharged into other rivers and lakes, and at laft, doubtlefs, find their way into Hudfon's Bay. Thefe rivers, though numberlefs, are all fo full of fhoals and ftones, as not to be navigable for an Indian canoe to any confiderable diftance; and if they were, it would be of little or no ufe to the natives, as none of them lead within feveral hundred miles of Churchill River. Agree- 1772- Agreeably to Matonabbee's propofal, we continued our January, courfe up the Athapufcow River for many days, and though we paffed feveral parts which we well knew to have been the former Winter-haunts of the Athapufcow Indians, yet we could not fee the leaft trace of any of them having been there that feafon. In the preceding Summer, when they were in thofe parts, they had fet fire to the woods; and though many months had elapfed from that time till our arrival there, and notwithftanding the fnow was then very deep, the mofs was ftill burning in many places, which at firft deceived us very much, as we took it for the fmoke of ftrange tents; but after going much out of our way, and fearching very diligently, we could not difcover the leaft track of a ftranger. Thus difappointed in our expectations of meeting the Southern Indians, it was refolved (in Council, as it may be called) to expend as much time in hunting buffalo, moofe, and beaver as we could, fo that we might be able to reach Prince of Wales's Fort a little before the ufual time of the fhips arrival from England. Accordingly, after having walked upwards of forty miles by the fide of Athapufcow 2?th- River, on the twenty-feventh of January we ftruck off to the Eaftward, and left the River at that part where it begins to tend due South. In confequence of this determination of the Indians, we continued our courfe to the Eaftward ; but as game of all kinds was very plentiful, we made but fhort days journies, journies, and often remained two or three days in one 1772. place, to eat up the fpoils or produce of the chace. The V^uTr^ woods through which we were to pafs were in many places fo thick, that it was neceffary to cut a path before the women could pafs with their fledges; and in other places fo much of the woods had formerly been fet on fire and burnt, that we were frequently obliged to walk farther than we otherwife fhould have done, before we could find green brufh enough to floor our tents. From the fifteenth to the twenty-fourth of February, February we walked along a fmall river that empties itielf into I5th~~24tj the Lake Clowey, near the part where we built canoes in May one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-one. This little river is that which we mentioned in the former part of this Journal, as having communication with the Athapufcow Lake : but, from appearances, it is of no confequence whence it takes its rife, or where it empties itfelf, as one half or it is nearly dry three-fourths of the year. The intervening ponds, however, having fuf-ficient depth of water, are, we may fuppofe, favourable fituations for beaver, as many of their houfes are to be found in thofe parts. On the twenty-fourth, a ftrange Northern Indian leader, 2*ai-called Thlew-fa-nell -ie, and feveral of his followers, joined us from the Eaftward. This leader prefented Matonabbee and myfelf with a foot of tobacco each, and a two-quart 1772. keg of brandy, which he intended as a prefent for the Febiuary. Southern Indians; but being informed by my companions, that there was not the lead probability of meeting any, he did not think it worth any farther carriage. The tobacco was indeed very acceptable, as our flock of that article had been expended fome time. Having been fo long without tailing fpirituous liquors, I would not partake of the brandy, but left it entirely to the Indians, to whom, as they were numerous, it was fcarcely a tafte for each. Few of the Northern Indians are fond of fpirits, efpecially thofe who keep at a diftance from the Fort: fome who are near, and who ufually fhoot geefe for us in the Spring, will drink it at free coft as faft as the Southern Indians, but few of them are ever fo imprudent as to buy it. The little river lately mentioned, as well as the adjacent lakes and ponds, being well-ftocked with beaver, and the land abounding with moofe and buffalo, we were induced to make but flow progrefs in our journey. Many days were fpent in hunting, feafting, and drying a large quantity of flefh to take with us, particularly that of the buffalo ; for my companions knew by experience, that a few days walk to the Eaftward of our prefent fituation would bring us to a part where we fhould not fee any of thofe animals. The ftrangers who had joined us on the twenty-fourth informed us, that all were well at Prince of Wales's Fort 13 when when they left it laft ; which, according to their account 1772. of the Moons paft fince, muft have been about the fifth Votary of November one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-one. Thefe ftrangers only remained in our company one night before the Leader and part of his crew left us, and proceeded on their journey to the Nortl\ Weftward ; but a few of them having procured fome furrs in the early part of the Winter, joined our party, with an intent to accompany us to the Factory. Having a good ftock of dried meat, fat, &rV. prepared in the beft manner for carriage, on the twenty-eighth we 28th. ftiaped our courfe in the South Eaft quarter, and proceeded at a much greater rate than we had lately done, as little or no time was now loft in hunting. The next day we faw the tracks of fome ftrangers; and though I did not perceive any of them myfelf, fome of my companions were at the trouble of fearching for them, and finding them to be poor inorFenfive people, plundered them not only of the few furrs which they had, but took alfo one of their young women from them. Every additional act of violence committed by my companions on the poor and diftrefted, ferved to increafe my indignation and diflikc; this laft act, however, difpleafed me more than all their former actions, becaufe it was committed on a fet of harmlefs creatures, whofe general manner of life renders them the moft fecluded from fociety of any of the human race. N n Matonabbee *772* Matonabbee affured me, that for more than a generation February, paft one family only, as it may be called, (and to which the young men belonged who were plundered by my companions,) have taken up their Winter abode in thofe woods, which arc fituated fo far on the barren ground as to be quite out of the track of any other Indians. From the beft accounts that I could collect, the latitude of this place muft be about 63 01^63° at leaft; the longitude is very uncertain. From my own experience I can affirm, that it is fome hundreds of miles both from the fea-fide and the main woods to the Weftward. Few of the trading Northern Indians have vifitecl this place ; but thofe who have, give a pleafmg defcription of it, all agreeing that it is fituated on the banks of a river which has communication with feveral fine lakes. As the current fets to the North Eaftward, it empties itfelf, in all probability, into fome part of Hudfon's Bay ; and, from the latitude, no part feems more likely for this communication, than Baker's Lake, at the head of Chefter-field's inlet. This, however, is mere conjecture; nor is it of any confequence, as navigation on any of the rivers in thofe parts is not only impracticable, but would be alfo unprofitable, as they do not lead into a country that produces any thing for trade, or that contains any inhabitants worth vifiting. The accounts given of this place, and the manner of life of its inhabitants, would, if related at full length, fill a volume : let it fuffice to obferve, that the fituation is is faid to be remarkably favourable for every kind of game 1772-that the barren ground produces at the different feafons February, of the year; but the continuance of the game with them is in general uncertain, except that of fifh and partridges. That being the cafe, the few who compofe this little commonwealth, arc, by long cuftom and the conftant example of their forefathers, poffeffed of a provident turn of mind, with a degree of frugality unknown, to every other tribe of Indians in this country except the Efquimaux. Deer is find to vifit this part of the country in afto-nifliing numbers, both in Spring and Autumn, of Which circumftances the inhabitants avail themfelves, by killing and drying as much of their flefti as poffible, particularly in the fall of the year; fo that they feldom are in want of a good Winter's ftock. Geefe, ducks, and fwans vifit here in great plenty during their migrations both in the Spring and Fall, and by much art, joined to an infurmountable patience, are caught in confiderable numbers in fnares *, and, without * To fnare fwans, geefe, or ducks, in the water, it requires no other procefs than to make a number of hedges, or fences, project into the water, at right angles, from the banks of a river, lake, or pond ; for it is obferved that thofe birds generally fwiin near the margin, for the benefit of feeding on the grafs, &c, Thofe fences are continued for fome diftance from the fhore, and feparated two or three yards from each other, fo that openings are left fuffieiently large to let the birds fwim through. In each of thofe open- N n 2 ings 1772- out doubt, make a very pleating change in the food. It Feb^uaryr* is alfo reported, (though I confefs I doubt the truth of it,) ings a fnare is liung and fattened to a flake, which the bird, when intangled, cannot drag from the bottom ; and to prevent the fnare from being wafted out of its proper place by the wind, it is fecured to the ftakes which form, the opening, with tender grafs, which is eafily broken. This method, though it has the appearance of being very fimple, is never-thelefs attended with much trouble, particularly when we confider the fmall-nefs of their canoes, and the great inconveniency they labour under in performing works of this kind in the water. Many of the ftakes ufed on thofe occafions are of a confiderable length and fize, and the fmall branches which, form the principal part of the hedges, are not arranged without much caution, for fear of overfetting the canoes, particularly where the water is deep, as it is in fome of the lakes and in many of the rivers the current is very fwift, which renders this bufinefs equally troublefome. When the lakes and rivers are (hallow, the natives are frequently at the pains to make fences from fhore to fhore. To fnare thofe birds in their nefts requires a confiderable degree of art,, and, as the natives fay, a great deal of cleanlinefsj for they have obferved, that when fnares have been fet by thofe whofe hands were not clean, the bird* would not go into the ncft. Even the goofe, though fo fimple a bird, is notorioufly known to forfake her eggs, if they are breathed on by the Indians. The fmaller fpecies of birds which make their neft in the ground, are by no means fo delicate, of courfe lefs care is neceflary to fnare them. It has been obferved that all birds which build in the ground go into their neft at one particular fide, and out of it on the oppofite. The Indians, thoroughly convinced', of* this, always fet the fnares on the fide on which the bird enters the neft -t and if care be taken in felting them, feldom fail of feizing their object. For fmall birds, fuch as larks, and many others of equal fize, the Indians only life two or three hairs out of their head; but for larger birds, particularly fwans, geefe, and ducks, they make fnares of deer-finews, twifted like packthread, and occafionally of a fmall thong cut from a parchment deer-fkin. .1 that tliat a remarkable fpecies of partridges as large as Englifh fowls, are found in that part of the country only. Thofe, as well as the common partridges, it is faid, are killed in confiderable numbers, with fnares, as well as with bows and arrows. The river and lakes near the little forcft where the family above mentioned had fixed their abode, abound with fine fifh, particularly trout and barbie, which are eafily caught; the former with hooks, and the latter in nets. In fact, I have not feen or heard of any part of this country which feems to pofTefs half the advantages requifite for a conftant refidence, that are afcribed to this little fpot. The defcendents, however, of the prefent inhabitants muft in time evacuate it for want of wood, which is of fo flow a growth in thofe regions, that what is ufed in one year, exclufive of what is cut down and carried away by the Efquimaux, muft coft many years to replace. It may probably be thought ftrange that any part of a community, apparently fo commodioufly fituated, and happy within themfelves, fhould be found at fo great a. diftance from the reft of their tribe, and indeed nothing but neceflity could poftibly have urged them to undertake a journey of fo many hundred miles as they have done ; but no fituation is without its inconveniences, and as their woods contain no birch-trees of fufficient fize, or perhaps none of any fize, this party had come fo far to the Weft- Weftward to procure birch-rind for making two canoes, and fome of the fungus that grows on the outride of the birch-tree, which - is ufed by a 1 the Indians in thole parts for tinder. 'There are two forts of thefe fun-gufes which grow on the birch-trees; one is hard, the ufeful part of which much refembles rhubarb; the other is foft and fmooth like velvet on the outride, and when laid on hot allies for fome time, and well beaten between two ftones, is fomething like fpunk. The forme: is called by the Northern Indians Jolt-thee, and is known all over the country bordering on Hudfon's Bay by the name of Pefogan *, it being fo called by the Southern In- * The Indians, both Northern and Southern, have found by experience, that by boiling the pefogan in water for a confiderable time, the texture is fo much improved, that when thoroughly dried, fome parts of it will be nearly as foft as fpunge. Some of thofe fungufes are as large as a man's head; the outride, which is very hard and black, and much indented with deep cracks, being of no ufe, is always chopped off with a hatchet. Befides the two forts of touchwood already mentioned, there is another kind of it in thofe parts, that I think is infinitely preferable to either. This is found in old decayed poplars, and lies in flakes of various fizes and thicknefs; fome is not thicker than ihamoy leather, others are as thick as a fhoe-fole. This, like the fungus of the birch-tree, is always inoift when taken from the tree, but when dry, it is very foft and flexible, and takes fire readily from the fpark of a Heel j but it is much improved by being kept dry in a brig that has contained gunpowder. It is rather furprifing that the Indians, whofe mode of life I have juft been deicribing, have never acquired the method of making fire by friction, like the Efquimaux. It is alfo equally furprifing that they do not make ufe of fkin-canoes. Probably deeF-fkins cannot be manufactured to withftand the water; for it is well known that the Efquimaux ufe always feal-fkins for that purpofe, though they are in (he habit of killing great numbers of deer, dians. The latter is only ufed by the Northern tribes, and is called by them Clalte-ad-dee. By the firft of March we began to leave the fine level ift. country of the Athapufcows, and again to approach the ftony mountains or hills which bound the Northern Indian country. Moofe and beaver ftill continued to be plentiful \ but no buffaloes could be feen after the twenty-ninth of February. As we were continuing our courfe to the Eaft South Eaft, on the fourteenth we difcovered the tracks of more ftrangers, and the next day came up with them. Among thofe Indians was the man who had carried a letter for me in March one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-onc, to the Chief at Prince of Wales's Fort, and to which he had brought an anfwer, dated the twenty-firft of June. When this Indian received the letter from me, it was very uncertain what route we fhould take in our return from the Copper River, and, in all probability, he himfelf had. not then determined on what fpot he would pafs the prefent Winter; confequently our meeting each other was merely accidental. Thefe Indians having obtained a few furrs in the courfe of the Winter, joined our party, which now confifted of twenty tents, containing in the whole about two hundred 1.772. ii >" it March. 1772. dred perfons; and indeed our company had not been much Murch. lefs during the whole Winter. Prom the ftrangers who laft joined us we received fome ready-drefted moofe-fkins for tenting and fhoe-leather; alfo fome other fkins for clothing, for all of wTh:ch the Chief at the Fa6tory was to pay on our arrival. I cannot furftciently lament the lofs of my quadrant, as the want of it muft render the courfe of my journey from Point Lake, where it was broken, very uncertain; and my watch flopping while I was at the Athapufcow Lake, has contributed greatly to the misfortune, as I am .now deprived of every means of eftimating the diftances which we walked with any degree of accuracy, particularly in thick weather, when the Sun could not be feen. gj^jk The Indians were employed at all convenient times in procuring birch-rind and making wood work ready for building canoes; alfo in preparing fmall ftafTs of birch-wood, to take with them on the barren ground, to ferve as tent-poles all the Summer; and which, as hath been already obferved, they convert into fnow-fhoe frames when the Winter fets in. Here it may be proper to obferve, that none of thofe incidental avocations interfere with, or retard the Indians in their journeys for they always take the advantage of every opportunity portunity which offers, as they pafs along, and when they 1772. fee a tree fit for their purpofe, cut it down, and either ^m^hT* ftrip off the bark, if that be what they want, or fplit the trunk in pieces; and after hewing it roughly with then-hatchet, carry it to the tent, where in the evenings, or in the morning before they fet out, they reduce it with their knives to the fhape and fize which is required. Provifions being plentiful, and the weather fine, we advanced a little each day; and on the nineteenth took up lpth, our lodgings by the fide of Wholdyeah-chuck'd Whoie, or Large Pike Lake. In our way we crofted another fmall lake, where we caught fome trout by angling, and killed a few deer and one moofe. On the twentieth we croffed Large Pike Lake, which at that part was not more than feven miles wide ; but from North North Weft to the South South Eaft is much longer. The next day we arrived at Bedodid Lake, which in general is not more than three miles wide, and in feveral places much lefs; but it is upward of forty miles long, which gives it the appearance of a river. It is faid by the Indians to be fhut up on all fides, and entirely fur-rounded with high land, which produces vaft quantity of fir trees, but none of them grow to a great height in thofe parts: their branches, however, fpread wider than thofe of firs of three times their height and thicknefs do in Europe; fo that they refemble an apple-tree in fhape, O o more more than any fpecies of the pine. They feem rich in tar, as the wood of them will burn like a candle, and emit as ftrong a fmell, and as much black fmoke, as the* ftaves of an old tar-barrel; for which reafon no Indians chufe to burn it in their tents, or even out of doors, for the purpofe of cooking their victuals. The thaws began now to be very confiderable, and the under-woods were fo thick in thefe parts as to render travelling through them very difficult; we therefore took the advantage of walking on the ice of the above-mentioned Lake, which lay nearly in the direction of our courfe; but after proceeding about twenty-two miles on it, the Lake turned more toward the North, on which account we were obliged to leave it, ftriking off to the Eaftward; and after walking fourteen miles farther, we arrived at Noo-fhetht Whoie, or the Hill-Ifland Lake, fo called from a very high ifland which ftands in it. From the twenty-eighth to the thirty-firft of March, we had fo hard a gale of wind from the South, as to render walking on lakes or open plains quite impoflible, and the violence with which the trees were blown down made walking in the woods fomewhat dangerous; but though feveral had narrow efcapes, no accident happened. From the middle to the latter end of March, and in the beginning of April, though the thaw was not general, 7 yet yet in the middle of the day it was very confiderable : it 1772. commonly froze hard in the nights; and the young men April, took the advantage of the mornings, when the fnow was hard crufted over, and ran down many moofe ; for in thofe iituations a man with a good pair of fnow-fhoes will fcarcely make any impreffion on the fnow, while the moofe, and even the deer, will break through it at every ftep up to the belly. Notwithftanding this, however, it is very feldom that the Indians attempt to run deer down. The moofe are fo tender-footed, and fo fhort-winded, that a good runner will generally tire them in lefs than a day, and very frequently in fix or eight hours; though I have known fome of the Indians continue the chace for two days, before they could come up with, and kill the game. On thofe occafions the Indians, in general, only take with them a knife or bayonet, and a little bag containing a fet of fire-tackle, and are as lightly clothed as poffible ; fome of them will carry a bow and two or three arrows, but I never knew any of them take a gun, unlefs fuch as had been blown or burfted, and the barrels cut quite fhort, which, when reduced to the leaft poffible fize to be capable of doing any fervice, muft be too great a weight for a man to run with in his hand for fo many hours together. When the poor moofe are incapable of making farther fpecd, they ftand and keep their puifuers at bay with O o ^ their their head and fore-feet; in the ufe of which they are very dexterous, efpecially the latter; fo that the Indians who have neither a bow nor arrows, nor a fhort gun, with them, are generally obliged to lafh their knives or bayonets to the end of a long flick, and ftab the moofe at a diftance. For want of this neceffary precaution, fome of the boys and fool-hardy young men, who have attempted to rum in upon them, have frequently received fuch unlucky blows from, their fore-feet, as to render their recovery very doubtful. The flefh of the moofe, thus killed, is far from being well-taftcd, and I fhould think muft be very un whole-fome, from being over-heated ; as by running fo many hours together, the animal muft have been in a violent fever; the flefh being foft and clammy, muft have a very dif-agreeable tafte, neither refembling fifh, flefh, nor fowl *. The Southern Indians ufe dogs for this kind of hunting, which makes it eafier and more expeditious; but the Northern tribes having no dogs trained to that cxercife, are under the neceflity of doing it themfelves. * Though I was a fwift runner in thofe days, I never accompanied the Indians in one of thofe chaces, but have heard many of them fay, that after a long one, the moofe, when killed, did not produce more than a quart of blood, the remainder being all fettled in the flefh; which, in that ftate, muft be ten times worfe tailed, than the fpleen or mile of a bacon hog. On On the feventh we croffed a part of Thee-lee-aza River : 1772. at which time the fmall Northern deer were remarkably plentiful, but the moofe began to be very fcarce, as none 7tlu were killed after the third. On the twelfth, we faw feveral fwans flying to the 12th. Northward ; they were the firft birds of paffage we had feen that Spring, except a few fnow-birds, which always precede the migrating birds, and confequently are with much propriety called the harbingers ol Spring. The fwans alfo precede all the other fpecies of water-fowl, and migrate fo early in the feafon, that they And no open water but at the falls of rivers, where they are readily met, and fometimes fhot, in confiderable numbers. On the fourteenth, we arrived at another part of Thee- 14th. lee-aza River, and pitched our tents not far from fome families of ftrange Northern Indians, who had been there fome time fnaring deer, and who were all fo poor as not to have one gun among them. The villains belonging to my crew were fo far from adminiftering to their relief, that they robbed them of almoft every ufeful article in their poffeflion ; and to complete their cruelty, the men joined themfelves in parties of fix, eight, or ten in a gang, and dragged feveral of their young women to a little diftance from their tents, where where they not only raviftied them, but otherwife ill-treated them, and that in fo barbarous a manner, as to endanger the lives of one or two of them. Humanity on this, as well as on feveral other fimilar occafions during my refldence among thofe wretches, prompted me to upbraid them with their barbarity; but fo far were my re-monftrances from having the defired effect, that they afterwards made no fcruple of telling me in the plaineft terms, that if any female relation of mine had been there, fhe fhould have been ferved in the fame manner. Deer being plentiful, we remained at this place ten days, in order to dry and prepare a quantity of the flefh and fat to carry with us; as this was the laft time the Indians expected to fee fuch plenty until they met them again on the barren ground. During our ftay here, the Indians completed the wood-work for their canoes, and procured all their Summer tent-poles, &*c.; and while we were employed in this neceflary bufinefs, the thaw was fo* great that the bare ground began to appear in many places, and the ice in the rivers, where the water was lhallow and the current rapid, began to break up ; fo that we were in daily expectation of feeing geefe, ducks, and other birds of paliage. On the twenty-fifth, the weather being cool and favourable for travelling, we once more fet out, and that day day walked twenty miles to the Eaftward ; as fome of the women had not joined us, we did not move on the two following days. On the twenty-eighth, having once more muftered all our forces, early in*the morning we fet out, and the next day pafTed by Thleweyaza Yeth, the place at which we had prepared wood-work for canoes in the Spring one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-one. As the morning of the firft of May was exceedingly fine and pleafant, with a light air from the South, and a great thaw, we walked eight or nine miles to the Eaft by North, when a heavy fall of fnow came on, which was followed, or indeed more properly accompanied, by a hard gale of wind from the North Weft. At the time the bad weather began, we were on the top of a high barren hill, a confiderable diftance from any woods: judging it to be no more than a fquall, we fat down, in expectation of its foon palling by. As the night, however, advanced, the gale increafed to fuch a degree, that it was impoftible for a man to ftand upright; fo that we were obliged to lie down, without any other defence againft the weather, than putting our Hedges and other lumber to windward of us, which in reality was of