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diff --git a/40019-0.txt b/40019-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..40b7f75 --- /dev/null +++ b/40019-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,8805 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 40019 *** + +Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this + file which includes the original illustrations. + See 40019-h.htm or 40019-h.zip: + (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/40019/40019-h/40019-h.htm) + or + (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/40019/40019-h.zip) + + + Images of the original pages are available through + Internet Archive. See + http://archive.org/details/barrengroundnort00pikeiala + + +Transcriber's note: + + Text enclosed by equal signs is in bold face (=bold=). + + + + + +[Illustration: Cover] + + +THE BARREN GROUND OF NORTHERN CANADA + + +[Illustration: Ready for Tracking] + + +THE BARREN GROUND OF NORTHERN CANADA + +by + +WARBURTON PIKE + + + + + + + +[Illustration] + +New York +E. P. Dutton & Company +681 Fifth Avenue + +Published, 1917, +By E. P. Dutton & Co. + + + + +AUTHOR'S PREFACE TO THE ORIGINAL EDITION + + +In many of the outlying districts of Canada an idea is prevalent, +fostered by former travellers, that somewhere in London there exists a +benevolent society whose object is to send men incapable of making any +useful scientific observations to the uttermost parts of the earth, in +order to indulge their taste for sport or travel. Several times before I +had fairly started for the North, and again on my return, I was asked if +I had been sent out under the auspices of this society, and, I am +afraid, rather fell in the estimation of the interviewers when I was +obliged to confess that my journey was only an ordinary shooting +expedition, such as one might make to the Rocky Mountains or the +interior of Africa, and that no great political reformation depended +upon my report as to what I had seen. + +In talking with officers of the Hudson's Bay Company, many of whom had +been stationed for long periods in the Athabasca and Mackenzie River +districts, I had often heard of a strange animal, a relic of an earlier +age, that was still to be found roaming the Barren Ground, the vast +desert that lies between Hudson's Bay, the eastern ends of the three +great lakes of the North, and the Arctic Sea. This animal was the +Musk-ox, but my informants could tell me nothing from personal +experience, and all that was known on the subject had been gathered from +Indian report. Once or twice some enthusiastic sportsman had made the +attempt to reach the land of the Musk-ox, but had never succeeded in +carrying out his object; specimens had been secured by the officers of +the various Arctic expeditions, but no one had ever seen much of these +animals or of the methods of hunting them employed by the Northern +Indians. + +This, then, was the sole object of my journey; to try and penetrate this +unknown land, to see the Musk-ox, and find out as much as I could about +their habits, and the habits of the Indians who go in pursuit of them +every year. But the only white men who had succeeded in getting far out +into the Barren Ground were the early explorers,--Hearne, Sir John +Franklin, Sir George Back, and Dr. Richardson, while long afterwards Dr. +Rae and Stewart and Anderson went in search of the missing Franklin +expedition. With the exception of Hearne, who threw in his lot with the +Indians, these leaders were all accompanied by the most capable men that +could be procured, and no expense was spared in order to make success as +certain as possible; yet in spite of every precaution the story of Sir +John Franklin's first overland journey and the death of Hood are among +the saddest episodes in the history of the Arctic exploration. + +My best chance seemed to be to follow Hearne's example, and trust to +the local knowledge of Indians to help me; and I think, as the sequel +showed, that I was right in not taking a crew from Winnipeg. The Indians +and half-breeds of the Great Slave Lake, although very hard to manage, +are certainly well up in Barren Ground travel; they are possessed of a +thorough knowledge of the movements of the various animals at different +seasons, and thus run less danger of starvation than strangers, however +proficient the latter may be in driving dogs and handling canoes. + +In following out this plan I naturally passed through a great deal of +new country, and discovered, as we white men say when we are pointed out +some geographical feature by an Indian who has been familiar with it +since childhood, many lakes and small streams never before visited +except by the red man. I have attempted in a rough map to mark the +chains of lakes by which we reached the Barren Ground, but their +position is only approximate, and perhaps not even that, as I had no +instruments with which to make correct observations, and in any case +should have had little time to use them. Let no eminent geographer waste +his time in pointing out the inaccuracies in this map; I admit all the +errors before he discovers them. All that I wish to show is that these +chains of lakes do exist and can be used as convenient routes, doing +away with the often-tried method of forcing canoes up the swift and +dangerous streams that fall into the Great Slave Lake from the northern +tableland. + +The success of my expedition is to be attributed entirely to the +assistance which was given me by the Hudson's Bay Company, and I take +this opportunity of thanking them for all the hospitality that was shown +to me throughout my journey; I was never refused a single request that I +made, and, although a total stranger, was treated with the greatest +kindness by everybody, from the Commissioner at Winnipeg to the engaged +servant in the Far North. My thanks are especially due to Lord Anson, +one of the directors in London, to Messrs. Wrigley and William Clark at +Winnipeg, Mr. Roderick MacFarlane, lately of Stuart's Lake, British +Columbia, a well-known northern explorer who put me in the way of making +a fair start, Dr. Mackay of Athabasca, Mr. Camsell of Mackenzie River, +Mr. Ewen Macdonald of Peace River, and most of all to Mr. Mackinlay of +Fort Resolution on the Great Slave Lake, who was my companion during a +long summer journey in the Barren Ground. + +My only excuse for publishing this account of my travels is that the +subject is a reasonably new one, and deals with a branch of sport that +has never been described. I have spared the reader statistics, and I +have kept my story as short as possible. I hope that in return anyone +who may be interested in these pages will spare his comments on faulty +style, and the various errors into which a man who has spent much time +among the big game is sure to fall when he is rash enough to lay down +his rifle and take up the pen. + +I have also cut out the chapter with which these books usually begin,--a +description of the monotonous voyage by Atlantic steamer and Canadian +Pacific Railway, and start at once from Calgary, a thriving cattle-town +close under the eastern foot-hills of the Rocky Mountains. + +LONDON, 1891. + + + + +LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS + + + Ready for Tracking _Frontispiece_ + PAGE + The Old Hudson Bay Post at Edmonton 2 + The Hudson Bay Fort at Edmonton 6 + The "Grahame" Towing Freight-scows on Lake + Athabasca 16 + Patching a Birch-bark on the Slave River 26 + King Beaulieu 32 + A Dead White Wolf 57 + The Indians Driving Caribou 89 + Making Camp 102 + Taking the Post Dogs for Exercise 142 + Skins in the Post Store-room 142 + Dog-rib Powwow at Fort Resolution 167 + A Group of Dog-ribs 167 + Starting up the Peace River 233 + Junction of the Peace and Smoky Rivers 248 + The Arrival of the Dog Train 295 + Edmonton 298 + + +MAP + + A SKETCH MAP to illustrate Mr. Warburton + Pike's journeys to the Barren Ground of + Northern Canada _To face p._ 302 + + + + +THE BARREN GROUND +OF +NORTHERN CANADA + + + + +THE +BARREN GROUND +OF +NORTHERN CANADA + + +CHAPTER I + + +In the middle of June, 1889, I left Calgary for a drive of two hundred +miles to Edmonton, the real starting-point for the great northern +country controlled by the Hudson's Bay Company, and, with the exception +of their scattered trading-posts, and an occasional Protestant or Roman +Catholic Mission, entirely given up to what it was evidently intended +for, a hunting-ground for the Indian. + +My conveyance was a light buckboard, containing my whole outfit, which +was as small as possible, consisting almost entirely of ammunition for a +12-bore Paradox and a 50-95 Winchester Express, besides a pair of large +blankets and a little necessary clothing. + +Forest fires were raging in the Rocky Mountains close at hand, and the +thick smoke obscuring the sun, the heat was not nearly so fierce as +usual at this time of the year; the road was good for a prairie road, +and comfortable stopping-places each night made the journey quite easy. +About sixty miles out the country loses the appearance of what is known +among cattlemen as the bald-headed prairie, and is dotted with clumps of +poplar, and occasionally pines; half way to Edmonton the road crosses +the broad stream of the Red Deer, and passes through the most attractive +country that I have seen in the north-west territories. It is being +rapidly settled, and, with the convenience of a railway now building +between Calgary and Edmonton, cannot fail to be an important farming and +stock-raising district within a few years. + +On the morning of the fifth day I reached Edmonton, a pleasant little +town scattered along the far bank of the North Saskatchewan, and +historical in the annals of the Hudson's Bay Company, by whom it was +established as a fur trading-post many years ago; it is fated shortly to +lose its individuality in the stream of advancing civilization, and will +probably develop into an ordinary prairie-town of some importance. + +[Illustration: Old Hudson Bay Post at Edmonton] + +Finding that I had no time to spare if I wished to catch the steamer +down the Athabasca river, I left again the same evening, after buying a +small supply of flour and bacon. I changed the buckboard for a wagon, +having for driver a French half-breed who had spent his early life on +the prairie in buffalo-hunting, but, on the extinction of the game, had +been earning a living by freighting for the Hudson's Bay Company, and +farming on a small scale. He was a much pleasanter companion than the +smartly dressed young man, "come of good folks in the East," who had +been my driver from Calgary, and many an interesting tale he told me on +our three-days' journey to the banks of the Athabasca; tales of the good +old times when the buffalo were thick, and the Crees waged perpetual war +against the Blackfeet, and whisky formed the staple article of trade for +the Indian's fur. At the present day the Prohibition Act orders that +even the white men of the north-west territories must be temperate, +thereby causing whisky to be dear and bad, but plentiful withal, and it +is surprising how such a law exists in a country where nine men out of +ten not only want to drink, but do drink in open defiance of the +commands of a motherly Government. + +A fair road some hundred miles in length has been made by the Hudson's +Bay Company through a rolling sandy country, crossing several large +streams and passing through a good deal of thick pine timber where some +heavy chopping must have been necessary. The flies bothered us greatly; +the large bulldogs, looking like a cross between a bee and a +blue-bottle, drove the horses almost to madness, and after our mid-day +halt it was no easy matter to put the harness on; fortunately we had +netting, or the poor beasts would have fared much worse: as it was the +blood was streaming from their flanks during the heat of the day. The +mosquitos appeared towards evening, but as the nights were usually +chilly they only annoyed us for a few hours. There were no houses along +the road, but plenty of firewood and feed for the horses; we had a good +camp every night, sleeping in the open air, starting very early and +resting long in the middle of the day. + +Two days took us over the divide between the Saskatchewan and Athabasca +rivers, and now the water in the little streams that we crossed +eventually reached the sea far away in the frozen Arctic Ocean at the +mouth of the great Mackenzie. Early on the fourth day we came in sight +of the Athabasca running between high pine-clad banks, and, dropping +down a steep hill, found the Company's steamer loading up with freight +for the far north. This spot is known as the Athabasca landing, and +consists of a large depot for goods, trading-store, and several +workmen's houses, while the house of the officer in charge stands on the +hillside a little way back from the river. From the landing there is +water communication down stream, broken of course by portages, to the +Arctic sea, while the Lesser Slave Lake lies within a few days' travel +up stream, from the north end of which a road seventy-five miles in +length has been cut to the bank of Peace River. I spent a pleasant +enough day loafing about, Mr. Wood, who was in charge, showing me great +kindness and giving me much useful information about my route, and at +twelve o'clock the following day we started down stream. The only other +passengers were a Mr. Flett and his wife and daughter, who were on their +way to take charge of Fort Smith during the coming winter. Mr. Flett was +just returning from a visit to his native country, the Orkney Islands, +after an absence of forty-four years in the service of the Company, all +of which time was spent in the wildest part of the North. He was full of +the wonderful changes that had taken place since he was a boy, but +finding himself completely lost in civilization, had hurried back to the +land of snow. Unfortunately Mrs. Flett had been unable to stand the +climate of the old country, and was quite broken down in her health. I +was sorry to hear during the winter that she died a few days after we +left her at Fort Chipeweyan. + +Owing to the very light snowfall in the mountains in the winter of +1888-89, the water in the river was unusually low, and, as we expected, +on the third day the steamer, a large light-draught stern-wheeler, after +striking several times on shallow bars, had to abandon the attempt to +reach the Grand Rapids. We accordingly tied up to the bank, and, sending +a skiff down to take the news, awaited the arrival of boats from below +to take our cargo. For ten days we lay at the junction of Pelican River, +a small stream coming in on the north side of the Athabasca. There was +absolutely nothing to do; the low gravelly banks on each side were +fringed with thick willows backed by a narrow belt of poplars, and +behind these the gloomy pine woods, with here and there a solitary +birch, stretched away in an unbroken mass as far as the eye could see. +The forest was alive with mosquitos, although owing to the low water in +the river they were said to be much less numerous than usual; they were +sufficiently thick however to make any exploration in the woods a +misery. Fishing we tried without much result, and everybody was pleased +when at last Mr. Scott Simpson, who was in charge of the river transport +that summer, arrived with two boats. The steamer's cargo was unloaded, +partly into the boats and partly on to the bank, and early in the +morning she started back for the landing while we proceeded on our +journey down stream. + +These inland boats, as they are termed, are extraordinary specimens of +marine architecture, long open craft, classified according to shape as +York boats, sturgeon-heads, and scows, capable of carrying a load of ten +tons, manned by a crew of eight oars and a steersman, rowed down stream +and tracked up, running rapids and bumping on rocks. Planks, nails, and +pitch are always kept ready to effect repairs, and are in frequent +demand. The crews are generally half-breeds from the Lesser Slave Lake +and Lake La Biche, both of which pour their waters into the Athabasca; +but there are also volunteers from all parts of the North, as the wages +are good and the work is suited to the half-breed's character, besides +the certainty of receiving rations every day, which is a great +attraction in a land of scarcity. Sometimes crews of Locheaux Indians +are sent up from the Mackenzie, and have the reputation of being the +best workers; they certainly seemed to me to be less given to rebellion +and more easily managed than the half-breeds. The boats are steered with +a huge sweep passed through a ring in the stern post, and great +responsibility rests on the steersman, who at times requires all his +skill and strength to throw the heavily-laden boat clear of a rock in a +boiling rapid. + +[Illustration: The Hudson Bay Fort at Edmonton] + +In three days, without accident, we reached the island at the head of +the Grand Rapids, just in time to rescue a Company's clerk named Mackay +from a very unenviable position. He had come up with the boat-brigade +from Fort MacMurray, and, provisions running short, had travelled +overland accompanied by a half-breed to meet the steamer from which they +expected to get supplies to take down to the crews. On reaching the +island they were unable to attract the attention of the man left in +charge of the freight lying there, so they walked a couple of miles up +the north bank and built a raft on which to cross the river. They +thought they would be able to pole the raft, but the water proved too +deep, and being unable to get steerage way on her, they soon broke +their unmanageable vessel to pieces against a rock. It was now a case of +swimming in a strong current that was forcing them over the big rapid +where certain death awaited them; the half-breed succeeded in fetching +the island, but Mackay, seeing he was being swept over the fall, swam to +a rock and managed to climb on to it. The half-breed found the sole +inhabitant of the island in his cabin, but there was no boat in which to +go to the rescue, and if there had been it was no easy matter for two +men to lower it down, without all going over the rapid. They were +engaged in building a raft to make the attempt when they saw our brigade +coming down the river. By the aid of a long line and plenty of hands the +smallest boat was lowered down to the rocks, and what might have been a +very serious accident was luckily averted. Mackay was much chilled by +sitting on the rocks for several hours in wet clothes after two days +without eating; but, when he had had a good meal he was none the worse +for his rough experience, and, as is always the case when the danger is +past, had plenty of chaff to put up with. + +The channel on the south side of the island can be used for dropping a +light boat down with a line, but all cargo has to be portaged; the north +channel is quite impracticable for navigation, having a heavy overfall +with an immense body of broken water. The whole river-bed above the +island is covered with round boulders of soft sandstone, many above +water, which make the approach to the landing difficult. The north bank +is a sand-bluff with many similar boulders protruding from the steep +cliff, the south bank lower and timbered close to the water's edge. Many +perfect specimens of petrifaction are to be seen on the island and along +the river-banks. + +The portage is the whole length of the island, about one thousand yards, +and a rough tramway has been built to save the labour of carrying +cargoes such a distance on men's backs; this tramway is a splendid +plaything for the crews, and they spend hours in running the trolley +down the hill and poling it up on the principle of a canoe ascending a +rapid. Here we passed two weeks in waiting for the boats from below to +take the whole of the steamer's load, which during this time was brought +down by the same boats that we had used. The time slipped away quickly, +though we did nothing but smoke and yarn, and towards the end of July +the brigade turned up, bringing the first consignment of furs and the +news from the North. We were soon off on our hundred-and-fifty-miles' +run to Fort MacMurray, and the travelling was now exciting enough, a +succession of rapids making hard work for the men, as several had to be +run with half loads and the boats tracked up for the other half, and at +a small cascade everything had to be portaged while the boats were +dropped over with a line. + +The worst rapid goes by the name of the Boiler Rapid, from the fact of +the boiler for the steamer _Wrigley_ which plies on Mackenzie River +having been lost here through the breaking of a boat. Here the channel +has a bad turn in the strong water, and neat steering is required to +clear two reefs of rocks which lie in an awkward position in the middle +of the stream. Sometimes there were long stretches of quiet water +between the rapids, and the boats drifted with the current while the men +smoked or slept; occasionally some one would strike up a snatch from one +of the old French-Canadian _chansons_, which seem to be dropping out of +fashion entirely since the steamers have to such a large extent done +away with the old style of boating. Four, five, and on long days +sometimes six times we put ashore to eat; a wonderful amount of flour, +bacon, and tea being consumed by the fifty men composing the brigade. +Considering the distance from which the provisions are brought, the +inability of this part of the country to supply any of the necessaries +of life, and the importance of forwarding trading-goods to the northern +districts before the short summer closes, it is not surprising that +there should be at times a scarcity. On the present occasion, however, +there was no stint, and fine weather made the trip delightful. At night +the boats were run ashore, and each crew lighting their own fire, the +encampment presented a most picturesque appearance, the gaudy belts and +head-gear of the swarthy crews as they moved in the firelight showing +in strong contrast to the dark background of tall pine trees. We +generally chose as exposed a place as possible for the camp, to get the +benefit of any wind there might be to blow away the mosquitos, which +were bad in this part of the river. I had the post of honour in the +leading boat steered by the guide of the brigade, a Swampy Indian from +the Red-River country who had spent many years in voyaging for the +Hudson's Bay Company. In former days the guide was absolute dictator and +had full control over all the boats, but nowadays discipline is slack +and he seems to have little authority. + +It was a pretty sight to see the long string of boats leaping the rapids +behind us, the bowsman standing up and pointing the course to the +steersman, while the rowers plied their utmost and broke out into the +wild shouts that can never be suppressed in moments of excitement. The +Cree language forms the medium of conversation, although many of the +half-breeds talk fluently in Red-River French; English is little spoken +in any part of the North that I visited. + +On the afternoon of the fourth day we arrived at Fort MacMurray, a small +post of little importance, standing at the junction of the Athabasca and +the Clearwater River, a large stream coming in from the southward, and +until the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway to Calgary the main +route to the North. The outfits sent from Winnipeg used to reach the +waters falling into the Arctic Sea far up the Clearwater at the +northern end of what was known as the Long Portage, but the present +route is much simpler, as there is no up-stream work with loaded boats. +After leaving Fort MacMurray the old course is maintained, following +down stream the main artery of the northern watershed. + +The stern-wheel steamer _Grahame_ was waiting for us in the mouth of the +Clearwater, with Dr. Mackay, the Hudson's Bay Company's officer in +charge of the Athabasca district of which MacMurray is the most +southerly post. It extends to the north as far as Fort Resolution on the +Great Slave Lake, and also takes in Fort Chipeweyan, the head-post of +the district, situated at the west end of the Athabasca Lake, Fond du +Lac at the east end of the same sheet of water, Vermillion and Little +Red River on the Lower Peace River, and Fort Smith at the foot of the +rapids on the Slave River. It is no sinecure for the man that has to +keep this vast extent of country supplied with everything necessary for +the existence of the Indians, making the best bargain he can for the +products of their hunts, and endeavouring to please the Chipeweyans in +the woods and the shareholders of the Company in England at the same +time. + +The cargo was put on board the steamer in the evening, and in the early +morning we started once more for the North. The water was still +exceedingly low, but not so much so as to be an impediment to +navigation, as the stream increases in size after the junction of the +Clearwater, and beyond scraping once or twice on sand-bars, our progress +was uninterrupted. About twenty miles below MacMurray we stopped to take +on wood and pitch from the natural tar deposits which are just beginning +to attract a little attention in Eastern Canada, and the geologists, +about to be sent from Ottawa to examine into the resources of this part +of the country, will doubtless make a thorough investigation of the +amount and quality of the deposit. + +The whole of that day we steamed through a wilderness of pine timber +presenting exactly the same appearance as in the upper reaches of the +river, but on the following morning the banks became low and swampy, the +stream sluggish and divided into various branches, and a few miles of +intricate navigation brought us out on to the Athabasca Lake. Across on +the north shore we could make out the white houses and church of Fort +Chipeweyan, and after a couple of hours' steaming, with smooth water, we +were alongside the rather rough apology for a landing-place. + +Fort Chipeweyan was established in the early days of fur-trading, and a +hundred years ago was the starting-point of Sir Alexander Mackenzie's +voyage of discovery that resulted in the exploration and naming of the +immense stream discharging from the Great Slave Lake. It was the scene +of many stirring events during the rivalry of the North-West and the +Hudson's Bay Companies, and since their amalgamation has always been an +important trading-post. At the present day it consists of a long row of +white painted log-houses occupied chiefly by the Company's servants; at +the southern end are the officers' quarters in close proximity to the +large trading and provision stores; at the north end stand the +Protestant church and Mission buildings, and farther along the lake is +the Roman Catholic establishment. The numerous houses form quite an +imposing sight in contrast to the surrounding desolation. The settlement +is almost at the west end of the Athabasca Lake which stretches away +some two hundred and fifty miles to the eastward, with Fond du Lac, a +small outpost, at the far end. + +Since the steamers have been running Chipeweyan has been partly supplied +with the provisions of civilization, but is still chiefly dependent on +its fisheries for food, and great pains are taken in the autumn to store +as many whitefish as possible. At the commencement of cold weather every +available net is working and the fish are hung on stages to freeze; a +large number are spoilt for eating if the weather turns warm during +hanging-time, but they are always available for the dogs. Trout-lines +are worked all the winter, and if the supply seems to be running short, +nets are also set under the ice, but usually without such good results +as at the Fall fishery. Caribou from the Barren Ground sometimes wander +near Fond du Lac, and whenever this occurs the fort is kept well +supplied by the Indians, but an occasional moose affords as a rule the +only chance of fresh meat. Many geese and ducks are killed and salted +during the spring and autumn migration of wild-fowl, which come to the +Athabasca Lake at these periods in vast numbers. Chipeweyan has a large +population for the part of the world in which it is situated, and as +there is a proportionate consumption of food no chance of laying in a +stock is missed. The lake still affords an excellent field for +exploration, as beyond the main route to the east end and some of the +nearer fisheries very little is known to the Whites, and the country in +every direction from Fond du Lac is mapped chiefly on information +derived from Indians. It is unlikely that there are any startling +discoveries to be made, as the general character of the country seems to +be the same as that of the district lying to the north and east of the +Great Slave Lake, developing gradually into the Barren Ground; but there +must be many geographical features in the form of streams and lakes to +be noticed, which might amply repay the trouble of a summer's +exploration. All supplies can easily be taken by water-carriage as far +as the east end of the lake, though of course the well-known difficulty +of transporting provisions into the Barren Ground would commence as soon +as the main lake was left. + + + + +CHAPTER II + + +After a stay of a few hours at the Fort, we started again in the +_Grahame_ on our voyage to the head of the rapids at Fort Smith, a +distance of perhaps a hundred miles, and almost immediately passed into +the main stream leaving the lake, and until the junction of the Peace +bearing the name of the Rocky River. During the high water in summer +part of the water of the Peace finds its way into the Athabasca Lake by +a passage known as the Quatres Fourches, but as the floods subside a +slight current sets in the opposite direction; the lake thus has another +outlet into the Peace, which eventually joins the Rocky River about +thirty miles below; the combined stream is then called the Slave River +till it debouches into the Great Slave Lake, on leaving which it becomes +the Mackenzie. + +A distinct alteration in the appearance of the country is visible on +leaving Fort Chipeweyan. The red granite rock shows up and the pine +timber is smaller and more scattered, burnt in many places, and mixed +with a thick growth of willows and berry-producing bushes; the scenery +from the river is monotonous and without landmarks, although a wider +view can be obtained than in running down the Athabasca, where the big +pine-trees prevent all chance of seeing far in any direction. The +current is of no great velocity with the exception of two small rapids +formed by the contraction of the channel; both are navigable, although +at certain stages of water it is necessary to put out a rope to assist +the steamer in mounting the more formidable of the two. We had a very +merry passage down, Dr. Mackay and several of the officers of his +district accompanying us, and in good time on the second day we tied up +to the bank on the west side of the river, just at the head of the +rapids. + +[Illustration: The Grahame Towing Freight-scows on Lake Athabasca] + +I must take this opportunity of congratulating the Hudson's Bay Company +on the efficient manner in which their steamers are managed. Considering +the utter incapacity of the Indian and half-breed crews when they first +come on board, great praise is due to the captains and engineers for +their success in overcoming obstacles in navigation and carrying on the +Company's business in a country so remote from civilization. Everything +is done in a quiet and orderly way, and a very noticeable feature is the +total absence of the swearing and profanity so essential to the +well-being of a river-steamer in other parts of the American continent. + +The next day the work of portaging began, as the whole cargo had to be +transported sixteen miles to the lower end of the rapids. In former days +the goods were taken down by water, necessitating many portages and +great delay; but within the last few years a road has been cut through +the woods on the west side of the river, and the portage is made with +Red-River carts drawn by oxen. Twenty carts are in use, starting loaded +and returning light, on alternate days. The road is fair in a dry +summer, but full of mud-holes in bad weather, and celebrated as the +worst place for mosquitos in all the North. + +While this was going on we amused ourselves with duck-shooting on some +lakes and muskegs a few miles back from the landing, and our bag was +always a welcome addition to the table, as no other kind of fresh meat +was to be had. Big game is very scarce along the main route, and though +there are still a few moose and bear it is rarely that an animal is seen +close to the banks of the river. As soon as the cargo was all over we +went across to Fort Smith, standing just below the rapids, to await the +arrival of the Mackenzie River steamboat which was expected at any time. +Dr. Mackay took me down the old boat-route in a canoe, and I had a good +opportunity of seeing what labour and risk there must have been with +heavily-laden boats; we made some fifteen portages in all, which +occupied a long afternoon, with only a light canoe. A large colony of +pelicans have taken possession of some islands among the rapids, and +rear their young without fear of molestation. + +Fort Smith, in spite of its fine situation on an open flat high above +the river, is the most disreputable establishment I came across in the +North, and the contrast was more striking as most of the forts are kept +rather smartly. Several half-breeds have settled close round, and a +large band of Indians, known as the Caribou-Eaters, whose hunting-ground +lies between the two big lakes, get their supplies from here. Within a +short distance is Salt River, which produces all the salt consumed in +the country, and saves the expense of importing this necessary article. + +On August 13th, after several days' waiting, the steamer _Wrigley_ +arrived, bringing up the Mackenzie River furs and several of the +officers from that district. Among her passengers was a French +half-breed, King Beaulieu, who afterwards became my guide to the Barren +Ground. He agreed to go in this capacity at a consultation held in Dr. +Mackay's presence, swearing eternal fidelity and promising to do +everything in his power to ensure the success of the expedition. Nobody +could give him a very good character, but as he was known as a pushing +fellow and first-rate traveller, besides having made a successful +musk-ox hunt in the previous year, I concluded that my best chance lay +in going with him. Certainly, with all his faults, I must say that he +was thoroughly expert in all the arts of travel with canoes or +dog-sleighs, quick in emergencies, and far more courageous than most of +the half-breeds of the Great Slave Lake. When I was alone with him I +found him easy enough to manage; but his three sons, who accompanied us, +are the biggest scoundrels I ever had to travel with, and as they seem +to demoralize the old man when they are together, the united family is a +bad combination. + +Two more days were passed in loading the _Wrigley_, and in discussion +among the officers from the two districts, who only meet on this +occasion, and have to make the most of the short stay to go over the +news of the last year and prospects for the next. Mr. Camsell, who is in +charge of Mackenzie River district, was on board, and, although I never +actually went within his dominions, was exceedingly kind in giving me +supplies from his own outfit, and in doing everything he could do to +help me during the year that I spent in the neighbourhood of the Great +Slave Lake. + +The _Wrigley_, having the rough crossing of the lake to make, is a very +different style of boat to the stern-wheelers above, which do all their +work in smooth water. She is a screw-boat, drawing seven feet when +loaded; and it gives an idea of the great size of the Mackenzie when I +mention that a vessel with this draught of water has a clear run of +thirteen hundred miles from Fort Smith to Peel's River, a tributary +joining the main stream from the west a short distance above its mouth. +She has never, I believe, steamed into the Arctic Sea, partly on account +of the channel being unknown, and partly owing to the shortness of the +season, which necessitates her being constantly at work to supply the +forts before the closing of navigation. + +After leaving Fort Smith and passing the mouth of Salt River the Slave +River widens considerably, and, with a slight current running between +low banks and numerous islands, follows a more circuitous course than in +its upper reaches. The steamer's course covers a distance of one hundred +and eighty miles to the Great Slave Lake, but, in travelling with canoes +or dogs, a number of portages are made to cut off bends of the river, +and about one-third of the distance is saved. + +The granite formation is quickly lost sight of from the water. The sandy +banks are covered with a dense growth of willows backed by the pine +forest; a gloomy uninviting stretch of country, to which the tall dead +trees charred by former fires give a peculiar air of desolation. The +soft nature of the sand, and the fact that much of the bank has fallen +in through the action of the ice breaking up in the spring, render +tracking difficult on this part of the river; the fallen timber leaning +over it at all angles, and making it impossible to pass the line. The +sluggish nature of the current, however, compensates for this, as its +strength can always be overcome by oars or paddles in the bad places. +Early on the second day we steamed through the low delta lands at the +mouth of the river, and, passing cautiously among the sandy battures +lying far off shore, arrived in heavy rain and strong westerly wind at +Fort Resolution, situated about ten miles to the westward of the river's +mouth. Mr. Mackinlay, who is in charge of the fort, was away; but, as +the steamer was delayed for a couple of days by the storm that was +blowing, Mr. Camsell gave me very valuable assistance in making +preparation for my voyage. + +The resources of the fort were at the lowest; no supplies had yet +arrived from outside, and the people were entirely dependent on their +nets for food: as is usually the case at this time of year, fish were +scarce and hard times prevalent. A boat had been fitted out to be sent +to the east end of the lake to trade for meat with the Indians hunting +there; but after waiting a long time for the steamer, to obtain the +ammunition necessary for trading, she was blown ashore and broken up on +the night of our arrival. I had intended to take a passage by this boat; +but as a party of men had to be sent to Fort Smith to bring down another +one, and I was anxious to get among the game with as little delay as +possible, I determined to make the journey as well as I could with +canoes. + +It was now that I made the acquaintance of King Beaulieu's sons, +François, José, and Paul, each of them married and father of such a big +family that it makes one tremble for the future of the Great Slave Lake +country when the next generation has grown up. The original Beaulieu +seems to have been a French half-breed brought in by the Hudson's Bay +Company among the early _voyageurs_ from Red River. He settled at Salt +River, where buffalo were numerous at the time, and by an indefinite +number of wives raised a large family which is threatening gradually to +inundate the North. King's father appears to have been a fighting man, +and great stories of his bravery and prowess are told by his sons and +grandsons; but his name only appears in the Company's records in +connection with various deeds of violence not much to his credit. + +All King's family were hanging about the fort in a state of +semi-starvation, and I was glad when we eventually started well on in +the afternoon of August 19th, with the hope of reaching first some good +fishing-ground to supply them with food for immediate want, and +afterwards the country of the caribou in the woods to the north of the +lake, while beyond that again was the prospect of finding the musk-ox +far out in the Barren Ground. + +In character a Beaulieu is a mixture of a very simple child and a German +Jew; all the lack of reason of the one combined with the greed of the +other, and a sort of low cunning more like that of an animal than a +human being. He is not a nice man to travel with, as he always keeps a +longing eye on his master's possessions, even though he is fully as +well-equipped himself, and is untrustworthy if you leave anything in his +charge. To your face he is fairspoken and humble enough, and to hear +him talk you would think he had a certain amount of regard for you; but +out of sight the promises are forgotten, and he is devising some scheme +to annoy you and get something out of you. The only way to treat him is +as you would treat a dog; if you are kind to him he takes it as a sign +that you are afraid of him, and acts accordingly. With the exception of +King there is no fear of violence; but his passion is at times so +uncontrollable that he is capable of anything. It is needless to relate +all the bother I had with these people, and I shall content myself with +saying that the whole time I was with them the camp was the scene of one +continuous wrangle; sometimes they would quarrel with me and sometimes +among themselves, but we never did anything without having a row. + +As far as Fort Resolution the travelling had been almost as easy, +although there were many delays, as in civilization; but directly you +branch from the Company's main route you are thrown entirely on your own +resources, and, owing to the impossibility of carrying enough provision +for a prolonged journey in the Barren Ground, the rifle and net are the +only means of obtaining food. This is a point to be well considered +before undertaking a trip to the country of the musk-ox, as, however +well you may be supplied at starting, you are sure to experience some +hard times before your object is accomplished. + +My only provisions consisted of a couple of sacks of flour and about +fifty pounds of bacon, and I might as well have started with none at +all. My companions had all the improvidence of the Indian nature, and +hated the idea of keeping anything for hard times. There was such a +constant begging, not without a certain excuse from hunger, to be +allowed to eat flour and bacon, that I was really rather glad when it +was all gone, which was actually the case before we left the Great Slave +Lake. We had a good supply of tea and tobacco, though it proved after +all insufficient, plenty of ammunition for the three Winchester rifles, +and powder, shot, and ball for the muzzle-loading weapons of the party; +we had also nets and a few hooks and lines, matches, needles, and awls +to be used in the manufacture of moccasins and the deer-skin clothes so +essential for winter travel; knives of various shapes and sizes, +scrapers for dressing skins, and a small stock of the duffel imported by +the Company for lining mittens and wrapping up the feet during the +intense cold that we were sure to experience during the trip. + +Our fleet numbered three large birch-bark canoes, crowded with men, +women, and children, amounting in all to over twenty souls, or, to be +more practical, mouths. Besides these there were fifteen gaunt and +hungry dogs, which had been spending their short summer's rest in +starving as a preparation for the hard work and harder blows which were +in store for them in the coming winter. + +I was of course the only white man in the party, and whatever +conversation I held with the three or four half-breeds that I could +understand was carried on in the French patois of the North. Among +themselves they used the Montaignais dialect of the Chipeweyan language, +which is spoken with variations to the northward of the Cree-speaking +belt, till its place is taken by the Slavi and Locheaux language of the +Mackenzie River; in a couple of months I had picked up enough +Montaignais to be able to mix it with French and make myself fairly well +understood. + +Four deerskin lodges made our encampment. I lived with King, as his camp +was always the quietest; in the other lodges there was a continual +screaming of children, or yelping of hungry dogs as they felt the cruel +blow of axe or paddle, which was the sure result of approaching the +savoury-smelling kettle too close. We camped the first night in the +delta of the Slave, or, as it is more usually called, the Big River. I +distributed a little ammunition, and we killed enough ducks to provide +the whole party with a night's provision. The next day a gale of wind +was blowing from the lake, and, after following winding muddy channels +all the morning, we were obliged to camp again on a point of willows +beyond which we should have been exposed to the full violence of the +storm, and our overloaded canoes would have had no chance of living in +the heavy sea. Here we remained two days, still within twenty miles of +the fort. Wild-fowl were numerous, but the great autumn migration had +not yet set in, and all the birds that we found had been bred in the +muskegs that surrounded us on all sides; they were mostly mallard, +widgeon, teal, shoveller, and pintail, the latter being particularly +plentiful. Musk-rats swam in all the little creeks and lakes, and, as +they are esteemed as an article of food, and their skins are of a +trifling value, we killed a great many. + +[Illustration: Patching a Birch-bark on the Slave River] + +On the third day we paddled along the shore of the lake against a strong +head-wind, passing the Isle de Pierre, one of the best fisheries in the +neighbourhood, and camped at the Point of Rocks, the first spot on the +south side of the lake where the red granite again shows up, and the end +of the muskeg country that extends far on each side of the Big River. +Here we caught enough whitefish with the nets to enable even the dogs to +have a small feed, and, as we killed forty ducks while waiting for the +wind to moderate, everybody was satisfied. In the afternoon we put out +in a calm to paddle across the open traverse to the first of a group of +islands about fifteen miles to the north. This traverse is the terror of +the lake for canoes, both in summer on account of the heavy sea which +gets up suddenly, and in winter when the drifting snow in stormy weather +obscures everything and makes it a difficult matter to keep the course +over the ice. On this occasion we got over just in time, and, camping on +the nearest island of the group, were delayed for two days by strong +north-west winds accompanied by showers of driving rain. + +These islands, marked on the map as Simpson's Group, extend for a +hundred miles in a north-easterly direction to Fond du Lac, and, if ever +explored, will be found to be in immense numbers, varying in size, but +all of the same red-granite formation, covered with a scanty growth of +pine, birch, and willows. Many of them rise to a considerable height, +with the ridges generally running south-west and north-east. A few moose +still inhabit the larger islands; but the big herds of caribou from the +Barren Ground that used formerly to come here in their wanderings seem +to have deserted them of late years. An occasional small pond gives +harbourage for a few wild-fowl, while wood-grouse, and in winter +ptarmigan, are plentiful. The bare outlying rocks between the islands +are the breeding-ground of gulls and terns: divers and a few cormorants +give additional life to the lake in summer; but at the first sign of +cold weather the water-birds all leave for a more temperate land, and a +deathlike silence settles over the frozen channels during the eight +months of winter. + +The island on which we were encamped, being the most westerly of the +group, was exposed to the full force of the gale. The heavy fresh-water +seas broke with great violence on the weather shore and on the numerous +rocks, some above water and others submerged, that make the navigation +of this part of the lake dangerous for anything larger than a canoe. It +was no easy matter to get out our nets, even to leeward of the island, +and the supply of fish was very scanty; dissatisfaction was prevalent in +the camp, and heavy inroads were made on the flour and bacon that would +have proved so useful later on. When the weather moderated we started +against a strong head-wind, and a hard day's paddling brought us to a +spot known as the Inconnu Fishery, situated on an island halfway to Fond +du Lac. The Inconnu, or Unknown Fish, is, I believe, entirely restricted +to the Mackenzie River country, and its southernmost limits seem to be +the rapids at Fort Smith; it was thus named by the early _voyageurs_ of +the Company, who were unable to classify it, and even to this day there +is a great variety of opinion as to what family it is a member of: a +long thin fish, not unlike a misshapen salmon, running up to fifteen +pounds in weight, with flabby and unpalatable flesh, it is held in very +low estimation in comparison with whitefish or trout, and is only +appreciated in hard times. At this particular island it will take a bait +readily, but I never heard of its doing so in any other part of the +lake, although large numbers are caught in the nets. There is some +peculiarity in the water which may account for this, as, even in the +dead of winter, there is generally an open hole in the ice; and, in +passing the Inconnu Fishery, one must keep right ashore to avoid the +treacherous spot. Here we were wind-bound again, and indeed for several +days made very little head-way against the northerly gales that seem +almost incessant at this time of year. We had a pleasant spot to camp in +every night, but not always enough to eat, and it was the first of +September before we sighted the high land on the north side of the lake. +This was the first really fine day we had had since leaving the fort, +and, taking advantage of it, we left the shelter of the islands, made a +bold crossing of the wide stretch of open water, and camped among the +scattering pines on the northern mainland. Exactly opposite to us was +the narrow entrance to Christie's Bay of the maps, extending some +hundred miles to the east and south-east, offering another tempting +field for exploration. On the west side of the entrance is a remarkable +many-coloured bluff, composed of the soft rock used by the Indians for +the manufacture of their stone pipes, which are still in common use. + +The range of hills along the north shore, which we now had to coast, +average perhaps five hundred feet in height, occasionally reaching a +much higher elevation, but without any conspicuous peaks; the land +begins to rise at once from the lake, in many places taking the form of +a steep cliff. The vegetation is the same as that on the south side of +the lake, but more stunted, the pine trees especially showing the +increased rigour of the climate; small birch trees are still numerous, +and the growth of the hardy willows is almost as strong as at Fort +Resolution. Fruit-bearing plants are common. The small muskegs between +the ridges of rock are full of a much-prized yellow berry, while +blueberry bushes flourish in the dry spots, and a few raspberries are +still to be seen; but strawberries, which used to be plentiful on the +south shore and among the islands, have disappeared. I noticed here the +low trailing plant bearing a woolly red berry, known as Cannicannick by +the Indians to the west of the Rocky Mountains, and used by them as +tobacco; the Slave Lake Indians sometimes smoke it, but prefer the inner +bark of the red willow; the Hudson's Bay negrohead tobacco is in my +opinion much improved, as well as economized, by a mixture with either +of these substances. Countless streams, the outlet of lakes on the +elevated tableland to the north, foam down the deep gulches in the +hillside, and confused masses of fallen timber and rocks give evidence +of the frequent land-slides that take place during the spring thaws. + +Again the north wind howled dismally down the lake, and several more +days were occupied in reaching Fond du Lac. The enforced delay had a +depressing effect upon the whole party, as fish were scarce, and +paddling against continual head-winds is always hard work. At last, on +September 5th, passing through a narrow arm of the lake with a +perceptible current formed by the prevailing winds, we came in sight of +Fond du Lac. A single house at the head of a snug little bay is all that +is left standing, but the ruins of others, and a number of rough graves, +show that at one time it was a more populous place. It was formerly an +outpost of Fort Resolution, used as a depot for collecting meat, and +presided over in a haphazard manner by King Beaulieu, who is still +rather sore about the abandonment of the post and his own discharge from +the Company's service. The weather now became worse than ever, snow and +hail taking the place of rain and throwing the first white mantle on the +hill-tops. It was evident that such a large party, crippled as we were +with women and children, would never be able to reach the caribou, in +the event of these animals being far back from the Great Slave Lake. We +had met no Indians, and so had no means of hearing the news of the +caribou, which forms the one topic of interest among the Dog-Rib and +Yellow Knife tribes who hunt in this part of the country. Luckily trout +and whitefish were fairly abundant, some of the former reaching such an +enormous size that I am afraid to hazard a guess at their weight, though +I afterwards saw one at the fort that turned the scale at fifty-eight +pounds. + +[Illustration: King Beaulieu] + + + + +CHAPTER III + + +We held a big council as to ways and means, and, after much discussion, +finally came to the decision that our best chance was to leave the main +body of women and children with sufficient men to attend to the nets for +them, while the rest of us pushed on to the north with our two biggest +canoes, in the hope of falling in with the caribou, and afterwards the +musk-ox. We were to leave all the dogs at Fond du Lac, as we expected to +send back before the setting in of winter; only two women, King's wife +and daughter, were to come with us to dry meat, dress deerskins, and +make moccasins. Besides them our crew consisted of King Beaulieu, his +sons François, José, Paul, and Baptiste (a boy of twelve), Michel +(King's son-in-law), and a small Indian boy who had thrown in his lot +with us as the best visible means of getting anything to keep him alive +during the autumn. All the provisions that I had brought with me were +exhausted, and we had nothing but a dozen small dried whitefish when we +left Fond du Lac on September 7th to paddle another thirty miles along +the north shore before leaving the lake. Our loads were cut down to the +smallest weight possible in order to save time on the portages. I left +my Paradox behind as the ammunition was heavy, and trusted entirely to a +Winchester rifle; a pair of glasses and a blanket about completed my +share of the cargo. I had no instruments for taking observations, no +compass, and no watch; and, take it all round, it was a very +poorly-equipped expedition. We made a bad start, as, after an hour's +travel across a deep bay, we found ourselves storm-bound on a small +island, the canoes hauled up on the beach, and such a heavy sea on all +sides that we could not get out a net. We spent an uncomfortable night +on the island, but the wind moderated a little in the morning and we put +out again. After being once driven back to our refuge we managed to +reach the mainland, with the canoes half full of water and our blankets +and clothes soaked. However, a good fire soon mended matters, and, as we +caught enough whitefish to stave off present hunger, contentment reigned +in the camp. + +The next evening, after another long struggle against the wind, we +camped in the small bay at which we intended to make our first portage, +and our long journey on the Great Slave Lake was finished. Three ducks, +our whole bag for the day, and a kettle of black tea gave us a scanty +supper, and, as there was still a little daylight, we each carried a +small load to the top of the hill, a distance of two miles, but were +disappointed in not seeing any caribou tracks. We thought we had a +chance of finding them close to the lake, but as a matter of fact we +had several days' journey yet before we fell in with them. It now seemed +pretty certain that we were in for a spell of what my companions alluded +to as _les misères_ till we reached the meat-country, the joys of which +formed the chief subject of talk round the camp-fires. + +With the first streak of light we began the portage in a driving +snowstorm, and long before midday the rest of the cargo and the biggest +canoe were landed at the top of the steep climb; the other canoe we +abandoned, thinking one was ample for our work in the Barren Ground. We +sat down for a smoke at the top of the hill, and took our last view of +the Great Slave Lake. Looking southward we could see the far shore and +the unknown land beyond rising in terraces to a considerable height, and +very similar in appearance to the range we were on. Ahead of us, to the +north, lay a broken rocky country sparsely timbered and dotted with +lakes, the nearest of which, a couple of miles away, was the end of our +portage; a bleak and desolate country, already white with snow and with +a film of ice over the smaller ponds. Three hundred miles in the heart +of this wilderness, far beyond the line where timber ceases, lies the +land of the musk-ox, to which we were about to force our way, depending +entirely on our guns for food and for clothing to withstand the intense +cold that would soon be upon us. A pair of hawks hovering overhead +furnished the only signs of life, and the outlook was by no means +cheerful. As I was sitting on a rock meditating upon these things old +King came up and said: "Let us finish the portage quickly; it is +dinner-time." I quite agreed with him, but put his remark down as a +rather unseasonable joke, as I did not think there was a bite to eat +among us; but on reaching the lake I was pleasantly surprised to see +King fish out a lump of bacon, which he had stowed away some time ago +after one of my lectures on improvidence. It was really the last piece, +and, although there was no bread (and for the matter of that there was +none for the next three months) we all made a good enough meal. The lake +was of course named Lac du Lard to commemorate this event. + +I think no white man had ever passed through this chain of lakes before, +as Sir John Franklin went up by a more westerly route, following the +course of the Yellow Knife River, while Hearne and Back both left from +the east end of the Great Slave Lake; Stewart and Anderson, when they +were searching for survivors of Franklin's last ill-fated expedition, +reached the head waters of the Great Fish River by a chain of lakes +about eighty miles to the eastward of my present route. If the lakes +were known among the Indians by any particular names I enquired their +meaning and preserved them; the others I named from incidents in the +voyage or from the Company's officers of Athabasca and Mackenzie River +districts. + +During the afternoon we made four more short portages, passing through +the same number of lakes, some of them of a considerable size. We kept a +good look-out for the caribou but saw no signs of them, and at dark, +after a hard day's work, camped on the east shore of the Lac de Mort. It +acquired this name from a disaster that overwhelmed a large encampment +of Yellow Knives who were hunting here during one of those epidemics of +scarlet fever that have from time to time ravaged the North. Most of the +hunters were too ill to walk, and, as game was scarce, the horrors of +starvation, combined with disease, almost exterminated the band. + +The next two days were occupied in the same manner of travelling towards +the north with numerous portages. We could not catch any fish, though we +set a net every night, but killed enough ducks to keep us alive without +satisfying our ravenous hunger. The weather was still cold, with strong +head-winds and frequent snowstorms. + +On the third day we caught a big trout and killed a loon and a +wolverine, the latter after a most exciting chase on a long point. In +the next portage accordingly we made a big feast, although wolverines +are only eaten in starving times, as they are looked upon in the light +of scavengers and grave-robbers, and "_carcajou_-eater" is a favourite +term of contempt. On the present occasion nobody made any objection, and +in the circumstances the despised meat tasted remarkably well. Our joy +was soon cut short by finding the next lake, which was more sheltered +from the wind than the others we had passed through, covered with a +sheet of ice sufficiently thick to prevent the passage of a birch-bark +canoe, while a heavy snowstorm came on at the same time, making matters +look more gloomy than ever. King's sons at once expressed their +intention of returning to Fond du Lac while the lakes behind them were +still open. King, however, here showed great determination, and +declared, with an unnecessary amount of strong language, that he had the +heart of Beaulieu (the worst sort of heart, by the way), and, when once +he had started, would not turn back without seeing the musk-ox. +Eventually we persuaded them to come on, and, carrying the canoe, +reduced our load to the very smallest amount of necessaries. We then +started on foot for an expedition that would have most certainly ended +in disaster if we had gone on with it. I noticed that the two women had +the heaviest loads to carry, but having myself as much as I cared about +for a long distance I made no remarks on the subject. Luckily, after +spending a night without eating under the shelter of a bunch of dwarf +pines, we discovered the next lake to be almost clear of ice; and +carrying our canoe over the four-mile portage we continued our journey +as before, pushing on as quickly as possible to reach the Lac du Rocher, +where the half-breeds were confident of meeting the caribou, or, at the +worst, to camp at a spot well known to them where we might catch fish +enough for a temporary support. We had now been in a half-starving +condition for several days, and were beginning to lose the strength that +we required for portaging and paddling against the continual north wind. + +On September 13th we reached the Lac du Rocher, a large irregular sheet +of water, so broken up with bays and promontories that it is hard to +estimate its size. Camp was made on the south side of the lake, and we +set our nets and lines, baited with carefully preserved pieces of +whitefish, while others explored the surrounding hills for caribou +tracks, but without success. The half-breeds were all much put out by +this failure, as they have always found the Lac du Rocher a certainty +for caribou at this time of year, and were unable to account for it, +except by the theory that the animals had altered the usual course of +their autumn migration and were passing to the east of us. There was not +a fish in the net when we turned in; but a good trout was caught in the +middle of the night, and we all got up and finished the last mouthful. +Again we had no breakfast, and the early morning found us discussing +various plans in rather a serious manner. The final decision was that +Paul and François should push ahead to try and find the caribou, while +the rest of us moved the camp to the north end of the lake and worked +the fishing till their return; six days were allowed them for their +trip, after which each party was to act independently, and we were all +to get out of the awkward situation in the best way we could. + +Accordingly we took the canoes across the lake as soon as our hunters +had started, and put up our deerskin lodge in the shelter of a clump of +well-grown pine trees; we tried the hand-lines for hours without any +better result than completely numbing our fingers, and towards evening +set the net, also without any luck. I took my rifle and walked two or +three miles back from the lake, but beyond an Arctic fox, which I missed +at long range, saw nothing edible. + +There is no better camp than a well-set-up lodge with a good fire +crackling in the middle, and in this respect we were comfortable enough, +but the shortness of food was telling rapidly. We had made no pretence +at eating all day, and since leaving Fond du Lac had subsisted almost +entirely on tea and tobacco, while even on the Great Slave Lake +provisions had been none too plentiful. We passed the evening smoking, +and, as I have found usual in these cases, talking of all the good +things we had ever eaten, while eyes shone in the firelight with the +brilliancy peculiar to the early stages of starvation. Outside the lodge +the wind was moderated; the northern lights, though it was still early +in the year, were flashing brightly across the sky, and far away in the +distance we could hear the ominous howling of wolves. Late in the night +I awoke, and, on lighting my pipe, was greeted by King with the remark: +"Ah! Monsieur, une fois j'ai goûté le pain avec le beurre; le bon Dieu a +fait ces deux choses là exprès pour manger ensemble." + +Long before daylight we put off in the canoe to visit the net, and to +our great joy found five fair-sized trout, quite enough to relieve all +anxiety for the day; the weather also had improved, turning much warmer, +with the snow rapidly thawing. The half-breeds, who are all Catholics, +held a short service, as it was Sunday morning and they are very +particular in this respect. Afterwards we all went out hunting, but only +two or three ptarmigan, the first we had seen, were killed, and there +were still no signs of the caribou. The country here is much less rugged +than on first leaving the Great Slave Lake, and the rolling hills are +covered with a small plant, halfway between heather and moss, bearing a +small black berry, and growing in thick bunches wherever the soil is +capable of producing it. This plant, and a wiry black moss which grows +in patches on the flat rocks, are much used as fuel in dry weather, if +no wood is available; in wet weather they are of course useless. The +hollows between the ridges are generally muskegs, thawed out to the +depth of a foot, producing a long coarse grass, and in many places a +plentiful growth of a dwarf variety of the Labrador tea, an excellent +substitute for the product of China. Huge glacial boulders lie scattered +in every direction, many of them balanced in an extraordinary manner on +the points of smaller stones, which seem to have been of softer +substance and gradually worn away. In other spots are patches of broken +rocks, covering a large extent of ground and very difficult to travel +on, especially when a light coating of snow makes them slippery, and +conceals the deep holes in which a leg might easily be snapped; even the +caribou, sure-footed as they are, will often make a long detour in +preference to taking the risk of a fall among these rocks. Lakes of all +sizes and shapes abound on every side, connected by small streams that +find their way into the Slave Lake one hundred miles to the southward. +Pine timber is now very scarce and mostly small, growing in sheltered +spots with long stretches where not a tree is visible. A fairly thick +stem starts from the ground and immediately spreads out into a bush with +the branches growing downwards, and the top of the tree seldom reaching +a height of ten feet. Sometimes, however, even as far out as this, a +bunch of really well-grown trees is to be found, probably having the +advantages of better soil to spring from. A very few birch sticks, +invaluable to the Indian for making snow-shoes, still manage to exist, +and patches of scrub willow are frequent. The general appearance of the +country and the vegetation, with the exception of the timber, reminded +me strongly of the desert of Arnavatn in the interior of Iceland. + +A great variety of mosses and lichens flourish here and in the true +Barren Ground outside the tree limit, the _tripe des roches_ which has +played such a conspicuous part in the story of Arctic exploration being +particularly abundant at this spot. The formation of the rocks is still +red granite, with a good deal of mica showing in the boulders. + +Late in the evening we heard a gun, and, on our replying, four or five +shots were fired in rapid succession, the signal of good news; soon +afterwards Paul and François came in, each carrying a small load of +meat, which we finished promptly. They had fallen in with the caribou +about thirty miles on, and reported them to be moving south in great +numbers; we had now no hesitation in pushing on to meet them, and were +all jubilant at the thought of good times coming. The next day was warm +again with south-west wind, and, after passing through the Lac du +Corbeau (named from our little Indian, who had acquired the title of +_Chasseur du Corbeau_ from an unsuccessful hunt he had made after a +raven at one of our hungry camps), we portaged into Lake Camsell, a fine +sheet of water over twenty miles in length, running more to the east +than the other lakes we had passed, full of small islands, and with +rather more timber than usual on its shores. + +For the first time we could put down our paddles, and, hoisting a large +red blanket for a sail, ran in front of the steady fair wind; the water +was blue, the sun pleasantly warm, and the snow had almost disappeared. +In the afternoon there was a cry of _Et-then, Et-then!