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diff --git a/old/69432-0.txt b/old/69432-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index dad4d82..0000000 --- a/old/69432-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3532 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of David Thompson--the explorer, by -Charles Norris Cochrane - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: David Thompson--the explorer - -Author: Charles Norris Cochrane - -Release Date: November 26, 2022 [eBook #69432] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Al Haines - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID THOMPSON--THE -EXPLORER *** - - - - - - - -[Illustration: THIS MAP WILL HELP YOU TO UNDERSTAND (left half)] - - - -[Illustration: DAVID THOMPSON'S JOURNEYS (right half)] - - - - CANADIAN MEN OF ACTION--NUMBER II. - - The Series edited by W. Stewart Wallace, Librarian - of the University of Toronto. - - - DAVID THOMPSON - - - - - DAVID THOMPSON - - THE EXPLORER - - BY - - CHARLES NORRIS COCHRANE - - Associate Professor of Ancient History, - University College, Toronto - - - - TORONTO - THE MACMILLAN COMPANY OF CANADA LIMITED - 1924 - - - - - Copyright, Canada, 1924 - - BY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY OF CANADA LIMITED - - - Printed in Canada - - - - -PREFATORY NOTE - -I wish to acknowledge the great debt which I owe to Mr. J. B. Tyrrell -for the use of material contained in his edition of Thompson's -_Narrative_. - -It was Mr. Tyrrell who first rescued the name of Thompson from the -undeserved oblivion into which it had sunk. Those who are familiar -with his introduction and notes, will recognize how largely I have -borrowed from them in preparing this short life. - -C. N. C. - -June 1924. - - - - -CONTENTS - - -I APPRENTICED TO THE COMPANY 1770-1786 - -II HE FINDS HIS MÉTIER 1786-1791 - -III TRADER, SURVEYOR, EXPLORER 1791-1797 - -IV WITH THE NORTH-WESTERS 1797-1798 - -V EIGHT YEARS OF TRADING 1798-1806 - -VI ACROSS THE GREAT DIVIDE 1806-1810 - -VII THE RACE TO THE SEA 1810-1812 - -VIII LAST YEARS 1812-1857 - - - - -DAVID THOMPSON - - - -CHAPTER I - -APPRENTICED TO THE COMPANY - -On the 30th of December, 1783, the Governors of the Grey Coat School -at Westminster, England, received from the secretary of the Hudson's -Bay Company a request for four boys, trained in navigation, to be -apprenticed to the Company for service at their posts in America. At -that time, there were in the school but two boys so qualified--Samuel -John McPherson and David Thompson. The one was so terrified by the -prospect of perils and hardships unknown, that within a week he ran -away from the school and was heard of no more. The other accepted -the destiny for which he had been marked out, and became one of the -greatest land surveyors that the British race has ever produced. - -When David Thompson was called before the Headmaster to be informed -of his fate, he was in his fourteenth year, and had been for nearly -seven years a pupil in the school. No description exists of the poor -charity boy as he then was; but from accounts given of him in later -life, it is possible to imagine his appearance. Though he was short -of stature, his sturdy frame already gave promise of the strength -that was to enable him to drive his canoe through the currents and -eddies of the western waterways, or trudge at the head of his men -across the plains in the teeth of a December blizzard. His -complexion was ruddy, though his smooth cheeks were not as yet tanned -and furrowed by a life of exposure to the sun and wind of the great -North West. The straight, black hair which hung down over his -forehead combined with a stub nose to give him an odd look. Yet -there must have been already evident, in his expression, the -animation and kindliness which in after years distinguished him, and -suggested at once the boldness and fire of Curran the Irish orator, -and the strength and piety of the puritan Bunyan, both of whom he is -said to have greatly resembled. - -Thompson's parents were Welsh, and had borne the name of ApThomas -until they had come to live in London. It was there in the parish of -St. John the Evangelist, that David was born on the last day of -April, in the year 1770. While yet a mere child, he was left an -orphan by the death of his father. So poor was the family that the -dead man had to be buried at the expense of the parish, and the -widow, with David and a still younger infant, was left alone to face -the hardships of life in the metropolis. The boy, however, must have -shown unusual promise; because, while still quite young, he attracted -the attention of a certain Abram Acworth. Through the recommendation -of this otherwise unknown benefactor, he was at the age of seven -accepted as a scholar by the Governors of the Grey Coat School. - -The Grey Coat School was a royal foundation "the principall designe -of which" was "to educate poor children in the principles of piety -and virtue, and thereby lay the foundations for a sober and Christian -life". Almost within the shadow of Westminster Abbey, the old -building is still to be seen---a red brick house, built in the -Elizabethan manner, its walls covered with grape-vine and Virginia -creeper, standing in the midst of a large garden and playground. - -In the school, Thompson found himself a member of the class in -mathematics, and received such training in geography, algebra, -mechanics, and the art of navigation as was possible with the aid of -texts, many of which were at that time a century old. In those days -books were scarce and dear; and, for their general reading, the boys -had to be satisfied with such miscellaneous works as came their way. -These were passed eagerly from hand to hand, and as eagerly read and -discussed. Youthful imaginations were excited by the romantic -adventures of the Persian and Arabian tales, or by the travels of -Robinson Crusoe and Gulliver in strange lands and among strange -peoples. - -Within five minutes' walk of the school was the Abbey and its -cloisters. His hours of recreation David spent mainly in wandering -through the venerable pile, reading the history of England on the -monuments of her heroic dead, and drinking in the beauty of the -architecture, especially that of the noble Henry VII Chapel. On -other occasions, when chance offered, he would stroll through the -Strand and Fleet Street as far east as London Bridge or westward to -Chelsea, rich in historical memories and famous for its beautiful -lawns. Other favourite haunts were St. James' Park and Spring -Gardens in Vauxhall, across the Thames. Forty years of wandering -through rock and forest, by plain and mountain, served merely to -render yet more vivid his boyish recollection of the city and its -parks "where all was beauty to the eye and verdure to the feet." - -Thompson's school days, however, were now to be cut short. By the -20th of May, 1784, the formalities were completed by which he was -bound apprentice to the Hudson's Bay Company for seven years; and he -at once embarked from the Port of London on the Company's ship, -_Prince Rupert_, en route for North America. The lines were cast -off, and the vessel with its cargo of goods for the Indian trade -drifted lazily down stream with the tide, carrying Thompson away for -ever from the sights and sounds of London, which he knew and loved so -well. - -The voyage was uneventful, except for the usual incidents that -attended the westward journey of the Company's annual fleet. Not a -detail, however, escaped the keen eye of the young traveller, -unaccustomed as he was to anything but the quiet life of the school, -and thirsting to see something of the world, which he knew only in -the pages of Gulliver and Robinson Crusoe. The ship sailed up the -North Sea to Stromness in the Orkneys, there to wait three weeks for -the two vessels which were to accompany her across the Atlantic, and -to receive final instructions and sailing orders. As they lay in the -harbour of Stromness, Thompson's keen eyes noted the strange life of -the kelp-burners on shore, men, women, and children who, half-naked, -gathered the dripping sea-weed in baskets, and lugged it on their -shoulders to the kilns. Gazing at the rocky shore line and the low, -dark cottages with their smoky peat fires, which dotted the barren -hills, he was smitten with regret for the rich meadows and woods of -England, and for a moment he wished himself back amid the scenes of -his school life. Yet in his rambles ashore, the lad found much to -interest him. He observed with amusement the quaint habits of the -cottagers, who combined a brisk trade in smuggled liquor with lengthy -and solemn weekly devotions at the old-fashioned Kirk by the shores -of the harbour. - -Sailing orders finally arrived from London, and the little fleet was -soon off on its hazardous journey across the stormy North Atlantic. -Presently the sight of icebergs drifting south with the Arctic -current, warned the crews that they were nearing Hudson Straits. It -was a month before they had worked their way through the floating ice -of the Straits; after which the three ships separated, one for the -factories at Moose and Albany rivers, the second for York, while the -Prince Rupert, with Thompson aboard, headed _for Churchill_, the most -northerly of the Company's settlements on the west side of the Bay. -Before long, they sighted the granite coast, which they followed -southward. This ended at Churchill in a low point of rock and sand, -surmounted by the grim stone battlements of Fort Prince of Wales, -which two years before had been gutted by the French in their raid on -the Bay. Rounding this point, they found themselves in the mouth of -the Churchill, a noble stream, almost a mile in breadth. Up the -river they made their way for a distance of five miles to a small bay -at the head of the estuary, where they cast anchor before the log -huts of the still unfinished new fort. - -The arrival of the annual ship was the event of the year. Hurried -preparations were made for discharging the cargo of provisions for -the factory and supplies for the Indian trade, and taking on board -the year's accumulation of furs, which were destined to adorn the -persons of the fashionable world of England and the Continent. In -the midst of this confusion, the new apprentice was taken ashore, and -within ten days the _Prince Rupert_ sailed away, leaving him to face -the rigours of his new life on the dismal shores of Hudson Bay. - -It was indeed a new life in which David Thompson found himself. -Apart from the officers, there was a staff of sixty artisans and -servants in the fort. These were all busy from dawn till dark; for, -besides conducting their trade with the Indians, they had to maintain -themselves as a community in an utterly barren land. At six each -morning in summer, and eight in winter, the duty bell summoned to -their toil, accountant, steward, armourer, shipwright, carpenter, -cooper, blacksmith, mason, tailor, and labourers. Assisted by his -officers, the governor, gorgeous in scarlet tunic and ruffles, his -sword and pistols in his belt, supervised the labours of the factory. - -By the early part of October, the myriads of wild geese and ducks -which each summer lived in the vast swamps to the south of Churchill -had winged their way to warmer climes. The middle of the month saw -the marshes stiff with frost, and snow lying on the ground. The -polar bear made his appearance, waiting for the ice to extend some -distance from the shore, when he left to prey on the seal, his -favourite food. By the fifteenth of November, the broad and deep -river was frozen solid from bank to bank, not to break up until the -middle of June in the following year. Till the end of December, the -staff were able to keep the yard of the fort clear of snow. At that -time, a three days' blow from the north-east filled the fort with -snow to a depth of six feet, with drifts as high as the stockades. -Thereafter it was enough if they could keep paths cleared from one -hut to another. - -The cold was intense. The noise of rocks split by the frost broke -the silence of the night with a sound like that of a cannon shot. On -the interior walls of the still unfurnished huts, the rime collected -to a depth of four inches, and on this the shivering inhabitants -threw pails of water in order that it might form a coat of ice to -increase the warmth of the houses. Owing to the haste with which the -huts had been thrown up, there had been no time to lay in a -sufficient supply of firewood for the winter; and all the wood that -could be gathered for fuel allowed only one fire in the morning and -one in the evening. During the rest of the day, if the weather was -bad, Thompson, with the others, had to pace the guard room floor, -muffled to the eyes in his beaver coat, in order to keep himself from -freezing. On clear days, however, he passed his time in shooting -grouse, and this activity he enjoyed except for the tumbles in the -snow and the sore feet and ankles that resulted from his eager -efforts to walk in snow-shoes. - -The dreary winter seemed endless, when, in the middle of June, summer -burst with the suddenness of dawn in the Tropics, bringing with it -torments which made Thompson regret even the discomforts of winter. -"Hudson Bay," he says in his narrative, "is certainly a country which -Sinbad the sailor never saw, for he makes no mention of musketoes." -These pests rose from the marshes in clouds, driving man and beast to -distraction. The dogs in the fort howled in their agony, rolling -themselves on the ground and hiding in the pools. Even the fox was -in a fighting humour, barking and snapping; and, hungry though he -was, he was forced to seek shelter in his hole. - -Such was Thompson's first year on the Bay. He had expected, when he -reached the Fort, to be employed as a clerk, but he soon found that -his only business was to amuse himself, "in winter growling at the -cold, and in the open season shooting gulls, duck, and plover and -quarreling with musketoes and sand flies." Fortunately, however, he -had for company three of the officers of the factory, the deputy -governor, the sloop-master, and the surgeon. To these gentlemen he -felt himself greatly indebted for the loan of various books on -history and natural science, by reading which he was able to put his -hours of idleness to profitable use. - -The governor at that time was Samuel Hearne, a handsome giant with a -rubicund face. It was Hearne who in 1782 had surrendered without a -blow the great stone fort at the mouth of the river. That fort had -cost the Company forty years to build, and it was barely completed -when Hearne raised the white flag at the challenge of the French -admiral, La Pérouse. To the mind of young Thompson, this act was -enough to stamp the governor as a coward. It was, none the less, the -same Hearne who had succeeded in penetrating as far North as the -mouth of the Coppermine river, and was thus the first white man to -reach the margin of the Arctic ocean. Nevertheless, Thompson -disliked him. Like so many others at the close of the eighteenth -century, Hearne was infected with the doctrines of Voltaire, and his -atheism shocked the sensitive mind of the pious boy. To a lad of -Thompson's ambition, the life of a hunter afforded no sort of -satisfaction, and he dreaded lest he should succumb to the deadening -influence of his surroundings. He complained to Hearne that his lack -of clerical employment might lead to the loss of his penmanship, and -was barely satisfied when the governor handed him an invoice or two -to copy, and gave him occupation for a few days upon the manuscript -of his _Journey to the North_. - -The idleness of which Thompson complained was, however, to end before -long. With the arrival of the annual ship in 1785, orders came that -the young apprentice should proceed to York factory, the principal -dépôt of the Company, situated near the mouth of the Hayes river, one -hundred and fifty miles further up the Bay. South of the Churchill, -the rim of granite which hems the coast recedes for some miles -inland, leaving a vast waste of marshy alluvial between the hills and -the water line. Trees there are none, and the monotony of the -landscape is relieved only by boulders which the ice has scattered -over the face of the land. - -To journey on foot the length of this swamp, with two drunken Indians -alone for company, was enough to test the courage and reliance of a -boy of fifteen. Equipped with but a single blanket to protect him -from the chill of the September nights, the young David was ferried -across the river and put ashore on the south bank. The day was fine; -but the Indians had been given their usual gallon of grog on leaving -the fort, and they soon reduced themselves to a drunken stupor. A -night in the open, however, restored them to their senses. The next -morning the party made an early start, marching till evening without -breakfast or dinner. During the day, the Indians had shot a goose -and three ducks. When they finally came to something like a dry spot -by the bank of a stream, the wild fowl were hastily cooked and eaten; -and the wearied travellers, wrapped in their blankets, flung -themselves on the ground to sleep. - -Day after day, they trudged along the beach at high water mark, -always wet and muddy. Innumerable creeks which drained the swamp -crossed their path and interrupted their progress. Finally they came -to the mighty Kissiskatchewan or Nelson river, on the north bank of -which the Indians had laid up a canoe. Paddling across to the south -shore, they crossed the tongue of low land that separates the mouth -of the Nelson from that of the Hayes river; and were at last in York. - -The governor to whom Thompson reported was the notorious Humphrey -Marten. This old tyrant was now in his twenty-fourth year of service -with the Company. Surrounded by his numerous native wives and a -horde of half-breed children, he ruled the fort with a rod of iron. -The Indians who visited the factory he would beat most cruelly, -sending them away with revenge burning in their hearts. In the fort, -his subordinates felt the weight of his unbridled temper; and they -bowed to his brutality only because they feared his vindictiveness. -Amid such surroundings and under such a taskmaster, Thompson passed -the following year. He kept the accounts of the factory in his neat -handwriting, and joined with the rest of the staff in the hunting -necessary to supply the fort with food during the winter. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -HE FINDS HIS MÉTIER - -His first two years of service brought nothing but disappointment and -disillusion to David Thompson. Vaguely sensible of his capacities, -he was conscious of nothing except that as yet he had been given no -scope to realize them. But in the summer of 1786 a new and important -chapter opened in his life. Fitted out with a trunk, a handkerchief, -shoes, shirts, a gun, powder, and a tin cup, he was included in a -party of forty-six "Englishmen" who left for the interior under the -leadership of Robert Longmore to establish trading posts on the -Saskatchewan river to the west of those already occupied by the -Company. - -For over one hundred years from the time when the merry monarch had -vested in them a monopoly of trading rights in the vast territory -whose waters drain into Hudson Bay, the "adventurers of England -trading into Hudson Bay" had maintained their factories on the coast, -and allowed the Indians from the interior to make their way to them -for trade. Great rivers flowed from all directions to the Bay; but -the courses of these rivers were still unknown to the map makers of -the British Admiralty in 1784, the year in which David Thompson -landed at Churchill. For Hudson Bay is encircled from Labrador on -the north-east to the Arctic on the north-west by a giant horse shoe -of Archaean rock, most of it clothed with the dense northern forest; -and so long as the red men were willing to make the tedious journey -up and down the rivers, the slumbering giant on the Bay was content -to accept the annual tribute of furs which they flung at his feet. -Each September, when the ships from London arrived, the factories -were crammed with pelts that meant a fortune on the markets of the -Continent; and the traders eagerly awaited a fresh supply of guns, -axes, and kettles for the Indian, and awls and beads for his squaw, -as well as the fire-water which made him the anxious though reluctant -slave of the great white chiefs on the Bay. - -But the monopoly of trade to which the Company laid claim had not -been accepted without challenge. On the eastern face of North -America, the St. Lawrence river points like a finger to the heart of -the continent, and from the head of Lake Superior it is possible, by -a comparatively easy portage, to cross the height of land and descend -through Rainy lake, the Lake of the Woods, and the Winnipeg river to -Lake Winnipeg. Lake Winnipeg forms a vast collecting basin for the -waters of the interior, before they finally discharge through the -Nelson river into Hudson Bay. Thus it affords communication south -and west by way of the Red and Assiniboine rivers through the prairie -country of southern Manitoba, the Dakotas, and Minnesota; while, from -the north west corner of the lake, the Saskatchewan carries the -traveller to its sources in the Rockies. While therefore the English -had waited for the Indians to bring their furs down to them on the -Bay, the French from Quebec had pushed their way along these waters -to the heart of the hunting grounds, and the advance of these gallant -adventurers was marked by a string of forts that extended from -Dulhut's post at the head of Lake Superior to Fort La Jonquière near -the site of Calgary. - -The fall of Quebec in 1759 had brought with it the destruction of the -organized French fur trade, and the traders were scattered through -the wilds. But new groups of adventurers, mainly of Scotch descent, -swarmed westward from their headquarters at Montreal, and penetrated -into the wilderness further than the French had ever gone. By the -year 1772, the Montreal traders had crossed from the Saskatchewan to -the still more northerly Churchill river, and cut the line of -communication ordinarily used by the Indians of Lake Athabaska in -their long journey to Hudson Bay. The consolidation of the rival -interests into one great firm--the North West Company--was -accomplished in 1784 at the very time of Thompson's arrival in the -West. This achievement brought vastly increased strength to the -Montreal traders by mitigating the evils of their fierce competition. -Thus