no real fervice, as it only harboured a great drift of fnow, with which in fome places we were covered to the depth of two or three feet; and as the night was not very cold, I found myfelf, and and many others who were with me, long before morning in a puddle of water, occafioned by the heat of our bodies melting the fnow. The fecond proved fine pleafant weather, with warm funfhine. In the morning, having dried all our clothing, we proceeded on our journey. In the afternoon we arrived at the part at which my guide intended we mould build our canoes; but having had fome difference with his countrymen, he altered his mind, and determined to proceed to the Eaftward, as long as the feafon would permit, before he attempted to perform that duty. Accordingly, on the third, we purfued our way, and as that and the following day were very cold, which made us walk brifkly, we were enabled to make good days' journies; but the fifth was fo hot and fultry, that we only walked about thirteen miles in our old courfe to the Eaft by North, and then halted about three-quarters of a mile to the South of Black Bear Hill; a place which I had feen in the Spring of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-one. On the fixth, the weather was equally hot with the preceding day ; in the morning, however, we moved on eleven miles to the Eaft, and then met feveral ftrange Indians, who informed us that a few others, who had a tolerable cargo of furrs, and were going to the Factory that Summer, were not far diftant. On NORT HE R N O C E A N. On receiving this intelligence, my guide, Matonabbee, fent a meffenger to defire their company. This was foon complied with, as it is an univerfal practice with the Indian Leaders, both Northern and Southern, when going to the Company's Factory, to ufe their influence and intereft in canvafling for companions; as they find by experience that a large gang gains them much refpect. Indeed, the generality of Europeans who refide in thofe parts, being utterly unacquainted with the manners and cuftoms of the Indians, have conceived fo high an opinion of thofe Leaders, and their authority, as to imagine that all who accompany them on thofe occafions are entirely devoted to their fervice and command all the year; but this is fo far from being the cafe, that the authority of thofe great men, when abfent from the Company's Factory, never extends beyond their own family; and the trifling refpect which is fhown them by their countrymen during their refidence at the Factory, proceeds only from motives of intereft. The Leaders have a very difagreeable talk to perform on thofe occafions; for they are not only obliged to be the mouth-piece, but the beggars for all their friends and relations for whom they have a regard, as well as for thofe whom at other times they have reafon to fear. Thofe un-unwelcome commiftions, which are impofed on them by their followers, joined to their own defire of being thought men of great confequence and intereft with the Englifh, p p make i772- make them very troublefome. And if a Governor deny May. them any thing which they afk, though it be only to give away to the moft worthlefs of their gang, they immediately turn fulky and impertinent to the highcft degree; and however rational they may be at other times, are immediately diverted of every degree of reafon, and raife their demands to fo exorbitant a pitch, that after they have received to the amount of five times the value of all the furrs they themfelves have brought, they never ceafe begging during their ftay at the Factory ; and, after all, few of them go away thoroughly fatisfied *. After * As a proof of this affertion I take the liberty, though a little foreign to the narrative of my journey, to infert one infhnce, out of many hundreds of the kind that happen at the different Factories in Hudfon's Bay, but perhaps no where fo frequently as at Churchill. In October 1776, my old guide, Matonabbee, came at the head of a large gang of Northern Indians, to trade at Prince of Wales's Fort; at which time I had the honour to command it. When the ufual ceremonies had palled, I dreffed him out as a Captain of the Hrft rank, and alfo clothed his fix wives from top to toe : after which, that is to fay, during his May at the Factory, which was ten days, he begged feven lieutenants' coats, fifteen common coats, eighteen hats, eighteen fhirts, eight guns, one hundred and forty pounds weight of gunpowder, with fhot, ball, and flints in proportion j together with many hatchets, ice-chiffels, files, bayonets, knives, and a great quantity of tobacco, cloth, blankets, combs, looking-, ghffes, ftockings, handkerchiefs, &c. befides numberlefs fmall articles, fuch as awls, needles, paint, fteels, &c. in all to the amount of upwards of feven hundred beaver in the way of trade, to give away among his followers. This was exclufive of his own prefent, which confifted of a variety of goods to the value of four hundred beaver more. But the moft extraordinary of his demands was twelve pounds of powder, twenty-eight pounds of fhot and ball, four pounds of tobacco, fome articles of clothing, and feveral pieces of ironwork, &c. to give to two men who had hauled his tent and other lumber the preceding After flopping four days at this place, Matonabbee, and all the Indians who were to accompany me to the Fort, agreed to leave the elderly people and young children here, in the care of fome Indians who were capable of providing for them, and who had orders to proceed to a place called Cathawhachaga, on the barren grounds, and there wait the return of their relations from the Factory. Matters ot this kind being fettled, apparently to the entire fatisfaction of all parties, we refumed our journey on the eleventh of May, and that at a much briiker pace than we could probably have done when all the old people and young children were with us. In the afternoon of the fame day we met fome other Northern Indians, who were alfo going to the Fort with furrs; thofe joined our party, and at night we all pitched our tents by the fide of a river that empties itfelf into Doo-baunt Lake. This day all of us threw away our fnow-fhoes, as the ground was fo bare in moft places as not to require any fuch afliftance ; but fledges were oc-cafionally ferviceable for fome time, particularly when we walked on the ice of rivers or lakes. preceding Winter. This demand was fo very unreafonable, that I made fome fcruple, or at leaft hefitated to comply with it, hinting that he was the perfon who ought to fatisfy thofe men for their fervices; but I was foon anfwered, That he did not expect to have been denied fuch a trije as that was; and for the future he would carry his goods where he could get his own price for them. On my afking him where that was ? he replied, in a very infolent tone, " To the Canadian Traders." I was glad to comply with his demands; and I here infert the anecdote, as a fpecimen of an Indian's eonfeience. P p 2 The The weather on the twelfth was fo exceedingly hot and fill try, and the water fo deep on the top of the ice of the above-mentioned river, as to render walking on it not only very troublefome, but dangerous; fo after advancing about five miles we pitched our tents, and the warm weather being likely to continue, the Indians immediately began to build their canoes, which were completed with fuch expedition, that in the afternoon of the eighteenth we again fet forward on our journey, but the day being pretty far fpent, we only walked about four miles, and put up for the night. The morning of the nineteenth was fine pleafant weather ; and as all the water was drained off from the top of the ice, it rendered walking on it both fafe and eafy; accordingly we fet out pretty early, and that day walked upwards of twenty miles to the Eaft North Eaft on the above-mentioned river. The next day proved fo cold, that after walking about fifteen miles, we were obliged to put up ; for having left Doo-baunt River, we were frequently obliged to wade above the knees through fwamps of mud, water, and wet fnow; which froze to our ftockings and (hoes in fuch a thick cruft, as not only rendered walking very laborious, but at the fame time fubjected us to the danger of having our legs and feet frozen. The weather on the twenty-firft was more fevere than on the preceding day ; but the fwamps and ponds being 3 by by that time frozen over, it was tolerable walking : we proceeded therefore on our journey, but the wind blew fo frefh, that we had not walked fix teen miles, before we found that thofe who carried the canoes could not poffibly keep up with us, fo that we put up for the night. In the courfe of this day's journey we crofled the North Weft Bay of Wholdyah'd Lake ; which, at that part, is called by the Northern Indians A Naw-nec-tha'd Whoie. This day feveral of the Indians turned back, not being able to proceed for want of provifions. Game of all kinds indeed were fo fcarce, that, except a few geefe, nothing had been killed by any of our party, from our leaving the women and children on the eleventh inftant, nor had we feen one deer the whole way. The twenty-fecond proved more moderate, when all our party having joined, we again advanced to the North Eaft, and after walking about thirteen miles, the Indians killed four deer. Our number, however, had now fo increafed, that four fmall Northern deer would fcarcely afford us all a Angle meal. The next day we continued our journey, generally walking in the North Eaft quarter; and on the twenty-fifth, crofled the North bay of They-hole-kye'd Whoie, or Snow-bird Lake; and at night got clear of all woods, and Lay on the barren ground. The fame day feveral of the Indians ftruck off another way, not being able to proceed i772- ceed to the Fort for want of ammunition. As we had May. for fome days paft made good journies, and at the fame time were all heavy-laden, and in great diftrefs for provifions, fome of my companions were fo weak as to be obliged to leave their bundles of furrs * ; and many others were fo reduced as to be no longer capable of proceeding with us, having neither guns nor ammunition ; fo that their whole dependence for fupport was on the fifh they might be able to catch ; and though fifh was pretty plentiful in moft of the rivers and lakes hereabout, yet they were not always to be depended on for fuch an immediate fupply of food as thofe poor people required. Though I had at this time a fufficient ftock of ammunition to ferve me and all my proper companions to the Fort, yet felf-prefervation being the firft law of Nature, it was thought advifable to referve the greateft part of it for our own ufe; efpecially as geefe and other fmaller birds were the only game now to be met with, and which, in times of fcarcky, bears hard on the articles of powder and fhot. Indeed moft of the Indians who adually accompanied me the whole way to the Factory had fome little ammunition remaining, which enabled them to travel in times of real fcarcity better than thofe whom we left behind; and though * All the furrs thus left were properly fecured in caves and crevices of the rocks, fo as to withftand any attempt that might be made on them by beafts of prey, and were well fliielded from the weather j fo that, in all probability, few of them wen; loft. we we aflifted many of them, yet feveral of their women died for want. It is a melancholy truth, and a difgrace to the little humanity of which thofe people are poflefled, to think, that in times of want the poor women always come off fhort; and when real diftrefs approaches, many of them are permitted to ftarve, when the males are amply provided for. The twenty-fixth was fine and pleafant. In the morning we fet out as ufual, and after walking about five miles, the Indians killed three deer ; as our numbers were greatly lcflcned, thefe ferved us for two or three meals, at a fmall expence of ammunition. In continuing our courfe to the Eaftward, we crofled Cathawhachaga River, on the thirtieth of May, on the ice, which broke up foon after the Lift perfon had croffed it. We had not been long on the Eaft fide of the river before we perceived bad weather near at hand, and began to make every preparation for it which our fituation would admit; and that was but very indifferent, being on entire barren ground. It is true, wc had complete fets of Summer tent-poles, and fuch tent-cloths as are generally ufed by the Northern Indians in that feafon ; thefe were arranged in the beft manner, and in fuch places as were moft likely to afford us flielter from the threatening ftorm. The rain foon began to defcend in fuch torrents as to make the river overflow to fuch a degree as foon to convert our firft place place of retreat into an open fea, and oblige us in the middle of the night to affemble at the top of an adjacent hill, where the violence of the wind would not permit us to pitch a tent; fo that the only fhelter we could obtain was to take the tent-cloth about our fhoulders, and fit with our backs to the wind ; and in this fituation we we were obliged to remain without the leaft refrcfhment, till the morning of the third of June: in the courfe of which time the wind fhifted all round the compafs, but the bad weather ftill continued, fo that we were con-ftantly obliged to fhift our pofition as the wind changed. The weather now became more moderate, though there was ftill a frefh gale from the North Weft, with hard froft and frequent fhowers of fnow. Early in the morning, however, we proceeded on our journey, but the wet and cold I had experienced the two preceding days fo benumbed my lower extremities, as to render walking for fome time very troublcfome. In the courfe of this day's journey we faw great numbers of geefe flying to the Southward, a few of which we killed; but thefe were very difproportionate to the number of mouths we had to feed, and to make up for our long fafting. From that time to the 'eighth we killed every day as many geefe as were fufficient to preferve life ; but on that day we perceived plenty of deer, five of which the Indians killed, which put us all into good fpirits, and the number number of deer we then faw afforded great hopes of more plentiful times during the remainder of our journey. It is almoft needlefs to add, that people in our diftrelTed fituation expended a little time in eating, and Hieing fome of the flefti ready for drying; but the drying it occafioned no delay, as we fattened it on the tops of the women's bundles, and dried it by the fun and wind while we were walking ; and, ftrange as it may appear, meat thus prepared is not only very fubftantial food, but pleafant to the tafte, and generally much efteemed by the natives. For my own part I muft acknowledge, that it was not only agreeable to my palate, but after eating a meal of it, I have always found that I could travel longer without victuals, than after any other kind of food. All the dried meat prepared by the Southern Indians is performed by expofing it to the heat of a large fire, which foon exhaufts all the fine juices from it, and when fuf-ficiently dry to prevent putrefaction, is no more to be compared with that cured by the Northern Indians in the Sun, or by the heat of a very flow fire, than meat that has been boiled down for the fake of the foup, is to that which is only fufficiently boiled for eating: the latter has all the juices remaining, which, being eafily diflblved by the heat and moifture of the ftomach, proves a ftrong and nourifhing food; whereas the former being entirely deprived of thofe qualities, can by no means have an equal claim to that character. Moft of the Europeans, however, are fonder of it than they are of that cured by the North- Q^q r ern crn Indians. The fame may be faid of the lean parts of the beaft, which are firft dried, and then reduced into a kind of powder. That done by the Northern Indians is entirely free from fmoke, and quite foft and mellow in the mouth ; whereas that which is prepared by the Southern tribes is generally as bitter as foot with fmoke, and is as hard as the fcraps of horn, &*c. which are burnt to make hardening for the cutlers. I never knew, that any European was fo fond of this as they are of that made by the Northern Indians. On the ninth, as we were continuing our courfe to the Factory, which then lay in the South Eaft quarter, we faw feveral fmokes to the North Eaft, and the fame day fpoke with many Northern Indians, who were going to Knapp's Bay to meet the Churchill floop. Several of thofe Indians had furrs with them, but having fome time before taken up goods on truft at Prince of Wales's Fort, were taking that method to delay the payment of them. Defrauds of this kind have been pradtifed by many of thofe people with great fuccefs, ever fince the furr-trade has been eftablilhed with the Northern Indians at Knapp's Bay; by which means debts to a confiderable amount are annually loft to the Company, as well as their Governor in the Bay, Being defirous of improving every opportunity that the fine weather afforded, we did not lofe much time in convention with thofe Indians, but proceeded on our courfe i to to the South Eaft, while they continued theirs to the North Eaft. For many days after leaving thofe people, we had the good fortune to meet with plenty of provifions; and as the weather was for a long time remarkably fine and plea-fant, our circumftances were altered fo much for the better, that every thing feemed to contribute to our happinefs, as if defirous to make fome amends for the fevere hunger, cold, and exceffive hardfhips that we had fuffered long before, and which had reduced us to the greateft mifery and want. Deer was fo plentiful great part of the way, that the Indians killed as many as were wanted, without going out of their road ; and every lake and river to which we came feemed willing to give us a change of diet, by affording us plenty of the fineft fifh, which we caught either with hooks or nets, Geefe, partridges, gulls, and many other fowls, which are excellent eating, were alfo in fuch plenty, that it only required ammunition, in fkilful hands, to have procured as many of them as we could defire. The only inconvenience we now felt was from frequent fhowers of heavy rain ; but the intervals between thefe ftiowers being very warm, and the Sun ftiining bright, that difficulty was eafily overcome, efpecially as the belly was plentifully fupplied with excellent victuals. Indeed the Q^q 2 very very thoughts of being once more arrived fo near home, made me capable of encountering every difficulty, even if it had been hunger itfelf in the moft formidable fhape. On the eighteenth, we arrived at Egg River, from which place, at the folicitation of my guide Matonabbee, I fent a letter poft-hafte to the Chief at Prince of Wales's Fort, adviiing him of my being fc far advanced on my return. The weather at this tmie was very bad and rainy, which caufed us to lofe near a whole day ; but upon the fine weather returning, we again proceeded at our ufual rate of eighteen or twenty miles a day, fometimes more or lefs, according as the road, the weather^ and other circumftances, would admit, - Deer now began to be not quite fo plentiful as they had been, though we met with enough for prefent ufe, which was all we wanted, each perfon having as much dried meat as he could conveniently carry, befides his furrs and other neceflary baggage. Early in the morning of the twenty-fixth we arrived at Seal River *; but the wind blowing right up it, made fo * Mr. Jercmie is very incorrect in his account of the fituation of this River, and its courfe. It is not eafy to guefs, whether the Copper or Dog-ribbed Indians be the nation he calls Platfcotez de Chiens: if it be the former, he is much miftakenj for they have abundance of beaver, and other animals of the furr kind, in their country : and if the latter, he is equally wrong to afterc fo great a fea, that we were obliged to wait near ten hours before we could venture to crofs it in our little canoes. In afTert that they have copper-mines in their country j for neither copper nor any other kind of metal is in ufe among them. Mr. Jeremie was not too modeft when he faid, (fee Dobbs's Account of Hudfon's Bay, p. 19.) " he could not fay any thing pofitively in going farther " North j" for in my opinion he never was fo far North or Weft as he pretends, otherwife he would have been more correct in his defcription of thofe parts. The Strait he mentions is undoubtedly no other than what is now called" Chefterfield's Inlet, which, in fome late and cold feafons, is not clear of ice the whole Summer: for I will affirm, that no Indian, either Northern or Southern, ever faw either Wager Water or Repulfe Bay, except the two men who accompanied Captain Middleton; and though thofe men were fele&ed from fome hundreds for their univerfal knowledge of thofe parts, yet they knew nothing of the coaft fo far North as Marble Ifland. As a farther proof, that no Indians, except the Efquimaux, ever frequent fuch high latitudes, unlefs at a great diftance from the fea,, I muft here mention, that fo late as the year 1763, when Captain Chriftopher went to furvey Chefterfield's Inlet, though he was furnifhed with the moft intelligent and experienced Northern Indians that could be found, they did not know an inch of the land to the North of Whale Cove. Mr. Jeremie is alfo as much miftaken in what he fays concerning Churchill River, as lie. was in the direction of Seal River; for he fays that no woods were found but in fome iflands which lie about ten or twelve miles up the river, At the time he wrote, which was long before a fcttlement was made there, wood was in great plenty on both fides the river; and that within five miles of where Prince of Wales's Fort now ftands. But as to the iflands of which he fpeaks, if they ever exifted, they have of late years moft afTLiredly difappeared; for fince the Company have had a fettlement on that river, no one ever faw an ifland in it that produced timber3 or wood of any defcription, within forty miles 1772- In the afternoon the weather grew more moderate, fo that June. wc were enabled to ferry over the river; after which we relumed our journey, and at night pitched our tents in fome tufts of willows in fight of the woods of Po-co-thee-kis-co River, at which we arrived early in the morning of the twenty-eighth ; but the wind again blowing very hard in the North Eaft quarter, it was the afternoon of the 29th. twenty-ninth before we could attempt to crofs it. Juft at the time we were crofling the South branch of Po-co-thee-kis-co River, the Indians that were fent from Egg River with a letter to the Chief at Churchill, joined us on their return, and brought a little tobacco and fome other articles which I had defired. Though it was late in the afternoon before we had all crofled the river, yet we walked that evening till after ten o'clock, and then put up on one of the Goofe-hunting Iflands, as they are generally called, about ten miles from the Factory. The next morning I arrived in good health at Prince of Wales's Fort, after having been abfent eighteen months and twenty- miles of the Fort. But the great number of flumps now remaining, from which, in all probability, the trees have been cut for firing, are fufficient to prove that when Churchill River was firft fettled, wood was then in great plenty; but in the courfe of feventy-fix years refidence in one place, it is natural to fuppofe it was much thinned near the Settlement. Indeed for fome years paft common fewel is fo fcarce near that Factory, that it is the chief employment of moft of the fervants for upward of feven months in the year, to procure as much wood as will fupply the fires for a Winter, and a little timber for neceffary repairs. three three days on this laft expedition y but from my firft fet- I772-ting out with Captain Chawchinaha, it was two years June, feven months and twenty-four days. Though my difcoveries are not likely to prove of any material advantage to the Nation at large, or indeed to the Hudfon's Bay Company, yet I have the pleafure to think that I have fully complied with the orders of my Matters, and that it has put a final end to all difputes concerning a North Weft Paffage through Hudfon's Bay. It will alfo wipe off, in fome meafure, the ill-grounded and unjuft afperfions of Dobbs, Ellis, Robfon, and the American Traveller; who have all taken much pains to condemn the conduct of the Hudfon's Bay Company, as being averfefrom difcoveries, and from enlarging their trade. e h a p CHAP. IX. A fhort Defcription of the Northern Indians, alfo a farther Account of their Country, Manufactures, Cuf-toms, &*c. An account of the perfons and tempers of the Northern Indians.—They poffefs a great deal of art and cunning.—Are very guilty of fraud when in their power, and generally exacl more for their furrs than any other tribe of Indians.—Always dijfatisfied, yet have their good qualities.—The men in general jealous of their wives.—Their marriages.—Girls always betrothed when children, and their reafons for it.—Great care and confinement of young girls from the age of eight or nine years old.—Divorces common among thofe people.—The women are lefs prolific than in warmer countries.—Remarkable piece of fuperflition obferved by the women at particular periods.—Their art in making it an excufe for a temporary fcparation from their hufbands on any little quarrel.—Reckoned very unclean on thofe occafions.—The Northern Indians frequently, for the want of firing, are obliged to eat their meat raw.—Some through neceflity obliged to boil it in veffels made of the rind of the birch-tree.—A remarkable difh among thofe people.— The young animals always cut out of their dams eaten, and accounted a great delicacy.—The parts of generation of all animals eat by the men and boys.—Marnier of pafiing their time, and method of killing deer in Summer with bows and arrows.—Their tents, dogs, fledges, &c.— Snow-floes.—Their partiality to domefiic vermin.—Utmofi extent of the Northern Indian country.—Face of the country.—Species offiflj.— A peculiar kind of mofs ufeful for the fupport of man.—Northern Indian method of catching fifh, cither with hooks or nets.—Ceremony obferved zvhen two parties of thofe people meet.—Divcrfions in common u&—A fingular diforder which attacks fome of thofe people.—Their fiuper- fiupetfiition with refipecl to the death of their friends.—Ceremony obferved on thofe occafions.—Their ideas of the frf inhabitants of the world.—No form of religion among them.—Remarks on that circum-fiance.—The extreme mifiery to which old age is expofed.—Their opinion of the Aurora Borealis, &c.