_ (the caribou), +and we saw a solitary bull standing against the sky-line on the top of +an island close to the east shore of the lake. As soon as we were out of +sight we landed and quickly surrounded him; he made a break for the +water, but one of the half-breeds, in hiding behind a rock, dropped him +before he put to sea. It was a full-grown bull in prime condition, the +velvet not yet shed, but the horns quite hard underneath. + +A scene of great activity now commenced. There was no more thought of +travelling that night, and, while two men were skinning and cutting up +the caribou, the others unloaded and carried ashore the canoe, lit a +fire, and got ready the kettles for a feast that was to make up for all +the hard times just gone through. There was plenty of meat for everybody +to gorge themselves, and we certainly made a night of it, boiling and +roasting till we had very nearly finished the whole animal. I could not +quite keep up with the others at this first trial of eating powers, but +after a couple of weeks among the caribou I was fully able to hold my +own. We seemed at length to have found the land of plenty, as ptarmigan +were very numerous, just losing the last of their pretty brown plumage +and putting on their white dresses to match the snow, which would soon +drive them for food and shelter into the thick pine woods round the +shores of the Great Slave Lake. + +We had to sleep off the effects of over-eating, and it was late in the +day before we started down the lake. After two or three hours' sailing +at a slow pace we spied a band of caribou, again on an island. With +unnecessary haste we made for the land, and, through watching the deer +instead of the water, ran the canoe on a sharp submerged rock, tearing +an ugly hole in the birch-bark. We all stepped overboard up to the +waist, carried the cargo ashore, and, leaving the women to stitch up the +canoe with the bark and fibre that is always kept handy when away from +the birch woods, started in pursuit of the caribou. The result was that +after a great deal of bad shooting we killed sixteen on the island, +while the canoe, hastily patched up, with a kettle going steadily to +bale out and the women paddling and shouting lustily, succeeded in +picking up two more that tried to escape by swimming. + +The evening was passed in skinning and cutting up the meat, which was +stowed away in rough _caches_ of rocks to keep it safe from the wolves +and wolverines. These animals are always very plentiful in attendance on +the big herds of caribou, and are often the cause of much annoyance to +the hunter through stealing meat that he is relying upon for +subsistence; in many places where the rocks are small it is impossible +to build a _cache_ strong enough to keep out the wolverines, which are +possessed of wonderful strength for their size. + +The following day while Michel, Paul, and myself were walking overland +to join the canoe at the end of the lake, we fell in with another band +of caribou, and, as the rest of the party landed at an opportune moment, +we caught the animals on a long point and made another big slaughter of +seventeen, among them some old bulls with very fine heads. A young bull, +nearly pure-white in colour, came my way, and I secured him, but +unfortunately the skin was afterwards stolen by wolverines. We had now +plenty of meat to establish a permanent camp, and set up our lodge at +the end of Lake Camsell with the intention of leaving the women and boys +to collect and dry the meat and dress the skins, while the men were away +on a short hunt after musk-ox before the lakes set fast with ice. + +We were now within a short distance of the last woods, if a few bunches +of dwarf pines, at intervals of several miles, can be called woods, and +were about to push out into the Barren Ground, where, with the exception +of an occasional patch of small scrub willow, all timber ceases. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + + +In the various records of Arctic exploration, and especially in those +dealing with the Barren Ground, there is frequent mention of deer, +reindeer, and caribou, leaving the casual reader in doubt as to how many +species of deer inhabit the rocky wilderness between the woods and the +Arctic Sea. As a matter of fact, the Barren Ground caribou (which name I +prefer, as distinguishing it from the woodland caribou, the only other +member of the reindeer tribe existing on the American continent) is the +sole representative of the Cervidæ found in this locality. + +The chief distinction between this animal and its cousin the woodland +caribou, or _caribou des bois fort_ in the half-breed parlance, lies in +the different size, the latter having by far the advantage in height and +weight. I have had no opportunity of weighing specimens of either kind, +but should imagine that the woodland must be fully a third the heavier +of the two. I cannot agree with some of the natural history books which +state that the smaller animals carry the larger horns, as of all the +Barren Ground caribou that we killed I never saw any with horns to +compare with the giant antlers of the woodland caribou of Newfoundland +or British Columbia; more irregular, if possible, they may be, and +perhaps have a greater number of points, but they are far behind in +weight, spread, and size of beam. The perfect double plough is more +often seen in the smaller specimen, the larger animal being usually +provided with only one, or with one plough and a spike. In colour they +closely resemble each other, but there is rather more white noticeable +in the representative of the Barren Ground, especially in the females, +while the texture of the coat, as is to be expected, is finer in the +smaller variety. The hoofs have the same curious "snow-shoe" formation +in both cases. + +The range of the Barren Ground caribou appears to be from the islands in +the Arctic Sea to the southern part of Hudson's Bay, while the Mackenzie +River is the limit of their western wandering, although not many years +ago they are known to have crossed the Slave River in the neighbourhood +of Fort Smith. In the summer time they keep to the true Barren Ground, +but in the autumn, when their feeding-grounds are covered with snow, +they seek the hanging moss in the woods. From what I could gather from +the Yellow Knife Indians at the east end of the Great Slave Lake, and +from my own personal experience, it was late in October, immediately +after the rutting season, that the great bands of caribou, commonly +known as _La Foule_, mass up on the edge of the woods, and start for +food and shelter afforded by the stronger growth of pines farther +southward. A month afterwards the males and females separate, the latter +beginning to work their way north again as early as the end of February; +they reach the edge of the woods in April, and drop their young far out +towards the sea-coast in June, by which time the snow is melting rapidly +and the ground showing in patches. The males stay in the woods till May +and never reach the coast, but meet the females on their way inland at +the end of July; from this time they stay together till the rutting +season is over and it is time to seek the woods once more. + +The horns are mostly clear of velvet towards the end of September, but +some of the females carry it later even than this; the old bulls shed +their antlers early in December, and the young ones do the same towards +the end of that month, the females being some weeks later. In June both +sexes present a very shabby appearance, as the old coats have grown long +and white and are falling off in patches; by the end of July the new +hair has grown, and the skins are then in their best condition. + +The caribou are extremely uncertain in their movements, seldom taking +the same course in two consecutive years, and thus affording ground for +the universal cry in the North that the caribou are being killed off. I +think there is really much truth in the statement that they keep a more +easterly route than formerly, as they seldom come in large quantities +to the Mackenzie River, where they used to be particularly numerous in +winter. This is in a great measure accounted for by the fact that great +stretches of the country have been burnt, and so rendered incapable of +growing the lichen so dearly beloved by these animals. The same thing +applies at Fort Resolution, where, within the last decade, the southern +shore of the Great Slave Lake has been burnt and one of the best ranges +totally destroyed. + +One point that seems to bear out the theory of a more easterly movement +is that within the last three years the caribou have appeared in their +thousands at York Factory on the west side of Hudson's Bay, where they +have not been seen for over thirty years; but I cannot believe, judging +from the vast herds that I myself saw, that there is any danger of the +caribou being exterminated. + +It is absurd to say that the white man is killing them off, as no white +man ever fires a shot at them unless they pass very close to a Company's +establishment, and the Indians are themselves surely dying out year by +year. Nor is it any argument to say that the Indians sometimes starve to +death from want of success in hunting, as a glance at Hearne's _Journey +to the Northern Ocean in 1771_ will show that the same state of affairs +prevailed before the Company had penetrated to the Great Slave Lake or +Mackenzie River. Starvation will always be one of the features of a +Northern Indian's life, owing to his own improvidence; his instinct is +to camp close on the tracks of the caribou and move as they move; a +permanent house and a winter's supply of meat are an abomination to him. + +Since the introduction of firearms the Indian has lost much of his old +hunting lore! a snare is almost a thing of the past, but is still +occasionally used when ammunition is scarce. It is no hard matter to +kill caribou in the open country, for the rolling hills usually give +ample cover for a stalk, and even on flat ground they are easily +approached at a run, as they will almost invariably circle head to wind +and give the hunter a chance to cut them off. But it is with the spear +that the vast slaughter in the summer is annually made. The best +swimming-places are known and carefully watched, and woe betide a herd +of caribou if once surrounded in a lake by the small hunting-canoes. One +thrust of the spear, high up in the loins and ranging forward, does the +work. There is no idea of sparing life, no matter what the age or sex of +the victim may be; the lake is red with blood and covered with sometimes +several hundred carcasses, of which fully one-half are thrown away as +not fat enough to be eaten by men who may be starving in a month. Surely +this should exterminate the game; but, if one remonstrates with the +Indians at the waste, the ready answer comes: "Our fathers did this and +have taught us to do the same; they did not kill off the caribou, and +after we are gone there will be plenty for our children." These animals +are easily induced to swim at any particular spot by putting up a line +of rocks at right angles to the water, and a line of pine bush planted +in the snow across a frozen lake has the same effect; the caribou will +not pass it, but following it along fall an easy prey to the hunter +lying in ambush at the end of the line. In the winter they are killed in +great numbers on the small lakes in the timber, as they seem disinclined +to leave the open lake and will often run close up to the gun rather +than take to the woods. I have heard this accounted for by the +suggestion that they take the report of the gun for a falling tree and +are afraid of being struck if they venture off the lake; but I fancy +their natural curiosity has a great deal to do with this extraordinary +behaviour. It frequently happens that they will run backwards and +forwards within range till the last of the band is killed. + +The caribou supplies the Indian with nearly all the necessaries of life; +it gives him food, clothing, house, and the equivalent of money to spend +at the fort. He leaves the trading-post, after one of his yearly visits, +with a supply of ammunition, tea, and tobacco, a blanket or two, and, if +he has made a good season's hunt, is perhaps lucky enough to have taken +one of the Company's duffel _capotes_ (about the best form of greatcoat +that I have ever seen). He has a wife and family waiting for him +somewhere on the shore of the big lake where fish are plentiful, +expecting a gaudy dress, a shawl, or a string of beads from the fort, +but relying entirely on the caribou for maintenance during the awful +cold of the coming winter. The journey up till they fall in with the +caribou is usually full of hardships, but once they have reached the +hunting-ground and found game a great improvement in affairs takes +place; the hunter is busy killing, while the women dry meat and make +grease, dress the skins for moccasins, mittens, and gun-covers, and cut +_babiche_, which takes the place of string for lacing snow-shoes and +many other purposes. For the hair-coats, which everybody, men, women, +and children, wear during the cold season, the best skins are those of +the young animals killed in July or August, as the hair is short and +does not fall off so readily as in coats made from the skin of a +full-grown caribou; while the strong sinews lying along the backbone of +an old bull make the very best thread for sewing. Anything that is left +over after supplying the whole family finds a ready sale at the fort, +where there is always a demand for dried meat, tongue-grease, dressed +skins, and _babiche_, so that the Dog-Ribs and Yellow Knives, whose +country produces little fur, with the exception of musk-ox robes, are +thus enabled to afford some few of the white man's luxuries, tea and +tobacco being especially dear to the Indian's heart. + +A good hunter kills the caribou with discretion according to their +condition at various seasons of the year. After the females leave the +woods in the early spring he has of course only the males to fall back +on, and these are usually poor till August, when the bones are full of +marrow and the back-fat commences to grow. By the middle of September +this back-fat, or _depouille_ as it is called in Northern patois, has +reached a length of a foot or more forward from the tail, and, as it is +sometimes a couple of inches thick and extends right across the back, it +is a great prize for the lucky hunter. It is a point of etiquette that +when two or more Indians are hunting in company, the _depouille_ and +tongue belong to the man who did the killing, while the rest of the meat +is shared in common. + +Towards the end of October, when the rutting season is over, the males +are in very poor condition. The females then come into demand, but it is +not till the end of the year that they show any back-fat at all, and +this is always small in comparison with that of a bull killed in the +Fall. The summer months are generally spent by the Indians far out in +the Barren Ground, and then, as I have said, they slaughter everything +that comes within reach of their spear in the most indiscriminate +manner. + +Excepting in times of plenty, when the utmost recklessness with +provisions is displayed, there are very few parts of the caribou thrown +away, and often the actual stomach is the only thing left; the blood is +carefully preserved, and some of the intestines are prized as great +luxuries. If one does not see the actual preparations for cooking they +are good enough, but the favourite dish of all, the young unborn caribou +cut from its dead mother, I could never take kindly to, although it is +considered a delicacy among the Indians throughout the northern part of +Canada. Another morsel held in high esteem is the udder of a milk-giving +doe, which is usually roasted on the spot where the animal is killed. Of +the external parts the ribs and brisket rank highest, the haunches being +generally reserved for dog's food; a roast head is not to be despised, +and a well-smoked tongue is beyond all praise. It was the caribou of the +Barren Ground that provided the reindeers' tongues formerly exported in +such quantities by the Hudson's Bay Company. The general method of +cooking everything in the lodge is by boiling, which takes most of the +flavour out of the meat, but has the advantage of being easy and +economical of firewood. + +The marrow is usually eaten raw, and, as there is no blood visible in +the bones of a fat animal, it is not such a disgusting habit as it seems +to be at first sight, and one readily accustoms oneself to the fashion. +Everybody who has travelled in the North has experienced the same +craving for grease as the cold becomes more intense. In the case of a +white man the enforced absence of flour and all vegetable food may be an +additional cause for this feeling; but it is a fact that you can +cheerfully gnaw a solid block of grease or raw fat that it would make +you almost sick to look at in a land of temperate climate and civilized +methods of living. + +The Indian is by no means the only enemy of the caribou. Along the shore +of the Arctic Sea live straggling bands of Esquimaux who kill great +quantities of these persecuted animals, although employing more +primitive methods than their southern neighbours; it is done, moreover, +at the most fatal season of the year, just as the females have arrived +at the coast and are dropping their young. Then there are the +ever-hungry wolves and wolverines that hang with such pertinacity on the +travelling herds and rely upon them entirely for subsistence. It is +rarely that a caribou once singled out can escape. The wolves hunt in +bands and seldom leave the track they have selected; the chase lasts for +many hours, till the victim, wearied by the incessant running, leaves +the band and his fate is sealed; he has a little the best of the pace at +first but not the staying power, and is soon pulled to the ground. Many +a time I witnessed these courses, and once disturbed half a dozen wolves +just as they commenced their feast on a caribou in which life was hardly +extinct, and I took the tongue and _depouille_ for my share of the hunt. + +[Illustration: A Dead White Wolf] + +I only saw wolves of two colours, white and black, during my stay in the +North, although I heard much talk of grey wolves. There was some sort +of disease, resembling mange, among them in the winter of 1889-90, which +had the effect of taking off all their hair, and, judging from the +number of dead that were lying about, must have considerably thinned +their numbers. They do not seem to be dangerous to human beings except +when starving; but the Indians have stories of crazy wolves that run +into the lodges, kill the children, and play general havoc. I know that +they do at times get bold under stress of hunger, as my own hauling dogs +were set upon and eaten by them while harnessed to the sleigh close to +the house at Fond du Lac; nothing remained but the sleigh, and a string +of bells that must have proved less tempting than the rest of the +harness. + +I scarcely credit the statement I have often heard made, that the +wolverines will kill a full-grown caribou, although it is possible that +they may attack the young ones. They follow the herds more for the +pickings they can get from the feasts of the wolves, and are content +with showing their fighting powers on hares and ptarmigan; if meat is +not to be had they will eat berries freely, and their flesh is then not +so bad as after they have had a long course of meat. The _carcajou_ +possesses great strength and cunning in removing rocks and breaking into +a _cache_; it climbs with great agility, and has a mean trick of +throwing down a marten-trap from behind and taking out the bait, and is +generally credited by the Indian with more wiles than the devil +himself. It is an animal common enough in many parts of Canada, but is +rarely seen in the woods on account of its retiring habits. In the +Barren Ground, however, I had many opportunities of watching them +through the glasses as they worked at the carcass of a caribou or +musk-ox, and was much struck by the enormous power exercised by so small +an animal; in travelling it seems to use only one pace, the _lope_ of +the Western prairies, which it is said to be able to keep up for an +indefinite time. + +Another great source of annoyance to the caribou are the two sorts of +gadfly which use these animals as a hatching-ground for their eggs. The +biggest kind, which seem the most numerous, deposit their eggs on the +back, and, as they hatch out, the grubs bore through the skin and prey +on the surrounding flesh. They begin to show in October, and grow bigger +through the winter till the following spring, the number of holes in +many cases rendering the skin absolutely useless for dressing. The other +kind of fly lays its eggs in the nostril, with the result that in the +months of May and June a nest of writhing grubs, slimmer and more lively +than the grubs under the skin, appears at the root of the tongue; at +this time of year the caribou may be often seen to stop and shake their +heads violently, with their horns close to the ground, evidently greatly +troubled by these grubs. Of the latter kind the Indians who travelled +with me in the summer have a great horror, warning me to be very careful +not to eat them, as they have an idea they would surely grow in a man's +throat; and whenever we killed an animal, the first operation was to cut +off its head and remove these unpleasant objects. By the beginning of +August all the grubs have dropped off and the holes healed up, while the +new coat has grown and the skins are then in their best condition. + +I could not hear of any attempt ever having been made to domesticate the +caribou, though there is no good reason why they should not be trained +to do the same work as the reindeer of Northern Europe. If this were +brought about it would do away with the greatest difficulty of winter +travel, the trouble about dog's food, which cripples any attempt to make +a long journey except where game is very plentiful; wherever there was +green timber and hanging moss the caribou might find its own supper, and +would always come in better for food than a thin dog in times of +starvation. + +The caribou afford a wide scope for the superstitions so ingrained in +the Indian nature, and the wildest tales without the least foundation +are firmly believed in. One widely-spread fancy is that they will +entirely forsake a country if anyone throws a stick or stone at them, +and their disappearance from the neighbourhood of Fort Resolution is +accounted for by the fact of a boy, who had no gun, joining in the +chase when the caribou were passing in big numbers, and clubbing one to +death with a stick; this belief holds good also down the Mackenzie +River, as does the idea that these animals on some occasions vanish +either into the air or under the ground. The Indians say that sometimes +when following close on a herd they arrive at a spot where the tracks +suddenly cease and the hunter is left to wonder and starve. It is very +unlucky to let the dogs eat any part of the head, and the remaining +bones are always burnt or put up in a tree out of reach, the dogs going +hungry, unless there happens to be some other kind of meat handy. +Another rather more sensible superstition, presumably invented by the +men, is that no woman must eat the gristle of the nose (a much-esteemed +delicacy), or she will infallibly grow a beard. + +Such are examples of the endless traditions told of the caribou, which +will always form the chief topic of conversation in the scattered lodges +of the Dog-Ribs and Yellow Knives. + + + + +CHAPTER V + + +On the 17th of September we left our camp at the north end of Lake +Camsell for a short expedition in search of musk-ox, which we expected +to find within fifty miles of the edge of the woods. By this time we had +all fattened up, and entirely recovered from the effects of the short +rations we had had to put up with before we fell in with the caribou. + +My crew consisted at starting of King, Paul, François, Michel, and José; +but as the two latter speedily showed signs of discontent I made no +objection to their turning back, and despatched them to Fond du Lac to +get ready the dog-sleighs, snow-shoes, and everything necessary for +winter travel. As a matter of fact they did absolutely nothing except +squander a relay of provisions and ammunition that had been sent on by +the trading-boat from the fort to meet me at Fond du Lac. I was not +sorry to see the last of them, as four of us were quite enough to work +the canoe, and a small party naturally stands in less danger of +starvation than a big one; moreover, they were certainly the most +quarrelsome men in the camp, which is saying a good deal, as we had all +done our fair share in that way since leaving the fort. + +We started without any meat, expecting to find caribou everywhere, and +in this respect we had great luck all the time we were out; but we were +not so well off for shelter. We had brought only one lodge from Fond du +Lac, which was of course left for the women, while we took the chance of +what weather might come, hunting the lee-side of a big rock towards +evening, and often finding ourselves covered with an extra blanket of +snow (_le couvert du bon Dieu_, as King called it) in the morning. + +The plan of campaign was to reach the musk-ox by canoe and bring back as +many robes as we could carry before the winter set in; or, failing this, +to kill and _cache_ caribou along our line of travel, so that we should +have meat to help us reach the musk-ox with dog-sleighs after the heavy +snow had fallen and all the caribou had passed into the woods. + +I named the first lake that we portaged into King Lake, a narrow sheet +of water some five miles in length, and here we were storm-bound all day +by a northerly gale, the force of the wind being so great that we could +not move the canoe to windward, although the water was smooth enough. +The weather improving in the morning, we paddled down the lake and +passed into a small stream running out of its north end. A couple of +miles down stream, with a portage over a small cascade (the +thirty-fourth and last portage that we made with the big canoe), brought +us to a huge lake running in a south-east and north-west direction, +said to be the longest of all the lakes in this part of the country, and +by the Indians' account four good days' travel, or over one hundred +miles in length; the part that I saw is certainly over fifty miles, and +is said to be not half the total distance. The lake is narrow in most +places, and cut up by long points into numerous bays; there are a great +many islands, particularly at the north-east end, similar in appearance +to the main shore, which is just like the country I have described at +the Lac du Rocher, except that at the end of the big lake the hills +reach a greater elevation, and present more the aspect of a regular +range, than in any other part of the Barren Ground that I saw. + +The position of Mackay Lake, as I named it after Dr. Mackay of the +Athabasca district, is worthy of remark, as it is the best +starting-point from which to work the most important streams of both +watersheds. It lies very nearly on the height of land between the Great +Slave Lake and the Arctic Ocean; its west end must be but a short +portage from the Yellow Knife River, while from its eastern extremity +runs out the large stream, named by Anderson the Outram, but more +generally known as Lockhart's River, from the fact of its falling into +the Great Slave Lake at Lockhart's house, which was established for the +relief of Stewart and Anderson when they went in search of the missing +Franklin Expedition. The Great Fish, or Back's River, which they +descended on that occasion, heads within half a mile of the north bay of +Aylmer Lake, lying next below Mackay Lake, on Lockhart's River. Fifteen +miles to the north is another large sheet of water known to my +companions as the Lac de Gras, through which the Coppermine River runs +on its course direct to the Arctic Sea. + +The point at which we fell on Lake Mackay is about the edge of the +woods, and here we camped for the last time with pine timber, finding a +small hunting-canoe which some of the Beaulieus had left during the +previous autumn. This we decided to take with us, and it proved +extremely useful later on in crossing the Coppermine. + +On Sunday, September 22nd, with a fresh fair wind and our blanket +pulling strong, we ran for several hours in a north-east direction; the +little canoe which we carried athwartship made the steering difficult, +as her bow and stern kept striking the tops of the big waves that were +running after us, but we met with no accident except the carrying away +of our mast. + +We were continually in sight of large bands of caribou, but they seemed +to take little notice of the extraordinary apparition. Towards evening +we saw a herd on a long point projecting far out from the south shore of +the lake, and, thinking it would be a good place to make a _cache_, +landed inside them and walked down the point in line. We had the animals +completely hemmed in, and, when they charged through us, nine dropped +to quick shooting at short range. There was little fuel of any kind on +the spot, and we had to eat our meat almost raw, as is the fashion of +the Barren Ground on these occasions. In the morning we ferried all the +carcasses to a convenient island close to the point, put them in _cache_ +among the rocks, and proceeded down the lake, camping at sundown at the +head of a small bay near its north-east end. + +The weather now changed, and once more the north wind came howling +across the open country straight from the Arctic Sea, and a steady +continuous frost set in. We hauled up the big canoe and set out on foot, +taking with us only our rifles and ammunition, a blanket apiece, and a +couple of small kettles, besides the little canoe, which proved an +awkward load to carry against the strong head-wind. We must have walked +about twenty miles, occasionally making use of a lake for the canoe, +when we reached the south shore of the Lac de Gras, much disappointed in +seeing no musk-ox or caribou all day. + +The Lac de Gras is much broader than Lake Mackay, and rounder in shape, +although at one spot it is nearly cut in half by points stretching out +from each side. The Coppermine River runs in at the east and out at the +west end, and the distance is not great to the site of Fort Enterprise, +Sir John Franklin's wintering place in 1820, and the scene of the awful +disasters which befell his first overland expedition. + +We were now hard up for provisions again, and the first daylight found +us hunting for something to eat. Two of us walked along the shore, while +the others paddled the canoe, but we could find neither musk-ox nor +caribou; at midday we met and changed places, King and myself making +rather a bold crossing in the shaky little canoe, while Paul and +François walked round. On approaching the north shore of the lake we +noticed a raven rise and throw himself on his back in the air, uttering +the curious gurgling note which always seems to imply satisfaction. King +exclaimed, "See the raven putting down his load! there is something to +eat there"; and true enough there was, for we found the carcasses of +eight musk-ox, killed, as we afterwards heard, a month before by a party +of Yellow Knives, who had driven the animals into the water and +massacred the whole band. Half a dozen gulls flapped away heavily, and +we caught sight of a wolverine sneaking off as we came near. Neither of +us much fancied the appearance of the feast that lay before us, but we +had eaten nothing for some time, and one is not particular in such +cases, especially as it is never certain when the next meal will turn +up. We robbed from the wolverines and ravens, and, signalling to Paul +and François, made a meal of the half-putrid flesh in a little patch of +willow scrub that happened to be close at hand. It is never pleasant to +find the game you are hunting killed by somebody else, but in this +instance it was a relief to know that we had a supply of meat, such as +it was, to fall back upon in case we came to grief later on. + +After supper we crossed the Coppermine, a big deep stream even here, +with a current of a mile and a half an hour, running out of another lake +which stretched northward and eastward as far as we could see. Here we +left the small canoe to cross with on our return, and walked on late +into the night, hoping to find some more willows, but eventually made a +wretchedly cold camp without fire on a long promontory, to which we +always after alluded as Le Point de Misère. A light snowstorm made us +still more uncomfortable, and it was well on in the next afternoon +before we found willows enough to make a fire, sighting almost +immediately afterwards a big band of caribou. We killed eight, and, as +all the small lakes were firmly frozen over by this time, were able to +make the safest form of _cache_ by breaking the ice and throwing the +meat into shoal water, which would at once begin to freeze and defy all +the efforts of the wolverines. Two months afterwards we chopped out this +meat, and found it fresh and palatable, although the outside was +discoloured by its long soaking. When we had finished our _cache_ we lit +a comparatively big fire in a bunch of well-grown willows and spent the +rest of the day in eating and mending our moccasins, which were all +badly worn out by the rough walking of the last few days. We had left +our main camp badly provided in this respect, as the women had not had +sufficient time to dress any skins before we started, and in consequence +we were all troubled with sore feet during our wanderings in search of +the musk-ox. + +Curiously enough, now we did not want them, the ptarmigan appeared again +in great quantities, although we had not seen any since leaving our big +canoe. The only other birds remaining were a few hawks, owls, gulls, and +ravens; the wild-fowl had all left, and as a matter of fact we had come +across very few since leaving the Great Slave Lake. About this time, +too, we killed the first Arctic hare, an animal by no means to be +despised, as it is fully as big as an English hare and will at a pinch +provide a meal for a small party; at this time of year they are +completely white, with the exception of the tips of the ears which are +black; they are usually tame, and, being very conspicuous before the +snow covers the ground, afford an excellent mark for the rifle. + +On this day we crossed a peculiar ridge composed of fine gravel and +sand, resembling at a distance a high railway embankment. It is a +well-known landmark for the Indians, and is said by them to stretch, +with few interruptions from the east end of the Athabasca Lake to the +east end of Great Bear Lake. + +September 27th was a red-letter day, marking the death of the first +musk-ox. Soon after leaving camp we came to a rough piece of country, +full of patches of the broken rocks that I have already described, and, +mounting a small hill, saw a single old bull walking directly towards us +at a distance of three hundred yards. We lay down in the snow, and I had +a capital chance of watching him through the glasses as he picked his +way quietly over the slippery rocks, a sight which went far to repay all +the trouble we had taken in penetrating this land of desolation. In +crossing an occasional piece of level ground he walked with a curious +rolling motion, probably accounted for by the waving of the long hair on +the flanks; this hair reaches almost to the ground, and gives the legs +such an exaggerated appearance of shortness that, at first sight, one +would declare the animal to be incapable of any rapid motion. The shaggy +head was carried high, and when he finally pulled up at sight of us, +within forty yards, with his neck slightly arched and a gleam of +sunshine lighting up the huge white boss formed by the junction of the +horns, he presented a most formidable appearance. His fate was not long +in doubt, as my first shot settled him, and the main object of my trip +was accomplished; whatever might happen after this, I could always +congratulate myself on having killed a musk-ox, and this made up for a +great deal of the misery that we afterwards had to undergo. + +Although not absolutely prime, this animal was a fine specimen of an +old bull, with the yellow marking on the back clearly defined, and as +good a head as any I saw during my stay in the musk-ox country. We took +the whole skin, with head, horns, and hoofs, and _cached_ it among the +rocks, where I am sorry to say it lies to this day; I intended to pick +it up in the course of our winter hunt, but unfortunately we were caught +in a snowstorm on the Lac de Gras, and were unable to find the _cache_. +In the evening we scattered over the country, hoping to find a band of +musk-ox, but another bull, killed by Paul, was the only one seen. + +On the following day the frost was much keener; the smaller lakes and +the sheltered bays in the big one were set fast, and we began to realise +that the sooner we started back the better chance we had of getting +across Mackay Lake with the canoe, and avoiding the long detour to cross +Lockhart's River, which was sure to remain open much longer than the +lakes. The winter was coming on quickly, and we were badly provided with +clothes to withstand its severity; our moccasins were in rags, and +everybody showed signs of being footsore. By rough reckoning we were +about on the 65th degree of latitude, and it seemed too reckless to push +on any further towards the North, as already we were separated from the +nearest timber by a hundred miles of treeless waste; even if we found a +band of musk-ox, we should be forced to come out again with dogs to +haul in the robes, as our big canoe was now too far back for us to think +of carrying any great weight with us. Although we had not made a +successful hunt, our trouble was not all thrown away, as enough meat +_caches_ had been made to insure us a fair chance of getting out into +the same country on the first deep snow. + +Nobody liked to be the first to talk about turning back, but on reaching +the top of a low range of hills and seeing a flat desolate stretch of +country lying to the north of us, with the lakes frozen up and no sign +of animals or firewood, King turned to me and said: "It is not far from +here that the white men died from cold and starvation at this time of +year; let us go back before the snow gets deep and we are not able to +travel." The old man looked particularly tough at this moment; none of +our faces were very clean, but his was the more remarkable, as the blood +of the last caribou that we killed had splashed in it, and, running down +his beard, had mixed with his frozen breath and appeared in the form of +long red icicles hanging from his chin. I think he knew what was in my +mind and had an idea that I was laughing at him, for suddenly his quick +temper got the better of him and he broke into one of those wild volleys +of blasphemy that I had heard him give way to so often, and, turning on +his heel, said that I could do as I liked, but he was going to make the +best of his way back to the lodge. The walk back in front of the wind +was not nearly so bad as it had been coming out head to it; and in many +places we could travel straight over the ice, and, by cutting across the +bays instead of walking round, save a considerable distance. Whenever we +got this chance we put our loads on a handful of willow-brush and +dragged them after us, finding it far easier than carrying them on our +shoulders. + +Another night we spent without fire on the Point de Misère, and on +October 3rd crossed the Coppermine amidst running ice, and there +abandoned the little canoe. On the south side of the river we fell in +with the biggest band of caribou we had yet seen, numbering fully three +hundred; but as we had no need of any more meat _caches_ on the Lac de +Gras, we only killed enough for present use. + +This crossing of the Coppermine, by the way, is an important spot in the +history of the Dog-Ribs and Yellow Knives. It has always been a +favourite swimming-place for the caribou, and many a struggle took place +for the possession of this hunting-ground in the old days when there was +continual warfare between the two tribes. At the present day it is a +breach of etiquette for any Indians to camp here, as it is supposed that +if the caribou are once headed back at this point they will not come +south of Mackay Lake. This rule had evidently been broken lately, as we +found signs of a recent encampment, and King considered that this amply +accounted for our not finding the caribou before we reached the Lac du +Rocher. + +After two more days' hard travelling we arrived at our big canoe, and +had the satisfaction of finding some meat, that we had left there, +untouched by the wolverines; but the bay was frozen solid, and there was +no open water within two miles. Beyond the points of the bay we could +see the white-capped waves running, but we knew that at the first spell +of calm weather the whole lake would set fast. + +I now saw an example of the readiness of idea which King possessed in +devising shifts and expedients to get out of difficulties. Of course he +had had fifty years' experience in northern travel, but he was +certainly, in my opinion, far above the average of the many other +half-breeds and Indians who had been my companions in more or less +difficult journeys in various parts of Canada. Before I thoroughly +understood his scheme we commenced operations, by lashing together all +the poles and paddles into a rough sort of ice-raft; on the top of this +we placed the loads that we had carried so many miles, forming a smooth +bed, two feet above the level of the ice, on which to rest the canoe. +The bay had evidently frozen and broken up once, and the second freezing +had left a rough surface; many of the floes were piled on top of each +other, while the rest had been turned on edge, and it was necessary to +keep the canoe clear of these sharp edges, which would have ripped the +tender birch-bark like a knife. One man ran ahead, trying the strength +of the ice with an axe, while the others hauled on the raft, and our +method of progression was so satisfactory that just before dark, after +much ominous cracking of the ice but no disaster, we camped on the east +point of the bay close to the edge of open water. The half-breeds showed +great knowledge of ice, and, with an occasional tap of the axe, picked +out the safest route without making a mistake. + +The canoe propped on her side gave us the best shelter we had had for +many a night, and, finding willows enough for a fire, we all felt +jubilant at the idea of reaching the first clump of pines on the +following day, besides getting an opportunity to rest our feet, which by +this time were in a very bad condition. In this, however, we were doomed +to disappointment. + +At the first sign of daylight we launched the canoe, and, breaking our +way out through the young ice, were soon paddling in a heavy beam sea, +with every splash of water freezing on us, and many stops to knock the +ice from our paddles. After two or three hours of this work the wind +died out, and, as we approached a group of small islands that cut the +lake up into numerous channels, we saw a thin sheet of ice across the +whole width. All hope of passing with the canoe was given up, and we +headed for the south shore while a heavy snowstorm made it difficult to +keep the course; the surface water was rapidly thickening into ice, and +the sharp needles began to scrape unpleasantly along the sides of our +frail vessel. We were none too soon in reaching the land, and had to +carry the canoe over the thick ice near the shore. Here we turned her +over carefully, and putting the poles, paddles, and all necessaries +underneath, abandoned her to be buried under the snow till I might want +her again the next summer. Late in the following June we found her, none +the worse for her long exposure to the rigour of a winter in the Barren +Ground, but even then there was no sign of open water in Mackay Lake. + +We had now to continue our journey on foot; but by keeping to the shore +of the lake, and sometimes making use of the ice in crossing a bay, we +only camped twice before reaching the pine timber. Late on the third day +we came to the bank of an ugly, quick-flowing stream, and saw a large +bunch of pines on the far side. Waist-deep we made a ford among the +running ice, and were soon drying ourselves by a blazing fire of +pine-wood. + +The whole of life is said to go by comparison, and although a few +pine-trees in a wilderness of snow might seem the height of desolation +to a man lately used to the luxuries of the civilized world, it appeared +to us like a glimpse of heaven after the exposure of the last few weeks. +It really was a pleasant spot, and one which has impressed itself on my +memory more than any other camp that we made during this trip. A band of +caribou, passing close by, provided us with supper, while a big pack of +ptarmigan held possession of the little pine-trees, and kept up a +constant expostulation at the intrusion of the scarcely known human +beings. Hunger and danger were behind us just at present, and we felt in +the best of tempers as we lay down for a long sleep on sweet-smelling +pine-brush. + +Shortly after leaving camp in the morning another band of caribou +appeared, and, as the lodge was now not far ahead, we killed about a +dozen, and put them in _cache_ for later use. We then walked steadily on +all day, and in the evening came in sight of Lake Camsell, over which +the sun was setting in full northern splendour, throwing a wonderful +purple light across the thin film of ice that coated the water. It was +late in the night, and it was not till we had fired several gun-shots at +intervals, that we heard an answering signal, and found that the women +had set up the lodge in the next bunch of pines, as they had exhausted +all the firewood close to the old camp. + +Meat was abundant, for the caribou had been passing, and many had been +killed by the women and boys. Bales of dried meat formed a solid wall +round the lodge, varied here and there by a bladder of grease or a +skin-bag full of pounded meat, while bunches of tongues and back-fats +were hanging from the cross-poles to smoke. The scene reminded me of the +old fairy stories in which the hero used to discover houses, with walls +of sugar and roofs of gingerbread, full of all the good things +imaginable, while any member of the Beaulieu family would make a +respectable ogre to guard such treasures. Of course the lodge was dirty +and infested with the vermin from which these people are never free; but +there was an air of warmth and plenty about it very agreeable after the +hand-to-mouth existence we had been leading. + +On looking back at this expedition I cannot help thinking that we were +lucky in getting through it without more trouble; it was just the wrong +time of year to be travelling, too late for open water and too early for +dogs to have been of any service, even if we had had them with us. One +of the heavy snowstorms that, judging from Sir John Franklin's +experience, are common in the end of September and beginning of October, +would have made the walking much more laborious, as even the little snow +that was on the ground delayed us considerably. Another source of danger +was the numerous falls among the broken rocks; but though we all came +down heavily at times, and, once or twice, with big loads of meat on our +backs, no damage was done. The caribou kept turning up most opportunely, +and we had no real hardships from want of food. Fuel was nearly always +insufficient, but we only had two fireless camps, both on the Point de +Misère. In many places we used black moss in addition to whatever willow +scrub we could collect, and so long as the weather was dry found it +quite good enough for boiling a kettle, but when the snow fell it was +perfectly useless. This absence of a fire to sit by at night is the most +unpleasant feature in travelling the Barren Ground. + + + + +CHAPTER VI + + +The day after our arrival was Sunday, a fine, calm day with bright +sunshine, of which we took advantage to wash our scanty stock of +clothing and generally pull ourselves together. Cleanliness of the body +is not looked upon with much favour by the half-breeds, but Sunday +morning was always celebrated in the lodge by the washing of faces and a +plentiful application of grease to the hair. After this operation was +over we held a consultation as to the best way of carrying on our hunt +of the musk-ox, which had so far not proved successful. The same old +wrangling and abuse of each other ensued, and finally the following +decision was arrived at. Paul and François were to go back to Fond du +Lac, so soon as their feet were in a fit condition to travel; they were +to occupy themselves in getting ready the dog-sleighs, and to return on +the first deep snow to the spot where we had killed the caribou on the +day that we reached the lodge. If any of the Indians, of whom I had seen +absolutely nothing so far, were going to the musk-ox, arrangements +should be made with them to come all together, so that we might have the +benefit of as many sleighs as possible to haul wood. All our dried meat +was to be put in _cache_ at Lake Camsell, and the camp moved to a clump +of pines that we had noticed the day before. King and myself were to +remain with the women, to kill meat enough to enable us to start well +supplied for the musk-ox country. + +We built a rough scaffold with the longest poles obtainable, and stowed +all the meat as high above the ground as possible. Then we pulled down +the lodge, and, after a couple of days' walk with heavy loads, camped on +the south side of a ridge, from the summit of which we had a commanding +view of Lake Mackay and the surrounding country. There was little chance +of many caribou passing without being observed, as there were usually +several pairs of sharp eyes on the look-out. + +As this was to be our home for a month or so, we took care to pick out a +good spot and set up the lodge in the most approved fashion, taking +advantage of the little shelter that the stunted pines could afford. + +A mile or two to the east lay the northern end of a large sheet of +water, running about forty miles in a southerly direction, known to the +Indians as "The Lake of the Enemy," and formerly the home of that +terrible Evil Spirit supposed to haunt the Barren Ground. It is hard to +get a full description of the Enemy, as, although many people have seen +it, they are at once afflicted with insanity, and are incapable of +giving an accurate account of their experience; but one must not dare to +express unbelief in the existence of the Enemy any more than in that of +the Giant Musk-Ox, fully ten times the size of the biggest bull ever +seen, whose track many Indians say they have come across far out in the +Barren Ground. + +King and myself spent most of our time prowling about in search of +caribou, but for the first fortnight few came and we were only just able +to keep ourselves in fresh meat, although there was soon plenty of dried +meat from the animals we had _cached_ at this spot a week before. I now +saw what an advantage it is to take women on a hunting-trip of this +kind, and certainly King's wife and daughter were both well up in the +household duties of the country. If we killed anything, we only had to +cut up and _cache_ the meat, and the women and small boys would carry it +in. On returning to camp we could throw ourselves down on a pile of +caribou skins and smoke our pipes in comfort, but the women's work was +never finished. The rib bones have all to be picked out, and the _plat +côte_ hung up in the smoke to dry; the meat of haunches and shoulders +must be cut up in thin strips for the same purpose, and the bones have +to be collected, pounded down, and boiled for the grease which is in +such demand during the cold weather about to commence. But the greatest +labour of all lies in dressing the skins, cutting off the hair, scraping +away every particle of flesh and fat, and afterwards tanning them into +soft leather for moccasins, which are themselves no easy task to make. +Many skins, too, have to be made into parchment or carefully cut into +_babiche_ for the lacing of snow-shoes, and again, there are hair-coats +to be made for each member of the party. In an ordinary Indian lodge the +women have to put up with ill-usage as well as hard work; but most of +the half-breeds know enough to treat them fairly; and King, except in +his moments of passion, when he did not stop at any cruelty, treated his +womenkind very well. + +One of our first expeditions was to hunt birch for making the frames of +snow-shoes, which might be needed at any time, and King soon had a pair +ready for lacing; he was very clever with the crooked knife, the +universal tool of the North, but the stunted birch is hard to bend to +the proper shape, and requires constant watching during the process of +warping. + +The evenings were generally spent in long discussions over our pipes, +for tobacco was still holding out, and the old man was keen to hear +about the doings of the white man in the Grand Pays, as the half-breeds +indefinitely term the whole of the outside world. The ignorance existing +among these people is extraordinary, considering how much time they +spend at the forts, and how many officers of the Hudson's Bay Company +they have a chance to talk to, besides the missionaries of both faiths. +It is a different matter with the Indians, as they seldom come to the +fort, and cannot hold much conversation with the Whites without an +interpreter. It was difficult, for instance, to persuade King that the +Hudson's Bay Company does not rule the whole world, or that there are +countries that have no fur-bearing animals, which in the North furnish +the only means of making a living for the poor man. He was much +interested in stories of the Queen, although he could never believe that +Her Majesty held such a high rank as the Governor of the Company, and +quite refused to acknowledge her as his sovereign. "No," he said; "she +may be your Queen, as she gives you everything you want, good rifles and +plenty of ammunition, and you say that you eat flour at every meal in +your own country. If she were my Queen, surely she would send me +sometimes half a sack of flour, a little tea, or perhaps a little sugar, +and then I should say she was indeed my Queen. As it is I would rather +believe Mr. Reid of Fort Province, who told me once that the earth went +round and the sun stood still; but I myself have seen the sun rise in +the morning and set at night for many years. It is wrong of you White +Men, who know how to read and write, to tell lies to poor men who live +by the muzzle of their guns." + +Another matter over which his mind was greatly exercised was the last +North-West Rebellion under Louis Riel. He was convinced that during +this rising the half-breeds and Indians had declared war upon the +Hudson's Bay Company, and gained a decisive victory besides much +glorious plunder; and he asked why such an outbreak should not succeed +on the Great Slave Lake, where there was only one man in charge of a +fort. He had many questions too to ask about the various good things +that we eat and drink in England, and criticised severely the habit of +eating three regular meals a day, which he described as eating by the +clock instead of by the stomach, a much more greedy habit than that of +gorging when meat is plentiful and starving at other times. On several +occasions during our travels together I had reason to expostulate with +him on the carelessness he displayed with provisions, but without making +the least impression. "What is this improvidence?" he would say. "I do +not like that word. When we have meat why should we not eat _plein +ventre_ to make up for the time when we are sure to starve again?" He +could never realise that starvation might be partially avoided by a +little care. + +Often King would spin me a long story as we lay round the fire in the +lodge; usually some tradition handed down from the time when all the +animals and birds could converse together; what the wolf said to the +wolverine when they went on a hunting-trip in company, and how the +ptarmigan invited the loon to dine with him in a clump of willows in the +Barren Ground, while there was a big stock of giant stories, with +heroes much resembling those of the favourite nursery tales of one's +childhood. Again he would come down to more recent times and describe +the battles of the Dog-Ribs and Yellow Knives, which seem to have been +carried on in the same sneaking fashion that has always distinguished +the warfare among the tribes of Canadian Indians; there was no open +fighting, and all the victories were won by a successful approach on an +unsuspecting and usually sleeping encampment of the enemy, the first +grey of dawn being the favourite time of attack. + +The following story of the Deluge, as believed by the Yellow Knives, I +copied down from King's recital; it appears to be a curious mixture of +old tradition with some details from the Biblical version as taught to +the Northern Indians on the arrival of the first priests in the country. + +Many years ago, so long ago in fact that as yet no man had appeared in +the country of the Slave Lake, the animals, birds, and fishes lived in +peace and friendship, supporting themselves by the abundant produce of +the soil. But one winter the snow fell far more heavily than usual; +perpetual darkness set in, and when the spring should have come the +snow, instead of melting away, grew deeper and deeper. This state of +affairs lasted many months, and it became hard for the animals to make a +living; many died of want, and at last it was decided in grand council +to send a deputation to Heaven to enquire into the cause of the strange +events, and in this deputation every kind of animal, bird, and fish was +represented. They seem to have had no difficulty in reaching the sky, +and passing through a trap-door into a land of sunshine and plenty. +Guarding the door stood a deerskin lodge resembling the lodges now in +use among the Yellow Knives; it was the home of the black bear, an +animal then unknown on the earth. The old bear had gone to a lake close +at hand to spear caribou from a canoe, but three cubs were left in the +lodge to take care of some mysterious bundles that were hung up on the +cross-poles; the cubs refused to say what these bundles contained and +appeared very anxious for the return of the old bear. + +Now the idea of spearing caribou did not find favour with the deputation +from below, and as the canoe was seen lying on the shore of the lake, +the mouse was despatched to gnaw through the paddle, and as he had +nearly accomplished this feat the bear came running down in pursuit of a +band of caribou that had put off from the far shore. When he was close +up to his intended victims and was working his best, the paddle suddenly +broke, the canoe capsized, and the bear disappeared beneath the water. +Then the animals, birds, and fishes grew bold, and pulling down the +bundles, found that they contained the sun, moon, and stars belonging to +the earth; these they threw down through the trap-door to lighten the +world and melt the snow, which by this time covered the tops of the +tallest pine-trees. + +The descent from Heaven was not made without some small accidents. The +beaver split his tail and the blood splashed over the lynx, so that ever +afterwards till the present day the beaver's tail is flat and the lynx +is spotted; the moose flattened his nose, and many other casualties +occurred which account for the peculiarities of various animals, and the +little bears came tumbling down with the rest. + +And now the snow began to melt so quickly that the earth was covered +with water, but the fish found for the first time that they could swim, +and carried their friends that could not on their backs, while the ducks +set to work to pull up the land from beneath the water. + +But it was still hard to make a living, so the raven, then the most +beautiful of birds, was sent to see if he could find any place where dry +land was showing; but coming across the carcass of a caribou he feasted +upon it, although the raven had never before eaten anything but berries +and the leaves of the willow. For this offence he was transformed into +the hideous bird that we know, and to this day is despised of every +living thing; even omnivorous man will not eat of the raven's flesh +unless under pressure of starvation. The ptarmigan was then sent out and +returned bearing in his beak a branch of willow as a message of hope; in +remembrance of this good action the ptarmigan turns white when the snow +begins to fall in the Barren Ground, and thus warns the animals that +winter is at hand. + +But the old life had passed away and the peace that had reigned among +all living things was disturbed. The fish, as the water subsided, found +that they could no longer live on the land, and the birds took to flying +long distances. Every animal chose the country that suited it best, and +gradually the art of conversation was lost. About this time too, in a +vague and indefinite manner about which tradition says little, the first +human being appeared on the shore of the Great Slave Lake. + + * * * * * + +The weather continued fine without severe frost till the middle of +October, the snow was still light on the ground, but the lakes all set +fast. On the night of the fourteenth a storm arose equal in violence to +a Dakota blizzard and continued till the following evening, by which +time there were a couple of feet of snow on the ground. It was +impossible to keep the drift from coming into the lodge, and as soon as +the storm was over we had to throw down our shelter and clear away the +banks that had accumulated inside. This was distinctly the coming of +winter and there was no more sign of a thaw; the cold kept growing +severer, especially on clear days, but I had no thermometer to mark its +intensity. The daylight was shortening rapidly and the sun shone with +little warmth. + +[Illustration: The Indians Driving Caribou] + +With the increasing depth of snow there was a noticeable migration of +life from the Barren Ground. Ptarmigan came literally in thousands, +while the tracks of wolves, wolverines, and Arctic foxes made a +continuous network in the snow. Scattered bands of caribou were almost +always in sight from the top of the ridge behind the camp, and increased +in numbers till the morning of October 20th, when little Baptiste, who +had gone for firewood, woke us up before daylight with the cry of _La +foule! La foule!