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| John Franklin - Journey to the Shores of the Polar Sea |
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| p. <fo:page-number/> |
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| Journey across the barren Grounds - Difficulty and delay in crossing Copper-Mine River - |
| Melancholy and fatal Results thereof - Extreme Misery of the whole Party - Murder of |
| Mr. Hood - Death of several of the Canadians - Desolate State of Fort Enterprise - |
| Distress suffered at that Place - Dr. Richardson's Narrative - Mr. Back's Narrative - |
| Conclusion. |
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| text-align="start">1821. August 17. |
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| MY original intention, whenever the season should |
| compel us to relinquish the survey, had been to return by the way |
| of the Copper-Mine River, and in pursuance of my arrangement |
| with the Hook to travel to Slave Lake through the line of woods |
| extending thither by the Great Bear and Marten Lakes, but our |
| scanty stock of provision and the length of the voyage rendered it |
| necessary to make for a nearer place. We had already found that |
| the country, between Cape Barrow and the Copper-Mine River, |
| would not supply our wants, and this it seemed probable would now |
| be still more the case ; besides, at this advanced season, we expected |
| the frequent recurrence of gales, which would cause great detention, |
| if not danger in proceeding along that very rocky part of the coast. |
| I determined, therefore, to make at once for Arctic Sound, where |
| we had found the animals more numerous than at any other place ; |
| and entering Hood's River, to advance up that stream as far as it |
| was navigable, and then to construct small canoes out of the |
| materials of the larger ones, which could be carried in crossing the |
| barren grounds to Fort Enterprise. |
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| text-align="start">August 19. |
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| We were almost beaten out of our comfortless abodes |
| by rain during the night, and this morning the gale continued |
| without diminution. The thermometer fell to 33 deg. Two men were |
| sent with Junius to search for the deer which Augustus had killed. |
| Junius returned in the evening bringing part of the meat, but owing |
| to the thickness of the weather, his companions parted from him |
| and did not make their appearance. Divine service was read. On |
| the 20th we were presented with the most chilling prospect, the |
| small pools of water being frozen over, the ground being covered |
| with snow, and the thermometer at the freezing point at mid-day. |
| Flights of geese were passing to the southward. The wind however |
| was more moderate, having changed to the eastward. Considerable |
| anxiety prevailing respecting Belanger and Michel, the two men |
| who strayed from Junius yesterday, the rest were sent out to look |
| for them. The search was successful, and they all returned in the |
| evening. The stragglers were much fatigued, and had suffered |
| severely from the cold, one of them having his thighs frozen, and |
| what under our present circumstances was most grievous, they had |
| thrown away all the meat. The wind during the night returned to |
| the north-west quarter, blew more violently than ever, and raised a |
| very turbulent sea. The next day did not improve our condition, |
| the snow remained on the ground, and the small pools were frozen. |
| Our hunters were sent out, but they returned after a fatiguing |
| day's march without having seen any animals. We made a scanty |
| meal off a handful of pemmican, after which only half a bag |
| remained. |
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| The wind abated after midnight, and the surf diminished rapidly, |
| which caused us to be on the alert at a very early hour on the 22d, |
| but we had to wait until six A.M. for the return of Augustus who |
| had continued out all night on an unsuccessful pursuit of deer. |
| It appears that he had walked a few miles farther along the coast, |
| than the party had done on the 18th, and from a sketch he drew on |
| the sand, we were confirmed in our former opinion that the shore |
| inclined more to the eastward beyond Point Turnagain. He also |
| drew a river of considerable size, that discharges its waters into |
| Walker's Bay; on the banks of which stream he saw a piece of |
| wood, such as the Esquimaux use in producing fire, and other marks |
| so fresh that he supposed they had recently visited the spot. We |
| therefore left several iron materials for them. Our men, cheered by |
| the prospect of returning, embarked with the utmost alacrity; and, |
| paddling with unusual vigour, carried us across Riley's and Walker's |
| Bays, a distance of twenty miles before noon, when we landed on |
| Slate-Clay Point, as the wind had freshened too much to permit us |