—Some Account of Matonabbee, and his ferviccs to his country, as well as to the Hudfon s Bay Company. A S to the perfons of the Northern Indians, they are in general above the middle fize; well-proportioned, ftrong, and robuft, but not corpulent. They do not pof-fefs that activity of body, and livelinefs of difpofltion, which are fo commonly met with among the other tribes of Indians who inhabit the Weft coaft of Hudfon's Bay. Their complexion is fomewhat of the copper eaft, inclining rather toward a dingy brown ; and their hair, like all the other tribes in India, is black, ftrong, and ftraight *. Few of the men have any beard; this feldom makes its appearance till they are arrived at middle-age, and then is by no means equal in quantity to what is obferved on the faces of the generality of Europeans; the little they have, however, is exceedingly ftrong and briftly. Some of them take but little pains to eradicate their beards, though it is considered as very unbecoming s and thofe * I have feen feveral of the Southern Indian men who were near fix feet high, preferve a fingle lock of their hair, that, when let down, would trail on the ground as they walked. This, however, is but feldom feen; and fome have fufpc&ed it to be falfe: but I have examined the hair of feveral of them, and found it to be real, R r who who do, have no other method than that of pulling it out by the roots betwen their fingers and the edge of a blunt knife. Neither fex have any hair under their armpits, and very little on any other part of the body, particularly the women; but on the place where Nature plants the hair, I never knew them attempt to eradicate it. Their features are peculiar, and different from any other tribe in thofe parts ; for they have very low foreheads, fmall eyes, high cheek-bones, Roman nofes, full cheeks, and in general long broad chins. Though few of either fex are exempt from this national fet of features, yet Nature feems to be more ftrict. in her obfervance of it among the females, as they feldom vary fo much as the men. Their fkins are foft, fmooth, and polifhed; and when they are dreffed in clean clothing, they are as free from an offenfive fmell as any of the human race. Every tribe of Northern Indians, as well as the Copper and Dog-ribbed Indians, have three or four parallel black ftrokes marked on each cheek; which is performed by entering an awl or needle under the fkin, and, on drawing it out again, immediately rubbing powdered charcoal into the wound. Their difpofitions are in general morofe and covetous, and they feem to be entirely unacquainted even with the name of gratitude. They are for ever pleading poverty, c even even among themfelves; and when they vifit the Factory, there is not one of them who has not a thoufand wants. When any real diftreffed objects prefent themfelves at the Company's Factory, they are always relieved with victuals, clothes, medicines, and every other neceffary, gratis \ and in return, they inftruct every one of their countrymen how to behave, in order to obtain the fame charity. Thus it is very common to fee both men and women come to the Fort half-naked, when either the fevere cold in Winter, or the extreme troublefomenefs of the flies in Summer, make it neceflary for every part to be covered. On thofe occafions they are feldom at a lofs for a plaufible ftory, which they relate as the occafion of their diftrefs, (whether real or pretended,) and never fail to interlard their hiitory with plenty of fighs, groans, and tears, fometimes affecting to be lame, and even blind, in order to excite pity. Indeed, I know of ho people that have more command of their paffions on fuch occafions; and in this refpect the women exceed the men, as I can affirm with truth I have feen fome of them with one fide of the face bathed in tears, while the other has exhibited a figniflcant fmile. Falfe pretences for obtaining charity are fo common among thofe people, and fo often detected, that the Governor is frequently obliged to turn a deaf ear to many who apply for relief; for if he did not, he might give away the whole of the Company's goods, and by degrees all the Northern R r 2 tribe tribe would make a trade of begging, inftead of bringing furrs, to purchafe what they want. It may truly be faid, that they poffefs a confiderable degree of deceit, and are very complete adepts in the art of flattery, which they never fpare as long as they find that it conduces to their intereft, but not a moment longer. They take care always to feem attached to a new Governor, and flatter his pride, by telling him that they look up to him as the father of their tribe, on whom they can fafely place their depend-ance ; and they never fail to depreciate the generofity of his predeceflbr, however extenfive that might have been, however humane or difinterefted his conduct; and if af-perfing the old, and flattering the new Governor, has not the defired effect, in a reafonable time, they reprefent him as the worft of characters, and tell him to his face that he is one of the moft cruel of men ; that he has no feeling for the diftrefles of their tribe, and that many have perifhed for want of proper afliftance, (which, if it be true, is only owing to want of humanity among themfelves,) and then they boaft of having received ten times the favours and prefents from his predeceflbr. It is remarkable that thofe are moft lavifh in their praifes, who have never either deferved or received any favours from him. In time, however, this language alfo ceafes, and they are perfectly reconciled to the man whom they would willingly have made a fool, and fay, " he is no child, and not to be deceived by << them/" They They differ fo much from the reft of mankind, that harfh uncourteous ufage feems to agree better with the generality of them, particularly the lower clafs, than mild treatment ; for if the leaft refpect be fhewn them, it makes them intolerably infolent; and though fome of their leaders may be exempt from this imputation, yet there are but few even of them who have fenfe enough to fet a proper value on the favours and indulgences which are granted to them while they remain at the Company's Factories, or elfewhere within their territories. Experience has convinced me, that by keeping a Northern Indian at a diftance, he may be made ferviceable both to himfelf and the Company ; but by giving him the leaft indulgence at the Factory, he will grow indolent, inactive, and trouble-fome, and only contrive methods to tax the generofity of an European. The greateft part of thefe people never fail to defraud Europeans whenever it is in their power, and take every method to over-reach them in the way of trade. They will difguife their perfons and change their names, in order to defraud them of their lawful debts, which they are fometimes permitted to contract at the Company's Factory; and all debts that are outftanding at the fuc-ceflion of a new Governor are entirely loft, as they always declare, and bring plenty of witneffes to prove, that they were paid long before, but that their names had been forgotten to be ftruck out of the book. 10 Notwith- Notwithftanding all thofe bad qualities, they are the mildeft tribe of Indians that trade at any of the Company's fettlements; and as the greateft part of them are never heated with liquor, are always in their fenfes, and never proceed to riot, or any violence beyond bad language. The men are in general very jealous of their wives, and I make no doubt but the fame fpirit reigns among the women ; but they are kept fo much in awe of their hufbands, that the liberty of thinking is the greateft privilege they enjoy. The prefence of a Northern Indian man ftrikes a peculiar awe into his wives, as he always aflumes the fame authority over them that the mafter of a family in Europe ufually docs over his domeftic fervants. Their marriages are not attended with any ceremony ; all matches are made by the parents, or next of kin. On thofe occafions the women feem to have no choice, but implicitly obey the will of their parents, who always endeavour to marry their daughters to thofe that feem moft likely to be capable of maintaining them, let their age, perfon, or difpofltion be ever fo defpi-cable. The girls are always betrothed when children, but never to thofe of equal age, which is doubtlefs found policy with people in their fituation, where the exiftence of a family depends depends entirely on the abilities and induftry of a fingle man. Children, as they juftly obferve, are fo liable to alter in their manners and difpofltion, that it is impoftible to judge from the actions of early youth what abilities they may poiTefs when they arrive at puberty. For this rea-fon the girls are often fo difproportionably matched for age, that it is very common to fee men of thirty-five or forty years old have young girls of no more than ten or twelve, and fometimes much younger. From the early age of eight or nine years, they are prohibited by cuftom from joining in the moft innocent amufements with children of the oppofite fcx; fo that when fitting in their tents, or even when travelling, they are watched and guarded with fuch an unremitting attention as cannot be exceeded by the moft rigid difcipline of an Englifh boarding-fchool. Cuftom, however, and conftant example, make fuch uncommon reftraint and confinement fit light and eafy even on children, whofe tender ages feem better adapted to innocent and cheerful amufements, than to be cooped up by the fide of old women, and conftantly employed in fcraping fkins, mending fhoes, and learning other domeftic duties neceffary in the care of a family. Notwithstanding thofe uncommon rcftraints on the young girls, the conduct of their parents is by no means uniform or confiftent with this plan; as they fet no bounds to their converfation, but talk before them, and even to them, on the moft indelicate fubjects. As their ears are accuftomed to to fuch language from their ear Heft youth, this has by no means the fame effecl: on them, it would have on girls born and educated in a civilized country, where every care is taken to prevent their morals from being contaminated by obfcene converfation. The Southern Indians are ftill lefs delicate in converfation, in the prefence of their children. The women among the Northern Indians are in general more backward than the Southern Indian women; and though it is well known that neither tribe lofe any time, thofe early connections are feldom productive of children for fome years. Divorces are pretty common among the Northern Indians ; fometimes for incontinency, but more frequently for want of what they deem neceflary accomplifhments, or for bad behaviour. This ceremony, in either cafe, conflfts of neither more nor lefs than a good drubbing, and turning the woman out of doors; telling her to go to her paramour, or relations, according to the nature of her crime. Providence is very kind in caufing thefe people to be lefs prolific than the inhabitants of civilized nations; it is very uncommon to fee one woman have more than five or fix children; and thefe are always born at fuch a diftance from one another, that the youngeft is generally two or three three years old before another is brought into the world. Their eafy births, and the ceremonies which take place on thofe occafions, have already been mentioned ; I fhall therefore only obferve here, that they make no ufe of cradles, like the Southern Indians, but only tie a lump of mofs between their legs; and always carry their children at their backs, next the fkin, till they are able to walk. Though their method of treating young children is in this refpect the moft uncouth and awkward I ever faw, there are few among them that can be called deformed, and not one in fifty who is not bow-legged. There are certain periods at which they never permit the women to abide in the fame tent with their hufbands. At fuch times they are obliged to make a fmall hovel for themfelves at fome diftance from the other tents. As this is an univerfal cuftom among all the tribes, it is alfo a piece of policy with the women, upon any difference with their hufbands, to make that an excufe for a temporary feparation, when, without any ceremony, they creep out (as is their ufual cuftom on thofe occafions) under the eves of that fide of the tent at which they happen to be fitting ; for at thofe times they are not permitted to go in or out through the door. This cuftom is fo generally prevalent among the women, that I have frequently known fome of the fulky dames leave their hufbands and tent for four or five days and by Hudfon's Bay on the Eaft. The The land throughout that whole track of country is fcarcely any thing but one folid mafs of rocks and ftones, and in moft parts very hilly, particularly to the Weftward, among the woods. The furface, it is very true, is in moft places covered with a thin fod of mofs, intermixed with the roots of the Wee-fa-ca-pucca, cranberries, and a few other in-fignificant fhrubs and herbage ; but under it there is in general a total want of foil, capable of producing any thing-except what is peculiar to the climate. Some of the marfhes, indeed, produce feveral kinds of grafs, the growth of which is amazingly rapid ; but this is dealt out with fo fparing a hand as to be barely fufficient to ferve the: geefe, fwans, and other birds of paffage, during their migrations in the Spring and Fall, while they remain in a moulting ftate. The many lakes and rivers with which this part of the country abounds, though they do not furnifh the natives-with water-carriage, are yet of infinite advantage to them; as they afford great numbers of fifh, both in Summer and Winter. The only fpecies caught in thofe parts are trout, tittameg, (or tickomeg,) tench, two forts of barbie, (called by the Southern Indians Na-may-pith,) burbot, pike, and a few perch. The four former are caught in all parts of this country, as well the woody as the barren; but the three latter are only caught to the Weftward, in fuch lakes and rivers as are fituated among the woods; and though fome of thofe rivers lead to the barren ground, yet the three three laft mentioned fpecies of fifh are feldom caught beyond the edge of the woods, not even in the Summer feafon. There is a black, hard, crumply mofs, that grows on the rocks and large ftones in thofe parts, which is of infinite fervice to the natives, as it fometimes furnifhes them with a temporary fubfiftence, when no animal food can be procured. This mofs, when boiled, turns to a gummy confiftence, and is more clammy in the mouth than fago ; it may, by adding either mofs or water, be made to almoft any confiftence. It is fo palatable, that all who tafte it generally grow fond of it. It is remarkably good and pleafing when ufed to thicken any kind of broth, but it is generally moft efteemed when boiled in fifh-liquor. The only method practifed by thofe people to catch fifh either in Winter or Summer, is by angling and fet-ting nets; both of which methods is attended with much fuperftition, ceremony, and unneceftary trouble ; but I will endeavour to defcribe them in as plain and brief a # manner as poffible. When they make a new fifhing-net, which is always compofed of fmall thongs cut from raw dcer-fkins, they take a number of birds bills and feet, and tie them, a little apart from each other, to the head and foot rope of the net, and at the four corners generally fallen fome of the toes and jaws of the otters and jackafnes. The birds feet and and bills made choice of on fuch occafions are generally thofe of the laughing goofe, wavey, (or white goofe,) gulls, loons, and black-heads; and unlefs fome or all of thefe be fattened to the net, they will not attempt to put it into the water, as they firmly believe it would not catch a fingle fifh. A net thus accoutred is fit for letting whenever occafion requires, and opportunity offers; but the firft fifh of whatever fpecies caught in it, are not to be fodden in the water, but broiled whole on the fire, and the flefh carefully taken from the bones without diflocating one joint; after which the bones are laid on the fire at full length and burnt. A ftricl obfervance of thefe rules is fuppofed to be of the utmoft importance in promoting the future fuccefs of the new net; and a neglect, of them would render it not worth a farthing *, When they fifh in rivers, or narrow channels that join two lakes together, they could frequently, by tying two, three, or more nets together, fpread over the whole breadth of the channel, and intercept every fizable fifh that pafled; but inftead of that, they fcatter the nets at a confiderable diftance from each other, from a fuperfti- * They frequently fell new nets, which have not been wet more than once or twice, becaufe they have not been fuccefsful. Thofe nets, when foked in water, are eafily opened, and then make moft excellent heel and toe netting for fnow-fhoes. In general it is far fuperior to the netting cut by the Southern Indian women, and is not larger than common net-twine, IT u tious tious notion, that were they kept clofe together, one net would be jealous of its neighbour, and by that means not one of them would catch a fingle fifh. The methods ufed, and ftric~tly obferved, when angling, are equally abfurd as thofe I have mentioned; for when they bait a hook, a compofition of four, five, or fix articles, by way of charm, is concealed vinder the bait, which is always fewed round the hook. In fact, the only bait ufed by thofe people is in their opinion a compofition of charms, inclofed within a bit of fim-fkin, fo as in fome meafure to refemble a fmall fifh. The things ufed by way of charm, are bits of beavers tails and fat, otter's vents and teeth, mufk-rat's guts and tails, loon's vents, fquirreFs tefticles, the cruddled milk taken out of the ftomach of fucking fawns and calves, human hair, and numberlefs other articles equally abfurd. Every mafter of a family, and indeed almoft every other perfon, particularly the men, have a fmall bundle of fuch traih,„ which they always carry with them, both in Summer and Winter; and without fome of thofe articles to put under their bait, few of them could be prevailed upon to put a hook into the water> being fully perfuaded that they may as well fit in the tent, as attempt to angle without fuch aillftance. They have alfo a notion that fifh of the fame fpecies inhabiting different parts of the country, are fond of different things ; fo that almoft every 4 lake lake and river they arrive at, obliges them to alter the composition of the charm. The fame rule is obferved on broiling the firft fruits of a new hook that is ufed for a new net; an old hook that has already been fucccfsful in catching large fifh is efteemed of more value, than a handful of new ones which have never been tried. Deer alfo, as well as fifh, are very numerous in many parts of this country; particularly to the North of the fixtieth degree of latitude. Alpine hares are in fome parts of the barren ground pretty plentiful, where alfo fome herds of mufk-oxen are to be met with ; and to the Weftward, among the woods, there are fome rabbits and partridges. With all thofe feeming fources of plenty, however, one half of the inhabitants, and perhaps the other half alfo, are frequently in danger of being ftarved to death, owing partly to their want of ceconomy; and moft of thefe fcenes of diftrefs happen during their jour-nies to and from Prince of Wales's Fort, the only place at which they trade. When Northern Indians are at the Factory, ffcey are very liable to fteal any thing they think will be lervice-able; particularly iron hoops, fmall bolts, fpikes, carpenters tools, and, in fhort, all fmall pieces of iron-work which they can turn to advantage, either for their own ufe, or for the purpofe of trading with fuch of their countrymen as feldom vifit the Company's Settlement: U u 2 among among themfelves, however, the crime of theft is feldom heard of. » When two parties of thofe Indians meet, the ceremonies which pafs between them are quite different from thole made ufe of in Europe on fimilar occafions; for when they advance within twenty or thirty yards of each other, they make a full halt, and in general fit or lie down, on the ground, and do not fpeak for fome minutes. At length one of them, generally an elderly man, if any be in company, breaks filence, by acquainting the other party with every misfortune that has befallen him and his companions from the laft time they had feen or heard of each other ; and alfo of all deaths and other calamities that have befallen any other Indians during the fame period, at leaft as many particulars as have come to his knowledge. When the firft has finifhed his oration, another aged orator (if there be any) belonging to the other party relates, in like manner, all the bad news that has come to his knowledge; and both parties never fail to plead poverty and famine on all occafions. If thofe orations contain any news that in the leaft affect the other party, it is not long before fome of them begin to figh and fob, and foon after break out into a loud cry, which is generally accompanied by moft of the grown perfons of both fexes; and fometimes it is common to fee them all, men, women, and children, in one univerfal howl. The young girls, in particular, particular, are often very obliging on thofe occafions; for I never remember to have feen a crying match (as I called it) but the greateft part of the company aflifted, although fome of them had no other reafon for it, but that of feeing their companions do the fame. When the firft tranfports of grief fuofide, they advance by degrees, and both parties-mix with each other, the men always aftociating with the men, and the women with the women. If they have any tobacco among them, the pipes are palled round pretty freely, and the converfation foon becomes general. As they are on their firft meeting acquainted with all the bad news, they have by this time nothing left but good, which in general has fo far the predominance over the former, that in lefs than half an hour nothing but fmiles and cheerfulnefs are to be feen in every face; and if they be not really in want, fmall prefents of provifions, ammunition, and other articles, often take place ; fometimes: merely as a gift, but more frequently by way of trying whether they cannot get a greater prefent. They have but few divcrfions; the chief is fhooting at a mark with bow and arrows ; and another out-door game, called Holl, which in fome meafure refembles playing with quoits ; only it is done with fhort clubs, fharp at one end. They alfo amufe themfelves at times with dancing, which is always performed in the night. It is remarkable that thofe people, though a diftind nation, have never adopted any mode of dancing of their own, or any fongs to which they they can dance; fo that when any thing of this hind is attempted, which is but feldom, they always endeavour to imitate either the Dog-ribbed or Southern Indians, but more commonly the former, as few of them are fufHciently acquainted either with the Southern Indian language, or their manner of dancing. The Dog-ribbed method is not very difficult to learn, as it only confifts in lifting the feet alternately from the ground in a very quick fticceftion, and as high as poffible, without moving die body, which fhould be kept quite ftill and motionlefs ; the hands at the fame time being clofed, and held clofe to the breaft, and the head inclining forward. This diverfion is always performed quite naked, except the breech-cloth, and at times that is alfo thrown off; and the dancers, who feldom exceed three or four at a time, always ftand clofe to the muftc. The mufic may, by {training a point, be called both vocal and inftrumental, though both are fufficiently humble. The former is no more than a frequent repetition of the words hee, hee, hee, ho, ho, ho, &>c. which, by a more or lefs frequent repetition, dwelling longer on one word and fhorter on another, and raifing and lowering the voice, produce fomething like a tune, and has tie de-fired effec"b This is always accompanied by a .drum or tabor; and fometimes a kind of rattle is added, made with a piece ,of dried buffalo fkin, in fhape eKadtly like an toil-flafk, into which they put a few fhot or pebbles, which, when fhook about, produces mufic little inferior to the drum, though not fo loud,. This This mode of dancing naked is performed only by the men ; for when the women are ordered to dance, they always exhibit without the tent, to mufic which is played within it; and though their method of dancing is perfectly decent, yet it has ftill lefs meaning and action than that of the men: for a whole heap of them crowd together in a ftraight line, andjuft fhufHe themfelves a little from right to left, and back again in the fame line, without lifting their feet from the ground; and when the mufic ftops, they all give a little bend of the body and knee, fomewhat like an awkward curtfey, and pronounce, in a little fhrill tone, h-e-e, h-o-o-o-e. Befi.de thefe diverfions, they have another fimple indoor game, which is that of taking a bit of wood, a button, or any other fmall thing, and after fhifting it from hand to hand feveral times, afking their antagonift, which hand it is in ? When playing at this game, which only admits of two perfons, each of them have ten, fifteen, or twenty fmall chips of wood, like matches y and when one of the players guefles right, he takes one of his antagonift's flicks, and lays it to his own; and he that firft gets all the flicks from the other in that manner, is faid to win the game, which is generally for a fingle load of powder and fhot, an arrow, or fome other thing of inconfiderable value. The women never mix in any of their diverfions, not even in dancing; for when that is required of them, they always always exhibit without the tent, as has been already observed ; nor are they allowed to be prefent at a feaft. Indeed, the whole courfe of their lives is one continued fcene of drudgery, viz. carrying and hauling heavy loads, drefting fkins for clothing, curing their provifions, and prac-tiling other neceffary domeflic duties which are required in a family, without enjoying the leaft diverfion of any kind, or relaxation, on any occafion whatever; and except in the execution of thofe homely duties, in which they are always inftruct.ed from their infancy, their fenfes feem al^ moft as dull and frigid as the zone they inhabit. There are indeed fome exceptions to be met with among them, and I fuppofe it only requires indulgence and precept to make fome of them as lofty and infolent as any women in the world. Though they wear their hair at full length, and never tie it up, like the Southern Indians ; and though not one in fifty of them is ever pofTefted of a comb, yet by a wonderful dexterity of the fingers, and a good deal of patience, they make fhift to ftroke it out fo as not to leave two hairs entangled ; but when their heads are in-fefted with vermin, from which very few of either fex are free, they mutually aflift each other in keeping them under. A fcorbutic diforder, refembling the worft ftage of the itch, confumptions, and fluxes, are their chief diforders^ The firft of thefe, though very troublefome, is never known to prove fatal, unlefs it be accompanied with fome inward complaint; but the two latter, with a few accidents, dents, carries off great numbers of both fexes and all ages : indeed few of them live to any great age, probably owing to the great fatigue they undergo from their youth up, in procuring a fubliftence for themfelves and their offspring. Though the fcorbutic diforder above mentioned does appear to be infectious, it is rare to fee one have it without the whole tent's crew being more or lefs affected with it; but this is by no means a proof of its being contagious; I rather attribute it to the effects of fome bad water, or the