the Hudson's Bay Company was threatened with the loss of its fur -supply at the same moment as the French war interrupted its convoys, -and La Pérouse swept the Bay, destroying the posts at Churchill, -York, and Albany. - -Energetic measures were necessary if the lost trade was to be -recovered. As early as 1774, Samuel Hearne had taken the momentous -step of founding the first inland post of the Hudson's Bay Company at -Cumberland House. Situated on the Saskatchewan a few miles west of -Lake Winnipeg, Cumberland House stood, as it were, in the centre of a -vast web of waterways. "A canoe could start from this house, and -with no portage of more than a day's length could be launched on the -Arctic ocean, Hudson Bay, the Gulf of St. Lawrence or the Gulf of -Mexico; and without much greater interruption could be floated on to -the Pacific ocean." Despite the disasters of the French war, and the -dreadful epidemic of smallpox which in 1781 had swept across the -West, decimating and demoralizing the natives, the advance of the -Company was continued by the establishment of further posts along the -Saskatchewan river. Thompson was thus drawn into the forefront of -the battle for furs, when he was included in Longmore's party in the -summer of '86. - -On the 21st of July, the brigade of canoes left York factory for the -upper country. Longmore, the chief, was well qualified for the task -of leading the expedition. For many years he had served as -lieutenant to Tomison, the "chief inland" of the dépôt at Cumberland -House. Here he had acquired the difficult knack of dealing with the -Indians, besides earning their love and respect. Thompson's -immediate superior was Mitchell Oman, an old and experienced trader -of the Company, to whom he had been assigned as clerk. Oman could -neither read nor write, but he nevertheless impressed the lad by the -unusual quality of his curious and inquisitive mind. During the -tedious paddle into the interior, he drew from the pages of a -retentive memory endless tales of the Company's early activities -inland. "In those days," he declared, "our situation was by no means -pleasant. The Indians were very numerous, and although by far the -greater part behaved well, and were kindly to us, yet among such a -number there will always be found bad men. To protect ourselves from -them, we had to get a respectable chief to stay with us and assist us -in trading, and prevent as much as possible the demands of these -men." His valuable reminiscences were not lost upon the boy. - -As the boatmen slowly worked their way up the river, Thompson's eyes -gazed for the first time on the country he was afterwards to know so -well. Their course lay up the Hayes river, and thence, by way of -Lake Winnipeg, to the Saskatchewan. Progress at first was rapid, -even against the stream, for they were still in the low and marshy -country that fringes the south-west corner of the Bay. Presently, -however, they encountered the first of the many rapids which mark the -descent of the river to the sea. At each of these, with monotonous -reiteration, the packs were all heaved ashore and shouldered along -the rugged path of the portage to the higher level of the river. At -the same time, the face of the landscape suddenly altered. The -marshy alluvial gave way to naked granite, and they entered the belt -of dark and gloomy northern forest. As they passed through the heart -of the rocky country, the character of the river was also changed. -From point to point the stream was held back by ledges of granite -which broke its progress, giving rise to an irregular chain of wide -and deep lakes. Through these lakes they threaded their way until, -reaching the end of the granite country, they saw before them the -broad expanse of Lake Winnipeg, the "bad water" of the Indians. -Sixty miles along its northern coast brought them to the point where -the Saskatchewan, after a swift and unbroken course of over one -thousand miles through the plains, plunges in a long series of -cascades into the lake. Having portaged past these, and wended their -way through the alluvial flats of Cedar lake, they came at last to -Cumberland House, and the first stage of their journey was -accomplished. - -Their objective was a point on the Saskatchewan about fifty miles -above the present site of Battleford. As they continued their -journey westward from Cumberland House, the forest gradually gave way -to open country, and they found themselves in the vast expanse of the -plains, dotted here and there with clumps of trees--the country of -the bison, the antelope, and the red deer. Passing the forks of the -river, they came to the site which the keen eye of Longmore had -selected. There, on the northern bank of the stream, they cleared -the ground and ran up a series of log huts, surrounded by a wooden -stockade--the future Manchester House. Except for a solitary post -which the North-Westers had for three years maintained about forty -miles further up stream, Thompson had now reached the limit of -country at that time familiar to civilized men. To the west -stretched the unknown wilderness, which it was his destiny, in -considerable measure, to explore. - -The object of the new post was to secure the trade of the natives of -the plains; and during the following winter David was busy learning -the complicated ritual of Indian barter. In the course of a year he -had so far mastered his duties that he was selected to lead a party -of six men across country to the south branch of the Saskatchewan, in -order to open friendly relations with the Piegan and Blackfeet -Indians whose camps lay along the banks of that stream. Each man had -a horse, and among them they carried a small assortment of goods. -The duties of the young diplomat were to find the camps of the -Piegans and winter among them, in order to induce them to hunt for -furs and to make pemmican or dried buffalo meat for the traders. He -was to persuade as many as possible to travel to the post for trade. -With those who were unwilling to do so, he was to bargain for furs. - -The party set forth in October, under their seventeen-year-old -leader. The trail they followed led through a fine rolling country, -everywhere clothed with short grass, and dotted with islands of -poplar and birch. For twenty-three days they rode without seeing any -animals other than a chance bull-bison which they shot for food. To -the south of the Bow river they found an Indian camp pitched in a -spot where the tender grass afforded rich pasture for the buffalo; -but the plains, which were ordinarily black with moving herds, were -at this time strangely deserted. After several moves, they finally -struck a large encampment of Piegans near the present site of -Calgary. Sending some of his men back to Manchester House, Thompson -settled down in this camp to spend the winter. - -The Piegan, Blood, and Blackfeet Indians were three allied tribes of -Algonquin stock who had emerged from the northern forest and taken -possession of the plains, driving their enemies, the Kootenay, -Salish, and Snake Indians, before them to the mountains. Since the -white men had come to trade on the river, they had advanced from the -Eagle hills in western Saskatchewan to the very foot of the Rockies. -This rapid conclusion of an age-long struggle for the mastery of the -grazing country had been due to the fire-arms which they had procured -from the traders. - -The manners and customs of the confederate tribes were in keeping -with their war-like disposition and constant danger. Unlike the -scattered forest Indians, they lived in large camps, and without -yielding their traditional liberty to the control of a single -authority, they had nevertheless evolved a rudimentary form of social -organization. Hunters of the bison, they were in constant need of -horses. Horse-stealing was thus among them an honourable pursuit, -and their raids extended far to the south and west. During the -winter of Thompson's stay among them, a raid on the Snakes took a -part of two hundred and fifty warriors a distance of one thousand, -five hundred miles to the south-west, as was testified by the thirty -well-bred animals that were brought back to camp, and the Spanish -saddles and bridles that lay thrown about among the tents. - -Of the three allied tribes, the Piegans occupied the most exposed -position, and consequently led the most precarious and watchful life. -From boyhood they were trained in arms, and their martial bearing and -enterprising character produced a strong impression upon Thompson. -They had an hereditary civil chief or "orator", as he was called, who -presided at all councils except those of war. Arrayed in his -splendid mantle of otter skin, he paced the camp each day three hours -after sunset, reciting in a loud voice the news which his couriers -had gathered, announcing in particular where the herds of bison were -feeding and what direction they were taking. The war chief, on the -other hand, was a self-made man, whose power and influence had -developed from his conduct in war. Kootanae Appee, as he was called, -was a magnificent giant, six feet six inches in height, and was the -father of twenty-two warriors, no less tall and sinewy than himself. -In after years, when Thompson was battling his way south along the -Columbia river, the bond of friendship which he now forged with this -old chief stood him in good stead. - -The chief in whose tent Thompson passed the winter bore the name of -Saukamappee (Young Man). Saukamappee was broad of shoulder and -strong of limb. Old age had not bowed his grey head, nor had a -troubled life obliterated the mild and playful expression of his -countenance. During the long winter evenings, he entertained his -guest with reminiscences that went back for fifty years. From him, -Thompson learned of the Indian methods of fighting before the time of -firearms, of the first importation of these deadly weapons from the -distant factory at York, of the introduction of the horse among the -Blackfeet, and of the dreadful effects of the small-pox epidemic in -'81, of which Saukamappee himself had been a victim. While Thompson -thus learned the history of the tribes among whom he was staying, he -practised himself in the use of their language. His note books -contain long lists of Indian words with their English equivalents, -gathered from the Piegans and from other tribes whom he encountered. - -The winter over, Thompson returned to the post, from which he was -sent to Cumberland House in the summer of 1789. Here he began to -keep a careful meteorological journal, noting two or three times -daily the temperature, the strength and direction of the wind, and -the general character of the climate. He also began a series of -astronomical observations, as the result of which he was able to -determine the exact latitude and longitude of Cumberland House. This -post was thus the first of a series of widely scattered points fixed -by him on the map of British North America. It was then, too, that -he acquired the large brass sextant which was to be his constant -companion for years to come. - -Having made this start, Thompson attempted in the following summer to -make a survey of the canoe route from Cumberland House to York -factory, by way of the Saskatchewan and the Hayes rivers. In the -autumn, he returned to Cumberland House. While there, he had the -good fortune to meet Philip Turnor, the man without whose guidance -and help Thompson could hardly have realized his future career. - -For several years, the Colonial Office had been urging the Hudson's -Bay Company to proceed with the survey of the vast territory over -which it exercised sway; and to satisfy the pressing demand of the -government, the Company had engaged Philip Turnor as astronomer and -surveyor. Possessed of a sound theoretical training, Turnor had been -employed in England as one of the compilers of the _Nautical -Almanac_; and since 1776 he had added to his qualifications a wide -practical experience drawn from numerous surveys throughout the -region of the Bay. Here was a man who could solve Thompson's doubts -and difficulties, and correct the deficiencies of his education for -the work which he had in view. An eager pupil, Thompson sat at the -feet of Turnor during the winter of 1790; and when, in the following -spring, he returned to York factory, it was as a man with his mind -made up. If a man knows clearly what he wants and has the -intelligence and perseverance to pursue his aims, no obstacle, not -even such as these which confronted Thompson, can keep him from -attaining his goal. - -Thereafter Thompson and his beloved instruments were inseparable -companions in journeys that carried him for thousands of miles -through the wildest parts of the unknown west. By day and night, he -was an object of wonder to his French-Canadian and Indian followers, -as, armed with his sextant, telescope, compass, and other -instruments, he took observations on the sun, moon, and stars. While -he sought to determine the position of rivers, lakes, and mountains, -to be recorded on the map which was to be his life's work, his -activities suggested to their superstitious minds the idea that he -was in communication with powers not of this world, and earned him -the title which he bore among them, Koo-Koo-Sint, "The man who looks -at the stars." - - - - -CHAPTER III - -TRADER, SURVEYOR, EXPLORER - -When Thompson returned to York factory in the spring of 1791, it was -to find that great changes had taken place at the fort. Five years -before, the tyrannous sway of old Humphrey Marten had come to an end, -and he had been succeeded as governor by Joseph Colen. This man was -to direct Thompson's movements during the next six years. - -The new governor was a man of unquestioned ability; but his jealous -and suspicious temperament made him work at cross purposes with the -governor of Churchill, and brought him into frequent conflict with -Tomison at Cumberland House. He had never caught the spirit of the -aggressive policy initiated by Samuel Hearne, and preferred to -develop the fur trade with the Indians who came down to the coast for -trade, rather than to follow them to their hunting grounds. In his -reports to the directors in London, he endeavoured to excuse his lack -of enterprise by hurling vague accusations at his colleagues; while -his subordinates, men like Thompson and Malcolm Ross, were irritated -and provoked by the lack of support from headquarters which -constantly frustrated their efforts to push forward the work of -exploring the more remote interior. - -The seven years of David's apprenticeship were now at an end, and he -was engaged at a good salary as trader and surveyor to the Company. -He was not yet, however, given an opportunity of practising his -profession. The previous spring, an ice-jam at the mouth of the -Hayes river had caused the water to rise, flooding the low land on -which the factory was situated; and for a year or more, Thompson had -to assist Colen in moving the fort to its present site on a high clay -bank about a quarter mile further up stream. - -Meanwhile Philip Turnor had returned from a journey to Lake -Athabaska, and the report of his explorations had reached the -directors in London. Proceeding from Cumberland House, he had worked -his way north through Amisk and Pelican lakes to Frog Portage, a -distance of one hundred miles. After crossing the portage, he found -himself in the basin of the upper Churchill river. This stream he -ascended as far as Isle à la Crosse, and thence he made his way -through Buffalo lake and Lake la Roche to the Methy Portage. This -portage marks the divide between the waters that flow eastward to -Hudson Bay and those that discharge through the Mackenzie into the -Arctic ocean. Crossing the portage, he descended the Clearwater -river to its junction with the Athabaska, whose broad stream soon -carried him to the lake of that name. This was the regular route -followed by the Indians of the far north in their journeys to Hudson -Bay. - -Turnor's report filled the directors with a desire to dispute the -trade of Lake Athabaska with the men of the North West Company; and -they bombarded Colen with instructions to send Ross and Thompson to -that region. But to Colen's mind there was a more pressing necessity -nearer home. The North-Westers had entered the rocky belt to the -south-west of York, and had monopolized trade throughout the -irregular series of lakes and rivers which form the tributaries of -the Nelson and lower Churchill, thus challenging the "English" on -their home front itself. Accordingly Colen ignored the instructions -from London, and despatched Ross and Thompson into this "muskrat -country," as it was called, with orders to build posts at strategic -points and restore the trade of the Company. - -On the 5th of September, 1792, Thompson set forth with two canoes on -his first independent command. Rounding the point from York factory, -the canoes swung into the broad channel of the Nelson river. By the -end of the month they were well above Split lake, Thompson making a -survey as they moved along. At this point one of the canoes turned -aside to ascend Grass river, while Thompson with the other continued -along the main stream until he reached the upper end of Sipiwisk -lake. Here in a little cove formed by two projecting points of rock, -with the dark spruce forest at his back and a view to the south west -over the island-studded lake, he built his first trading post, and -settled down to face the winter in a country almost devoid of fish -and game. - -His heart, however, was set on exploration. From the Indians he -learned that, besides the well-known route which had been followed by -Turnor to Lake Athabaska, there existed another, north from the -Churchill river to Reindeer lake, and thence westward by way of the -Black river to the east end of Lake Athabaska. This route he made up -his mind to explore. - -Accordingly, when the ice had cleared from the rivers, he set forth -alone without any help or encouragement from headquarters. -Descending to the lower end of Sipiwisk lake, he turned to the left -and passed by a series of portages through Wintering, Red Paint and -Burntwood lakes to the Missinippi or Churchill river, up which he -paddled for a distance of thirty-three miles. But the Indian guides -whom he had expected to meet failed to put in an appearance, and he -was forced to turn back. He therefore descended through Burntwood -lake and the Nelson river to York factory. - -Colen had given the English directors to understand that he planned -to send Ross and Thompson to the Athabaska country; and with the -arrival of the annual ship in the autumn of '93, they wrote that they -expected much good to follow from the projected expedition, and that -they wished William Cook, who had accompanied David into the Muskrat -country the previous autumn, to join with the others in the invasion -of the far north. But Cook was not recalled from his post on Split -lake, and Ross and Thompson were sent up the Saskatchewan to -Cumberland House. Thence Thompson was despatched, not to Lake -Athabaska, as he had expected, but westward along the river to a new -post called Buckingham House, from which he rode still further west -to the Beaver hills near the future site of Fort Augustus (Edmonton). -Returning, he surveyed the Saskatchewan east from Buckingham House to -the Forks, and from the Forks he resurveyed the rest of the river. -From Cumberland House, he explored a new route through Goose, Reed, -and Burntwood lakes to the Nelson, and thus opened up a direct line -of communication between the dépôt at Cumberland House and York -factory, much superior to the old course by way of Lake Winnipeg and -the Hayes river. - -Thompson's reappearance at York without having been to the Athabaska -country made it necessary for Colen to do no little explaining to the -impatient London directors. In a long letter to them, he hinted that -it was Tomison who was responsible for the fiasco. Tomison, he said, -had refused to pass his word for the advance of wages promised by the -Council to those who would volunteer to accompany the expedition. -Ross, he declared, was utterly disgusted with the repeated -disappointments, and would have returned at once to England, had not -Thompson prevailed upon him to make one last trial, this time by way -of Reindeer lake. Thompson and Ross, he added, were being fitted out -with canoes and supplies at York, and would be sent up the Nelson -river track. The directors were deceived, and swallowed their -disappointment, hoping to hear that the difficulties which stood in -the way of the Athabaska expedition had been successfully overcome. - -But, even now, Thompson was sent, not to the North, but back once -more to the Muskrat country, this time to Reed lake. Here, in a -district comparatively rich in fish, game, and furs, he built a -house, and spent one of the coldest winters in the history of the -Hudson Bay. While hunting and trading, he also prepared for the -directors of the Company, the maps and surveys of the country which -he had already traversed. In July of the following year, 1795, he -paddled down the river on what was to be his last visit to York. - -On this occasion Colen was absent on a trip to England, but the -factory was seething with discontent. Thompson found the staff -impatiently waiting, in order that he, the youngest and bravest among -them, might take the lead in drawing up a statement of the grievances -which they suffered under Colen's rule. This office he accepted, -although with some hesitation on account of the absence of the -governor. Assisted by his friend the surgeon, he drew up a statement -which Colen declared seriously prejudiced him in the eyes of the -directors; although, according to Thompson, not one half of the evils -were even mentioned of which the staff had cause to complain. -Thompson was not ashamed of the part he had played in this mutinous -outbreak. As soon as he had left the service, he took the -opportunity of explaining to his old chief that he was the author of -the protest which had so much displeased him. "Many of us," his -letter concluded, "acknowledge with readiness that you have some good -qualities, and I once had the greatest respect for you; I have some -yet, but----it is not my wish to say those things which I know you do -not wish to hear. How is it, Sir, that everyone who has once wished -you well should turn to be indifferent to you, and even some to hate -you, although they are constant in their other friendships?