_ and even in the lodge we could hear the curious +clatter made by a band of travelling caribou. _La foule_ had really +come, and during its passage of six days I was able to realise what an +extraordinary number of these animals still roam in the Barren Ground. +From the ridge we had a splendid view of the migration; all the south +side of Mackay Lake was alive with moving beasts, while the ice seemed +to be dotted all over with black islands, and still away on the north +shore, with the aid of the glasses, we could see them coming like +regiments on the march. In every direction we could hear the grunting +noise that the caribou always make when travelling; the snow was broken +into broad roads, and I found it useless to try to estimate the number +that passed within a few miles of our encampment. We were just on the +western edge of their passage, and afterwards heard that a band of +Dog-Ribs, hunting some forty miles to the west, were at this very time +in the last straits of starvation, only saving their lives by a hasty +retreat into the woods, where they were lucky enough to kill sufficient +meat to stave off disaster. This is a common danger in the autumn, as +the caribou coming in from the Barren Ground join together in one vast +herd and do not scatter much till they reach the thick timber. It turned +out very well for us, however, and there is really no limit to the +number we might have killed if we had been in need of them; but it was +too far out to make a permanent winter's camp, and hauling such a long +distance with dogs is unsatisfactory, as most of the meat would be +consumed on the way. We killed therefore only so many as we could use, +and had some luxurious living during the rest of our stay in this camp. +The caribou, as is usually the case when they are in large numbers, were +very tame, and on several occasions I found myself right in the middle +of a band with a splendid chance to pick out any that seemed in good +condition. The rutting season was just over, and as the bulls had lost +all their fat and their meat was too strong to eat, only does were +killed. A good deal of experience is necessary to tell the fat ones, but +the half-breeds can tell age and sex pretty well by the growth of the +horns; often King told me which to shoot at, and it was seldom that he +made a mistake in his choice. + +This passage of the caribou is the most remarkable thing that I have +ever seen in the course of many expeditions among the big game of +America. The buffalo were for the most part killed out before my time, +but, notwithstanding all the tall stories that are told of their +numbers, I cannot believe that the herds on the prairie ever surpassed +in size _La foule_ of the caribou. + +Soon after the migration had passed, José Beaulieu arrived from Fond du +Lac in company with an Indian, having made the journey on foot in eight +days. Things had apparently gone all wrong there; they had been +starving, and had of course taken everything of mine that they could lay +hands on, both provisions and ammunition. They had then quarrelled over +the division of the spoil, but as the caribou turned up within two days +of the house contentment was now reigning. José had brought a little tea +and tobacco, of which we were now badly in need, and a long string of +grievances against his brothers at Fond du Lac. He had done nothing to +help me in any way, although he had promised to have everything ready +for the first snow, and seemed rather surprised that I did not take much +interest in his wrongs. He got even with me, however, on his way back, +by breaking into a _cache_, that I had made before reaching the Lac du +Rocher, and stealing the tobacco that I was relying on for our next trip +in the Barren Ground. + +José reported the woods to the south of us to be full of caribou, and a +big band of Yellow Knives camped at the Lac de Mort, some of whom were +talking of coming for a musk-ox hunt, if I could give them ammunition. I +sent word to the chief that I could supply three or four of them, and +ordered Paul and Michel to come on with the dogs as soon as possible. +The snow was by this time quite deep enough for travelling, and any +delay meant an increased severity in the weather, while in any case it +would be late in the year before we got back to Fond du Lac. + +After José left we relapsed into our lazy existence of eating and +sleeping, having no more excuse for hunting; occasionally we made a +short trip on snow-shoes to examine some of our _caches_ and bring in a +little meat, and once went for a three days' expedition to our meat on +the island in Mackay Lake, and made a more secure _cache_ by putting the +carcasses of the caribou under the ice. At other times we amused +ourselves by setting snares for ptarmigan, which were in great numbers, +or by hauling a load of wood across a small lake in front of the lodge, +as we had used up all the fuel within easy reach. On the shore of this +lake was a fine specimen of the balanced rocks so common all over the +open country; an enormous boulder many tons in weight, so neatly set on +the three sharp points of an underlying rock that it could be easily +shaken but not dislodged; the lake is known among the Indians as the +"Lake of the Hanging Rock." We might have done some successful trapping +for wolves, wolverines, and foxes, but had unfortunately left all our +steel traps at Fond du Lac in order to travel as lightly as possible in +the portages. + +Quickly and without incident the short days slipped away until on the +tenth of November, as I was returning to camp, I heard a gunshot to the +southward of us. Instantly all was excitement, and we had barely time to +answer the signal before a large party of men and eight dog-sleighs came +in sight over the ridge. At first I could recognise no one, as the day +had been very cold and their faces were covered with hoar frost, which +makes it hard to distinguish one man from another; but they turned out +to be Paul, François, and Michel, besides several Indians, among whom +was Zinto, the chief of the Yellow Knives, who had come some hundred +miles from his hunting-camp on purpose to pay me a visit. + +A small supply of tea and tobacco had come up, but not nearly enough for +our wants, and I could see that we should have to do without these +luxuries just at the time when we most required them; there was also a +little flour, and we had a big feast of flour and grease the same +evening; all the new arrivals came into the lodge, and sixteen people +and fully as many dogs slept inside that night. After supper I handed +round a small plug of black tobacco to each man, as is the invariable +custom of the officer in charge of a fort on the arrival of a band of +Indians; and when the pipes were lit Zinto gave me to understand that he +had a few remarks to make to me. He would have been a fine-looking +specimen of a Yellow Knife but for a habit of blinking his eyes, which +gave him a rather owlish expression; he was possessed with a great idea +of a chief's importance, but I found him a pretty good fellow during the +many dealings that I afterwards had with him. King acted as interpreter, +and I fancy rather cut down the speech in length, but this was the gist +of it. "Zinto was very pleased to see a white man on his hunting-ground. +He had known several at the forts, but had never before seen one among +the caribou. Many years ago his father had told him stories of some +white men who had wandered across the Barren Ground and reached the +sea-coast; they had all endured much hardship, and many had died from +cold and starvation; he did not know why they came to such a country, +when by all accounts they were so much better off at home, but supposed +there was some good reason which an Indian could not understand. For his +own part he liked the Whites; all that he valued came from their +country, and he had always been well treated by the Company. He was +willing to help me as much as he could now that I had ventured so far +into his hunting-ground, but the musk-ox hunt in snow-time was hard; +only the bravest of his young men went, and last year was the first time +they had made the attempt. The Dog-Ribs who traded at Fort Rae often +went, but they had an easier country, as the musk-ox were nearer the +woods. There would be much walking to do, and the cold would be great; +however, if I meant to go he would order his young men to look after me, +and on no account to leave me if from starvation or any other cause I +could not keep up. I was to have the first choice of the meat in the +kettle and the best place in the lodge to lie down. He hoped we should +have a successful hunt, and, although he knew that we were short of such +things, he could not help asking for a little tea and tobacco to give +him courage for his journey back to the camp. If he received this he +should have a still higher opinion of the white man and his heart would +be glad." + +I replied that I was much gratified at seeing the chief of the Yellow +Knives in my camp, and was sorry that I could not give him a more +imposing reception on the present occasion; I had heard much to his +credit from King Beaulieu and from the Company's officer in charge of +Athabasca district; he was spoken of as a good chief and friendly +towards the Whites. I had come from far across the big water on purpose +to see the country of the Yellow Knives, and was anxious to know how +they lived, and how they hunted the various kinds of animals upon which +they depended for subsistence. For this purpose I now proposed going for +a musk-ox hunt, and was glad to see that some of his tribe were +prepared to accompany me. I could let them have enough ammunition for +the trip, and would share with them the meat _caches_ that we had made +along our line of travel, and also the tea and tobacco while it lasted. +Much interest was felt in my country with regard to the Yellow Knives, +and I hoped to be able to give a good account of their treatment to a +stranger when I returned home. If his young men behaved well while they +were out with me they should all receive presents when they reached the +fort. + +Here the effect of my oration was rather spoilt by the Beaulieus +breaking in to ask what presents they were to receive. Had they not been +faithful so long, and gone so much out of their way to help me? and then +the misery they had gone through in the Barren Ground on the last +musk-ox hunt! Now followed a tremendous quarrel among themselves, +mostly, I believe, about the stealing they had been doing at Fond du +Lac, and whether the value of the articles they had taken should be +deducted from the wages I had agreed to pay them before starting. After +the discordant clamour had subsided a little, Zinto replied that he was +satisfied, and thanked me for the small present of tea and tobacco which +I could not well refuse; we then discussed all the various plans for the +forthcoming hunt, and sat up feasting till late in the night. + +Something in the proceedings of the evening must have displeased King, +as he suddenly astonished us all by saying that he would not go with us. +What the grievance was I never found out, but he was obstinate on the +point. I had been relying on him for interpreter, and was rather annoyed +at his refusal to go, especially as François, the best French speaker in +the outfit, declared his intention of returning straight to Fond du Lac. +Michel too was wavering, but finally decided to go, as Paul, who behaved +very well on this occasion, steadily declared that he was quite willing +to accompany me, and would carry out the promise that he had made at +Fort Resolution to go the whole trip. These two then and myself, +together with the five Indians, Noel, William, Peter, Saltatha, and +Marlo (brother of Zinto), and twenty-four dogs hauling six sleighs made +up the party that eventually started for the Barren Ground about midday +on Sunday, November 11th. + +King maintained his ill-temper till the hour of departure, saying that +he did not want so many men and dogs in his lodge eating up the +provisions that he had worked so hard to earn, and that the sooner we +started the better he would be pleased. He used some particularly +offensive language to me, but relented at the last moment and gave me +his own hair-coat and a new pair of snow-shoes, of which I was badly in +want. He also promised to do his best in the way of leaving meat +_caches_ along the course that we should follow on our return from the +musk-ox country. I was rather sorry to leave the old fellow after all, +as on the whole we had been pretty good friends while we lived together, +and he certainly had great influence over the Indians which might have +been useful during our difficult journey. + + + + +CHAPTER VII + + +That night we made an open camp in a bunch of pines on the south side of +Lake Mackay, at which point we intended to load wood for use in the +Barren Ground. We were much better found in all respects than on the +last occasion, and having dogs with us should not be obliged to carry +anything ourselves. We used the ordinary travelling sleighs of the +North; two smooth pieces of birch, some seven feet in length, with the +front ends curled completely over and joined together with cross slats +secured with _babiche_ into a total width of sixteen inches. A +ground-lashing is passed along through holes in the outside edge of the +sleigh, and to this is fastened a rough deerskin wrapper in which the +load is stowed as neatly as possible and the wrapper laced on the top, +so that in case of a capsize, which frequently happens, nothing can fall +out. The traces are hitched on to loops in the front end of the sleigh, +and four dogs put in the caribou-skin harness one in front of the other. +The company officers have imported leather dog-harness with buckles for +their own use between the forts; but I think for handling in really cold +weather the caribou-skin, or better still moose-skin, with thongs +instead of buckles, is preferable. + +Our twenty-four dogs rejoiced in endless varieties of names, English, +French, and Indian, some popular names introduced by the Whites being +freely given without reference to sex or colour. For instance, in my own +sleigh the fore-goer, a big yellow bitch, answered to the name of +Napoleon, whilst just behind her came a black bushy-tailed dog La Reine; +we had three Drap Fins, from their resemblance to the fine black cloth +so dearly beloved by the half-breeds and Indians, two Chocolates of +different colours, besides Cavour, Chandelle, Diable, Lion, Blucher, +Royal, Bismarck, and a host of unpronounceable Indian names. + +We were all dressed alike in coats of caribou-skin with the hair outside +and hoods fastened up closely under the chin, and these we hardly took +off day or night for the five weeks that we were out. Our hands were +thrust into moose-skin mittens lined with duffel and hung round the neck +by highly ornamented plaited woollen strings, or in the case of a man of +little wealth with a more humble piece of _babiche_, but most of my +companions managed to show a little colour in this respect. We rolled +our feet in duffel and cased them in huge moccasins, of which we all had +two or three pair; and as we were very careful in drying them every +night before sleeping to get rid of all dampness caused by perspiration +there was not a single case of frozen feet during the whole journey, +although the big cold of an Arctic winter had now fairly set in. We +used small snow-shoes about three feet in length, as most of the +travelling would be on the frozen lakes where the snow is always +drifting, and, consequently, pretty hard. One man, or in case of softer +snow two, went ahead to break the road and the dogs followed in their +tracks, or, if they showed any disinclination to start, were most +unmercifully clubbed and cursed by name till they did so. + +A big deer-skin lodge and a sufficient number of carefully trimmed poles +had been brought up from Fond du Lac, as it would have been impossible +to endure the cold and almost perpetual wind without shelter of any +kind, but they had the disadvantage of greatly increasing the weight of +our load. King had given us a little dried meat, but only enough for a +couple of days for such a large outfit; the dogs alone required at least +fifty pounds a day to keep them in good condition. We had the meat +_caches_ ahead, and hoped to fall in with the musk-ox before we ran out +of provisions entirely. The danger of course lay in not finding these +animals when we got far out, as the caribou had almost all passed into +the woods and we could not hope to see any after the first few days. Our +ammunition was rather limited, but with care we had enough to keep the +muzzle-loading weapons supplied, and Paul and myself had a fair amount +of cartridges for our Winchester rifles. We were obliged to wrap +deer-skins round the levers and the parts of the barrel that our hands +touched to avoid contact with the iron, which sticks to the bare skin in +cold weather and causes a painful burn. + +The next day was spent in cutting wood into short lengths and loading it +on to the sleighs. In the morning Marlo was very ill from the surfeit of +flour he had had in King's camp, but was well enough to travel a short +distance in the afternoon, and we pitched our lodge in the snow, clear +of all timber. Here I had my first experience of a winter camp in the +Barren Ground. + +A spot being chosen where the snow is light and the ground clear of +rocks, a ring of the requisite size is marked out. Snow-shoes are taken +off and used as shovels for throwing away the snow from the inside of +this ring, making a wall varying in height according to the depth of +snowfall. Outside this circle the sleighs are turned on edge, the poles +planted behind them, and the deer-skin lodge spread round, forming as +comfortable a camp as can be expected in such a country. The wood +allowed for supper is carefully split and a fire lighted, the kettle +hanging over it from three small sticks carried for the purpose; the +lumps of meat for dog's food are spread round the fire till sufficiently +thawed, when a lively scene commences outside the lodge, every man +feeding his own dogs and watching them to see there is no foul play. By +the time this is over the melted snow in the kettle is boiling, and +every man gets his piece of meat in much the same manner as the dogs. +I always had the privilege of first choice, but in the dense clouds of +smoke that usually filled the lodge it was by no means easy to take the +full advantage of it. We drank tea while it held out, and then fell back +on the greasy snow-water that the meat was boiled in. There was always a +good proportion of caribou hair in everything we ate or drank, varying +afterwards to the coarse black hair of the musk-ox, which was far more +objectionable. + +[Illustration: Making Camp] + +As soon as supper was over and our moccasins dry the fire was allowed to +go out, to economize wood, and each man rolled himself up in his +blanket, lay down on the frozen ground, and slept as well as he might +till it was time to travel again. Directly all was quiet the dogs forced +their way in and commenced a free fight over us for any scraps or bones +they could find lying about; finally they curled themselves up for the +night without paying much attention to our comfort. A warm dog is not a +bad thing to lie against or to put at your feet, but these hauling dogs +seem to prefer to lie right on top of your body, and as most of them are +a considerable weight a good night's rest is an impossibility. Any +attempt to kick or shove them off produced a general row, and a moving +foot was often mistaken in the darkness for a hostile dog and treated as +such; Paul received one rather bad bite on his toes, but the rest of us +all got off with slight nips. We had to be careful to put everything +edible, in the way of moccasins, mittens, and even snow-shoes, under us, +as these are things that few dogs can resist, and there is nothing more +annoying than to find all the _babiche_ eaten out of your snow-shoes in +the morning. When the hungry time came later on the dogs began to eat +the lodge, and would soon have left us houseless but for one man always +keeping watch at night. + +One is accustomed to hear of men sleeping in fluffy woollen bags in the +Arctic regions, but I found that a deer-skin coat and one blanket were +sufficient to keep me warm except on the very coldest nights. I had told +Michel particularly to bring another blanket that I had left behind at +Fond du Lac, and abused him roundly when I found he had come without it. +It seems that an Indian had arrived at the house with a load of dried +meat and grease, and was in want of a blanket; Michel, to use his own +expression, took pity on him and gave him my blanket in exchange for the +grease. He doubtless considered this a pious act of charity, but had +rather spoilt it by consuming the grease himself; and on my asking him +why, if he felt so sorry for the Indian, he had not given him one of his +own blankets, or at least kept the grease for me, he replied: "I have +only two blankets and I have a wife; you have no wife, so one blanket is +enough for you; besides, I love grease, and it is hard for me to see it +and not eat it." + +In the middle of the night Saltatha, always the earliest, got up and +drove out the dogs, lit the fire, and prepared another meal, exactly +similar to our supper of the evening. Usually we harnessed up many hours +before daylight and travelled, with only an occasional ten-minutes' +rest, till the sun had been long down and there was just enough daylight +left to make camp; dinner was completely cut out of our day as being too +heavy a strain on our firewood. There was no attempt at washing made by +any of the party during the whole time that we were out, and indeed it +would have been an impossibility, as our small fires were only just +sufficient to melt the snow for cooking purposes. + +In clear weather the nights were of wonderful brilliancy, and after we +had been out a couple of weeks the moon was big enough to add a little +light, and of course kept steadily improving in this respect; but the +starlight alone illumined the waste of snow sufficiently to see +landmarks far ahead. Generally the Aurora was flashing in its full +glory, and if there was no wind the travelling was pleasant enough. At +the first sign of dawn, and thence till the sun rose, the cold always +became more severe, and if a light head-wind happened to get up at the +same time there were sure to be some frozen noses and chins in the +outfit. The hair on our faces, even to the eyebrows and eyelashes, was +always coated with rime, giving everybody a peculiarly stupid +expression; my beard was usually a mass of ice, and I had great +difficulty in thawing it out by our small fires, although it proved a +grand protection from frost-bite. I think I was the only one that +escaped being bitten in the chin, but my nose, cheeks, and forehead were +touched several times. + +The sunrise was often very beautiful, and the effects of long duration, +as the sun is close to the horizon a considerable time before he shows +above it, while the dense blue blackness in the north and west gives the +impression that the night is still lingering there. Often a sun-dog is +the first thing to appear, and more or less of these attendants +accompany the sun during his short stay above the horizon. The driving +snow, which obliterates everything in blowing weather, often spoils the +evening effects; but once or twice I saw the sun set over a frozen lake, +tinting the snow with various shades of red, and throwing a beauty over +the wilderness that it is useless for me to attempt to describe. + +A thick fog hung over everything during the whole of the second day out +from the woods, and of course made it extremely difficult to find the +meat _cache_ in Lake Mackay; at dark we camped on the first land that we +came to, but had no very accurate idea of our position. Luckily the +weather cleared towards morning, and we made out the island on which we +had stored the carcasses of the caribou killed on September 22nd. We +had some trouble in punching a hole with our only ice-chisel and hauling +out a solid lump of meat and ice some five feet thick and many feet in +circumference; but the Indians were much cheered at the sight of so much +provision, and declared themselves ready to go out to the sea-coast if +necessary. The short day was nearly over by the time we had got the +meat, so we camped for the night on the island; but before daylight we +were off again, and when the sun set had nearly reached the end of the +lake and made a wood _cache_ on a conspicuous point for our return +journey. The next day was thick again, and we were lucky in finding the +bay in which we had left the big canoe during our last expedition. A +very curious thing, illustrating the difficulty of recognising objects +in these fogs, happened just as we were leaving the ice. We saw an +animal, apparently at some distance, bounding along the horizon at a +most remarkable pace; all down the line there were cries of _Erjerer_ +(musk-ox), _Et-then, Le loup!_ guns were snatched from the sleighs, and +even the dogs charged at a gallop in pursuit of the strange animal. +After a rush of ten yards the quarry disappeared; the first man had put +his foot on it, and it turned out to be one of the small mice so common +in the Barren Ground. What it was doing out on the lake at this time of +year, instead of being comfortably curled up under ground, I cannot say; +but it certainly gave me the impression that if these fogs continued we +should run a good chance of coming to grief through losing our way. + +At sunrise the weather cleared, and we found a small band of caribou at +the beginning of the twenty-mile portage to the Lac de Gras. After we +had killed three and fed the dogs, we began our overland work. The snow +was much softer here, with many large rocks showing through, and some +steep hills made travelling hard for the dogs. Night caught us about +half-way between the two lakes, and the north wind freshened up into a +tempest such as I have never seen surpassed by the blizzards of the +western prairies. Fortunately we found a fairly sheltered place for the +lodge or it must have been swept away; as it was the deer-skin flapped +with a noise like that of a sail blown to pieces at sea; two of our +lodge-poles were carried away, and we were in momentary expectation of +being left without shelter to the mercy of the storm; the driving snow +forced itself in, and men and dogs were only recognisable by the white +mounds which marked their position. For thirty hours we lay like this +till the wind abated at midnight, when we started again towards the +north, and continued walking till we had crossed the big bay of the Lac +de Gras into which the Coppermine River runs. We camped a little short +of our second meat _cache_ on the Point de Misère, and on the following +day, although the fog had settled down again, Paul, by a very good +piece of piloting, discovered the small lake in which we had _cached_ +the meat. We were getting pretty hard up again by this time, and the +Indians, with the exception of Saltatha whose good spirits never failed, +were showing signs of sulkiness. This new supply, however, gave them +fresh courage, and we were all confident of finding the musk-ox before +we got to the end of the six caribou that we picked up here. We +experienced the same difficulty in breaking the ice, and as we spent +much valuable time in getting out the meat, made but a poor day's +journey. On the following day we passed the most northerly point that we +had reached in the autumn, and were now pushing on into a country that +none of us had ever seen before. + +At the spot where we had left the Lac de Gras we had noticed a few small +willow sticks showing above the snow, which afterwards proved very +useful. Following a small stream we reached another large lake, +stretching in a north-easterly direction, and camped at the far end of +it in a heavy snowstorm that had been going on all day. During this time +we were keeping a sharp look-out for musk-ox; but we could find no +tracks, and as the weather continued thick had no opportunity of seeing +animals at a distance. Two more days we travelled on in this manner, +making long journeys with our meat nearly finished and our wood-supply +growing rapidly less; for there had been more delay, from various +reasons, than we had anticipated, and we had been careful to avoid +_caching_ wood for our return journey as we might be unable to follow +the same course. The shape of the hills here changes in a most distinct +manner. The usual undulations give way to sharp scattered buttes, +composed of sand and taking very remarkable forms, a solitary conical +mound being a common feature in the scenery. Small lakes were still +numerous, and for a considerable distance we followed a large stream, +evidently one of the head waters of the Coppermine, here running in a +south-east direction. + +On November 20th we dropped on to a lake some twelve miles in breadth, +and crossed to the north shore in falling snow. We had been on short +rations, men and dogs, for some time, and our last mouthful was eaten +for supper this night. When we made camp a few miles beyond the lake the +outlook therefore was by no means cheerful. The continual thick weather +spoilt our chance of finding the musk-ox, and we were now too far away +from the woods to have much chance of reaching them without meat. Of +course we could always have eaten the dogs, but then we should have been +unable to haul our wood, which in the Barren Ground is almost as +necessary as food. As we felt certain that we were well in the musk-ox +country we decided to spend the next day in hunting at all risks, and by +good luck the morning broke clear and calm. Michel and myself remained +in camp to look after the dogs, which had now become so ravenous that +they required constant watching to keep them from eating the lodge, +harness, and everything else that they could get at. The others went in +couples in different directions with the agreement that if anyone +discovered a band of musk-ox they should return at once to wait for the +rest of the party to come in, when we were all to start with the dogs in +pursuit. There was no breakfast, and all the hunters were off before +daylight, evidently fully aware that the success of our expedition, if +not our chance of supporting life, was centred in the result of the +day's proceedings; and it was certainly a great relief when Paul and +Noel appeared towards mid-day and reported a large band of musk-ox +undisturbed a short distance to the north. Peter and Marlo returned soon +afterwards, having found another band in a more westerly direction. I +distributed a pipeful of the now very precious tobacco, while we waited +for William and Saltatha, and discussed the plan of attack. I was rather +surprised at Noel's asking Paul to tell me that I might have some of the +musk-ox, as he was pleased at receiving the tobacco. I was about to +reply that I had come far, and been to a great deal of trouble, on +purpose to kill some of these animals, and I should think it rather +extraordinary if I were not allowed to do so, when Paul explained that +it was a custom among the Yellow Knives to consider a band of musk-ox as +the property of the discoverer, and only his personal friends were +granted the privilege of killing them without payment of some kind. +Sometimes an Indian would go through all the hardships of a hunt, and +then have to give up nearly all his robes because he had not been lucky +enough to discover a band and was out of favour with his more fortunate +companions; so I told Noel I was very grateful for his kindness, and +made him believe himself a remarkably good Indian. By this time it was +getting late, and as the wind had risen the snow was beginning to drift. +There was much grumbling at the delay, and in spite of my remonstrances +at breaking up our agreement to wait for William and Saltatha, the dogs +were harnessed, the lodge pulled down, and the sleighs loaded. I pointed +out that the snow was drifting badly and that the other two would not be +able to follow our tracks; but was told that it was only white men who +were stupid in the snow, so I made no further objection. After +travelling about three miles through some rough hills, we caught an +indistinct view of the musk-ox, fully a hundred in number, standing on a +side-hill from which most of the snow had drifted away; and then +followed a wonderful scene such as I believe no white man has ever +looked on before. I noticed the Indians throwing off their +mitten-strings, and on enquiring the reason I was told that the musk-ox +would often charge at a bright colour, particularly red; this story +must, I think, have originated from the Whites in connection with the +old red-rag theory, and been applied by the Indians to the musk-ox. I +refused to part with my strings, as they are useful in keeping the +mittens from falling in the snow when the hand is taken out to shoot, +but I was given a wide berth while the hunt was going on. Everybody +started at a run, but the dogs, which had been let out of harness, were +ahead of us, and the first thing that I made out clearly through the +driving snow was a dense black mass galloping right at us; the band had +proved too big for the dogs to hold, and most of the musk-ox had broken +away. I do not think they knew anything about men or had the least +intention of charging us, but they passed within ten yards, and so +frightened my companions that I was the only man to fire at them, +rolling over a couple. The dogs, however, were still holding a small lot +at bay, and these we slaughtered without any more trouble than killing +cattle in a yard. There is an idea prevalent in the North that on these +occasions the old musk-ox form into a regular square, with the young in +the centre for better protection against the dogs, which they imagine to +be wolves; but on the two occasions when I saw a band held in this +manner, the animals were standing in a confused mass, shifting their +position to make a short run at a too impetuous dog, and with the young +ones as often as not in the front of the line. There was some rather +reckless shooting going on, and I was glad to leave the scene of +slaughter with Marlo in pursuit of stragglers. Marlo, in common with the +other Indians, had a great horror of musk-ox at close quarters, and I +was much amused at seeing him stand off at seventy yards and miss an +animal which a broken back had rendered incapable of rising. He said +afterwards that the musk-ox were not like other animals; they were very +cunning, could understand what a man was saying and play many tricks to +deceive him; it was not safe to go too near, and he would never allow me +to walk up within a few yards to put in a finishing shot. After killing +off the cripples, we started back to the place where we had left the +sleighs, and, night having added its darkness to the drifting snow, we +had the greatest difficulty in finding camp. Marlo confessed he was +lost, and we were thinking what it was best to do for the night when we +heard the ring of an axe with which somebody was splitting wood in the +lodge; the others, with the exception of William and Saltatha, were all +in, but there seemed little chance of these two reaching camp that +night. We had eaten nothing for a long time, so we celebrated our +success with a big feast of meat, while the dogs helped themselves from +the twenty carcasses that were lying about. They gave us very little +trouble in the lodge, as we saw nothing of them till we skinned the +musk-ox next day, when two or three round white heaps of snow would +uncurl themselves on the lee-side of a half-eaten body. I questioned the +Indians about the two missing men, and they were unanimous that unless +the night got colder they were in no danger of freezing to death; they +were sorry that they had not waited, and would go at the first sign of +daylight to see if they were in the old camp. Peter and Noel accordingly +started very early in the morning, and found the men lying close +together under the snow at the old camp; they had returned at dark, and +as our tracks had drifted up there was not the least chance of finding +us. They were slightly frost-bitten in the face and hands, but as soon +as they had got over their first numbness were able to walk to camp, +where they soon forgot their natural indignation at the mean trick we +had played them in the joys of warmth and food. We were obliged to be a +little extravagant in our wood to make up for the hard times of the +night before, and Saltatha soon recovered his liveliness; he was far +away the best Indian that I met in the North, always cheerful and ready +for work, and afterwards, in the summer, the only one of the Yellow +Knives brave enough to volunteer for an expedition down the Great Fish +River. A hard life he leads, always in poverty, a butt and a servant to +all the other Indians, who are immeasurably his inferiors for any useful +purpose. Although a capital hunter, they swindle him out of everything +he makes, and take the utmost advantage of the little fellow's +good-nature; he seems to have no sense in this respect, and will jump +readily at any bargain that is offered him. He is just the man for an +expedition in the Barren Ground, as when once he has given his word to +go he can be relied upon to carry out his promise, which is more than I +can say for the rest of his tribe, who only wait to rebel and desert +till a time when they think you can least do without them. + +We spent most of the day in skinning the musk-ox, which, by the way, is +not a pleasant undertaking in cold weather; the skin is naturally hard +to get off, and on this occasion the carcasses had grown cold during the +night, and the difficulty was greater than usual. The robes were in +splendid condition; the undergrowth, which resembles a sheep's fleece +and is shed in summer, was now thick and firm, while the long permanent +hair had obtained the black glossiness distinctive of a prime fur. We +cut up all the meat that the dogs had left us, and loading it on the +sleighs with the robes, moved camp about five miles to the west to be +ready to go in search of the other band which Peter and Marlo had +discovered. We calculated that we should be able to haul forty-five +robes, besides meat enough for our journey, back to the woods, and at +present we had only half a load. + +While the men were planting the lodge I climbed to the top of a high +butte to have a look at the surrounding country; the hill was so steep +that I had to take off my snow-shoes to struggle to the summit, and was +rewarded for my trouble by a good view of probably the most complete +desolation that exists upon the face of the earth. There is nothing +striking or grand in the scenery, no big mountains or waterfalls, but a +monotonous snow-covered waste, without tree or scrub, rarely trodden by +the foot of the wandering Indian. A deathly stillness hangs over all, +and the oppressive loneliness weighs upon the spectator till he is glad +to shout aloud to break the awful spell of solitude. Such is the land of +the musk-ox in snowtime; here this strange animal finds abundance of its +favourite lichens, and defies the cold that has driven every other +living thing to the woods for shelter. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + + +Early on the following morning we left camp with the light sleighs, and +at sunrise were close to the place where the second band had been +discovered. We were a long time in finding them, as the fog had settled +down again, but at last made out a band of sixty on a high ridge between +two small lakes in a very easy place to approach. Directly after we +sighted them Paul's sleigh, which was ahead, capsized over a rock, and +his rifle, which was lashed on the top of it, exploded with a loud +report. The bullet must have passed close to some of us, as on +examination the rifle appeared to be bearing right down the line, and it +was lucky that nobody was killed or crippled; a wounded man would have +had little chance of getting back to the woods alive. The musk-ox took +not the slightest notice of the report, although we were within a couple +of hundred yards of them, and we soon had eighteen rounded up, the main +body breaking away as they had done before. A sickening slaughter, +without the least pretence of sport to recommend it, now took place till +the last one was killed, and we were busy skinning till dark. + +I took some of the best heads, but most of them were afterwards thrown +away by the Indians to lighten the load on the sleighs. The animals that +we killed in this band were of various ages, and it was interesting to +note the growth of the horns in different specimens. They begin in both +sexes with a plain straight shoot, exactly like the horns of a domestic +calf, and it is then impossible to tell the male from the female by the +head alone. In the second year they begin to broaden out, and the bull's +horns become much whiter and project straighter from the head than the +cow's, which are beginning already to show the downward bend. At the end +of the third year the cow's horns are fully developed, and I do not +think they grow much after that age; with the bulls, however, the horns +are only just beginning to spread out at the base, and it is not till +the sixth year that the solid boss extends right across the forehead, +the point of junction being marked by a slight crack into which the skin +has been squeezed during the growth of the horns. A curious fact is +noticeable in the horns of the young bulls before the boss has begun to +form; they are quite soft and porous at the base, and can easily be cut +with a knife; when once the boss has grown, the horn is as hard as a +rock. I made careful inquiries of the Indians on these points, and they +told me that, except in the case of very young or very old animals, they +could always tell the age of the musk-ox by a glance at their horns. + +We had the greatest difficulty in finding our way back to the lodge, and +it was late before we turned in, everybody agreeing that we had done +enough, and ought to make our best way back to the timber before our +firewood was exhausted. The loads would be quite as heavy as they had +been coming out, for we now had the weight of robes and meat to make up +for the wood we had used. We had, roughly, three hundred and fifty miles +to travel to reach Fond du Lac, but intended to take the last part of +the journey easily after we fell in with the caribou. I should like to +have known our exact position on the map, and the distance from the +sea-coast at Bathurst Inlet, but of course had no chance of making even +an approximate calculation; the Indians had no local knowledge, as they +were entirely beyond any country they knew. Our only luxuries, tea and +tobacco, were now finished, and I found that the want of tobacco was the +most trying hardship on the whole trip: one pipeful as you roll up in +your blanket for the night imparts a certain amount of comfort, and +makes you take a more cheerful view of life; but when even this cannot +be obtained there is a perpetual craving for a smoke, and the best of +tempers is liable to suffer from the deprivation. After we had boiled +our last handful of tea-leaves three times over, Saltatha ate them with +great gusto, and in future we drank the water in which the meat was +boiled. I did not miss the tea nearly so much as the tobacco, and soon +began to like the hot greasy _bouillon_ well enough to struggle for my +full share. + +We were late off next morning, and could not make a good day's journey, +as the snow was soft till we got on the large lake, and we were further +delayed in the evening by finding another band of musk-ox. The Indians +said they could carry half a dozen robes more, and insisted, against my +wishes, on killing this number; the consequence was that we had to camp +for the night, and the dogs were more overloaded than ever; they were +able, however, to eat to their hearts' content, and there was very +little left of the six musk-ox in the morning. Two long days' travel +took us back to the point on the Lac de Gras where we had seen the +willows above the snow, and as the dogs were showing signs of fatigue +and their feet were much cut about by the sharp snow-needles sticking +between their toes, we decided on taking a day's rest. We managed to +pull up enough small willows to keep a bit of a fire going most of the +day, and if we had had tobacco should all have enjoyed ourselves +immensely. It was a bright clear day, without wind and terribly cold. I +climbed to the top of a hill in the afternoon to see if I could make out +the west end of the lake, but an intervening hill made it impossible to +get a clear view, and I could form no idea of its length. On this day I +felt the top of my tongue cold in breathing, and my companions, who +were well accustomed to low temperatures, all remarked the extreme +severity of the cold. + +It must have been about midnight when I heard Saltatha splitting wood, +and the well-known cry of _Ho lève, lève, il faut partir!