unwholefbmencfs of fome fifh they may catch in particular places, in the courfe of their wandering manner of life. Were it otherwife, a fingle family would in a fhort time communicate it to the whole tribe; but, on the contrary, the difeafe is never known to fpread. In the younger fort it always attacks the hands and feet, not even fparing the palms and foles. Thofe of riper years generally have it about the wrifts, infteps, and pof-teriors; and in the latter particularly, the blotches, or boils as they may jultly be called, are often as large as the top of a man's thumb. This diforder moft frequently makes its appearance in the Summer, while the Indians are out on the barren ground; and though it is by no means reckoned dangerous, yet it is fo obftinate, as not to yield to any medicine that has ever been applied to it while at the Company's Factory. And as the natives themfelves never make ufe of any medicines of their own preparing, Nature alone works the cure, which is never performed in X x lefs lefs than twelve or eighteen months; and fome of them are troubled with this difagreeable and loathfome diforder for years before they are perfectly cured, and then a dark livid mark remains on thofe parts of the fkin which have been affected, for many years afterwards, and in fome during life. When any of the principal Northern Indians die, it is generally believed that they are conjured to death, either by fome of their own countrymen, by fome of the Southern Indians, or by fome of the Efquimaux: too frequently the fufpicion falls on the latter tribe, which is the grand reafon of their never being at peace with thofe poor and diftrefTed people. For fome time paft, however, thole Efquimaux who trade with our floops at Knapp's Bay, Navel's Bay, and Whale Cove, are in perfect peace and friendship with the Northern Indians ; which is entirely owing to the protection they have for feveral years paft received from the Chiefs at the Company's Fort at Churchill River*. But thofe of that tribe who live fo far to the North, * In the Summer of 1756, a party of Northern Indians lay in wait at Knapp's Bay till the floop had failed out of the harbour, when they fell on the poor Efquimaux, and killed every foul. Mr. John Bean, then Mafter of the Hoop, and fince Mailer of the Trinity yacht, with all his crew, heard the guns very plain ; but did not know the meaning or reafon of it till the Summer following, when he found the fhocking remains of more than forty Esquimaux, who had been murdered in that cowardly manner; and for no other reafon but becaufe two principal Northern Indians had died in die preceding Winter. No North, as not to have any intercourfe with our veffels, very often fall a facrifice to the fury and fuperftition of the Northern No Efquimaux were feen at Knapp's Bay for feveral years after; and thofe who trade there at prefent have undoubtedly been drawn from the Northward, fince the above unhappy tranfaction; for the convenience of being nearer the woods, as well as being in the way of trading with the (loop that calls there annually. It is to be hoped that the meafures taken by the Governors at Prince of Wales's Fort of late years, will effectually prevent any fuch calamities happening in future, and by degrees be the means of bringing about a lafting, friendly, and reciprocal intereft between the two nations. Notwithftanding the pacific and friendly terms which begin to dawn between thofe two tribes at Knapp's Bay, Navel's Bay, and Wrhale Cove, farther North hoftilities continue, and moft barbarous murders are perpetrated : and the only protection the Efquimaux have from the fury of their enemies, is their remote fituation in the Winter, and their refiding chiefly on iflands and penin-fulas in Summer, which renders them lefs liable to be furprifed during that feafon. But even this fecluded life does not prevent the Northern Indians from harafling them greatly, and at times they are fo clofely purfued as to be obliged to leave moft of their goods and utenfils to be deftroyed by their enemy; which muft be a great lofs, as thefe cannot be replaced but at the ex-pence of much time and labour j and the want of them in the mean time muft create much diftrefs both to themfelves and their families, as they can feldom procure any part of their livelihood without the afliftance of a confiderable apparatus. In 1756, the Efquimaux at Knapp's Bay fent two of their youths to Prince of Wales's Fort in the floop, and die Summer following they were carried back to their friends, loaded with prefents, and much pleafed with the treatment they received while at the Fort. In 1767, they again fent one from Knapp's Bay and one from Whale Cove ; and though during their ftay at the Fort they made a confiderable progrefs both in the Southern Indian and the Englifh languages, yet thofe intercourfes have not been anyways advantageous to the Company, by increafing the trade from that quarter. In fact, the only X x 2 fatisfaction Northern Indians; who are by no means a bold or warlike people; nor can I think from experience, that they are particularly guilty of committing acts of wanton cruelty on any other part of the human race belide the Efquimaux. Their hearts, however, are in general fo unfufceptible of tendernefs, that they can view the deeped diftrefs in thofe who are not immediately related to them, without the leaft emotion ; not even half fo much as the generality of mankind feel for the fufferings of the meaneft of the brute creation. I have been prefent when one of them, imitating the groans, diftorted features, and contracted pofttion, of a fatisfaction they have found for the great expenee they have from time to time incurred, by introducing thofe ftrangers, is, that through the good conduct of their upper fervants at Churchill River, they have atlengdi fo far humanized the hearts of thofe two tribes, that at prefent they can meet each other in a friendly manner \ whereas, a few years fince, whenever they met, each party premeditated the destruction of the other; and what made their war more mocking was, they never gave quarter; fo that the ftrongeft party always killed the weakeft, without fparing either man, woman, or child. It is but a few years ago that the (loop's crew who annually carried them all their wants, durft not venture on fhore among the Efquimaux unarmed, for fear of being murdered; but latterly they are fo civilized, that the Company's fervants vifit their tents with the greateft freedom and fafety, are always welcome, and defired to partake of fuch provifions as they have : and knowing now our averfion from train-oil, they take every means in their power to convince our people that the victuals prepared for them is entirely -free from it. But the fmell of their tents, cooking-utenfils, and other furniture, is fcarcely lefs offenfive than Greenland Dock. However, I have eaten both fifh and venifon cooked by them in fo cleanly a manner, that I have re-limed them very much, and partaken of them with a good appetite. 7 man man who had died in the moft excruciating pain, put the whole company, except myfelf, into the moft violent fit of laughter. The Northern Indians never bury their dead, but always leave the bodies where they die, fo that they are fuppofed to be devoured by beafts and birds of prey ; for which reafon they will not eat foxes, wolves, ravens, &c. unlefs it be through mere neceflity. The death of a near relation affects them fo fenfibly, that they rend all their cloths from their backs, and go naked, till fome perfons lefs afflicted relieve them. After the death of a father, mother, hufband, wife, fon, or brother, they mourn, as it may be called, for a whole year, which they meafure by the moons and feafons. Thofe mournful periods are not diftinguifhed by any particular drefs, except that of cutting off the hair; and the ceremony confifts in almoft perpetually crying. Even when walking, as well as at all other intervals from fleep, eating, and converfation, they make an odd howling noife, often repeating the relationlhip of the deceafed. But as this is in a great meafure mere form and cuftom, fome of them have a method of foftening the harfhnefs of the notes, and bringing them out in a more muilcal tone than that in which they fing their fongs. When they reflect feriouily on the lofs of a good friend, however, it has fuch an effect on them for the prefent, that they give an uncommon uncommon loofc to their grief. At thofe times they feem to fympathife (through cuftom) with each other's afflictions fo much, that I have often feen feveral fcores of them crying in concert, when at the fame time not above half a dozen of them had any more reafon for fo doing than I had, unlefs it was to preferve the old cuftom, and keep the others in countenance. The women are remarkably obliging on fuch occafions; and as no reftric-tion is laid on them, they may with truth be faid to cry with all their might and main ; but in common converfa-tion they are obliged to be very moderate. They have a tradition among them, that the firft perfon upon earth was a woman, who, after having been fome time alone, in her refearches for berries, which was then her only food, found an animal like a dog, which followed her to the cave where fhe lived, and foon grew fond and domeftic. This dog, they fay, had the art of transforming itfelf into the fhape of a handfome young man, which it frequently did at night, but as the day approached, always renamed its former fhape; fo that the woman looked on all that palled on thofe occafions as dreams and delufions. Thefe tranformations were foon productive of the confequences which at prefent generally follow fuch intimate connexions between the two fexes, and the mother of the world began to advance in her pregnancy. Not Not long after this happened, a man of fuch a furprifing height that his head reached up to the clouds, came to level the land, which at that time was a very rude mafs ; and after he had done this, by the help of his walking-flick he marked out all the lakes, ponds, and rivers, and immediately caufed them to be filled with water. He then took the dog, and tore it to pieces ; the guts he threw into the lakes and rivers, commanding them to become the different kinds of fifh ; the flefh he difperfed over the land, commanding it to become different kinds of hearts and land-animals; the fkin he alfo tore in fmall pieces, and threw it into the air, commanding it to become all kinds of birds; after which he gave the woman and her offspring full power to kill, eat, and never fpare, for that he had commanded them to multiply for her ufe in abundance. After this injunction, he returned to the place whence he came, and has not been heard of fince.. Religion has not as yet begun to dawn among the Northern Indians; for though their conjurors do indeed ling fongs, and make long fpceches, to fome hearts and birds of prey, as alfo to imaginary beings, which they fay affift them in performing cures on the fick, yet they, as well as their credulous neighbours, are utterly deftitute of every idea of practical religion. It is true, fome of them will reprimand their youth for talking di fie— difrefpedtfully of particular beafts and birds; but it is done with fo little energy, as to be often retorted back in derifton. Neither is this, nor their cuftom of not killing wolves and quiquehatches, univerfally obferved, and thofe who do it can only be viewed with more pity and contempt than the others; for I always found it arofe merely from the greater degree of confidence which they had in the fupernatural power of their conjurors., which induced them to believe, that talking lightly or difrefpect-fully of any thing they feemed to approve, would materially affect their health and happinefs in this world : and I never found any of them that had the leaft idea of futurity. Matonabbee, without one exception, was a man of as clear ideas in other matters as any that I ever faw: he was not only a perfect mafter of the Southern Indian language, and their belief, but could tell a better ftory of our Saviour's birth and life, than one half of thofe who call themfelves Chriftians ; yet he always declared to me, that neither he, nor any of his countrymen, had an idea of a future ftate. Though he had been taught to look on things of this kind as ufele.fs, his own good fenfe had taught him to be an advocate for univerfal toleration ; and I have feen him feveral times afhft at fome of the moft ■facred rites performed by the Southern Indians, apparently with as much zeal, as if he had given as much credit to them as they did : and with the fame liberality of fenti-ment he would, I am perfuaded, have aflifted at the altar of of a Chriftian church, or in a Jewifh fynagogue; not with a view to reap any advantage himfelf, but merely, as he obferved, to affift others who believed in fuch ceremonies. Being thus deftitute of all religious control, thefe people have, to ufe Matonabbee'sown words, cc nothing to do but " confult their own intereft, inclinations, and paflions; and " to pafs through this world with as much eafe and con-" tentment as poffible, without any hopes of reward, or ct painful fear of punilhment, in the next." In this ftate of mind they are, when in profperity, the happieft of mortals ; for nothing but perfonal or family calamities can difturb their tranquillity, while misfortunes of the lefler kind fit light on them. Like moft other uncivilized people, they bear bodily pain with great fortitude, though in that refpect I cannot think them equal to the Southern Indians. Old age is the greateft calamity that can befal a Northern Indian; for when he is paft labour, he is neglected, and treated with great difrefpect, even by his own children. They not only ferve him laft at meals, but generally give him the coarfeft and worft of the victuals: and fuch of the fkins as they do not chufe to wear, are made up in the clumfieft manner into clothing for their aged parents; who, as they had, in all probability, treated their fathers and mothers with the fame negled, in Y y their their turns, fubmitted patiently to their lot, even without a murmur, knowing it to be the common misfortune attendant on old age; fo that they may be faid to wait patiently for the melancholy hour when, being no longer capable of walking, they are to be left alone, to ftarve, and perifti for want. This, however fhocking and unnatural it may appear, is ncverthelefs fo common, that, among thofe people, one half at leaft of the aged perfons of both fexes abfolutely die in this miferable condition* The Northern Indians call the Aurora Borealis^ Ed-thin; that is, Deer * : and when that meteor is very bright, they fay that deer is plentiful in that part of the atmo-fphere; but they have never yet extended their ideas fo far as to entertain hopes of Jnfting thofe ecleftial animals. Befide this filly notion, they are very fuperftitious with refpect" to the exiftence of feveral kinds of fairies, called by them Nant-e-na, whom they frequently fay they fee, and. who are fuppofed by them to inhabit the different elements • * Their ideas in this refpect are founded on a principle one would not imagine. Experience has fhewn them, that when a hairy deer-fkin is brifkly ftroked with the hand in a dark night, it wiil emit many fparks of electrical fire, as the back of a cat will. The idea which the Southern Indians have of this meteor is equally romantic, though more pleafing, as they believe it to be the fpirits of their departed friends dancing in the clouds ; and when the. Juror a Bcrealis is remarkably bright, at which time they vary moft in colour, form, and fituation, they fay, their deceafed friends are very merry.. of of earth, fea, and air, according to their feveral qualities. To one or other of thofe fairies they ufually attribute any change in their circumftances, either for the better or worfe; and as they are led into this way of thinking entirely by the art of the conjurors, there is no fuch thing as any general mode of belief; for thofe jugglers differ fo much from each other in their accounts of thefe beings, that thofe who ibelieve any thing they fay, have little to do but change their opinions according to the will and caprice of the conjuror, who is almoft daily relating fome new whim, or extraordinary event, which, he fays, has been revealed to him in a dream, or by fome of his favourite fairies, when on a hunting excurfion. Stime Some Account 0/* Matonabbee, and of the eminent Service* which he rendered to his Country, as well as to the Hudfon s Bay Company. Matonabbee was the Jon of a Northern Indian by a flave woman, who was formerly bought from fome Southern Indians who came to Prince of Wales's Fort with furrs, &c* This match was made by Mr. Richard Norton, then Governor, who detained them at and near the Fort, for the fame purpofe as he did thofe Indians called Home-guard. As to Matonabbee's real age, it is impoffible to be particular ; for the natives of thofe parts being utterly unacquainted with letters, or the ufe of hieroglyphics, though their memories are not lefs retentive than thofe of other nations, cannot preferve and tranfmit to pofterity the exact time when any particular event happens. Indeed, the utmoft extent of their chronology reaches no farther, than to fay, My fon, or my daughter, was born in fuch a Governor's time, and fuch an event happened during fuch a per-fon's life-time (though, perhaps, he or (Tie has been dead many years). However, according to appearance, and fome corroborating circumftances, Matonabbee was born about the year one thoufand feven hundred and thirty-fix,, or one thoufand feven hundred and thirty-feven ; and his father dying while he was young, the Governor took the boy, boy, and, according to the Indian cuftom, adopted him as his fon. Soon after the death of Matonabbee's father, Mr. Norton went to England, and as the boy did not experience from his fucceflbr the fame regard and attention which he had been accuftomed to receive from Mr. Norton, he was foon taken from the Factory by fome of his father's relations, and continued with the Northern Indians till Mr. Ferdinand Jacobs fucceeded to the command of Prince of Wales's Fort, in the year one thoufand feven hundred and fifty-two; when out of regard to old Mr. Norton, (who was then dead,) Mr. Jacobs took the firft opportunity that offered to detain Matonabbee at the Factory, where he was for feveral years employed in the hunting-fervice with fome of the Company's fervants, particularly with the late Mr. Mofes Norton*, (fon of the late Governor,) and Mr. Magnus John-ftonf. In the courfe of his long ftay at and near the Fort, it is no wonder that he fhould have become perfect mafter of* the Southern Indian language, and made fome progrefs in the Englifh. It was during this period, that he gained a knowledge of the Chriftian faith ; and he always declared, that it was too deep and intricate for his compre-hcnfion. Though he was a perfect bigot with refpect to « Afterwards Governor.. j- Mafter of the Churchill floop. the the arts and tricks of Indian jugglers, yet he could by no means be impreffed with a belief of any part of our religion, nor of the religion of the Southern Indians, who have as firm a belief in a future ftate as any people under the Sun. He had fo much natural good fenfe and liberality of fentiment, however, as not to think that he had a right to ridicule any. particular feci on account of their religious opinions. On the contrary, he declared, that he held them all equally in efteem, but was determined, as he came into the world, fo he would go out of it, without profefling any religion at all. Notwithftanding his averfion fiom religion, I have met with few Chriftians who pof-fefled more good moral qualities, or fewer bad ones. It is impoftible for any man to have been more punctual in the performance of a promife than he was; his fcrupulous adherence to truth and honefty would have done honour to the moft enlightened and devout Chriftian, while his benevolence and univerfal humanity to all the human race *, according to his abilities and manner of life, could not * I moft here obferve, that when we went to war with the Efquimaux at the Copper River in July 1771, it was by no means his propofal: on the contrary, lie was forced into it by his countrymen. For I have heard him fay, that when he firft vifited that river, in company with I-dot-le-aza, they met with feveral Efquimaux; and fo far from killing them., were very friendly to them, and made them fmall prefents of fuch articles as they could beft ipare, and that would be of moft ufe to them. It is more than probable that the two bits of iron found among the plunder while I was there, were part of thofe prefents. There -were alfo a few long beads found among thofe people, not be exceeded by the moft illuftrious perfonage now on record ; and to add to his other good qualities, he was the only Indian that I ever faw, except one, who was not guilty of backbiting and flandering his neighbours. In ftature, Matonabbee was above the common fize, being nearly fix feet highf ; and, except that his neck was rather (though not much) too fhort, he was one of the fineft and beft proportioned men that I ever faw. In complexion he was dark, like the other Northern Indians, but his face was not disfigured by that ridiculous cuftom of marking the cheeks with three or four black lines. His features were regular and agreeable, and yet fo ftrongly marked and expreflive, that they formed a complete index of his mind 3 which, as he never intended to deceive or diflemble, he never wifhed to conceal. In converfation he was eafy, lively, and agreeable, but exceedingly modeft; and at table, the noblenefs and elegance of his manners might have been admired by the firft perfonages in the world; for to the vivacity of a Frenchman, and the people, but quite different from any that the Hudfon's Bay Company had ever fent to the Bay: fo that the only probable way they could have come by them, muft have been by. an intercourfe with fome of their tribe, who had dealings with the Danes in Davis's Straits. It is very probable, however, they might have pafled through many hands before they reached this remote place. Had they had an immediate intercourfe with the Efquimaux in Davis1 Straits, «it is natural to fuppofe that iron would not have been fo fcarce amon them as it feemed to be; indeed the diftance is too great to admit of it. «f I have feen two Northern Indians who mcafured fix feet three inches i and.one, fix feet four inches.. I fincerity fincerity of an Engliftiman, he added the gravity and noblenefs of a Turk ; all fo happily blended, as to render his company and converfation univerfally pleafing to thofe who understood either the Northern or Southern Indian languages, the only languages in which he could convcrfe. He was remarkably fond of Spanifh wines, though he never drank to excefs; and as he would not partake of fpirituous liquors, however fine in quality or plainly mixed, he was always mafter of himfelf. As no man is exempt from frailties, it is natural to fuppofe that as a man he had his fhare ; but the greateft with which I can charge him, is jealoufy, and that fometimes carried him beyond the bounds of humanity. In his early youth he difcovered talents equal to the greateft tafk that could poflibly be expected from an Indian. Accordingly Mr. Jacobs, then Governor at Prince of Wales's Fort, engaged him, when but a youth, a* an Ambafiador and Mediator between the Northern Indians and the Athapufcow Tribe, who till then had always been ,i.t war with each other. In the courfe of this embafly Matonabbee not only difcovered the moft brilliant and folid parts, but (hewed an extenfive knowledge of every advantage that could arife to both nations from a total fup-preflion of hoftilities; and at times he difplayed fuch in-ftances of pcrfonal courage and magnanimity, as are rarely to be found among perfons of fuperior condition and rank. He * He had not penetrated far into the country of the Athapufcow Indians, before he came to feveral tents with inhabitants ; and there, to his great furprife, he found Captain Keelfhies, (a perfon frequently mentioned in this Journal *,) who was then a prifoner, with all his family and fome of his friends, the fate of whom was then undetermined ; but through the means of Matonabbee, though young enough to have been his fon, Keelfhies and a few others were releafed, with the lofs of his effects and all his wives, which were fix in number. Matonabbee not only kept his ground after Keelfhies and his fmall party had been permitted to return, but made his way into the very heart of the Athapufcow country, in order to have a perfonal conference with all or moft of the principal inhabitants. The farther he advanced, the more occafion he had for intrepidity. At one time he came to five tents of thofe favages, which in the whole contained fixteen men, befides their wives, children, and fervants, while he himfelf was entirely alone, except one wife and a fervant boy. The Southern Indians, ever treacherous, and apparently the more kind when they are premeditating mifchief, feemed to give him a hearty welcome, accepted the tenders of peace and reconciliation with apparent fatisfaction, and, as a mark of their approbation, each tent in rotation made a feaft, or entertainment, the * The fame perfon was at Prince of Wales's Fort when the French arrived on the 8th of Auguft 1782, and faw them demolim the Fort. Z z fame fame night, and invited him to partake ; at the laft of which they had concerted a fcheme to murder him. He was, however, fo perfect, a mafter of the Southern Indian language, that he foon difcovered their defign, and told them, he was not come in a hoftile manner, but if they attempted any thing of the kind he was determined to fell his life as dear as poffible. On hearing this, fome of them ordered that his fervant, gun, and fnow-fhoes, (for it was Winter,) fhould be brought into the tent and fecured ; but he fprung from his feat, feized his gun and fnow-fhoes, and went out of the tent, telling them, if they had an intention to moleft him, that was the proper place where he could fee his enemy, and be under no apprehenftons of being fhot cowardly through the back. " I am fure (faid he) of killing two or three of you, u and if you chufe to purchafe my life at that price, now u is the time ; but if otherwife, let me depart without " any farther moleftation." They then told him he was at liberty to go, on condition of leaving his fervant j but to this he would not confent. Fie then rufhed into the tent and took his fervant by force from two men ; when finding there was no appearance of farther danger, he fet out on his return to the frontiers of his own country, and from thence to the Fa&ory. The year following he again vifited the Athapufcow country, accompanied by a confiderable number of chofen men men of his own nation, who were fo far fuperior to fuch fmall parties of the Southern Indians as they had met, that they commanded refpect wherever they came; and having traverfed the whole country, and converfed with all the principal men, «peace and friendfhip were apparently re-eftablifhed. Accordingly, when the Spring advanced the Northern Indians began to difperfe, and draw out to the Eaftward on the barren ground; but Matonabbee, and a few others, chofe to pafs the Summer in the Athapufcow country. As foon as the Southern Indians were acquainted with this deftgn, and found the number of the Northern Indians fo reduced, a fuperior number of them dogged and harafled them the whole Summer, with a view to furprife and kill them" when afleep ; and with that view twice actually approached fo near their tents as fifty yards. But Matonabbee told them, as he had done when alone, that though there were but few of them, they were all determined to fell their lives as dear as poffible: on which the Southern Indians, without making any reply, retired ; for no Indians in this country have the courage to face their enemies when they find them apprized of their approach, and on their guard to receive them. Notwithftanding all thefe difcouragements and great dangers, Matonabbee perfevered with courage and refo-lution to vifit the Athapufcow Indians for feveral years fucceflively ; and at length, by an uniform difplay of his pacific difpofltion, and by rendering a long train of good Z z 2 offices offices to thofe Indians, in return for their treachery and perfidy, he was fo happy as to be the fole inftrument of not only bringing about a lafting peace, but alfo of eftablifhing a trade and reciprocal intereft between the two nations. After having performed this great work, he was prevailed upon to vifit the Copper-mine River, in company with a famous leader, called I-dat-le-aza; and it was from the report of thofe two men, that a journey to that part was propofed to the Hudfon's Bay Company by the late Mr. Mofes Norton, in one thoufand feven hundred and fixty-nine. In one thoufand feven hundred and feventy he was engaged as the principal guide on that expedition ; which he performed with greater punctuality, and more to my fatisfaction, than perhaps any other Indian in all that country would have done. At his return to the Fort in one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-two, he was made head of all the Northern Indian nation; and continued to render great fervices to the Company during his life, by bringing a greater quantity of furrs to their Factory at Churchill River, than any other Indian ever did, or ever will do. His laft vifit to Prince of Wales's Fort was in the Spring of one thoufand feven hundred and eighty-two, and he intended to have repeated it in the Winter following; but when he heard that the French had deftroyed the Fort, and carried off all the Company's fervantu, he never afterwards reared his head, but took an opportunity, when no one fufpected fufpected his intention, to hang himfelf. This is the more to be wondered at, as he is the only Northern Indian who, that I ever heard, put an end to his own exift-ence. The death of this man was a great lofs to the Hudfon's Bay Company, and was attended with a moft melancholy fcene; no lefs than the death of fix of his wives, and four children, all of whom were ftarved to death the fame Winter, in one thoufand feven hundred and eighty-three* C H A P. CHAP. X. An Account of the principal Quadrupeds found in the Northern Parts of Hudfon s Bay.