| to continue the voyage. The whole party went to hunt, but returned |
| without success in the evening, drenched with the heavy rain which |
| commenced soon after they had set out. Several deer were seen, |
| but could not be approached in this naked country; and as our |
| stock of pemmican did not admit of serving out two meals, we went |
| dinnerless to bed. |
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| Soon after our departure to-day, a sealed tin-case, sufficiently |
| buoyant to float, was thrown overboard, containing a short account of |
| our proceedings, and the position of the most conspicuous points. |
| The wind blew off the land, the water was smooth, and as the sea |
| is in this part more free from islands than in any other, there was |
| every probability of its being driven off the shore into the current ; |
| which, as I have before mentioned, we suppose, from the circumstance |
| of Mackenzie's River being the only known stream that |
| brings down the wood we have found along the shores, to set to the |
| eastward. |
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| text-align="start">August 23. |
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| A severe frost caused us to pass a comfortless night. |
| At two P.M. we set sail, and the men voluntarily launched out to |
| make a traverse of fifteen miles across Melville Sound, before a |
| strong wind and heavy sea. The privation of food, under which |
| our voyagers were then labouring, absorbed every other terror; |
| otherwise the most powerful persuasion could not have induced |
| them to attempt such a traverse. It was with the utmost difficulty |
| that the canoes were kept from turning their broadsides to the |
| waves, though we sometimes steered with all the paddles. One of |
| them narrowly escaped being overset by this accident, happening |
| in mid-channel, where the waves were so high that the mast-head |
| of our canoe was often hid from the other, though it was sailing |
| within hail. The annexed plate, from Mr. Back's sketch, will convey |
| to the reader an accurate idea of the peril of our situation. |
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| The traverse, however, was made;we were then near a high |
| rocky lee shore, on which a heavy surf was beating. The wind |
| being on the beam, the canoes drifted fast to leeward; and, on |
| rounding a point, the recoil of the sea from the rocks was so great |
| that they were with difficulty kept from foundering. We looked in |
| vain for a sheltered bay to land in ; but, at length, being unable to |
| weather another point, we were obliged to put ashore on the open |
| beach, which, fortunately, was sandy at this spot. The debarkation |
| was effected in the manner represented in the plate; and, fortunately, |
| without further injury than the splitting of the head of |
| the second canoe, which was easily repaired. |
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| Our encampment being near to the place where we killed the deer |
| on the 11th, almost the whole party went out to hunt, but they |
| returned in the evening without having seen any game. The |
| berries, however, were ripe and plentiful, and, with the addition |
| of some country tea, furnished a supper. There were some showers |
| in the afternoon,and the weather was cold, the thermometer |
| being 42 deg, but the evening and night were calm and fine. It may be |
| remarked that the mosquitoes disappeared when the late gales |
| commenced. |
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| text-align="start">August 25. |
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| Embarking at three A. M., we stretched across |
| the eastern entrance of Bathurst's Inlet, and arrived at an island, |
| which I have named after Colonel Barry, of Newton Barry. Some |
| deer being seen on the beach, the hunters went in pursuit of |
| them, and succeeded in killing three females, which enabled us to |
| save our last remaining meal of pemmican. They saw also some |
| fresh tracks of musk oxen on the banks of a small stream, which |
| flowed into a lake in the centre of the island. These animals must |
| have crossed a channel, at least, three miles wide, to reach the nearest |
| of these islands. Some specimens of variegated pebbles and jasper |
| were found here imbedded in the amygdaloidal rock. |
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| Re-embarking at two P.M., and continuing through what was |
| supposed to be a channel between two islands, we found our passage |
| barred by a gravelly isthmus of only ten yards in width ; the canoes |
| and cargoes were carried across it, and we passed into Bathurst's Inlet |
| through another similar channel, bounded on both sides by steep |
| rocky hills. The wind then changing from S.E. to N.W. brought |
| heavy rain, and we encamped at seven P.M., having advanced |
| eighteen miles. |
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| Starting this morning with a fresh breeze in our favour, |