--there -must be a defect somewhere. The fact is, that from your peculiar -manner of conduct, you are also one of those unfortunate men who will -have many an acquaintance, but never a real friend." - -Thompson's final break with Colen did not, however, occur until two -years later. He turned in his furs, and without waiting, except to -secure supplies for the coming winter, went back to his duties in the -Muskrat country. This time he built a house far to the north on Duck -Portage, the link connecting Burntwood lake with the Churchill river. -When spring opened, instead of returning to York, he made ready for -his dash to Lake Athabaska. - -Formal permission had reached him from Colen, sanctioning his venture -into the unknown wilds. This, however, meant nothing, because it was -not accompanied by help of any kind. At that moment, indeed, the -Company was seriously crippled for lack of men to keep up the few -inland trading posts that then existed, for the war which was raging -between England and France had drained the Orkney islands of all men -who were fit for service in the army and navy. The few miserable -dwarfs who could be obtained for the fur trade excited the contempt -of even the Indians. - -Thompson, nevertheless, was not to be deterred from his enterprise. -He proceeded at once to Fairford House, the trading post kept by -Malcolm Ross on the Churchill near the mouth of the Reindeer river, -where he hoped to get some assistance. To his great disappointment, -he found that not a man could be spared from the trade in furs. -There were, however, a few Chepawyan Indians lingering about the fort -and from among these he managed to engage two young men. Kozdaw and -"Paddy" had hunted for two winters in the country he was about to -explore, although neither of them had ever been on the rivers and -lakes in summer. Their only practice in canoes had been to lie -offshore in the lakes on a calm day, watching for the deer to take -refuge from the flies, and this gave them no experience of the -currents and rapids of rivers; yet, such as they were, Thompson had -no choice but to take them. - -The first task was to construct a canoe. Having searched the forest -for a supply of birch bark, they made a boat seventeen feet in -length. Into this they packed their meagre outfit, a fowling piece -with forty balls, five pounds of shot, three flints and five pounds -of powder, a fishing net, a hatchet and a small tent of grey cotton. -These articles, together with a few handfuls of beads, rings, and -awls for trading, made up their terribly inadequate equipment. - -In the grey dawn of a June morning, 1796, Thompson launched his canoe -on the turbid waters of the Missinippi. The party advanced rapidly, -making a survey as they went. For supplies they relied on their -solitary net and gun. Turning into the Reindeer river, they worked -their way north against a moderate current to Reindeer lake. A -hundred miles up the west coast of this lake brought them to a point -clothed with tolerably good pines. This point Thompson noted as a -suitable site for building a trading post on his return. - -The whole distance through which they had come had a barren, rocky -appearance, relieved only by patches of stunted birch, aspen, and -spruce. Since there was little or no soil, the trees stood with -their roots interlaced like the trees on the frozen lands of Hudson -Bay; and, like them, they were kept moist in summer by the wet moss -with which their roots were covered. Through wide stretches the -forest fires had passed, leaving the country unsightly and ghostlike, -and destroying the wild animals of the forest. Thompson was now in -fact approaching the northern limit of trees, beyond which stretch -the barren lands, the home of the musk ox and caribou. - -In order to avoid the wide circuit of the Cochrane river, which flows -to Reindeer lake from Lake Wollaston, the guides directed Thompson up -a stream that emptied from the west a few miles north of his point of -pines. From the head of this stream there was a passage by a series -of ponds and brooks to the south end of Wollaston lake. But the -water was low, and they were forced to carry their packs for the -better part of fifty miles, stumbling over the rocks and wading -through the marshes, while clouds of mosquitoes buzzed about their -defenceless heads. It was a welcome relief when they launched out on -the clear and deep waters of Lake Wollaston, which they crossed -without trouble to the Black river. Here they made camp on the -evening of June 23, and rested while Thompson took observations and -made up the notes of his survey. - -Two days later they were once more under way. Lake Wollaston, as -Thompson discovered, was situated on the height of land between the -basins of Hudson Bay and the Mackenzie river. Part of its waters -discharged eastward and south into Reindeer lake, while part flowed -westward through the Black river into Lake Athabaska. From this -curious circumstance, the lake was known to the Indians as "Lake -Manito," and was considered to be of supernatural character. -Entering the Black river, the party passed at first through the quiet -reaches of the upper river, in a wretched country of solitude, where -the wild laugh of the loon alone woke the echoes of the barren hills. -Presently the banks closed in, and as the current stiffened, they had -to paddle vigorously to avoid the projecting rocks. Finally an -expansion of the stream brought them to Black lake. It was during -this stretch that they came upon the only human beings they had so -far encountered--five tents of Chepawyans, hunting and fishing in an -otherwise deserted land. - -They could afford but one day to enjoy the hospitality of the -Indians. From Black lake, the river tumbles in two wild cascades to -the level of Lake Athabaska. A series of rapids, cutting through a -high hill, warned them that they were approaching the first of the -falls. For half a mile they shot the rapids to a point where the -river is compressed within a channel only twelve yards in width. At -the end of this channel, the current rushed against a projecting -ledge of rock with such force that the whole river seemed to be -turned up from its bottom. The dashing of the water against the -rocks, the deep roar of the torrent, the hollow sound of the fall, in -the midst of the dark, high, and frowning hills, made a sight so -grand and terrible that Kozdaw and Paddy were awe-struck, and offered -their simple tributes to the manito of the fall--the one a bit of -tobacco, the other a ring. Past this fall the travellers descended -by a well-beaten native trail. A second series of rapids and a -second fall brought them to the last lap of their journey, and they -paddled quietly for six miles into the east end of Lake Athabaska. -Here they passed the night, resting from their dangers, toils, and -sufferings under a pine tree which had been lopped and marked by -Philip Turnor in his survey of 1791. - -Thompson's heart was thrilled by the thought that he had finally -accomplished the journey on which for the last five years his heart -had been set, and that in so doing he had blazed a trail through the -wilderness over ground which the feet of white men had never trod -before. He was sobered, however, by the prospect of the long and -difficult journey home. His net and gun afforded but a scanty supply -of food, and should these fail him, there was but slight hope of -succour. But gloomy as were his forebodings, it was well that he did -not know what lay before him. - -Half way up the Black river, he encountered one of the rapids which -was broken about the middle by a twelve-foot fall. Portaging past -the fall, he attempted to "track" the canoe up the rest of the rapid. -The two Indians were ashore tugging at the tow-line, while Thompson -in the canoe tried to steer and at the same time direct their -movements. Near the head of the rapid there was at the water's edge -a tree which blocked their progress, and as the Indians stood -hesitating which side of it they should pass, the canoe sheered off -across the current. An upset was inevitable, had not Thompson waved -to the Indians to let go the line and leave him to his fate. -Springing to the bow, he cut the rope off short with the clasp knife -which he kept in his waistcoat pocket, and got the head of the canoe -around into the stream just in time to take the plunge over the -cataract. For an instant, Thompson was buried beneath the boiling -water at the foot of the fall. Striking his feet against the bottom, -he pushed himself to the surface close to the upturned canoe. This -he seized and dragged through shallow water to the beach. The -Indians came rushing to his assistance, and, while he lay on the -rocks, bruised, bleeding, and exhausted by his exertions, they -searched the shore below the rapids for what could be recovered of -their precious kit. - -The gun, the axe, and the tent had remained fastened in the canoe. -In half an hour's time, the Indians brought back the cork-lined box -containing Thompson's instruments and the maps of his survey, -together with their three paddles and a pewter basin. Not one moment -was to be lost. Thompson's body was naked except for his shirt and a -thin linen vest, and his companions were in like condition. The -small tent they tore into three pieces with which to wrap themselves -as a defence against flies by day and chill by night. Worse still, -Thompson found as he painfully raised himself from the rocks that the -flesh of his foot had been torn away by the impact of the jagged -stones of the river bed, and a part of his share of the tent had to -be taken to bind the wound. - -The first duty was to repair the canoe, and the Indians were sent to -the woods to procure gum from the pines. The question was then how -to light a fire, for they had neither flint nor steel. Thompson -pointed to his gun from which they took the flint, and with the steel -blade of his pocket knife they struck a spark. When the gum was -melted, they repaired the canoe and carried their kit above the fall -and rapids. The Indians shouldered the canoe, while behind them the -wounded leader hobbled painfully along under the burden of gun, axe, -and sextant case. - -Night had fallen before they found time to make a fire and warm -themselves. Their situation was enough to strike terror into the -boldest heart. Destitute, almost naked, and suffering from the -weather, they faced a journey of three hundred miles through a barren -country. Yet Thompson did not despair. For two days they paddled -and portaged up the river without a bite to eat. On the afternoon of -the second day they saw two gulls hovering over a reedy bay as if to -protect their young. They found the nest and in it three young -gulls, but the few ounces of meat which they were able to pick from -their miserable carcases sufficed only to sharpen their hunger. - -The next day as they went along, Thompson remembered an eagle's nest -on the banks of a small lake before them. When they came to the lake -they found the nest in the spreading branches of a birch tree, about -sixteen feet above the ground. Kozdaw had barely time to climb to -the nest before the old birds arrived. Paddy and Thompson, with -shouts and stones, succeeded in preventing them from attacking -Kozdaw, while the latter threw the two young eagles to the ground. -The birds fought with beak and claw for their lives, but were finally -killed and flung into the canoe. - -In the evening, they opened the eagles by the gleam of the camp fire, -and divided the meat and yellow fat into three equal portions. While -Kozdaw roasted his meat and oiled his body with the fat, the others -ate only the fat, reserving the meat for next day. In the night they -were both awakened by a violent dysentery, which continued to plague -them for many days, although a strong infusion of a certain dried -moss, known as Labrador tea, brought them some relief. - -Day by day they continued their voyage, subsisting on the wretched -crow-berries of the far north. By the sixteenth of July, Thompson -and Paddy were like skeletons, from hunger, dysentery, and cold. On -that day Thompson scratched what he thought was his dying message on -a scrap of birch bark which Kozdaw was to carry back with him to -civilization. Late in the afternoon, as they paddled weakly and -painfully along, they came upon two tents of Chepawyans. The savages -pitied their condition and restored them with broth. From them -Thompson procured some provisions, a flint and a few rounds of -ammunition, together with a pair of shoes each for himself and his -men. Thus they were able to proceed on their journey, and arrived -without further adventure at Fairford House after an absence of -thirty-one days. - -At Fairford House Thompson was joined by Malcolm Ross with a stock of -provisions for the northern trade, and together they returned to -build a trading post on Reindeer lake. Along with the supplies, Ross -brought a letter from Colen to Thompson, containing a curt order that -he should cease his surveys and explorations. This was his reward. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -WITH THE NORTH-WESTERS - -The chilly reception which Thompson met after his return from Lake -Athabaska was enough to quench the enthusiasm of any man. He might -have lain down under the blow. In that case he would no doubt have -ended his days as an obscure and broken-spirited trader, embittered -by his fate, but powerless so late in life to change it. Another -course, however, was open to him, if he had the courage and -self-reliance to take it. This was to throw up his post with the -Hudson's Bay Company, and seek employment in other quarters where his -talents would meet with the recognition they deserved. - -In the long winter evenings at Reindeer lake, he weighed the problem -before him. Colen, his chief, had undoubtedly failed to appreciate -the value of his work. Worse still, he had hampered it, since for -the last two years he had neglected even to supply Thompson with the -_Nautical Almanac_ so necessary for his surveys. But behind Colen -stood the Company. How far had they given him the sympathy and -encouragement which he needed? The directors, he felt, might easily -have had the northern part of the continent surveyed as far as the -Pacific coast, and thus greatly extended the range of their trade. -This they could have accomplished at trifling expense, for in England -there were numbers of highly-trained naval officers on half pay, who -would have jumped at the chance of employment. But any explorations -which they had undertaken were solely at the behest of the Colonial -Office. His feelings toward the Company may not have been altogether -justified. Nevertheless, he could only conclude that there was -little or no future for him in the service. With Thompson to think -was to act. On the 28th of May, 1797, he left his post on Reindeer -lake and walked south through the bush for seventy-five miles to the -nearest house of the North-Westers. After ten days spent there, he -proceeded to Grand Portage, the headquarters of the Company at the -west end of Lake Superior, in order that he might offer his services -to the merchants from Canada. - -Situated on a small bay at the mouth of Pigeon river, Grand Portage -had been for several years the general dépôt for the trader of the -North West Company, the lair from which those "sly wolves of the -North" had sallied forth to work such havoc with the trade of the -English on Hudson Bay. Along the shore ran a line of docks, which -each summer were piled high, now with the parcels of merchandise for -the interior trade, now with the packs of furs which had been -gathered from the distant trading posts for the market in the east. -Along the bay front and up the bank of the river sprawled the village -of log huts in which dwelt the half-breed families of the French -voyageurs. - -The fort itself was in keeping with the dignity of the Company and -the magnitude of its operations. A palisade eighteen feet high -enclosed the great square in which stood the various -offices--storehouses, servants' quarters, and lodgings for the -clerks. In the centre of the courtyard towered the main building, a -stout log structure surmounted by a high balcony. This contained the -apartments of the partners, and the great hall, its walls covered -with portraits of the leading members of the Company in all the glory -of ruffles and scarlet coats. Here took place the grave -deliberations of the merchants, and here each evening they dined in -solemn state. The stone powder magazine, the jail with its barred -windows, and the sentry in the archway of the great gate lent a touch -of grimness to the picture of this far-flung outpost of commerce. - -At Grand Portage, Thompson received a warm welcome from those of the -partners who were at the time present in the fort. On his way down -he had met Roderick Mackenzie, cousin to the famous Sir Alexander, -and Simon Fraser, soon to win distinction as the discoverer of the -Fraser river. At the post he found the Honourable William -McGillivray, prominent in the councils of the Company, and Sir -Alexander Mackenzie himself. Sir Alexander had been the first white -man to descend the Mackenzie river to its mouth, and he had blazed a -trail across the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific. He had but recently -returned from England, wearing the honour of knighthood which he had -earned for his explorations. All of these gentlemen impressed -Thompson as being men of enterprise and vision, and among them he -found the liberal and public spirit which in his former employers he -had sought in vain. - -At that time, questions of serious import were agitating the minds of -the partners. By the treaty which closed the American Revolutionary -War, the boundary between the British dominions and the territories -of the United States had been fixed as a line drawn from the -northwest corner of the Lake of the Woods to the source of the -Mississippi, which was then thought to lie considerably north of its -true position. Nine years later, the forty-ninth parallel of -latitude had been accepted as the boundary; and by the Treaty of -Amity and Commerce subsequently passed, it had been agreed that all -British trading posts south of this line should be withdrawn. This -made it necessary for the Company to fix at once the location of -their houses on the upper Red river, and incidentally if possible to -discover the true source of the Mississippi. The partners were also -anxious to have a route surveyed to the headwaters of the Missouri -river, where there existed the villages of an Indian people who got -their living from the cultivation of the soil. The scientific spirit -of the merchants was shown by their further desire to search for the -fossil bones of prehistoric animals and any monuments which might -throw light on the earlier condition of the regions surveyed. -Finally, they wished to ascertain the courses of the rivers and the -situation of the lakes, in order that they might rearrange their -network of trading houses so as to cover more completely the -territory under their sway. - -Thompson's arrival came therefore at an opportune moment. He was -promptly engaged as astronomer and surveyor to the company, and the -partners and agents all agreed to send orders to their various -trading posts that he should be given any assistance he required. In -August, the great canoes arrived from Montreal with the goods for the -Indian trade. When these were unloaded, the merchandise was assorted -and made up in parcels each of ninety pounds' weight, so that the -boatmen might be able to shoulder them over the portages. These were -then taken in charge by the various agents and their shouting crews -of voyageurs. Five days of hard labour were needed for the carry -over Grand Portage to the upper waters of Pigeon river. When all was -ready, Thompson climbed the long trail from the lake. Armed with his -precious instruments, he joined the Swan river brigade of four -canoes, and embarked on what was to be the longest, fastest and most -brilliant piece of survey in his whole career. - -Progress was tedious until the party had crossed the watershed beyond -which all streams flow north-westward into Lake Winnipeg and thence -into Hudson Bay. They then made a rapid descent through Rainy lake -and the Lake of the Woods to the Winnipeg river (the mad or foaming -water of the Indians), down which they paddled and portaged to its -mouth. Coasting along the south shore of Lake Winnipeg under the -shelter of its low limestone cliffs, they came to the mouth of the -Dauphin or Little Saskatchewan river. The ascent of this stream -brought them to the waters of Lake Manitoba. They had only to paddle -to the head of this lake, and from thence the length of Lake -Winnipegosis, in order to find themselves at the mouth of the Swan -river. Twelve miles up this stream was their objective--Swan River -House. - -As they approached their goal, Thompson observed that the land was -rapidly improving in character; until at Swan River House he found -himself in the heart of a fine varied country of hill and plain, -woodland and meadow--the beaver country _par excellence_. Here on -every side were to be found traces of the labours of these -industrious animals; the dammed brooks, the flooded meadows, the -dome-like huts in which they lived and the burrows to which they fled -for refuge when attacked. All this fine country was the hunting -ground of the Cree Indians, the possession of which they had from -time immemorial disputed with the beaver, the bison, and the red deer. - -When the early French traders arrived, they brought with them -chisels, knives, and other implements of iron. The Indians, having -got possession of these, were able to cut through the dams, drain the -waters of the ponds, and thus expose the huts and burrows of the -beaver. Then, assisted by their small half-savage dogs, they would -chisel their way through the thick walls of the huts until they came -to the beaver. Since there was a ready market for his skin among the -French traders, they soon became rich, and for several years men, -women, and children were gay with brooches, ear-rings and beads, and -gaudy with scarlet coats. - -But then the Nipissing and Iroquois Indians, who had exhausted their -own countries, spread to the north and west. Armed with their new -steel traps, they began a war of annihilation upon the beaver; and by -the year 1797, when Thompson travelled through the Swan river -district, almost the whole of that extensive region was denuded. The -short phase of prosperity was over. The greed of the white man and -the improvidence of the Indian had done their work, and while the -native might still hope to