--The Buffalo, Moofe, Mufk-ox, Deer, and Beaver. —-A capital Mifiabe cleared up refpecling the We-was-ki/h. Animals with Canine Teeth.-The Wolf—Foxes of various colours—Lynx, or Wild Cat—Polar, or White Bear—Black Bear— Brown Bear—^Wolverene— Otter—Jackafi)—Wejack—Skunk—Pine Martin—Frmi?ic, or Stote. Animals with Cutting Teeth.-The Mufk Beaver—Porcupine— Varying Hare—American Hare—Common Squirrel—Ground Squirrel-Mice of various Kinds,—and the Caflor Beaver. The Pinnated Quadrupeds with fin like Feet, found in Hudfon s Bay, are but three in number, viz. the Warlus, or Sca-Horfe,—Seal,—a?id Sea-Unicorn. The Species of Fi/h found in the Salt Water of Hudfon s Bay are alfo few in number; being the Black Whale—White Whale—Salmon—and Kepling. Shell-fi/h, and empty Shells of feveral kinds, found on the Sea Coafl near Churchill River. Frogs of various fizes and colours; alfo a great variety of Grubbs, and other 1/feels, always found in a frozen fate during Winter, but when ex-pofedto the heat of a flow fire, are foon rc-atumated. An Account of fome 0fithe principal Birds found in the Northern Parts of Hudfon s Bay; as well thofe that only migrate there in Summer, as thofe thai arc known to brave the coldeftWinters:-Eagles of various kinds kinds—Hawks of various fizes and plumage—White or Snowy Owl— —Cray or mottled Owl—Cob-a-dee-cooch—Raven—Cinerious Crow—■ Wood Pecker—Ruffed Groufe—Pheafaut—Wood Partridge—Willow Partridge—R ock Partridge—Pigeon—R cd-breefed Thruffj—Grof-beak—Snozv Bunting—White-crowned Bunting—Lapland Pinch, two forts—Lark—Titmoufc—Swallow—Martin—Hopping Crane—Brown Crane—Bitron—Carlow, two forts—Jack Snipe—Red Godwart— Plover—Black Gullcmet—Northern Diver—Black-throated Diver— Red-throated Diver—White Gull—Grey Gull—Black-head—Pellican— Goofander—Swans of two fpecies—Common Grey Goofe—Canada Goofe "—White or Snow Goofe—Blue Goof—Horned Wavy—Laughing Goofe —Barren Goofe—Brent Goofe—Dunter Goofe—Bean Goof. The Species of Water-Fowl ufually called Duck, that refort to thofe Parts annually, are in great -variety; hit thofe that are mofl efeemed are, the Mallard Duck,—Long-tailed Duck,—Wigeon, and Teal. Of the Vegetable Productions as far North as Churchill River, particularly the mofl ufeful; fuch as the Berry-bearing Bii/hes, &c.-Goof berry —Cranberry—Heathbcrry — Dewater-berry—Black Currans—Juniper-berry—Partridge-berry—Strawberry—Eye-berry—Blue-berry,—> and a fmall fpecies of Hips. Bur ridge—Coltsfoot— Sorrel—Dandelion, Wifi-a-capucca—Jackafhey-puck—Mofs of various forts—Grafs of feveral kinds—and Vetches. The Trees found fo far North near the Sea, confifl only of Pines—» Juniper—Small Popuir—B?t/h->willows—and Creeping Birch. IyEFORE I conclude this work, it may not be im-) proper to give a fhort account of the principal Animals that frequent the high Northern latitudes, though moft of them are found alfo far to the Southward, and confe- 6 quently quently in much milder climates. The buffalo, mufk-ox, deer, and the moofe, have been already defcribed in this Journal. I fhall therefore only make a few remarks on the latter, in order to rectify a miftake, which, from wrong information, has crept into Mr. Pennant's Arctic Zoology. In page 21 of that elegant work, he clafTes the Moofe with the We-was-kifh, though it certainly has not any affinity to it. The We-was-kifh, or as fome (though improperly) call it, the Wafkefle, is quite a different animal from the moofe, being by no means fo large in fize. The horns of the We-was-kifh are fomething fimilar to thofe of the common deer, but are not palmated in any part. They ftand more upright, have fewer branches, and want the brow-antler. The head of this animal is fo far from being like that of the Moofe, that the nofe is fharp, like the nofe of a fheep : indeed, the whole external appearance of the head is not very unlike that of an afs. The hair is ufually of a fandy red ; and they are frequently called by the Englifh who vifit the interior parts of the country, red deer. Their flefh is tolerable eating; but the fat is as ;hard as tallow, and if eaten as hot as poffible, will yet chill in fo fhort a time, that it clogs the teeth, and flicks to the roof of the mouth, in fuch a manner as to render it very difagreeable. In the Spring of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-ffve, I had thirteen fledge-loads of this meat brought to Cumberland Houfe in one day, and alfo two of the heads of this animal unfkinned, but the horns were were chopped off; a proof of their wearing them the whole Winter. They are the moft ftupid of all the deer kind, and frequently make a fhrill whittling, and quivering noife, not very unlike the braying of an afs, which directs the hunter to the very fpot where they are. They generally keep in large herds, and when they find plenty of pafture, remain a long time in one place. Thofe deer are feldom an object of chace with the Indians bordering on Bafquiau, except when moofe and other game fail. Their fkins, when dreffed, very much refemble that of the moofe, though they are much thinner, and have this peculiar quality, that they will wafh as well as fhamoy leather ; whereas all the other leathers and pelts dreffed by the Indians, if they get wet, turn quite hard, unlefs great care be taken to keep conftantly rubbing them while drying. The perfon who informed Mr, Pennant that the we-was-kifh and the moofe are the fame animal, never faw one of them ; and the only reafon he had to fuppofe it, was the great refemblance of their fkins: yet it is rather ftrange, that fo indefatigable a collector of Natural Hiftory as the late Mr. Andrew Graham, fhould have omitted making particular enquiry about them: for any foreign Indian, particularly thofe that refide near Bafquiau, could eafily have convinced him to the contrary. Animals Animals with Canine 'Teeth. Wolves are frequently met with in the countries Weft of Hudfon's Bay, both on the barren grounds and among the woods, but they are not numerous; it is very uncommon to fee more than three or four of them in a herd. Thofe that keep to the Weftward, among the woods, are generally of the ufual colour, but the greateft part of thofe that are killed by the Efquimaux are perfectly white. All the wolves in Hudfon's Bay are very fhy of the human race, yet when fharp fet, they frequently follow the Indians for feveral days, but always keep at a diftance. They are great enemies to the Indian dogs, and frequently kill and eat thofe that are heavy loaded, and cannot keep up with the main body. The Northern Indians have formed ftrange ideas of this animal, as they think it does not eat its victuals raw; but by a fingular and wonderful fagacity, peculiar to itfelf, has a method of cooking them without fire. The females are much fwifter than the males; for which reafon the Indians, both Northern and Southern, are of opinion that they kill the greateft part of the game. This cannot, however, always be the cafe •> for to the North of Churchill they, in general, live a forlorn life all the Winter, and are feldom feen in pairs till the Spring, when they begin to couple; and generally keep in pairs all the Summer. They always burrow underground to bring forth their young; and though it is na- jo tural tural to fuppofe them very fierce at thofe times, yet I have 'frequently feen the Indians go to their dens, and take out the young ones and play with them. I never knew a Northern Indian hurt one of them: on the contrary, they always put them carefully into the den again; and I have fometimes feen them paint the faces of the young Wolves with vermillion, or red ochre. The Arctic Foxes are in fome years remarkably plen- Foxes of tiful, but generally moft foon the barren ground, near the [o^11500, fea-coaft. Notwithstanding what has been faid of this animal only vifiting the fettlements once in five or feven years, I can affirm there is hot one year in twenty that they are not caught in greater or lefs numbers at Churchill; and I have known that for three years running, not lefs than from two hundred to four hundred have been caught each year within thirty miles of the Fort. They always come from the North along the coaft, and generally make their appearance at Churchill about the middle of October, but their fkins are feldom in feafon till November; during that time they are never molefted, but permitted to feed round the Fort, till by degrees they become almoft do-meftic. The great numbers of thofe animals that vifit Churchill River in fome years do not all come in a body, as it would be impoftible for the fourth part of them to find fubfiftence by the way; but when they come near the Fort, the carcaffes of dead whales lying along the ftiores, and the fkin and other offal, after boiling the oil, 3 A 2 afford A JOURNEY TO T .11 E afford them a plentiful repaft, and prove the means of keeping them about the Fort till, by frequent reinforcements from the Northward, their numbers are fo far in-creafed as almoft to exceed credibility. When their fkins are in feafon, a number of traps and guns are fet, and the greateft part of them are caught in one month, though fome few are found during the whole Winter. I have frequently known near forty killed in one night within half a mile of Prince of Wales's Fort; but this feldom happens after the firft or fecond night. When Churchill River is frozen over near the mouth, the greateft part of the furviving white Foxes crofs the river, and direct, their courfe to the Southward, and in fome years aflemble in confiderable numbers at York Fort and Severn River. Whether they are all killed, or what becomes of thofe which efcape, is very uncertain ; but it is well known that none of them ever migrate again to the Northward. Betides taking a trap fo freely, they are otherwife fo fimple, that I have feen them fhot off-hand while feeding, the fame as fparrows in a heap of chaff, fometimes two or three at a fhot. This fport is always moft fuccefsful in moon-light nights; for in the day-time they generally keep in their holes among the rocks, and under the hollow ice at high-water-mark. Thefe animals will prey on each other as readily as on any other animals they find dead in a trap, or wounded by gun; which renders them fo deftructive, that I have known upwards of one hundred and twenty Foxes of different fcrent colours eaten, and deftroyed in their traps by their comrades in the courfe of one Winter, within half a mile of the Fort. The Naturalifts feem ftill at a lofs to know their breeding-places, which are doubtlefs in every part of the coaft they frequent. Several of them breed near Churchill, and I have feen them in confiderable numbers all along the Weft coaft of Hudfon's Bay, particularly at Cape Efquimaux, Navel's Bay, and Whale Cove, alfo on Marble Ifland; fo that with fome degree of confidence we may affirm, that they breed on every part of the coaft they inhabit during the Su romer feafon. They generally have from three to five young at a litter ; more I never faw with one old one. When young they are all over almoft of a footy black, but as the fall advances, the belly, fides, and tail turn to a light afh-colour; the back, legs, fome part of the face, and the tip of the tail, changes to a lead colour ; but when the Winter fets in they become perfectly white : the ridge of the back and the tip of the tail are the laft places that change to that colour ; and there are few of them which have not a few dark hairs at the tip of the tail all the Winter. If taken young, they are eafily do-mefticated in fome degree, but I never faw one that was fond of being carefied ; and they are always impatient of confinement. White Foxes, when killed at any confiderable diftance The white from the fea coaft, (where they cannot poflibly get any F°x' thing thing to prey upon, except rabbits, mice, and partridges,) are far from being difagrceable eating. And on Marble Ifland I have fhot them when they were equal in flavour to a rabbit; probably owing to their feeding entirely on eggs and young birds; but near Churchill River they are as rank as train-oil. The Lynx, The Lynx, or Wild Cat, is very fcarce to the North of Churchill; but is exactly the fame as thofe which are found in great plenty to the South Weft. I have obferved the tracks of this animal at Churchill, and feen them killed, and have eaten of their flefh in the neighbourhood of York Fort. The flefh is white, and nearly as good as that of a rabbit. They are, I think, much larger than that which is defcribed in the Arctic Zoology; they never approach near the fettlements in Hudfon's Bay, and are very deftructive to rabbits: they feldom leave a place which is frequented by rabbits till they have nearly killed them all. The Polar or White Bear, though common on the fea-coaft, is feldom found in its Winter retreats by any of our Northern Indians, except near Churchill River; nor do I fuppofe that the Efquimaux fee or kill any of them more frequently during that feafon ; for in the courfe of many years refidence at Churchill River, I fcarcely ever faw a Winter fkin brought from the Northward by the floop. Probably the Efquimaux, if they kill any, may referve The Polar or White I3ear. referve the fkins for their own ufe; for at that feafon their hair is very long, with a thick bed of wool at the bottom, and they are remarkably clean and white. The Winter is the only feafon that fo oily a fkin as the Bear's can pof-fibly be cleaned and dreffed by thofe people, without greafing the hair, which is very unpleafant to them; for though they eat train-oil, flrV. yet they are as careful as poffible to keep their clothes from being greafed with it. To drefs one of thofe greafy fkins in Winter, as foon as taken from the beaft, it is ftretched out on a fmooth patch of fnow, and there flaked down, where it foon freezes as hard as a board: while in that ftate, the women fcrape off all the fat, till they come to the very roots of the hair. It is fometimes permitted to remain in that pofition for a confiderable time; and when taken from the fnow, is hung up in the open air. The more intenfe the froft, the greater is its drying quality; and by being wafted about by the wind, with a little fcraping, it in time becomes perfectly fupple, and both pelt and hair beautifully white. Drying deer, beaver, and otter fkins, in this manner render their pelts very white, but not fupple; probably owing to the clofe texture and thicknefs of their fkins: whereas the fkin of the bear, though fo large an animal, is remarkably thin and fpungy *. Black * It is rather lingular that the Polar Bears are feldom found on the land during the Winter, on which account it is fuppofed they go out on the ice, and keep near the edge of the water during that feafon, while the females that are pregnant feek flicker at the fldrts of the woods, and dig themfelves dens in the deeper! 36S A TOURNEY TO THE The Black Black Bears are not very numerous to the North Weft of Churchill. Their manner of life is the fame as the reft of the fpecies, though the face of the country they deeped drifts of fnow they can find, where they remain in a ftate of inactivity, and without food, from the latter end of December or January, till the latter end of March j at which time they leave their dens, and bend their courfe towards the fea with their cubs; which, in general, are two in number. Not-withflanding the great magnitude of thofe animals when full grown, yet their young are not larger than rabbits, and when they leave their dens, in March, I have frequently feen them not larger than a white fox, and their fteps on the fnow not bigger than a crown-piece, when thofe of their dam meafured near fifteen inches long, and nine inches broad. They propagate when young, or at leaft before they are half-grown; for I have killed young females not larger than a London calf, with milk in their teats; whereas fome of the full grown ones are heavier than the largeft of our common oxen. Indeed I was once at the killing of one, when one of its hind feet being cut off at the ankle, weighed fifty-four pounds. The males have a bone in their penis, as a dog has, and of courfe unite in copulation ; but the time of their courtfhip is, I believe, not exactly known : probably it may be in July or Auguft, for at thofe times I have often been at the killing them, when the males were fo attached to theif miftrefies, that after the female was killed, the male would put his two fore-paws over, and fuffer himfelf to be fhot before he would quit her. I have frequently feen and killed thofe animals near twelve leagues from the land ; but as the Fall of the year advances, they are taught by inftincl to feek the fhore. Though fuch a tremendous animal, they are very fhy of coming near a man; but when clofely purfued in the water, they frequently attack the boat, feize the oars, and wreft them from the hands of the ftrongeft man, feeming defirous to get on board; but the people on thofe occafions are always provided with fire-arms and hatchets, to prevent fuch an unwelcome vifit. The flefh of this animal, when killed in Winter, (if not too old,) is far from being unpleafant eating; and the young cubs, in the Spring, are rather delicate than otherwife. The tits of the females are only two in number, and are placed between the fore-legs. The beft Drawing of this Animal I have feen, is that done by Mr. Webber, among the Plates of Cook's laft Voyage. inhabit, inhabit, differs widely from the more mild climates. In Summer they proul about in fearch of berries, £§rV. and as the Winter approaches, retire to their dens, which are always under-ground; and generally, if not always, on the ride of a fmall hillock. The Bears that inhabit the Southern parts of America are faid to take up their Winter abode in hollow trees; but I never faw any trees in my Northern travels, that could afford any fuch ilielter. The places of retreat of thofe Bears that burrow underground are eafily difcovered in Winter, by the rime that hangs about the mouth of the den; for let the fnow be ever fo deep, the heat and breath of the animal prevents the mouth of the den from being entirely clofed up. They generally retire to their Winter-quarters before the fnow is of any confiderable depth, and never come abroad again (unlefs difturbed) till the thaws are confiderable, which in thofe high latitudes is feldom till the latter end of March, or the beginning of April; fo that the few Black Bears that inhabit thofe cold regions may be faid to fubfifl for four months at leaft without food. I have been prefent at the killing two of them in Winter; and the Northern Indian method is fimilar to that faid to be in ufe among the Kamtfchatkans ; for they always blocked up the mouth of the den with logs of wood, then broke open the top of it, and killed the animal either with a fpear or a gun; but the latter method is reckoned both cowardly and wafteful, as it is not poffible for the Bear either to make its efcape, or to do the. Indians the leaft injury. 3 B Some- Sometimes they put a fnare about the Bear's neck, and draw-up his head clofe to the hole, and kill him with a hatchet. Though thofe animals are but fcarce to the North of Churchill, yet they are fo numerous between York Fort and Cumberland Houfe, that in one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-four I faw eleven killed in the courfe of one day's journey, but their flefh. was abominable. This was in the month of June, long before any fruit was ripe, for the want of which they then fed entirely on water in-feds, which in fome of the lakes we crofled that day were in aftoniming multitudes *. The method by which the Bears catch thofe infects is by fwimming with their mouths open, in the fame manner as the whales do, when feeding on the fea-fpider. There was not one of the Bears killed that day, which had not its ftomach as full of thofe infects (only) as ever a hog's was with grains, and when cut open, the ftench from them was intolerable. I have, however, eaten of fome killed at that early feafon which were very good ; * The infects here fpoken of are of two kinds; the one is nearly black, its ikin hard like a beetle, and not very unlike a grafshopper, and darts through the water with great eafe, and with fome degree of velocity. The other fort is brown, has wings, and is as foft as the common cleg-fly. The latter are the moft numerous; and in fome of the lakes fuch quantities of them are forced into the bays in gales of wind, and there prefied together in fuch multitudes, that they are killed, and remain there a great nuifance; for I have ieveral times, in my inland voyages from York Fort, found it fcarcely poflible to land in fome of thofe bays for the intolerable ftench of thofe infects, which in fome places were lying in putrid malTes to the depth of two or three feet. It is more than probable, that the Bears occafionally feed on thefe dead infects. but but they were found among the woods, far from the places where thofe infects haunt, and had fed on grafs and other herbage. After the middle of July, when the berries begin to ripen, they are excellent eating, and fo continue till January or February following; but late in the Spring they are, * by long falling, very poor and dry eating. The Southern Indians kill great numbers of thofe Bears at all feafons of the year ; but no encouragement can prevent them from fingeing almoft every one that is in good condition: fo that the few fkins they do fave and bring to the market, are only of thofe which are fo poor that their flefh is not worth eating *. In fact, the fkinning of a Bear fpoils the meat thereof, as much as it would do to fkin a young porker, or a roafting pig. The fame may be faid of fwans (the fkins of which the Company have lately made an article of trade); otherwife thoufands of their fkins might be brought to market annually, by the Indians that trade with the Hudfon's Bay Company's fervants at the different fettlements about the Bay. Brown Bears are, I believe, never found in the North- The] Indian territories ; but I faw the fkin of an enormous Bear* * It is common for the Southern Indians to tame and domefticatc the youno-cubs; and they are frequently taken fo young that they cannot eat. On thofe occafions the Indians oblige their wives whohave milk in their breafts to fuckle them. And one of the Company's fervants, whofe name is Ifaac Batt, willing to be as great a brute as his Indian companions, abfolutcly forced one of his wives, who had recently loft her infant, to fuckle a young Bear. 3 B 2 grizzled grizzled Bear at the tents of the Efquimaux at the Copper River ; and many of them are faid to breed not very remote from that part. The Wolverene is common in the Northern regions, as far North as the Copper River, and perhaps farther. They are equally the inhabitants of woods and barren grounds ; for the Efquimaux to the North of Churchill kill many of them when their fkins are in excellent feafon: a proof of their being capable of braving the fevereft cold. They are very flow in their pace, but their wonderful fagacity, ftrength, and acute fcent, make ample amends for that defect; for they are feldom killed at any feafon when they do not prove very fat: a great proof of their being excellent providers. With refpect. to the fiercenefs of this animal which fome affert, I can fay little, but I know them to be beafts of great courage and refolution, for I once faw one of them take poffeflion of a deer that an Indian had killed, and though the Indian advanced within twenty yards, he would not relinquifh his claim to it, but fufTered himfelf to be fhot ftanding on the deer. I once faw a fimilar inftance of a lynx, or wild cat, which alfo fuffered itfelf to be killed before it would relinquifh the prize. The Wolverenes have alfo frequently been feen to take a deer from a wolf before the latter had time to begin his repaft after killing it. Indeed their amazing ftrength, and the length and fharpnefs of their claws, render them capable of making a ftrong refiftance againft any any other animal in thofe parts, the Bear not excepted. As a proof of their amazing ftrength, there was one at Churchill fome years fince, that overfet the greateft part of a large pile of wood, (containing a whole Winter's firing, that meafured upwards of feventy yards round,) to get at fome provifions that had been hid there by the Company's fervants, when going to the Factory to fpend the Chriftmas holidays. The fact, was, this animal had been lurking about in the neighbourhood of their tent (which was about eight miles from the Factory) for fome weeks, and had committed many depredations on the game caught in their traps and fnares, as well as eaten many foxes that were killed by guns fet for that purpofe; but the Wolverene was too cunning to take either trap or gun himfelf. The people knowing the mifchievous difpofltion of thofe animals, took (as they thought) the moft effectual method to fecure the remains of their provifions, which they did not chufe to carry home, and accordingly tied it up in bundles and placed it on the top of the wood-pile, (about two miles from their tent,) little thinking the Wolverene would find it out; but to their great furprife, when they returned to their tent after the holidays, they found the pile of wood in the ftate already mentioned, though fome of the trees that compofed it were as much as two men could carry. The only reafon the people could give for the animal doing fo much mifchief was, that in his attempting to carry off the booty, fome of the fmall parcels of provifions had fallen down into the heart of the pile, and fooner fooner than lofe half his prize, he purfued the above method till he had accomplhlied his ends. The bags of flour, oatmeal, and peafe, though of no ufe to him, he tore all to pieces, and fcattered the contents about on the fnow; but every bit of animal food, confifting of beef, pork, bacon, venifon, fait geefe, partridges, &c. to a confiderable amount, he carried away. Thefe animals are great enemies to the Beaver, but the manner of life of the latter prevents them from falling into their clutches fo frequently as many other animals ; they commit vaft depredations on the foxes during the Summer, while the young ones are fmall; their quick fcent directs them to their dens, and if the entrance be too fmall, their ftrength enables them to widen it, and go in and kill the mother and all her cubs. In fact, they are the moft de-ftructive animals in this country *. Otters are pretty plentiful in the rivers to the North of Churchill, as far as latitude 62°; farther North I do not recollect to have feen any. In Winter they generally frequent thofe parts of rivers where there are falls or rapids, which do not freeze in the coldeft Winters; becaufe in * Mr. Graham fays they take their lodgings in the clefts of rocks, or in hollow trees. The former I acknowledge, but I believe that neither Mr. Graham nor any of the Company's fervants ever faw an inftance of the latter. In fad, during all my travels in the interior parts of Hudfon's Bay, I never faw a hollow tree that was capable of affording flicker to any larger animal than martins, jackafhes, or wejacks; much lets the quiquehatch or bear, as fome have afferted. 