_ Looking out +of my blanket I felt the snow falling in my face through a big hole that +the dogs had eaten in the lodge, and said that it was no use moving, as +we should never be able to find our way across the broad traverse that +lay ahead. I was laughed at as usual, and after a breakfast of boiled +meat we started out into the darkness. I soon saw there was little +chance of picking up the skin of the musk-ox that we had _cached_ in +September, as, although the intention was to follow the shore of the +lake till we came to the _cache_, we lost sight of land immediately with +absolutely nothing to guide us on our course. There was no wind, and +such a thick downfall of snow that matters did not improve much when the +blackness turned into grey with daylight. + +I have often heard it stated that the gift of finding their way is given +to Indians under all conditions by a sort of instinct that the white man +does not possess, but I never saw children more hopelessly lost than +these men accustomed all their lives to Barren Ground travel. I have +seen it happen to half-breeds and Indians many times, and have come to +the conclusion that no man without a compass can keep his course in +falling snow, unless there is wind to guide him. It is always advisable +to put ashore at once, or, better still, not to leave your camp in the +morning, as then you know your point of departure on the first signs of +a break in the weather. On this occasion the usual thing happened; we +walked all day, changing our roadbreaker every hour or so, while the men +behind shouted contrary directions when they thought he was off his +course. Luckily we found land just at dark, and camped immediately. A +great discussion ensued as to our position, and opinions varied greatly +about the direction of the north star; but we could do nothing till the +weather improved, and even then, unless it grew very clear, or the sun +came out, we might not know which course to take, as landmarks are few +and far between. Fuel could not last more than three nights with the +strictest economy. + +The wind rose in the evening, and the snow ceased falling, but began to +drift heavily. In the night there was a tremendous uproar. I was +awakened by hearing the universal Indian chant (_Hi hi he, Ho hi he_), +and much clapping of hands, while the dogs were howling dismally far out +on the ice, evidently thinking they were meant to hunt something, but +disappointed at not being able to find anything to tear to pieces. I +looked out to see what was going on, and found everybody sitting in the +snow shouting; Saltatha had discovered a single star, and the noise I +had heard was the applause supposed to bring out one of the principal +constellations, so that we might get an idea of our direction. The +heavens certainly did clear, and when daylight broke and the wind +moderated we made out our position easily enough. In fourteen hours' +walk we had come perhaps five miles straight, having made a huge circle +to the right and fallen on an island close to the shore that we had left +in the morning. There was still the whole width of the lake to cross, +but when we camped late in the portage between the two big lakes I +thought we had got out of the scrape very well. There was no apparent +reason why the snowstorm should have stopped, and a continuation of it +must have brought us serious trouble. + +The next day was worse than ever. A gale from the south in our teeth and +drifting snow made it cruel work to face the storm; but we had to go, as +fuel was rapidly vanishing, and we had already burnt some of our +lodge-poles, and we hoped to reach a small wood-_cache_ that night. We +could find the way, as we had the wind to guide us; but the snow was +soft, and the dogs were hardly able now to drag the sleighs over the +rough hills; one of the poorest froze in harness and had to be +abandoned. Our blankets, which we usually wrapped round our head and +shoulders when facing the wind, now came in for dog-cloths, and +certainly saved some more of the dogs from being disabled by frost-bite; +but as the snow melted between their backs and the blankets, the latter +got wet and afterwards froze till they would stand like a board, and +were then a most uncomfortable form of bedding. The slow pace at which +we were forced to travel made it much worse, and we all found our faces +slightly frozen. At dark we camped nearly at the end of the portage, +although we did not know it till morning, and reluctantly cut up another +couple of lodge-poles for firewood, besides a small box in which I had +been carrying my journal and ammunition. + +The wind lightened during the night, and backing into the east came fair +on Lake Mackay. We found our wood-_cache_ all right, and set out on the +sixty-mile walk that still lay between us and the first pine-timber. The +travelling on the lake was better than in the portage, and well on in +the night we put ashore on the island where we had stored our first meat +during the autumn musk-ox hunt. The dogs were too tired to go any +further without rest, or we should have pushed on all night. Our last +lodge-pole was burnt to cook a kettleful of meat for breakfast on +December 1st, and before daylight we were off, with no thought of +camping till we could make fire. The sun at this time only stayed above +the horizon for a couple of hours, and had sunk beneath the snow before +we made out far ahead the high ridge under which the first clump of +pines lay. We were badly scattered along the track, and some of the +dogs, and the men too for that matter, had great difficulty in keeping +up pace enough to make the blood circulate; it was six hours later, and +we were all pretty well used up, when we saw the little pines standing +out against the sky line. + +What a glorious camp we had that night! The bright glare of two big +fires lit up the snow-laden branches of the dwarf pines till they +glittered like so many Christmas-trees; overhead the full moon shone +down on us, and every star glowed like a lamp hung in the sky; at times +the Northern Lights would flash out, but the brilliancy of the moon +seemed too strong for even this wondrous fire to rival. It was pleasant +to lie once again on the yielding pine-brush instead of the hard snow, +and to stretch our legs at full length as we could never stretch them in +the lodge; pleasant, too, to look back at the long struggle we had gone +through, and to contrast our present condition with that of the last +month. Our experiences had been hard and not without their share of +danger, and we could now congratulate ourselves on having brought our +hunt to a most satisfactory conclusion. I had fully succeeded in +carrying out the object of my expedition, and could look forward to a +period of ever-increasing comfort, culminating in the luxury of life at +a Hudson's Bay Fort within a few weeks. I had intended to winter at the +edge of the Barren Ground, but was forced to give up the idea, as I had +seen too much of the Beaulieus to care about living any longer with +them. The fact that meat was scarce again did not trouble me, as I was +by this time accustomed to empty larders and had fallen into the happy +Indian method of trusting that something would turn up; besides, we were +pretty sure to run across the caribou within the next few days. The want +of tobacco was the worst grievance that I had, but the prospect of +obtaining this was getting brighter after each day's travel. + +Very late at night Saltatha turned up with a badly frozen nose and chin. +One of his dogs had given out and been abandoned, and he had been +pushing the sleigh for many hours; he had almost given up trying to +bring in his load when he saw the blaze of the fires far off and his +courage came back. The sun was up before anyone turned out, but the dogs +were better for the rest, and a short day took us into a big bunch of +pines on King Lake, within an easy day of a small meat _cache_ that I +had made while we were camped at the Lake of the Enemy. I had my doubts +about finding the place, as none of the others knew where it was, but +was lucky enough to hit it off; and we took out the meat of two caribou, +after breaking an axe to pieces in our endeavours to chop away the ice +which had formed between the rocks from the melting of the snow during a +warm spell in the beginning of October. + +The same night we camped at the scaffold on which we had stored all the +dried meat that the women had made while we were away on the first +musk-ox hunt. King was to have taken most of it, leaving us sufficient +for a couple of days' supply, and a note in the syllabic characters +introduced into the North by the priests informed us that he had kept +his promise. There were plenty of signs that he had done so; but the +wolverines had been before us, and a few shreds of meat lying at the +foot of the stage told the story plainly enough. This was rather a +disappointment, and matters looked worse when we had travelled the whole +length of Lake Camsell at our best speed. Here again we expected to find +a _cache_, as some meat had been left when we killed the first caribou +in the autumn, but the wolverines had taken it. This is a common +incident in Northern travel, but never fails to draw forth hearty +execrations on the head of the hated _carcajou_. + +There was much talk of abandoning loads and making a rush to reach the +caribou or a Yellow Knife encampment which was supposed to lie some +distance ahead of us; but I opposed this scheme strongly, and for once +managed to get my own way. The weather was fine, and we cared little for +the cold, as we could always make a fire in case of freezing. Without +eating much we pushed on rapidly for two days, crossing the Lac du +Rocher, the scene of our starvation in September, and finally on the +third morning found a band of caribou, of which we killed enough to +relieve all immediate anxiety. By this time we were among thick timber +and following closely our canoe-route of three months ago. + +In the early hours of December 7th we came to a line of pine-brush +planted across a small lake, and soon afterwards fell on the tracks of +fresh snow-shoes; before daylight, at the end of a long portage over a +thickly wooded hill, we dropped into an encampment of a dozen lodges. It +turned to be Zinto's camp, and all my Indians found their wives and +families awaiting them here. There were great rejoicings over our +arrival, as we had been so long on the hunt that a good deal of anxiety +was felt for the safety of husbands and brothers. Zinto invited me into +his lodge, gave me a feast of pounded meat and grease, a cup of tea, +and, better still, a small plug of black tobacco; this seemed too good +to leave, and as we had travelled many hours in the night I decided to +spend the rest of the day here. + +The camp was very prettily situated on a small flat a few feet above the +edge of a frozen lake; and when the sun rose over the hill, lighting up +the brown deer-skin lodges with their columns of blue smoke rising +straight up in the frosty air, the snow-laden pine-trees, and the +silver-barked birches, the whole scene seemed a realization of one of +Fenimore Cooper's descriptions of an Indian camp in winter. + +Much talking had to be got through, and the story of our musk-ox hunt +was told many times over. I was the object of great interest, and was +closely questioned as to my experiences in the Barren Ground and the +contrast between life there and in my own country. After Zinto had +satisfied himself on these points he broached more abstruse subjects, +insisting on knowing my opinion with regard to the differences of the +Protestant and Roman Catholic faiths, and seeming pleased to hear that +he was by no means the first man who had found this point hard to fully +understand. Many other things there were about which he desired +information; but I am afraid some of my answers conveyed little meaning +to him, as I was myself rather hazy about many of the topics of +conversation, and had only Michel, who was the worst Frenchman of all, +for interpreter, Paul having gone off to see his wife who was camped a +few miles to the east. But when Zinto got on to trading he was quite at +home, and before leaving I had to give him an order for many +beaver-skins (the medium of trade in the North), to be paid at Fort +Resolution. He was very good in providing me with everything I wanted +for my journey, and gave me a new pair of snow-shoes and a sleigh, +besides lending a dog to replace one that had fallen lame; meat he was +short of, but he had heard that the Beaulieus had been killing caribou, +so that I was likely to find _caches_ by the way; a track was broken to +Fond du Lac, and we ought to get there easily in three days. Zinto +thought the Great Slave Lake would be entirely frozen over and fit to +travel on by this time, as lately the sky had been clear in the south; +when there is any open water a perpetual mist rises from it and lies +like a huge fog-bank over the lake. + +A happy indolent life the Yellow Knives lead when the caribou are thick +on their pleasant hunting-ground round the shores of the Great Slave +Lake, and most of the hard times that they have to put up with are due +to their own improvidence. This is their great failing; they will not +look ahead or make preparation for the time when the caribou are scarce, +preferring to live from hand to mouth, and too lazy to bother their +heads about the future. They are rather a fine race of men, above the +average of the Canadian Indian, and, as they have had little chance of +mixing with the Whites, have maintained their characteristic manners +till this day; they are probably little changed since the time when the +Hudson's Bay Company first established a trading-post on the Big Lake a +hundred years ago. When the priests came into the country the Yellow +Knives readily embraced the Roman Catholic religion, and are very +particular in observing all the outward signs of that faith, but I doubt +if their profession of Christianity has done much to improve their +character. They are a curious mixture of good and bad, simplicity and +cunning; with no very great knowledge of common honesty, thoroughly +untrustworthy, and possessed with an insatiable greed for anything that +takes their fancy, but with no word in their language to express thanks +or gratitude. To a white man they are humility itself, looking upon him, +by their own account, as their father, and so considering him bound to +provide them with everything they want, even to his last pair of +trowsers or pipeful of tobacco; refuse them anything when you are +dependent upon their services on a journey, and they will leave you in +the woods; for their own part, if they have ammunition they are always +at home. In another way they are generous enough, and take great pride +in showing hospitality. Go into one of their lodges, and a blanket is +spread for you in the seat of honour farthest away from the flap that +does duty for a door; a meal is instantly provided, no matter if it +takes the last piece of meat in the camp, and the precious tea and +tobacco are offered you in lavish quantities. The Yellow Knives are a +timid, peaceable race, shrinking from bloodshed and deeds of violence, +and it is seldom that quarrels between the men got beyond wrestling and +hair-pulling. The women are, as a rule, not quite so hideous as the +squaws of the Blackfeet and Crees; they are lax in morals, and +accustomed to being treated more as slaves than wives in the civilized +interpretation of the word. They do all the hard work of the camp, +besides carrying the heaviest loads on the march; and in too many cases +are rewarded with the worst of the meat and the blows of an +over-exacting husband. Early marriages are fashionable, as a man is +useless without a wife to dry his meat and make moccasins for him. The +great object of a Yellow Knife beauty is to secure a good hunter for a +husband; the man who can shoot straight, and is known to be skilful in +approaching the caribou, is always a prize in the matrimonial market and +need have little fear of a refusal, especially as the husband is +supposed to hunt for his father-in-law after marriage, and the old man +will use all his influence to arrange the match. Superstition still +reigns supreme among these people; any mischance is put down to "bad +medicine," and reasons are always forthcoming to account for its +presence. There are several miracle-workers and foreseers of the future +in the tribe, who are said to perform very wonderful things, but I found +them extremely shy of showing off their accomplishments when I asked for +an exhibition. Like all other Indians who live the wild life that they +were intended to live, the Yellow Knives are dirty to the last degree. +They are careful about combing and greasing their hair, and are lavish +in the use of soap, if they can get it, for face and hands, but their +bodies are a sanctuary for the disgusting vermin that always infest +them; they seem to have no idea of getting rid of these objectionable +insects, but talk about its being a good or bad season for them in the +same way that they speak of mosquitos. + +From every point of view, then, the Indian of the Great Slave Lake is +not a pleasant companion, nor a man to be relied upon in case of +emergency. Nobody has yet discovered the right way to manage him. His +mind runs on different principles from that of a white man, and till the +science of thought-reading is much more fully developed, the working of +his brain will always be a mystery to the fur-trader and traveller. + +At sunrise the following morning I left Zinto's camp, with Michel and +Marlo, bound for Fond du Lac, all the other musk-ox hunters going back +to domestic happiness. The weather was still bright and cold, and the +days perceptibly longer as we travelled south. We were again short of +meat, as all the Indians were in the same plight, and although we saw a +band of caribou shortly after starting, we were unable to get a shot at +them. Towards evening we found a small _cache_ of meat hung in a tree, +and knowing that it must belong to some of the Beaulieus I had no +compunction in taking it. Here we left our canoe-route, and passing to +the westward of the Lac de Mort headed straight for the house at Fond du +Lac. The woods were well grown and signs of life abundant; the tracks of +wolves, wolverines, foxes, and an occasional marten, frequently crossed +the road, and ptarmigan were continually flying up under the leader's +feet. Here, too, I saw again my old friend the Whisky Jack, as he is +called throughout the North, a grey and white bird the size of a +thrush, with a most confiding disposition and an inordinate love of fat +meat; he sits on the nearest tree while the camp is being made, comes in +boldly, inspects the larder, and helps himself with very little fear of +man. If it is a starving camp he chortles in contempt and flies away, +having a very low opinion of people who travel without provisions; but +if meat be plentiful he spends the night there, and comes in for rich +pickings in the morning when the camp is struck. This bird is common +throughout the wilder parts of Canada, and has acquired many names in +different places; in the mountains of British Columbia he is the +Hudson's Bay bird or grease bird, and far away to the East the moose +bird, caribou bird, Rupert's bird, and camp-robber. + +On the afternoon of the second day we met the Indian Etitchula, who had +left the fort with us in August and had been hanging on more or less to +our party ever since. He was on his way back to King Beaulieu's Camp, +two days' travel to the north-east, having made a trip to Fond du Lac to +make a raid on my tea and tobacco, and see if there was any news of us, +as King was greatly alarmed at our prolonged absence. We relieved him of +a little tea, but he had not been able to get any tobacco out of +François, who had roundly asserted that it all belonged to him; he also +gave us a couple of whitefish, which proved a very acceptable change +from our long course of straight meat. Late the same evening we made +our last camp on the high land close to the edge of the mountains within +five miles of the house; we could easily have got in that night, but I +much preferred a quiet camp under the stars to the company of the gang +of Beaulieus who were sure to be at Fond du Lac. + +One word of caution against using the compressed tea imported by the +Hudson's Bay Company into the North as a substitute for tobacco; it is +very good to drink, but if you smoke it you pay the penalty by a most +painful irritation in the throat, which is made worse by breathing the +intensely cold air. We all tried it that night, and all swore never to +do so again, although I have often smoked the ordinary uncompressed tea +without disastrous results and with a certain amount of satisfaction. + +We were off in good time on the morning of December 10th, and were soon +sitting on the sleighs, rushing down the steep incline, with frequent +spills from bumping against trees; this was the only piece of riding I +had during the whole five weeks' travel. The first signs of the _petit +jour_ were just showing as we pulled up at the house, and François +quickly produced the tobacco he had refused Etitchula. I think for a few +minutes they were really glad to see us back safe, but soon the old +complaints began. Times had been hard, although the women and children +all looked fat enough to belie this statement; José had been catching +whitefish, but had refused to give any to François; while the latter, +according to José, had been very mean in distribution of my effects, +eating flour every day himself but giving none away. They had gone +through nearly everything between them, and moreover did not seem the +least bit ashamed of their conduct. As my dogs were all used up, I +decided to leave them here, and made arrangements with François to bring +his own train on to the fort with me. It seemed that notwithstanding the +hard times he had sufficient meat and fish stored away for our trip, and +there were still a few pounds of flour left, so that we should live in +luxury all the way in. + +I spent the day shooting a few ptarmigan, indulging in much tobacco, and +listening to the petitions of the various ill-used members of the +family. José was particularly amusing; he had been the most useless man +of the lot, never even venturing into the Barren Ground, but spending +most of his time at Fond du Lac, shooting away my ammunition and playing +havoc with tea and tobacco, besides robbing the _cache_ at the Lac du +Rocher. Now he was full of love for me, and gave me a list of things +that he wanted in addition to his wages, as a reward for all that he had +done and was ready to do for me. Among other items, he wanted my rifle +and hunting-glasses, and remarked that my Paradox gun, which had been +lying here all the time, would be very useful for him at the goose-hunt +in the following spring. Fortunately none of the Beaulieus know how to +put together a breech-loading gun, so the Paradox and its ammunition had +been left in peace to do me good service in the summer. I think the +Paradox is the most useful gun yet invented for purposes of exploration, +as it does away with the necessity of carrying a separate weapon for +shot and ball, and shoots very true with either; but there seems no +reason why the patent should not be applied to a 20-bore. For procuring +food in a really rough country, where a man has to carry his own +ammunition, the ball-cartridges for a 12-bore are needlessly heavy, and +the charge of shot is too great for the close range shooting which is +usually done on these occasions. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + + +At Fond du Lac I slept for the first time since we left the fort under a +roof, but on account of the awful squalor of the house I should have +much preferred the usual open camp in the snow. Daylight found us under +way again, François and myself, with a small boy to run ahead of the +dogs; as we were travelling light I expected to be able to ride the last +half of the journey, but for the first two days the fish for dogs' food +made our load too heavy to travel at a fast pace. I left all the musk-ox +and caribou heads and skins that I had managed to save, to come in with +Michel and Marlo when they made the usual journey to the fort for New +Year's day, on which occasion the Indians from all quarters bring in +their furs to trade, and receive a small feast of flour and sugar, an +event not to be missed on any account, even though wives and families +may be left to starve in the woods and the famished dogs drop with +fatigue along the track. + +There was no news as to the state of the ice, as we were the first +people to attempt the crossing of the lake this winter. It is usually +not safe for travel till the middle of December, so we coasted along the +north shore, increasing the distance, but getting greater safety by +doing so. We took things easily, making early starts and putting ashore +frequently for a cup of tea; it was a great improvement on the +canoe-travelling which had delayed us so much in the autumn. At sundown +every night we picked out a sheltered spot among the tall pine-trees +where firewood was plentiful, threw away the snow with our snow-shoes, +and put down a thick mat of pine-brush; then a huge fire was lit and +enough wood cut for the night, the fish thawed for the dogs, and supper +cooked for the men. We had bread at every meal, which is in itself a +luxury after four months of straight meat; the day ended with tobacco, +and we rolled ourselves in our blankets to sleep, till the position of +the Great Bear told us it was time to be on the march once more. People +who live in civilization find it hard to believe that men in these +northern latitudes habitually sleep out under the stars, with the +thermometer standing at 30°, 40°, and even 60° below zero; yet it is +those same people of civilization who suffer from colds in the head, +lung-diseases, and a variety of ailments unknown to the _voyageur_, +whose only dangers are starvation and the risk of accidents incidental +to travelling in rough countries. + +On the second day we passed a couple of houses occupied by an Indian, +Capot Blanc, with whom I afterwards became great friends; he had left +for the fort a couple of days before, but the ice was reported to be +dangerous in the Grand Traverse. Another Indian, Thomas, a brother of +Marlo and Zinto, was ready to start, and joined in with us for the rest +of the journey; he had only two dogs, but with a light load managed to +keep up easily enough. The ice among the islands was pretty good, but +the snow was soft and deep, and it was not till our fourth night out +from Fond du Lac that we camped on the last outlying island, ready to +take the Traverse. About eighteen miles away to the south, without any +chance to put ashore till we reached it, lay the Ile de Pierre, and we +were to make for a half-breed's house that lay within a mile of it on +the main shore of the lake. It had been arranged that I was to ride in +pomp across this piece, so, after a good breakfast about three o'clock, +I turned into the sleigh and soon dropped off to sleep to the music of +sleigh-bells and a volley of French oaths with which François encouraged +his dogs every few minutes. At this time the stars were shining +brightly, and there was not a breath of wind. I must have slept for a +couple of hours when François awoke me with the information that we were +lost. Turning out of my warm berth I found a gale of wind blowing, with +snow falling and drifting heavily; I could hardly make out the men in +the darkness, though they were all standing within a few yards of me. Of +course I had not the slightest idea where we were, or the direction in +which we had been travelling. François seemed undecided, but Thomas was +quite sure that by keeping the wind abeam we should hit off the Ile de +Pierre. We put him ahead, and he proved perfectly right in his +direction; for after four hours' steady walk we made out the land, the +weather clearing a little at day-break. We had headed a little too far +to the west, but were soon inside the half-breed's cabin, where we found +plenty of fish for the dogs, and so decided to spend the day there, as +the wind had freshened up again and the drifting snow made travelling +unpleasant. We did not know what a narrow escape we had had till the +owner of the house came in, after making an attempt to visit his nets. +He reported the ice broken up to the west by the violence of the gale, +and had we kept a little more in that direction we might easily have +walked into open water in the darkness and made a disastrous ending to +our expedition. + +[Illustration: Skins in the Post Storeroom] + +[Illustration: Taking the Post Dogs for Exercise] + +Our course the next day lay over shoal water, mostly inside sandbanks +and through narrow channels of the delta of the Slave River. We crossed +the main stream on good ice, and following the shore of the lake for ten +miles, rattled into the fort about two o'clock, within ten minutes of +the arrival of the outward-bound packet from Mackenzie River. Luckily +enough it had been delayed one day by the storm that had overtaken us in +the Grand Traverse, and I had an opportunity of sending out letters by +the dog-sleigh that was to leave the same night. For true hospitality +there is nothing in the world to beat the welcome back to a Hudson's Bay +post in the North after one has made a long journey in the wilds; no +need to trouble your head with the idea that you may not be wanted, or +that you will eat too much of the ever insufficient supplies sent in +from the outside world to the officer in charge. Why is it that the less +a man has, and the harder things are to obtain, the more ready he is to +divide? It does not seem to work in civilization, but it is certainly so +in rough countries, and especially with the Hudson's Bay Company's +officers in the Far North. Perhaps it is because they have all seen +hardships and privations in the Company's service and know the value of +a helping hand given in the time of need; men who have suffered +themselves have always more feeling for the sufferings of others than +people who have lived only on the soft side of life. + +I don't think I ever enjoyed a meal so much as that first dinner at Fort +Resolution, after a most necessary wash. A year later I dragged myself +into a small trading-post at the foot of the Rocky Mountains after many +days' total starvation, but had then got beyond the capacity of enjoying +anything. On the present occasion I was able to thoroughly appreciate +the change from my four months' experience in the Barren Ground. How +strange it seemed once more to sit at a table, on a chair, like a white +man, and eat white man's food with a knife and fork, after the long +course of squatting in the filth of a smoky lodge, rending a piece of +half-raw meat snatched from the dirty kettle. Then, too, I could speak +again in my own language, and there was a warm room to sit in, books to +read, and all the ordinary comforts of life, with the knowledge that so +long as I stayed in the house I had my own place, while the wind and the +snow had theirs outside. + +There was no scarcity at the fort this year, although the autumn fishing +had not been successful. The Fond du Lac boat had brought in a good +supply of dried meat, and there was a better stock of flour than is +usually to be found at a northern fort. Mr. Mackinlay, too, had got in a +fair supply of luxuries from Winnipeg, and, as Mrs. Mackinlay was an +excellent manager, we always lived as well as one should wish to live +anywhere. + +Fort Resolution is a fair sample of a trading-post in the North. It is +situated on the south side of a bay, the entrance to which is sheltered +by a group of islands, the largest known as Mission Island, from the +Roman Catholic mission established there in charge of Father Dupire. The +original site was on an outlying island known as Moose Island, but the +present position on the mainland has been found more practicable. The +buildings consist of the master's house, a comfortable log-building +flanked on each side by a large store, one used for provisions and the +other as a fur and trading store; these were originally within a +stockade and formed the fort proper, but the peaceful nature of the +Indians has removed all need for defensive works. Outside is a small row +of log-houses, occupied by the engaged servants, freemen, and a couple +of pensioners too old to make their living in the woods. Close at hand +are the buildings belonging to the Protestant Mission, while the willows +and bush-growth of a densely-wooded level country hem in the small patch +of cleared ground on which the settlement stands; here potatoes and a +few other vegetables are raised, and in a favourable season produce very +fair crops. There are a yoke of work-cattle for hauling wood and a +couple of milch cows are kept, as hay is easily procured in the numerous +swamps which are scattered through the woods in every direction. The +only high land to be seen is a conspicuous bluff marking the entrance to +the Little Buffalo River some ten miles along the lake shore, this +stream heads in to the south, and as it breaks up earlier in the spring +than the Little Slave River it is used at that time of year as a route +to Fort Smith, one overland portage being made, to drop on to the main +stream a short distance below the fort. + +Looking out over the vast expanse of frozen lake on still, bright days +some very beautiful and curious mirage effects can often be seen. +Everything takes an unnatural and frequently inverted form; islands so +far away as to be below the horizon are seen suspended in the air, and +it is impossible to recognise a point or bunch of trees with which you +are perfectly familiar in ordinary circumstances. + +There are four engaged servants at the fort; a white man, Murdo Mackay, +native of the Hebrides, who was serving a five years' contract with the +Company, and three half-breeds, by far the best of whom was Michel +Mandeville, who has held the position of interpreter at Fort Resolution +for several years. Except at the time of the Fall fishery, an engaged +servant's work is light--cutting and hauling enough firewood to keep the +fort supplied, visiting the nets and lines, and an occasional trip with +the packet, or to get trading-goods from another fort. + +Christmas passed away quietly, but there was stir enough when the +Indians came in for New Year and the trading began. The old system of +barter is still carried on, with the beaver-skin for a standard. An +Indian's pile of fur is counted, and he is told how many skins' worth of +goods he has to receive; then he is taken into the store and the door +solemnly locked, as it is found impossible to trade at all with more +than one at a time. It seems very simple; the Indian knows exactly how +many skins he has to take, and the value in skins of every common +article. But, to begin with, he wants everything he sees, and the whole +stock would hardly satisfy him, and it is a long time, with many changes +of opinion, before he has spent the proceeds of his hunt. Then arises +the question of his debt, and he tries to take the largest amount +possible on credit for his spring hunt; the trader cannot refuse +absolutely to make any advances, as there are some things essentially +necessary to the Indian's life in the woods, but the debts are kept in +proportion to the man's character. After he has finished his trade, he +shows his purchases to his friends, and, acting on their advice, usually +comes back to effect some change, and the game begins all over again; +sometimes a whole day is passed in laying out a hundred skins, roughly +fifty dollars according to our method of calculation. Before the Indian +leaves the fort he always comes in and does a little begging while +saying good-bye to his master. + +I had a very bad time of it settling up with the Beaulieus. Promises +that I had made under stress of circumstances had to be redeemed, but it +was hopeless to try and satisfy them; although they had each received +far more than had been originally agreed upon, they continued grumbling +till they left the fort. On New Year's day a big ball was given to the +half-breeds, while the Indians were provided with the materials for a +feast, and held a dance of their own in one of the empty houses. It was +the poorest display imaginable; many of the Canadian tribes have really +effective dancing, but the Yellow Knives appear to have a very +elementary idea of graceful movement. Their only figure is to waddle +round in a circle, holding each other's hands, keeping up a monotonous +chant, and spitting freely into the middle of the ring. In the big house +Red River jigs and reels were kept up with unflagging energy till +daylight. + +As soon as everything had quieted down and the Indians had gone back to +their hunting-ground, Mackinlay and myself started on an expedition +after the caribou to try and kill some fresh meat for the fort. We took +Michel, the interpreter, with us, and Pierre Beaulieu, a brother of +King's; and a resident of Mission Island joined us with his two sons, as +there was news of the caribou being at no great distance on the far side +of the lake. It was now the dead of winter, the season of the _gra' +frète_, and we had two remarkably cold days' travel to reach the north +shore of the Great Slave Lake. We struck into the woods, not far to the +eastward of the Gros Cap, the point forming the eastern extremity of the +long narrow arm leading to Fort Rae. We each had a sleigh of dogs, and +were able to ride most of the time on a good road broken by a band of +Indians hunting in the neighbourhood. Two long days over small lakes and +through the thick pine woods, in a country much resembling that of Fond +du Lac but of lower elevation, brought us among the caribou, but they +were not in very large numbers. + +We had everything we could want to make life pleasant in the woods, +abundance of tea and tobacco, meat if we killed it, and no hardships; +the cold was severe of course, but there was plenty of firewood, and it +was our own fault if we could not keep ourselves warm. Three days we +spent in hunting, and, although we did not kill very much, there was a +little meat to take back; we never really found the caribou in any +quantity, or we should have made a big killing and _cached_ the meat, to +be hauled later on when the days grew longer. A rattling three days' +journey took us back to the fort, as old Pierre, who is one of the most +rushing travellers I ever met, hustled us along to save using his meat +on the way home; he had no intention of feeding his dogs from his load +for more than two nights when he had fish to give them at home. This +trouble about dogs' food is the great drawback to winter travelling in +the North; a dog, to keep him in good order, requires two whitefish, +weighing each perhaps three pounds, every night. This adds so much to +the load that a ten days' journey is about the longest one can undertake +with full rations all round, unless it be in a part of the country where +game is plentiful or fish can be caught _en route_. + +After the caribou hunt, we amused ourselves about the fort; sometimes +going in search of ptarmigan, which are usually to be found among the +willows close to the edge of the lake; and sometimes paying Father +Dupire a visit on his island, a couple of miles away, to hear some of +his interesting experiences during a residence of many years among the +Indians. Close at hand lay the Protestant Mission, where there was +always a welcome, and, with these attractions and a fair supply of +books, time did not hang at all heavily till early in February the +winter packet from the outside world arrived. I received a big bundle of +letters, the first that reached me since June, but it happened that none +of the newspapers for the fort turned up, and we were left in ignorance +of what had happened in the Grand Pays. + +So many travellers have written about this great Northern Packet and the +wonderful journey that it makes that it is unnecessary for me to say +much about it. On its arrival at Fort Resolution it presents the +appearance of an ordinary dog-sleigh, with a man ahead of the dogs, +which are driven by a half-breed, with plenty of ribbons and beads on +leggings and moccasins, capable of running his forty miles a day with +ease, and possessed of a full command of the more expressive part of the +French language. + +Dr. Mackay, who was on his yearly round of visits to inspect the +outlying posts in his district, came down from Fort Chipeweyan with the +packet, and we had a long talk respecting a summer trip to the Barren +Ground which I proposed making. + +My intention was to leave the fort on the last ice in the spring and +travel with the dogs to the spot where we had left our big canoe in the +autumn, there to await the breaking up of the lakes and to descend the +Great Fish River with the first open water. I had no special object in +reaching the sea-coast, as a birch-bark canoe is not the right sort of +craft for work among salt-water ice; and it was more to see what the +Barren Ground was like in summer, and to notice the habits of the birds +and animals, than for the sake of geographical discovery, that I wished +to make the expedition. + +The Great Fish River has been twice descended before, but of course both +Back's and Anderson's parties were compelled by the shortness of the +summers to confine their exploration to the immediate neighbourhood of +the river; and I thought that, by spending more time at the head-waters +than they had been able to do, I should get a good idea of the nature of +the country and an insight into the Indian summer life among the +caribou. The difficulty was to obtain a crew; but Dr. Mackay very kindly +consented to Mackinlay's accompanying me, and also lent me the two +engaged servants, Murdo Mackay and Moise Mandeville, brother of Michel +Mandeville the interpreter, but not half such a good fellow. We hoped to +be able to engage the services of some of the Indians to guide us to the +head of the river, but they have such a dread of the Esquimaux, who hunt +farther down the stream, that we hardly expected any of the Yellow +Knives to accompany us beyond that point. Long ago there was always war +between the Indians and the Esquimaux, and Hearne's description of the +massacre at the Bloody Falls on the Coppermine gives a good idea of the +hatred that existed between these tribes. For many years they have not +met, and although the Esquimaux seen by Anderson on the Great Fish River +appear peaceful enough, the Yellow Knives hunting at the head of the +river are in constant fear of meeting them. + +Zinto, the chief, and another Indian, Syene, arrived at the fort soon +after Dr. Mackay left, and we consulted them as to the best route to +follow, and whether we could depend upon their tribe for any help. They +told us that there was no difficulty in reaching the head-waters of the +river, as the Indians were in the habit of coming there every summer, +but beyond was an unknown country; they both remembered Anderson's +expedition, and were full of stories about the difficulties of +navigation, the numerous portages and the likelihood of starvation, but +knew nothing from personal experience. We failed lamentably in the +attempt to discover when the ice in the river usually broke up. Syene +told us that it was in the moon when the dogs lie on their backs in the +sun, and Zinto volunteered the information that it was soon after the +leaves begin to shoot on the little willows in the Barren Ground; but we +could not work it out into any particular month. Both promised to make +dried meat and pemmican for us if they fell in with the caribou, and to +leave _caches_ in the last bunch of pine-trees. Next day they left for +their camp, two hundred miles away in the woods, to await the first +signs of warmer weather to start for the spring musk-ox hunt. Zinto was +to come to the fort about the 1st of May, and personally conduct us to +the places where he had piled up the meat of many caribou for our use. + + + + +CHAPTER X + + +About the middle of February, 1890, little François, an Indian living at +the mouth of Buffalo River, arrived with the news that during a +hunting-trip he had made to the southward he had seen the tracks of a +band of wood buffalo and intended to go in pursuit of them after this +visit to the fort. + +Mackinlay and myself both wanted an excuse to be in the woods again, and +the next day saw us plodding across the bay on snow-shoes to the +comfortable little shanty, under the high bluff, which forms the most +conspicuous landmark within sight of Fort Resolution. The establishment +was presided over by an old lady, formerly cook at one of the forts, and +kept with a cleanliness not always to be found in a white man's +dwelling. The following morning we started with two sleigh-loads of fish +for the dogs and provisions and blankets for ourselves. François brought +his wife and little girl, besides a rather crazy boy, given to epileptic +fits, but a good worker in the intervals between his attacks. We +followed the river for a mile or two, then turned into the woods on the +west bank, and, crossing a lake of some size, headed in a south-west +direction through the thick pine-forest, occasionally picking up a +marten from a line of traps set by little François, for we were +following the track that he had made on his last trip, or finding a +rabbit hung by the neck in one of his wife's snares; very cunning these +old women are in all things concerning the stomach, and if there are +many rabbit-tracks to be seen in the snow there is little danger of +going without supper. + +On the second day we crossed a large prairie dotted with lakes, formerly +the home of many beavers, and still bearing evidence of their labours in +the long banks which served as dams and the huge mounds which were once +their houses. The beavers have all gone long ago, and the ladies who +wore the pretty fur-trimmed jackets in far-away England, and the +husbands who grumbled at their price, are gone too; but the beavers have +left the most impression on the face of the earth. Wonderful moulders of +geography they are; a stream dammed up in a level country forms a huge +lake where the forest stood, the trees fall as their roots rot in +standing water, and, if the dam be not attended to by the workers, a +fertile grass-covered prairie takes the place of the lake. From the +Liard River and Great Slave Lake, to the Peace River on the east side of +the Rocky Mountains, extends the greatest beaver country in the world. +It is known by Indian report alone, as no white man ever penetrates far +into the wilderness of pine-forest and morass; many streams head away +into the interior of this unknown land, but the white man has only seen +their mouths, as he passes up or down the main waterways of the North. +It is true that the Company's men have ascended Hay River, a large +stream falling into the Great Slave Lake, and by making an overland +portage, have dropped on the Peace River at Fort Vermillion; but they +have always made hurried voyages and have had no opportunity of +exploring much new ground. + +Scattered over this huge extent of country are still a few bands of +buffalo. Sometimes they are heard of at Forts Smith and Vermillion, +sometimes at Fort St. John close up to the big mountains on Peace River, +and occasionally at Fort Nelson on the south branch of the Liard. It is +impossible to say anything about their numbers, as the country they +inhabit is so large, and the Indians, who are few in number, usually +keep to the same hunting-ground. These animals go by the name of wood +buffalo, and most people are of opinion that they are a distinct race +from the old prairie buffalo so numerous in bygone days; but I am +inclined to think that the very slight difference in appearance is +easily accounted for by climatic influences, variety of food, and the +better shelter of the woods. Here too the giant moose and the woodland +caribou have their home, and even in the short journey that I made into +this district the tracks in the snow told a tale of plenty. Many black +bears' skins are brought out every year, and towards the mountains the +formidable grizzly is often encountered by the fearful hunter. Nor are +the small fur-bearing animals wanting; foxes--red, cross, and a few +silver--seek their living on the prairie, while wolverines, fisher, +mink, marten, and lynx may be trapped in the woods, and a few otters +frequent the streams and lakes. In the summer ducks, geese, and many +other water-birds have their nests in the muskegs, and two or three +varieties of the tree grouse are always to be found. "The hunter's +Paradise!" says the sporting reader; "let us go and have a hunt there." +But now for the other side of the picture. In the summer it is +practically impossible to travel, as it is a swampy country not to be +crossed with horses, and the lakes are too far apart to be available as +a canoe-route, while the mosquitos are intolerable. Only when the snow +has fallen, and all water is held fast in the grip of winter, has one a +chance of exploring this Land of Promise with dogs, sleighs, and +snow-shoes; but, by this time, the summer life has all flown far away +southward, and, though I think one would be fairly safe in pushing on, +there is always a chance of coming across a large tract of gameless +country, and finding a difficulty in obtaining provisions. + +After three days' good travel we reached the end of François' road, and +long before daylight on the following morning were away to try and find +the buffalo tracks. We had a long day's walk over a perfect +hunting-ground, crossing several open ridges with sufficient elevation +to give us a view of the surrounding country. Prairie and timber were +about in equal proportion, and the eye could follow the windings of a +large stream that falls into the Little Buffalo River close to the Fort +Smith portage; its water are strongly impregnated with sulphur, and do +not readily freeze; in fact this stream, although it has little current, +remains open during a considerable part of its course even in the +coldest weather. About noon we found the track that we had been looking +for, easily distinguishable from the many tracks of moose and woodland +caribou that we had crossed; little François made a capital approach, +and after a couple of hours' walk we sighted a band of eight buffalo +feeding in a small wood-surrounded swamp. There are few spots on the +American continent to-day where one can see buffalo in their wild state, +but the Indian gave us no time to watch them, and completely spoilt the +chance of clean shooting by letting off his gun too soon; we only wanted +to kill one, as we could not haul any more meat, and it is really a pity +to kill animals so nearly extinct as these. As it turned out there were +several snap-shots fired as they ran into the woods, and two tracks of +blood in the snow showed that we had done too much shooting, although it +was not till late in the second day that we secured a cow that had +travelled many miles before lying down. + +By the way, it is as well when going for a hunting expedition in the +North to leave at home all the old-fashioned notions of +shooting-etiquette. If you see a man in a good position for a shot, run +up, jostle his elbow, and let your gun off; if an animal falls, swear +you killed it, and claim the back-fat and tongue no matter whether you +fired or not; never admit that you are not quite sure which animal you +shot at. It is only by strict attention to these rules that a white man +can get a fair division of plunder when shooting with half-breed +Indians. + +The other buffalo, on whose track there was little blood, had not +separated from the band, although we followed it for a whole day, and, +as this was a sure sign of its having been only slightly wounded, +perhaps not much damage was done; a badly struck animal will always +leave its companions and lie down. + +There was much rejoicing when late on the third night the result of our +hunt was hauled into our pleasant camp in a clump of thick pine-timber. +The little girl patted and played with the meat as an English child +would with a doll, and eventually dropped off to sleep with the raw +brisket for a pillow; while Pierre, the boy, after a huge feast was +seized with such a violent fit that for a long time I was afraid it +would prove his last. The others took no notice of him beyond putting +down a log to keep him from rolling in the fire, and in the morning he +seemed perfectly well and hungry as ever for buffalo-meat. With +heavily-laden sleighs we started back for the fort, but a wind-storm had +drifted up our track over the prairie, and the dogs had hard work to +drag their loads. In one of our steel traps were the remains of a cross +fox that a wolverine had eaten, and beyond a few more martens our +fur-hunting was unsuccessful. It took us four days to reach little +François' house at the mouth of the river, and another half-day to get +to the fort, where we found everything quiet, as usual in the monotony +of the long winter. February was nearly over, and the "moon of the big +wind" was doing its best to keep up its reputation. Day after day the +north wind howled over the lake, drifting the snow into a vast ridge on +the lee shore and making it no easy matter to find the trout-lines, +which had now to be set four or five miles out at sea, the fish moving +into deep water as the cold gets more intense and the ice thicker. The +thermometer hanging against the wall of the house ranged between _minus_ +30 and _minus_ 45 degrees Fahrenheit, and this state of affairs +continued until I left the fort for another hunt with little François. +We spent three weeks happily enough in the woods, doing a little +trapping, and getting enough moose and caribou-meat to keep the dogs and +ourselves in good condition. Our course lay the same way as on the last +hunt, to take advantage of the road and visit the line of traps; but we +pushed further on till we came across the tracks of a party of Indians +hunting from Fort Smith. We saw no sign of buffalo, and as François' +wife damaged her leg rather badly we were obliged to haul her back on +the sleigh, and this accident put an end to our trip. Away far in the +forest beyond the influence of the great frozen lake we found the first +indications of the coming spring. By the end of the first week in April +the snow was falling under our snow-shoes in the middle of the day, and +the sun, which now had a long course to run, shone with considerable +power; the pine-trees threw out the delicious scent so suggestive of +Nature's awakening after her long snow-wrapped sleep, and a puff of warm +south wind, sighing through the poplars, whispered a message of hope +from a more favoured land. But winter made a final struggle, and it was +not till the 25th of April that the collapse came. Then the snow in the +woods around the fort melted away rapidly, and the bare ground showed in +patches. On May 1st water was standing in pools over the ice in the bay, +the snow had disappeared except in the drifts, a light rain was falling, +and the first goose was killed from the door of the master's house; +small bands of wildfowl were passing frequently, and cranes were calling +in the swamps to the southward; daylight lingered in the sky all night, +but there was always a sharp frost while the sun was down. + +It was time to shake off our luxurious habits and push out again for the +North to take full advantage of the short summer of the Barren Ground. +The fort seemed to wake up with the spring, and there was bustle and +activity everywhere. The furs had to be spread out to dry before they +could be baled up; fish had to be thrown out of the provision-store as +they thawed, and the dogs were happy for once. There was talk of +ploughing and planting the potato-crop; Indians kept dropping in with +small bundles of fur, to trade for ammunition for the goose-hunt, which +would soon be in full swing; canoes were patched up and made tight in +readiness for the first open water. But there was a rumour that the +expedition to the Great Fish River would fall through, as no crew could +be found, and some discontented spirits had been trying to persuade the +Indians against going with us; the half-breeds were all full of excuses, +and for a time it looked bad for us. Mackinlay was of course keen enough +for the trip, and so was Murdo Mackay, the Scotch engaged servant; and +luckily David, an Esquimau boy from Peel's River, who had been left at +Fort Resolution for the winter to learn English from the Protestant +missionary there, was willing to come with us, and, although not a +first-rate traveller, might be very useful as interpreter if we fell in +with any of his countrymen. Moise Mandeville was more obstinate and had +the greatest horror of the expedition, but he finally agreed to come in +the capacity of steersman and as Montaignais' interpreter. We were still +without a guide. Zinto, despite his promises, had not put in an +appearance, and there was as yet no news of him. Meanwhile preparations +went on; dogs were got together, new snow-shoes provided for each member +of the party, and all available pounded meat and grease converted into +pemmican as the most portable form of provisions; four sacks of flour +were forwarded to Fond du Lac to await our arrival, and the women round +the fort were busy making moccasins for men and dogs, as the latter have +to be shod in spring-travelling, to prevent their feet being cut to +pieces on the rough needle-ice that appears after the snow has melted +off the lakes. We also took a light canvas lodge in place of the heavier +deer-skins, and found it a great saving in weight, especially after +rain; dressed deer-skins hold water like a sponge, and where firewood is +scarce are extremely hard to dry. + +On May 4th Mr. Clark arrived from Fort Smith to take charge of +Resolution during Mackinlay's absence. The slushy state of the snow made +travelling hard, but the Fort Smith people had managed to bring us a +welcome supply of tea, tobacco, ammunition, and a few matches; none of +these necessary articles were to be had at Resolution, as the unusually +heavy fur-trade had left the store empty. We collected all the +touch-wood we could get hold of, and each took a flint and steel, while +Dr. Mackay sent us a burning-glass, a compass, and a watch from +Chipeweyan, besides half a dozen pair of spectacles to keep off +snow-blindness, from which an unprotected eye is sure to suffer. There +was also a small stock of axes, knives, and beads, presents for the +Esquimaux in case we fell in with them. Arrangements were made for the +fort boat to meet us at the old site of Lockhart's house, at the +north-east end of the Great Slave Lake, on August 1st, to bring us +across the lake, as I wished to start for the South in time to get back +to civilization before the rivers and lakes were set fast by the coming +winter. + +The day after Mr. Clark's arrival a couple of Indians came in from Fond +du Lac. Zinto had not yet arrived there, but was expected any day; he +had no meat for us, and caribou were reported scarce on the road we +proposed taking; most of the Yellow Knives would be at Fond du Lac to +meet us if they found food enough for present use. Pierre Lockhart, an +Indian who had come to the fort, immediately engaged with us as guide to +the Great Fish River, saying that whatever the other men might do he +would be faithful to the end of the journey, even if we wanted him to go +to the sea-coast: needless to say he was the very first to desert on the +appearance of hard times. + +It was a goodly procession that left Fort Resolution on the afternoon of +May 7th, for every sleigh was pressed into service to help us over the +bad ice that lay between the fort and the big river, and all the +goose-hunters had been waiting till we started to move their families to +the favourite feeding-grounds. Across the first bay there was fully a +foot of water, with a crust of ice caused by the last night's frost; +this top crust had to be broken, and the dogs waded up to their bellies, +with the sleighs floating behind them: bitterly cold for the feet and +hard to avoid a fall, which meant a thorough drenching in the icy water. +On reaching the delta and passing into the narrow channels at the mouth +of the big river the ice was much better, as the water had run off +through the cracks; the crossing of the main stream looked dangerous, +but, by carefully picking our way and sounding the ice with an axe, we +got across without accident and camped in a bunch of willows on the far +side. The fires were kept up late that night and much talking was done, +as to-morrow we had to say good-bye to our companions, and many +instructions were given to wives, mothers, and children with reference +to their good behaviour during our absence. The red glow of sunset +stayed in the sky till it mingled with the brightness of the coming day; +often a whirr of wings told of a flock of wildfowl passing overhead, and +a few geese that had arrived from the south kept up a continual +_honking_ as they searched for a patch of open water to alight on. But +the frost was sharp in the night, and on breaking camp at four o'clock +we found the crust of surface-ice in the next bay strong enough in most +places to bear our sleighs, which were now reduced to two in number and +much more heavily loaded than on the previous day. Sometimes a man would +break through, and, floundering on the bottom ice, would bruise his +shins and feet in a desperate manner, and we were all badly knocked +about when we put ashore at Tête Noire's House, five miles beyond the +Ile de Pierre, ready to take the big traverse on the following day. A +couple of hours out from the land brought us again to dry snow, as the +change of climate is very sudden after leaving the south shore of the +lake. Crossing the big traverse was ordinary winter travelling, although +the snow was soft in the strong sunshine; we made use of the frost at +night and generally rested during the heat of the day. Between the +islands snow-shoes were necessary, and, although spectacles were +constantly worn, some of the men began to show signs of snow-blindness; +occasionally we found a bare rock to camp on, but more generally made +the old winter form of encampment on the snow. It was not till the sixth +day after leaving the fort that we pulled into Fond du Lac, and found +nearly the whole tribe of Yellow Knives awaiting us with King Beaulieu +and his family at their head; there were five and twenty lodges, and in +every one we heard the old story of _Berula_ (no meat); they had tried +fishing without success, and hoped the white masters would give them a +little flour and pemmican. Why had they not pushed on to some of the +sure fisheries in the big lake when they found the caribou fail? They +wished to talk with us, they said, and so had stayed and starved at Fond +du Lac till we came. What did they want to speak to us about? Only this, +that an Indian's life is hard, and he has at all times need of a little +tea and tobacco to give him courage; they had heard we were taking much +tea and tobacco, besides other presents, to the Esquimaux. In vain did +we tell them that we had not enough for own use; there was no peace till +pipes were going in every lodge. + +[Illustration: Dog-rib Powwow at Fort Resolution] + +[Illustration: Group of Dog-rib Indians] + +Zinto had not put up any meat for us. At one time he had killed a good +many caribou, but he had met with a band of Dog-Ribs from Fort Rae and +the two tribes had camped together; the chief of the Yellow Knives was +bound in honour to give a feast to his guests, and after the meat that +was meant for us had been used for this purpose they fell to gambling. +The unfortunate Zinto lost all his ammunition, so that he had no chance +to kill any more caribou, much as he would have liked to help the white +men in their undertaking. + +The snow was lying deep in the woods and as yet no breath of spring had +visited Fond du Lac, although at Fort Resolution, not more than one +hundred miles to the south, the buds were by this time shooting on the +birch and willow trees, and the ground had been bare for two weeks; no +wildfowl had arrived, and the Indians were of opinion that such a late +spring had never been known, advising us strongly not to attempt to +force our way into the Barren Ground till there was some indication of +better weather. It seemed to us, though, that we should never be in a +better position to start than now, as any delay meant waste of +provisions, and we hoped to find caribou before we began to starve. +Several days we spent in talking to the Indians before we came to any +satisfactory conclusion, and we had the greatest trouble in persuading +any of them to come with us. Finally it was settled that Capot Blanc, +Saltatha, Syene, and Marlo, with their wives and families, should start +with us, and on reaching the head of the Great Fish River should wait +there and hunt while we made the descent of the stream. Capot Blanc +behaved very well at all the consultations, speaking up for the white +men whenever an opportunity offered, but the interpretation was +unsatisfactory; Moise refused this duty in the presence of the +Beaulieus, and the latter, so far as we could make out, used all their +influence with the Indians to damage our chances of making a successful +expedition. David, the Esquimau, rather complicated matters by falling +in love with King's daughter, but he made no objection to starting, and +soon forgot all about her in the excitement of the journey. On the last +evening that we spent at Fond du Lac a Dog-Rib arrived with his family +from the Barren Ground in a wretched state of starvation. He had come in +by the route that we proposed to take, and gave a very unsatisfactory +report of the country: the cold was still severe, and he had met with no +game since leaving the musk-ox a couple of weeks before; one of his +children had died of starvation and he was forced to bury her under the +snow at the Lac de Mort; the rest had barely escaped with life. Of +course we gave them enough flour and pemmican to take them to a +well-known fishery twenty miles on, but our provisions were going very +fast. Most of the Yellow Knives had already moved away to the fishery, +and the encampment was entirely deserted when we pulled down our lodges +on the morning of May 21st. Paul Beaulieu was to have caught us up to +show us some meat-_caches_ that he had made in the winter, and we had +engaged an Indian, Carquoss, to fish for his wife while he was away; but +we saw neither Paul nor his _caches_. Carquoss, however, joined us later +on, and explained that he had given up fishing because we had not left +him any tea and the other Indians had laughed at him. + +A miserable-looking outfit we were as we plodded for two days along the +north shore of the lake, against a strong head-wind and driving +snowstorms. Seven trains of starving dogs hauled their loads in a +melancholy procession, and over twenty people walked in the narrow road +made by the passage of the sleighs; by far too large a party for any +rapid travelling, and badly handicapped by women and children. On the +third day we turned up the mountain, and followed the course of a stream +coming in on the north shore; we mounted by a series of frozen cascades, +many of them so steep that we were obliged to use ropes to help the +dogs, and towards evening camped at the far end of the first lake on the +plateau. This day's work was not got through without a good deal of +growling, as everybody was kept on short rations to make the most of our +provisions; three days' full allowance for human beings alone, to say +nothing of the thirty dogs, would have put an end to our supplies. + +From this lake the country was level, and the women were quite able to +manage the dog-sleighs, while the men scoured the country on either side +of the track in search of caribou or ptarmigan. The birds were fairly +plentiful, but of course at this season were all paired, and there was +no chance of making a slaughter at a single shot, as one can do in the +fall of the year when the birds are in big packs; this shooting at +separate birds was a serious strain on our ammunition, but the ptarmigan +helped us out till we fell in with the caribou. It was almost a +certainty to find these birds in every bunch of pines, and they kept up +such a constant crowing round the camp at night that they had a poor +chance of escaping the hungry man's gun. After the snow has melted the +male bird gets pugnacious and runs up to meet the hunter, with his +feathers puffed out, offering a fair mark for a stone; but before this +happened we disdained ptarmigan, and