gain a bare subsistence from hunting the -deer and the bison, he was once more poor, thus to remain for ever. - -Over this country, Thompson made a series of rapid excursions by -horse and canoe, in order that he might fix the location of the -various trading houses of the North West Company. In the course of -five weeks, he had crossed to the basins of the Red Deer and the -Assiniboine rivers, and surveyed each of these streams to its source. -He then descended the Assiniboine to its confluence with the Souris, -near where the city of Brandon now stands. Here toward the end of -November he put up at Assiniboine House, which was at that time kept -by a trader called John McDonnell. - -McDonnell's house was the natural point of departure for the journey -across to the Mandan Villages on the upper Missouri. The trail lay -in a south-westerly direction along the south bank of the Souris -river as far as the great bend, and from thence across the open -plains to the heights of the Missouri. As the country was generally -treeless, the custom of travellers was to move from point to point -where patches of wood growing in the river bottom or at the higher -levels afforded firewood and shelter for the night. - -Winter had come, and three inches of snow lay upon the ground, making -travel both disagreeable and dangerous. Worse still, the road passed -through the hunting grounds of the Sioux Indians, those wild riders -of the plains who lived by pursuit of the bison. The Sioux had -lately suffered the loss of several men at the hands of the Mandan -Indians; and these losses they blamed on the whites who had supplied -the Mandans with guns and ammunition. They were therefore in a very -menacing temper, and had determined to waylay, scalp, and plunder the -next party of traders who ventured the journey to the villages. - -Thompson, however, was not to be deterred; and he made his -preparations for the dash across the plains. As guide and -interpreter, he engaged a man who had resided for eight years among -the Mandans, by name René Jussomme. He also picked up a -light-hearted Irishman, Hugh McCrachan, who had often been to the -villages for months at a time. The rest of the party was made up of -French Canadians, gay and gluttonous vagabonds, who could -nevertheless work as hard as they boasted, and hunt as much as they -ate. All these men enlisted for the expedition as free traders; that -is to say, each of them borrowed from McDonnell goods and trinkets to -the value of fifty beaver skins, which he undertook to repay on his -return. Thompson himself was supplied with two horses, and -ammunition and tobacco for trade. Jussomme had one horse; while the -men each bought two half-savage dogs from the Assiniboines. These -were to haul their sled-loads of goods across the plains. - -Thus equipped, the party set forth on the 28th day of November. The -dogs were unaccustomed to hauling anything. Snapping and barking, -they dashed hither and thither in all directions, hardly restrained -by the loud _sacrés_ of the Frenchmen, reinforced by lashes freely -administered with their stout rawhide whips. The motley procession -crossed the Assiniboine on the ice, and camped that evening in a wood -by the side of the Souris river, hardly six miles from the point from -which they had set out. Meanwhile, the temperature was falling. At -eight that night Thompson observed that it was 20° below zero. By -the following morning it had dropped seven degrees more, and a -stinging west wind had sprung up which kept them in camp. Here they -remained for five days, in a temperature that sank as low as 40° -below zero; while the high wind whistled through their canvas, and -filled the tent with smoke from their fire. During this time, they -devoured the flesh of three bison which the Frenchmen had brought -into camp, while the dogs rejoiced in the offal. - -The wind had by this time shifted to the north-west, and the weather -turned milder with snow. When the storm was over, they renewed their -journey, keeping close to the river in order that they might not lose -sight of the familiar landmarks, for the men neither knew the compass -nor would trust it to guide them. After making eleven miles, they -came to a grove of hardwood, in which they found five tents of -Assiniboine Indians. These gave them a hospitable welcome, but -warned them that the Sioux were on the warpath. Nevertheless, they -pressed forward, and by the following morning had reached the point -where the trail led away from the river across the wind-swept plain -to Turtle Mountain on the international frontier. - -Jussomme now announced that they must prepare for an early start, as -they faced a long journey across country before they could reach the -shelter of the wooded heights. At seven the following morning they -were on their way. Mile after mile they trudged over the boundless -plain until one o'clock in the afternoon, and still no Turtle hill -was in sight. The weather had now turned threatening, and anxiety -was in every face. At this point Jussomme threw up his hands and -confessed that he had lost his way. - -It was a critical moment. Springing to his horse, Thompson galloped -to the nearest knoll, from which with his glass he scanned the -horizon on every side. Not a vestige of wood was in sight, but far -to the north-west his eye caught what seemed to be the tops of a -clump of trees. On this he took a bearing with his compass, and -called to the party to follow him, which after some hesitation they -made up their minds to do. Meanwhile the wind came on with -increasing force, and the darkness closed in before they could see -whether it was really a wood to which their painful and tedious march -led. However, they kept in file and close together, and the dogs -gave no trouble. It was black night before they finally reached the -wood. Utterly wearied, the men hurriedly threw up their canvas and -sought shelter from the storm. - -The blizzard continued through the next day, and the men were too -exhausted to proceed. They remained in camp with nothing but the -meat of two tough old bulls to relieve their hunger. The day -following two of the three horses went lame, their hoofs eaten away -by the hard crusty snow. Luckily they encountered a small party of -Assiniboines on their way to McDonnell's house to trade, and were -able to send the horses back with them to the fort, purchasing dogs -from the Indians in their stead. Two days later they met another -party of Indians, and from them got a good meal. These Indians -warned them that the Sioux were in waiting at the Dog Tent Hills; and -no offer would induce anyone of them to go forward with the party as -a guide. - -They were now in the neighbourhood of Turtle Mountain, and Thompson -had taken sole command. Another gale, another blizzard, and another -march till nightfall brought them to the hill. On this occasion -again the compass proved a trusty guide. In the darkness, Thompson's -face brushed against the overhanging branch of a tree, and he knew -that he had guided his men safely to the wood. Thus they continued -as far as the Dog Tent Hills, near the elbow of the Souris. On -approaching the broken country, Thompson espied a long line of -horsemen descending the slope and moving off to the south. It was -the Sioux, who had made up their minds that no traveller would -venture forth in such tempestuous weather. Thompson signalled his -men to throw themselves flat on the ground. This they did, and -remained unperceived until the enemy was out of sight. They then -entered the hills, and while they rested and hunted, cut tent poles -and firewood for the dash across the barren plain. The fifty miles -that still divided them from the waters of the Missouri were passed -without adventure, and they arrived, tired but triumphant, at the -upper village of the Mandans after a journey of thirty-three days. - -Thompson was now introduced by Jussomme to a chief who bore the name -of "Big White Man." To this chief he explained that his business was -not to trade, but to visit the various tribes of natives, in order to -see how they could be more regularly supplied with arms, ammunition, -and other articles which they much needed. Surprised and pleased at -this agreeable information, the chief led the white man to his own -hut, where he and his servant Boisseau were comfortably installed and -entertained with all the rites of native hospitality. - -In company with Jussomme and McCrachan, Thompson then paid a visit to -each of the five villages in turn. These, he found, were all built -alike of domelike huts constructed of mud plastered over a framework -of wood, each with an aperture in the centre of the roof to carry off -the smoke of the fire and admit light to the solitary chamber of the -dwelling. In front of each house stood a porch made of stretched -bison skins, affording an approach to a doorway large enough to admit -a horse. Passing the door, one entered a circular chamber about -forty feet across, and, from the earthen floor to the aperture in the -roof, eighteen or twenty feet in height. To the left of the doorway, -sat the master of the house on a couch covered with buffalo robes. -Before him was the fire, built in a circular space hollowed out of -the floor, and surrounded by vessels of native pottery containing -maize and boiled meat, the food of the household. Around the walls -were a series of frame bunks about three feet from the ground, each -of them enclosed by hides except for the front and made comfortable -by a soft buffalo robe. To the right of the entrance were the stalls -for the two or three horses which belonged to the household, to which -every evening they were led back after pasturing on the plains. In -the smallest of these villages, Thompson counted thirty-one such -huts, in the largest one hundred-and-thirteen, each hut containing a -family of from eight to ten souls. - -Surrounded as they were by fierce and violent enemies, the Mandans -had constructed their villages with an eye to defence rather than to -comfort. For this purpose a site was selected on elevated ground, so -that no attack could be made from above. The houses were then built -irregularly without regard for streets, and the whole village -surrounded by a stockade of timbers at least twelve feet in height. -On more than one occasion, Thompson learned, the Sioux had taken -advantage of a dark and stormy night to approach the villages and -fire the palisades. But the flames had no power to destroy the -earthen houses; there were no straight streets down which the enemy -could shoot; and, as a regular siege was beyond the power of any of -their foes, the Mandans had hitherto escaped destruction. - -The tribe, when Thompson visited them, were already acquainted with -the use of iron. Their flint-tipped spears and arrows they gladly -laid aside, when they could, for a long spear, headed with a flat -iron bayonet nine or ten inches in length. Thus far, however, they -had been visited only irregularly by traders; and so had but few guns -among them. Iron was so precious for purposes of war that it had not -yet come into common use for agriculture. Their ploughs were made of -the shoulder blade of a deer or bison, neatly fastened by thongs to a -handle. For hoes, they used pointed sticks hardened in the fire. A -council of old men allotted to each family its portion of ground in -the rich alluvial of the river bottom. From this they were able with -their rude implements to raise a sufficient quantity of the maize, -pumpkins, beans, and melons which were native to America. - -Thompson was anxious to find out the origin of this interesting -people, for they had not been many years on the banks of the -Missouri. Their traditions, however, went back no further than the -days of their great-great-grandfathers. These, they said, had dwelt -to the eastward, possessing the rich flats about the upper waters of -the Red river and the Mississippi. There the wild rice grew in -abundance and the deer were in plenty, though the horse and the -buffalo were unknown. On all these streams they had villages and -cultivated the ground as at present from before the memory of man. - -The Sioux to the south of their ancient home were their enemies, but, -armed only with stone-headed spears and arrows, could do them little -harm. To the north-east, in the depths of the gloomy forest, dwelt -the Chippewas, who were likewise powerless to hurt them. But the day -came when the Chippewas, armed by the white traders with guns, -ironheaded arrows, and spears, silently collected under cover of the -forest, and sallied out to harry their villages with fire, and cut -off their men as they were scattered in hunting parties far and wide. -Hard pressed by the attacks of an enemy whom they could not resist, -they gave way from point to point until they arrived at the banks of -the Missouri; and thus put the width of the great plains between them -and their implacable foes. - -Having made friends with the natives and taken the observations -necessary to determine the position of their villages, Thompson -prepared to depart. As the Mandans dwelt in the territory of the -United States, and it was contrary to the treaty of 1794 for a -British company to plant trading posts among them, commerce was -possible only if they were willing to make the journey to McDonnell's -house to trade. Accordingly a chief in the prime of life, together -with four young warriors, was selected to accompany Thompson on the -trip home. These were joined by an old man and his squaw, who said -that they wished to see the houses of the white men before they died. -But the heights of the Missouri were too much for the aged couple, -and they dropped out. Fourteen days of storm and tempest on the open -plain sufficed to kill the spirit of two of the warriors, and they -also dropped out. With the remainder, Thompson arrived at -Assiniboine House on the 3rd of February, 1798. Unfortunately, the -attempt to open up trade with the Mandans turned out to be -unsuccessful. The journey was long and difficult in winter; and, in -summer, the Sioux were active and cut off parties who tried to make -the passage across their land so that the Mandan villages proved to -be beyond the reach of the merchants from Canada. - -At McDonnell's house, Thompson prepared the maps and notes of his -survey to be sent by the next convoy to headquarters at Grand -Portage. He then took leave of his hospitable friend, and set forth -on his explorations up the Red river. With three French Canadians -and an Indian guide, he started down the Assiniboine, hauling his -baggage and provisions by dog sleds on the ice. The tedious windings -of the stream and the ever increasing depth of snow made progress -difficult. Nevertheless, by the 7th of March he had reached the -junction of the Assiniboine and the Red rivers, where the city of -Winnipeg now stands. He then turned up the Red river, and in six -days' travel came to the international boundary, beyond which it was -his duty to warn all traders that they were trespassing in the -territory of the United States. - -By the 25th of March he had worked his way south as far as the post -of Baptiste Cadotte, which was situated on a tributary of the Red -river, near the present site of the town of Red Lake Falls. From -this point he purposed to cross the height of land to the western end -of Lake Superior. Could he do it before the break-up of winter, and -while the mantle of snow still lay on the ground to give passage to -his dogs? He had, it will be remembered, no experience of southern -latitudes. His last winter had been spent by the shore of Reindeer -lake, where the ice stood firm till a windstorm broke it up on the -fifth day of July. Cadotte warned him that the season was too far -advanced; but he took the risk. - -On the 27th of March he began his his journey eastward up the -Clearwater river into Minnesota, picking up a guide from some -Chippewas whom he found on the way. As the day wore on, the rays of -the sun increased in power, and walking became difficult in the -thawing snow. The night was mild, and the following morning the -guide took care to break his snow-shoes that he might have an excuse -for returning to camp. The day was wasted, while Thompson waited -impatiently for another guide to be sent to take the place of the -first. At sundown a storm came on with thunder, lightning, and rain, -which continued the night through and far into the next day. The -snow was now so heavy that progress was impossible. The continuous -rains had soaked the clothes and the baggage of the party through and -through. The fourth day opened with gusts of hail and sleet. The -country before them was like a lake, and Thompson was compelled to -admit himself beaten. Splashing and stumbling through the bush and -along the treacherous ice of the river, the party struggled to make -their way back to the protecting shelter of Cadotte's roof. But -their baggage was too much for them, and they had to give in. -Finally Thompson with one man, travelling light, pressed forward to -the post for help; and by the afternoon of the second day the weary -travellers were brought safely into camp. - -When the rivers were finally clear of ice, Thompson, with his three -Canadians and a native woman, made a fresh start, this time by canoe -and with dried provisions to last for twelve days. They had first to -battle their way against the current of Clearwater river, to the -portage which brought them to Red lake. The country was everywhere -soaked with water, so that at night they were forced to cut down -trees and sleep on the branches. Red lake, they found, was still -covered with patches of broken ice. Hauling and paddling their canoe -in turn they crossed the lake, and entered an immense area of pond -and marsh to the south. Everywhere stretched beds of wild rice, the -haunt of innumerable geese, duck, and loon. With infinite toil they -made their way from lake to lake and brook to brook, until after five -days in the marsh they arrived at Turtle lake. - -This lake Thompson took to be the true source of the Mississippi. -Twenty years later American surveyors reached the conclusion that, of -all the ponds whose waters join to form the Mississippi, Lake Itaska -most deserved the name. Lake Itaska lies a few miles to the south -and west of Turtle lake. Yet this fact hardly suffices to rob David -Thompson of the glory of being the first man to fix the point from -which the Father of Waters takes its rise. - -There was still a long journey ahead to the coast of Lake Superior; -and the canoe was leaky from bumping about among the ice floes. -Luckily two boats of Chippewas came along on their way to John -Sayer's post at Red Cedar or Cass lake. With these Thompson and his -party embarked. A carry of two hundred yards took them past the -narrow and shallow waters of Turtle brook, to a point where the -stream was enlarged by a tributary from a nearby lake. Here they -launched their canoes and followed the stream through its incredible -windings to the lake. This was the country of wild rice and maple -sugar, and on these the poor Indians were compelled to subsist. Not -a deer or a beaver was to be seen; all had been destroyed. The geese -and ducks flew overhead in safety; for the impoverished natives could -not even afford the price of guns and ammunition, and they had lost -the art of making and using the bow. - -Sayer supplied Thompson with a fresh canoe, which enabled him to -continue his voyage. From the south of the lake, the valley of the -Mississippi now lay clear before him to the south east--a wide -expanse of marshy ground through which the channel meandered like a -writhing snake. As he advanced, however, the marsh gave way to a -sandy loam, heavily clothed with resinous fir. Arriving at Sand Lake -river, he turned east along this to Sand lake. Before him was a -great swamp, nearly five miles in width and stretching north and -south as far as the eye could reach. This was the last barrier -between him and the headwaters of the River St. Louis. Shouldering -their canoe and baggage, they advanced along the rude corduroy road -which the traders had laid across the bog. As often as they missed -their step, they sank to their waists in the mire. A long day's work -was needed before they had reached the other side. From thence a -brook carried them to the main stream of River St. Louis. They -passed into the forest country that surrounds the lake; and were soon -at the trading house which the North-Westers maintained at Fond du -Lac on the present site of the city of Duluth. - -Here they found an old twenty-eight foot canoe, which they patched up -and fitted with oars, for their slight river craft was unequal to the -winds and waves of Superior; and they had still to make a survey of -the lake. The weather was fine; and they made the circuit without -adventure, east along the south shore to Sault Ste. Marie, and -westward along the north shore to Grand Portage. Late in the evening -of the 7th of June, Thompson set foot on the pier, his long journey -over. - -At Sault Ste. Marie he had encountered Sir Alexander Mackenzie and -William McGillivray travelling east to Montreal. When they heard -what he had done, they were warm in their praise, and told him that -he had accomplished as much in ten months as might have been expected -in two years. His reputation was thus established, and his future -with the North West Company was assured. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -EIGHT YEARS OF TRADING - -The report which Thompson made to his employers after his return to -Grand Portage was of immense value to them. They now had a clear -idea of the whole stretch of country from Sault Ste. Marie to the -upper waters of the Missouri river, and were in a position to -rearrange their trading houses to meet the needs of the time. -Similar work remained to be done in the other regions to which the -interests of the Company extended. But the same haste was not -required, and the surveys could be pushed forward with less -difficulty and expense in connection with what was the main object of -the partners, that is the prosecution of the trade in furs. Thompson -was therefore requested to undertake some of the actual work of -trading, with freedom to make such journeys of exploration as he saw -fit. - -The eight years following therefore mark a new period in his service -with the North West Company, during which his activities carried him -far and wide along the great waterways of the interior. Throughout -these years he exercised, to the full, the qualities of mind and -character which made him such a unique surveyor. His bulky note -books were crammed with memoranda gathered with painstaking accuracy -and checked with minute care. From time to time, where a less -hurried visit to one of the more comfortable trading houses made it -possible, he added his newly acquired information to the map which he -had in hand. With each report that he made to Headquarters, the -picture of the Great West gradually took shape. Its physical -features were delineated; its wild life was noted and classified; its -native populations, their numbers, their racial affinities and -languages, their manners and customs were as far as possible -described. This was indeed wizardry, as his ignorant French-Canadian -and Indian followers imagined; but it was the wizardry of science, -which, by the slow accumulation of ascertained facts, lays the whole -world of nature at the feet of civilized man. - -In the summer of 1798, the attention of traders was largely directed -to the western forest country, which lies beyond the divide -separating the waters of the upper Saskatchewan from the basin of the -Peace and Athabaska rivers. Twenty years before, Peter Pond had -penetrated into this region as far as Lake Athabaska, and there -established a post. At Lake Athabaska, ten years later, Roderick -Mackenzie had built Fort Chippewyan, from which Sir Alexander had set -out on his two famous voyages, the one down the Mackenzie to the -Arctic, the other up the Peace to its headwaters and from thence -across British Columbia to the Pacific. Apart, however, from the -activity centred in Lake Athabaska, little had been done as yet to -explore the possibilities of trade in what is now northern Alberta. - -Thompson was therefore instructed to proceed to Lake la Biche or Red -Deer lake, whose waters fall into the Athabaska river about fifty -miles below Athabaska Landing. On the 14th of July, he set forth -from Grand Portage with the Churchill river brigade. By the middle -of August they had reached Cumberland House, and a week later they -had crossed over Frog Portage to the main stream of the Churchill. - -From this point west the route lay through a region as yet new to -Thompson. As he ascended the river to Isle à la Crosse, he found -that the country was still composed of the denuded rock with which he -was familiar on the lower stretches of the river. Ridges of this -rock, crossing the valley of the stream from point to point, gave it -the character of an irregular chain of lakes with many portages and -falls. Like the rest of the stony country, it was somewhat poor in -game and fur-bearing animals, although many of the lakes teemed with -fish. - -From Isle à la Crosse to the valley of the Athabaska there were two -possible routes. To the north there was Turnor's old course by way -of Methy Portage and Clearwater river. To the south, the Beaver -river led through a district of plain and forest to its headwaters at -Beaver lake, from which there was an easy portage over the height of -land to Lake la Biche. Thompson followed the Beaver river, and -arrived at Lake la Biche in time to build a post before the beginning -of winter. - -He was now at the southern end of that vast stretch of country which -he calls the Great Western Forest, and almost in the same latitude as -that of Reed lake in the Muskrat country where he had spent the -winter of 1794-5. He was thus in a position to compare the climate -and soil of this region with that of his old home on the eastern or -"Siberian" side of North America. Throughout the long winter months, -he kept as usual a careful record of the temperatures registered from -day to day by his thermometer. At Reed lake, the temperature for -December had varied from +31° to -45° with a mean of -10° F. For -January it had varied from +11° to -47° with a mean of -21.3°, and -for February from +39° to -31° with a mean of +6°. At Lake la Biche -he found that although in each of the three winter months, the -mercury sank as low as 48° below zero, it rose at times as high as -43° above, and that the mean for December, the coldest month, was not -lower than -6.5°. Then, too, while Reed lake was hardly above the -level of Hudson Bay, the country about Lake la Biche was high and -dry, and the snow did not lie so thick on the ground at the end of -winter. Accordingly, the rays of the sun had a chance to exert their -power on the face of the land much earlier in the year, and spring -burst at Lake la Biche long before winter had loosened his iron grip -on the region about Reed lake. - -The forests with their wild life responded generously to the less -rigorous climate. In the Muskrat region, the wretched traders and -Indians were forced to scour the country for fish and game in -quantities sufficient to keep them alive. At Lake la Biche the -waters yielded an abundant supply of fish; and during the five months -that he spent at the post, Thompson saw no less than forty-nine moose -and several buffalo brought in, all of which had been shot within -twenty miles of the house. There also all the animals, including the -precious beaver, attained their full size and development. - -Thompson wished to get an idea of the extent and general character of -this western forest land, and the quickest way to do so was to survey -the Athabaskan waters from their sources. Accordingly, when spring -opened, he rode across country southwest to Fort Augustus and from -thence westward to the headwaters of the Pembina, which at this point -was divided from the valley of the Saskatchewan by a narrow neck of -land. Embarking on the Pembina, he followed it down till it merged -with the main stream of the Athabaska river. A short excursion up -the Slave Lake river enabled him to explore the shore line of Lesser -Slave lake. Returning to the Athabaska, he continued along its broad -stream past Athabaska Landing to the mouth of the Clearwater river, -and from thence he made his way along the well-known track by Methy -Portage and the Churchill to Grand Portage. Throughout the region -embraced in his survey, he found little exposed rock and therefore -few lakes, but what was better for the beaver many small brooks and -streams which they could dam for their ponds. The country thus -promised a steady yield of furs from year to year, and this, with the -generous supply of game which the forest offered to trader and -trapper, was enough to justify the name which it bore, "The -fur-traders' paradise." - -In the mad competition for pelts, the different companies could not -rest content with the trade of regions already within their grasp. -Each of them sought always to push further afield; for he, who could -anticipate his rivals in opening new country, might plant his trading -houses on the most advantageous sites and bind the Indians to himself -with ties which later comers could not break. In 1790, Peter Pangman -for the North-Westers had pressed along the course of the North -Saskatchewan to a point five miles above its junction with the -Clearwater. There from a hill top he had gazed along the line of -snow-capped Rockies, and his eyes had travelled up the winding course -of the river to the gap through which it issued from the mountains. -From that time the partners had never ceased to dream of the wealth -that lay beyond the Great Divide. In a decade the line of their -trading posts had been extended to a point but three miles short of -"Pangman's Pine." There, in a wide plain not far from the forks of -the river, rose the walls and blockhouses of Rocky Mountain House, -destined to serve as a point of departure for the invasion of the -last great area as yet unknown. - -But much tedious work remained to be done before it would be possible -to hazard the passage of the Rocky Mountains. Besides the North -Saskatchewan, there were two main branches of the South river, the -Red Deer and the Bow rivers, and these had to be surveyed to their -sources in the foothills in order to determine the best routes for -trade. The Blackfoot, Blood, and Piegan Indians, whose encampments -lay along the courses of these streams, were suspicious and hostile. -They held these regions by right of conquest from the Kootenays and -Snakes whom they had driven to the mountains; and these needed only -to procure the muskets and ammunition which the white men could -supply in order to sweep down through the rugged passes and revenge -themselves for the defeats of many years. The Indians therefore -steadily opposed any movement of the traders toward the Rockies, and -even the stoutly fortified trading posts were hardly secure against a -sudden assault. - -In these circumstances, the partners at Grand Portage could think of -no one better qualified than David Thompson to accomplish the objects -of the company. They remembered the early connections which he had -made among the Piegans during his service with the English, and they -had complete confidence in his skill and daring. Thompson was -accordingly taken away from his work in the Athabaska country, almost -before it was well begun, and despatched up the Saskatchewan to Fort -George, in order that he might draw the maps of his recent surveys -and complete his preparations for the work that was now in hand. - -In the spring he took horse and rode overland to Fort Augustus, and -thence south along the Edmonton-Calgary line to a point just short of -the present town of Lacombe. Turning west, he struck the Clearwater -near its mouth and found himself at Rocky Mountain House. While he -himself descended the North Saskatchewan to the elbow, making a -survey as he went, he sent four French Canadians south to the Red -Deer river, with orders to follow it to its junction with the main -stream of the South Saskatchewan. A short distance below Rocky -Mountain House, he found a party of Hudson's Bay men encamped for -building. The English, as well as the Canadians, were bent on -crossing the Great Divide; and it would be a serious blow if they -were allowed to anticipate the North-Westers in so doing. - -Accordingly, on his return to Rocky Mountain House, Thompson brought -with him Duncan McGillivray from down the river, in order that he -might have assistance in pressing forward his explorations. Along -with McGillivray, he rode across to the Red Deer river, where he -found a camp of Piegans. A short stay among them was enough to lull -their suspicions; and Thompson was then able to ride twenty-two miles -west to the foot of the mountains, where he expected to meet a band -of Kootenays. These he found, twenty-six strong. With their women -and children they had crossed the divide to meet the white traders. -These Kootenays were the first of the British Columbia Indians whom -Thompson had encountered. He warned them of the presence of the -Piegans only a few miles east, and sent them back across the -mountains. In order to avoid the Piegans, they travelled by way of -the North Saskatchewan and succeeded in reaching their homes -unobserved. - -Meanwhile, with McGillivray and four men on horseback, Thompson -crossed the Red Deer river and rode still further south to the banks -of the Bow, not far from Calgary. This stream he surveyed as far -east as the bend and westward to Exshaw at the foot of the mountains. -McGillivray then made a traverse across from the north fork of the -Saskatchewan to the valley of the Athabaska, the results of which -were carefully incorporated in Thompson's notes. Thompson himself -spent the rest of the winter at Rocky Mountain House, trading with -the natives and taking observations to fix the location of the post. - -When spring opened, he resolved to attempt a journey into the -mountains by land. With a party of eight men and an Indian guide, he -started westward from Rocky Mountain House. In the narrow valley of -the Sheep river, the horses could go no further; and as the guide -knew of no other route, they returned to the post. A second attempt, -this time by canoe up the Saskatchewan, was equally unsuccessful -because of the floods on the river. When Thompson returned to -eastern headquarters in the spring of 1802, he was not yet able to -report that he had opened a practicable route to the west of the -Rockies. - -What was the effect of this news upon the minds of the partners? -From Thompson's subsequent movements, it is possible to surmise. The -attempt to pierce the mountains from the headwaters of the -Saskatchewan was for the time being abandoned, and attention was once -more transferred to the north. According to the surveys already made -by Thompson, the west end of Lesser Slave lake could not be more than -fifty or seventy-five miles from the valley of the Peace river, up -which Alexander Mackenzie had travelled ten years before. Thither -Thompson was sent, with instructions to explore a route across the -watershed. - -From the upper end of Lesser Slave lake, he pushed his way west -through a wide valley until he came to the banks of the Smoky river. -On the different branches of the Saskatchewan, he had noted the seams -of coal exposed along the banks. At Smoky river, the coal beds, -ignited by spontaneous combustion, had been burning from beyond the -memory of the oldest Indians on the river, and the dark clouds of -smoke which they sent forth gave the river its name. Smoky river was -a tributary of the Peace. A short journey down stream brought him to -the Forks where now stands Peace River Landing. - -Thompson spent the winters of 1803 and 1804 developing trade from the -old posts built by Mackenzie at the Forks of the river, and westward -beyond the frontiers of British Columbia. Here, as at the headwaters -of the Saskatchewan, he found rivals. No sooner was he settled at -the Forks than a party of XY traders from Montreal landed a few yards -from the post and made preparations for the erection of a house. -Thompson prosecuted his work with his accustomed vigour. In the -winter of 1805, when Simon Fraser set forth on the journey that was -to make him famous, he found that a base for his exploration of the -Fraser river had been soundly established on the Peace by his friend -and colleague David Thompson. He honoured him accordingly when he -gave the name of Thompson to the greatest tributary of the Fraser -river. - -By the summer of 1804 Thompson was once more back at headquarters, no -longer at Grand Portage (for that had been surrendered to the -Americans), but at Fort William on Thunder Bay, where the dépôt of -the company had now been established. In that year, the trade war -with the XY Company had reached an acute stage. The Hudson's Bay -Company had also reorganized their enterprises, and between them -these rivals had almost succeeded in wresting from the North-Westers -the trade of the Muskrat country. Thompson was therefore withdrawn -from the fields of his recent activity, his chance of crossing the -mountains was indefinitely postponed, and he was sent into the -Muskrat country to restore the trade of that region to the Canadians. - -With a heavy heart he turned his back on the far west, and entered -the cold and dismal forest which he knew only to loathe. But loyalty -was one of the deepest instincts of his nature, and so, with -indefatigable energy, he proceeded to build new posts and explore new -routes in the region north-east of Lake Winnipeg. In the course of -his efforts, he carried the flag of the North-Westers to a point on -South Indian lake not more than two hundred and fifty miles distant -from Churchill itself. In his relations with rival traders, he -exhibited a friendliness and courtesy that stands in marked contrast -with the cut-throat methods too frequently adopted at critical -moments of competition. The surveys begun years before, when he was -working under Joseph Colen, were now triumphantly finished. Of them, -a member of the Canadian Geological Survey says, "After Thompson had -completed his surveys of this muskrat country, no further information -was obtained about it for nearly a century, and when in 1896, I -travelled through it, the only map of any service which was available -was that drawn by David Thompson in 1813 from surveys made at this -time." - -It is sometimes imagined that the Indians a century ago existed in -vast numbers; and that they were universally of a warlike and -bloodthirsty disposition. This is a complete mistake. It was only -in especially favourable localities that conditions were such as to -promote the evolution of large bands, and generally speaking the -Indian was a poor and humble creature. Lacking the power of -invention, he was often satisfied to make use of utensils of the most -primitive character, and he was almost, if not quite, unarmed. - -Throughout the whole of the Muskrat country Thompson was able to -count but ninety-two widely scattered families, each of them -numbering perhaps seven souls. This gave to every human being from -two to three hundred square miles of hunting country. Yet so poor -was the region and so great the improvidence of its inhabitants that, -in unfavourable seasons, the population was often reduced to the -verge of starvation, and it was only by means of the greatest efforts -that they wrested a livelihood from their gloomy land of rock and -forest. - -All of Thompson's efforts therefore did not avail to bring -satisfactory returns from a region so poor in furs, and inhabited by -such a sparse and wretched population. It was with joy in his heart -that he handed over the district to a partner in the early summer of -1806, and once more wended his way back to Fort William. - -Two events of personal interest in the life of Thompson occurred -during these eight years. The first was his marriage to Charlotte -Small, the half-breed daughter of Patrick Small, an early trader in -the West. Small was a member of a famous Irish family, which had -given generals and admirals to the service of the Empire. He had, -however, followed the custom of the country and taken a native woman -to wife. Thompson's marriage took place at Isle à la Crosse in the -summer of 1799. The other event took place on November 8, 1804, -although the news of it did not reach Thompson until some time later. -On that date the North West Company and the XY Company agreed to -cease their ruinous competition and join forces for the expansion of -their trade. In the terms of agreement, the name of David Thompson -appears as a partner of the United Company. This was good news in -itself; but better still was the prospect that loomed up before his -eyes. With the wounds of competition healed, and the Canadian -trading interests now presenting a united front, the last obstacle to -an aggressive forward movement was removed, and the conquest of the -Rockies might finally be achieved. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -ACROSS THE GREAT DIVIDE - -There are long stretches in human life when the contest with fate -seems endless and the result uncertain, but it is such periods that -test the mettle of a man. In the life of David Thompson, the eight -years just past had been marked by no striking achievement. Yet with -unflagging patience and zeal he had discharged his routine duties, -constantly adding to his equipment the knowledge and judgment that -come from maturer years and wider experience. When therefore his -hour at last struck, he was not unready. Expert surveyor, skilled -trader, he was now to crown his life-work by a piece of original -discovery and exploration on a scale grand enough to place him in the -foremost rank among the builders of British North America. - -It was summer of the year 1806 when Thompson returned from the -Muskrat country to headquarters at Fort William. There he found a -new excitement and a new enthusiasm in the air. During the preceding -year the American officers, Lewis and Clark, had crossed from the -upper Missouri to the valley of the Snake river, and followed that -stream to its junction with the lower Columbia, down which they had -made their way to the Pacific ocean. John Jacob Astor, the great -American merchant, was exerting all his strength to build up a fur -trading empire on the Pacific slope under the flag of the Republic; -and the full extent of his ambitions was now disclosed. For some -years the Hudson's Bay Company had been knocking at the barrier of -the Rockies, and, spurred by competition, they might at any moment -burst through. Fraser for the North-Westers had already advanced -from the Forks of the Peace, and accomplished the difficult and -dangerous feat of descending the Fraser river. But between the -Fraser river on the north and the Snake on the south was a vast -region on which the feet of white men had never trod; and the North -West Company, no longer crippled by their civil war with the XY -traders, were resolved to claim this region for themselves. Thompson -was at once despatched to Rocky Mountain House, with definite -instructions to cross the mountains, this time as senior officer at -the post and in full charge of the operations. - -The winter of 1806-7 was spent in preparation; and John McDonald of -Garth, trader of the Company, together with Quesnel and Finan -McDonald, clerks, lent a hand in the work. The route selected was by -way of the North Saskatchewan, which Thompson knew must be -practicable, because it was along this road that the Kootenay Indians -had returned, when he sent them back to their homes some years -before. He therefore despatched one of his men, a half-breed called -Jaco Finlay, up this road into the mountains, with instructions to -spy out the land. Everything was done with the utmost quietness. -The Piegan Indians suspected nothing, although they were at all times -visiting the fort. Even the Hudson's Bay people, encamped on the -river just below the North-Westers, had not an inkling of Thompson's -plans. - -In the spring Jaco Finlay returned to the post with his report. He -had penetrated through the gap in the mountains to a large valley -near the head of the river, where he had built a small outpost and -got in touch with the Kootenays. From this valley he had crossed the -watershed to a small stream which flowed south-westward and emptied -into a mighty river. At the mouth of this stream he had built a -canoe, which he had carefully "cached" for Thompson's use. - -At this moment an incident occurred in distant Montana, which, tragic -in itself, was not without advantage for Thompson. Captain Lewis, -the American officer, had became embroiled with the Blackfeet. They -attacked his camp and two of their warriors were killed. Suddenly -all the allied tribes were inflamed with the passion for revenge. -War parties gathered throughout the plains, and the Piegans in the -neighborhood of Rocky Mountain House were drawn off to the south. -Perceiving the passes unguarded, Thompson gathered his equipment and -made an immediate start. With his wife and children, Finan McDonald -and a party of half-breeds to help him, he moved up the river by -horse and canoe and entered the mountains. - -As he advanced, the country became rougher and wilder. The grassy -hills were left behind, and the mountains raised their heads in mad -confusion height on height, bald and precipitous masses of solid -rock, except for the patches of pinewood that clung here and there to -their slopes. At times, the crags came together compressing the -river to the width of a few yards, through which the current rushed -against them. Again, when the valley widened, the stream would -divide into many channels dotted with rugged islets and marked by -shoals of rock and sand. Finally they reached the valley in which -Jaco Finlay had built his house--a low and level plain to the north -side of the river, about five miles long and not less than a mile in -width. On every hand were to be seen the remains of old tepees -erected by the Kootenays, who frequented the spot to make dried -provisions from the buffalo and mountain goat. For this reason -Thompson gave the valley the name of Kootenay plains. - -Above Kootenay plains, the river contracted to a width of barely -fifteen yards, and so continued to the forks, at which point the -canoes had to be laid up. From the forks, there was a splendid view -of the mountains still ahead, their peaks more elevated and craggy -than they had so far seen, for they were in fact the main range of -the Rockies. Taking the left branch of the stream they followed it -to within a mile of its end in Glacier lake. At this point, between -Mount Balfour on the right and Mount Forbes on the left, was a gap -opening to the west. Into this gap they turned. A march of two -miles through heavy pinewood brought them to a rivulet whose waters -flowed to the west. "May God in his mercy," says the pious explorer, -"give me to see where its waters flow into the ocean and return in -safety." Thus he marked out his programme for the next four years. - -This rivulet (Blaeberry creek) descended sharply through a narrow, -winding valley between the heights; and it was necessary for the -party to force their way through the thick woods along the steep and -rugged slopes, and to cross and recross the stream through water -knee-deep, in order to reach the mouth. A full day's travel, -however, brought them to the valley of the Columbia. The weather had -done its work on the canoe built by Jaco Finlay; and it was quite -unseaworthy. They had to halt while they scoured the woods for -materials and built new canoes. Finally they embarked and paddled -south up the Columbia until they came to its headwaters. There, a -short distance from Lake Windermere, they hewed logs of heavy fir and -built a cabin which they strongly stockaded on three sides, the -fourth resting on the steep bank of the river. This was Old Kootenay -House, the first trading post erected by white men on the waters of -the Columbia. - -In this remote spot, the safety of all depended upon the courage and -resource of the leader. Additional supplies were needed from Rocky -Mountain House, and Finan McDonald was sent back across the mountains -to fetch them. Until the end of autumn, provisions were scarce, for -the red deer and antelope had not yet descended from the higher -levels, and the mountain goat was hard to shoot as he leapt from crag -to crag. The party therefore relied on fish and the flesh of wild -horses whose feeding grounds were not more than two miles from the -house. For the purpose of trade, it was necessary to get in touch -with the natives and to examine the country as well as possible. The -season was late, but Thompson was able to make one short excursion -with a chief of the Flatbow Indians. - -When Finan McDonald rejoined his chief, he brought with him alarming -intelligence. In the course of the summer, the brother of Old White -Swan, a Blackfoot chief, had with his band assaulted and pillaged -Fort Augustus, possessing himself of many guns, much ammunition and -tobacco and various other articles. Whether or not he had murdered -the traders at the Fort, McDonald could not say; but it was clear -that the spirit of unrest and resentment against the whites which had -for some time pervaded the whole Blackfeet confederacy was now coming -to a head; and Thompson could hardly hope that he himself would -escape serious trouble. - -Trouble came rather sooner than he expected. The fort was not yet -finished when twelve Piegan Indians appeared on foot from across the -mountains. A month later twenty-three more arrived. These set up -their tents along with the others just outside the gates. For over -two months they hung about the stockade, making themselves very -objectionable, and forcing the garrison to remain together within the -walls. But Thompson had a small stock of dried provisions on hand, -and he put his men on short rations, so that there might be no need -to scatter over the country for hunting. For water, he let down two -large kettles nightly from the steep river bank and this was enough -for the daily needs of the post. Towards the end of October, two of -the Indians disappeared from the group, and the garrison feared a -general attack. Nothing, however, materialized, and before winter -set in, the savages drifted quietly away. - -Yet their peril was not yet over. One morning, two more Piegans -presented themselves at the fort. Thompson was anxious, but he did -not flinch. He showed them the strength of his stockades and -bastions, the walls bored with loopholes for his muskets. "I know," -he said, "that you are come as spies and intend to destroy us, but -many of you will die before you succeed. Go back to your countrymen -and tell them this." At the same time, he loaded them with presents -of tobacco for their friends. A fortunate circumstance hastened -their departure. Two of the Kootenay Indians came to the fort while -they were there, and when they saw the Piegans, they glared at them -like tigers. Meanwhile the little garrison watched and waited, six -hardy voyageurs ready to die if necessary in order to make good the -words of their chief. And while they waited, winter came on, -covering the mountains with snow and placing them in safety. - -It was some time before Thompson learned the details of his escape. -The two Piegans were, as he guessed, the advanced guard of a large -war party that was being formed at the instigation of the civil chief -to crush the white men and the natives to the west side of the -mountains before they became well armed. The war chief (Thompson's -old friend Kootanae Appee) had opposed this venture. How, he urged, -could they smoke to the Great Spirit for success, if without warning -they invaded the lands of a people with whom for ten summers they had -been at peace? Such, however, was the influence of the wilder -spirits, that the old war chief was compelled to yield to their will. - -In fifteen days about three hundred warriors under three chiefs -assembled at the rendezvous named by Kootanae Appee, and under his -leadership marched through the mountains to within twenty miles of -the post. There they awaited the return of their scouts. It was not -long before the latter arrived. The Kootenays, they said, were -gathering under the white man to fight for the protection of their -post. At the same time they presented the chiefs with Thompson's -gifts, six feet of tobacco for Kootenae Appee, eighteen inches for -each of the lesser chiefs, and a fine pipe of red porphyry with an -ornamental stem in which to smoke it. - -Thompson's knowledge of the Indians was thorough, and in this case, -his guess as to their intentions had hit the mark. When the war -chiefs heard his message of defiance, they were dumbfounded. "What -can we do with this man," they exclaimed, "our women cannot mend a -pair of shoes but he sees them" (alluding, of course, to Thompson's -astronomical observations). Then the eldest of the three war chiefs, -wistfully eyeing the tobacco, of which they had none, observed: "I -have attacked tents, my knife could cut through them and our enemies -had no defence against us. I am ready to do so again. But to go and -fight against logs of wood that a ball cannot pierce, and with people -we cannot see and with whom we are at peace, is what I am averse to. -I go no further!" So saying, he slowly fitted the pipe to the stem -and handed it to Kootenae Appee. Led by Kootenae Appee, they all -smoked; and, having accepted Thompson's present, were unable to go -further against him. Thus by his own resource and by the support of -an old friend won in the days of his service for the Hudson's Bay -Company, David Thompson prevented the destruction of the first -trading post on the Columbia. - -With the coming of spring began the work of exploring the country. -Leaving McDonald in charge of Kootenay House, Thompson embarked with -four voyageurs on the 20th of April, 1807, and paddled through Lake -Windermere to the source of the Columbia. From thence, an easy -portage of two miles across a grassy plain brought him to a fine -stream flowing south, the Kootenay river of today. Launching his -canoe, he proceeded to search for Indians. - -The river flowed swiftly along between high and steep banks of rock, -their slopes clothed with magnificent timber of all kinds. From time -to time the stream narrowed so that the travellers were forced to -paddle briskly in order to keep ahead of the current. As they -approached Kootenay Falls, in Lincoln county, Montana, the river -entered a cañon no less than a mile in length, terminating in a gorge -where the trail left the river side and meandered along the dizzy -slope of steep bed rock, three hundred feet above the level of the -stream. An hour and a quarter was necessary for the carry; and they -cut their shoes to pieces. The least slip would have meant sure -destruction; and they struggled along over the jagged rocks without a -grain of earth or sand on them to relieve their crippled feet. On -the 14th of May, having followed the winding course of the stream -southward across the present international boundary and northward -again as far as Kootenay lake, they at length came upon ten tepees of -Indians. - -During all this time, they had shot nothing except for a few antelope -and they were nearly famished. Once they came upon the carcase of an -antelope, on which an eagle was feeding. Chasing the bird, they -seized the meat, but it was tainted and made them all sick. The day -following, they encountered the Indians. These, however, had nothing -to offer the white men except a few dried carp and some bitter black -bread, made of the moss collected from the bark of the resinous fir -and the larch. - -The snows of the mountains were now melting, and the water of the -river had risen six feet, overflowing the wide meadows. Owing to the -floods, none of the Kootenays were willing to come to the house to -trade. To paddle home against the current was impossible. Thompson -therefore laid up his canoe, bought horses from the Indians and -engaged a guide who undertook to lead him overland by a well-known -native trail northeast along the valley of the Grand Quête river to -Kootenay House. - -A day's travel brought them to a large brook, so deep and rapid that -the horses could not cross. Thompson selected a large cedar growing -by the bank. This he felled so that it lay across the stream and -served as a bridge over which they carried their luggage. The horses -were taken separately, and by means of a heavy strap of rawhide, -dragged kicking and struggling to the further bank. The guide then -went hunting, but returned empty handed, and the party went -supperless to bed. Early next morning, he killed a small antelope, -which was eagerly devoured. But the faint-hearted guide had already -had enough. Without warning, he decamped and returned to his people, -leaving the white men stranded among the hills, without provisions -and utterly ignorant of the country. - -For two days they waited with faint hopes of his return. Thompson -then sent two of his men back to the tepees to ask for another guide. -In the presence of these men, Ugly Head, one of the chiefs, made a -bitter attack upon his followers. He reproached them for their lack -of spirit, contrasting their conduct with that of the white men who -braved every danger and hardship to bring them arms, ammunition and -other things which they needed. "How many of you," he said, "will -volunteer to accompany the strangers back to their home?" Not a man -answered the call. They knew too well the dangers of mountain travel -at that season of the year. In this crisis Ugly Head himself -announced that he would act as guide; and, with the voyageurs to lead -him, made his way to Thompson's camp. - -The noble and manly conduct of the Indian inspired the little party -with great confidence and hope. Under his leadership, they made -their way among the rugged hills, avoiding the inundated meadows. -The raging torrents they passed by throwing bridges of trees across -them. Finally they reached the Kootenay river not far below the -portage; and here, after building a canoe to complete their journey, -they took leave of their guide. In a short time they were safe at -Kootenay House. - -Thompson had now to conduct the winter's hunt all the way east to -Rainy River House, and bring back supplies for the following year. -Among these supplies were two kegs of alcohol, which his partners -insisted that he should take with him. Thompson was well aware of -the deplorable results that had followed the introduction of spirits -among the Indians, but he was overruled. When he came to the defiles -of the Saskatchewan, he caused the two kegs to be loaded on the back -of a vicious horse. By noon the kegs were empty and broken to -pieces. He wrote to his partners, telling them what he had done, and -vowing that so long as he was in charge of the fur trade across the -mountains, he would do the same with every keg of alcohol which was -sent to him. He was as good as his word; and thus for a few years at -least succeeded in keeping the curse of spirits from the Indians of -the Pacific slope. - -When Thompson reached Kootenay House, the season was too far advanced -to allow of further exploration. He therefore sent Finan McDonald to -open a trading house at Kootenay Falls, while he himself remained for -the winter at the post, taking observations and trading with the -Indians. In the following spring, he had once more to cross the -mountains with the furs, but by midsummer he was back at his house -ready to prosecute his discoveries further to the south. - -In the neighborhood of the Falls, Thompson had found that the -Kootenay river bent sharply to the west and north. In this -direction, he had traced its course to Kootenay lake, before the -floods came on, compelling him to cross overland to his home under -the guidance of the chief Ugly Head. To the south of the Kootenay -was a ridge of mountainous country, intersected however, by -well-marked Indian trails running north and south. These trails, he -was told, led to another great river, parallel with the Kootenay and, -like it, flowing mainly to the west. This river (now known as -Clark's Fork) he made up his mind to explore. - -His point of departure was from Ugly Head's encampment, near the -present site of Bonner's Ferry, Idaho. There he laid up his canoes, -and borrowed horses from the Kootenays for the journey across -country. A two day's ride brought him to Clark's Fork at the point -where it expands to form Lake Pend d'Oreille. Here he was met by a -large deputation of Salish Indians, who welcomed him with presents -and gave him every assistance in finding a site suitable for the -erection of a post. Their joy was easy to understand, for they were -armed merely with a few rude lances and flint-headed arrows, utterly -useless in warfare against the Indians of the plains. Thompson had -guns, ammunition, and iron arrow-heads for trade, but he warned them -that in order to procure these advantages, they must learn to be -industrious in hunting for beaver and other furs, and cease spending -their days and nights in gambling--the pet vice of the savage. This -they eagerly promised to do. - -It was the end of September before he had finished the construction -of his new post (Kullyspell House), and he followed it up, by -constructing a second post, Salish House, sixty miles further east -along the river. From Salish House, he had only to ride out to the -great camp of the Salish Indians near Flathead lake in order to -secure the promise of their trade. He was now thoroughly established -along the whole course of Clark's Fork river. - -From information he had gathered, Thompson judged that both the -Kootenay river and Clark's Fork were tributaries of the Columbia, and -that if he followed them westward to their mouths he would strike -that mighty river. From the unwelcome visitations he had experienced -at the hands of the Piegans, he realized that the line of approach -from the defiles of the Saskatchewan to his new trading post was -exposed throughout its length to raids of the plainsmen through the -easy passes of the mountains. He therefore attempted to explore -Clark's Fork to its junction with the Columbia, hoping that from -thence he might discover a route further west and less accessible to -his foes. - -For some time he followed the course of the river westward through a -country of extensive meadows and forests, enriched by innumerable -streams of pure water, and already in March responding to the -generous rays of the sun, and the warm breezes from the ocean. But -as he approached the mouth, the appearance of the land was changed. -Rude blocks of basalt made the country difficult for horses; the -stream, tumbling in countless rapids and falls, was unnavigable for -canoes. He was forced to turn back; and as the winter's furs were -waiting for his arrival, he made his way to Kootenay House and -thence, to the dépôt on Rainy river. - -In the course of the winter the Salish Indians had traded upwards of -twenty muskets and several hundreds of iron arrow-heads, and by dint -of constant practice had become so proficient in their use that they -felt themselves a match for the Indians of the plains. In the month -of July, when the bison bulls were getting fat, they formed a camp of -not less than 150 men to hunt and make dried provisions as Thompson -had asked them to do. With Finan McDonald, Michel Bourdeaux and -Baptiste Buché to help and encourage them, they crossed the mountains -by an easy defile to the east of Flathead lake, and boldly preceded -to hunt for the buffalo. - -It was not long before the Piegans got wind of their presence. One -morning, the scouts came riding into camp at breakneck speed with the -cry, "The enemy is upon us." Down went the tents, and tent poles and -baggage were quickly formed into a rude rampart. This was barely -ready, when the enemy's horsemen came dashing at the rampart with -wild shouts of rage. The Salish stood their ground; and neither a -second nor a third charge was able to shake them. The battle was now -to be of infantry. The Salish lay quietly behind their ramparts -awaiting the assault; while all day long the enemy advanced in -parties of thirty or forty, shouting insulting cries and doing their -best to lure them from their cover. As often as they came within -gunshot, they were met with a fusilade of bullets. At nightfall they -retired discomfited, leaving the Salish in possession of the field. - -This was the first occasion on which the Salish had ventured to face -the Piegans in the open field, and although no scalps were taken on -either side, they counted it a victory to have stood their ground. -As for the Piegans, their hearts were full of bitterness; and they -swore an oath to wreak vengeance on the white men who had crossed the -mountains to the west, and furnished arms and ammunition to their -age-long foes. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE RACE TO THE SEA - -By the middle of October, 1810, Thompson was once more at the foot of -the Rockies en route for the Columbia with four canoe loads of -supplies. At Rainy River House, he had learned that a vessel -chartered by J. J. Astor and loaded with goods in charge of two -former North West traders was on her way around Cape Horn, bound for -the Columbia; and his orders were to anticipate this ship in reaching -the mouth of the river. He was therefore anxious to get through the -passes without delay, and at all costs to avoid a conflict with the -Piegans. - -Since the 24th of September the brigade had been held up in the -neighborhood of Rocky Mountain House. The post was thronged by noisy -bands of Piegan, Sarcee, Blood, and Fall Indians, who had come -ostensibly to trade, but really to head off any movement of the white -man toward the mountains. Alexander Henry, the trader in charge, -endeavoured to get rid of these unwelcome visitors, but all in vain. -In such a crisis, the time-honoured expedient was rum. While some of -the Indians were drunk, however, others were sober, and for some -weeks it was impossible to get the canoes away without observation, -either by day or night. Finally, however, Henry got the frightened -voyageurs under way, and by the 13th of October, the brigade was -already within twenty miles of the mountains. - -Thompson himself with a partner, William Henry, and two Indian -hunters had ridden ahead to the gap, scouring the country for game -and keeping a sharp watch for possible enemies. The party had killed -three red deer, made a scaffold, and placed the meat on it for safety -against wild animals. Days passed, and the canoes did not put in an -appearance. On the 17th the oldest hunter, rising as usual very -early in the morning, looked at the scaffold and remarked, "I have -had bad dreams; this meat will never be eaten." So saying, he -saddled his horse and rode away. - -Thompson could no longer conceal his anxiety. He ordered Henry and -the other Indian to proceed down the river in search of the canoes; -with positive orders not to fire a shot except in self-defence. At -eight in the evening they returned, and he heard their story. Some -miles down the river, they had seen a number of Piegans encamped on -the bank. A short distance below this camp, they had descended the -slope to the river, where they found the marks of canoes and near -them in the bottom a rude rampart of stones on which there were -traces of blood. Proceeding further down stream, they had fired a -shot as a signal to the lost canoemen, but it was not returned. - -Thoroughly alarmed by their rashness and folly, Thompson prepared to -fly for his life, for he knew that the Piegans would be on them in -the morning. At dawn of day, they took horse and made their way east -by a wide detour through the forest. Fallen trees and undergrowth -interrupted their progress, and their horses' hoofs made their track -easy to follow. Fortunately the afternoon brought with it a light -fall of snow, giving them some hope of shaking off their pursuers, -and late in the evening they ventured to halt and kindle a small fire. - -Racked with fear for his own safety and anxiety for the fate of his -men, Thompson passed a sleepless night. His first care was to find -the brigade. Avoiding Rocky Mountain House, he continued east for -sixty miles along the river, and there, on the second afternoon, he -came upon his men, safe and sound, encamped in an abandoned -trading-post known as Boggy Hall. - -All hope was now abandoned of passing in safety by the defiles of the -Saskatchewan, and Thompson determined to blaze a new trail across the -Rockies by way of the Athabaska river. The route projected lay over -an old path of the Assiniboine Indians to a point on the Athabaska -not far from the present line of the Canadian National Railways; and -from thence along the valley of the river past the mouth of -Yellowhead Pass to its headwaters some miles further south. From -this point a pass led across the height of land to the Wood river, a -small tributary of the Columbia. In later years this pass (known as -the Athabaska Pass) was the regular route for traders of the Hudson's -Bay Company on their journeys to British Columbia. - -Horses and dogs were rapidly collected for the trip over land. The -men were detailed to their several duties, four to hunt, two to clear -a path through the woods, and the remainder to look after the animals -and perform the labour of the camp. By the 28th of October all was -in readiness; and the little party set off with Thomas, an Iroquois -Indian, to act as guide. - -It was a full month before they had crossed the belt that lay between -them and the Athabaska. The road ran through a wretched country, -over mountains and across muskegs. Here and there the fires of the -forest had cut wide swathes through the woods, leaving in their wake -a tangled mass of fallen timber, through which they had to hack their -way. In the bogs the horses lost their footing, shifting their packs -and bruising their knees, until in a short while they were almost -useless. To complete the misery of the travellers, there was the -difficulty of securing food. Their dried provisions were soon -exhausted. Game was scarce; and the hunters often returned -empty-handed after a long day's chase. - -By the first of December they had reached the Athabaska. Four days -later they had come to a point on the river a little above Brulé -lake, where the guide informed Thompson that owing to the lateness of -the season, all thought of crossing the mountains with horses had to -be given up. The greater number of the beasts were therefore sent -back to Rocky Mountain House; four only were retained to ease the -burden of the dogs. - -The thermometer now registered 32° below zero; and the party threw -themselves into the work of building a rough shelter of logs to serve -while they prepared sleds and snow shoes with which to complete their -journey. At the end of the month they made a fresh start. Urged by -the shouts and lashings of the voyageurs, the dogs with their burdens -scurried along the ice of the river. In five days they came to the -grassy ponds that marked its headwaters--the last possible pasturage -for horses. Here, therefore, the poor animals were turned loose to -survive the winter as best they could. - -Four days more brought the party to the height of land. The -landscape, as far as the eye could reach, was clothed with a heavy -mantle of gleaming snow. Round about towered the lofty peaks, their -sides scarred by avalanches which had swept the slopes bare of trees -and rocks in their descent. To the right lay an enormous glacier, a -mass of blue-green ice, the eastern face of which was not less than -two thousand feet in height. The night was fine, and the stars shone -with such brilliance that one of the men told Thompson that he felt -he could almost touch them with his hands. - -Early next morning they began the descent to the valley of the -Columbia. On the eastern face of the mountains, the approach to the -height of land had been a long and steady climb. To the west, the -ground fell away in a series of abrupt slopes, so steep in places -that it required sure footing to avoid a tumble. A short advance -therefore was enough to produce an amazing difference in the climate. -The snow which to the east of the mountains was thin and dry, here -lay heavy and wet upon the ground; and they entered a forest of clean -grown pine of gigantic height and girth. So heavy were the loads and -so steep the slope that the dogs were unable to guide the sleds, and -from time to time they came against the base of a pine tree with -considerable force, dog on one side, sled on the other, so that they -were disentangled with difficulty. To relieve the animals, Thompson -had a portion of the loads removed from the sleds. The men grumbled -as they were forced to lug these packs forward through the heavy -snow. Finally after fifteen days' travel they arrived at the banks -of the Columbia. - -Mutterings of discontent were now openly heard among the French -Canadians. They had had enough, and would follow the madman no -further. Four of them suited the action to the word and deserted. -Two of the others Thompson despatched with letters to William Henry, -describing the route he had discovered, and ordering Henry to follow -him along it with an additional supply of goods. With the remainder, -Thompson set forth on the journey up the Columbia. They had gone but -one day when they, too, balked at the restless energy of their -leader. Faced with incipient mutiny, Thompson had no choice except -to return to the mouth of the Wood river, and there pass the rest of -the winter. - -The place of his enforced residence was the famous "Boat Encampment" -of later days. At this point, the Columbia, after having pursued a -north-westerly course for upwards of two hundred miles from its -sources, bent sharply around the head of the Selkirk Mountains, and -flowed off to the south. At the bend, the stream was joined by two -tributaries, the Wood and Canoe rivers, coming in from the north, and -forming at their mouths a wide meadow of rich alluvial soil. There -in the midst of a forest of giant pine and larch, the party cleared a -site, and built themselves a rough cabin. Thompson, never idle, -spent his time exploring the neighbourhood, and constructing a boat -for the remainder of the journey. As there was no birch bark -available, he built it clinker-fashion of cedar boards split thin; -and these, in default of nails, he sewed together with the fine roots -of the pine. - -The snow was not yet off the ground when he was once more on his way. -He had counted on reaching the mouth of the Columbia not later than -the first of August, and would gladly have made the descent by way of -the river itself, which here lay clear before him. Of his canoemen, -however, three only had the courage to risk the chances of the -voyage. With so few men it would have been madness to venture a long -journey on unknown waters and in the midst of possible enemies; so he -determined to make his way past his old trading posts to the Salish -country. There he knew he could find plenty of free hunters to help -him in accomplishing the voyage to the sea. - -It was six weeks before he had reached Salish House, where he hoped -to find Finan McDonald. But neither McDonald nor Jaco Finlay was at -the post, and, as they had left no letter to indicate their -whereabouts, Thompson prepared to descend Clark's Fork by himself. -The river presented an appearance vastly different from that of the -autumn of 1809, when he had passed down it before. The spring floods -were now at their height, and the water was rising at the rate of two -feet each day, inundating the meadows to the foot of the hills, and -dashing along with such violence that every island became a -water-fall, with a strong eddy at the lower end. Down this raging -torrent they paddled, keeping in midstream, and thankful as they -passed each danger spot in safety. The antelopes had retired to the -hills, and they lived on the meat of horses which they traded from -the Indians. - -On the 8th of June they arrived at the point where the river entered -the Box cañon and became utterly unnavigable. There Thompson found a -small camp of Kullyspell Indians, who informed him that Finan -McDonald was now at a post which he had built on the banks of the -Spokane river further south. Thompson engaged two of these Indians -to inform McDonald of his presence; while he himself waited until the -latter should join him with horses to carry his goods overland to the -new post. Four days later McDonald, with thirteen horses, arrived; -and Thompson with all his possessions was transported overland to -Spokane House, about ten miles northwest of the present city of -Spokane. - -The Spokane river, like Clark's Fork, was a tributary of the -Columbia, and, like it, unnavigable toward the mouth. Thompson -therefore left a small assortment of goods with McDonald, and -proceeded northwest along a well-beaten Indian trail to a point on -the Columbia, just below Ilthkoyape or Kettle Falls. Here the stream -dropped several feet in two magnificent cataracts, the roar of which -could be heard for many miles around. - -Just below the falls was an Indian village, the first of its kind -that Thompson had seen. It was composed of a number of huts, each -from thirty to sixty feet in length, roughly built of large cedar -logs which had drifted down the river, and roofed with mats of woven -fibre stout enough to withstand the rain. The Indians who dwelt here -subsisted mainly on fish. Each spring, as the spawning season drew -near, they propitiated the manito of the salmon with elaborate dances -and ceremonies. Thus purified, they took their stand just beneath -the falls and speared or netted the fish, which they smoked in -quantities sufficient to last them through the year. - -Thompson enquired of these people regarding the course of the river -both up and down. From them he learned that the village at Kettle -Falls was the highest along the stream that had survived the -incursions of the Piegans. Below them there was a journey of ninety -miles of rapids, at the end of which stood another village of salmon -fishers. Beyond this they could tell him nothing. Meanwhile the -canoemen were busy preparing a boat. In this region timber was very -scarce. They had to journey seven miles from the river before they -found a clump of cedar from which they could hew the planking of a -canoe; and it was not until the third day of July that the boat was -finished. - -With five French Canadians, two Iroquois Indians, and a couple of the -natives for interpreters, Thompson now embarked on the last stage of -his journey to the sea. He remembered how, following the settlement -of the international boundary west of Lake Superior, the traders of -the North West Company had been driven from a country which they had -made their own. By that settlement, the forty-ninth parallel had -been accepted as the line from the Lake of the Woods to the watershed -of the Rocky Mountains. West of the Rockies however, all was still -debatable land; and in that vast region, with its timbered mountains -and rich valleys, the wealth of fish in its rivers and of minerals -hidden in its bosom, he claimed the right of a discoverer. At the -stern of his little craft, the Union Jack floated proudly in the -breeze; and at each halting place, Thompson posted a written notice -in the name of the North West Company of merchants from Canada, -formally taking possession of the country for His Majesty, King -George the Third. - -Down the river sped the canoe, the paddlers with long swinging -strokes easily keeping abreast of the stream. Most of the rapids -they were able to shoot; and before nightfall they had completed the -ninety miles to the village of which they had heard above. Tents -were pitched and Thompson summoned the chiefs to smoke with him. - -In a short while the chief arrived, followed by his men in single -file. All sat down in a circle about the tent, and the chief made a -brief speech, welcoming the strangers and offering them presents of -dried salmon and native herbs. Pipes were then lighted and solemnly -passed round. Following this the chief delivered a long harangue, in -which he expressed the hope that the white men would provide his -people with guns, ammunition, axes, knives, awls, not to mention -steels and flints and many other articles of which they stood sadly -in need. They were, he said, able and willing to hunt, and would pay -for everything they got. At present, however, they had only their -hands with which to procure food and clothing. - -Thompson explained that his object was to explore the course of the -river to the sea. If it proved navigable, very large canoes would -come from over the ocean with goods of all kinds, and industrious -hunters would be supplied with everything they required. - -The colloquy finished, permission was given for the women of the -tribe to approach. A dance of welcome followed, at the end of which -the weary travellers were left to their repose. In this way Thompson -made friends with the natives wherever he found them along the river. - -As he advanced, Thompson passed out of the forest country, and -entered the arid plain that lies about the confluence of the Snake -river with the Columbia. Occasional willows and cottonwoods were to -be seen, growing in the neighbourhood of streams; but over the -greater part of this region, the only shrub capable of finding a -lodging was the hardy sage. The natives he now encountered were of -the unhappy Snake family, who had been driven for refuge to this -barren country by the relentless pressure of their foes. Some of -them fled in terror at his approach. Others, less timid, gazed with -admiring eyes upon the guns, kettles, axes, and other paraphernalia -of his camp. Their eagerness to obtain such wonders was in -proportion to their need; for they did not appear to possess even -bows and arrows or the stone axes and knives that were common among -the Eskimos of the far north. - -The river now turned to the west; and far ahead on his left Thompson -discerned the snow-capped cone of Mount Hood, which marked the line -of the Cascade Mountains near the coast. Fifty miles short of this, -he came to a village at which, as usual, he put ashore. Here the -natives warned him of the treacherous Dalles or rapids just ahead, -where the river for a distance of two miles glides noiselessly -through a cañon never more than two hundred yards wide, and the -ledges of basalt, projecting into the stream, create whirlpools and -eddies in which the traveller is sucked to his death. At the same -time, the natives informed him that at the mouth of the river, a -party of white men who had come in a great canoe from the ocean, were -busy erecting a house. Thus he learned that the Astorian party had -anticipated him in reaching the mouth of the Columbia. - -A guide from the village carried him safely through the Dalles, was -paid, and returned to the village. Fifty miles further down stream, -Thompson approached "the Cascades," where the river cuts through the -deep lava beds of the Cascade mountains and makes a descent of about -three hundred feet. Here the cañon was no less than six miles long, -and nearly a mile in depth. Trying in vain to secure a guide, -Thompson entered the rapids alone. For three miles he "ran" the -rapids; a portage of one mile followed, taking him past the worst -stretch of the river; he then re-embarked, and emerged in safety to -the quiet water below. - -There was still one hundred and fifty miles to the mouth of the -river; but the magnificent forests of Douglas fir, cedar, and hemlock -which now clothed the country told them that they had come within the -beneficient influence of the sea. Two days' paddle brought them to -Tongue point, beyond which they had a full view of the ocean. To the -left, not more than a couple of miles distant, they beheld four low -log huts, constructed of timbers newly cut--in the words of Thompson, -"the famous Fort Astoria of John Jacob Astor and the United States". - -At Fort Astoria, Thompson was welcomed by Duncan McDougall and David -Stuart, old colleagues in the service of the North West Company. As -their guest, he spent a week at the post taking observations for its -position and preparing for the return voyage. Toward the mouth of -the river, the natives had been demoralized by their association with -wandering traders from the sea; and remembering their surly behaviour -and menacing looks, Thompson saw to it that his men had their arms in -readiness. On the 22nd of July, he embarked. At the Cascades, he -was forced to appeal to the natives for assistance in climbing the -rapids. The scoundrels were importunate in their demands. With -knives in their hands and poisoned arrows in their bows, they were -ready to kill and plunder the travellers. But the courage and -resolution of Thompson warded off the crisis; and once above the -Cascades he was again among the poor but friendly savages of the -interior. Thompson was anxious to avoid the ninety miles of rapids -below Kettle Falls. When he came to the mouth of the Snake river, he -turned up this stream and ascended it as far as the present Lyon's -Ferry. From thence, having borrowed horses of the natives, he -journeyed overland across the sterile, sandy plain as far as Spokane -House; and from Spokane House, with the assistance of Jaco Finlay, he -once more reached the Columbia above Kettle Falls. There, building a -fresh canoe, he re-embarked and made his way through the Arrow lakes -to the Boat Encampment, thus completing his survey of the Columbia -from its source to its mouth. - -The following winter Thompson spent inspecting his various posts, and -distributing among them additional supplies of goods which he had -received from beyond the mountains. From Salish House, he rode east -along Clark's Fork to a hill top within the limits of the present -city of Missoula; and from thence he was able to trace the route of -Lewis and Clark through the Bitter Root Mountains to the banks of -Snake river. - -In the spring he was once more back at Kettle Falls, where the furs -from the winter's hunt were being collected. The results were -excellent; six canoes had to be made ready to accommodate the packs. -By the 22nd of April, his preparations were complete. The brigade -set off by way of the Columbia, Athabaska pass, and Churchill river -route to Fort William. - -In the summer of 1812, when Thompson arrived at Fort William after -his last journey from beyond the Rockies, he was in the forty-third -year of his life. It was twenty-eight years since he had landed as -an apprentice on the shores of Hudson Bay; and twenty-three years -since he had actively embarked on his career as a surveyor. During -all this time he had been constantly accumulating materials for his -great map of the North West. His work was now complete; so that -instead of returning to the interior, he joined the annual brigade of -great canoes bound for Montreal. Thus did David Thompson bid adieu -forever to the Great North West. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -LAST YEARS - -In 1812, hostilities had broken out between the British Empire and -the United States, and the flame of war was raging along the -international border. In the St. Mary's river, the voyageurs of the -North West convoy with which Thompson was travelling feared that -American troops might intercept their rich cargo of furs, but they -passed through the narrows without being molested and were soon safe -among the islands of the north shore of Lake Huron. From thence they -made a speedy passage up the French river and down the Ottawa to -Montreal. - -His country endangered, Thompson accepted a commission in a battalion -of infantry then being raised by his old colleague Roderick -Mackenzie, but it does not appear that he was ever on active service. -The winter of 1813-4 he spent in preparing a final draft of his map. -This map, in which was embodied the record of his life work, became a -proud possession of the North West Company. For many years it -occupied a place of honour on the walls of the banqueting hall at -Fort William. - -When the war was over, Thompson was selected as British -representative on the commission which surveyed the international -boundary from the River St. Lawrence to the Lake of the Woods. This -task occupied him for the next ten years, and was concluded in the -autumn of 1826. - -At this time, Thompson planned to offer to the public an edition of -his map, and even went so far as to prepare a prospectus. This -prospectus is worth reproducing, because it sets forth in Thompson's -own words the achievements of his career as a geographer: - - -"PROSPECTUS" - -"To be published in England, by David Thompson, a new and correct map -of the Countries in North America; situated between the parallels of -45 degrees; and 60 degrees of North Latitude; and extending in -longitude from the east side of Lake Superior, and Hudson's Bay, -quite across the Continent to the Pacific Ocean; and from his own -local knowledge; being the result of 22 years employment in -discovering, and laying down the several rivers, lakes, hills and -mountains on this extensive tract of country; many parts of which had -never before been explored; these discoveries were only finished in -1812. The whole founded on astronomical observations, the author -being an astronomer by profession. - -"A small part of this work has already found its way to the public, -being copies of a rough map laid before the North West Company of -Canada. - -"Of these regions the map makers have no doubt given the best -delineation they could acquire; but of what was known, so little was -founded on astronomical observations; and their being obliged to fill -up the vacant space with what information they could procure, has led -them into many errors. - -"In this map now offered to the public, almost all the great rivers -on the above part of the continent, on both sides the great mountains -are traced to their sources; the sources of the Mississippi, and -several other great rivers, and the shores of Lake Superior, have -been examined and laid down by the author only. - -"The position, extent and height of the hills and mountains, have -engaged much of his attention; of which he has many landscapes. The -last six years of his discoveries were on the west side of the -mountains to the Pacific Ocean. Each Indian Nation's Territories, -with their limits, and the places of the trading settlements will be -marked out. - -"The courses and distances, (taken when necessary to 100 yards,) with -their calculations, etc., the astronomical observations, and rough -maps on the scale of one inch to a mile, on which these maps are -founded will be open to the inspection of the curious, while the work -is publishing; and it will doubtless afford much speculation to the -scientific, to find many of the great rivers of North America taking -their rise in a small compass, and going off to the different seas -like Radii from a centre. - -"To render the map more general, and to give connection to all the -parts, the author will avail himself of the Sea Coast of Hudson's Bay -and the Pacific Ocean, etc., etc., as laid down by the latest -navigators and travellers; whatever he has not personally examined -himself, will be in a different colour, and the authority mentioned. - -"Nothing less than an unremitting perseverance bordering on -enthusiasm could have enabled him to have brought these maps to their -present state; in early life he conceived the idea of this work, and -Providence has given him to complete, amidst various dangers, all -that one man could hope to perform. - -"The map will be engraved in a neat, chaste manner, combining -elegance and economy, on the scale of 3 inches to one degree of -longitude and will form either a map or an atlas at the will of the -subscriber. - -"The arduous survey, on which the author is at present employed does -not permit him to present the Public with a description of these -Countries and the nations of aborigines. This he hopes to perform as -soon as time permits. - -"It is expected the geographical map will be ready for delivery to -the subscribers by the latter end of the summer of 1820 at the latest. - -"These parts of North America have long been a desideratum on -geography. - -"He also offers to the scientific public, of the same size as the -general map, a chart to contain only the grand features of this part -of the Continent, such as the great mountains and hills, the -principal rivers and extensive lakes; as he proposes to delineate on -this chart, the position and extent of the coal mines; of the various -beds of different kinds of stone and rock; of the great meadows and -forests; the limits of the countries on which the Bison, Elk, Red -Deer, Wild Sheep, etc., etc., are found; the line of the old, and new -portions of this part of the continent; the line of the position of -the Countries, over which, is the most constant appearance and -greatest brightness of the Aurora Borealis; and the line that bounds -their appearance to the westward, beyond which they are not seen; and -whatever else he may deem worthy of remark; all of which could not -have been delineated on the geographical map without causing -confusion." - - -The terms of this prospectus reveal in striking fashion the -scientific spirit in which Thompson's great work was conceived; but -if he hoped that the learned world would welcome and support his -efforts, he was doomed to disappointment. In the early years of the -nineteenth century, interest in the interior of North America was -confined to very few persons. It may have been that the number of -subscribers was inadequate. It may have been that no publisher would -take the risk of issuing the work. At any rate the map and chart -which Thompson projected never saw the light of day. - -At the conclusion of his labours on the International Boundary -Commission, Thompson felt himself in a position to retire. -Throughout his working career, he had always enjoyed a good salary. -With part of his savings, he purchased a comfortable house at -Williamstown in the county of Glengarry, where he settled down with -his wife and growing family. It was there, on the 4th of March 1829, -that the last of his thirteen children was born. With characteristic -public spirit, he entered into the life of the community. When the -Presbyterians of Williamstown desired to build a church, he lent them -money with which to do so. As his sons grew to manhood, a -considerable amount of his savings was required to set them up in -business. - -Thompson's declining years were clouded by financial worries, which -were largely the result of his generous and honourable disposition. -The congregation whom he had assisted were unable to pay off their -mortgage, so he deeded to them the church and grounds. His sons -failed in business, and in discharging their debts, he seriously -crippled himself. He sold his home at Williamstown, and removed to -Longueuil, near Montreal, where there were greater opportunities of -securing employment. Resuming his old occupation, he surveyed the -canoe route from Lake Huron to the upper Ottawa. This was in 1837, -and some years later he surveyed the shores of Lake St. Peter. - -During these years, Thompson worked on the narrative account of his -explorations which he had undertaken to give the world at the time -when he planned to publish his map. He was anxious also to earn what -money he could from the publication of his book. It is said that -Washington Irving, the great American writer, and the author of -_Astoria_, wished to buy the manuscript. Irving, however, was -unwilling to promise that in using it he would give to Thompson the -recognition which he felt was his due; and, jealous to the last of -his reputation, the old man refused to part with his work. The -manuscript therefore, like the map, lay forgotten, until it was -discovered in recent years, and published in 1915 by the Champlain -Society. - -The American Revolutionary War had left a legacy of boundary disputes -which were destined to disturb peaceful relations between Great -Britain and the United States for years to come. Owing to his work -both for the North West Company and on the International Boundary -Commission, Thompson was better acquainted than most men with the -issues involved in these disputes; and he was convinced that on -account of the stupidity and carelessness of British diplomats, the -just claims of British America had been continuously ignored or -overridden from the time when the original treaty of peace had been -drawn in 1783. In his narrative, Thompson relates an interesting -story regarding the settlement made in that year. The story is worth -repeating, not only because it illustrates his attitude toward the -boundary question, but also because of the light it sheds on -conditions in the North West at the time, and the greatness of the -service which Thompson and others performed in mapping the country. - -Among the traders, he says, who made their way from Montreal into the -fur countries was a certain Peter Pond, a native of Boston. Pond was -a man of violent and unprincipled character. In the winter of -1780-1, he was stationed at Lake La Ronge with orders to act in -concert with Wadin, a fellow trader of the North West Company. One -evening, while dining with Wadin, he made himself drunk; and in an -outburst of passion shot Wadin through the thigh. His unhappy victim -expired from loss of blood. - -Pond, however, was an energetic trader; and since in those wild times -and remote places the arm of the law was weak, he escaped the -punishment which he richly deserved. A few years later he had -penetrated to Lake Athabaska, the first white man to do so. There he -disputed the fur trade with a certain John Ross, who followed him -into the country in the interests of a rival firm. An altercation -took place between the two traders, and Pond shot Ross dead. - -On this occasion Pond was arrested and brought to Canada for trial. -But the authorities at Quebec did not consider that their -jurisdiction extended to the territories of the Hudson's Bay Company, -and the prisoner was set at liberty. He thereupon returned to -Boston, his native city. - -The peace negotiations were at that time in progress. The -commissioners for great Britain were two honest, well-meaning -gentlemen, who however knew nothing of the geography of the countries -with which they had to deal. The maps at their disposal were -wretchedly inadequate. One of them, Farren's, dated 1773, showed the -country as far west as the middle of Lake Ontario. Beyond that point -the interior was represented as made up of rocks and swamps, and -described as uninhabitable. Such maps gave every advantage to one -who was personally acquainted with the west, and the United States -commissioners had at their service the expert advice of Peter Pond. - -Had the British possessed the slightest idea of the value of the -territories in question, and had they been disposed in the slightest -degree to press their claims, they might have insisted on a line -drawn due west from the middle of Lake Champlain. Such a division -the Americans would have been glad to accept, for it gave them more -than they could justly demand. But Pond was at the elbow of the -United States commissioners. He suggested to them a line passing -through the Great Lakes to the north west corner of the Lake of the -Woods, and from thence westward (as he imagined from his own rough -surveys) to the head of the Mississippi river. This demand, -exorbitant though it was, the British commissioners accepted, and it -was confirmed by both nations. Such was the hand (concludes Thompson -grimly) that designated the boundary between the dominions of Great -Britain and the territories of the United States. - -The settlement of 1783 was in Thompson's eyes merely the first of a -series of unfortunate arrangements, by which the British dominions -were robbed of extensive and valuable territory. Edmund Burke had -remarked that a malignant fate seemed to attend all the operations of -Great Britain on the continent of North America. Thompson, who from -his personal experience knew the land and the people who disputed its -possession, was able to explain in a less mysterious way the failure -of the British to defend their claims against American pretensions. - -Accordingly, in the summer of 1840, Thompson addressed a number of -letters to Sir Robert Peel, Lord Stanley and the Hon. W. E. Gladstone -on the subject of disputed points along the border. His object was -to urge a prompt and just settlement in each case. Such a -settlement, he felt, was important if peace was to be maintained with -"so litigious a neighbour." It was vital, if the steady -encroachments of that neighbour were to be brought to an end, and -Britain was not to be gradually deprived of her hold upon her last -possessions in America. - -Thompson therefore endeavoured to arouse the leading statesmen of the -Mother Country to the significance of American policy as he saw it. -The leading men of the United States, he pointed out, all held it as -a maxim that no foreign power had any right to any part of North -America; and that every means ought to be employed to expel this -foreign power. They were well aware of the insecurity of their -position. On their northern frontier a powerful foreign nation was -in possession for upwards of one thousand miles. Their sea coast was -open and exposed. The numerous slaves in their southern and western -states were ready for revolt; while to the west were seventy thousand -Indian warriors, who had been compelled by force or fraud to quit -their lands, and who could readily be aroused to a war of revenge. - -Accordingly, he alleged, the Americans had aimed ever since the -treaty of 1783 to restrict as far as possible the territory of Great -Britain and to destroy her influence over the Indians. Their method -was to advance claims which, though exorbitant, would be softened and -rendered familiar by the operation of time, and in each case, when -the settlements came to be made, they aimed to be in possession of -the areas in dispute. British subjects on the other hand had been -compelled to yield ground from point to point, because they could not -rely on the support of the Imperial government if they stood firm. - -As he wrote, the situation was acute along the whole length of the -frontier. On the Quebec border, all the way from St. Regis on the -St. Lawrence to the Connecticut river, the Americans were holding -fast to a line some distance north of the true parallel of 45° which -had been named as the frontier in the original treaty of peace and -confirmed some years later by the award of the King of the -Netherlands. In the St. Mary's river, American commissioners were -claiming two of the three boat channels and all but two or three -hundred yards of a river bed four miles wide. If their demands at -that point were granted, Great Britain would surrender the keys to -her northern and western dominions, and shut herself off from -communication with them except by the frozen shores of the Hudson -Bay. At the head of Lake Superior, the Americans had driven the -British traders from two of the three possible routes joining the -Great Lakes with the Lake of the Woods, and were claiming that the -treaty of 1783 implied a boundary running along the line of the third -and last possible route (the Kaministiquia river), although the very -existence of that route was utterly unknown until at least seventeen -years after the treaty was drawn. In the present congress they were -again urging the necessity of taking possession of what they called -the "Oregon Territory," and demanding a line down the middle of the -Columbia river to the Pacific ocean. - -Thus did the old man endeavour to arm British statesmanship for the -diplomatic contests which he foresaw were inevitable; but his efforts -bore little or no fruit. On the part of Great Britain, conciliatory -motives continued to prevail; and within a few years, Thompson had -the mortification of seeing even the Oregon territory (that is, all -the fine country south of 49° north latitude which he himself had -discovered) lost to the Empire. It is not surprising that he fumed -at British diplomats in general, and in particular at "the stupidity -of that blockhead Lord Ashburton." - -There is little more to record in the life of David Thompson. -Presently, his eyesight failed, and he suffered the misery of a -destitute old age. One by one his possessions fell into the hands of -money-lenders. So poor did he become that he was forced to part with -his precious instruments, and even to pawn his coat in order to buy a -little food. A late entry of his diary reads, "This day borrowed 2/6 -from a friend. Thank God for this relief." On the 10th of February, -1857, the long ordeal was ended and Thompson passed away in the -eighty-seventh year of his age. He was buried in Mount Royal -cemetery without even a stone to mark his grave. - -For a long while after the death of Thompson, it seemed as though the -memory of his achievements had perished with him. But of recent -years his fame, so nearly eclipsed, has shone with renewed -brilliance, and it is now possible to estimate in some degree the -greatness of his character and the magnitude of his work. - -In the sheer length of his journeys, few western explorers have -equalled the record of Thompson, for he travelled in all not less -than fifty thousand miles. Much of this was through country -untrodden by the feet of white men; nearly all of it was in regions -as yet unsurveyed. The unvarying exactitude with which Thompson -mapped this vast area excited the surprise and admiration of members -of the Canadian Geological Survey who with infinitely better -equipment traced his progresses nearly a century later. There are -certain districts which since his day have never been re-surveyed; -some of his work therefore still appears on the published maps of -Canada. - -Throughout his life Thompson was inspired by a restless impulse to -push forward the exploration and mapping of the west until not a -corner of it remained unknown. The greatest satisfaction of his -career was undoubtedly the discovering of the Columbia valley. West -of the Rockies, he was not merely a surveyor and explorer, but in a -real sense an Empire builder, for he added a region of vast and -varied resources to the territories of the Crown. - -It is difficult for Europeans to associate with savages without -misunderstandings more or less serious. The savage governs his life -by an elaborate ritual which he has inherited from his ancestors. -His code is sufficient to cover his dealings with his fellows; but it -fails to guide him in his relations with the strange new beings who -burst in upon him from what is in truth a different world. The white -man, unless he is gifted with unusual tact and sympathy, treats with -contempt and scorn the customs of the natives and seldom attempts to -understand their ways. Worse still, he feels himself freed from the -restraints which bind him in civilized life, and frequently gives -rein to the basest passions of his nature. Thus mutual -misunderstanding too often breeds hatred, and results in the shedding -of blood. - -To a surprising degree, the traders of the Hudson's Bay and North -West Companies were able to overcome the difficulties and dangers of -dealing with the Indians, and their relations with them were -correspondingly successful. Yet even successful traders often lacked -the imaginative sympathy which would have enabled them to submit with -patience to the complicated ritual of Indian life; and standing aloof -as they did from the Indians, they were involved in constant broils -and, not infrequently, in danger at their hands. - -Moreover, in the fierceness of their competition, the traders were -too often willing to play sharp tricks on one another, and these -practices taught the Indians evil ways. To drug the natives with -liquor and steal furs destined for rival firms was a habit only too -common. It sometimes happened also that small independent traders -had their supplies taken from them, their canoes destroyed and -themselves beaten senseless, so that they were driven from the fur -countries, ruined men. Individuals like Peter Pond were guilty of -offences more serious still. Their hands were stained with the blood -of their competitors, and in the rough and tumble of life in the -wilds, their crimes were hard to detect and harder still to punish. -The Indians had learned that the Great Spirit hates to see the ground -reddened with blood. But when they saw thuggery and murder flourish, -how could they preserve their simple faith? - -Throughout his career in the west, Thompson was one of those whose -influence among the Indians was almost wholly for good, and whose -activities shed lustre on the history of the Hudson's Bay Company and -the North West Company, whom they served. His travels carried him -into the rocky belt south-west of the Bay, over the prairies, through -the western forest, and across the mountains of the Pacific slope. -Wherever he came in contact with the natives, he easily won their -admiration and respect. This was due to the insight with which he -studied their customs and to the sympathy with which he regarded -their way of life. For Thompson was infinitely more than a trader: -he had the mind of a scientist and the soul of a poet. - -Love of country springs from many roots; but perhaps the deepest -patriotism is that which comes from an intimate knowledge of the face -of the land itself. Thompson loved the great North West with the -love of a man who knew it in all its moods; for he had journeyed -through it and studied it carefully over a long period of years. He -foresaw the day when the rolling prairies would be covered with -smiling farms, and the Columbia valley would be the seat of a rich -and vigorous civilization. In one respect, his vision of the future -fell short of reality. Living in an age prior to the development of -railways, he failed to see that these regions were destined to be -linked by steel bands with the Canadas in a Dominion stretching from -sea to sea. He thought of them rather as isolated communities, the -middle west looking mainly for its outlet to Hudson Bay, the Pacific -coast joined to civilization by the paths of ocean. - -Characters such as David Thompson are all too rare in the annals of a -nation. So long as honour is due to great men, his memory deserves -to be enshrined in the hearts of his countrymen; and his high -qualities should be a model to those who inherit the Dominion which -he did so much to make. - - - - -BIBLIOGRAPHY - -The most important source of information regarding the life and work -of David Thompson is to be found in the _Publications of the -Champlain Society_, Vol. XII. (Toronto, 1915). This volume contains -the Narrative of Thompson's explorations, edited by Mr. J. B. Tyrrell -with a full general introduction, an itinerary or catalogue of -Thompson's journeys year by year, and notes on the text. The -manuscript journals of Alexander Henry and David Thompson have been -published, under the title of _New Light on the Early History of the -Great North West_, by Elliott Coues (2 vols., New York, 1897). In -this work, Henry's journal has been published as a continuous -narrative, and extracts have been made from Thompson's journal to -throw additional light on specific points. Thompson's original note -books are in the Crown Lands Department, Parliament Buildings, -Toronto. They are too bulky, and too much encumbered with -mathematical data, to be of interest to the general reader, and so -have never been published as they stand. An article by Mr. L. J. -Burpee in the _Canadian Historical Review_, vol. IV., 1923, p. 105 -ff., contains the prospectus of Thompson's map, and the series of -five letters which he addressed to English statesmen on the subject -of boundary disputes in 1840. - -Washington Irving's _Astoria_ presents a graphic picture of the -occupation of the mouth of the Columbia by the agents of John Jacob -Astor. The narrative contains an interesting account of the -appearance of David Thompson at the newly erected fort, and of the -impression which his arrival made upon the Astorians. - -There are short chapters on Thompson in G. Bryce, _History of the -Hudson's Bay Company_, Agnes Laut, _Conquest of the Great North -West_, and W. S. Wallace, _By Star and Compass_. - - - - - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID THOMPSON--THE -EXPLORER *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following -the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use -of the Project Gutenberg trademark. 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