5 Juch fuch fituations they are moft likely to find plenty of fifh, and the open water gives them a free admiffion to the ftiore, where they fometimes go to eat the fifh they have caught; but moft commonly fit on the ice, or get on a great ftone in the river. They are frequently feen in the very depth of Winter at a confiderable diftance from any known open water, both in woods and on open plains, as well as on the ice of large lakes; but it is not known what has led them to fuch places: perhaps merely for amufement, for they are not known to kill any game on the land during that feafon. If purfued when among the woods in Winter, (where the fnow is always light and deep,) they immediately dive, and make confiderable way under it, but are eafily traced by the motion of the fnow above them, and foon overtaken. The Indians kill numbers of them with clubs, by tracing them in the fnow; but fome of the old ones are fo fierce when clofe purfued, that they turn and fly at their purfuer, and their bite is fo fevere that it is much dreaded by the Indians. Befides this method of killing them, the Indians have another, which is equally fuccefsful; namely, by concealing themfelves within a reafonable gun-fhot of the Otters ufual landing-places, and waiting their coming out of the water. This method is more generally practifed in moon-light nights. They alfo fhoot many of them as they are fporting in the water, and fome few are caught in traps. The Otters in this, as well as every other part of the bay, vary in fize and colour, according to age and feafon. In In Summer, when the hair is very fhort, they are al-inofl: black, but as the Winter advances, they turn to a beautiful dark auburn, except a fmall fpot under the chin, which is of a filver gray. This colour they retain all the Winter; but late in the Spring (though long before they fhed their coat) they turn to a dull rufty brown ; fo that a perfon who is acquainted with thofe changes can tell to a great nicety, by looking at the fkins, (when offered for fale,) the very time they were killed, and pay for them according to their value. The number of their young is various, from three to five or fix. They unite in copulation the fame as a dog, and fo do every other animal that has a bone in the penis. \ will here enumerate all of that defcription that I know of in thofe parts, viz. bears of all forts, wolves, wolvereens, foxes, martins, otters, wejacks, jackafhes, fkunks, and ermines *1 Jack ash. This animal is certainly no other than the lefler Otter of Canada, as its colour, fize, and manner of life entirely correfpond with the defcription of that animal in Mr. Pcnant's Arctic Zoology. They, like the larger Otter, are frequently found in Winter feveral miles from any water, and are often caught in traps built for martins. They are fuppofed to prey on mice and partridges, the fame as the martin; but when by the fide of rivers or * The Otter is very fond of play; and one of their favourite paftimes is, to get on a high ridge of fnow; bend their fore-feet backward, and Aide down the fide of it, fometimes to die diftance of twenty yards. creeks, The Jaclc-afh. creeks, they generally feed on fifh. They vary fo much in fize and colour, that it was very eafy for Mr. Pennant to have miftaken the fpecimen fent home for another animal. They are the eafieft to tame and domefticate of any animal I know, except a large fpecies of field-mice, called the Hair-tailed Moufe ; for in a very fhort time they are fo fond, that it is fcarcely poffible to keep them from climbing up one's legs and body, and they never feel themfelves; happier than when fitting on the fhoulder •> but when angry, or frightened, (like the flcunk,) they emit a very dif* agreeable fmell. They fleep very much in the day, but prowl about and feed in the night; they are very fierce when at their meals, not fuffering thofe to whom they are moft attached to take it from them. I have kept feveral of them, but their over-fondnefs made them troublefome, as they were always in the way; and their fo frequently emitting a difagreeable fmell, rendered them quite difgufting. Though the Wejack* and Skunk are never found in Thcw- the Northern Indian country, yet I cannot help obferving JskUnk,nd that the foetid fmell of the latter has not been much exaggerated by any Author. When I was at Cumberland * Mr. Graham aflerts that this animal frequents the banks of creeks, and feeds on fifh ; but thefe are by no means their ufual haunts. I have, however,., no doubt, but when they find fifh on the land, that they may eat it,, like other-carnivorous animals; but they are.as fhy of taking the water as a domeftic cat. They climb trees, and catch partridges, mice, and rabbits, with as much eafe as a martin. They are eafily tamed and domefticated,. are very fond of tea-leaves, have a pleaiant mufky fmell, and are very playful. 3 C Houfe^ Houfe, in the Fall of one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-four, fome Indians that were tenting on the plantation killed two of thofe animals, and made a feaft of them ; when the fpot where they were ringed and gutted was fo impregnated with that naufeous fmell which they emit, that after a whole Winter had elapfed, and the fnow had thawed away in the Spring, the fmell was ftill intolerable. I am told, however, that the flefh is by no means tainted with the fmell, if care be taken in gutting, and taking out the bag that contains this furprifing effluvia, and which they have the power of emitting at pleafure; but I rather doubt their being capable of ejecting their urine fo far as is reported j I do not think it is their urine which contains that peftilential effluvia, for if that was the cafe, all the country where they frequent would be fo fcented with it, that neither man nor beaft could live there with any degree of comfort. The Pine The Common Pine Martin is found in moft parts of this country, and though very fcarce in what is abfolutely called the Northern Indian territory, yet by the Indians ftrolling toward the borders of the Southern Indian country, are killed in great numbers, and annually traded for at Churchill Factory. ThcErmiue, The Ermine, or Stote, is common in thofe part?, but oxStotc. generally more plentiful on the barren ground, and open plains or marfhes, than in the woods; probably owing to the the mice being more numerous in the former fituations than in the latter. In Summer they are of a tawney brown, but in Winter of a delicate white all over, except the tip of the tail, which is of a gloffy black. They are, for their fize, the ftrongeft and moft courageous animal I know; as they not only kill partridges, but even attack rabbits with great fuccefs. They fometimes take up their abode in the out-offices and provifton-fried s belonging to the Factories ; and though they commit fome depredations, make ample amends by killing great numbers of mice, which are very numerous and deftruclive at moft of the fettlements in the Bay. I have taken much pains to tame and domefticate this beautiful animal, but never could fuc-ceed ; for the longer I kept it the more reftlefs and impatient it became. Animals with Cutting Teeth* The Musk Rat, or Musquash; or, as Naturalifts call The Moft it, the Musk Beaver; is common in thofe parts; generally Rat' frequenting ponds and deep fwamps that do not freeze dry in Winter. The manner of life of this fpecies of animals is peculiar, aud refembles that of the Beaver, as they are in fome refpecls provident, and build houfes to ("belter themfelves from the inclemency of the cold in Winter; but inftead of making thofe houfes on the banks of ponds or fwamps, like the Beaver, they generally build them on the ice as foon as it is Ikinncd over, and at a confiderable 3 C 2 diftance diftance from the fhore ; always taking care to keep a hole open in the ice to admit them to dive for their food, which chiefly conftfts of the roots of grafs: in the Southern parts of the country they feed much on a well-known root, called Calamus Aromaticus* The materials made ufe of in building their houfes are mud and grafs, which they fetch up from the bottom. It fometimes happens in very cold Winters, that the holes in their houfes freeze over, in fpite of all their efforts to keep them open. When that is the cafe, and they have no provifions left in the houfe, the ftrongeft preys on the weakeft, till by degrees only one is left out of a whole lodge. I have feen feveral inftances fufficient to confirm the truth of this affertion; for when their houfes were broke open, the fkeletons of feven or eight have been found, and only one entire animal. Though they occafionally eat fifh and other animal food, yet in general they feed very clean, and when hit arc good eating, particularly when nicely finged, fcalded, and boiled. They are eafily tamed, and foon grow fond ; are very cleanly and playful, and fmell exceedingly pleafant of mufk j but their refemblance to a Rat is fo great, that few are partial to them. Indeed the only difference between them and a common Rat, exclufive of their fuperior fize, is, that their hind-feet are large and webbed, and the tail, inftead of being round, is flat and fcaly. Though I have before laid, that the Mufk Beaver generally build their houfes on the ice, it is not always the cafe; for in the Southern parts of the country, particularly ticularly about Cumberland Houfe, I have feen, in fome of the deep fwamps that were over-run with rufhes and long grafs, many fmall iflands that have been raifed by the induftry of thofe animals; on the tops of which they had built their houfes, like the beaver, fome of which were very large. The tops of thofe houfes are favourite breeding-places for the geefe, which bring forth their young brood there, without the fear of being molefted by foxes, or any other deftruft ive animal, except the Eagle. Porcupines are fo fcarce to the North of Churchill TkePorcu-(River, that I do not recoiled: to have feen more than fix P" during almoft three years refidence among the Northern Indians. Mr. Pennant obferves in his Ardic Zoology, that they always have two at a time; one brought forth alive and the other ftill-born * ; but I never faw an in-ftance of this kind, though in different parts of the coun- < try I have feen them killed in all ftages of pregnancy. The flefh of the Porcupine is very delicious, and fo much efteemed by the Indians, that they think it the greateft luxury that their country affords. The quills are in great requeft among the women ; who make them into a variety of ornaments, fuch as fhot-bags, belts, garters, bracelets, &c* Their mode of copulation is fingular, for their1 * This information was given to Mr. Pennant from the authority of Mr. Graham; but the before-mentioned account of feeing them killed in all flages of pregnancy, when no fymptoms of that kind appeared, will, I hope, be iufficienr. to clear up that miftake. quills quills will not permit them to perform that office in the ufual mode, like other quadrupeds. To remedy this inconvenience, they fometimes lie on their fides, and meet in that manner; but the ufual mode is for the male to lie on his back, and the female to walk over him, (beginning at his head,) till the parts of generation come in contact. They are the moft forlorn animal I know; for in thofe parts of Hudfon's Bay where they are moft numerous, it is not common to fee more than one in a place. They are fo remarkably flow and ftupid, that our Indians going with packets from Fort to Fort often fee them in the trees, but not having occafion for them at that time, leave them till their return; and fhould their abfence be a week or ten days, they are fure to find them within a mile of the place where they had feen them before. Foxes of various colours are not fcarce in thofe parts; but the natives living fuch a wandering life, feldom kill many. It is rather ftrange that no other fpecies of Fox, except the white, are found at any diftance from the woods on the barren ground ; for fo long as the trade has been eftablifhed with the Efquimaux to the North of Churchill, I do not recollect that Foxes of any other colour than white were ever received from them. The Varying Hares are numerous to the North of Churchill River, and extend as far as latitude 7 2°, probably farther. They delight moft in rocky and ftony places, Foxes of various Colours. Varying Hares. t places, near the borders of woods; though many of them brave the coldeft Winters on entire barren ground. In Summer they are nearly the colour of our Englifh wild rabbit; but in Winter affumc a mofl delicate white all over, except tlie tips of the ears, which are black. They are, when full grown and in good condition, very large, many of them weighing fourteen.or fifteen pounds; and if not too old, arc good eating, In Winter they feed on long rye-grafs and the tops of dwarf willows, but in Summer eat berries, and different forts of fmall herbage. They are frequently killed on the South-fide of Church ill River, and feveral have been known to breed near the fettlement at that place. They muft multiply very faft, for when we evacuated Prince of Wales's Fort in one thoufand feven hundred and eighty-two, it was rare to fee one of them within twenty or thirty miles of that place; but at our return, in one thoufand feven hundred and eighty-three, we found them in fuch numbers, that it was common for one man to kill two or three in a day within half a mile of the new fettlement. But partly, perhaps, from fo many being killed, and partly from the furvivors being fo frequently difturbed, they have fhifted their fituation, and are at prefent as fcarce near the fettlement as ever. The Northern Indians purfue a lingular method in fhooting thofe Hares ; finding by long experience that thefe animals will not bear a direel: approach, when the Indians fee a hare fitting, they walk round it in circles, always drawing nearer at every revolution, till by degrees they get within gun-fhot. The 5 middle middle of the day, if it be clear weather, is the beft time to kill them in this manner; for before and after noon, the Sun's altitude being fo fmall, makes a man's ftiadow fo long on the fnow, as to frighten the Hare before he can approach near enough to kill it. The fame may be faid of deer when on open plains, who are frequently more frightened at the long fhadow than at the man himfelf. The American Hares, or, as they are called in Hudfon's Bay, Rabbits, are not plentiful in the Eaftern parts of the Northern Indian country, not even in thofe parts that are fituated among the woods; but to the Weftward, bordering on the Southern Indian country, they are in fome places pretty numerous, though by no means equal to what has been reported of them at York Fort, and fome other fettlements in the Bay. The furr of thofe animals, when killed in the beft part of the feafon, was for many years entirely neglected by the furriers; for fome time paft the Company have ordered as many of their fkins to be fent home as can be procured; they are but of fmall value. The flefh of thofe Hares is generally more efteemed than that of the former. They are in feafon all the Winter; and though they generally feed on the brufh of pine and fir during that feafon, yet many of the Northern Indians eat the contents of the ftomach. They are feldom fought after in Summer, as in that feafon they are not efteemed i good good eating; but as the Fall advances they are, by feeding on berries, ftf c* moft excellent. In Spring they fhed their Winter coat, and during the Summer are nearly the colour of the Englifti wild rabbit, but as the Winter advances they become nearly white. In thick weather they are eafily mot with the gun ; but the moft ufual method of killing them is by ihares, fet nearly in the manner defcribed by Dragge in the Firft Volume of his North Weft Paffage, The Common Squirrels are plentiful in the woody parts The cw ©f this country, and are caught by the natives in confidcr- ™j011 S(iUir" able numbers with fnares, while the boys kill many of them with blunt-headed arrows. The method of daring them is rather curious, though very fimple, as it con-fifts of nothing more than fetting a number of fnares all round the body of the tree in which they are feen, and arranging them in fuch a manner that it is fcarcely poftiblc for the fquirrels to defcend without being entangled in one of them. This is generally the amufement of the boys. Though fmall, and feldom fat, yet they are good eating. The beauty and delicacy of this animal induced me to attempt taming and domefticating fome of them, but without fuccefs; for though feveral of them were fo familiar as to take any thing out of my hand, and fit on the table where I was writing, and play with the pens, yet they never would bear to be handled, and were very mif-chievous; gnawing the chair-bottoms, window-curtains, fafhes, &Pc. to pieces. They arc an article of trade in the 3 D Company's .Hie Ground Mice of various kinds. Company*!: ftandard, but the greateft part of their (kins* being killed in Summer, are of very little value. The Ground Squirrels are never found in the woody parts of North America, but are very plentiful on the barren ground, to the North of Churchill River, as far as the latitude 71°, and probably much farther. In fize they are equal to the American Grey Squirrel, though more beautiful in colour. They generally burrow among the rocks and under great ftones, but fometimes on the fides of fandy ridges; and are fo provident in laying up a Winter's ftock during the Summer, that they are feldom feen on the furface of the fnow in Winter. They generally feed on the tufts of grafs, the tender tops of dwarf willows, &*c* and are for the moft part exceedingly fat, and good eating. They aie eafily tanned, and foon grow fond^ by degrees they will bear handling as well as a cat; are exceeding cleanly, very playful, and by no means fo reftlefs and impatient of confinement as the Common SquirreL Mice are in great plenty and variety in all parts of Hudfon's Bay ; the marfhes being inhabited by one fpecies, and the dry ridges by another, The Shrew Moufe is frequently found in Beaver houfes during Winter, where they not only find a warm habitation, but alfo pick up a comfortable livelihood from the fcraps left by the Beaver, Moft of the other fpecies build or make nefts of dry grafs, of fuch a fize and thicknefs, that when covered with fnow* they muft be fufficiently warm. They all feed on grafs in general, but will alfo eat animal food when they can get it. The Hair-tailed Moufe is the largeft in the Northern parts of the Bay, being little inferior in fize to a common raL They always burrow under ftones, on dry ridges; are very inoffenfive, and fo eafily tamed, that if taken when full-grown, fome of them will in a day or two be perfectly reconciled, and are fo fond of being handled, that they will creep about your neck, or into your bofom. In Summer they are grey, and in Winter change to white, but are by no means fo beautiful as a white ermine. At that feafon they are infefted with multitudes of fmall lice, not a fixth part fo large as the mites in a cheefe; in fact, they are fo fmall, that at firft fight they only appear like reddifh-brown duft, but on clofer examination are all perceived in motion. In one large and beautiful animal of this kind, caught in the depth of Winter, I found thofe little vermin fo numerous about it, that almoft every hair was covered with them as thick as ropes with onions, and when they approached near the ends of the hair they may be faid to change the moufe from white to a faint brown. At that time I had an excellent micro-fcope, and endeavoured to examine them, and to afcer-tain their form, but the weather was fo exceedingly cold, that the glafTes became damp with the moifture of my breath before I could get a fingle fight. The hind-feet of thefe Mice are exactly like thofe of a Bear, and the 3 D 2 fore- fore-feet are armed with a horny fubftance, (that I never faw in any other fpecies of the Moufe,) which is wonderfully adapted for fcraping away the ground where they wifh to take up their abode. They are plentiful on fome of the ffony ridges near Churchill Factory, but never approach the houfe, or any of the out-offices. From appearances they are very local, and feldom ftray far from their habitations even in Summer, and in Winter they are feldom feen on the furface of the fnow; a great proof of their being provident in Summer to lay by a flock for that feafon. Pinnated Quadrupeds. With refpect to the Pinnated Quadrupeds with fin-like feet, there are but few fpecies in Hudfon's Bay. The Walrus, or Sea-Horfe, and Seals, are the only ones that [ know. The Walrus are numerous about Merry and Jones's Iflands, but more fo on a fmall ifland called Sea-Horfe Ifland, that lies in the fair way going to Whale Cove. In July one thoufand feven hundred and fixty-feven, when on my voyage to the North of Churchill River, in pairing Sea-Horfe Ifland, we faw fuch numbers of thofe animals lying on the fhore, that when fome fwivel guns loaded with ball were fired among them, the whole beach feemed to be in motion. The greateft part of them plunged into the water, and many of them fwam round 7 the the vcfYel within mu&et-fhot. Every, one on board exerted their fkill in killing them, but it was attended with fo little fuccefs, that the few which were killed funk to the bottom, and thofe which were mortally wounded made off out of our reach. With what propriety thofe animals are called Horfes, I cannot fee; for there is not the leaft refemblance in any one part. Their bodies, fins, &*c. are exactly like thofe of an enormous Seal, and the head is not very unlike that animal, except that the nofe is much broader, to give room for the two large tufks that project from the upper jaw. Thofe tufks, and their red fparkling eyes, make them have a very fierce and formidable appearance. They are generally found in confiderable numbers, which indicate their love of fociety ; and their affection for each other is very apparent, as they always flock round thofe that are wounded, and when they fink, accompany them to the bottom, but foon rife to the furface, and make a hideous roaring, and of all amphibious animals, they are at times the leaft fenfible of danger from man that I know. They often attack fmall boats merely through wanton^ nefs, and not only put the people in great confufion, but fubject them to great danger; for they always aim at ftaving the boat with their tufks, or endeavour to get in, but are never known to hurt the people. In the year one thoufand feven hundred and fixty-fix fome of the floop's crew feeds but at the approach of Summer it flies ftill farther North to breed. A variety of this bird is alfo common, and is beautifully marked with a red forehead and breaft. It is moft common in the Spring, and frequently caught in nets fet for the Snow Bunting ; and when kept in cages has a pleating note, but feldom lives long in confinement, though it generally dies very fat. Larks of a pretty variegated colour frequent thofe parts Larks, in Summer, and always make their appearance in May; build their nefts on the ground, ufually by the fide of a ftone at the root of a fmall bum, lay four fpeckled eggs, and bring forth their young in June. At their firft arrival, and till the young can fly, the male is in full fong; and, like the fky-lark, foars to a great height, and generally defcends in a perpendicular direction near their neft. Their note is loud and agreeable, but confifts of little variety, and as foon as the young can fly they become filent* and retire to the Southward early in the Fall. They are impatient of confinement, never fing in that ftate, and feldom live long. The Titmouse is ufually called in Hudfon's Bay, Black- Titmoa^ cap. This diminutive bird braves the coldeft Winter, and during that feafon feeds on the feeds of long rye-grafs, but in Summer on infects and berries. The Southern Indians call this bird Kifs-kifs-hefhis, from a twittering noife they make, which much refembles that word in found. Swallows Swallows vifit thefe parts in confiderable numbers in Summer, and are very domeftic; building their