would only kill the +fattest-looking caribou. We eked out a precarious existence in this +manner for a week, making short days' journeys, as the dogs could not +travel fast or far. Pierre Lockhart deserted one morning when breakfast +was particularly scanty, and taking his gun and blanket started back for +Fond du Lac; we were depending on him for guide, but it was rather a +relief when he went, as he was inclined to steal food, and had several +disgusting habits that made his absence from the lodge rather acceptable +than otherwise. Marlo's brother-in-law disappeared about the same time, +but we thought they had gone off together and did not trouble ourselves +further about them. + +On the last day of May, acting on Capot Blanc's advice, we forked from +our canoe-route, and took a more easterly course, to fall on the chain +of lakes by which Anderson and Stewart had reached the Great Fish River. +We hoped to find caribou in this direction, and on the same day that we +made this change in our course the indefatigable Saltatha, having made a +much longer round than the rest of us, came into camp late at night with +a load of caribou-meat on his back; he had seen snow-shoe tracks to the +east, but falling in with the caribou had turned back to the camp +without following the tracks. + +Sunday, June 1st, brought a distinct change in the weather; a mild +south-west wind was melting the snow rapidly, and several flocks of +geese and ducks passed to the north. A few geese were called up to the +camp and killed from the doors of the lodges; the Indians imitate to +perfection the cry of any bird, and at this time of year the geese are +easy to call, as they are always in search of open water, and seem not a +bit surprised to hear their friends calling to them from a group of +deer-skin lodges. In the morning we sent two men to bring in the rest of +Saltatha's meat, with orders to investigate the tracks, and see if there +was another encampment of Indians to the east, as none of the caribou +hunters had intended to leave the Great Slave Lake till the thaw came. +Our peaceful Sunday was greatly disturbed by a royal row in one of the +lodges, and we sent for Capot Blanc to ask him what the trouble was. The +old fellow was glad enough to get into our lodge away from the clamour, +and explained the cause of the disturbance in his even low-pitched +voice, so pleasantly contrasted with the Yellow Knife Billingsgate that +was being freely used outside. "It is the women," he said; "the wife of +Syene has called the wife of Saltatha by a bad name, because she would +not give her some meat; the wife of Saltatha has taken the wife of Syene +by the hair and beaten her in the face with a snow-shoe till her nose +bleeds very much; the men have tried to separate them, but that only +makes things worse. It is always like this in our camps when we starve. +If the men are alone they are quiet; but when there are women there is +no peace. Is it so also in your country?" + +Late in the night the men who had gone to fetch the meat came back, +hauling on the sleigh Marlo's brother-in-law José, whom they had found +lying in the snow, without fire, in a bunch of dwarf pines; the +snow-shoe tracks were his, and but for the lucky chance of Saltatha's +killing the caribou in that direction he must have perished in a day or +two, as he was too weak to travel. He had left us to hunt ptarmigan, and +lost himself eight days ago, and, as we supposed he had deserted with +Pierre, we had taken no trouble to look for him. He was one of the +unlucky ones, believed to have seen "the Enemy" in his youth, and it +certainly says little for his wits that he was unable to follow the +tracks of such a large party. José had used up what little ammunition he +started with on the first day, and since then had eaten nothing; he was +without matches or touchwood to make fire, and as the weather had been +cold he must have suffered greatly. We fed him up to the best of our +ability, and he recovered rapidly when meat was abundant in the camp. + + + + +CHAPTER XI + + +On the following day we made an easy day's travel to the east, and most +of us succeeded in killing caribou while the women drove the dogs. From +this time, all through the summer till we again reached the Great Slave +Lake late in August, we had no difficulty about provisions; although +there was many a time when we could not say where we might find our next +meal, something always turned up, and we were never a single day without +eating during the whole journey. I really believe it is a mistake to try +to carry enough food for a summer's work in the Barren Ground, as the +difficulty of transport is so great, and after the caribou are once +found there is no danger of starvation. + +We were now travelling with the bull caribou, which had just left the +thick woods, and made easy marches from lake to lake in an north-east +direction; the weather became cold again for the last time, and June 7th +was like a bad winter's day with a strong north wind and snowstorms. +Then the summer came suddenly, and on the 11th we were obliged to camp +on a high gravel ridge to await _le grand dégel_, which rendered +travelling impossible, till the deep water had run off the ice. +Although we had been so far taking it very easily, a rest was of great +service, as many of the party were suffering from acute snow-blindness +caused by the everlasting glare of the sun on the treeless waste; there +was no dark object to rest the eyes upon for a moment, and besides the +actual pain the constant inflammation injured the sight and made +rifle-shooting very uncertain. The Indians smeared their faces with +blood and wood-ashes, and the white men were further protected with +spectacles; but these efforts were only partially successful in keeping +off the glare. I was lucky in getting off quite free myself, but should +imagine that it must be a most painful affliction. + +Along the foot of the sandy ridge, which closely resembled the one I had +seen the autumn before at Lac de Gras, were many small lakes partially +thawed, and here the snow geese, or white "wavies," were resting in +thousands, waiting till the warm weather should have melted the snow +from their feeding-ground along the sea-coast. We could have made +enormous bags of them, as they were tame and disinclined to leave the +open water; but we were sparing with our ammunition, as we might want it +badly later on. Great numbers were killed, however, and their prime +condition told of the good feeding-ground they had left far southward. +There were also plenty of large Canada geese, but the grey wavy, or +laughing goose, the best of all for eating, is much scarcer. Of the more +edible ducks the pintail seems to be the only one that comes so far +beyond the Great Slave Lake, but long-tailed ducks and golden eyes were +in great numbers along this sandy ridge. Of the loons, the red-throated +variety was by far the most numerous, and the Pacific or Adam's diver +was fairly common, but the great northern diver, although plentiful on +the Great Slave Lake, does not appear to visit the Barren Ground. + +While we were waiting here, another band of Indians from Fond du Lac +caught us up, and our camp assumed still larger proportions; but as we +were fairly among the game it did not much matter. With the new arrivals +were two blind men, Pierre and Antoine Fat, who preferred a wandering +life to the support they would doubtless have been given at the fort. +Both were good fishermen, and would spend hours sitting on the ice at +the edge of an open hole with the greatest patience, and later on made +heavy catches of trout. Pierre would often walk with the hunters to get +his share of the meat; Capot Blanc was usually his guide, but seldom did +more than trail a stick after him and the blind man followed the sound; +when a caribou was killed, Pierre was led up to it, and in spite of his +blindness would do the butcher's work cleanly and well. + +The snow melted away rapidly; the hillsides were running with small +streams, the ground showed up in ever increasing patches, and a thick +mist, which the Indians say always appears at the time of the big thaw, +hung over everything. On June 16th we found that most of the water had +run off through the cracks in the ice, and resumed our journey, after +solemnly burning some thirty pairs of used-up snow-shoes. At first +walking without them seemed hard to me, as I had used them continually +since the previous October, and we all found that our feet were made +sore by walking on the rough ice; unfortunately the skins of the caribou +that we killed were so riddled by grubs that they were unfit to dress +for leather, and we were always short of moccasins. We still travelled +along easily, as the river would not break up for a fortnight at the +earliest, and our best plan was to move with the caribou, which seemed +to be keeping up with the edge of the snow much in the same manner as +ourselves. The portages between the lakes were often three or four miles +in length, and, as the snow had gone, we were obliged to carry the heavy +loads on our backs; firewood was getting scarce, and I came to the +conclusion that our old canoe-route was by far the best way to reach the +Barren Ground in summer or in winter. A few warm days made a great +difference in the appearance of the country. Leaves began to sprout on +the little willows, and the grass showed green on the hillsides; +sober-hued flowers, growing close to the ground, came out in bloom, and +a few butterflies flapped in the hot sunshine, while we were still +walking on eight feet of solid ice. Mosquitos appeared in myriads: in +the daytime there was usually a breeze to blow them away, and the nights +were too cold for them; but in the calm mornings and evenings they made +the most of their chance to annoy us. + +On June 25th we planted our lodges on a high ridge overlooking Lake +Mackay. It has always been the fashion of the Yellow Knives to camp in +an elevated position, in order to have command of the surrounding +country in looking out for the caribou, or, in the olden times, for a +band of hostile Indians. Right across the lake we could see the bay in +which we had left our big canoe during our first attempt to find the +musk-ox, and the hills forming the height of land between the Great +Slave Lake and the Arctic Sea; on our right lay Lockhart's River and the +huge Aylmer Lake, which we were about to cross. Blind Pierre knew the +whole picture as well as any of us; on my way back to camp at sundown I +found him sitting on a boulder smoking, for we always rather favoured +him in the matter of tobacco; his face was turned to the north-east, and +he was evidently taking in all the details of the landscape, without the +sense of sight. "_Tetchenula_, _Tetchen Yarsula_, _Tetchen Taote_ (no +wood, not a little wood, no wood at all)," he said, as he waved his +hands towards Aylmer Lake; then, with a sweep of his arm, he traced +correctly the course of Lockhart's River, with a rapid downward motion, +to denote its abrupt termination in a series of rapids and waterfalls as +it joins the Great Slave Lake. Poor old fellow, it must be hard for him +not to see the country he loves so well; but he is happy, after his +fashion, in the summer-time when the caribou are thick. + +From this point we sent Moise with three Indians and our own dogs to +bring up the big canoe from the south shore of Lake Mackay, where I had +left her in the beginning of last October. Many little hunting-canoes +had been picked up along the track from Fond du Lac, and now every +sleigh carried a canoe athwartships; these proved useful enough in +crossing the small lake in the course of Lockhart's River, as on +arriving at the far side we found open water between us and the land, +and had to use the canoes to ferry our cargo to the shore, the dogs +swimming with the empty sleighs in tow, while some enterprising spirits, +who conceived the idea of floating ashore on blocks of ice, came in for +a ducking. The ice on Aylmer Lake was still solid, but extremely rough, +causing great damage to our moccasins. We kept near the north shore, +with sometimes a long traverse across a deep bay; at the head of every +bay a stream ran into the lake, and the open water at its mouth was +always a sure find for trout; forty or fifty large fish were often +caught in a day with hook and line at these places, and, as we could +always kill caribou, even the dogs were getting fat in this land of +plenty. Soon we began to see scraps of musk-ox hair on the large +boulders where these animals had been rubbing, and on the second day's +travel along Aylmer Lake David had an adventure with an old bull. David +was by far the keenest hunter in the outfit, but up till now had not +succeeded in killing anything bigger than a goose, and it was an +exciting moment for him when he got within range of a musk-ox. He had +heard strange stories about these animals when a small boy among his own +countrymen at the mouth of the Mackenzie River, and it was not without a +little trembling that he fired one of his scanty stock of bullets. The +beast was wounded but would not die, and David, standing off at a safe +distance, soon exhausted all his bullets; he then proceeded to load his +gun with round stones, and finally with handfuls of gravel; his last +charge of powder was used to fire the ramrod, but another half hour +elapsed before the musk-ox expired. As this was the first one that had +been killed on this trip, the proud hunter was made a good deal of when +he came into camp with the best of the highly-flavoured meat. + +On the evening of July 1st we made the encampment at the head of the +most northerly bay of Aylmer Lake, named Sandy Bay by Back, from the +conspicuous sand-ridges that here form the divide between the lake and +the Great Fish River, a distance of three quarters of a mile. The ice +was still firm in Aylmer Lake, but there was a little difficulty in +getting ashore through a narrow belt of open water, and the head-reaches +of the river were clear. We were inspecting the stream, to see what +chance there was of being able to run the canoe through the numerous +rapids, when Noel, one of the Indians who had been with me on the winter +hunt, came up with the news that he had spied a large band of musk-ox +feeding a couple of miles down the river. The women were badly in need +of their hides for making moccasins, as the caribou-skins were still in +poor condition, so a hunt was arranged in a fashion that I had not seen +before. Most of the guns crossed the river, and a spot was selected for +the slaughter just where the stream broadened out into a small lake; at +right angles to the river mounds of stone and moss were put up at a few +yards' distance from each other, ornamented with coats, belts, and +gun-covers, and behind the outside mound Capot Blanc took up his +position. A steep hill ran parallel with the stream about two hundred +yards away, and along this guns were posted at intervals, with the +intention of heading the musk-ox towards the water. Noel and Marlo, +supposed to be the two best runners, were to make a long round and start +the band in our direction; I was stationed with three other guns among +some broken rocks on the south side of the river, just opposite the +barrier; and orders were given that no shot should be fired till the +musk-ox took to the water. + +It was a most interesting scene, and I would not willingly have changed +places with any of the loyal Canadians who were at this time +celebrating the anniversary of Dominion Day, with much rye whisky, a +thousand miles to the southward. I had plenty of time to admire the +surrounding landscape, and the sunset that lit up the snow-drifts on +each side of the river; when suddenly over the opposite ridge appeared +the horns of a band of caribou, and for a moment the leader was outlined +against the sky as he paused to look at the strange preparations going +on in the valley below. Behind me a ptarmigan, perched on a rock, crowed +defiance; but there was no other sound, except the rush of water and the +occasional grinding of an ice-pan dislodged from some small lake in the +course of the stream. Fully an hour we sat among the rocks, and were +beginning to think that the hunt had miscarried, when we heard a distant +shouting far down the valley, and the next moment caught sight of a +scurrying black mass crossing a spur of the hill close to the river's +bank. The men posted along the ridge took up the cry as the musk-ox +passed them, and joined in the chase; soon the animals came to the +barrier, and pulled up short at the apparition, while, to increase their +alarm, the hoary head of Capot Blanc arose from behind a mound of rocks +right in front of them. This was the critical moment, and they would +certainly have taken to the water and been at the mercy of their +pursuers but for an untimely shot that caused them to break, and I was +not sorry to see that several of the band escaped. I had had a splendid +view till now, as the musk-ox halted within twenty yards of me, but we +were forced to lie low when the shooting began, as bullets were rattling +freely among the rocks in which we were hiding. We did no shooting on +our side of the river, except to finish off a couple that took to the +water; seven were killed in all, six cows, and a calf about a month old; +there were no bulls in the band, and from what I afterwards saw they +seemed to keep separate from the cows during the summer. A solitary old +bull is often met with at this time of year. + +When the hunt was over, I inquired the meaning of the shouting that had +been kept up so continually throughout the drive, and was informed that +this was necessary to let the musk-ox know which way to run. At starting +they had shouted, "Oh, musk-ox, there is a barrier planted for you down +there, where the river joins the little lake; when you reach it take to +the water, there are men with guns on both sides, and so we shall kill +you all"; when the men are out of breath, they shout to the musk-ox to +stop, and, after they have rested, to go on again. These animals are +said to understand every word of the Yellow Knife language, though it +seems strange that they do not make use of the information they receive +to avoid danger instead of obeying orders. The partial failure of the +hunt was attributed to the fact that Moise had called across the river +to me in French, and the musk-ox had not been able to understand this +strange language. + +The sun had risen again when we got back to camp, and there we found the +big canoe, not a bit damaged by her long rest under the snow or her +adventurous journey on the dog-sleigh. The day was spent in getting in +the meat and skins, and early the next morning we carried the canoe +across the portage and launched her on the waters of the Great Fish +River. The cargo was all sent overland to a lake some six miles down the +stream; sleighs were abandoned, as there was now no snow to haul on, but +the dogs' work was by no means over, the only difference being that they +had to carry loads on their backs instead of dragging a sleigh; rough +deer-skin pack-harness was made, and the loads secured in a manner +worthy of a Mexican mule-packer. We came to grief with the canoe at the +third rapid, and should have done much better to have made the portage +to the lake, instead of trying to navigate the difficult stream. A long +delay was necessary to effect repairs, and there were so many portages +over ice-blocks along the edge of the lake, when we reached it, that the +sun was high on the following morning before we camped. The same work +continued for several days, the Indians toiling overland heavily loaded, +and our own party struggling with the ice in a chain of lakes through +which the river runs. On the edge of one of these lakes we stopped for +dinner on the spot where Stewart and Anderson separated from their +Indian guides before descending the river in 1856. The rough stone +fireplaces, by which they had economised fuel, were still standing, and +Capot Blanc, seated on one of them, gave us a long lecture on the events +that had taken place during their expedition, as he had heard the story +from his father. More than thirty years had elapsed since the last party +of Whites camped by the side of the Great Fish River, and thirty years +again before them Back the discoverer had pushed out into the unknown +land. Why has all exploration in the Barren Ground ceased? No more is +known of the country than was discovered by Franklin and Back sixty +years ago in their short summer journeys, and the expeditions sent out +in search of the former in the 'Fifties. There are many thousands of +square miles on which the foot of white man has never stepped. The +Canadian Government has an efficient body of surveyors and geologists at +its command, and it is curious that no attention is paid to one of the +most interesting fields for exploration. + +On July 6th, after slow and tiresome travelling, we reached the north +end of a large sheet of water named by Back Musk-ox Lake, and finding +enough willow-scrub for firewood, determined here to await the breaking +up of the ice in the lake. Judging by the Indian's account the season +was fully three weeks later than usual, and, as I wished to be back at +Fort Resolution in time to save the open water up Peace River before +winter set in, there was a poor chance of our being able to penetrate +far into the country of the Esquimaux. Musk-ox Lake runs pretty nearly +due north and south, and is fifteen miles in length, averaging about two +miles in width. Our camp was just at the point where the river runs out, +and a short distance above is the best swimming-place for the caribou +known to the Indians. In some years immense slaughters are made here, +but on the present occasion the caribou did not cross in their usual +numbers, so that our companions had no chance to put up the dried meat +that we expected to get for our cruise down stream, and we could only +kill enough for the present support of such a large encampment. Across +the lake is a hill of insignificant height, known as the Musk-ox +Mountain, a good landmark, and a favourite haunt for the animals from +which it takes its name. + +This is the northerly limit of the Yellow Knives' hunting-ground. +Northwards is the land of the dreaded Esquimaux, and many rumours were +brought into the camp of a strange track seen on soft ground, of men +standing far off on the sky-line, and a blue cloud of smoke arising far +down the valley of the river. The Indians were convinced that their old +enemies were continually close to them, despite the fact that it would +be an impossibility for canoes to have yet ascended the stream on +account of the ice. We afterwards discovered that there was a debatable +ground, fully sixty miles in width, between Musk-ox Lake and the highest +point that the Esquimaux reach. + +There is here a very striking change in the appearance of the country. +The old red granite formation gives way almost entirely to ironstone, +split up into slabs and piled into such peculiar shapes that one might +imagine giants had been building castles over the rolling hills. Some of +the slabs were turned on edge and formed perfect turrets towering many +feet into the air, and in many places were heaps of shiny black sand, +resembling coal-dust, piled up into conical mounds almost too steep to +climb. Wherever vegetation had a chance to grow it was much more +luxuriant than one could suppose possible in such a climate. The stunted +willows, not two feet in height, were thickly clothed with bright green +leaves; there was abundance of grass, and in many spots the pretty +little Arctic flowers formed a bright carpet along the foot of a slowly +melting snowdrift. + +Capot Blanc and myself made an expedition into the roughest part of this +country, to the north-east of Musk-ox Lake, but we found travelling very +hard, as we had to climb continually over broken masses of ironstone. +This is another well-known haunt of "the Enemy," and Capot Blanc +attributed to his malign influence the disaster that prevented our +further exploration in this direction. We reached a stream of no great +size, one of the tributaries of the Great Fish River, and attempted to +wade across to the opposite bank, selecting the head of a small rapid +for the purpose, as the water appeared to be shallower there. On +reaching the centre of the current our legs were swept from under us, +and we were immediately running the rapid at the imminent risk of +breaking our heads against a rock. We both reached the still water at +the foot of the rapid with nothing worse than a few bruises, and +moreover held on to our guns, but of course our ammunition was spoilt, +and we were obliged to make the best of our way back to camp. Capot +Blanc afterwards told me that he thought the Enemy had made the water +strong, to keep us from coming into his country, and it would be flying +in the face of Providence to make another attempt. It would be +interesting to know how far this ironstone formation extends; and, as +the journey to Musk-ox Lake and back to the fort might easily be made by +canoe during the summer, the trip would amply repay the geologist and +botanist for their trouble. + +Many other little expeditions we made in various directions, sometimes +watching the birds, and sometimes in pursuit of caribou or musk-ox. One +hunt in particular I remember, which took place appropriately enough on +the top of Musk-ox Mountain. We had made out the moving black spots +through the glasses from the lodge, and, as there was still a demand for +hides from the women and meat was being used in great quantities, we +paddled across the lake through a narrow channel in the ice. The sun +went down while we were climbing the ascent, and a long wait was +necessary, as the animals were feeding towards us on the flat top of the +mountain and there was no cover to enable us to make a nearer approach. +The mosquitos buzzed merrily round us while we lay behind the rock and +watched the grotesque motions of the calves as they played with each +other, little suspecting that danger was so close. Presently the band +moved within easy range and we opened fire with four guns. Seven were +killed, and Mackinlay caught a calf that stayed by the body of its dead +mother, a fluffy, long-haired little beast; I was sorry that we could +not keep it alive, but it would have been impossible to carry it in a +birch-bark canoe. Cruel work, this shooting in the summer-time, but it +was necessary to keep the camp in meat even though mother and young had +to be sacrificed. I had a long run after a cripple, and eventually +killed it on the shore of a large lake in a valley eastward of the +mountain. The sun was high when I found the rest of the hunters eating +marrow-bones in front of a big fire, in a clump of well-grown willows +close to the canoe, and we took a load of wood back to the camp, sending +over the women for the meat and skins later in the day. + +The weather during this time was variable in the extreme; two or three +hot days would be followed by a snowstorm, and once we were visited by a +hurricane that did much damage to lodge-poles, and caused us to shift +camp hurriedly to the lee-side of a steep cliff hanging over the river. +July 10th was exceptionally hot in the morning, with the mosquitos at +their worst; in the middle of the day there was a thunderstorm, and at +five o'clock the ground was covered with snow. The ice now began to show +signs of rotting, and the channel of open water round the weather edge +of the lake grew rapidly broader. + +We had many talks with the Indians about the chances of our being able +to get together a crew; but they had no enthusiasm about the voyage, and +wanted nothing better than to keep us hanging about the head of the +river, providing them with ammunition. Saltatha was the only one of the +band who volunteered to go, and he insisted on having another Indian +with him, as he was not used to the ways of white men, and would feel +safer if he had one of his own tribe with him in case of accidents; but +he hoped we should not go farther than the big lake (Beechey Lake) which +he had heard us talking about, for it was getting late in the year, and +when the ice is long in melting winter comes again soon. At last it was +arranged that Saltatha and Noel were to come in our canoe, while Marlo +and Carquoss accompanied us with a small hunting-canoe, to carry a +little ammunition in case we lost our cargo by capsizing in a rapid; we +should then have a chance of making a living, and be able to cross the +tributary stream if we had to return on foot. On our part we agreed to +turn back from Beechey Lake, reserving the privilege of taking the +little canoe overland from there to Bathurst Inlet. As caribou were +scarce, the rest of the Indians were to work their way back towards the +Great Slave Lake, except Capot Blanc, who was to stay on the divide at +Aylmer Lake, if he could kill enough meat to keep his family, and there +await our return. + +The evening before we started, Syene, who was a Medicine Man, sent a +message to our lodge that he was going to foretell the result of our +expedition down the river, so we went over to hear what was in store for +us. His lodge was full of Indians, but they made room for us, and we sat +down on a blanket on the side of the fire farthest from the door. Syene +held a drum made of tightly-stretched deer-skin parchment, which he +punched continually with a caribou's thigh-bone, keeping up a melancholy +chant, and singing a sentence or two every few minutes. "It is not that +I can see anything myself," he said, "but it is an unborn child that is +speaking to me." Mrs. Syene, who was sitting close to the Medicine Man, +clasped her hands and groaned, as if in great pain, by way of giving +assent to this statement. "The child sees the canoe of the big masters +running down the strong water of a rapid; below the rapid is a long +point, and seven lodges of the Esquimaux are planted on the point. There +is blood on the snow-drift; it is the blood of a white man. One man is +walking on the bank of a river; he walks like a starving man, and the +child knows not if he is white or Indian. Now all is dark, and the child +has ceased speaking." + +Not a very cheerful prophecy, and it was hard to make out how far the +Indians believed in the Medicine Man; but our crew were rather +downhearted about it, although, as is usual all the world over, the +people who were not going the journey themselves took a philosophical +view of the whole affair. + + + + +CHAPTER XII + + +On Thursday, July 17th, at two o'clock in the afternoon, we struck camp +and started on a four-mile portage to the next lake down stream, as the +river-bed was too full of large boulders to navigate the strong current +with safety. It was hard work carrying the cargo and canoe through the +mosquito-stricken ironstone country, and we did not camp till midnight. +Here another bad omen was observed. Mackinlay and I had gone ahead, +after carrying over a load, to try and kill something for supper; we +found a musk-ox, but made rather a clumsy mess of killing it, and the +animal was badly heated before we finished it off. The meat was +consequently discoloured, and Saltatha declared this to be an unfailing +sign of some great misfortune at hand. The women had made us a few pair +of moccasins each, but not nearly enough for the tracking-work that we +should have to do when we turned up stream; and our stock of provisions, +instead of the bales of dried meat that we had expected to enable us to +travel without waste of time in hunting, consisted of ten dried +deers'-ribs, so full of maggots, from having been imperfectly cured, +that we threw them away on the second day out. Our flour and pemmican +had of course been finished long ago, and we drank the last kettleful of +tea before leaving Musk-ox Lake, but as the Labrador tea grows all over +this country in profusion, this did not much matter; tobacco too was +nearly at an end. + +The lake was still full of floating ice, but we had no trouble in +passing the canoe into the river at the north end, and found the stream +considerably increased in volume by a couple of large tributaries that +come in from the opposite sides of the lake. After dropping down two or +three miles with a sluggish current, we heard the roar of a rapid, and +put ashore on an island in mid-stream as soon as we sighted broken +water. It was lucky we did so, as there was a heavy overfall impossible +to run, and we were obliged to portage the whole length of the island +and then shoot the tail of the rapid. Here we put ashore to patch the +canoe, which was leaking badly, and pulled out big trout as quickly as +we could throw in the spoon-bait; we found this could be done at the +foot of all the rapids, so one need not take much thought about +provisions in this part of the stream. After another small rapid, which +was run with a full load, the river, heading straight to the north, +passes through a small lake and emerges as a broad canal-like waterway +with very slight current, flowing through the roughest part of the +ironstone country that we had yet seen; the banks were steep too, and we +could put the canoe alongside a natural wharf in any spot for a +distance of five or six miles. In passing down these reaches we saw and +killed musk-ox, but the caribou seemed to shirk the labour of crossing +the confused masses of rocks, and none of these animals were seen till +we reached a less rugged district. Again the channel widened out into a +lake, two miles in length, with an ugly rapid at the north end; this we +negotiated with the precaution of leaving guns and ammunition ashore, +and directly afterwards Saltatha caused some excitement by saying he had +caught a glimpse of a man walking on a neighbouring ridge; we put +ashore, but could find no tracks, and came to the conclusion that it was +Saltatha's imagination. A long day's travel was made successfully, and +by ten o'clock we were clear of the ironstone and slipping quietly along +through a pleasant sandy country. We camped at the foot of a high +sand-butte covered with flowers and moss, and found a bunch of willows +on the bank of the river. There were indications that some one had +camped on the same spot many years ago; small sticks had been chopped +with an axe, and bones of caribou were lying in heaps on the ground. The +Yellow Knives at once said it was an old Esquimaux camp, and it was +evident that they had little inclination to go any farther down stream; +more probably the chopping was done by a band of Dog-Ribs, whose +hunting-grounds lie to the west, or possibly by the members of +Stewart's and Anderson's expeditions. On mounting the butte we saw that +the country northward presented a much more fertile appearance than +anything we had seen on the south side of the watershed. There was a +luxurious growth of grass over the sandy ridges, and during the two +months of summer one could imagine oneself back on the prairies of +Alberta; the willows here too grew to a better size, and, as far as we +descended the river, we had little trouble about fuel; in the winter, of +course, the willows would be all drifted over with snow, and it would +then be no easy matter to make a fire. This stream heads in the woodless +country; consequently there is no drift-timber, and not a single +pine-tree is to be seen along its course. + +We had a pleasant camp enough that night, but rebellion was rife and +burst into flame on the following morning when we ordered the men to +take their places in the canoes. This is the hopeless part of having to +rely on natives for travelling in the Barren Ground; they have no +courage outside their own country. If we had had a good crew of +half-breeds from Red River or the upper country of British Columbia we +might even now, notwithstanding the lateness of the season, have pushed +far out towards the northern sea-coast, and possibly have made the +acquaintance of some of the scattered bands of Esquimaux who live there +in happy ignorance of any more comfortable form of life. But we were +practically in the hands of the Yellow Knives, for although I would +myself have taken the risk of steering, none of the men who were willing +to go knew how to stitch up a broken canoe, and it would have been +madness to push on without this knowledge. Moise, our half-breed +interpreter and steersman, who was an engaged servant of the Hudson's +Bay Company and bound by his contract to obey Mackinlay's orders in +everything, showed the Indian side of his nature by joining the +mutineers and refusing to take his position in the stern of the canoe. +For two hours we argued the matter on the bank of the river, and at one +time I thought we should certainly have come to blows. Marlo and +Carquoss were the ringleaders, but Saltatha was inclined to stand by us, +although afraid of giving offence to the other Indians. The result of +the dispute was that the worst two deserted, taking with them the little +canoe, while Noel and Saltatha, tempted by many promises of great reward +when we reached the fort, agreed to come with us, and Moise sulkily went +back to his duty. After we had thus got rid of the element of discord +things went on better; but the loss of the little canoe, besides doing +away with our chance of crossing overland to Bathurst Inlet, increased +the risk of losing all our possessions by one disaster. A pretty +poetical thing is a birch-bark canoe, as it leaps down a sparkling river +among its native birch woods, but too frail a craft for a long journey +in the rockbound country beyond the line where timber grows. No chance +here to strip the bark from a birch-tree and put a new side in a canoe +that has struck a rock in the foaming rapid, or if needs be to build a +new canoe altogether; three square feet of birch-bark, a little gum, and +a bundle of fibre were our only resources for effecting repairs. + +The day's journey began with a rapid, below which was a reach of quiet +water gradually broadening out into a lake some eight miles in length; +its surface was covered with ice at the north end, but we found an open +channel close ashore on the west side and effected a passage through by +skirting the bays. Several bands of musk-ox were seen, and there was +always too much anxiety among the men to put ashore and shoot, or to do +anything except push steadily on; just as we were leaving the lake a +magnificent bull appeared on the top of a high ridge, and, standing on a +flat rock within one hundred yards of us, leisurely surveyed the first +human beings who had encroached upon his sanctuary for so many years. + +Below the lake the river makes a sharp bend eastward, and for three +miles is nothing but a succession of rapids. Moise when once at work was +a splendid steersman, and he certainly handled the canoe with great +skill through this difficult piece of navigation; we passed the mouths +of two big streams coming in from the west, and at camping-time shot +into a quiet sandy lake and put ashore for the night. A musk-ox that I +killed from the door of the lodge, and the unlimited number of trout +that we could catch in the river, enabled us to spend a peaceful Sunday +without hunting. We explored towards the east, and came once more upon +the iron country, which seems to run with a sharply defined edge in a +north-easterly direction. There were few lakes out of the course of the +river, but long stretches of flat grassy muskegs extended as far as the +eye could see to the west. Four-footed game was plentiful, especially +musk-ox; the caribou that we saw were generally solitary bucks, but it +was now nearly time for the does to be coming back from the sea-coast; +of the smaller animals we often came across a skulking wolf, a +wolverine, an Arctic fox, or a hare, while the holes in the sand-hills +were the abode of numerous _siffleurs_ and ermines. A ferocious little +mouse, brown in summer, but turning white as the winter comes on, is +very common all over the Barren Ground; if disturbed from a tuft of +grass it will turn on a man and dance with impotent rage at his feet; +these mice naturally fall an easy prey to the hawks and owls, which make +a good living here during the summer months. Beyond these predatory +birds little feathered life was visible in this part of the country; a +few gulls, terns, and skuas flitted along the reaches of the river, and +occasionally a loon or a long-tailed duck could be seen in the lakes. +The Canada goose and grey wavy were breeding in the marshes, but not in +great quantities; the main body of geese go right out to the coast to +lay their eggs, and do not start for the South till the end of August. + +In the early morning we made a short portage over a small cascade +immediately below the camp, and found that the river still held its +northerly course through a chain of small lakes connected by short +stretches of bad water. We made one more portage at mid-day and ran +several rather nasty rapids. After dinner we were obliged to portage +fully a mile to avoid an impassable reach, and then took more risk than +we were justified in doing with our only canoe by running a couple of +miles of broken water, full of boulders and with such a heavy sea that +we shipped a good deal of water; luckily we did not touch anything, and +dropped safely into a long narrow lake, on the east side of which camp +was made for the night. This was the most dangerous day that we made; as +although we always put ashore to inspect the rapids in case we might +discover a waterfall below, we became emboldened by success and ran in +safety through some places that we should not have attempted. Back's map +of the river would have been a great help to us, but neither this nor an +account of the previous journeys that had been made down the stream was +procurable at the fort. + +The next day a curious blue haze hung over everything, closely +resembling the smoke of a forest fire at a distance from the scene of +conflagration. The lake that we had camped on proved to be about six +miles in length, with the usual rapid at its north end connecting it +with another lake, the size of which we could not at first determine +owing to the murky state of the air; nor could we at once find its +outlet, but by keeping in a north-easterly direction soon felt the +influence of a current, and found the volume of water much increased by +the junction of a tributary, which we afterwards discovered came in from +the north-west. On the east side of the stream, just as it left the +lake, we noticed a circle of flat stones standing on end, evidently put +up by human hands, and on landing discovered unmistakable signs of a +band of Esquimaux having been encamped there not very long before. Seven +small oval-shaped enclosures, surrounded by rough turf-heaps six inches +in height, had been the dwelling-places, but we could not determine +whether these low walls were the foundations of snow-houses or deer-skin +lodges; there were several blackened fireplaces outside, but the fires +must have been very small judging from the charred stumps of tiny green +willow twigs, and we saw no wood within several miles of the encampment. +The stones propped on end had been used probably for drying meat, and +for tying up the dogs to keep them from stealing. Bones and horns of +musk-ox and caribou were lying about in every direction, and their +numbers showed that this must be a favourite camping-place of the +Esquimaux; some of the musk-ox horns had been cut into rough spoons, and +several were found in a half-finished condition. A flat stone kettle was +picked up with the grease still sticking to it, and a small piece of +copper let into the back, possibly an arrangement for a handle, showed +that these people are able to work this metal; there were also a few +bone arrow-heads scattered about in the camp. If any further proof were +necessary to determine what tribe of people had camped here, it was +forthcoming in the form of several pieces of undressed sealskin with the +hair on, and these seemed to be of greater interest to our crew than any +of the other discoveries; arrow-heads, spoons, and kettle were dropped +in the contemplation of the skin of an animal they had never seen, and +they instantly demanded a description of the seal. After we had told +them all we knew upon the subject, we asked their opinion as to the +length of time that the Esquimaux had remained here, and when they had +left. Saltatha, reading the signs that a white man might miss, came to +the conclusion that they had come here in the autumn, as was proved by +the hard horns of male caribou lying about, that they had stayed here +through the winter, and left late in the spring with dogs on the last +snow, about six weeks before our arrival. He thought too that they made +a practice of coming here regularly, in the same manner that the Yellow +Knives come to the head-waters of the river, as the bones appeared to +him to have belonged to animals killed at widely differing dates. We +found hiding-places among the rocks close to the edge of the river, +which had evidently been used for concealing men engaged in spearing the +swimming caribou. The only weak point in Saltatha's theory seemed to be +the absence of any carcasses of freshly killed caribou; but it is +possible that the Esquimaux may have left before the females came out so +far, and the animals would have been later than usual in arriving here +owing to the backward nature of the spring. + +When we had thoroughly inspected everything we left again down stream, +with a swift current and good water without rapids for eight miles, +where we found another lake running more to the eastward than the +general course of the river; on the west side of this lake we were +obliged to camp, as a strong head-wind raised too much sea to travel +against, and rain was falling in torrents. We explored the shore of the +lake in hopes of finding further traces of the Esquimaux, but made no +discoveries of any kind. No musk-ox were seen this day, but there were +enough caribou to provide food for the party. + +With better weather we made an early start in the morning, the river on +leaving the lake bending a little more to the eastward, with a swift +current for several miles, and two rapids which we ran in safety. A +short distance below the second rapid the current slackens and the +stream gets rapidly broader, till, with a sudden sweep to the +south-east, the whole length of Beechey Lake comes open; a long narrow +sheet of water, twenty-five miles in length, and nowhere more than two +in breadth, lying east and west, and forming a well-defined elbow in the +course of the Great Fish River. With a light fair wind, and a blanket +set for a sail, we ran down the lake and pitched our lodge on the north +shore. Two days were spent in exploration, but again we failed entirely +to find any signs of the Esquimaux. Towards the east end of the lake the +iron formation shows up once more, and the country is rough to travel +through. There was a slight difficulty about provisions at this time as +game was scarce, and, though we fully expected to catch fish in the lake +and put out our net both nights, not a single fish was taken; just at +the critical time, however, a few female caribou with their young turned +up on their way back to the South, and we were relieved of all anxiety. + +As we had promised our crew that we would not descend the river beyond +Beechey Lake, and it was already the end of July, orders were +reluctantly given on the third day to start up stream with the intention +of doing a little exploration to the northward of the old Esquimaux +camp, to see if there was any feasible route from there to Bathurst +Inlet, as there were no signs of these people having camped in any other +place along the river. It seemed a pity to abandon the voyage just at +the interesting time, after we had got over all the difficulties of the +upper part of the river and had now only a broad stream to follow, with +a great deal of easy lake-travel, to reach the Arctic Ocean, and the +scene of the final sufferings of the members of Sir John Franklin's last +expedition. On the other hand, we had no object in going down to the +sea, and there is little pleasure to be got out of a journey of this +kind with an unwilling and untrustworthy crew; our canoe, too, which was +already leaking badly, would have been of very little service for sea +work. + +As far as Beechey Lake the south side of the Great Fish River is free +from any large tributary streams, so that, if our canoe had been smashed +up in a rapid, and we had been able to save guns and ammunition, it +would have been easy enough to follow the river on foot; but on the +north side there are several large streams to be forded, and a long +detour might be necessary to find a spot shallow enough for this +purpose. + +There was much more enthusiasm displayed by the Indian portion of the +crew on the up-stream journey, and no encouragement was needful to get a +good day's work done. In the river stretches the tracking line was used, +and three men at the shore end of it kept the canoe travelling at a +lively pace except in the very strong water; in mounting the second +rapid a mistake on the part of Noel, our bowsman, caused a heavy +collision with a rock, and several hours were spent in putting in a +patch of birch-bark. On the second night we pitched our lodge on the +sandy lake within sight of the Esquimaux camp, and found a considerable +stream coming in from a north-westerly direction. I cannot find any +mention of this stream in the accounts of the two former journeys down +the river, nor is it marked on the maps; it was probably unnoticed on +both occasions, as it comes in at the west end of the lake, out of the +course of a canoe passing up or down the main river. + +Mackinlay, Murdo, and myself started on foot the following morning, to +explore this stream for a couple of days, taking David with us in case +we came across any of his countrymen. The malcontents were left in +charge of the camp, with orders to kill caribou if any passed, and +partially dry the meat to save the waste of time caused by having to +hunt for our living as we travelled; they were also to thoroughly gum +the canoe, to stop as much as possible the leaking which was getting +serious. + +We struck out along the bank of the stream, carrying nothing but a gun +and a blanket apiece, and at dinner-time were lucky enough to find a +flock of moulting Canada geese, unable to fly; four were shot, and two +eaten at once, while the other two were stowed away among the rocks for +use later on. We had a long day's walk through a pleasant grassy +country, and towards evening crossed an unusually high range of hills +through which the river cañons. Finding a few willows here, we left our +blankets, and walked on along the bank for an hour or two, finally +climbing a solitary sand-butte at sundown for a last survey of the +country before turning our faces to the south. + +Far away towards the north-west we could trace the windings of the +stream to a ridge of blue hills, which formed the horizon under the +setting sun. How these blue ridges in the distance tempt one to push on +and see what lies on the far side! And the experience that nine times +out of ten you would have done better to stay where you were is never +sufficient to overcome this feeling; to this day I can seldom resist it, +although game may be plentiful at the door of my lodge and everything +that one desires in a wild country is close at hand. Below us lay a +broad valley, so green and fertile in appearance that we could hardly +realise that for nine months in the year it lay frost-bound and +snow-covered under the rigour of an Arctic climate. In the middle of +this valley, close to the bank of the stream, was a black object that we +had long ago learnt to recognise at a glance, an old bull musk-ox +feeding in a patch of willow-scrub; he was sacrificed for our night's +rations, and, loaded with meat and marrow-bones, we returned to the +cañon where we had left our blankets. There was a distinct twilight, and +late in the night David awoke me to draw my attention to the first star +that we had seen for many weeks. "See," he said, "a star already; it is +past middle summer, and we have not yet seen the sun all night." It was +the first summer he had ever spent without seeing the midnight sun, as, +since he had been left at the Peel River Fort by a band of Esquimaux who +come there annually to trade, he had passed his life within the Arctic +circle. + +The only signs that we saw of people having travelled along this valley +were occasional cache-marks made by piling up a heap of small stones in +a conspicuous position, to denote the carcass of an animal hidden in the +rocks close by; but it seems such an easy route and leads so nearly in +the direction of Bathurst Inlet, the nearest point on the sea-coast, +that it is probably used regularly by wandering bands of Esquimaux on +their way to and from their inland hunting-ground. + +This was the end of our voyage of discovery, though I should have liked +to have pushed on another day or two; but we wanted a small canoe to be +certain of reaching the coast, which must have been within sixty miles +of us, as there are sure to be many lakes to cross _en route_, and +making long detours on foot would be an endless task. The fine weather +also had broken, and heavy showers of rain came driving in front of the +north wind, while the rest of our crew that had remained with the canoe +were not too trustworthy, and, with the exception of Saltatha, in whom +both Mackinlay and myself had great confidence, were quite capable of +leaving us to find our way out of the country on foot. We had to content +ourselves with the hope that in a future summer, with an earlier season +and a better crew, we might find an opportunity of exploring thoroughly +this promising valley in the Barren Ground. But now I must turn my +attention to my long journey of seventeen hundred miles, mostly +up-stream, to cross the Rocky Mountains by the head-waters of the Peace +River before the winter set in; and even if I could manage this there +were still many hundred miles of mountain and forest to be crossed +before I saw the shores of the Pacific and the abodes of civilization. + +When we reached the lodge we found that the Indians had made a stupid +slaughter of caribou, and, not contented with taking as much meat as we +could carry, had been recklessly killing the females and young that were +now passing in great numbers. The love of killing seems deeply rooted in +the nature of most men, but the Yellow Knives have it more fully +developed than other people. This indiscriminate slaughter is especially +culpable in a land where ammunition is scarce, and not to be replaced +when wasted by needless firing. + +The next morning we picked out of our trading-stock a few presents to be +left in the Esquimaux camp, as a sign that there were people in the +interior willing to be on friendly terms with the people of the coast. +Knives, axes, beads, and files, a couple of hand-mirrors, a few strips +of red cloth, and a flannel shirt or two were stuffed into a copper +kettle, which would be itself the biggest prize of all. On lifting the +lid, the first object to meet the eye of the wondering Esquimaux would +be the photograph of the Protestant missionary at Fort Resolution, which +David had been keeping among his small stock of treasures; it was a +photograph of a Church of England clergyman, in clerical costume, and +should certainly give the Esquimaux a favourable idea of the style of +man who had visited their camping-place. We also put in a note asking +anyone who might read it to let us know in what manner it had come to +hand, as it is uncertain whether these scattered bands of Esquimaux ever +visit the Hudson's Bay Company's summer trading-post on Marble Island, +which lies a great distance away at the mouth of Chesterfield Inlet, or +whether they only know of the white men by hearsay from other tribes +that trade annually with the Company. The kettle was carefully stowed in +one of the pits made for watching the swimming caribou, and a +canoe-pole, bearing a gaudy cotton handkerchief for a flag, planted +alongside to attract attention. Everybody tried their handiwork at +sketching our story with burnt sticks on the conspicuous flat rocks +close to the river: there was a picture of a canoe, with seven upright +black lines supposed to represent seven men; another of a Yellow Knife +and an Esquimau (though the artist could not say which was which) +shaking hands with the greatest affection; while David was certainly +entitled to the first prize for a bloodthirsty sketch of a misshapen +musk-ox, with a thin black line, again supposed to be a man, transfixed +on the point of his horn. When we thought we had represented everything +to perfection, we turned our backs on the land of the Esquimaux and +plodded away up stream, tracking and portaging in the river-stretches, +and paddling through the lakes which are always a great help in mounting +a stream. + +We now came in for a spell of really bad weather, which made the uphill +work very laborious. A heavy unceasing downpour of rain, and sometimes +sleet, continued day after day, accompanied by strong winds. The men all +worked well and without much grumbling, although we were never dry and +in many places the tracking had to be done waist-deep in water; at night +we slept in our wet clothes, on the wet ground, rolled up in our sopping +blankets. This is the killing weather, and one needs perfect health to +resist its effects; the dry cold of a northern winter is child's play in +comparison. Saltatha, who had hurt himself by a nasty fall while +carrying a heavy load over a portage, broke down completely at this +time, and was unable to work during the rest of the trip. We could do +nothing for him, as there was no medicine of any kind in the outfit, +and he had to take his chance with the rest. I think he came very near +dying while we were running down Lockhart's River; he lost all strength +and was spitting blood freely for a fortnight, but ultimately recovered +in a miraculous manner. We worked long days tracking up-stream, but were +continually delayed by having to patch up the canoe every time she +touched a rock; it was just as well we did not go down to the mouth of +the river, for she would certainly not have stood another three weeks' +work of this kind. Another trouble was the scarcity of moccasins, which +were completely worn out by a single day's walk on the sharp rocks along +the river's bank. + +In eight days we reached Musk-ox Lake, and, finding the wind too strong +to paddle against, we put ashore on the east side and took advantage of +a little sunshine to thoroughly dry all our belongings. From this camp +we saw the last musk-ox, and, crossing the bay with a canoe, went in +pursuit as our meat supply was short. Some of the guns were posted, and +others tried to drive the animals, but we made a mess of the hunt and +the whole band escaped; my last remembrance of the animals that I had +started out a year before on purpose to kill, being a stern view of a +grand old bull disappearing at a gallop over a ridge, and a puff of dust +just behind him, marking the spot where a badly aimed rifle-bullet had +struck the ground. A caribou, however, supplied us with meat, but we +had some trouble in picking him up, as he was killed in the water and it +was no easy matter to tow his carcass ashore against the gale of wind +that was raging. Mackinlay and myself for once got ahead of the +wolverines on this occasion. We saw three coming our way before they saw +us, and, lying behind a rock, bowled them all over; a right and left at +wolverines is seldom brought about in a lifetime, but it is very +satisfactory when one thinks of the stolen _caches_ and consequent hard +times that these wily brutes are responsible for. + +From the south end of the lake I walked ahead with Mackinlay, starting +early in the morning, and at mid-day sighted three lodges on the Aylmer +Lake divide. We fired a signal-shot which brought everybody out, and we +were soon surrounded by Capot Blanc's brigade, and deluged with +questions as to what had happened and why we had come back alone; for +surely something evil had taken place in the country that always slopes +downhill. With our small command of the Yellow Knife language, and +plenty of signs, we made them understand that the canoe was by this time +at the first lake, and the water was so low in the river that it would +be necessary to portage the whole distance. All the available men and +women went to help our crew to carry the loads, and by sundown our lodge +was once more planted by the water that finds its way to the Great +Slave Lake and runs a course of a thousand miles before falling into +the Arctic Sea. + +It took half a day to settle accounts with the Indians who had been +working for us on our way up to Musk-ox Lake, while the women were busy +gumming the canoe and getting her in order for the run down Lockhart's +River. A good proportion of the wages due were paid out of the remainder +of our trading-stock that had been intended for the Esquimaux if we had +met them. The box that contained this small supply of goods had been an +object of strife the whole time. The Indians had the strongest objection +to any of the products of the Grand Pays passing through their country +being given to strangers, and we had been careful not to let them see +the gaudy contents of the box, or we should have been troubled with the +constant begging that the Yellow Knives think will eventually gain them +the object they desire. Imagination had run high as to the contents of +the fairy casket, and there was a great rush when it was announced that +any of the men to whom wages were due might take what they fancied. They +had seen pressed bales of blankets landed at the fort on the arrival of +the yearly outfit from Winnipeg, and had been surprised at the number of +blankets that could be squeezed into a small space; there was an idea +prevalent that our box had been packed on the same principle, and might +contain an abundant supply of all the good things that only the white +men know how to make. Some disappointment was shown when it turned out +that we had only been speaking the truth in answering their petitions by +telling them we had such a small stock that nothing could be spared. The +trade went off to the satisfaction of both sides; the Indians obtained +the trinkets so dear to their vanity, and we lightened our load for the +numerous portages that lay between us and the Great Slave Lake. There +was some question as to what it was best to do with Saltatha; whether to +leave him here with his friends, or to let him take his chance of the +canoe journey to the fort, where medicine could possibly be obtained; at +his own request we decided on the latter course, and during the first +few days his health seemed to improve. + +The route that we were now to take was the same that Back and Anderson +had both chosen, following the Lockhart's River down-stream through the +immense lakes that lie in its course, gradually bending to the +south-west, and avoiding the impassable obstructions in the lower part +of the river by portaging through a chain of lakes, the last of which is +only three miles distant from the north-east end of the Great Slave +Lake. The boat was to meet us on August 1st, and as it was already +several days past that date we determined to travel our best, although +there was a chance of getting windbound in any of the big lakes. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII + + +Late in the afternoon, with a great improvement in the weather, our +canoe was afloat on Aylmer Lake (known to the Indians as the Lake of the +Big Cliffs), over which she had been dragged on a dog-sleigh five weeks +before. The following evening we passed into the short stretch of river +that leaves its east end, and camped late on the south shore of Clinton +Golden Lake, or, as the Yellow Knives call it, the Lake where the +Caribou swim among the Ice. The vast body of water opened out before us +into apparently a perfect circle, and now for the first time we were in +doubt as to our course, for there was nothing to indicate the point at +which the river leaves the far end of the lake; the east shore was +invisible from the slight hill behind our camp, although it was a clear +bright morning. We had two maps with us, one, the latest issued under +the Dominion Government's directions, and the other, an old 1834 map of +Arrowsmith's which we had discovered at the fort; they offered very +divergent opinions as to the general lay of Lockhart's River, and it +says little for later geographical research that the older map should +have been by far the more accurate of the two. + +We put out at three o'clock in the morning to take advantage of calm +weather to make the crossing of the lake, and after paddling about eight +miles went ashore on an island to cook breakfast and reconnoitre. From +here we could see the faint outline of land to the east, and made out +that what had appeared a circle consisted in reality of three enormous +bays, one heading east, one south-east, and the third south-west. Which +was the right one to take? An appeal to Saltatha and Noel, who were +supposed to have local knowledge, produced no results; Noel said he +thought the east bay was the right one, while Saltatha, pointing +south-west, said perhaps that was the correct course to follow. It ended +in our taking the middle bay, and, for the benefit of the next party +that crosses this lake, I may state that there is a peculiar conical +butte lying roughly twenty miles south-east from this island; it is just +visible above the horizon, and is a capital leading mark to bring a +canoe into a long narrow arm of the lake, which afterwards broadens +again into a huge round sheet of water, and here, by keeping close to +the east shore for five miles, the entrance to the river will be found. +It was in great uncertainty that we headed our frail vessel across the +broad traverse with a blanket set in front of a light fair wind; at noon +we again put ashore on an island, and, killing a caribou, made a long +halt for dinner. We climbed to the highest point of land but could make +nothing out of our survey, and continued coasting along the island till +we reached its south end, and then found ourselves in the channel I have +mentioned. No current was noticeable, and we pushed on through the +winding waterway, in fear that it might be a _cul de sac_ and we should +have to turn back and try our luck in some other direction. On landing, +however, we saw a sheet of water ahead of us, so broad that the far +shore was below the horizon, and, on passing out of the channel we had +been following, pitched camp on the east side of the lake, still +uncertain as to where the river lay. Very early in the morning we were +under way again, and followed the land to make sure that we did not pass +the opening of the river, if indeed we were anywhere near it. About six +o'clock there came a shout from the bowsman, that he saw a pole planted +among the rocks ashore, and the canoe at once began to feel the +influence of a slight current. Rounding a low point, a reach of strong +running water lay before us, and we landed to see what was the meaning +of the pole. A broken piece of _babiche_ hanging from it told the old +story of a rifled _cache_, another evidence of the wolverine's +handiwork. + +Among the Indians who had come to the fort during the winter to trade +fur was a hunter generally known by the name of Pierre the Fool, though +it seems hard to understand how one of the most intelligent Indians in +the country of the Great Slave Lake had earned this _soubriquet_. +Pierre had been much interested in our expedition. Every summer he +pitched his lodge where the river leaves the lake in which the caribou +swim among the ice, to make dried meat to sell at the fort; his hunt +this year had been successful, and, when he broke up his camp, he had +faithfully kept his promise to leave us a _cache_ of pounded meat and +grease, but the wolverines had reaped the benefit. Just below the camp +we saw plain evidence of the slaughter he had made among the swimming +caribou; what we took at first for a bunch of remarkably big willow +sticks proved to be the horns of fifty or sixty bucks, lying in shallow +water at the edge of the stream; and enough meat to keep an Indian +family for a year, if properly cured, was rotting in the sun. + +After a mile of strong running stream the river falls into another lake, +and immediately makes a sharp bend to the south-west, and, during the +rest of the descent, we travelled in that direction with little +variation till we reached the Great Slave Lake. Saltatha now began to +recognise the country, and there was no more doubt about the way; but +had we been left to our own judgment, we should have certainly gone +wrong in this first lake, as there is a promising bay heading in to the +south. None of the maps show this bend in the stream at all correctly, +nor do they take any notice of the next lake, the Indians' Ptarmigan +Lake, a large sheet of water fully twenty miles in length, which Pierre +the Fool afterwards told us lies within a short portage of the west bay +of Clinton Golden Lake. + +We now fell in again with the big herds of caribou. For the last few +weeks we had only seen enough to provide us with meat, but here they +were in their thousands, and I am sorry to say that our crew did far too +much killing, during the short spell of bad weather which forced us to +camp on Ptarmigan Lake. The excuse was that the hides were now at their +best for coats and robes; but even so, far more were killed than could +be used for this purpose. + +We made rather a risky passage down the lake in front of a strong wind +and heavy sea, and at the west end found an ugly rapid six hundred yards +in length: the cargo was portaged and the canoe run light in safety; +and, after crossing a short lake, another rapid was negotiated in the +same manner. In this second portage stood a solitary pine-tree, round +which we all crowded as in welcome of an old friend after our long +journey in a woodless country. Just below there was an impassable rapid, +the only real impediment to navigation from the head of Mackay Lake to +the foot of Artillery Lake, a distance of four hundred miles. Below the +portage we ran five or six miles down a steady swift current, +occasionally widening out into a small lake, with caribou continually +swimming across the river ahead of the canoe, and late at night camped +on the edge of a huge lake with a clear horizon to the west. This +proved to be Artillery Lake, and at four o'clock next morning we were +running down the south shore, in front of a gale of wind with our +smallest blanket set for a sail. The day was much colder, with a few +flakes of snow flying, and everybody was pleased to put ashore in a +clump of pine-trees at dinner-time; the wind moderated towards evening, +and, crossing to the north shore, we camped once again in the strong +woods. The timber line is much more clearly defined here than on the +other routes by which I approached the Barren Ground; the outlying +clumps of pines extend to a very short distance, and their growth ceases +entirely within seventy miles of the Great Slave Lake. If it should ever +again prove necessary to reach the Arctic Sea by way of the Great Fish +River, Artillery Lake would, in my opinion, be by far the best place at +which to build light boats for the voyage; the timber is quite large +enough, and only one portage has to be made to reach the Aylmer Lake +divide. + +The next morning we reached the end of Artillery Lake, which we reckoned +roughly at forty-five miles in length, and passed into a narrow channel +with hardly any current. Towards midday a couple of small canoes +appeared ahead of us, and the usual formalities of saluting ensued. When +they came alongside the occupants were asked for the news, and they +informed us that the burnt Indian was drowned, that the caribou had +been passing more thickly than ever known before, and that the fort boat +had not yet arrived at the appointed meeting-place. The burnt Indian +seems to have been badly out of luck. He had rolled into his camp-fire +during a fit, and was found with his feet burnt off; after being +doctored by the missionary for many months, and cured as far as it was +possible to cure such a case, the cripple had left the fort with some of +his relations to get back among the caribou, but on the second day out +was drowned by capsizing his canoe. We could not account for the +non-arrival of the boat, as we ourselves were already a fortnight later +than the day agreed upon for meeting. + +Round the next bend of the stream were six lodges, and the first +greeting we received was from old Syene, the Medicine Man. There was no +doubt that the caribou had been passing, as the children and dogs were +rolling fat, and an unmistakable air of plethora from much feasting hung +over the camp. Only four days before there had been one of those big +slaughters, which one would think could not fail in a short time to +exterminate the caribou. A large band had been seen to start from the +opposite bank, and was soon surrounded by seven hunting-canoes; the +spears were kept going as long as there was life to take, with the +result that three hundred and twenty-six carcasses were hauled ashore, +and fully two hundred of these left to rot in the shallow water. Every +lodge was full of meat and grease in various forms, and there would be a +cargo for the boat to take back to the fort. Pierre the Fool, who was +camped here, was in great form, and at once presented us with a bunch of +smoked tongues and a bladder of marrow grease. He gave us a great deal +of information about the country eastward of Clinton Golden Lake, and in +a much more intelligent manner than the usual Indian method of constant +repetition; he told us there were fewer lakes in that direction than in +any other part of the Barren Ground that he had visited, but he was +always obliged to take a small canoe with him, to cross a big stream +running in a southerly direction, three days' easy travel from Clinton +Golden Lake. Once, when he had pushed out farther than usual, he had +seen smoke in the distance, and came upon a camp that the Esquimaux from +Hudson's Bay had just left; they had been cutting wood for their sleighs +in a clump of well-grown pines, and Pierre, who shares the dread which +every Yellow Knife has of the Coast tribes, had been afraid to follow +them. From the fact of his having seen the pine-trees, which are said +not to extend far from the salt water of Hudson's Bay, he must have been +within a short distance of the coast. + +On the day after our arrival in the encampment a general movement was +made; the lodges were thrown down, and the women and dogs received heavy +loads to carry to the Great Slave Lake. Lockhart's River on leaving +Artillery Lake becomes a wild torrent, falling several hundred feet in +twenty miles, and is quite useless for navigation, so we had to make use +of a chain of lakes, eight in number, lying to the south of the stream. +This is by far the prettiest part of the country that I saw in the +North, and it was looking its best under the bright sunshine that +continued till we reached the fort. Scattering timber, spruce and birch, +clothed the sloping banks down to the sandy shores of the lakes; berries +of many kinds grew in profusion; the portages were short and down hill; +and caribou were walking the ridges and swimming the lakes in every +direction. A perfect northern fairyland it was, and it seemed hard to +believe that winter and want could ever penetrate here; but on the shore +of a lovely blue lake Pierre the Fool pointed out a spot where the last +horrors of death and cannibalism had been enacted within his memory. +Sometimes a column of smoke would be seen ahead, and we paddled by a +lodge where the fat sleepy children were revelling in the abundance of +grease. Late on the second day a white object on the shore attracted +general attention: "It is a wolf, a white caribou; no, a man, a man in a +white shirt,--it must be one of the boat's crew"; and so it proved to +be. The white shirt was a libel, but the clean canvas jumper quite +deserved the admiration it had received, especially in contrast with our +own rags. The boat had arrived from Fort Resolution in charge of +François Mandeville, another brother of Michel the fort interpreter. +François had been alarmed at not finding us at the meeting-place, and +had immediately dispatched four of the crew in a large canoe, with a +supply of tea, tobacco, and flour, to ascend the river in hopes of +finding us. But the relief party had come across the fresh tracks of +caribou in the first portage; it was long since they had tasted meat, so +the canoe was put down in the woods, and the "big masters," who were +supposed to be lost in the Barren Ground, were forgotten. The man we met +had come on to see some relations who were camped among the lakes, and, +as he was discovered to be possessed of tobacco, we made him share up, +and sat on the beach enjoying the first smoke for many days, and hearing +the accounts of what little events had happened during a short summer on +the Great Slave Lake. But it was getting late, and we still had the +longest portage to make. At the end of the last lake we abandoned the +canoe that had done me such good service on two long journeys, and with +loads on our backs followed the well-worn trail that the Indians have +used from time immemorial as a route to their hunting-grounds. A natural +pass with a steep descent led between the rough broken hills on each +side, and a three-mile walk brought us within sight of the waters of the +big lake. Below us, close by the edge of the bay, there were already +several lodges planted, and over a white tent floated the old red +ensign bearing in the corner the letters H. B. C. so well known +throughout the whole dominion of Canada. A shot from the last ridge +aroused the encampment, and soon a general fusillade took place; a fleet +of canoes, running with blankets set to a fair wind far across the bay, +took up the firing and headed for the shore, while every Indian within +sound of gun-shot hurried to hear the news and join in the trading which +was sure to take place on our arrival. + +Here we found everything that a man in the wilds longs for, flour, +bacon, tea, tobacco, sugar, a packet of letters from England written +many months before, and a bottle of brandy, the first "fire-water" that +had come our way for a year. Women and dogs heavily loaded with bales of +meat and bladders of grease kept dropping in from across the portage; a +dance was set on foot and kept up all night round the huge camp fires, +while the tall pine-trees looked down on a scene of feasting and revelry +such as had probably never been known on the shores of this pleasant +bay. + +Poor Saltatha, who had been very bad for the last week, crawled into our +lodge late at night, and threw himself down on a blanket in a state of +utter exhaustion. In spite of the best law in Canada, which forbids a +white man to give an Indian any intoxicating drink, under penalty of a +$200 fine, I determined to try if brandy could do him any good. +Saltatha had never tasted the strong water, but had heard much of its +wonderful qualities, and made no objection to trying the cure. I gave +him a small dose, but it had a wonderful effect; his eyes became round +and big, and once again he started the dismal chant that he had been so +fond of during our musk-ox hunt last winter. He was hopelessly drunk, +and, when he was seized with a violent fit of coughing and his head fell +on the blanket like a dead man's, I thought I had made a sad mess of my +doctoring. Early in the morning I got up to see if he was dead, and was +relieved to find him much better and keen for some more brandy, which I +refused; he had had very pleasant dreams he said, and the pain had gone +from his chest to his head. From that time he improved in health, his +strength came back rapidly, and when I left the fort a week later, he +looked as well as ever. + +Two days were spent in trading for the meat which kept coming in, and +during this time we sent out a hunting-party to kill fresh meat, which +we hoped would keep till we reached the fort if we made a good passage. +At Resolution times were very hard; few fish were being caught, and the +return of the boat was anxiously expected. Many caribou were killed, and +our ship was well loaded with fresh meat, besides over three thousand +pounds of dried meat, two hundred pounds of grease, bunches of tongues, +coils of _babiche_ and sinew, and a little fur that had been killed +during the spring. + +The Indians all left on the evening of the second day, and early the +following morning we put to sea in a flat calm. Before leaving we went +through the ceremony of cutting a lop-stick, as is the fashion of the +North, to commemorate our expedition. A conspicuous pine was chosen, a +man sent aloft to lop off the lower branches, while Mackinlay and myself +cut our names on the trunk; then everybody discharged their guns at the +tree, and the performance was ended. Often in the lonely waterways of +the Northern country one sees a lop-stick showing far ahead on the bank, +and reads a name celebrated in the annals of the Hudson's Bay Company or +in the history of Arctic exploration. These lop-sticks are easily +distinguished landmarks, well known to the _voyageurs_, and many an +appointment has been kept at Campbell's, Macdougal's, or Macfarlane's +tree. In giving directions to a stranger it is hopeless to describe the +points and bends of a monotonous river highway, but a lop-stick does the +duty of a signpost and at once settles the question of locality. + +Two hundred miles of the Great Slave Lake lay between us and the fort, +but a steady wind came from the north, and the shallow-draught York boat +ran in front of it so well that on the fourth night we camped on the +Mission Island within a couple of miles of Fort Resolution. A worse +boat for the navigation of the lake could hardly be imagined. A huge +square sail, set on a mast shipped right amidships, does good work so +long as the wind is abaft the beam; but when a head-wind springs up, too +strong to row against, it is a case of hauling ashore on the beach, as +no anchor is carried. Steep cliffs on a lee shore have to be carefully +avoided, for it is impossible to propel such a vessel to windward in a +heavy sea. On the present occasion, however, we were in great luck, and +I never remember a more pleasant voyage in a sailing-boat. A run up the +English Channel in a well-found yacht, with fair wind and sunshine, is +enjoyable enough; but there are seldom any blankets to lie about in on +deck, and there is always some stray peak or jib-halliard that wants +pulling on, besides continual threats of setting or stowing a topsail, +which prevents your settling down into a comfortable position. Here we +had nothing to worry us; the wind blew fair, and we lay in our blankets, +smoking and looking at the land, as the boat glided along the narrow +blue lanes, among islands that the foot of white man had never pressed. +Four times a day we put ashore to boil the kettle, and at night slept by +the side of a huge fire in the thick pine-woods; darkness lasted many +hours now, and prevented navigation among the countless islands and +outlying rocks. On the fourth day we crossed the Grand Traverse, and, +leaving the Ile de Pierre after nightfall, ran for Mission Island with +a strong wind blowing in from the open lake. Crossing the mouth of the +big river was rather risky work in the dark, as the sandy battures ran +far off to sea and the waves were breaking heavily in the shallow water; +the sounding-pole gave only four feet in one place, but we ran across +without touching, and at midnight camped at the back of Mission Island. + +The sun was just rising on Sunday, August the 24th, when we ran the boat +on the beach in front of Fort Resolution, and a glance at the faces that +gathered round told us that living had been none too good, and that a +man is sometimes better off among the caribou than depending upon an +uncertain fishery for a livelihood. With all thanks to priest and +parson, Indian and half-breed, for the kind welcome they gave us, I +noticed many an eye glancing furtively at our rich cargo from the land +of plenty; and the rejoicings that day may be attributed equally to joy +at our safe arrival and to the influence of a feast of fresh meat after +many weeks of short allowance. + +I could afford to make only a short stay at Resolution, as the season +was far advanced, and I had to start at once to avoid the chance of +being caught by the winter during my long journey. Of the three routes +that might enable me to do this I should have preferred the ascent of +the Liard River, which falls into the Mackenzie at Fort Simpson. From +its head-waters at Dease Lake, in the once celebrated mining district +of Cassiar, the Pacific Coast is reached at Fort Wrangel in Southern +Alaska without difficulty; but the Liard itself is full of terrors, even +for the hardy _voyageurs_ of the North, and although Mr. Camsell offered +every inducement to men to accompany me he was unable to get together a +crew. Formerly the Company had an establishment at Fort Halket on the +west branch of the Liard, but the difficulties of conveying supplies, +and the frequent occurrence of starvation, made it a hard post to +maintain; finally a boat's crew were drowned by a capsize in one of the +worst rapids, and the fort was abandoned. The Athabasca I had seen, and +not caring to go over old ground I decided on ascending the Peace River +to its head-waters in the neighbourhood of Macleod's Lake on the west +side of the Rocky Mountains, and, crossing the small divide, to run down +the Fraser River to Quesnelle a small town on the southern edge of the +Caribou Gold Fields of Northern British Columbia. + +The _Wrigley_ had made her last up-stream voyage for the year, and was +daily expected from Fort Smith. I was thus obliged to depend on canoe +travelling to reach Chipeweyan on the Athabasca Lake, some three hundred +miles distant; if we had arrived at the fort ten days earlier I could +have saved much valuable time by making this part of my journey by +steamer. + +Taking advantage of frequent experience that it is better to leave a +fort overnight, even if camp be made within a couple of miles, than to +trust to an early start in the morning, it was after sundown on the 26th +when I said good-bye to Resolution, not without a feeling of regret, and +the hope of seeing at some future time the place where I had been so +well treated. There are few spots in the world in which one can live for +a year without making some friends, and when I left this lonely +trading-post there were many faces on the beach that I should like to +see again. Saltatha was the last man to shake hands with me as I stepped +into the canoe; he tried to extract a promise from me to come back the +next summer for another expedition in the Barren Ground, and was much +disappointed when I told him that I certainly could not return for two +years, and perhaps not even then. No need to feel pity for the people +left behind, although I was going to civilization and all the good +things that this word comprises. A man who has spent much time under the +influence of the charm which the North exercises over everybody wants +nothing better than to be allowed to finish his life in the peace and +quietness which reign by the shores of the Great Slave Lake. Ask the +priest, when you meet him struggling against a head-wind and driving +snow on his way to some Indian encampment, whether he ever sighs for his +sunny France. "No," he will tell you; "here I have everything I want and +nothing to distract my thoughts; I enjoy perfect health, and I feel no +desire to go back to the worries of the great world." So it is with the +fur-trader; the mysterious charm has a firm hold on him, and if he is in +charge of a post where provisions are fairly plentiful and the Indians +not troublesome he has a happy life indeed. I was sorry to have missed +seeing the Mackenzie River, La Grande Rivière en Bas, as they call it at +Fort Resolution, but to do this meant spending another winter and +another summer in the country, and I could not afford the time. + +[Illustration: Starting Up the Peace River] + +The first evening out from the fort we camped near the mouth of the +Slave River, on the same spot where I had spent a night with King +Beaulieu and his family more than a year before. My crew now consisted +of Murdo Mackay and three half-breeds, while Mackinlay, who had proved +such a trusty companion during our summer journey, was to accompany me +till we met the steamer. This happened the next morning, and after an +hour of hurried questions and answers, and farewells to men who seemed +more like old friends than comparative strangers whom I had met once the +year before, the _Wrigley_ put her head down-stream, and we continued +our voyage through the wilderness of pines, cotton-wood, and willow. + +Pierre Beaulieu was captain and guide of the canoe, and a right good +traveller he proved to be; no lying snug in your blankets in the early +morning, but breakfast in black darkness, and the paddles or +tracking-line in full swing at the first sign of the coming day. +Sometimes he would put ashore and start us off through the woods, with +canoe and cargo on our backs, to drop on the river again at the end of +the portage, and find that we had saved many miles of laborious +up-stream work by cutting across a bend of the river. The tracking till +we reached Fort Smith was bad, as the banks were usually soft muddy +sand, while the land-slips had sent so many trees into the river that it +was often easier to paddle against the stream than to pass the line +round the obstruction. Ducks and geese were plentiful enough, but +Mackinlay had been liberal in the matter of provisions for our voyage, +so we only took the most tempting shots, but if it had been necessary we +could have made our own living without difficulty. Early on the sixth +day we came in sight of Fort Smith, and found Mr. Flett in charge, with +the house much improved and made fairly comfortable in readiness for the +winter; but there was no time to be spared, and the next day saw us +driving across the portage in a waggon to take a fresh crew to +Chipeweyan. No canoe was available, but José Beaulieu, another of King's +numerous brothers, lent us a skiff, which answered the purpose well +enough. Mr. Flett took the opportunity of going up to headquarters, and +enlivened the journey with many stories of over forty years' experience +in the North. Among the new crew was a deaf and dumb half-breed, a +capital worker and always good-tempered, in spite of the cold drenching +rain that continued till we reached Chipeweyan; some of his +conversations by signs were very amusing, and one could almost wish that +all these boatmen were deaf and dumb to avoid the constant chatter which +they keep up round the camp-fire when they know that you understand +them. One day we made a splendid run in front of a gale of north wind, +but nearly came to grief through our steersman's recklessness in trying +to force the boat over a rapid under canvas; she took a sheer in the +swirl of an eddy, and the sail jibbed with such violence that we were +within an inch of a capsize. Provisions ran short on the last day, but +just as we were talking of camping early and going after duck for supper +a little black bear turned up on the bank; I was lucky enough to kill +it, and we enjoyed a royal feast of fat bear's meat instead of a night's +starvation. On the fourth day we entered the Athabasca Lake, and forced +our way to the fort against a strong head-wind; it was another Sunday +arrival, and we did not show to advantage in comparison with the bright +dresses and gaudy belts and moccasins of the dwellers at the chief post +of the Athabasca district. A little snow was whitening the ground, the +goose-hunt was at its height, and the array of nets showed plainly +enough that it was time to make preparation for the Fall fishing. Dr. +Mackay was away inspecting Fort Vermillion on the Lower Peace River, +and would not be back for several days. An unexpected difficulty now +turned up; there was no crew forthcoming for the next part of my +journey, and everybody advised me to take the ordinary route by the +Athabasca River. However, two of my Fort Smith crew, José and Dummy, +finally agreed to go to Vermillion, although neither of them had been +there before, and Murdo, who was very anxious to accompany me across the +mountains, obtained leave to come with me till we should meet Dr. Mackay +on Peace River; if he could get extended leave from the head officer of +the District he was to come right through. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV + + +By this time it was well on in September, and eight hundred miles had to +be travelled to reach the Rocky Mountains and when these were sighted +there were still two hundred miles to MacLeod's Lake, the farthest point +I could reasonably hope to reach by open water. The first night we +camped in the Quatre Fourches, the channel connecting the lake with the +main stream of Peace River. The banks were thickly peopled with Indians +and half-breeds, drying whitefish which were being taken in marvellous +numbers; white and grey wavies and ducks of many kinds were flying +overhead in large flocks, and rising in front of the canoe at every bend +of the stream; plovers and other wading birds were screaming over the +marshes, and I noticed a good many snipe; but who would fire a charge of +ammunition at such a wretched little mouthful when geese were plentiful? +Without going out of our way to hunt, we could have loaded the canoe +with wild-fowl, but of course only killed as many as we required for +food. + +At the end of the Quatre Fourches we passed into the main stream of +Peace River, and, with a sharp westward turn, commenced our ascent of +the easiest of all the Northern waterways. From its junction with the +Slave River to the first range of the Rocky Mountains, with only the +obstruction of the shute some forty miles below Fort Vermillion, its +course is navigable throughout for a light-draught steamer, and, but for +this shute, would be an invaluable route for supplying the Hudson's Bay +Company's upper river-posts. + +The lower reaches of the river present exactly the same appearance as +the country we had passed through in ascending the Slave River; a broad +stream with low sandy banks, densely timbered, with often a huge +sand-bar, the resting-place of many geese, stretching far out into the +stream. We were rather handicapped by not knowing the river and missing +the best tracking; an old hand would have known all the correct +crossings to take advantage of an easy bank to track from, or an eddy to +paddle in. Nor could we well risk the short cuts, as a promising channel +would often end in dry sand instead of running through into the +river, or turn out to be the mouth of a tributary stream. After our +usual halt for dinner on the third day we saw a canoe coming down +stream, and, crossing over, found that it was Dr. Mackay on his way from +Vermillion; both canoes put ashore and we had the usual cup of tea and +an hour's yarn together. The Doctor was anxious to get back to +Chipeweyan, to begin his Fall fishing and make every possible +preparation for keeping up the food-supply for the winter; I had no time +to spare either, and darkness must have found us camping many miles +apart. These stray meetings in the wilderness are always a pleasant +recollection, and on first returning to civilization one is surprised at +the manner in which people pass each other with a nod, till one realises +the fact that there are too many people about for a more lengthy salute. +Murdo obtained leave to come with me across the mountains, subject to +the condition that he was to return in the spring if he received orders +to that effect from headquarters at Winnipeg. + +The same evening we hauled up an insignificant rapid, caused by a +contraction in the channel; a limestone formation, with many fossils, +shows up here for a few miles of the river's course, and is noticeable +again at the shutes and in several spots along the river. We broke the +canoe rather badly in mounting this rapid, and during the rest of our +journey to Vermillion had to bale out frequently. Day after day we +followed the winding course of the river, which bends and doubles on +itself through the flat country, and at last made out a landmark in the +Caribou Mountains, lying to the north and stretching in that direction +as far as we could see: an inviting range of hills, clear of timber on +the slope, and their round summits sparsely dotted with pines; a +favourite hunting-ground for the Indians of Vermillion, but none of the +white men of whom I made inquiry seemed to have any knowledge of the +extent or nature of this solitary range, rising so conspicuously from +the dead level of muskeg and pine forest. + +Just as we were starting on the tenth morning a light puff of west wind +brought us the first sound of a distant roar that we knew must be caused +by the shute, and a couple of hours' tracking brought us to a small +Company's trading-post, known as Little Red River, from a stream bearing +that name which here joins the Peace River from the south. The +establishment was deserted, although it was to be kept open during the +winter; so we passed on and soon came in sight of a low white wall of +water extending across the whole width of the river. Dr. Mackay had told +me to make the portage close under the fall on the south side, or we +should have been at a loss to find the only place where it is possible +to take the canoe out of the water. In a strong running current, with +the spray falling over her bow, we put alongside a ledge of rock six +feet above us, and two men, standing on a submerged ledge, not without +difficulty passed everything up to the others above; the distance to +carry was very short, and we were soon afloat again above the fall. The +shute is not more than eight feet in height, but is of course a complete +barrier to navigation. I think the scene from the south bank is one of +the most beautiful in the whole course of the loveliest of rivers. It +was a bright afternoon when we made the portage, and the white broken +water of the cascade showed in strong contrast to the broad blue +stretches above and below; several rocky, pine-covered islands stand on +the brink of the overfall, as if to give a chance to any unlucky +traveller who may approach too near the danger; fully three-quarters of +a mile away on the far side stands the gloomy forest of black pines, +relieved by a glimpse of the open side-hills of the Caribou Mountains. +Another small portage was necessary a mile or two above; but from the +spot where we camped that night we never had to lift canoe or skiff out +of the water till we reached the foot-hills of the Rocky Mountains. + +The next day we passed a couple of Cree lodges, and finding moose-meat +plentiful made the most of our opportunity, as a gale of wind sprang up +right ahead and prevented travel. + +It was not till sundown on the eleventh day from Chipeweyan that we +completed our journey of two hundred and eighty miles, and put ashore at +the Company's trading-post at Fort Vermillion. Here the appearance of +the country suddenly changes; stretches of open prairie dotted with +small poplars take the place of the pine-woods, and the sand-bars in the +river begin to give way to gravel, and the banks rise higher and higher +as one journeys up-stream. We reached Vermillion late in September, in +the full glory of the autumn; the sharp morning frosts had coloured the +poplar leaves with the brightest golden tints, and the blue haze of an +Indian summer hung over prairie and wood. Away on the Great Slave Lake a +half-breed had told me of the beauties of Vermillion as a farming +country, and had explained that all the good things of the world grew +there freely, so that I was prepared for the sight of wheat and barley +fields, which had this year produced a more abundant harvest than usual; +potatoes and other vegetables were growing luxuriously, cattle and +horses were fattening on the rich prairie grass, and it seemed that +there was little to be gained by leaving such a fertile spot in the face +of the winter that would soon be upon us. + +Vermillion is also an important fur-post, and probably to-day the best +in the North for beaver and marten; but there are several free-traders +on the Peace River, and the Company have to carry on their business with +the extra difficulty of competition, which always raises the price of +fur. It is all very well to say that no Company should have the monopoly +of trading over so vast a territory, but after all the Indians are +little benefited by the appearance of the free-traders. The Hudson's Bay +Company have always treated the Indians fairly and leniently, taking the +greatest care only to import articles absolutely necessary to the +welfare of the natives. Guns, ammunition, blankets, capotes, +dress-stuff for the women, and tea and tobacco, have always been the +principal contents of the store; and these are sold at absurdly low +prices, when the cost of the long and risky transport is considered. The +Indians' love of gaudy colours was always indulged, but the goods were +of the best material. Then came the free-trader with a stock of bright +cheap clothing, a variety of dazzling tinsel, or perhaps a keg of +molasses, which attracted the eye and palate of the wily hunter, so that +he would give up his rich furs for the worthless trash, only to find +himself short of all the necessaries for maintaining life in the woods +when the snow began to fall again. No amount of experience enables him +to resist the temptation; but the long enduring Hudson's Bay Company +always listens to his tale of woe and helps him out of his difficulties, +accepting his promise, ever readily given and as readily broken, to hand +in his fur in the following spring to the officer in charge of the post. +Whenever the often-told story of a band of Indians caught by the horrors +of starvation reaches the fort, the Company sends to the rescue, and +every winter saves many a man from death, while the free-trader, having +taken as much fur as he can out of the country during a short summer's +trip, is living at ease on the confines of civilization. The days are +long gone by when a prime silver fox could be bought for a cotton +pocket-handkerchief, but still the rumours brought from this little +known Northern country attract the venturesome trader, usually to his +own loss, and always to the upsetting of the Company's wise system of +dealing with the Indians. + +Vermillion has a comparatively large population, outside the numerous +_employés_ of the country. Both the Protestant and Roman Catholic +churches have missions here, and several half-breeds have taken up an +irregular method of stock-raising and small farming to help out the +uncertain living afforded by fur-trapping. Mr. Lawrence, a practical +hard-working farmer from Eastern Canada, has been successful with a farm +three miles above the fort; but for many years to come there is not the +slightest reason for that emigration of farmers to Peace River which +wild enthusiasts clamour for. So much talk about this scheme has lately +appeared in the Canadian newspapers, mostly, no doubt, as one of the +political cries which find such favour with the statesmen of Ottawa, +that I cannot allow this opportunity to pass without a word of warning +to any intending settler. I made careful inquiries and observations +along the whole length of Peace River, and I do not for a moment deny +that in some parts of its course crops of wheat and barley may be raised +in favourable seasons, as the well-managed farms of Mr. Lawrence, at +Vermillion, and Mr. Brick, higher up at Smoky River, fully attest; but +these farms, and all the spots in which grain ripens, are in close +proximity to the bed of the river, and here the amount of arable land +is limited. Climb the steep banks and take a glance over the millions of +fertile acres which the philanthropic politician wishes to see +cultivated; notice the frost on a summer's morning, and make the +attempt, as has often been made already, to raise a crop on this +elevated plateau. In ten years' time this may be a cattle-country, +although the hay-swamps are insufficient to ensure enough feed for the +long winter; but let us have an end of this talk of sending poor +settlers to starve in a land unable to supply food to the Indian, who is +accustomed to a life of continual struggle with a relentless nature. + +Mr. Wilson entertained me royally at the fort, but here again was the +same trouble that I had found at Chipeweyan; no crew was procurable, and +there was a journey of three hundred and fifty miles to Dunvegan before +I had any chance of getting men. José and Dummy, who had both worked +right well up to now, considered they were far enough away from their +beloved Fort Smith; and José had an extra attraction in Dummy's sister, +who was waiting his return to make him happy for ever, but was not very +reliable in case of a more prepossessing admirer coming to the fore. +José made a touching speech at parting: "God made the mountains, the +lakes, and the big rivers," he said. "What is better than drifting down +Peace River singing hymns? You are going up-stream to cross the big +mountains back to your own country; I am going down-stream to marry +Dummy's sister; I shall think of you many times." Dummy smiled and +nodded affectionately, and the pair shot out into the river with my +canoe, leaving me on the bank with only Murdo for my crew and no means +of conveyance. + +Now if I could have got a small dug-out wooden canoe, and pottered away +up-stream with Murdo, tracking in turns, we should have got on very +well; but unfortunately there was nothing but a large and somewhat +clumsy skiff available, and this we finally had to take. The evening +before we were to start I received a visit from a man whom I shall +allude to as John. Long before in merry England he had seen better +times, and was evidently intended by nature for a sedentary life, or any +other kind of life than the physical activity necessary to accomplish +quickly and successfully a boating-trip up a swift-running river; in +reality he was powerful enough, and but for his extraordinary laziness +might have earned a good living anywhere. John told me he wished to +leave Peace River and cross the mountains to Quesnelle, and would be +glad to render me every assistance in his power if I would let him take +advantage of this chance to get out of the country. In spite of the +warnings of Mr. Wilson and everybody else who knew John's character, I +went on the theory that when one is shorthanded any kind of a man is +better than no man, but was speedily disabused of this idea after +leaving the fort. He turned sulky when he found that I would stand no +shirking, and was painfully slow on the tracking-line, awkward in +letting go or tying a knot, and, although he had been five years at +boating, absolutely without knowledge of the duties of bowsman or +steersman. In addition to this he was just as useless in camp, and +conceived a violent hatred to Murdo, who fully reciprocated the feeling. +Once, on being heartily cursed while he was tracking, John threatened to +desert and go back to Vermillion, but when we ran the skiff ashore and +offered to help him build a raft and to give him a week's rations, he +hastily withdrew his proposition. I hoped to be able to leave him at +some fort _en route_, but I found John was too well known, and no one +would accept the horrible responsibility of keeping him for a winter on +any terms. A man like this takes all the pleasure out of a journey when +good temper is the almost invariable rule, and everybody takes his share +of the tracking and wading, the paddling and poling, as part of the +ordinary day's work. + +At this time of year, when the water is at its lowest, tracking is a +comparatively easy matter, and taking half-hour spells at a sharp walk +we made good day's journeys, although we should have done much better +with a canoe. It was a hard time for moccasins, but we could get them at +every fort we passed; sometimes we found an Indian encampment on the +bank, and a small present of tea and tobacco to the women ensured neat +patches over the gaping holes in the moose-skin soles. + +The fourth day out from Vermillion we reached the mouth of Battle River +coming in from the north, and found a small trading-post with a French +half-breed in charge. He told us that the Indians had been killing a +great many moose, and that he had already bought the dried meat of +sixteen as a start towards his winter stock of provisions; black bear +too were numerous on Battle River, and there were reports of grizzly +having been seen. This would probably be one of the best points from +which to enter the unknown country between Peace River and the Great +Slave Lake. + +I never remember to have seen in any part of Canada such a fine autumn +as we enjoyed between Vermillion and the Rockies; there was hardly a +day's rain the whole time, and, although a sharp white frost usually +made a cold camp, the days were bright and at times almost too hot for +tracking. Often we saw the fresh tracks of moose and bear, but never +happened to see an animal of any kind, and as we could afford no time +for hunting did not fire a single shot at big game; geese and ducks we +could have killed every day if there had been any necessity for doing +so. + +[Illustration: Junction of the Peace and Smoky Rivers] + +Fifteen days of continuous travel from Vermillion took us to the +junction of Smoky River, the principal tributary of the Peace, flowing +towards the south-west not far from some of the head-waters of the +Athabasca. This junction is rather an important point, as it is close to +the end of the waggon-road to the Lesser Slave Lake, lying seventy-five +miles to the south. Here the trading-goods brought overland are loaded +on to scows and boats, to be sent down-stream to Vermillion and +up-stream to Dunvegan, St. John's, and Hudson's Hope. A little above are +Mr. Brick's mission and the farm that I have already spoken of, besides +a settlement of half-breeds, more hunters than farmers, well known as +the laziest and most worthless gang on the whole length of Peace River. +Many efforts have been made to get these people to pay more attention to +their potato-patches as the game is getting killed out, but all in vain; +sometimes they will fence in a piece of ground and plant seed, but will +take no further trouble with the crop, and generally use their +fence-rails for firewood during the next winter. Luckily whitefish are +very plentiful in the Lesser Slave Lake within two days' journey, or +starvation would certainly play havoc at Smoky River. + +I enjoyed a long talk with Mr. Brick in his pleasant home in the wilds, +where we spent a night; he kindly furnished me with supplies that I was +short of, and three days afterwards we arrived at Dunvegan, another +celebrated fur-post, situated on the north bank of the river at the +foot of a high bluff known as the Cap. Here again was abundant evidence +of the fertility of the soil in the crops harvested by the Company and +the missionaries. Across the river, twenty miles away, is the Company's +cattle-_ranche_, where the oxen used on the waggon-road are raised and a +fair amount of beef is annually killed. Some thoroughbred stock has been +imported and should prove successful, but of course there is no paying +market for a large amount of cattle, although there are plenty of hungry +people who would be glad of a chance to eat beef. + +At Dunvegan, besides Mr. Round who was in charge of the fort, I met Mr. +Ewen Macdonald, the chief of Peace River District, with headquarters at +Lesser Slave Lake. He had just finished his inspection of the upper +river-posts, and had left Hudson's Hope, the last establishment east of +the mountains, a few days previously; he reported that the snow was +already low down on the foot-hills, and advised me strongly to give up +my attempt to cross the Rockies so late in the autumn. He told me, +however, that a free-trader was expected in from the west side of the +mountains, and if I was lucky enough to meet him I should probably be +able to secure the service of some of his crew who would be returning to +Quesnelle. + +Above Dunvegan the valley of the river contracts, the banks rise for +several hundred feet in height, and the strength of the current +increases. The hundred and twenty miles to St. John's took us seven days +and a half to travel, and in many places we had to keep two men on the +line to stem the strong water; the tracking too was bad, as the banks +had fallen in several spots, and John, who had been up and down the +river three times before, proved a very poor pilot. The weather was +colder, and a sheet of ice formed over the back waters and close to the +bank out of the current. + +At St. John's we found Mr. Gunn busy with a band of Indians who were +taking their winter supplies, and I had a chance of hearing their +accounts of the wilderness to the north in the direction of the Liard +River; they described it as a muskeg country abounding in game and fur, +but a hard district to reach, as the streams are too rapid for canoes +and the swamps too soft for horses to cross. They occasionally fall in +with a small band of buffalo, but have never seen them in large numbers. +Sometimes by ascending Half-way River, a stream adjoining Peace River +twenty-five miles above St. John's, they meet the Indians from Fort +Nelson on the south branch of the Liard. + +We had now passed out of the Cree-speaking belt and the language became +that of the Beaver Indians, a far inferior language to Cree, resembling +in sound and in many of the words some of the dialects of the Chipeweyan +tongue. Mr. Gunn had learned to speak Beaver fluently, and was now +going up to Hudson's Hope to interpret; he was a great help to us both +as pilot and on the line, and with two men always tracking we took +little notice of the strong stream which we found throughout the fifty +miles to the next fort. + +Snow was falling heavily when we left St. John's, and it looked as if +the winter had set in, but next day the ground was bare again, and a +west wind from across the mountains blew warm as a summer's breeze. We +camped for a night at the mouth of Half-way River, heading towards the +north through a wide open bay which seems to invite exploration. A +considerable quantity of gold dust has been taken out of some of the +gravel-bars along this part of Peace River, and Half-way River is +supposed to be a paradise for the miner and hunter, but I could not hear +of any white man having ever penetrated far up this valley. On the +afternoon of Sunday, October 26th, on rounding a bend in the river, we +caught our first glimpse of the snowy peaks of the Rocky Mountains that +I had travelled so far to reach; but the sublime is often mixed with the +ludicrous, and when John in his admiration of the scenery slipped off a +narrow ledge of shale along which he was tracking and fell with an oath +into the river, the snowy peaks were forgotten in the joy that always +greets other people's misfortunes in this sort of travelling. + +A short distance below Hudson's Hope we passed a remarkable group of +high basaltic islands, differing entirely from anything in the +neighbourhood, and affording a strong contrast to the low gravelly +islands so numerous in the course of this river. In the afternoon of the +27th we unloaded the skiff and hauled her up on the beach in front of +the fort, to lie there till anybody might want to run her down-stream +the following spring. + +Hudson's Hope is a small unpretentious establishment, standing on the +south side of Peace River, a mile below the wild cañon by which this +great stream forces its way through the most easterly range of the Rocky +Mountains. The Indians were all encamped in their moose-skin lodges on +the flat close to the fort waiting for the trade to begin, and I was +surprised to hear how few representatives of the once numerous tribe of +Beavers are left. It is the same at St. John's and Dunvegan, and the +total Indian population of the upper Peace River cannot exceed three +hundred, an immense falling off since Sir Alexander Mackenzie first +crossed the mountains by this route. The biggest lodge was occupied by +Baptiste Testerwich, a half-breed Iroquois, descended from the Iroquois +crew left here many years ago by Sir George Simpson, formerly Governor +of the Hudson's Bay Company. Baptiste had a house at Moberley's Lake +twelve miles to the south, and is well known as the most successful and +most enduring of moose-hunters. A remarkable point about the man is his +hardiness and indifference to cold; in the dead of winter he wears no +socks in his moccasins, which to any other man would mean a certainty of +frozen feet, and the Indians say that his feet are so hot that the snow +melts in his tracks in the coldest weather. + +Once again arose the trouble about guides to take us to Macleod's Lake. +John had been there before, but I had already seen too much of his +piloting to trust myself in his hands, and was quite sure that he would +lose his way if there was the least possibility of doing so. The +free-trader from across the mountains had not yet arrived, and as it was +getting late in the year there was a chance of his being frozen in +before he reached Hudson's Hope. Besides the Peace River route there is +the Pine River Pass, farther to the southward, heading almost directly +to Macleod's Lake. A party of surveyors once came through this pass +several years ago, and the Indians use it habitually in the summer; but +none of the Beavers would volunteer to guide us through at this time of +the year, as a heavy snowfall might be expected immediately. + +I decided to wait a few days for the trader, and we had a very festive +time at Hudson's Hope; a ball was given every night, and the +moose-dance, rabbit-dance, and duck-dance were kept up till the small +hours. A ball is not an expensive entertainment at an out-of-the-way +trading-post; no invitations are necessary, but a scrape of the fiddle +at the door of the master's house fills the ball-room in a few minutes. +If the master is in a liberal state of mind, a cup of tea is provided +for his guests, but in any case the river is close, and if anyone is +thirsty there is plenty of water. On the third night the ceremonies were +interrupted by the sound of a gunshot on the opposite bank, and an +Indian came across with the news that the trader had arrived at the west +end of the cañon with two small scows, and that some of his crew were +going back to Quesnelle. + +Baptiste lent me a horse on the following day, and I rode over to +interview the new arrivals. A fair trail, twelve miles in length on the +north side of the river, leads to the navigable water above the cañon, +while the stream runs a circuitous course of probably thirty miles. I +could get little information as to the nature of this cañon; even the +Indians seem to avoid it, and, though accounts of it have been written, +nobody appears to have thoroughly explored this exceptionally rough +piece of country. I went down a few miles from the west end, but found +the bluffs so steep that I could seldom get a view of the water, and +could form no idea of the character of the rapids and waterfalls. There +is some quiet place in the middle of the cañon where the Indians cross +on the ice, but beyond this they could tell me little about it. + +Right in the centre of the gap by which the trail crosses stands the +Bull's Head, a solitary mountain well known to travellers coming from +the west, as it can be seen many miles away, and in full view to the +south is a huge flat-topped mountain, covered with perpetual snow and +fit to rank with any of the giants of the main range. The trail reaches +a considerable elevation above the river level, and from the summit the +upper waters of the Peace are seen winding away to the west, through a +broad valley flanked by hills of ever increasing height, as far as the +eye can reach. Close to the river the slopes are open or thinly timbered +with pine and poplar, but the big mountains are clothed nearly to their +summits with the dense, almost impassable, forest growth which is such a +common feature in the scenery as the Pacific Coast is approached. + +At the far end of the portage, on the bank of the river, stand a rough +shanty and trading-store. Here I made the acquaintance of Twelvefoot +Davis, who acquired this name, not from any peculiarity of stature, but +from a small though valuable mining claim of which he had been the lucky +possessor in the early days of British Columbia. A typical man of his +class is Davis, and his story is that of many a man who has spent his +life just in advance of civilization. Born in the Eastern States of +America, a 'Forty-niner in California, and a pioneer of the Caribou +Diggings discovered far up the Fraser River in 'Sixty-one, he had +eventually taken to fur-trading, which has ever such an attraction for +the wandering spirit of the miner. Here among the mountains and rivers +where formerly he sought the yellow dust he carries on his roaming life. +There is a strong kinship between the two enterprises; the same +uncertainty exists, and in each case the mythical stake is always just +ahead. No failure ever damps the ardour of miner or fur-trader, or puts +a stop to his pleasant dreams of monster nuggets and silver foxes. + +Davis was making all possible haste in packing his cargo across the +portage with horses; an Indian and a half-breed were going back to +Quesnelle, and would gladly enter my service as guides. A small stock of +goods was to be left at the west end of the portage, and Thomas Barrow, +the only white man who had come down with Davis, was to remain in charge +of the trading-post during the winter. + + + + +CHAPTER XV + + +On November 5th I camped at the head of the cañon with my crew, Murdo, +John, Charlie, a half-breed from Quesnelle, and Pat, a full-blooded +Siccanee from Fraser Lake ready to make a start up-stream the following +morning with a long narrow canoe dug out of a cotton-wood log. But in +the night the weather changed; snow fell heavily, a severe frost set in, +and ice was forming rapidly along the banks. Baptiste, the Iroquois, who +had come across the portage to see us off, had brought me a dozen pair +of the best moose-skin moccasins from his daughters, who were beyond +compare the _belles_ of Hudson's Hope. Baptiste had spent many years of +his life in this part of the country, and I was quite ready to listen to +his opinion on the chances of getting through to Macleod's Lake. He +would not hear of our starting with a canoe under the changed conditions +of weather: it was the winter; the ice would catch us in less than three +days, and we should be lucky if we could get back on foot