nefts in neceflaries, ftables, and other out-offices that are much frequented. They feldom make their appearance at Churchill River till June, and retire South early in Auguft. They, like the European Swallow, gather in large flocks on the day of their departure, make feveral revolutions round the breeding-places, and then take their leave till the next year. I do not recollect to have feen any of thofe birds to the North of Seal River. Martins alfo vifit Hudfon's Bay in great numbers, but feldom fo far North as Churchill River. They ufually make their nefts in holes formed in the fteep banks of rivers; and, like the Swallow, lay four or five fpeckled eggs; and retire Southward in Auguft. At the Northern fettlements they are by no means fo domeftic as the Swallow. Hooping Crane. This bird vifits Hudfon's Bay in the Spring, though not in great numbers. They are generally feen only in pairs, and that not very often. It is a bird of confiderable fize, often equal to that of a good turkey, and the great length of the bill, neck, and legs, makes it meafure, from the bill to the toes, near fix feet in common, and fome much more. Its plumage is of a pure white, except the quill-feathers, which are black; the crown is covered with a red fldn, thinly thinly bcfet with black briftles, and the legs are large and black. It ufually frequents open fwamps, the fides of rivers, and the margins of lakes and ponds, feeds on frogs and fmall fifh, and efteemed good eating. The wing-bones of this bird are fo long and large, that I have known them made into flutes^ with tolerable fuccefs. It feldom has more than two young, and retires Southward early in the Fall. The Brown Crane. This fpecies is far inferior in fize to Brown the former, being feldom three feet and a half in length, and Cnne' on an average not weighing feven pounds. Their haunts and manner of life are nearly the fame as that of the Hooping Crane, and they never have more than two young, and thofe feldom fly till September. They are found farther North than the former, for I have killed feveral of them on Marble Ifland, and have feen them on the Continent as high as the latitude 650. They are generally efteemed good eating, and, from the form of the body when fit for the fpit, they acquire the name of the North: Weft Turkey. There is a circumftance refpecting this bird that is very peculiar; which is, that the gizard is larger than that of a fwan, and remarkably fo in the young birds. The Brown Cranes are frequently feen in hot calm days to foar to an amazing height, always flying in circles, till by degrees they are almoft out of fight, yet their note is fo loud, that the fportfman, before he fees their fitua-tion* often fancies they are very near him. They vifit 6 Hudfon's 4*4 A JOURNEY T O T H E Hudfon's Bay in far greater numbers than the former, and are very good eating. Bitterns. Bitterns are common at York Fort in Summer, but are feldom found fo far North as Churchill River. I have feen two fpecies of this bird; fome having afh-coloured legs, others with beautiful grafs-green legs, and very gay plumage. They always frequent marfhes and fwamps, alfo the banks of rivers that abound with reeds and long grafs. They generally feed on infects that are bred in the water, and probably on fmall frogs; and though feldom fat, they are generally good eating. They are by no means numerous even at York Fort, nor in fad: in the moft Southern parts of the Bay that I have vifited. Curkw. Curlews. There are two fpecies of this bird which frequent the coafts of Hudfon's Bay in great numbers during Summer, and breed in all parts of it as far North as the latitude 72°; the largeft of this fpecies is diftin-guiftied by that great Naturalift Mr. Pennant, by the name of the Efquimaux Curlew. They always keep near the fea coaft ; attend the ebbing of the tide, and are frequently found at low-water-mark in great numbers, where they feed on marine infeds, which they find by the fides of ftones in great plenty; but at high-water they retire to the dry ridges and wait the receding of the tide. They fly as fteady as a woodcock, anfwer to a whittle that refembles their note; lay long on their wings, and are a moft mofl: excellent fhot, and at times are delicious eating. The other fpecies of Curlew are in colour and fhape exactly like the former, though inferior in fize, and differ in their manner of life, as they never frequent the water v edge, but always keep among the rocks and dry ridges, and feed on berries and fmall infects. The flefh of this bird is generally more efteemed than that of the former, but they are by no means fo numerous. This fpecies of Curlew are feldom found farther North than Egg River. Jack Snipes. Thofe birds vifit Hudfon's Bay in Sum- jack Snipes, mer in confiderable numbers, but are feldom feen to the North of Whale Cove. They do not arrive till the ice of the rivers is broke up, and they retire to the South early in the Fall. During their ftay, they always frequent marines near the fea coaft, and the fhores of great rivers. In manner and flight they exactly refemble the European Jack Snipe; and when on the wing, fly at fuch a diftance from each other, that it is but feldom the beft fportfman can get more than one or two at a fhot. Their flefh is by no means fo delicate as that of the Englifh Snipe. Red Godwaits, ufually called at the Northern fettle- Red God* ments in Hudfon's Bay, Plovers. Thofe birds vifit the wait" fhores of that part in very large flocks, and ufually frequent the marines and the margins of ponds. They alfo frequently attend the tide, like the Efquimaux Curlews; fly down to low-water-mark, and feed on a fmall fifh, 3 I not not much unlike a fhrimp; but as the tide flows, they retire to the mar (lies. They fly in fuch large flocks, and fo clofe to each other, that I have often killed upwards of twelve at one fhot; and Mr. Atkinfon, long refident at York Fort, actually killed feventy-two at one fhot; but that was when the birds were fitting. Near Churchill River they are feldom fat, though tolerably flefhy, and are generally good eating. They ufually weigh from ten to thirteen ounces; the female is always larger than the male, and differs in colour, being of a much lighter brown. They retire to the South long before the froft commences; yet I have feen this bird as far North as the latitude 710 50'. spottc* Spotted Godwait, known in Hudfon's Bay by the name of Yellow Legs. This bird alfo vifits that country in confiderable numbers, but more fo in the interior parts; and ufually frequents the flat muddy banks of rivers. In Summer it is generally very poor, but late in the Fall is, as it may be called, one lump of fat. This bird, with many others of the migratory tribe, I faw in confiderable numbers as far North as the latitude 710 54/; and at York Fort I have known them fhot fo late as the latter end of October : at which time they are in the greateft perfection, and moft delicious eating, more particularly fo when put into a bit of pafte, and boiled like an apple-dumpling ; for in fact they are generally too fat at that feafon to be eaten either roafted or boiled. Hebrjdal Hebridal Sandpipers, but more commonly known in Hebridal Hudfon's Bay by the Name of Whale Birds, on account s*ndplpc of their feeding on the carcafes of thofe animals which frequently lie on the fhores, alfo on maggots that are produced in them by fly-blows. Thefe birds frequent thofe parts in confiderable numbers, and always keep near the margin of the fea. They may, in fact, be called beautiful birds, though not gay in their plumage; they are ufually very fat, but even when firft killed they fmell and tafte fo much like train-oil as to render them by no means pleafing to the palate, yet they are frequently eaten by the Company's fervants. As the Summer advances they fly fo far North of Churchill River, that their breeding-places are not known, though they remain at that part till the beginning of July, and return early in the Fall. They are by no means large birds, as they feldom weigh four ounces. The bill is black, plumage prettily variegated black and white, and the legs and feet are of a beautiful orange colour *. % Plovers, commonly called Hawk's Eyes, from their Hover, watchfulnefs to prevent a near approach when fitting. When thefe birds are on the wing, they fly very fwift and irregular, particularly when fingle or in fmall flocks. At Churchill River they are by no means numerous, but I have feen them in fuch large flocks at York Fort in the Fall of one * They exactly correipond with the bird defcribed by Mr. Pennant, except chat they are much longer. 3 I 2 thou find 4^3 A JOURNEY TOT II E thoufand feven hundred and feven ty-three, that Mr. Ferdinand Jacobs then Governor, Mr. Robert Body Surgeon, and myfelf, killed in one afternoon as many as two men could conveniently carry. They generally feed on infects, and are at all times good eating, but late in the Fall are moft excellent. They are by no means equally plentiful in all years; and at the Northern fettlements in the Bay they are not clafled with thofe fpecies of game that add to the general ftock of provifions, being only killed as a luxury ; but I am informed that at Albany Fort, feveral barrels of them are annually falted for Winter ufe, and are efteemed good eating. This bird during Summer reforts to the re-moteft Northern parts; for I have feen them at the Copper River, though in thofe dreary regions only in pairs. The young of thofe birds always leave their nefts as foon as hatched, and when but a few days old run very faft; at night, or in rainy weather, the old ones call them together, and cover them with their wings, in the fame manner as a hen does her chickens. Black Gut- Black Gullemots, known in Hudfon's Bay by the knots. name Gf Sea Pigeons. Thofe birds frequent the fhores of Hudfon's Bay and Straits in confiderable numbers; but more particularly the Northern parts, where they fly in large flocks; to the Southward they are only feen in pairs. They are of a fine black, but not glofly, with fcarlet legs and feet; and the coverets of the wings are marked with white. They are in weight equal to a Widgeon, though though to appearance not fo large. They ufually make their nefts in the holes of rocks, and lay two white eggs, which are delicate eating, but not proportionably large for the fize of the bird. My friend Mr. Pennant fays, they brave the coldeft Winters in thofe parts, by keeping at the edge of the ice near the open water; but as the fea at that feafon is frozen over for feveral miles from the fhore, I believe no one's curiofity ever tempted him to confirm the truth of this; and it is well known they never make their appearance near the land after the froft becomes fevere. Northern Divers. Thefe birds, though common in Hudfon's Bay, are by no means plentiful; they are feldom found near the fea coaft, but more frequently in frefh water lakes, and ufually in pairs. They build their nefts at the edge of fmall iflands, or the margins of lakes or ponds; they lay only two eggs, and it is very common to find only one pair and their young in one fheet of water ; a great proof of their averfion to fociety. They are known in Hudfon's Bay by the name of Loons. They differ in fpecies from the Black and Red throated Divers, having a large black bill near four inches long ; plumage on the back of a glofly black, elegantly barred with white ; the belly of a iilver white ; and they are fo large as at times to weigh fifteen or fixteen pounds. Their flefti is always black, hard, and fifhy, yet it is generally eaten by the Indians. 10 Black- Black-throated Divers. Black-throated Divers. This fpecies are more beautiful than the former; having a long white bill, plumage on the back and wings black, elegantly tinged with purple and green, and prettily marked with white fpots. In fize they are equal to the former; but are fo watchful as to dive at the flam of a gun, and of courfe are feldom killed but when on the wing. Their flefh is equally black and fifhy with the former, but it is always eaten by the Indians. The fkins of thofe birds are very thick and ftrong, and they are frequently dreffed with the feathers on, and made into caps for the Indian men. The fkins of the Eagle and Raven, with their plumage complete, are alfo applied to that ufe, and are far from being an unbecoming head-drefs for a favage. Red-throat- Red-throated Divers. This fpecies are alfo called cd Divers. 1 Loons in Hudfon's Bay ; but they are fo far inferior to the two former, that they feldom weigh more than three or four pounds. They, like the other fpecies of Loon, are excellent divers; they always feed on fifh, and when in purfuit of their prey, are frequently entangled in fifhing-nets, fet at the mouths of creeks and fmall rivers. They are more numerous than either of the former, as they frequently fly in flocks; but like them make their nefts at the edge of the water, and only lay two eggs, which, though very rank and fiftvy, are always eaten by Indians and Englifh. The legs of thofe three fpecies of Loon are placed fo near the the rump as to be of no fervice to them on the land, as they are perfectly incapable of walking ; and when found in that fituation (which is but feldom) they are eafily taken, though they make a ftrong refiftance with their bill, which is very hard and ftiarp. White Gulls. Thefe birds vifit Hudfon's Bay in WhitcGuiia. great numbers, both on the fea coafts and in the interior parts, and probably extend quite acrofs the continent of America. They generally make their appearance at Churchill River about the middle of May ; build their nefts on the iflands in lakes and rivers -y lay two fpeckled eggs, and bring forth their young in June. Their eggs are generally efteemed good eating, as well as the flefh of thofe in the interior parts of the country, though they feed on fifh and carrion. They make their ftay on Hudfon's Bay as long in the Fall as the froft will permit them to procure a livelihood. Grey Gulls. Thefe birds, though common, are by no Grey Gulls, means plentiful; and I never knew their breeding-places, as they feldom make their appearance at Churchill River till the Fall of the year, and remain, there only till the ice begins to be formed about the fhores. They feldom frequent the interior parts of the country. They are not inferior in fize to the former, and in the Fall of the year are generally fat. The flefh is white and very good eating; and, like moft 432 A JOURNEY TO T Ji E moft other Gulls, they are a moft excellent fhot when on the wing. Bbck Gulls. Black Gulls, ufually called in Hudfon's Bay, Men of War, from their purfuing and taking the prey from a lefler fpecies of Gull, known in that country by the name of Black-head. In fize they are much inferior to the two former fpecies; but, like them, always make their nefts on iflands, or at the margins of lakes or ponds; they lay only two eggs, and are found at a confiderable diftance from the fea coaft. The length of their wings is very great in proportion to the body; the tail is uniform, and the two middle feathers are four or five inches longer than the reft. Their eggs are always eaten, both by the Indians and Englifh ; but the bird itfelf is generally reje&ed, except when other provifions are very fcarce. Black-heads. Black-he ads. Thefe are the fmalleft fpecies of Gull that I know. They vifit the fea coaft of Hudfon's Bay in fuch vaft numbers, that they are frequently feen in flocks of feveral hundreds; and I have known bufhels of their eggs taken on an ifland of very fmall circumference. Thefe eggs are very delicate eating, the yolks being equal to that of a young pullet, and the whites of a femi-tranf-parent azure, but the bird itfelf is always fifhy. Their affection for their young is fo ftrong, that when any perfon attempts to rob their nefts, they fly at him, and fometimes approach approach fo near as to touch him with their pinions; and when they find their lofs, will frequently follow the plunderer to a confiderable diftance, and exprefs their grief by making an unufual fcreaming noife. This bird may be ranked with the elegant part of the feathered creation, though it is by no means gay. The bill, legs, and feet are of a rich fcarlet; crown black, and the remainder of the plumage of a light afh-colour, except the quill-feathers, which are prettily barred, and tipped with black, and the tail much forked. The flight, or extent of wing, in this bird, is very great, in proportion to the body. They are found as far North as has hitherto been vifited, but retire to the South early in the Fall. Pelicans. Thofe birds are numerous in the interior Pelicans, parts of the country, but never appear near the fea-coaft. They generally frequent large lakes, and always make their nefts on iflands. They are fo provident for their young, that great quantities of fifh lie rotting near their nefts, and emit fuch a horrid ftench as to be fmelt at a confiderable diftance. The flefh of the young Pelican is frequently eaten by the Indians; and as they are always very fat, great quantities of it is melted down, and pre-ferved in bladders for Winter ufe *, to mix with pounded flefti; * In the Fall of 1774, when I firft fettled at Cumberland Houfe, the Indians impofed on me and my people very milch, by felling us Pelican fat for the fat of the black bear. Our know It :dge of the delicacy of the latter 2 K induced flcfli; but by keeping, it grows very rank. The Pelicans in thofe parts are about the fize of a common goofe; their piumage is of a delicate white, except the quill-feathers, which are black. The bill is near a foot long; and the bag, which reaches from the outer-end of the under-mandible to the breaft, is capable of containing upwards of three quarts. The fkins of thofe birds are thick and tough, and are frequently drefTed by the Indians and converted into bags, but are never made into clothing, though their feathers are as hard, clofe, and durable,, as thofe of a Loon. Goofanckrs. Goosanders, ufually called in Hudfon's Bay, Shell-drakes. Thofe birds are very common on the fea-coaft, but in the interior parts fly in very large flocks. The bill is long and narrow, and toothed like a faw ; and they have a tuft of feathers at the back of the head, which they can erect, at pleafure. They are mofl: excellent divers, and fuch great deftroyers of fifh, that they are frequently obliged to vomit fome of them before they can take flight. Though not much larger than the Mallard Duck, they frequently fwallow fifh of fix or feven inches induced us to referve this fat for particular purpofes; but when we came to open the bladders, it was little fuperior to train oil, and was only eatable by a few of my crew, which at that time confifted only of eight Englishmen and two of the home Indians from York Fort. Cumberland Houfe was the firft inland fettlement the Company made from Hudfon's Fort; and though begun on fo fmall a fcale, yet upon it and Hudfon's Houfe, which is fituated beyond it, upwards of feventy men were now employed. long long and proportionally thick. Thofe that frequent the interior pifrts of the country prey much on crawfilh, which are very numerous in fome of the fhallow ftony rivers. In the Fall of the year they are very fat, and though they always feed on fifti, yet their flefh at that feafon is very good; and they remain in thofe parts as long as the froft will permit them to procure a fub-fiftence. Swans. There are two fpecies of this bird that vifit Hudfon's Bay in Summer; and only differ in fize, as the plumage of both are perfectly white, with black bill and legs. The fmaller fort are more frequent near the fea-coaft, but by no means plentiful, and are moft frequently feen in pairs, but fometimes fingle, probably owing to their mates having been killed on their paffage North. Both fpecies ufually breed on the iflands which are in lakes; and the eggs of the larger fpecies are fo big, that one of them is a fufficicnt meal for a moderate man, without bread, or any other addition. In the interior parts of the country the larger Swan precedes every other fpecies of water-fowl, and in fome years arrive fo early as the month of March, long before the ice of the rivers are broken up. At thofe times they always frequent the open waters of falls and rapids, where they are frequently fhot by the Indians in confiderable numbers. They ufually weigh upwards of thirty pounds, and the leffer fpecies from eighteen to twenty-four. The flefti of both are excellent 3 K 2 eating, eating, and when roafted, is equal in flavour to young heifer-beef, and the cygnets are very delicate. Notwithstanding the fize of this bird, they are fo fwift on the wing as to make them the moft difficult to fhoot of any bird I know, it being frequently neceflary to take fight ten or twelve feet before their bills. This, however, is only when flying before the wind in a briflc gale, at which time they cannot fly at a lefs rate than an hundred miles an hour; but when flying acrofs the wind, or againft it, they make but a flow progrefs, and are then a noble fhot. In their moulting ftate they are not eafily taken, as their large feet, with the afliftance of their wings, enables them to run on the furface of the water as laft as an Indian canoe can be paddled, and therefore they are always obliged to be (hot; for by diving and other manoeuvres they render it impoflible to take them by hand. It has been faid that the Swans whiffle or fing before their death, and I have read fome elegant defcriptions of it in fome of the poets; but I have never heard any thing of the kind, though I have been at the deaths of feveral. It is true, in ferene evenings, after Sun-fet, I have heard them make a noife not very unlike that of a French-horn, but entirely diverted of every note that conftituted melody, and have often been forry to find it did not forebode their death. Mr. Lawfon, who, as Mr. Pennant juftly remarks, was no inaccurate obfervcr, properly enough calls the largeft fpecies Trumpeters, and the lefler, Hoopers. Some years ago, when I built Cumberland Houfe, the Indians killed thofe birds birds in fuch numbers, that the down and quills might have been procured in confiderable quantities at a trifling ex pence ; but fince the depopulation of the natives by the fmall-pox, which has alfo driven the few furvivors to frequent other parts of the country, no advantage can be made of thofe articles, though of confiderable value in England Geese. There are no lefs than ten different fpecies Geefe. of Geefe that frequent the various parts of Hudfon's Bay during Summer, and are as follow : Firft, The Common Grey Goofe. Second, The Canada Goofe. Third, The White, or Snow Goofe. Fifth, The Blue Goofe. Sixth, The Laughing Goofe. Seventh, The Barren Goofe. Eighth, The Brent Goofe. Ninth, The Dunter ; and Tenth, the Bean Goofe. Common Grey Goose. This bird precedes every other Common fpecies of Goofe in thofe parts, and in fome forward GreyGoofc Springs arrives at Churchill River fo early as the latter * Mr. Pennant, in treating of the Whittling Swan, takes notice of the formation of the Windpipe; but on examination, the windpipes of both the fpecies which frequent Hudfon's Bay are found to be exadly alike, though their note is quite different. The breaft-bone of this bird is different from any other I have feen j for infteadof being (harp and folid, like that of a goofe, it is broad and hollow. Into this cavity the windpipe panes from the valve, and reaching quite down to the abdomen, returns into the cheft, and joins the lungs. Neither of the fpecies of Swan that frequent Hudfon's Bay are miitc: but the note of the larger is much louder and harfher than that of the fmaller/ end end of April, but more commonly from the eleventh to the fixtcenth of May; and in one year it was the twenty-iixth of May before any Geefe made their appearance. At their firft arrival they generally come in pairs, and are fo fond of fociety, that they fly ftreight to the call that imitates their note; by which means they are eafily fhot. They breed in great numbers in the plains and marines near Churchill River; and in fome years the young ones can be taken in confiderable numbers, and are ealily tamed; but will never learn to eat corn, unlefs fome of the old ones are taken with them, which is eafily done when in a moulting ftate. On the ninth of Auguft one thoufand feven hundred and eighty-one, when I refided at Prince of Wales's Fort, 1 fent fome Indians up Churchill River in canoes to procure fome of thofe Geefe, and in the afternoon they were feen coming down the river with a large flock before them; the young ones not more than half-grown, and the old ones fo far in a moulting ftate as not to be capable of flying ; fo that, with the afliftance of the Englifh and the Indians then refiding on the plantation, the whole flock, to the amount of forty-one, was drove within the ftockadc which inclofes the Fort, where they were fed and fattened for Winter ufe. Wild Geefe taken and fattened in this manner are much preferable to any tame Geefe in the world. When this fpecies of Geefe are full-grown, and in good condition, they often weigh twelve pounds, but more frequently much lefs. Canada NORT H E JR N OCEAN. 439 Canada Goose, or Pifk-a-fifh, as it is called by £anarda _ J Goofe, the Indians, as well as the Englifh in Hudfon's Bay. This fpecies do not differ in plumage from the former, but are inferior in fize ; the bill is much fmaller in proportion, and the flefh being much whiter, of courfe is more efteemed. They are by no means fo numerous as the former, and generally fly far North to breed ; but fome few of their eggs are found near Churchill River. It is feldom that either of thefe fpecies lay more than four eggs; but if not robbed, they ufually bring them all forth. White or Snow Goose. Thefe are the moft numerous White or of all the fpecies of birds that frequent the Northern parts of n°W the Bay, and generally make their appearance about a week or ten days after the Common Grey Goofe. In the firft part of the feafon they come in fmall parties, but in the middle, and toward the latter end, they fly in fuch amazing flocks, that when they fettle in the marfhes to feed, the ground for a confiderable diftance appears like a field of fnow. When feeding in the fame marfh with the Grey Geefe, they never mix. Like the Grey Geefe, they fly to the call that refembles their note ; and in fome years are killed and faked in great numbers for Winter provifion; they are almoft univerfally thought good eating, and will, if proper care be taken in curing them, continue good for eighteen months or two years. The Indians are far more expert in killing Geefe, as well as every other fpecies of game, than any European I ever faw in Hudfon's Bay; 10 for for fome of them frequently kill upward of a hundred Geefe in a day, whereas the moft expert of the Englifh think it a good day's work to kill thirty. Some years back it was common for an Indian to kill from a thoufand to twelve hundred Geefe in one feafon ; but latterly he is reckoned a good hunter that kills three hundred. This is by no means owing to the degeneracy of the natives; for the Geefe of late years do not frequent thofe parts in fuch numbers as formerly. The general breeding-place of this bird is not known to any Indian in Hudfon's Bay, not even to the Efquimaux who frequent the remoteft North. The general route they take in their return to the South in the Fall of the year, is equally unknown; for though fuch multitudes of them are feen at Churchill River in the Spring, and are frequently killed to the amount of five or fix thoufand; yet in the Fall of the year, feven or eight hundred is confidered a good hunt. At York Fort, though only two degrees South of Churchill River, the Geefe feafons fluduate fo much, that in fome Springs they have falted forty hogfheads, and in others not more than one or two : and at Albany Fort, the Spring feafon is by no means to be depended on ; but in the Fall they frequently fait fixty hogfheads of Geefe, befides great quantities of Plover. The retreat of thofe birds in Winter is equally unknown, as that of their breeding-places. I obferve in Mr. Pennant's Arctic Zoology, that about Jakutz, and other parts of Siberia, they are caught in great numbers, both in nets and by decoying them into hovels; but if thefe thefe are the fame birds, they muft at times vary as much in manner as they do in fituation ; for in Hudfon's Bay they are the fhyeft and moft watchful of all the fpecies of Geefe, never fuffering an open approach, not even within two or three gun-fhots: yet in fome of the rivers near Cumberland Houfe, and at Bafquiau, the Indians frequently kill twenty at one fhot; but this is only done in moon-light nights, when the Geefe are fitting on the mud, and the fportfmen are perfectly concealed from their view. Though the plumage of thofe Geefe are perfectly white, except the quill-feathers, which are black, the fkin is of a dark lead-colour, and the flefh is excellent eating, either frefh or fait. They are much inferior in fize to the Common Grey Geefe, but equal to the Canada Geefe. Blue Geese. This fpecies are of the fame fize as the Blue Geefe; Snow Geefe; and, like them, the bill and legs are of a deep fiefh-colour, but the whole plumage is of a dirty blue, refembling old lead. The fkin, when (tripped of its feathers, is of the fame colour as the Snow Goofe, and they are equally good eating. This fpecies of Geefe are feldom feen to the North of Churchill River, and not very common at York Fort; but at Albany Fort they are more plentiful than the White or Snow Geefe. Their breeding-places are as little known to the moft accurate obferver as thofe of the Snow Geefe ; for I never knew any of their eggs taken, and their Winter haunts have 3 L hitherto hitherto been undifcovered. Thofe birds are frequently feen to lead a flock of the White ones; and, as they generally fly in angles, it is far from unpleafant to fee a bird of a different colour leading the van. The leader is generally the object of the firft fportfman who fires, which throws the whole flock into fuch confufion, that fome cf the other hunters frequently kill fix or feven at a fhot. Horned Wavey. This delicate and diminutive fpecies of the Goofe is not much larger than the Mallard Duck. Its plumage is delicately white, except the quill-feathers, which are black. The bill is not more than an inch long* and at the bafe is ftudded round with little knobs about the fize of peas, but more remarkably fo in the males.. Both the bill and feet are of the fame colour with thofe cf the Snow Goofe. This fpecies is very fcarce at Churchill River, and I believe are never found at any of the Southern fettlements; but about two or three hundred miles to the North Weft of Churchill, I have feen them in as large flocks as the Common Wavey, or Snow Goofe. The flefh of this bird is exceedingly delicate ; but they are fo fmall, that when I was on my journey to the North I eat two of them one night for fupper. I do not find this bird defcribed by my worthy friend Mr, Pennant in his Arctic Zoology. Probably a fpecimen of it was not fent home, for the perfon that commanded at Prince of Wales's Fort * at * Mr. Moics Norton. the ITorncd Wavey. the time the collection was making, did not pay any attention to it. Laughing Goose. This elegant fpecies has a white Laughing bill, and the legs and feet are of a line yellow colour; Guole* the upper part of the plumage is brown, the breaft and belly white, the former prettily blotched with black. In fize they are equal to the Snow Goofe, and their fkins, when ftripped of their feathers, are delicately white, and the flefh excellent. They vifit Churchill River in very fmall numbers ; but about two hundred miles to the North Weft of that river I have feen them fly in large flocks, like the Common Waveys, or Snow Geefe; and near Cumberland Houfe and Bafquiau they are found in fuch numbers, that the Indians in moon-light nights frequently kill upwards of twenty at a fhot. Like the Horned Wavey, they never fly with the lead of the coaft, but are always feen to come from the Weftward. Their general breeding-places are not known, though fome few of their eggs are occafionally found to the North of Churchill; but I never heard any Indian lay that he had feen any eggs of the Tlorned Wavey: it is probable they retire to North Greenland to breed ; and their rout in the Fall of the year, as they return Southward, is equally unknown. They are, I believe, feldom feen on the coaft of Hudfon's Bav to the Southward of latitude 590 North, 3 L 2 Barren GedrJ1 Barren Geese. Thefe are the largeft of all the fpecies of Geefe that frequent Hudfon's Bay, as they frequently weigh fixteen or feventeen pounds. They differ from the Common Grey Goofe in nothing but in iize, and in the head and breaft being tinged with a rufty brown. They never make their appearance in the Spring till the greateft part of the other fpecies of Geefe are flown Northward to breed, and many of them remain near Churchill River the whole Summer. This large fpecies are generally found to be males, and from the exceeding fmallnefs of their tefticles, they are, I fuppofe, incapable of propagating their fpecies. I believe I can with truth fay, that I was the firft European who made that remark, though they had always been diftinguifhed by the name of the Barren Geefe ; for no other reafon than that of their not being known to breed. Their flefh is by no means unpleafant. though always hard and tough; and their plumage is fo thick before they begin to moult, that one bird ufually produces a pound of fine feathers and down, of a furprifing elafticity. Brent Brent Geese. This fpecies certainly breed in the re- Ucefe' moteft parts of the North, and feldom make their appearance at Churchill River till late in Auguft or September. The rout they take in Spring is unknown, and their breeding-places have never been difcovered by any Indian in Hudfon's Bay, When they make their appearance at 6 Churchill Churchill River, they always come from the North, fly near the margin of the coaft, and are never feen in the interior parts of the country. In fize they are larger than a Mallard Duck, but inferior to the Snow Goofe ; and though their flefh. appears delicate to the eye, it is not much efteemed. In fome years they pafs the mouth of Churchill River in prodigious numbers, and many of them are killed and ferved to the Company's fervants as provifions; but, as I have juft obferved, they are not much relifhed. When. migrating to the South, they generally avail themfelves of a ftrong North or North Wc/WJy wind, which makes their flight fo fwift, that when I have killed four or five at a fhot, not one of them fell lefs than from twenty to fifty yards from the perpendicular fpot where they were killed. Like the White, or Snow Geefe, when in large flocks they fly in the fhape of a wedge, and make a great noife. Their flight is very irregular, fometimes being forty or fifty yards above the water, and in an in-ftant after they fkim clofe to the furface of it, and then rife again to a confiderable height; fo that they may juftly be faid to fly in feftoons, The D unter Goofe, as it is called in Hudfon s Bay, DunteT but which is certainly the Eider Duck. They are com- Goofe-mon at the mouth of Churchill River as foon as the ice breaks up, but generally fly far North to breed ; and the few that do remain near the fettlement are fo fcattered among fmall iflands, and fea-girt rocks and fhoals, as to render render it not worth while to attempt gathering their down. Their eggs, when found, are exceeding good eating; and in the Fall of the year the flefh is by no means unpleafant, though they are notorioufly known to feed on fifh. Bean Goofe. Bean Goose. This fpecies is feldom found in any part of Hudfon's Bay, as in all my travels I have only feen three that were killed. This bird never came under the inflection of Mr. Graham, or the late Mr. Hutchins, though they both contributed very largely to the collection fent home to the Royal Society *. Species of Water-FowL Ducks. Ducks of various kinds are found in thofe parts during Summer; fome only frequenting the fea-coaft, while others vifit the interior parts of the country in aftonifhing numbers. The fpecies of this bird which is found moft commonly here are, the King Duck, Black Duck, Mallard * It is, however, no lefs true, that the late Mr. Humphry Martin, many years Governor of Albany Fort, fent home feveral hundred fpecimens of animals and plants to complete that collection; but by fome miftake, nothing of the kind was placed Co the credit of his account. Even niy refpected friend Mr. Pennant, who with a candour that does him honour, has fo gene-roufly acknowledged his obligations to all to whom he thought he was indebted for information when he was writing his Arctic Zoology, (fee the Advertile-ment,) has not mentioned his name; but I am fully perfuaded that it entirely proceeded from a want of knowing the perfon; and as Mr. Hutchins fuc-.ceeded him at Albany in the year 1774, every thing that has been fent over from that part has been placed to his account. Duck, Duck, Long-tailed Duck, Widgeon, and Teal. The two firft only vifit the fea-coaft, feed on fifh and fifh-fpawn; and their flefti is by no means efteemed good, though their eggs are not difagrecable. The Mallard and Long-tailed Duck vifit Hudfon's Bay in great numbers, and extend from the fea-coaft to the remoteft Weftern parts, and near Cumberland Houfe are found in vaft multitudes. At their firft arrival on the fea-coaft, they are exceeding good eating; but when in a moulting ftate, though very fat, they are in general fo rank that few Europeans are fond of them. At thofe feafons the difference in flavour is eafily known by the colour of the fat; for when that is white, the flefh is moft afluredly good ; but when it is yellow, or of an orange colour, it is very rank and fifhy, This difference is only peculiar to thofe that frequent and breed near the fea-coaft ; for in the interior parts I never knew them killed but their flefh was very good ; and the young Mallard Duck before it can fly is very fat, and moft delicate eating. The fame may be faid of the Long-tailed Duck. Neither of thofe fpecies lay more than fix or eight eggs in common, and frequently bring them all forth. Widgeon. This fpecies of Duck is very uncommon widge in Hudfon's Bay ; ufually keeping in pairs, and being feldom feen in flocks. They are by no means fo numerous as the two former, and are moft frequently feen in rivers and marfties near the fea-coaft. Their flefh is generally efteemed ; and the down of thofe I have examined is little inferior in elafticity to that of the Eider, though much fhorter. fhorter. The fame may be faid of feveral other fpecies of Ducks that frequent thofe parts ; but the impoflibility of collecting the down in any quantity, prevents it from becoming an article of trade. Teal. Like the Mallard, they are found in confiderable numbers near the fea-coaft ; but are more plentiful in the interior parts of the country, and fly in fuch large flocks that I have often killed twelve or fourteen at one {hot, and have feen both Englifti and Indians kill a much greater number. At their firft arrival they are but poor, though generally efteemed good eating. This diminutive Duck is by far the moft prolific of any I know that reforts to Hudfon's Bay ; for I have often feen the old ones fwim-ming at the head of leventeen young, when not much larger than walnuts. This bird remains in thofe parts as long as the feafon will permit; for in the year one thoufand feven hundred and feventy-five, in my pafTage from Cumberland Houfe to York Fort, I, as well as my Indian companions, killed them in the rivers we pafled through as late as the twentieth of October. At thofe times they are entirely involved in fat, but delicately white, and may truly be called a great luxury. Befides the birds already defcribed, there is a great variety of others, both of land and water fowl, that frequent thofe parts in Summer; but thefe came not fo immediately under my infpection as thofe I have already defcribed. of Of the Vegetable Produ&ions. The vegetable productions of this country by no means engaged my attention fo much as the animal creation; which is the lefs to be wondered at, as fo few of them are ufeful for the fupport of man. Yet I will endeavour to enumerate as many of them as I think are worth notice. The Gooseberries thrive beft in ftony and rocky ground, Goofe-which lies open and much expofed to the Sun. But in berncs* thofe fituations few of the bullies grow to any height, and fpread along the ground like vines. The fruit is always moft plentiful and the fineft on the under-fide of the branches, probably owing to the reflected heat from the ftones and gravel, and from being flickered from all cold winds and fog by the leaves. I never faw more than one fpecies of Goofeberry in any part of Hudfon's Bay, which is the red one. When green, they make excellent pies or tarts; and when ripe are very pleafant eating, though by no means fo large as thofe produced in England. Cranberries grow in great abundance near Churchill, Cranberries, and are not confined to any particular fituation, for they 3 M arc are as common on open bleak plains and high rocks as among the woods. When carefully gathered in the Fall, in dry weather, and as carefully packed in calks with moift fugar, they will keep for years, and are annually fent to England in confiderable quantities as prefents, where they are much efteemed. When the fliips have remained in the Bay fo late that the Cranberries are ripe, fome of the Captains have carried them home in water with great fuccefs. Heath- The Heathberries are in fome years fo plentiful near Churchill, that it is impoflible to walk in many places without treading on thoufands and millions of them. They grow clofe to the ground, and are a favourite repaft of many birds that migrate to thofe parts in Summer, particularly the Grey Goofe; on which account the Indians diftinguifti them by the name of Niflica-minnick, or the Grey Goofeberry. The juice of this berry makes an exceeding pleafant beverage, and the fruit itfelf would be more pleafing were it not for the number of fmall feeds it contains. Bethago- Bethago-tominick, as it is called by the Indians, or the Dewater-berry of Mr. Dragge. I have feen this berry as far North as Marble Ifland, and that in great abundance. It flourifties beft, and is moft productive, in fwampy boggy ground covered with mofs, and is feldom found among among grafs. The plant itfelf is not very unlike that of a Strawberry, but the leaves are larger. Out of the center of the plant moots a fingle ftalk, fometimes to the height of feven or eight inches, and each plant only produces one berry, which at fome diftance refembles a Strawberry ; but on examination they have not that conical form ; and many of them are only compofed of three or four lobes, while others confift of near twenty. The flavour of this berry is far from unpleafing, and it is eaten by our people in confiderable quantities during the feafon, (which is AuguftJ and, like all the other fruits in thofe parts, is fuppofed to be wholefome, and a great antifcorbutic. Currans, both red and black, are common about Currans. Churchill River, but the latter are far more plentiful than the former, and are very large and fine. The bufhes on which thofe currans grow, frequently exceed three feet in height, and generally thrive beft in thofe parts that are moift but not fwampy. Small vallies between the rocks, at fome little diftance from the woods, are very favourable to them; and I have frequently obferved that the fruit produced in thofe fituations is larger and finer than that which is found in the woods. Thofe berries have a very great effect, on fome people if eaten in any confiderable quantities, by acting as a very powerful purgative, and in fome as an emetic at the fame 3 M 2 time ; time ; but if mixed with Cranberries, they never have that effect. Ju niter-berries are frequently found near the new fettlement at Churchill River, but by no means in fuch plenty as in the more Southern and interior parts of the country. The bufh they grow on is fo fimilar to the creeping pine, that one half of the Company's fervants refiding in Hudfon's Bay do not know one from the other. Like the Goofeberry bullies in thofe parts, the fruit is always moft plentiful on the under-fide of the branches. They are not much efteemed either by the Indians or Englifh, fo that the few that are made ufe of are generally infufed in brandy, by way of making a cordial, which is far from unpleafant *. Strawberries +, and thofe of a confiderable fize and excellent flavour, are found as far North as Churchill River; and what is moft remarkable, they are frequently known to be more plentiful in fuch places as have formerly been fet on fire. This is not peculiar to the Strawberry, but it is well known that in the interior parts of the country, as well as at Albany and Moofe Forts, that after * The Indians call the Juniper-berry Caw-caw-cue-minick, or the Crow-berry. f The Oteagh-minick of the Indians, is fo called, becaufe it in fome meafure refembles a heart, the the ground, or more properly the under-wood and mofs, have been fet on fire, that Rafpherry-bufhes and Hips have fhot up in great numbers on fpots where nothing of the kind had ever been feen before. This is a phenomenon that is not eafily accounted for; but it is more than probable that Nature wanted fome afliftance, and the mofs being all burnt away, not only admits the Sun to act, with more power, but the heat of the fire muft, in fome meafure, loofen the texture of the foil, fo as to admit the plants to fhoot up, after having been deep-rooted for many years without being able to force their way to the furface. Befides the Berries already mentioned, there are three others found as far North as Churchill; namely, what the Indians call the Eye-berry, and the other two are termed Blue-berry and Partridge-berry by the Englifh. The Eye-berry grows much in the fame manner as the Eye-berr* Strawberry, and though fmaller, is infinitely fuperior in flavour. This berry is found in various fituations; but near Churchill River they are moft plentiful in fmall hollows among the rocks, which are fituated fome diftance from the woods; but they are never known to grow in fwampy ground, and I never faw them fo plentiful in any part of Hudfon s Bay as about Churchill River. The Blue.bcny. The Blue-berry is about the fize of a Hurtleberry, and grows on bufhes which rife to eighteen inches or two feet, but in. general are much lower. They are feldom ripe till September, at which time the leaves turn to a beautiful red; and the fruit, though fmall, have as fine a bloom as any plum, and are much efteemed for the plea-fantnefs of their flavour. beTry'^" ^"ne PARTRIDGE*-BERRY *s nearly as large as the Cranberry imported from Newfoundland, and though of a beautiful tranfparentred, yet has a difagreeable tafte. Thefe berries are feldom taken, either by the Indians or Englifh ; and many of the latter call them Poifon-berries, but feveral birds are fond of them. They grow clofe to the ground, like the Cranberry, and the plant that produces them is not very unlike fmall fage, either in fhape or colour, but has none of its virtues. I had nearly forgotten another fpecies of Berry, which is found on the dry ridges at Churchill in confiderable numbers. In fize and colour they much refemble the Red Curran, and grow on bufhes fo much like the Creeping Willow, that people of little obfervation fcarcely know the difference; particularly as all the fruit is on the under-fide of the branches, and entirely hid by the leaves. I never knew this Berry eaten but by a frolickfome Indian girl; and as it had no ill effect, it is a proof it is 5 not not unwholefome, though exceedingly unpleafant to the palate, and not much lefs fo to the fmell. Hjps of a fmall fize, though but few in number, are alfo found on the banks of Churchill River, at fome diftance from the fea. But in the interior parts of the country they are frequently found in fuch vaft quantities,, that at a diftance they make the fpots they grow on appear perfectly red. In the interior parts of Hudfon's Bay they are as large as any I ever remember to have feen, and when ripe, have a moil Jeligbrfnl bloom ; but at that feafon there is fcarcely one in ten which has not a worm in it; and they frequently act as a ftrong purgative. With refpect to the fmaller productions of the vegetable world, I am obliged to be in a great meafure filent, as the nature of my various occupations during my rcfi-dence in this country gave me little leifure, and being unacquainted with botany, I viewed with inattention things that were not of immediate ufe: the few which follow are all that particularly engaged my attention. The Wish-a-ca-pucca, which grows in moft parts of this country, is faid by fome Authors to have great medical virtues, applied, either inwardly as an alterative, or outwardly dried and pulverifed, to old fores and gangrenes. The truth of this I much doubt, and could never never think it had the leaft medical quality. It is, however, much ufed by the lower clafs of the Company's fervants as tea; and by fome is thought very pleafant. But the flower is by far the moft delicate, and if gathered at a proper time, and carefully dried in the ftiade, will retain its flavour for many years, and make a far more pleafant beverage than the leaves. There are feveral ipecies of this plant, of which fome of the leaves are nearly as large as that of the Creeping Willow, while others are as fmall and narrow as that of the Rofemary, and much refembles it in colour; but nil the fpecies have the fame fmell and flavour. jakafliey- Jackashey-puck. This herb much refembles Creeping Box; and is only ufed, either by the Indians or Englifh, to mix with tobacco, which makes it fmoke mild and pleafant; and would, I am perfuaded, be very acceptable to many fmokers in England. Mofs. Moss of various forts and colours is plentiful enough in moft parts of this country, and is what the deer ufually feed on. Grafs. Grass of feveral kinds is alfo found in thofe parts, and fome of it amazingly rapid of growth, particularly that which is there called Rye-grafs, and which, in our fhort Summer at Churchill, frequently grows to the height of of three feet. Another fpecies of Grafs, which is produced in marihes, and on the margins of lakes, ponds, and rivers, is particularly adapted for the fupport of the multitudes of the feathered creation which refort to thofe parts in Summer. The Marfh Grafs at Churchill is of that peculiar nature, that where it is mowed one year, no crop can be procured the next Summer ; whereas at York Fort, though the climate is not very different, they can get two crops, or harvefts, from the. fame fpot in one Summer. Vetches are plentiful in fome parts as far North as Churchill River; and Burrage, Sorrel, and Coltsfoot, may be ranked among the ufeful plants. Dandelion is alfo plentiful at Churchill, and makes an early falad, long before any thing can be produced in the gardens. In fact, notwithftanding the length of the Winter, the feverity of the cold, and the great fcarcity of vegetables at this Northern fettlement, by proper attention to cleanlinefs, and keeping the people at reafonable exercife, I never had one man under me who had the leaft fymp-toms of the fcurvy ; whereas at York Fort, Albany, and Moofe River, there were almoft annual complaints that one half of the people were rendered incapable of duty by that dreadful diforder. I do not wifti to lay claim to any merit on this occafion, but I cannot help obferving that, during ten years I had 3 N the 45 8 A JOURNEY, k the command at Churchill River, only two men died of that diftemper, though my complement at times amounted in number to fifty-three. Trees. The Forefl Trees that grow on this inhofpitable fpot are very few indeed ; Pine, Juniper, fmall fcraggy Poplar, Creeping Birch, and Dwarf Willows, compofe the whole catalogue. Farther Weftward the Birch Tree is very plentiful ; and in the Athapufcow country, Pines, Larch, Poplar, and Birch, grow to a great fize ; the Alder is alfo found there. THE END. The following BOOKS, printed for A. Strahan and T. C a dell, are fold by T. C a dell j'un. and W. Da vies, (Succcjfors to Mr* Cadell,) in the Strand. i. An Account of the Voyages undertaken by Order of hi;, prefent Majefty, for making Difcoveries in the Southern Hemisphere, and fucce/Jively performed by Commodore Byron, Captain Wallis, Captain Carteret, and Captain Cook, in the Dolphin and Swallow, and the Endeavour : Drawn up from the Journals which were kept by the feveral Commanders, and from the Papers of Jofeph Banks Efquire, and Dr. Solandcr, by John Hawkeswoktii, LL. D. Illuftrated with Cuts, and a great variety of Charts and Maps, (in all, 52 Plates,) relative to the Countries now firft difcovered, or hitherto but ha. perfectly known. 3 Vols. Ato. Price 3 /. 12 s. * * The fame Work in 4 Vols. Svo. I/. 8 j-. 1. An Account of a Voyage towards the South Pole, and round' the World, performed in his Majefty'a Ships the Refolution and Adventure, in the Years 1772, 1773, 1774, and 1775: Written by James Cook, Commander of the Refolution. In which is included Captain Furneaux's Narrative of his Proceedings in the Adventure, during the Separation of the Ships. Elegantly printed in two Volumes Royal 4to. Illuftrated with Maps and Charts, and a Variety of Portraits of Perfons, and Views of Places, drawn during the Voyage by Mr. Hodges, and engraved by the mofl eminent Mailers. Price 2 I. 12 s. DIRECTIONS to the BINDER. A PLAN exhibiting Mr. Hearne's Tracks in his two Journies for the Difcovery of the Copper Mine River, in the Years 1770, 1771, and 1772, under the Direction of the Hudfon's Bay Company. - - To face the Title-page. Plate I. A North Weft View of Prince of Wales's Fort in Hudfon's Bay, North America, - To face Page 1 Plate II. Indian Implements. * - To face P. 98 Plate III. PJan of the Copper Mine River. To face P. 164 Plate IV. A Winter View in the Athapuscow Lake. To face P. 248 Plate V. Indian Implements. » At the End. Plate VI. Plan of Albany River in Hudfon's Bay. At the End* Plate VII. Plan of Moose River in Hudfon's Bay. - At the End. Plate VIII. Plan of Slude River. - ~ At the End. . // tJh- rw Plate r// It f/u end. .V/W,_ /,'it./'f ,t.f3 Sn nr. Plate rw It Cht end