through the +deep snow. His advice was to wait a fortnight till the river set fast, +and occupy ourselves in making hand-sleighs, while he would make us five +pairs of snow-shoes, and then we might walk the two hundred miles to +Macleod's Lake in comfort. Accordingly I gave orders for the lodge, +which we still had with us, to be pitched in a clump of poplars a short +distance above Barrow's house, and we busied ourselves with cutting +birch and bending sleighs in readiness for our trip. + +The cold snap continued for several days, but very little ice was +running, although the eddies and backwaters were frozen up; then the +weather grew milder again, and I could see that we had missed our +chance. It was past the middle of November, and the river, by all +accounts, is usually frozen solid at this time of year; it seemed too +risky to start out so late to try and make a passage with open water. +Meantime we were taking things easily when, as it turned out, we should +have been travelling; there was not much to shoot beyond wood-grouse and +rabbits, but with these we could keep the pot going, and time went +pleasantly enough in short expeditions into the surrounding hills. + +And now a warm Chinook wind came sweeping across from the Pacific, and +licked up the snow from the ground, while the ice broke away from the +banks and drifted down in little floes to be ground to pieces in the +cañon. I could bear the inactivity no longer, and, with a recklessness +that I had plenty of opportunity to repent later on, gave orders on +November 25th for the canoe to be got ready on the morrow to start +up-stream and take the chances of being caught by the ice in the main +range of the Rocky Mountains. I consulted Charlie and Pat about the +route, and they both said they could make no mistake in finding the way +to the Hudson's Bay Fort on Macleod's Lake, as they had just come down +the river, and Charlie had made the journey the year before; if we could +succeed in getting to the junction of the Findlay and Parsnip, just +beyond the big mountains, before the ice caught us, there could be no +difficulty in reaching the fort on foot in about four days' travel. + +At the risk of being verbose and boring any reader who has struggled +thus far through the record of my wanderings in the North, I must now +enter somewhat fully into the details of travel, and describe minutely +the events that happened during the next month, in order to answer once +for all the numerous questions that I have been asked as to what took +place on that terrible winter journey in the Rocky Mountains. When I +reached civilization again, and found that part of the story had leaked +out, I received plenty of gratuitous advice as to what I should have +done and where I should have gone, from people who had never themselves +been in a like predicament, and had no further knowledge of hardship +than perhaps having had to pay a long price for a second-rate dinner. I +discovered that the easiest method of satisfying them was to let them +tell the tale of my adventures in their own way, and assent readily to +their convincing proofs that if they had been there all would have gone +well. I admit freely that it was a stupid act to leave a supply-post so +late in the year, unprovided as we were with the necessary outfit for +winter travelling; but think I was justified in trusting to the local +knowledge of my native guides to bring our party in safety to Macleod's +Lake after we were forced to abandon the canoe. + +Walter Macdonald, a son of Mr. Ewen Macdonald of Lesser Slave Lake, and +Tom Barrow both gave me every assistance in their power to provision my +crew for what is usually an eight or nine days' journey. Meat was not to +be had, and there was little chance of finding big game along the course +of the river, but a hundred pounds of flour, a few pounds of beans and +rice, and a small sack of potatoes, besides plenty of tea and tobacco, +would surely last us this short journey, and, even if we found it +impossible to travel quickly, a few days of short rations could easily +be endured. + +It was late in the afternoon of Wednesday, November 26th, when I started +the canoe off, and the sun was down before I had settled up accounts and +said good-bye to the friends whom I did not expect to meet again for +many a long day. The moon was full, and I had no difficulty in finding +my way six miles through the woods to an old miner's cabin at which we +had arranged to camp for the night. At the first streak of dawn we were +off again, travelling our best with two and sometimes three men on the +line; the current was strong, but the tracking on the gravel-bars +perfect. That night there was a heavy snowstorm, while the ground froze +hard and caused many a nasty fall on the slippery stones during the next +two days. On Saturday morning cakes of soft ice began to run, but we +found that most of them were brought down by a large tributary coming +from the north, and above its mouth the river was comparatively clear of +ice. The same afternoon we reached the entrance to the main range of +mountains, and under the first peak of the chain tracked up a strong +rush of water with a heavy sea at its foot, commonly known as the Polpar +Rapid, a curious corruption of _la Rapide qui ne parle pas_, so named by +the old _voyageurs_ from the absence of the roar of waters which usually +gives ample warning of the proximity of a rapid. Part of the cargo we +portaged to keep it dry, and above the strong water lay a quiet stretch +of river, winding away in the gloomy black chasm between the huge +mountains, which in many places takes the form of a sheer bluff hanging +over the stream. + +We camped just above the Polpar, and another night's snow made the +tracking worse than ever; often it was necessary to put the line aboard +and take to the paddles, to struggle round some steep point upon which a +coating of frozen snow made it impossible to stand. Ice was running in +large pans and steering was difficult, but we got on fairly well, and +were far in the heart of the mountains when we camped on Sunday night +under one of the steepest and most forbidding peaks that I ever remember +to have seen in any part of the Rockies. + +Monday was really cold, and our difficulties increased; the tow-line was +sheeted with ice and three times its ordinary weight, while the channel +was in many places almost blocked; poles and paddles had to be handled +with numbed fingers, and our moccasins from constant wading turned into +heavy lumps of ice; but we pushed on, and at nightfall had passed the +mountains and emerged into a more inviting country. It was evident, +however, that canoe-work was nearly over for the year, but we determined +to make one more attempt, as the junction of the Findlay and Parsnip was +not far ahead, and there was just a chance that the ice was coming from +the Findlay and we might find the Parsnip, up which our course lay, +clear enough for navigation. On Tuesday we made the most dangerous day's +travel that I ever experienced in a canoe; the river was far too full of +ice to handle even a "dug-out" with safety, and we had to make many +crossings in the swift current among the running floes. I made it a +point that everybody should keep on the same side of the river to assure +our all being together in case of accident, and we had several narrow +escapes from being nipped. At dinner-time we came in sight of the +broken water of the Findlay Rapid, and found the big eddy on the south +side of the river completely blocked with ice. We went through the risky +manoeuvre of skirting the edge of the eddy with the floes whirling round +us in the strong running water, and, finding a solid spot, hauled the +canoe over the ice to the shore, making a half-mile portage to the foot +of the rapid. A very close shave of capsizing filled the canoe with +water; but the second attempt at tracking through the swift current and +blocks of ice was more successful, and, as the short day was drawing to +its close, we were paddling under a high bluff which prevented our using +the tracking-line. Here darkness caught us, and our position was +perilous in the extreme; the current was so strong that our best pace +was required to stem it at all, and many times we had to drift back to +avoid collision with the ice that was grinding past us. A couple of +hours' hard work brought us to the first spot at which we could effect a +landing, but it was no easy matter to carry the cargo up the frozen +bank; we secured the canoe as well as we could, and found ourselves on a +small flat covered with willows and abundance of firewood. Towards +midnight the grinding of the ice became less noticeable and before +daylight ceased entirely; the river above us had set fast and further +water-travel was impossible. When morning broke we saw the Findlay +branch completely jambed with ice stretching away to the north-west, +and the Parsnip bending sharply to the south presented a similar +appearance. + +A glance at our position is not out of place, and a good map might have +saved us from the serious trouble we afterwards experienced. + +Far away in the mountains of British Columbia, in a country little known +to the white man and at no great distance from the Pacific Ocean, the +Findlay River has its source, while the Parsnip rises close under the +Rocky Mountains on their west side, and, skirting the foot-hills, joins +the Findlay at the spot where we now encamped. Below the junction the +stream, already of considerable size and known as the Peace River, pours +through the black rent in the backbone of the North American continent +many thousands of feet below the summits of the mountains, and takes its +course towards the Arctic Ocean at the mouth of the great Mackenzie. The +most extraordinary feature in this reversion of the laws of Nature is +the extreme tranquillity of the stream in passing through the main +range, for with the exception of the Findlay and Polpar Rapid, one at +either end of the pass, there is no difficulty in navigating a canoe. In +passing the eastern range above Hudson's Hope the cañon is rough to the +last degree, and one would expect to find the same thing among the +higher mountains. A third branch, the Omineca, once a celebrated +mining-camp, joins the Findlay, but is a much smaller stream. To reach +Fort Macleod we had to follow the Parsnip and turn up a tributary branch +known as Macleod's River, draining Macleod's Lake into the Parsnip. + +I had another long conversation with Charlie and Pat as to the best plan +of action, and pointed out to them that if there was the least doubt +about finding the lake we might still get back to Hudson's Hope, as by +the aid of a few portages over ice-jambs one can travel down-stream in +company with the floes long after it has become impossible to force a +passage against them, and when we reached the east end of the pass it +would be easy to walk through the level country. But both the guides +laughed at the idea of their getting lost, and again reminded me of the +fact that only a few weeks before they had come from Macleod. If we +could cross the Parsnip, they said, we had only to follow the west bank +till we came to the Little River, and then half a day would take us to +the fort; in four days from now, or five at the latest, we should reach +the end of our journey. The morning of December 4th was spent in making +a scaffold on which to store my rather bulky cargo, which of course had +to be left with the intention of returning from Fort Macleod with a +dog-sleigh. After dinner we started on foot, every man carrying his +blanket and a small load of provisions, kettles, and necessaries of +various kinds. I decided to take no gun, as I only had a dozen +shot-cartridges left, and a gun is always an impediment in walking +through the woods, although there is a good old saying in the North that +men should not part with their guns till the women throw away their +babies. + +One thing that I thought might cause some trouble was the fact of our +having no snow-shoes, and the snow would soon be deep enough to require +them. We took all our beans and rice, but left about thirty pounds of +flour in a sack on the scaffold, thinking it needlessly heavy to carry, +and that it was better to run short for a day or two than overload +ourselves and prevent rapid travelling. + +The ice was piled up high on the banks, and we began badly by climbing +over a steep hill covered with such heavy timber that the pace was slow, +and it was night when we came out on the bank of the Parsnip not more +than four miles from our last camp. The next day we did rather better, +but, getting among burnt timber and deep snow, had many heavy falls. In +the evening we found a jamb in the river, and, making rather a risky +crossing with the chance of our ice-bridge breaking up at any moment, +camped on the Macleod side, thinking that we were now surely safe +enough, and the worst thing that could happen might be a little +starvation before we reached the fort. Then came two days of fair +travelling, sometimes on the ice and sometimes in the woods, but the +latter were so thick that it was hard to get through them at all. + +I have never seen a river freeze in the remarkable manner that the +Parsnip set fast this summer. The first jamb had probably taken place at +the junction of the Findlay; the water had backed up till it stood at a +higher level than the summer floods, and the gravel beach was deeply +submerged. There was no appearance of shore-ice, as the constant rise +and fall in the water prevented a gradual freezing; jambs would form and +break up again, and huge blocks of ice were forced on each other in +every conceivable position. Often too the ice was flooded, and it was +already cold enough to freeze wet feet; the backwaters were full, and +the ice on them usually under water or hanging from the banks without +support; the shores were fringed with a tangled mass of willows, heavily +laden with snow and their roots often standing in water, while behind, +rising to the summit of rough broken hills, was the dense pine-growth of +the great sub-Arctic forest. + +John caused a good deal of delay by not keeping up, and I did not like +to leave him far behind, as he was clumsy on the ice, and there were +many treacherous spots where black running water showed in strong +contrast to the snow, and the gurgle of a swift current suggested an +unpleasant ending to the unlucky man who should break through. Everybody +carried an axe or a stick to sound the ice, and, excepting near the +banks where the water had fallen away from the ice, there were no +mishaps. Further delay was caused by our frequently having to light a +fire to dry moccasins and keep our feet from freezing. + +On the fourth night after abandoning the canoe we camped close to a +coffin hung between two trees, as is the fashion of the Siccanees in +dealing with their dead; the guide recognised this coffin, and told me +we should certainly be at the fort in two days. Beans and rice were +finished, but we had flour enough left for another day, and this we +baked into bread to save trouble in cooking later on, and on the +following day made a fair journey considering the bad state of the ice. + +The next morning, after eating our last bite of bread, we were going to +try for the fort, and to lighten our load left behind the kettles, for +which we had no more use, while some of us were rash enough to leave our +blankets; we expected to be back with the dog-sleigh in a few days, and +could then pick up everything. + +The water had risen again in the night and the ice was useless for +travelling on, so on the guide's advice we left the river on the west +bank, and climbing the rough hills walked along the ridge in a +south-westerly direction, expecting every hour to fall upon the little +river running out of Macleod's Lake. When night caught us we were still +in the woods, and, although there was no supper and snow was falling +softly, a bright fire and the prospect of reaching the fort in the +morning kept us in good spirits enough. I was one of the unfortunates +without a blanket, and was glad to see daylight come again and with it a +cessation of the snowstorm. During the last few days rabbit-tracks had +been frequently seen in the snow and grouse were plentiful, but we had +no means of securing game of any kind. + +To make as sure as possible of getting food the next day, I sent Murdo +and Charlie ahead without loads to make the best of their way to the +fort, while Pat and myself would stay by John, who was already in +difficulties, and carry the packs. + +Starting without breakfast is the worst part of these starving times. +The walking for the first two hours was very hard, through a thick +growth of young pines rising among the blackened stumps and fallen logs +of a burnt forest, up and down steep gullies, with the snow from the +branches pouring down our necks, and our loads often bringing us up with +a sudden jerk as they stuck between two little trees. John soon gave up +his pack, and left it hanging on a bough, where it remains probably till +the present day. About mid-day we came to the end of the ridge and +looked up the wide valley of the Parsnip. Far below us we could trace +its windings, and branching away to the mountains in the west was a +stream that Pat instantly declared to be Macleod's River. Towards +sundown we lit a fire on a high bank above the stream, and John in a +fatuous manner remarked that he recognised the place where he had camped +with a boat's crew some years before. We followed the fresh tracks of +our advanced party, and turning our backs on the Parsnip walked on good +shore-ice till darkness compelled us to camp. I was rather surprised to +find that the river was not frozen up and had much more current than I +had expected, but, as both John and Pat were quite certain that all was +right, I had not the least doubt that we had at last reached Macleod's +River and should arrive at the fort in good time the next day. + +Another sleepless night gave me plenty of time for reflection while John +was comfortably rolled up in a blanket that I had been carrying all day. +Four months had passed, and many a hundred miles of lake and river +travelled, since David had seen the first star on that summer's night +far away in the Barren Ground; now I thought my journey was nearly over, +for two hundred miles on snow-shoes from Fort Macleod to Quesnelle, and +three hundred miles of waggon-road from Quesnelle to the Canadian +Pacific Railway, counted as nothing. It was true that we had not tasted +food for two days, and rations had been short for some time past; but it +was by no means my first experience of starvation, and to-morrow +evening at the latest we should be in the midst of luxury once more. It +was satisfactory to think that we had succeeded in forcing our way +through the Rocky Mountains in the face of the winter, and were every +day approaching a country made temperate by the breezes of the Pacific; +already the cedars, to be found only on the west side of the main range, +were showing among the pines. + +With the first grey light in the east I roused my companions, and we +started on shore-ice at a good pace with the prospect of breakfast +ahead. Pat broke through shortly after leaving camp, and, as he was +afraid of freezing his feet, we lit a fire to dry his moccasins, and the +sun was up when we set out again. A couple of hours later we saw a thin +blue column of smoke rising straight up into the sky, and a nearer +approach showed that it came from the chimney of a cabin hidden in the +woods; a cheering sight at first, but directly we reached the trail +leading up from the river I knew that something was wrong, and something +wrong at such a time meant something very wrong indeed. + +I had spent too much of my life among the woods and mountains to be +unable to read the easy writing in the snow; two tracks leading up the +river late overnight, and the same two tracks quite fresh coming +down-stream and turning up the trail. Murdo and Charlie must be in the +cabin, and could not have reached the fort; if they had been coming +back with supplies they would never have put ashore with starving men so +close up. Pushing open the rough door we found them sitting one on each +side of a small fire of cedar-chips that were just crackling into a +blaze. "Have you been to the fort, Murdo?" I asked, needlessly enough. +"No." "Why not? What is the matter?" "Charlie says it is the wrong +river; we are lost, like d----d fools." + +Murdo had described the situation concisely enough, and I fully realised +the awful position we were in; lost and starving in the mountains with +no guns to procure food, no snow-shoes with which to travel over the +increasing depth of snow, and no clothes to withstand the cold of +mid-winter which was already upon us. + +There was still a hope, for Charlie was not quite ready to admit that he +was mistaken. Our advance party had turned back on seeing a rapid, and +even now could not give me any accurate description of this obstacle to +navigation; if it was so bad that a scow could not run down, it was +obvious that this could not be Macleod's River, for I knew that no +portage was necessary to reach the lake. Pat was still sure that he had +recognised many places this morning, but could not say anything about +the log-cabin; it stood back from the river, and there was a chance that +people, passing quickly down-stream, might have missed seeing it when +the foliage was thick on the willows. The best plan seemed to first +make sure about the rapid, so we started up-stream to inspect it. I was +very doubtful of any good result coming from this move, when I saw that +the strength of the current increased, and the mountains on each side of +the stream grew higher and steeper. Soon we passed a newly-built +beaver-house, which certainly was a strange object on the side of a +travelled river, and in a couple of hours reached the rapid. Surely this +was enough to make anyone turn back; a heavy shute of broken water down +which no scow could ever run without being smashed to pieces; even Pat +now acknowledged that he was hopelessly lost. A valuable day had been +wasted, and the sun was down before we came again to the cabin, where we +decided on spending the night. Three days we had been starving, and it +was fully time to take the first steps by which men in our desperate +position seek to maintain life as long as possible. A thorough search in +the shanty produced nothing of value but an old lard-tin which would +serve as a kettle; there were many empty boxes, labelled with enticing +names and pictures of canned fruit and of fat cattle that had been +converted into "Armour's Preserved Beef" at Kansas City, Missouri; a +large number of rotten sacks, marked "Oregon Flour Patent Roller +Process," showed that someone had spent a winter here, and an iron +bottle containing a little quicksilver proved that he had been a miner +by occupation. A board, with a notice in pencil that two men, whose +names I forget, had arrived here from Sandy Bar in a day and a half, +conveyed no meaning to us. + +Among the necessary articles that we had been carrying was a large piece +of dressed moose-skin for mending moccasins, and this seemed the most +edible thing we could find; five small strips, three inches in length +and an inch broad, were cut off and put into the lard-tin to boil for +supper. We discovered Labrador tea growing in the woods, and made a brew +with the leaves as soon as we thought the moose-skin was soft enough to +eat. Rabbit-snares were made by unravelling a piece of string and set in +the runs, but after trying this plan on several nights not a rabbit was +caught, though we sometimes had the mortification of finding a broken +snare. After supper of moose-skin and Labrador tea we felt in better +spirits, and with a good fire and a pipe of tobacco discussed our +position seriously enough. + +Euclid, when he found himself incapable of proving that any particular +angle or line was the exact size that he desired, had a habit of +supposing it to be of some other magnitude, and by enlarging upon the +absurdity of this supposition so completely puzzled the aspiring student +that he was glad to admit any statement that the inventor of the +proposition suggested. This does well enough on paper, but starving men +have no time to put this plan to the test of practice, and when they +find that a river is not the one they supposed it to be are at a loss +to tell what stream it really is. + +Charlie, Pat, and John, who had all been to Macleod's Lake before, told +me frequently that they had never heard of any river coming into the +Parsnip on the west side between the Findlay and Macleod's River. Now, +in a boating journey the talk is always of points and rivers, and the +mouth of any tributary is always commented upon, so it seemed unlikely +that they should have passed by this large stream without noticing it; +nor had they heard of any miner's cabin, which must certainly have been +spoken of in a country where houses are scarce. There was a possibility +that we had come too far and missed the mouth of Macleod's River, for we +had sometimes travelled on the east side of the Parsnip to take +advantage of better ice or a thinner growth of timber, and I had heard +David say that the Little River was not easy for a stranger to find. In +any case it was better to retrace our steps to the mouth of the stream +that we had been following, to see if our guides could recognise any +landmark, for the hills were conspicuous and sometimes of remarkable +shape. + +At daylight on December 10th we left the cabin and made tracks +down-stream, taking with us the lard-tin in which we had boiled more +moose-skin for breakfast. So far we had lost no strength and, with the +exception of John, who was always behind, were going strong and well. +It was late in the afternoon when we reached the river and once again +stood on the bank of the Parsnip. Across on the east side rose a +high-cut bank of yellow clay, a mark that any one should recognise who +had ever seen it before; but Charlie and Pat both put on a hopeless +blank expression when I asked them if they knew the place. No, they +said, they had never seen it before in their lives. Six weeks before +they had passed right under that cut bank in a scow, and less than forty +miles up-stream would have taken us to the fort if we had only known it. +These men were a half-breed and an Indian, supposed to be gifted with +that extraordinary instinct of finding their way in all circumstances +which is denied to the white man. John was just as much to blame, +although it was some years ago that he travelled down the Parsnip; long +afterwards, when all the trouble was over, he confided to me, as an +excuse for his ignorance, that he had been very drunk when he left +Macleod and was unable to make any accurate observations as to courses +and distances. + +There was nothing to be done but turn down the Parsnip again and keep a +bright look-out for the mouth of the little river, in case we had passed +it. The ice was too much flooded to walk on, and we camped high up on +the mountain-side in heavy falling snow. Another misfortune befell us +here; the bottom of the lard-tin was burnt out during the process of +melting snow, and we had to give up the small comfort of moose-skin and +wild tea. Murdo and myself spent a wretched night cowering over the fire +with the snow falling down our backs, for we were still without +blankets; daylight saw us struggling through the thick growth of young +pines and an increased depth of snow, till at noon, when everybody was +thoroughly exhausted and John had nearly given up all hope, we found +ourselves stopped on the side-hill by a series of bluffs which no one +felt equal to scaling. Fifteen hundred feet below us lay the river, and +as a desperate alternative we descended the mountain, with many bruises +from stumbling over logs hidden by the snow, to find that the water had +fallen in the night, and the ice, though rough in the extreme, was dry +enough to travel on. After the night had closed down over the forest we +reached the place where the kettles and blankets had been left, and +things looked a little brighter with the prospect of tea and a night's +sleep; but we knew now that Fort Macleod must lie behind us, although +there was little inducement to make another attempt to reach it with +such untrustworthy guides. Our only chance of life was to reach the +entrance of the Peace River Pass, where thirty pounds of flour lay on a +rough scaffold exposed to the mercy of the wolverines! + + + + +CHAPTER XVI + + +Snow fell again in the night and increased our difficulties. For a day +and a half we forced our way, sometimes on rough ice and sometimes +through the thick willow bushes, with frequent rests as exhaustion +overtook us, till we again saw the Siccanee coffin hung in the trees. +Here we found the flour-sack that had been thrown away on our up-stream +journey, and scraped off perhaps half a pound of flour which had stuck +to the sack when wet. At the same time a mouse was caught in the snow, +and, with no further preparation than singeing off the hair, was cut +into strips and boiled with the flour into a thin soup. Every man +carried a tin cup in his belt, so a careful distribution of the precious +soup was made, and the last pipe of tobacco smoked; we certainly derived +a little strength from this unexpected supply, and our spirits improved +greatly for a short time. + +The weather now turned colder and its increased severity told on us +heavily, for our clothes were torn to rags by pushing through the woods, +and a starving man through loss of flesh always feels the cold more +severely than a man in good condition. We often had to light a fire to +prevent our feet from freezing when wet from walking on flooded ice or +breaking through near the shore. The river was still open in places and +continually altering its level. John was always far behind, and I +expected to see him drop at any time; but he had the advantage of +starting fatter than the rest of us, and took good care of himself, +always hanging in the rear and coming into camp when the labour of +throwing out the snow and getting wood was accomplished. Never once +during the whole of this march did he go ahead to break a trail through +the snow, which is of course the most fatiguing work of all. + +A little before sundown on December 17th, the tenth day without eating +anything but small scraps of moose-skin and the soup at the coffin-camp, +we staggered among huge blocks of ice, passed the junction of the +Findlay, and soon afterwards arrived at the _cache_. It was an anxious +moment as I crawled up the frozen bank and waded through the snow to the +scaffold; no wolverine tracks were to be seen, and the flour was lying +untouched. Camp was made, a kettle of thick paste boiled, and a cupful +eaten every half-hour to prevent any ill effects from straining the +weakened organs of the digestion. + +But we were by no means out of our difficulties yet. Thirty pounds of +flour, without meat, is the ordinary amount that would be given to five +men for two days, without taking into account the fact that we had been +starving for a long time and were now reduced to skeletons. Before us +was the main range of the Rocky Mountains; the snow would be drifted +deep in the narrow pass, and travel would be slow, if indeed we got +through at all. Another serious trouble was the state of our moccasins; +as they wore out we had eaten them, and were now wearing rough apologies +for shoes which we had made out of the moose-skin that was quickly +getting very small under the constant demands made upon it for various +purposes. + +In the morning I measured the flour very carefully with a cup into +different loads, so that I might be able to keep account of the quantity +that was used, and, taking a gun and what few cartridges were left, we +started for Tom Barrow's cabin, which we hoped to be able to reach in +three or four days if the ice should prove good. In this we were +terribly disappointed, for at the end of the second day, after wading +through deep snow, and frequently putting ashore to light a fire on +account of the intense cold, we camped but a short distance below the +Findlay Rapid. John's feet were frozen already, and all of us were +touched in the face; there was always great difficulty in lighting a +match with numbed fingers, but birch-bark was plentiful, and being +readily inflammable was nearly sure to blaze up at once. Our only +remaining axe was almost useless from having been carelessly left for a +night in the fire. Much of the snow had drifted off the ice and was +lying three and four feet deep on the banks, increasing the labour of +making camp and picking up firewood, for we were too weak to do any +effectual chopping even if our axe had been in good condition. Without +snow-shoes it was impossible to walk through the forest in the hope of +finding grouse; and, after one or two efforts, the exertion of wading +waist-deep through snow that reached to the belt was found too great, +and the attempt was abandoned. + +On the third day a blizzard swept through the pass, completely obscuring +the opposite bank of the river, which was here quite narrow. We +attempted to travel against it, but found our faces were frozen before +going a quarter of a mile. Murdo and myself had always to light the +matches, as the other men suffered more from the cold than we did; I +knew that my hands were already useless, and that if we continued to +force our way against the storm there would be little chance of starting +a fire further on. I gave orders to turn back for the camp, and we spent +the short day in keeping up the fire that was still burning. Besides the +drift, a gust of wind would often send down the masses of snow that had +gathered on the branches, putting out our little blaze and filling up +the hole that we had dug in the snow, while the boughs themselves often +fell dangerously close to the camp. The allowance of flour was cut down +to two cupfuls among five men, and this was eaten in the form of paste, +which we found more satisfying than bread. The Labrador tea was buried +deep under the snow, and from this time no more was obtained. + +The shortening of rations produced grumbling in the camp, especially +from John, who declared that it was better to eat well while the little +flour lasted, to gain strength to take us to the trading-post. Murdo was +more sensible in this respect, but was beginning to lose the full use of +his head, and, besides the strong aversion he had always shown to John, +now developed a passionate hatred to Charlie and Pat, whom rightly +enough he held responsible for our position. This ill-feeling among the +various members of our party was increased tenfold by an episode which +took place on the following day. The morning was very cold but with less +wind, and, although our faces froze again, we pushed on for an hour or +two and then made a fire on the bank. Here we left the Indian and +half-breed drying their moccasins, and continued travelling down stream +to make a camp for the mid-day halt, knowing that the others could catch +us up easily with the advantage of our road through the snow; this they +did just as our fire was blazing up. I asked Charlie for his flour, as +so far we had not used any from his load, but when he produced it there +was not more than a cupful left in the bag. I had given him five pounds +of flour to carry, and at once knew that our guides, who had caused all +the trouble, had now been guilty of stealing food, when our lives +depended on the scanty store that we had picked up at the _cache_. For +this offence, at such a time, there is but one punishment: a man on the +point of starving to death cares little whether you cut off the dollar a +day that he is earning or not; a blow struck would have fired the train +of discontent that was ready to explode;--the only course open to me, if +the offenders were to be punished at all, was to put an end to them both +with the shot-gun that I carried. For a long time I debated this +question while a few spoonfuls of flour were boiled for dinner, and +finally decided to let matters take their course; there were still seven +or eight pounds of flour left, and by further reduction of rations we +might keep ourselves alive for a few more days; the weather might be +warmer, the ice less rough, and the snowfall lighter if we could reach +the far end of the pass, but at present things looked very black indeed. +Flesh and strength were failing rapidly; this loss of provisions would +tell heavily, and travelling through the gloomy pass under the high +mountains was more laborious than words can describe. It was no good +refusing to give the thieves their share of rations, as this might +induce them to strike a blow in the night, and deal us the death that +they themselves deserved; but the question might still have to be +decided, in case of a man dropping, whether his life should be +sacrificed and the offenders allowed to go free. If affairs came to the +point which everything seemed to indicate, there could now be no fair +drawing of lots to see who should die that the survivors might support +themselves by the last resource of all. + +The weather continued cold, and frozen feet caused many delays; there +was no chance here to treat a frost-bite by the tender methods of +thawing with snow and rubbing with oil that are practised in +civilization, but feet were thrust into a blazing fire and allowed to +blister as they would. John and Charlie suffered greatly from this +cause, and their pain in walking was much increased. These delays were +serious, for although the Peace River Pass lies as far to the south as +the 56th parallel of latitude the days were at their shortest. + +For three more days we continued wading through the snowdrifts, and +crawling over rough ice, continually changing our leader, till on +December 24th we were stopped by another blizzard, and forced to lie in +camp all day. Rations were by this time cut down to a spoonful of flour +in the morning and a strip of moose-skin at night for each man. Not more +than a pound of flour was left, and the storm, far too fierce for such +wretched skeletons to face, might continue for several days. Our +situation seemed utterly hopeless as we crouched over the fire that was +with difficulty maintained, and apparently the end had come. There was +none of the kindly sympathy for companions in misfortune which men who +share a common danger should have: a mutual distrust was prevalent; +hatred and the wolfish madness of hunger ruled the camp; and to this day +I cannot understand how it was that the fatal spark was never struck, +and no tragedy of murder and cannibalism enacted on the banks of that +ice-bound river without witnesses save the great silent mountains and +the God who made them. + +Christmas Day brought rather better weather, although snow was still +falling quietly, and, finding open water in the river with shore-ice on +which the snow was not so deep as usual, there was a great improvement +in our case. An accident, however, occurred which nearly put an end to +two of the party. Charlie and Pat, who were leading at the time, +ventured too near the edge of the open water and broke through, not only +to the knees or waist, as had so often happened, but over their heads in +deep water with a strong current, and we had some trouble in pulling +them out. It was very important that we should make a fire at once, as +the temperature was many degrees below zero, and the men drenched to the +skin began to freeze directly. The accident had taken place under a long +steep bluff, and from where we stood no firewood was to be seen on our +side of the river within a couple of miles. By the greatest good +fortune, on turning a point we found a huge tree that had fallen over +the cliff and lay on the beach smashed up into firewood, as if it had +been prepared specially for our use. A blaze was soon started, and the +two half-drowned men left to dry themselves. The most unfortunate part +of the affair was the wetting of the matches which they carried. I had +divided these precious articles among the men in case of accidents of +this kind, for without fire we should have had no chance of saving our +lives; as it turned out we never ran short of matches and never once +missed making fire, although there was often trouble in procuring wood; +we were far too weak to handle a big log, but usually found a dead +cotton-wood tree, from which the bark is easily pulled and makes the +best of fires. + +In the afternoon we passed the Polpar Rapid, which was completely frozen +up, and emerging from the pass caught the first sight of the sun, that +had been hidden from us for many days by the high mountains. The ice +below the rapid continued fairly good till nightfall, when we were +forced to camp, although the moon was full and we tried to travel by her +light. But although it was easy enough to see close ahead, it was +impossible to pick out the line of the best ice, and the labour of +travelling was increased by having to force our way through drifts and +piled-up ice that we might have avoided in daylight. + +Soon after leaving camp on the following morning a grouse was killed, +and I think even this little nourishment helped us a great deal to +accomplish our task of reaching the trading-post; this was the only +grouse we had seen since we left the _cache_, although on the up-stream +journey birds had been plentiful enough. The ice was still rough at +times, but in some places the river was open and good shore-ice made the +walking easy; the weather was much warmer, with bright sunshine, and +there was no danger of freezing our feet. At dark camp was made within a +day's travel of Barrow's house, if only we had strength enough to reach +it. + +The long night passed away, and just before daylight we were staggering +among the blocks of ice in a scattered line. There was always difficulty +in starting from the camp, for there was a certain amount of comfort in +lying in our blankets, and nobody was anxious to try whether he could +still stand upright or not. Our inclination during the worst time was to +lie down and make no further effort, but after walking half an hour we +usually found ourselves in better spirits. Soon after coming out on the +ice, I looked back to see how John was travelling, and noticed that he +was down. Charlie, who had been behind with him, came up and said that +John could travel no longer and intended to stay where he was. I stopped +all the men, but Charlie tried to push by me and said that he would not +wait for anyone. For the first time I had to use threats to ensure my +orders being carried out, and taking the gun from my shoulder let +Charlie plainly see that I meant to shoot him if he did not obey. This +quickly brought him to his senses, and John came up very slowly. He +wanted someone to stay with him and trust to the others sending back +provisions, but I would not listen to this proposal. I told him that it +was only want of courage that prevented him making any further effort; +he was as strong as the rest of us, and, if he would try, could keep up +quite easily; if he would come on till we reached the place where we had +had dinner on the second day out with the canoe, we would make him a +camp and leave all our blankets, so that he might have a chance of +keeping himself alive till relief came. On rounding a point we saw open +water ahead, and John, although far behind, went far better on the +smooth ice, and eventually came in not more than an hour after us. At +noon the Bull's Head was in sight, and we could see the line of hills at +the foot of which Barrow's house lay. The pace was fast for men in our +condition, but we kept up a steady walk, leaving our blankets when there +seemed a certainty of reaching the house that night. The sun was down +when we passed the old shanty in which we had camped for a night on the +way up, and by moonlight we travelled on, following close to the edge of +the open water and taking little precaution to test the strength of the +ice. Soon the roar of the cañon was heard, and at seven o'clock we +crawled up the steep bank and stood in front of the cabin. I pushed open +the door, and shall never forget the expression of horror that came over +the faces of the occupants when they recognised us. We had become used +to the hungry eyes and wasted forms, as our misery had come on us +gradually, but to a man who had seen us starting out thirty-two days +before in full health the change in our appearance must have been +terrible. There was no doubt that we were very near the point of death. +For my own part I felt a dull aching in the left side of my head; I was +blind in the left eye and deaf in the left ear; there was a sharp pain +on each side just below the ribs; but my legs, though not well under +control, were still strong. We had all completely lost the use of our +voices, and suffered greatly from the cracking of the skin on hands and +feet, which always results from starving in cold weather; to say that we +were thin conveys no idea of our miserable condition. It is needless to +go into the details of our recovery; but under Barrow's careful nursing, +and restrictions as to the quantity of food allowed, we all came back to +health, although for some days our lives were hanging in the balance. + +I can never sufficiently thank Tom Barrow for his kind behaviour on this +occasion. Of course, everybody is sorry for starving people; but it is +rather a strain on this sympathy to have to look after five men so near +to death in a small cabin among the Rocky Mountains, with such slender +supplies as had been left for a winter's rations for two people. Without +a murmur he shared his blankets and his provisions, although he knew +that there was a good chance of starving himself in the spring. + +Barrow told us directly where we had made our mistake. The river we had +turned up was Nation River, and the log-cabin had been occupied some +years before by a party of miners, but very little gold had been taken +out. Some distance up Nation River was the old trail to the Omineca +mining-camp; but of course we should not have known what trail it was if +we had found it. The mouth of the Nation River and the yellow cut bank +Barrow remembered perfectly, and said there had been much talk about +these landmarks on the way down; it seems inexplicable that three men, +who had been over the route before, should have made the mistake that so +nearly cost us our lives. If we had followed up the Parsnip beyond the +mouth of Nation River we should have reached Macleod's Lake on December +12th at latest with only a few days' starvation, and avoided all the +misery that continued till the 27th of that month. + +In a week communication was opened with Hudson's Hope, and Walter +Macdonald did everything he could to help us; but the same thing had +happened to him. A band of Beaver Indians had been caught by starvation +at the mouth of the Pine River Pass, and had suffered the same +experiences as ourselves. Many had been left by the way, but I think +there were no deaths, as provisions were sent out so soon as the news +reached Baptiste at Moberley's Lake. + +At the end of a fortnight everybody was well enough to travel; and to +ease the strain on provisions I sent Murdo, John, and Charlie to Lesser +Slave Lake, where they could get fish to support them, and spare the +resources of the upper river posts. But even now these men could not +travel together, although they had full rations and nothing to quarrel +about. Murdo reached the Lesser Slave Lake alone, John arriving several +days later, and I found Charlie at Dunvegan, where he had already +distinguished himself by robbing from the priest's trading-store. A +thorough blackguard was Charlie, and it would have been little loss to +the world in general if he had left his bones under the snow in the +Peace River Pass; he had begun his voyage badly by stealing fifty +dollars from his mother at Quesnelle, and there were several other +offences for which the police had hunted him away from the borders of +civilization. Pat was to stay for the winter with Barrow, and as soon as +Baptiste had made us snow-shoes we pottered about in the woods together, +hunting grouse and rabbits, and had soon entirely recovered our +strength. + +I have never heard any satisfactory explanation of the gradual increase +and sudden dying out of the rabbits and lynx, which takes place every +seven years throughout the North. Starting from the few survivors of the +last epidemic, the numbers increase slowly every season, till in the +sixth year the whole country is so over-run with them that a man can +travel anywhere with no further provision than shot-gun and snares. Then +the disease breaks out, dead bodies are found all through the woods, and +scarcely a living rabbit or lynx is to be seen. The autumn of 1885 I +spent on the head-waters of the Athabasca, at the east end of the Tête +Jaune Pass; the rabbits were then at their height and as plentiful as I +ever saw them in England. 1892 will be the next big rabbit-year; but +after that famine is sure to be rife on Peace River, as it is harder +every year to kill moose, and for the last two or three years the +rabbit-snares have kept many an Indian from starvation. This +rabbit-question is an important one to consider before starting on an +exploration trip in the Peace River country, as in the good seasons +there is no danger of running short of provisions. + +One day, as we were setting snares together, Pat told me the story of +the stolen flour. They had stayed behind to dry their moccasins, and +Charlie had explained to Pat that I was keeping the flour for the use of +the white men, and that their only chance of getting any was to help +themselves; Pat had objected at first, but afterwards gave way when he +saw Charlie cooking the flour, and they had eaten about four pounds +between them. Judging from Charlie's character I am inclined to believe +the story, as Pat in all other respects had behaved well under the +pressure of hardship, and had always done more than his share of work in +making camp and breaking the trail. + +While staying at Hudson's Hope, Macdonald and I walked over to +Moberley's Lake, twelve miles to the south, to pay old Baptiste a visit. +The house stands within view of the big peaks of the Rockies close to +the edge of the lake, but the appearance of the country is rather spoilt +by the abundant traces of forest fires that have taken place of late +years. The lake is a beautiful sheet of water, ten miles in length, +drained by the Pine River, which falls into the Peace a short distance +above Fort St. John. Baptiste has a fruitful potato-patch, and his women +were catching plenty of rabbits; there was moose-pemmican, too, and +dried meat, for the Fall hunt had been successful. The Iroquois gave me +a pair of snow-shoes ornamented with tassels of coloured wool, as well +as a pair of beaded moccasins which he made me promise not to eat, and +came with us to the fort to see us off. + +[Illustration: Arrival of the Dog Train] + + + + +CHAPTER XVII + + +It was towards the end of January, 1891, that I left Hudson's Hope for +Edmonton, a distance of six hundred miles, giving up all further attempt +to reach Macleod's Lake. A son of Mr. Brick, of Smoky River, turned up +just before I started, and promised to go with Pat to my _cache_ at the +junction of the Findlay and Parsnip when the days grew long in spring. +The rough ice would then be covered with deep snow, and with snow-shoes +and hand-sleighs it would be easy to bring away the guns, journals, and +many other articles that I had been obliged to abandon. + +Two days and a half took me to St. John's, and after a week's stay there +a dog-train, carrying the winter packet, arrived, and I took this chance +of getting to Dunvegan. Alick Kennedy, one of the very best half-breed +_voyageurs_ in Canada, was in charge of the packet. The distances this +man has been known to run in a day would hardly be credited in a land +where people travel by railways and steamboats: moreover, he is a +pleasant companion to travel with; his conversation is interesting, and +entirely free from the boasting which most of the half-breeds indulge +in. Alick was captain of a boat-brigade on the Nile; and if all the +Canadian contingent had been of his stamp instead of the Winnipeg +loafers, who were too worthless to get employment in their own country, +a different story might have been told of the behaviour of the +_voyageurs_ on the march to Khartoum. + +Five days took us to Dunvegan, where I again met Mr. Macdonald, and +travelled with him to the Lesser Slave Lake. From Dunvegan we made the +portage straight to Smoky River, crossing a pretty prairie country and +camping a night at Old Wives' Lake, where Mr. Brick winters some of his +cattle. With a splendid track along the waggon-road, we made the ninety +miles to the Lesser Slave Lake in two days, and, judging from the number +of people and houses, we seemed to have reached civilization already. +Besides the Hudson's Bay establishment, the missions and the buildings +of the free-traders, many half-breeds have houses scattered along the +lake, and devote part of their attention to raising horses and cattle, +though of course whitefish are the main support of life. A favourite +haunt for wildfowl is this lake in spring and autumn, but big game and +fur have been nearly killed out by the large population, and most of the +Indian trade is done at the out-posts nearer to the hunting-grounds. + +I spent several days at the fort, being well treated as usual, and +February was nearly finished when I started with Mr. Frank Hardistay on +my last journey with dogs. The Lesser Slave Lake is about seventy miles +in length, and covering this distance easily in two days we travelled +down the Little Slave River which leaves the east end of the lake. A +good deal of labour has been expended in blasting rocks out of the +channel of this river, to enable the steamer from the Athabasca landing +to reach the lake, and so avoid the expense of building boats and +engaging crews to transport the Peace River cargo, but so far these +efforts have proved unsuccessful. + +I think we followed the course of this stream about twenty miles, then +dived into the thick pine-forest on the east bank, and making a +twelve-mile portage came out on the Athabasca River, seventy miles above +the landing at the end of the waggon-road from Edmonton. The Athabasca +has here the same monotonous look that one becomes so tired of in its +lower reaches. When a point was rounded another point exactly similar +showed three or four miles ahead, and this continued till we reached the +landing, in clear cold weather, on March 3rd; three days later our dogs, +bearing the smartest of dog-cloths and with sleigh-bells ringing +merrily, rattled into Edmonton, and the wild free life of the last +twenty months was over. + +The excitement that the arrival of a stranger never fails to create at a +lonely Northern fort is rather apt to give that stranger an exaggerated +idea of his own importance; but when I reached Edmonton I at once +realised that there are many people in the world who have ideas beyond +musk-ox and caribou, dog-sleighs and snow-shoes. An election was at its +height to decide who should have the honour of representing the +territory of Alberta at Ottawa. Edmonton had been drinking, although it +is supposed to keep strictly to the rules of the Prohibition Act, and +before I had been an hour in the town I found myself in the midst of a +free fight. I was unfortunate in not knowing the names of the +candidates, or what policy they represented, and as I could give no +clear account as to what I had done with my vote, I was roughly used by +both sides and was glad to escape to the less boisterous hospitality of +the Hudson's Bay Fort. + +There were still two hundred miles of snow-covered prairie to be crossed +to reach Calgary, but with horses to drag our sleigh, and a house to +sleep in every night, there could be little hardship in the journey. At +the crossing of the Red Deer we saw the iron rails that had already +pushed far out towards Edmonton, but work had ceased for the winter and +no trains were running. As we travelled south the snow became less every +day, till we were forced to change our runners for wheels when still +sixty miles from Calgary. Late in the evening of March 15th the whistle +of a locomotive told me, more plainly than anything I had yet heard, +that it was time to pull myself together and take up the common-place +life of civilization; a few more miles of level country, down a steep +pitch or two, across the frozen stream of the Elbow, and close ahead the +lights of Calgary were blinking over the prairie. + +[Illustration: Edmonton] + + * * * * * + +I am writing these concluding lines in a fashionable garret off St. +James's Street. Close at hand are all the luxuries that only +ultra-civilization can give, and these luxuries are to be obtained by +the simple method of handing over an adequate number of coins of the +realm; there is no necessity to shoulder your gun and tramp many weary +miles on snow-shoes before you get even a sight of your dinner in its +raw state. But surely we carry this civilization too far, and are in +danger of warping our natural instincts by too close observance of the +rules that some mysterious force obliges us to follow when we herd +together in big cities. Very emblematical of this warping process are +the shiny black boots into which we squeeze our feet when we throw away +the moccasin of freedom; as they gall and pinch the unaccustomed foot, +so does the dread of our friends' opinion gall and pinch our minds till +they become narrow, out of shape, and unable to discriminate between +reality and semblance. A dweller in cities is too wrapped up in the +works of man to have much respect left for the works of God, and to him +the loneliness of forest and mountain, lake and river, must ever appear +but a weary desolation. But there are many sportsmen who love to be +alone with Nature and the animals far from their fellow-men, and as this +book is intended solely for the sportsman, a few words of advice to +anyone who is anxious to hunt the musk-ox may not be out of place. + +I am not quite sure that Fort Resolution is the best point to start +from. Fort Rae, on the north arm of the Great Slave Lake, lies nearer +the Barren Ground, and the Dog-Ribs are said to be more amenable to +reason than the Yellow Knives, while the distance to travel through a +woodless country is shorter. Fort Good Hope, on the Lower Mackenzie, +would be another good spot to make headquarters; but there is less +certainty of finding the caribou in that neighbourhood, and without the +caribou there is little chance of reaching the musk-ox. It is not the +slightest use starting from a post with the theory that musk-ox can be +killed in so many days, and that, by taking a load of provisions +sufficient to last for the same length of time, a successful hunt will +be made. The only plan is to work your way up slowly, to stay among the +caribou in the autumn, and kill and _cache_ meat whenever an opportunity +offers, ready for a rush on the first snow. Remember, too, when +provisions get scarce, as they certainly will at some time or other, the +country ahead is as big as the country behind, and the best chance lies +in pushing on. To turn back may prove fatal, when another day's travel +may put you in a land of plenty. It is possible to reach the +hunting-ground and return to Fort Resolution with a canoe in the summer, +but the robes are then worthless, and the whole sport savours too much +of covert-shooting in July. Make quite sure before you start that you +are determined to push on through everything, as even the Great Slave +Lake is far to go on an unsuccessful errand. Here, in London, in front +of a good fire at the club and under the influence of a good dinner, it +is easy enough to kill musk-ox and make long night-marches on snow-shoes +by the flashes of the Northern Lights; but the test of practice takes +off some of the enjoyment. + +A year has slipped away since our winter journey through the Peace River +Pass. Young Brick kept his promise of getting the _cache_ right well, +and a couple of months ago my journals arrived in England, so that I +have been able to put together this rough record of my Northern travels. +On looking back one remembers only the good times, when meat was +plentiful and a huge fire lit up the snow on the spruce trees; misery +and starvation are forgotten as soon as they are over, and even now, in +the midst of the luxury of civilization, at times I have a longing to +pitch my lodge once more at the edge of the Barren Ground, to see the +musk-ox standing on the snowdrift and the fat caribou falling to the +crack of the rifle, to hear the ptarmigan crowing among the little pines +as the sun goes down over a frozen lake and the glory of an Arctic night +commences. + +To the man who is not a lover of Nature in all her moods the Barren +Ground must always be a howling, desolate wilderness; but for my part, I +can understand the feeling that prompted Saltatha's answer to the worthy +priest, who was explaining to him the beauties of Heaven. "My father, +you have spoken well; you have told me that Heaven is very beautiful; +tell me now one thing more. Is it more beautiful than the country of the +musk-ox in summer, when sometimes the mist blows over the lakes, and +sometimes the water is blue, and the loons cry very often? That is +beautiful; and if Heaven is still more beautiful, my heart will be glad, +and I shall be content to rest there till I am very old." + +[Illustration: A SKETCH MAP OF Mr. WARBURTON PIKE'S JOURNEYS TO THE +BARREN GROUND OF NORTHERN CANADA] + + + + +APPENDIX I + + +I am much indebted to Professor Dawson, of the Dominion Geological +Survey Department, for his kind permission to publish the following +paper on the Unexplored Regions of Canada. It shows more plainly than +any words of mine could tell how much yet remains to be done before this +great portion of the British Empire is known as it ought to be. + + +ON SOME OF THE LARGER UNEXPLORED REGIONS OF CANADA. + +(By G. M. DAWSON, D.S., Assoc. R.S.M., F.G.S., F.R.S.C.) + +If on reading the title of the paper which I had promised to contribute +to the Ottawa Field Naturalists' Club, any one should have supposed it +to be my intention to endeavour to describe or forecast the character of +the unexplored areas mentioned, I must, in the first place, disclaim any +such intention. The very existence of large regions of which little or +nothing is known, is of course stimulating to a fertile imagination, +ready to picture to itself undiscovered "golden cities a thousand +leagues deep in Cathay," but such unscientific use of the imagination is +far removed from the position of sober seriousness, in which I ask your +attention to the facts which I have to present. + +Fortunately, or unfortunately, as we may happen to regard it, the +tendency of our time is all in the direction of laying bare to +inspection and open to exploitation all parts, however remote, of this +comparatively small world in which we live, and though the explorer +himself may be impelled by a certain romanticism in overcoming +difficulties or even dangers met with in the execution of his task, his +steps are surely and closely followed by the trader, the lumberer, or +the agriculturalist, and not long after these comes the builder of +railways with his iron road. It is, therefore, rather from the point of +view of practical utility than from any other, that an appeal must be +made to the public or to the Government for the further extension of +explorations, and my main purpose in addressing you to-night is to make +such an appeal, and to show cause, if possible, for the exploration of +such considerable portions of Canada as still remain almost or +altogether unmapped. + +What I have to say, in fact, on this subject resolves itself chiefly +into remarks on the map exhibited here, upon which the unexplored areas +to which I am about to refer are clearly depicted in such a manner, I +believe, as almost to speak for themselves. + +It is very commonly supposed, even in Canada, but to a greater extent +elsewhere, that all parts of the Dominion are now so well known that +exploration, in the true sense of the term, may be considered as a thing +of the past. This depends largely upon the fact that the maps of the +country generally examined are upon a very small scale, and that upon +such maps no vast areas yet remain upon which rivers, lakes, mountains, +or other features are not depicted. If, however, we take the trouble to +enquire more closely into this, and consult perhaps one of the +geographers whose maps we have examined, asking such awkward questions +as may occur to us on the sources of information for this region or +that, we may probably by him be referred to another and older map, and +so on till we find in the end that the whole topographical fabric of +large parts of all these maps rests upon information of the vaguest +kind. + +Of most of the large areas marked upon the map here shown, this is +absolutely true, and the interests of knowledge with respect to these +would be better subserved if such areas were left entirely blank, or, at +least, if all the geographical features drawn upon them appeared in +broken lines, in such a way as to show that none of them are certain. In +other regions, the main geographical outlines, such as the courses of +the larger rivers, are indicated approximately, with such accuracy as +may be possible from accounts or itineraries derived from travellers or +from officers of the Hudson's Bay Company; or from the descriptions or +rough sketches of Indians or other persons by whom the region has been +traversed, but who have been unprovided with instruments of any kind and +whose knowledge of the country has been incidentally obtained. + +There is, in the case of such partially explored regions, more excuse +for the delineation of the main features on our maps, as these may be +useful in imparting general information of a more or less inexact kind. +We can scarcely, however, admit that such regions have been explored in +any true sense of that term, while they are certainly unsurveyed, and +very little confidence can be placed in maps of this kind as guides in +travel. When, ten years ago, I struck across from Fort Macleod, on the +west side of the Rocky Mountains, with the purpose of reaching Fort +Dunvegan on the Peace, through a country densely forested and without +trails or tracks of any kind, I had so much confidence in the existing +maps of that region as to assume that Dunvegan was at least +approximately correct in position on them. As often as possible I took +observations for latitude, and each night worked out our position by +latitude and departure, till at a certain point I was about to turn off +to the north of the line previously followed with the confident +anticipation of finding Dunvegan. Just here, very fortunately, we fell +in with some Indians, and though our means of communicating with them +were very imperfect, we gathered enough to lead us to accept the +guidance of one of them, who promised to lead us to the fort, but took +an entirely different direction from that I had proposed taking. He was +right, but Dunvegan proved to be, as shown on the maps, nearly forty +miles west of its real position. Fortunately no very great importance +attached to our reaching Dunvegan on a given day, but none the less, +this practical experience proved to me very conclusively the +desirability of showing features in broken lines, or otherwise +indicating their uncertainty when they have not been properly fixed. + +It must be confessed, however, that most of the travellers ordinarily to +be found in these unexplored regions, being Indians or hunters, traders +and others travelling under the guidance of Indians, do not depend on +the latitudes and longitudes of places, or on the respective bearings of +one place from another. The Indians follow routes with which they have +been familiar since childhood, or, when beyond the boundaries of their +own particular region of country, go by landmarks, such as mountains, +lakes, and rivers, which have been described to them by their +neighbours. Their memory in this respect is remarkable; but it must be +remembered that among their principal subjects of conversation when +sitting about the camp-fire are the distances in day's journeys from +place to place, the routes which they have followed or have known others +to follow, the difficulties to be encountered on these, the points at +which food of different kinds may be obtained, and the features which +strike them as being remarkable in the country traversed. Returning, +however, from this digression, which began with the statement that +accurate maps of such regions as are at present merely traversed by +traders and Indians, are not imperative from the point of view of such +travellers, it may with confidence be affirmed that such maps and +explorations upon which they are based are absolutely essential to +civilized society, to show in the first place what the natural resources +of these regions are and how they may be utilized, in the second by what +highways such regions may be most easily reached. + +A glance at the map will show, that while many of the larger unexplored +areas may be affirmed to lie to the north of the limit of profitable +agriculture, considerable regions situated to the south of this limit +still await examination. Large districts, again, in which no farmer will +ever voluntarily settle, may afford timber which the world will be glad +to get when the white pine of our nearer forests shall become more +nearly exhausted, while, with respect to mineral resources, it is +probable that in the grand aggregate the value of those which exist in +the unexplored regions will be found, area for area, to be equal to +those of the known regions, comparing each particular geological +formation with its nearest representative. On the grounds alone, +therefore, of geographical knowledge, and of the discovery and +definition of the reserves of the country in timber and minerals, the +exploration of all these unknown or little-known regions may be amply +justified. + +Taking a line drawn north and south in the longitude of the Red River +Valley, which is, as nearly as may be, the centre of Canada from east to +west, it may confidently be stated that by far the larger part of the +country in which agricultural settlement is possible lies to the west, +while the great bulk of the actual population lies to the east of this +line. Looking to this grand fundamental fact, I believe it may safely be +affirmed that some members of this audience will live to see the day +when these conditions with respect to population will be boldly +reversed, and in which the greater number of our representatives in +Parliament gathering here will come from this great western region. + +This disposition of the cultivable land depends partly upon the physical +characteristics of the country, and in part on its climatic conditions. +Beyond Winnipeg, and stretching therefrom to the west and north-west, is +the great area of prairie, plain, and plateau, which, wider near the +forty-ninth parallel than elsewhere on the continent, runs on in one +form or other, though with diminishing width, to the Arctic Ocean. This +is, generally speaking, an alluvial region, and one of fertile soils. +Very fortunately, and as though by a beneficent provision of nature, the +climatic features favour the utilization of this belt. The summer +isothermals, which carry with them the possibility of ripening crops, +trend far to the north. + +Let us trace, for example, and as a rough and ready index of the +northern limit of practicable agriculture of any kind, that isothermal +line which represents a mean temperature of 60° Fahrenheit in the month +of July. Passing through the southern part of Newfoundland and touching +the island of Anticosti, this line runs to the north end of Mistassini +Lake, and thence crosses Hudson's Bay, striking the west shore a short +distance north of York Factory. Thence it runs westward, skirting the +north end of Reindeer Lake, and then bending to the north-west, crosses +Great Slave Lake, and touches the southern extremity of Great Bear Lake. +From this point it resumes a westward course and crosses the Yukon River +a considerable distance to the north of the confluence of the Pelly and +the Lewes, turning south again almost on the east line of Alaska. We +need not, however, further follow its course, as owing to peculiar +climatic conditions on the West Coast, it ceases there to be any +criterion as to the conditions of agriculture. + +The character of much of the western interior country is such that its +exploration and survey is comparatively easy, and it will be observed +that here the larger unknown regions are to be found only far to the +northward, leaving in the more rugged and inhospitable eastern region +vast islands of unexplored country in much more southern latitudes. + +It may be said, in fact, that comparatively little of the region +capable, so far as climate goes, of producing wheat is now altogether +unknown; but it may be added, that increasing as the world now is in +population, its people cannot much longer expect to find wheat-growing +lands unoccupied in large blocks. The time is within measurable distance +when lands with a fertile soil though more or less rigorous climate, in +which only barley, oats, hemp, flax, and other hardy crops can be +matured, will be in demand, and we are far from having acquired even a +good general knowledge of these lands in Canada. + +For many of the unexplored regions marked upon this map, however, we can +in reason appeal only to their possible or presumable mineral wealth as +an incentive to their exploration, and if some of them should prove +wholly or in great part barren when such exploration shall have been +carried out, it will not be without utility to acquire even this +negative information, and write upon them in characters as large as need +be, "No thoroughfare." + +I will now ask your further attention for a few moments while I run over +and make some remarks in detail on the various unexplored areas as +indicated on the map. It must first, however, be explained in what +manner the unexplored areas referred to have been outlined. All lines, +such as those of rivers, chains of lakes, or other travelled routes, +along which reasonably satisfactory explorations have been made and of +which fairly accurate route-maps are in existence, are given an +approximate average width of about fifty miles, or twenty-five miles on +each side of the explorer's or surveyor's track. The known lines are +thus arbitrarily assumed to be wide belts of explored country, and that +which is referred to as unexplored comprises merely the intervening +tracts. By this mode of definition the unexplored regions are reduced to +minimum dimensions. Neither are any comparatively small tracts of +country lying between explored routes included in my enumeration, in +which the least area mentioned is one of 7500 square miles; nor are the +Arctic islands, lying to the north of the continent, referred to. +Because of the empirical mode in which the unexplored areas have thus +been delineated, it has not been attempted to estimate with more than +approximate accuracy the number of square miles contained in each, my +purpose being merely to render apparent the great dimensions of these +areas. + +In enumerating these areas, I shall not refer to the various +explorations and lines of survey by which they are defined and separated +one from another, as this would involve mention of nearly all the +explorers who have traversed the northern part of the continent. I +shall, however, note such excursions as have been made into or across +the regions which are characterized as unexplored. + +Beginning, then, in the extreme north-west of the Dominion, we find +these areas to be as follows:-- + + 1. Area between the eastern boundary of Alaska, the Porcupine + River and the Arctic Coast, 9500 square miles, or somewhat + smaller than Belgium. This area lies entirely within the Arctic + Circle. + + 2. Area west of the Lewes and Yukon Rivers and extending to the + boundary of Alaska, 32,000 square miles, or somewhat larger than + Ireland. This country includes the head-waters of the White and + probably of the Tanana Rivers, and, being comparatively low and + sheltered from the sea by one of the highest mountain-ranges on + the continent, the St. Elias Alps, doubtless possesses some + remarkable peculiarities of climate. + + 3. Area between the Lewes, Pelly, and Stikine Rivers and to the + east of the Coast Ranges, 27,000 square miles, or nearly as + large as Scotland. This has been penetrated only by a few + "prospectors," from whom, and from Indians, the courses of + rivers shown on my maps published in connection with the Yukon + Expedition Report are derived. It lies on the direct line of the + metalliferous belt of the Cordillera, and its low lands are + capable of producing hardy crops. + + 4. Area between the Pelly and Mackenzie Rivers, 100,000 square + miles, or about twice the size of England. This belongs partly + to the Yukon Basin and partly to that of the Mackenzie, and + includes nearly 600 miles in length of the main Rocky Mountain + Range. Many years ago, Mr. A. K. Isbister penetrated the + northern part of this area for some distance on the line of the + Peel River,[1] but owing to the manner in which he had to + travel, but little accuracy can be attributed to his sketch of + that river. Abbé Petitot also made a short journey into its + northern part from the Mackenzie River side, but, with these + exceptions, no published information exists respecting it. + + 5. Area between Great Bear Lake and the Arctic Coast, 50,000 + square miles, or about equal to England in size. Nearly all to + the north of the Arctic Circle. + + 6. Area between Great Bear Lake, the Mackenzie, and the western + part of Great Slave Lake, 35,000 square miles, or larger than + Portugal. With respect to this region and that last mentioned, + it must be explained that I have felt some doubt whether they + should be characterised as unexplored on the basis previously + explained as that which is generally applied. Between 1857 and + 1865, Mr. R. Macfarlane, of the Hudson's Bay Company, carried + out an intelligent and valuable examination of part of the + region north of Great Bear Lake, some results of which have + lately been published,[2] and in both of these areas, between + 1864 and 1871, the indefatigable missionary, Abbé Petitot, made + numerous journeys, of which he subsequently published an + account.[3] As Petitot's instruments consisted merely of a + compass, and a watch which he rated by the meridian passage of + the sun, it must be assumed that his mapping of the country does + not possess any great accuracy. His work, however, considering + the difficulties under which it was performed, is deserving of + all praise, and his several descriptions of the character of + the country traversed are most valuable. It does not appear from + his account of these regions that they are likely to prove of + great utility to civilized man, except as fur-preserves, or + possibly from the minerals which they may contain. He writes: + "Ce pays est composé de contrées silencieuses comme le tombeau, + des plaines vastes comme des départements, des steppes glacés + plus affreux que ceux de la Sibérie, de forêts chétives, + rabougries comme on n'en voit que dans le voisinage des glaciers + du Nord." + + 7. Area between Stikine and Liard Rivers to the north and Skeena + and Peace Rivers to the south, 81,000 square miles, or more than + twice as large as Newfoundland. This includes a portion of the + western Cordillera, and, between the Liard and Peace Rivers, a + large tract of the interior plateau region of the continent, + parts of which, there is reason to believe, consist of good + agricultural land. Its western extremity was crossed in 1866 and + 1867 by the exploratory survey of the Western Union or Collins' + Telegraph Company, then engaged in an attempt to connect the + North American and European telegraph systems through Asia. No + details of this part of their exploration have, however, been + published, and if we may judge from other parts of their line, + since checked, the survey made was of too rough a character to + possess much geographical value. + + 8. Area between Peace, Athabasca, and Loon Rivers, 7500 square + miles, or about half as large as Switzerland. + + 9. Area south-east of Athabasca Lake, 35,000 square miles. This + may be compared in extent to Portugal. + + 10. Area east of the Coppermine River and west of Bathurst + Inlet, 7,500 square miles. This again may be compared to half + the area of Switzerland. + + 11. Area between the Arctic Coast and Back's River, 31,000 + square miles, or about equal to Ireland. + + 12. Area surrounded by Back's River, Great Slave Lake, Athabasca + Lake, Hatchet and Reindeer Lakes, Churchill River, and the west + coast of Hudson's Bay, 178,000 square miles. Much larger than + Great Britain and Ireland, and somewhat larger than Sweden. The + lakes and rivers shown in this great region depend entirely on + the result of the three journeys made by Hearne in 1769-1772.[4] + Hearne really wandered through parts of this region in company + with Indians whom he was unable to control, his ultimate object + (which he at length accomplished) being to reach the Coppermine + River, in order to ascertain for the Hudson's Bay Company + whether it was possible to utilize the native copper found + there. Not even roughly approximate accuracy can be assigned to + his geographical work. Referring to the position of the mouth of + the Coppermine, he writes:--"The latitude may be depended upon + to within 20 miles at the utmost." In reality it afterwards + proved to be 200 miles too far north. This country includes the + great "barren grounds" of the continent, and is the principal + winter resort of the musk-ox as well as of great herds of + caribou. Hearne's general characterization of it is not very + encouraging, but certainly we shall know more about it. He + writes:--"The land throughout the whole tract of country is + scarcely anything but one solid mass of rocks and stones, and in + most parts very hilly, particularly to the westward, among the + woods." The north-eastern extremity of this region was also + crossed by Lieut. Schwatka in the course of his remarkable + journey to King-William Land, but his geographical results + possess little value.[5] + + 13. Area between Severn and Attawapishkat Rivers and the coast + of Hudson's Bay, 22,000 square miles, or larger than Nova + Scotia. Several lakes and rivers are shown upon the maps in this + region in practically identical form since Arrowsmith's map of + 1850, but I have been unable to ascertain the origin of the + information. + + 14. Area between Trout Lake, Lac Seul, and the Albany River, + 15,000 square miles, or about half the size of Scotland. + + 15. Area to the south and east of James Bay, 35,000 square + miles, which also may be compared to the area of Portugal. This + region is the nearest of those which still remain unexplored to + large centres of population. It is probable that much of it + consists of low land which may afford merchantable timber. + + 16. Area comprising almost the entire interior of the Labrador + peninsula or North-east Territory, 289,000 square miles. This is + more than equal to twice the area of Great Britain and Ireland, + with an added area equal to that of Newfoundland. Several lines + of exploration and survey have been carried for a certain + distance into the interior of this great peninsula, among which + may be mentioned those of Professor Hind, Mr. A. P. Low, and Mr. + R. F. Holme.[6] The limits of the unexplored area have been + drawn so as to exclude all these. The area regarded as still + unexplored has, however, it is true, been traversed in several + directions at different times by officers of the Hudson's Bay + Company, particularly on routes leading from the vicinity of + Mingan on the Gulf of St. Lawrence to the head of Hamilton + Inlet, and thence to Ungava Bay. These routes have also, + according to Mr. Holme, been travelled by a missionary, Père + Lacasse; but the only published information which I have been + able to find is contained in a book written by J. McLean,[7] and + in a brief account of a journey by Rev. E. J. Peck.[8] Mr. + McLean made several journeys and established trading-posts + between Ungava and Hamilton Inlet in the years 1838-1841, while + Mr. Peck crossed from Little Whale River, on Hudson Bay, to + Ungava in 1884. Something may be gathered as to the general + nature of the country along certain lines from the accounts + given by these gentlemen, but there is little of a really + satisfactory character, while neither has made any attempt to + fix positions or delineate the features of the region on the + map. In all probability this entire region consists of a rocky + plateau or hilly tract of rounded archæan rocks, highest on the + north-east side and to the south, and sloping gradually down to + low land towards Ungava Bay. It is known to be more or less + wooded, and in some places with timber of fair growth; but if it + should be possessed of any real value, this may probably lie in + its metalliferous deposits. In this tract of country + particularly there is reason to hope that ores like those of + Tilt Cove, in Newfoundland, or those of Sudbury, in Ontario, may + occur. + + To sum up briefly, in conclusion, what has been said as to the + larger unexplored areas of Canada, it may be stated that, while + the entire area of the Dominion as computed at 3,470,257 square + miles, about 954,000 square miles of the continent alone, + exclusive of the inhospitable detached Arctic portions, is for + all practical purposes entirely unknown. In this estimate the + area of the unexplored country is reduced to a minimum by the + mode of definition employed. Probably we should be much nearer + the mark in assuming it as about one million square miles, or + between one-third and one-fourth of the whole. Till this great + aggregate of unknown territory shall have been subjected to + examination, or at least till it has been broken up and + traversed in many directions by exploratory and survey lines, we + must all feel that it stands as a certain reproach to our want + of enterprise and of a justifiable curiosity. In order, however, + to properly ascertain and make known the natural resources of + the great tracts lying beyond the borders of civilization, such + explorations and surveys as are undertaken must be of a truly + scientific character. The explorer or surveyor must possess some + knowledge of geology and botany, as well as such scientific + training as may enable him to make intelligent and accurate + observations of any natural features or phenomena with which he + may come in contact. He must not consider that his duty consists + merely in the perfunctory measuring of lines and the delineation + of rivers, lakes, and mountains. An explorer or surveyor + properly equipped for his work need never return empty-handed. + Should he be obliged to report that some particular district + possesses no economic value whatever, besides that of serving as + a receiver of rain and a reservoir to feed certain + river-systems, his notes should contain scientific observations + on geology, botany, climatology, and similar subjects, which may + alone be sufficient to justify the expenditure incurred. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] _Some account of Peel River, North America_, by A. K. Isbister, +Journ. Roy. Geog. Soc., vol. xv, 1845, p. 332. + +[2] _Canadian Record of Science_, Jan., 1890. + +[3] _Bulletin de la Société de Géographie_, Tom. x, 1875. + +[4] _A Journey from Prince of Wales Fort, in Hudson's Bay, to the +Northern Ocean_, 1796. + +[5] _Schwatka's Search_, by H. W. Gilder. + +[6] _Explorations in Labrador_, 1863; Annual Report Geol. Surv. Can., +1887-88, Part. J; Proc. Royal Geog. Soc., 1888; Ott. Nat., Vol. iv. + +[7] _Notes of a Twenty-five Years' Service in the Hudson's Bay +Territory_. London, 1849. + +[8] _Church Missionary Intelligencer_, June, 1886; Proc. Roy. Geog. +Soc., 1887, p. 192. + + + + +APPENDIX II + + +I have to thank the authorities at Kew for the following list of a small +collection of flowering plants that I found growing in the Barren +Ground, chiefly in the neighbourhood of the head-waters of the Great +Fish River. + + _Draba nivalis_, Liljebl.? + _Oxytropis campestris_, L. (yellow and purple varieties). + _Potentilla nivea_, L. + _Dryas integrifolia_, L. + _Saxifraga tricuspidata_, Retz. + _Epilobium latifolium_, L. + _Arnica angustifolia_, Vahl. + _Taraxacum palustre_, DC. + _Vaccinium uliginosum_, L. + _Cassiope tetragona_, L. + _Andromeda polifolia_, L. + _Phyllodoce taxifolia_, Salisb. (_Menziesia cærulea_, Wahl.). + _Ledum palustre_, L. + _Loiseleuria procumbens_, Desv. + _Rhododendron lapponicum_, L. + _Kalmia glauca_, L. + _Diapensia lapponica_, L. + _Pedicularis hirsuta_, L. + _Pedicularis lapponica_, L. + + + + +INDEX + + + Alaska, Southern, 231. + + Alberta, its prairies remembered, 196; + an election of its representative, 298. + + America, the Eastern States of, 256. + + Anderson, Mr., his route referred to, vi, 36, 63, 151, 152, 171, + 185, 196, 215. + + Arnavatn, in Iceland, 42. + + Arctic exploration, its records, 47. + + Arctic flowers, 187. + + Arctic fox, shot at, 40. + + Arctic hare, described, 68. + + Arctic Ocean or Sea, v, 4, 12, 20, 63, 64, 65, 178, 205, 214, 265; + the best route to, 221. + + Arctic regions, no extraordinary thickness of clothes required in + them, 104. + + Arrowsmith's map, compared with that issued by the Dominion + Government, 216. + + Artillery Lake, 220, 221, 224. + + Athabasca district, 63, 235; + its limits, 12. + + Athabasca Lake, 15, 16, 68, 231, 235; + reached by Mr. Pike, 13; + its produce, 13, 14. + + Athabasca River, v, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 11, 17, 36, 231, 293; + the landing, 4, 297. + + Aylmer Lake, or the Lake of the Big Cliffs, 64, 178, 179, 180, 191, + 213, 216, 221. + + + Back, Sir George, vi, 36, 151, 180, 185, 215; + his map, 200. + + Back's, or the Great Fish, River, _see_ Great Fish River. + + Baptiste, little, _see_ Beaulieu, Baptiste. + + Baptiste Testerwich, a half-breed Iroquois, 253, 255, 258, 292, 294; + his daughters, the "belles" of Hudson's Hope, 258. + + Barren Ground, The, v, vi, 14, 15, 19, 23, 35, 48, 54, 55, 58, 63, + 65, 75, 80, 84, 88, 89, 90, 91, 94, 96, 97, 99, 102, 110, 116, + 122, 126, 130, 137, 143, 168, 174, 176, 177, 196, 209, 221, 225, + 232, 271, 300, 302; + Mr. Pike's various expeditions to it, 19-77, 99-128, 164-228; + Mr. Pike's advice to future travellers there, 24; + its mosses and lichens, 42; + it produces one species of _Cervidæ_, 47; + its birds, 175; + exploration in it is ceasing, 185; + its animals, 198, 199; + Mr. Pike longs to return to it, 301; + a list of its flowers, 320. + + Barrow, Thomas, 257, 261, 290, 291, 292; + his house or cabin, 259, 281, 288, 289. + + Bathurst Inlet, 120, 191, 197, 204, 208. + + Battle River reached, 248. + + Beaulieu, Baptiste, a son of King Beaulieu, 33, 89. + + Beaulieu, François, a son of King Beaulieu, 22, 39, 43, 61, 79, 93, + 97, 135, 136, 137, 139, 141. + + Beaulieu, José, brother of King Beaulieu, 234. + + Beaulieu, José, a son of King Beaulieu, 22, 61, 91, 92, 136, 137, + 236; + his love-affairs, 245. + + Beaulieu, King, a French half-breed and guide, 19, 32, 38, 41, 61, + 66, 71, 72, 81, 82, 83, 90, 94, 95, 97, 101, 102, 128, 135, + 166, 233; + his character, 19, 23, 24; + his father and sons, 22, 23; + he calls the snow _le couvert du bon Dieu_, 62; + a lake is called after him, 62; + his cleverness, 73; + his opinions and anecdotes, 83-88; + he refuses to join the second musk-ox hunt, 97. + + Beaulieu, Paul, a son of King Beaulieu, 22, 39, 43, 61, 70, 79, 92, + 93, 97, 101, 103, 108, 111, 118, 130. + + Beaulieu, Pierre, a brother of King Beaulieu, 148, 149, 233. + + Beaulieus, the, 33, 64, 77, 134, 136, 138; + their character, 23; + they are not agreeable to live with, 126; + the final settlement with them, 147; + they apparently try to damage Mr. Pike's chances of success, 168. + + Beaulieus, the young, the sons of King Beaulieu, 22, 38. + + Beaver tribe dying out, 253. + + Beavers, their actions mould geography, 155; + an account of the other animals found in their country, 156, 157. + + Beaver Indians, their language, 251. + + Beechey Lake, 190, 204, 205. + + Biche, Lake La, 6. + + Big Lake, 131. + + Big River, the usual native name for the Slave River, 26. + + Blackfeet, the, 3, 132. + + Blue hills in the distance tempt one to push on, 207. + + Bloody Falls, the, 152. + + Boiler Rapid, the, 9. + + Boiling, the favourite method of cooking, 55. + + British Columbia, _see_ Columbia. + + Brick, Mr., a farmer of Smoky River, 244, 296; + his mission, 249; + his son, 295, 301. + + Buffalo bands, 156; + a hunt for, 154-159. + + Bull-dogs, "a cross between a bee and a blue-bottle," an annoyance + to the horses, 3. + + Bull's Head, the, 256, 289. + + + Calgary, ix, 2, 3, 11, 298, 299; + left in June, 1889, 1. + + California, 256. + + Camp, a good, 40, 126. + + Campbell, Mr., 228. + + Camsell Lake, 43, 46, 61, 76, 80, 128. + + Camsell, Mr., in charge of the Mackenzie River district, 20, 22, 231. + + Canada, Eastern, 13. + + Cannicannick Berry used for tobacco, 31. + + Canoe, a birch-bark, is a "pretty poetical thing," 197. + + Cap, the, 250. + + Capot Blanc, an Indian, 140, 168, 171, 172, 176, 181, 182, 185, 187, + 188, 191, 213. + + Carcajou, the, is a cunning beast, 57. + + Caribou, the, sometimes found near the Fond du Lac, 14; + Mr. Pike's prospect of finding it, 32; + he finds some bands, 43, 64, 72, 76, 89, 108; + _Et-then, Et-then!_ the cry on the sight of it, 44; + the methods of cooking it, 44-46; + it is the one specimen of _Cervidæ_ found in the Barren Ground, + 47; + its different species described, 47, 48; + killed by Esquimaux, 56; + some details of its appearance and habits, 48-60; + the methods of freezing it, 67; + it is killed by women and boys, 76; + the cry, _La Foule, La Foule!_ when a band is in sight, 89; + the most remarkable passage of caribou seen by Mr. Pike, 91. + + Caribou diggings, 256. + + Caribou-eaters, 19. + + Caribou gold-fields, 231. + + Caribou mountains, 239, 241. + + Carquoss, an Indian, 190, 197. + + Cassiar mining district, 231. + + Catholics, all half-breeds are, 41. + + Charlie, a half-breed from Quesnelle, 258, 260, 266, 270, 272, 273, + 276, 277, 283, 285, 286, 288, 289, 293, 294; + his character, 292. + + Chesterfield Inlet, 210. + + Chinook wind, the, 259. + + Chipeweyan Fort, the head-post of the Athabasca district, 5, 12, + 150, 163, 231, 234, 235, 238, 241, 245; + its history and present life, 13-15; + trout-lines may be worked there, 14; + the appearance of the country changes on leaving it, 16. + + Chipeweyan language, 26, 251. + + Christie's Bay, 30. + + Civilisation is degenerating, 299. + + Clark, Mr., arrives as Mr. Mackinlay's substitute, 163, 164. + + Clearwater River, the main route to the North, 11, 12. + + Clinton Golden Lake, or the Lake where the caribou swim among + the ice, 216, 220, 223; + described, 217, 218. + + Columbia, British, 231, 265. + + Company, the, _see_ Hudson's Bay Company. + + Cooking, the favourite method is boiling, 55. + + Cooper, Fenimore, 129. + + Coppermine River, 64, 65, 67, 72, 108, 110, 152; + the Bloody Falls of, 152. + + Corbeau, Lac du, 43. + + Country, the, its nature between Calgary and Edmonton, 1, 2; + and after leaving Chipeweyan, 16, 17. + + Crees, the, 3, 132; + their language the medium of conversation on the Athabasca, 11; + their lodges passed, 241. + + Cree-speaking belt, 26; + left by Mr. Pike, 251. + + Cries: that on the sight of caribou, _Et-then, Et-then!_, 44; + on the sight of a band of caribou, _La Foule, La Foule!_, 89; + to awake a camp, _He lève, lève, il faut partir!_, 122; + that of _Hi hi he, Ho hi he_, to bring out the stars, 123. + + + Dakota blizzard, brought to Mr. Pike's mind by his experience of + wind, 88. + + David, the Esquimaux, 162, 206, 210, 211, 271, 276; + falls in love with the daughter of King Beaulieu, 168; + a keen hunter, 180; + his first summer outside the Arctic circle, 207. + + Davis, Twelvefoot, 256, 257. + + Dease Lake, 230. + + Deluge, King Beaulieu's story of the, 85-88. + + Dog-rib tribes, the, 32, 53, 60, 85, 90, 95, 195; + a spot on their history, 72; + they gamble with the Yellow-knives, 167; + they are more amenable than the Yellow-knives, 300. + + Dogs are a trouble in winter travelling from their need of much + food, 149. + + Dominion Day, a Canadian anniversary, 182. + + Dominion government's map, 216. + + Dunvegan, 245, 249, 250, 253, 292, 295, 296. + + Dupire, Father, in charge of the Catholic mission at Fort + Resolution, 144, 149. + + + Edmonton, 2, 295, 297, 298; + the starting point for the territory of Hudson's Bay Company, 1; + an election at, 298. + + Enemy, the, 81, 187. + + Enemy, the Lake of the, 80, 127. + + English is little spoken in the north, 11. + + English Channel, the, 229. + + Enterprise Fort, 65. + + Esquimaux, the, 186, 192, 195, 196, 204, 208, 211; + they also kill the caribou, 56; + they are dreaded by the Indians, 151, 152; + presents for them, 164, 167, 209; + signs of their camp, 201-205. + + Etitchula, the Indian, 135, 136. + + _Et-then, Et-then!_ the cry on the sight of the caribou, 44. + + Euclid's methods, 275. + + Expedition, the object of Mr. Pike's, v, vi, 70; + the ceremony of commemorating one, 228. + + + Fat, Antoine, a blind Indian, 176. + + Fat, Pierre, a blind Indian, 176; + he appreciates scenery, 178. + + Findlay River, 260, 263, 265, 268, 276, 280, 295; + its rapids, 264, 265, 281; + its source, 265. + + Flett, Mr., and his family, passengers down the Athabasca, 5; + in charge of Fort Smith, 234. + + Fond du Lac, 12, 14, 15, 28, 31, 32, 38, 40, 57, 61, 62, 79, 91, + 92, 93, 96, 97, 101, 104, 120, 130, 134, 135, 136, 137, 139, + 141, 144, 148, 163, 164, 166, 167, 168, 171, 176; + described, 32; + women and children left there, 33. + + Fogs, effect of, 108. + + Forest fires, 1. + + France is not sighed for by the priest of an Indian encampment, 232. + + François, _see_ Beaulieu, François. + + François the little, conducts a buffalo hunt, 154-160; + his wife, 161. + + Franklin, Sir John, vi, 36, 77, 185, 205; his expedition, 63; + his wintering-place, 65. + + Fraser Lake, 258. + + Fraser River, 231, 256. + + French-Canadians, their _chansons_ dying out, 10. + + French patois of the Red River and the North, 11, 26. + + + Gold-dust is to be found by the Peace River, 252. + + Good Hope, Fort, 300. + + Government, motherly, defied, 3. + + _Grahame_, the steamer, 12, 16. + + _Grand Pays_, the half-breeds' name for the outside world, 82, 150. + + Grand Traverse, the, 141, 142. + + Grand Rapids, not reached by the steamer, 5; + reached by Mr. Pike, 7; + a description of the channel and its passage, 8-11. + + Gras, Lac de, 64, 70, 108, 109, 121, 175. + + Grease longed for in the cold, 55. + + Great Bear Lake, 68. + + Great Fish or Back's River, 36, 64, 115, 151, 152, 162, 164, 168, + 171, 180, 184, 185, 188, 204, 205, 221. + + Great Slave Lake, _see_ Slave Lake. + + Great Slave River, _see_ Slave River. + + Gros Cap, 148. + + Gunn, Mr., of St. John's, 251; + he knew Beaver Indian tongue, 252. + + + Half-breeds are all Catholics, 41. + + Half-way River, 251. + + Halket Fort, 231. + + Hanging Rock, the Lake of, 93. + + Hardistay, Mr. Frank, 296. + + Hay River, 156. + + Hearne, Mr., vi, 36, 152; + his _Journey to the Northern Ocean_, 50. + + _Hi hi he, Ho hi he!_ the cry for the stars, 123. + + _Ho lève, lève, il faut partir!_ the cry for arousing a camp, 122. + + Hood, vi. + + Hospitality is in inverse proportion to a man's means, 143. + + Hudson's Bay, 48, 50, 223. + + Hudson's Bay Company, or The Company, v, 1, 3, 14, 50, 52, 82, 83, + 84, 99, 131, 156, 197, 210, 226, 228, 231, 238, 240, 250, + 253, 296; + Mr. Pike's gratitude to the officers of, for their hospitality, + viii, 142, 143; + one of their early trading posts, 2; + their steamers are well-managed, 17; + they bring a certain amount of civilisation, 25; + their duffel _capotes_, 52; + their compressed tea not good to smoke, 136; + they are fair to the Indians, 242, 243. + + Hudson's Bay Fort on Macleod's Lake, 260. + + Hudson's Hope, 249, 250, 252, 265, 291, 294, 295; + visited, 253-257. + + + Iceland, 42. + + Inconnu, a fish found only in the Mackenzie River, 29. + + "Indian, the burnt," his bad luck, 221, 222. + + Indians, the great northern territory is their hunting-ground, 1; + they are more easily managed than the half-breeds, 7; + they are sent from Locheaux to man the "inland boats," 7; + they cannot find their way in snow, 122; + they are very improvident, 131, seq.; + they are peaceable by nature, 145; + they dread the Esquimaux, 152; + their women quarrel, 172; + they imitate birds very well, 172; + some of them show themselves much interested in the skin of a + seal, an animal they had never seen, 202; + they have a stupid love of killing, 209; + intoxicating drink may not be given to them, 226. + + Inland boats described, 6. + + + John, 258, 268, 270, 271, 276, 277, 278, 280, 281, 283, 285, 288, + 292; + he visits Mr. Pike, 246-254; + his character, 246, 247. + + John, Saint, _see_ Saint John. + + José, _see_ Beaulieu, José. + + José, the brother-in-law of Zinto, 171, 173. + + + Kennedy, Alick, a good _voyageur_, 295. + + Khartoum, 296. + + King, _see_ Beaulieu, King. + + King Lake, 62, 127. + + + Labrador tea, 41, 194, 275, 283. + + _La Foule, la Foule!_ the cry on the sight of a caribou band, 89. + + Languages, those of the North, 11; + those beyond the Cree-speaking belt on the Mackenzie, 26. + + Lard, Lac du, 36. + + Lawrence, Mr., a farmer of Vermillion, 244. + + Lesser Slave Lake, 4, 6, 249, 250, 261, 292, 296, 297. + + Liard River, 155, 156, 230, 231, 251. + + Little Buffalo River, 145, 158; + it is impregnated with sulphur, 158. + + Little Red River, in Athabasca district, 12; + its beautiful scenery, 240. + + Little River, 266, 276. + + Little Slave River, 145, 297. + + Locheaux language, 26. + + Lockhart's house, 164. + + Lockhart's or Outram River, 63, 64, 70, 178, 179, 212, 214, 215, + 224; + different opinions of its route, 216. + + Lockhart, Pierre, a guide, 164, 171. + + Lower Peace River, 235. + + Lynx and rabbits, their periodic dying out, 293. + + + Macdonald, Ewen, the chief of the Peace River district, 250. + + Macdonald, Walter, son of Ewen MacDonald, 261, 291, 294, 296. + + Macdougall, 228. + + Macfarlane, 228. + + Mackay, Dr., in charge of the Athabasca district, 12, 17, 18, 63, + 240; + a visit from him, 150, 151; + he sends presents, 163; + he is absent, 235; + he is met by Mr. Pike, 238. + + Mackay, Lake, or the Lake of the Hanging Rock, 63, 64, 70, 72, 75, + 80, 89, 92, 99, 106, 125, 178, 179, 220; + described, 63. + + Mackay, Mr., a Company's clerk, 7, 8. + + Mackay, Murdo, a servant at Fort Resolution who accompanies + Mr. Pike, 146, 151, 162, 206, 233, 236, 239, 246, 247, 258, 270, + 273, 278, 282, 283, 292. + + Mackenzie, Sir Alex., 13, 253. + + Mackenzie River, or _La Grande Rivière en Bas_, v, 4, 10, 18, 19, + 20, 36, 48, 50, 60, 142, 180, 230, 233, 265, 300; + its origin, 16; + the languages spoken along its banks, 26. + + Mackinlay, Mr., in charge of Fort Resolution, 22, 144, 148, 162, + 189, 193, 197, 206, 209, 213, 228, 233, 234; + joins Mr. Pike in expedition to the Barren Ground, 151. + + Mackinlay, Mrs., 144. + + Macleod, Fort, 266, 271, 277, 278. + + Macleod's Lake, 231, 237, 254, 258, 259, 261, 266, 276, 291, 295; + Hudson's Bay Fort on it, 260. + + Macleod's River, 266, 271, 273, 276. + + MacMurray, Fort, 7; + Mr. Pike starts for it, 9; + reaches it, 11; + it is the most southerly post of the Athabasca district, 12; + it is near some natural tar deposits, 13. + + Mandeville, François, the brother of Michel Mandeville, 225. + + Mandeville, Michel, the interpreter at Fort Resolution, 146, 148, + 151. + + Mandeville, Moise, the brother of Michel Mandeville, who joins + Mr. Pike, 151, 162, 168, 179, 183, 197; + is a good steersman, 198. + + Maps, those of Mr. Pike are not very accurate, vii. + + Marble Island, 210. + + Marlo, the brother of Zinto, 97, 102, 111, 114, 116, 134, 139, 168, + 181, 190, 197. + + Michel, a son-in-law of King Beaulieu, 33, 46, 61, 92, 93, 97, 104, + 110, 130, 134, 139. + + Misère, Point de, 67, 72, 78, 108. + + Mission Island, 144, 228, 229, 230. + + Moberley's Lake, 292, 294. + + Moise, _see_ Mandeville, Moise. + + Montaignais dialect of Chipeweyan language, 26. + + Moose Island, 144. + + Mort, Lac de, 37, 92, 134. + + Mouse chased for a caribou, 107. + + Murdo, _see_ Mackay, Murdo. + + Muskeg country ends at the Point of Rocks, 27. + + Musk-ox, 69, 70; + the object of Mr. Pike's journey, v, vi; + to be sought on the Barren Ground, 23; + the first killed, 69; + birds seen during the hunt for them, 68; + an expedition in search of them, 61 seq.; + a band of them, 113; + the method of slaughtering them is unpleasant, 116; + their horns described, 119; + a description of a hunt for them, 181-183; + they are said to understand the Yellow-knife language, 183; + advice to hunters of them, 300, 301. + + Musk-ox, the giant, 81. + + Musk-ox Lake, 185, 186, 187, 188, 194, 212, 214. + + Musk-ox Mountain, 188; + it is the limit of the Yellow-knives' hunting-ground, 186. + + + Nation River, 291. + + Nelson Fort, 156, 251. + + New Year's Day, an occasion of trade, 139, 146. + + Nile, the, 296. + + Noel, an Indian, who joins Mr. Pike's expedition, 97, 111, 112, 115, + 181, 190, 197, 205, 217. + + Northern Packet, the, 150. + + North-West Company, the, 14. + + + Old Wives' Lake, 296. + + Omineca, 265, 291. + + Orkney Island, 5. + + Ottawa, 13, 244, 298. + + Outram River, _see_ Lockhart's River. + + + Pacific, Canadian Railway, 11, 271. + + Pacific Coast, 209; + routes to, 231. + + Pacific Ocean, 265. + + Paradox gun, its uses, 137, 138. + + Parsnip River, 260, 263, 266, 267, 270, 271, 276, 277, 291, 295; + its source, 265; + its method of freezing, 268. + + Pat, a Sicannee, 258, 260, 266, 271, 272, 273, 274, 276, 277, 283, + 286, 292, 293, 294, 295. + + Paul, _see_ Beaulieu, Paul. + + Peace River, 4, 16, 155, 156, 209, 231, 237, 240, 242, 244, 245, + 246, 248, 249, 251, 252, 253, 256, 265, 293, 294, 297; + one of the easiest northern waterways, 238; + farmers should not be tempted to it, 244-246; + gold-dust is found on its banks, 252. + + Peace River, the Lower, 236. + + Peace River Pass, 278, 285, 301. + + Peel's River, a tributary of the Mackenzie, 20, 162. + + Peel's River Fort, 208. + + Peter, an Indian, who joined Mr. Pike's expedition, 97, 111, 115, + 116. + + Pike, Mr. Warburton: the object of his journey is to see the + musk-ox, v, vi; + his conveyance and outfit, 1; + he starts from Calgary for Edmonton, the entrance of the Hudson's + Bay Company's territory, 1; + his French half-breed driver, 2, 3; + he reaches Athabasca Landing and starts down the river, 4; + he reaches the island at the head of the Grand Rapids, 7; + he starts for MacMurray Fort, 9, and reaches it, 11; + he reaches Athabasca Lake, 13; + he starts for Fort Smith, on the Great Slave Lake, 16, and + reaches it, 18; + he makes preparations for the actual journey to the Barren Ground, + and engages the Beaulieu family as guides and servants, 19; + he leaves the Company's main route at Fort Resolution, 24; + he takes too few provisions, 25; + the details of his outfit, his fleet, and his companions, 25, 26; + he picks up a little of the Montaignais dialect, 26; + he encamps in the delta of the Slave River, 26, 27; + he reaches Fond du Lac, 31, where the women, children, and as much + baggage as possible are left behind, 33; + he leaves the Great Slave Lake, and contemplates the country + he has just left and that towards which he is journeying, 35; + he takes a new route and names new lakes, 36; + a good caribou hunt, 43 seq.; + he approaches the genuine Barren Ground, 46; + a chapter on the caribou, 47-60; + he makes an expedition from Lake Camsell in search of the musk-ox, + 61; + he shoots his first musk-ox, 69, 70; + he concludes that it would be reckless to push further North, + and turns back, 71; + he reaches Lake Camsell again, 76; + plans for the next musk-ox hunt, 79; + King Beaulieu's theories and anecdotes, 81-88; + a remarkable passage of the caribou, 89-91; + a visit of the chief Zinto and his followers, 93; + arrangements for the second musk-ox hunt, 96, 97; + he starts, 99; + his first winter camp in the Barren Ground, 101-104; + a description of the country, 105-110; + he is in difficulties for food, 110; + the musk-ox come in sight and are killed, 112-116; + the land of the musk-ox, 117; + another band of musk-ox killed, 118; + their horns described, 119; + the return road is lost in the snow, 122, but found the next + morning, 123; + he reaches Lake Camsell again and goes on towards Fond du Lac, + 128; + he visits Zinto's camp, 129 seq.; + he sleeps at Fond du Lac on his road to the Great Slave Lake, 139; + he is joined by more Indians, 140, 141; + he reaches Fort Resolution and comparative civilisation, 143; + some account of the Fort, 143-147; + he makes a small expedition for caribou with Mackinlay, 148; + he makes plans for a summer trip to the Barren Ground, 150 seq.; + he goes on a short buffalo hunt with Mackinlay, 154-162; + the difficulties in starting for the Barren Ground, 162, 163; + he leaves Fort Resolution,164; + he leaves the great Slave Lake with Mackinlay and some of the + Indians, 174; + a new method of hunting the musk-ox, 181; + he makes little expeditions, one with Capot Blanc, 187 seq.; + a division of the party before going further down the Great + Fish River, 190; + Syene, the medicine man, prophesies, 191 seq.; + two of the Indians desert, 197; + he turns up-stream, 204; + he explores a new tributary, 205-208; + he leaves presents in a deserted Esquimaux camp, 209; + the return journey, 216-230; + he cannot stay long at Fort Resolution, and makes plans for + his journey up-stream, to cross the Rocky Mountains, + and if possible reach the Pacific, 231; + he decides between the routes and starts, 232; + he enters Athabasca Lake, 235; + he camps at Quatre Fourches, 237; + he turns westward up the Peace River, 238; + he reaches Vermillion Fort, 241; + his difficulties in getting a crew, 245 seq.; + he reaches Dunvegan, 249, and St. John's, 251; + he leaves the Cree-speaking belt and enters that of the + Beaver Indians, 251; + his first glimpse of the Rockies, 252; + he reaches Hudson's Hope, 253; + he camps at the head of the Cañon, 258; + a change in the wind prevents his making use of sleighs, 259; + he begins a more detailed account of his winter in the Rockies, + 260; + a dangerous journey to the Findlay Rapids, 263, 264; + a glance at his geographical position, 265; + he discovers that the road is lost, 272 seq.; + a search for food, 274; + he begins to retrace his way, 276; + his decision concerning the Indians who steal the rations, 284, + 285; + he reaches Tom Barrow's house, 290; + he leaves Hudson's Hope for Edmonton, 295, + which he reaches during an election, 298; + he writes the last words in St. James's Street, giving advice + to musk-ox hunters and longing for the Barren Ground, 299 seq. + + Pierre, _see_ Beaulieu, Pierre. + + Pierre, Blind, _see_ Fat, Pierre. + + Pierre the Fool, 218, 219, 223, 224; + his description of the country east of Clinton Golden Lake, 223. + + Pierre, an Indian boy, the son of little François, 159. + + Pierre, Ile de, 141, 142, 166, 229; + a good spot for fishing, 27. + + Pine River, 294. + + Pine River Pass, 292. + + Poplar Rapid, 262, 265, 287. + + Portage, the Long, 12; + the work of portaging described, 17, 18. + + "Prairie, the bald-headed," a term of the cattlemen, 2. + + Proverb of the North, a, 267. + + Ptarmigan plentiful, 44. + + Ptarmigan Lake, 219. + + + Quatre Fourches, 16, 237. + + Quesnelle, 231, 246, 250, 258, 271, 292. + + + Rabbit and lynx, their periodic decease, 293. + + Rae, Dr., vi. + + Rae, Fort, 95, 148, 167, + a good starting-point for the Barren Ground, 299. + + Raven, a superstition concerning the, 66. + + Red-deer, the stream of, 2. + + Reid, Mr., of Fort Province, told King Beaulieu that the earth went + round the sun, 83. + + Resolution, Fort, on the Great Slave Lake, the northern limit of + the Athabasca district, 12, 22, 24, 50, 59, 97, 130, 150, 154, + 163, 167, 185, 210, 225, 227, 228, 230, 232, 233; + Mr. Pike returns to it, 143; + its history and present life, 144, 145; + it is not perhaps the best starting-point for the Barren Ground, + 300. + + Richardson, vi. + + Riel, Louis, his rebellion, 83. + + Rocher, Lac du, 38, 39, 63, 73, 91, 128; + it is a haunt of the caribou, 39; + trout are caught in it, 39; + its products and geological structure, 41, 42; + it is like the desert of Arnavatn in Iceland, 42. + + Rocks, Point of, the end of the Muskeg country, 27. + + Rocky Mountains, the, v, ix, 1, 143, 155, 209, 231, 237, 238, 241, + 248, 250, 260, 265, 272, 281, 291, 294; + the first glimpse of, 252, 253; + Mr. Pike's attempt to cross them, 232-272. + + Round, Mr., in charge of Dunvegan, 250. + + + Saint James's Street, 299. + + Saint John, Fort, often called St. John's, 156, 249, 251, 252, 253, + 294, 295. + + Salt River, 19, 21. + + Saltatha, an Indian who joins Mr. Pike's expedition, 97, 109, 111, + 112, 114, 115, 120, 122, 123, 168, 171, 172, 193, 195, 197, 202, + 203, 208, 217, 219, 226; + his energy, 105, 190; + his character, 115; + his illness and its cure by brandy, 211, 227; + his friendly parting with Mr. Pike, 232; + his answer to the priest concerning the beauties of heaven, 302. + + Sandy Bay, 180, 275. + + Saskatchewan River, 2, 4. + + Shooting etiquette must be abandoned among the Indians, 159. + + Sicannee fashion of burying, 269, 279. + + Simpson, Fort, 230. + + Simpson, Mr. Scott, in charge of river transport, 6. + + Simpson, Sir G., 253. + + Simpson's group of islands, 28. + + Slave or Great Slave Lake, vii, 13, 15, 16, 20, 21, 25, 36, 40, 41, + 42, 44, 48, 50, 63, 68, 84, 85, 88, 131, 148, 155, 156, 172, + 176, 178, 191, 213, 215, 218, 219, 221, 223, 225, 228, 242, 248, + 300, 301; + Mr. Pike's journey on, finished, 34; + his last view of, 35; + the vegetation on its banks, 30, 31; + it is a charming place to live on, 232. + [There is a Lesser Slave Lake, _see_ "Lesser."] + + Slave or Big River, 16, 26, 48, 142, 233, 238; + its rapids, 12; + described, 21; + its wild-fowl, 27. + [There is also a Little Slave River, _see_ "Little."] + + Slavi language, 26. + + Sleighs of the North described, 99-101. + + Smith, Fort, in Athabasca district, 12, 21, 29, 48, 145, 156, 158, + 161, 163, 231, 234, 236, 245; + Mr. Pike starts for it, 16; + the game near it, 18; + described, 18. + + Smoking, the Company's compressed tea not recommended, 136. + + Smoky River, a tributary of the Peace, 249, 295, 296. + + Snow, called _le couvert du bon Dieu_ by Beaulieu, 62; + prevents the Indians from finding their way, 122. + + Snow-blindness, its cause and cures, 175. + + Stars, supposed to be brought out by the cry _Hi hi he, Ho hi he_, + 123. + + Stewart, Mr., vi, 36, 63, 171, 184, 195. + + Sunday wash, the, 79. + + Superstitions, concerning the caribou, 59; + and miracles, 133. + + Syene, an Indian medicine man, 152, 168, 222; + he prophesies, 191, 192. + + Syene, Mrs., assists at the prophesying, 191. + + + Tête Jaune Pass, 293. + + Tête Noire's House, 166. + + Thomas, an Indian, the brother of Zinto, 141; + he is a good guide, 142. + + Tobacco, is missed more than tea, 120, 121; + the various kinds in use among the Indians, 31; + it may be made from Cannicannick berry, 31. + + + Vermillion, Fort, in Athabasca district, 12, 156, 236, 238, 240, + 241, 242, 247, 248, 249; + described, 241-244. + + + Walls of meat, as in a fairy tale, 76, 77. + + Whisky Jack, the ways of the, 134, 135. + + William, an Indian who joined Mr. Pike's expedition, 97, 111, + 112, 114. + + Willows pulled up for firewood, 121. + + Wilson, Mr., of Vermillion Fort, 245, 246. + + Winnipeg, vii, 11, 144, 214, 296. + + Wolves and wolverines, 57, 89; + their ways of stealing, 45, 128; + they hunt the caribou, 56, 57. + + Women, given the heaviest loads, 38; + their hard work and usefulness, 81; + they are treated better by half-breeds than by Indians, 82. + + Wood, Mr., in charge of the Athabasca landing, 5. + + Wrangel Fort, 231. + + _Wrigley_, the, a steamer on the Mackenzie, 10, 19, 231, 233; + her make and work, 20. + + + Yellow-knife river, 36, 63. + + Yellow-knife tribe, 32, 37, 48, 53, 60, 66, 72, 85, 86, 92, 95, 96, + 115, 152, 195, 202, 211, 214; + their etiquette in hunts, 111; + their encampment, 131 seq.; + the kind of husband most desired among them, 133; + their dancing, 147, 148; + their gambling with the Dog-Ribs, 167; + their stupidity and cowardice outside their own country, 197; + their language, 213; + they are less amenable than the Dog-Ribs, 300. + + York Boat, its peculiarities, 228, 229. + + York factory, 50. + + + Zinto, a chief of the Yellow-knives, 96, 97, 129, 130; + his visit to Mr. Pike and his speech, 93-95; + his camp and people, 129-134; + he makes promises of help, 152, 153; + but does not fulfil them, 163, 164, 167. + + + + +INDEX TO APPENDIX I + + + Alaska, 309. + + Anticosti, 309. + + Areas in the Dominion of Canada unexplored, 311-319. + + + Canada, 310. + + + Dunvegan, 306. + + + Exploration still possible and useful, 304. + + + Great Bear Lake, 309. + + Great Slave Lake, 309. + + + Hudson's Bay, 309. + + Hudson's Bay Company, 305. + + + Lewes, 309. + + + Macleod Fort, 306. + + Maps proved wrong, 306. + + Mistassini, 309. + + + Newfoundland, 309. + + + Pelly, 309. + + + Red River Valley, 308. + + Reindeer Lake, 309. + + Rocky Mountains, the, 306. + + + Winnipeg, 308. + + + York Factory, 309. + + Yukon River, 309. + + + * * * * * + + + THE WORKS OF + SAMUEL BUTLER + + =The Note-Books of Samuel Butler, Author of "Erewhon."= + Selections arranged and edited by HENRY FESTING JONES. New + Edition, with an Introduction by FRANCIS HACKETT, and a portrait + _net_, $2.00 + + =Alps and Sanctuaries of Piedmont and the Canton Ticino.= New + edition with the author's revisions. Edited by R. A. + STREATFEILD. With 85 drawings chiefly by the author + _net_, 2.00 + + =Life and Habit= + _net_, 1.50 + + =Unconscious Memory.= A new edition with an Introduction by + Prof. MARCUS HARTOG + _net_, 1.50 + + =The Way of All Flesh.= A novel. With an Introduction by WILLIAM + LYON PHELPS + _net_, 1.50 + + =Erewhon, or Over the Range.= With an Introduction by FRANCIS + HACKETT + _net_, 1.50 + + =Erewhon Revisited, Twenty Years Later, both by the Original + Discoverer of the Country and His Son= + _net_, 1.50 + + =Evolution Old and New= + _net_, 1.50 + + =A First Year in Canterbury Settlement= + _net_, 2.00 + + =The Humor of Homer and Other Essays.= Edited by R. A. + STREATFEILD. 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DUTTON AND COMPANY + 681 FIFTH AVENUE NEW YORK CITY + + + + +_The Inspiration of the German People when they awake from their present +Nightmare._ + + The Coming + Democracy + + By HERMANN FERNAU + + An examination, searching and merciless, of Germany's mediæval + dynastic and political system, by the author of "Because I Am a + German," and a demand for reforms which all civilized countries + of the world have enjoyed for decades. + +"The book is one of the most important which the war has +produced."--_The Spectator._ + +"We recommend the book to every serious reader as one of the foremost +books of universal and permanent value thus far inspired by the great +war."--_New York Tribune._ + +"A most remarkable book, an incisive summary of the entire Teutonic +situation, a book whose conclusions are identical with President +Wilson's reply to the Pope."--_Newark Evening Call._ + + Net $2.00 + + E. P. DUTTON AND COMPANY + 681 FIFTH AVENUE NEW YORK CITY + + + + +The +Hill-Towns of France + +BY +EUGÉNIE M. FRYER + + _Illustrated with 50 pen-and-ink drawings by Roy L. Hilton and + over 25 fine photo-engravings._ + +Not a guide-book in the technical sense, and not a history; but a +charming series of descriptive and historical sketches of some of the +most storied, romantic and beautiful places in Europe. + +This superbly illustrated volume deals with the following: + + POITOU: _Poitiers_, _Chauvigny_ & _Uzerche_. + NORMANDY: _Falaise_, _Gaillard_, _Arcques-la-Bataille_ + & _Mont-Saint-Michel_. + BRITTANY: _Saint-Jean-du-Doigt_, _La Faouët_, + _Dinan_ & _Josselin_. + QUERCY: _Cahors_ & _Rocamadour_. + LANGUEDOC: _Najac_, _Carcassonne_ & _Lastours_. + PROVENCE: _Arles_, _Montmajour_ & _Les Baux_. + SAVOIE: _Miolans_. + AUVERGNE: _Le Puy_. + PICARDIE: _Laon_. + LA BEAUCE: _Chartres_. + TOURAINE: _Chinon_, _Amboise_, _Blois_ & _Loches_. + + Net $2.00 + + + E. P. DUTTON AND COMPANY + 681 FIFTH AVENUE NEW YORK CITY + + + + + * * * * * + + + + +Transcriber's note: + +Obvious punctuation errors were corrected. + +Hyphen added: birch[-]bark (p. 38), foot[-]hills (p. ix), mid[-]day (p. +3), north[-]east (p. 65), sand[-]bars (p. 13), snow[-]shoes (pp. 82, +92), south[-]east (p. 30), up[-]stream (p. 209). + +Hyphen removed: back[-]bone (p. 53), cattle[-]men (p. 331), land[-]marks +(p. 307), medicine[-]man (pp. 330, 332), over[-]land (p. 7), pin[-]tail +(p. 175). + +The following words appear both with and without hyphens and have not +been changed: deer[-]skin(s), gun[-]shot, half[-]way, snow[-]drift(s), +snow[-]time, Store[-]room, touch[-]wood, wild[-]fowl, wind[-]bound. + +P. 23: "prosspect" changed to "prospect" (the prospect of finding the +musk-ox). + +P. 41: "buerre" changed to "beurre" (le pain avec le beurre). + +P. 67: "afternon" changed to "afternoon" (well on in the next +afternoon). + +P. 94: "suppose" changed to "supposed" (but supposed there was +some good reason). + +P. 104: "let" changed to "left" (have left us houseless). + +P. 124: "feul" changed to "fuel" (fuel was rapidly vanishing). + +P. 130: "abtruse" changed to "abstruse" (more abstruse subjects). + +P. 131: "scare" changed to "scarce" (when the caribou are scarce). + +P. 142: "sankbanks" changed to "sandbanks" (mostly inside sandbanks). + +P. 143: "semed" changed to "seemed" (How strange it seemed). + +P. 151: "winter" changed to "water" (to descend the Great Fish River +with the first open water). + +P. 187: "debateable" changed to "debatable" (there was a debatable +ground). + +P. 191: "tighty" changed to "tightly" (tightly-stretched deer-skin). + +P. 216: "was" changed to "we" (we passed into the short stretch of +river). + +P. 221: "roughtly" changed to "roughly" (we reckoned roughly). + +P. 226: "given" changed to "give" (forbids a white man to give an +Indian). + +P. 238: "and" deleted (end in dry sand [and] instead of running). + +P. 244: "hgher" changed to "higher" (higher up at Smoky River). + +P. 249: "Lukily" changed to "Luckily" (Luckily whitefish are very +plentiful). + +P. 321: "Baptiste Testerwick" changed to "Baptiste Testerwich". + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 40019 *** |