| we soon reached that part of Barry's Island where the canoes were |
| detained on the 2d and 3rd of this month, and contrary to what we |
| then experienced, the deer were now plentiful. The hunters killed |
| two, and we were relieved from all apprehension of an immediate |
| want of food. One would suppose the deer were about to retire to |
| the main shore from their assembling at this time in such numbers |
| on the islands nearest to the coast. Those we saw were generally |
| females with their young, and all of them very lean. |
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| The wind continued in the same direction until we had rounded |
| Point Wollaston, and then changed to a quarter, which enabled us |
| to steer for Hood's River, which we ascended as high as the first |
| rapid and encamped. Here terminated our voyage on the Arctic |
| sea, during which we had gone over six hundred and fifty geographical |
| miles. Our Canadian voyagers could not restrain their expressions |
| of joy at having turned their backs on the sea, and |
| they passed the evening talking over their past adventures with |
| much humour and no little exaggeration. The consideration that |
| the most painful, and certainly the most hazardous, part of the |
| journey was yet to come, did not depress their spirits at all. It is |
| due to their character to mention that they displayed much courage |
| in encountering the dangers of the sea, magnified to them by their |
| novelty. |
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| The shores between Cape Barrow and Cape Flinders, including |
| the extensive branches of Arctic and Melville Sounds, and Bathurst's |
| Inlet, may be comprehended in one great gulf, which I have distinguished |
| by the appellation of George IV.'s Coronation Gulf, in |
| honour of His Most Gracious Majesty, the latter name being added |
| to mark the time of its discovery. The Archipelago of islands which |
| fringe the coast from Copper-Mine River to Point Turnagain, I have |
| named in honour of His Royal Highness the Duke of York. |
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| It may be deserving of notice that the extremes in temperature |
| of the sea water during our voyage were 53 deg and 35 deg, but its general |
| temperature was between 43 deg and 48 deg. Throughout our return from |
| Point Turnagain we observed that the sea had risen several feet |
| above marks left at our former encampments. This may, perhaps, |
| be attributed to the north-west gales. |
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| text-align="start">August 26. |
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| Previous to our departure this morning, an assortment |
| of iron materials, beads, looking-glasses, and other articles |
| were put up in a conspicuous situation for the Esquimaux, and the |
| English Union was planted on the loftiest sand-hill, where it might |
| be seen by any ships passing in the offing. Here also, was deposited |
| in a tin bow a letter containing an outline of our proceedings, the |
| latitude and longitude of the principal places, and the course we |
| intended to pursue towards Slave Lake. |
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| Embarking at eight A.M. we proceeded up the river, which is full |
| of sandy shoals, but sufficiently deep for canoes in the channels. It is |
| from one hundred to two hundred yards wide, and is bounded by high |
| and steep banks of clay. We encamped at a cascade of eighteen or |
| twenty feet high, which is produced by a ridge of rock crossing the |
| river, and the nets were set. A mile below this cascade Hood's |
| River is joined by a stream half its own size, which I have called |
| James' Branch. Bear and deer tracks had been numerous on the |
| banks of the river when we were here before, but not a single recent |
| one was to be seen at this time. Credit, however, killed a small |
| deer at some distance inland, which, with the addition of berries, |
| furnished a delightful repast this evening. The weather was remarkably |
| fine, and the temperature so mild, that the mosquitoes again |
| made their appearance, but not in any great numbers. Our distance |
| made to-day was not more than six miles. |
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| The next morning the net furnished us with ten white fish |
| and trout. Having made a further deposit of iron work for the |
| Esquimaux we pursued our voyage up the river, but the shoals and |
| rapids in this part were so frequent, that we walked along the banks |
| the whole day, and the crews laboured hard in carrying the canoes |
| thus lightened over the shoals or dragging them up the rapids, yet |
| our journey in a direct line was only about seven miles. In the |
| evening we encamped at the lower end of a narrow chasm through |
| which the river flows for upwards of a mile. The walls of this |
| chasm are upwards of two hundred feet high, quite perpendicular, |
| and in some places only a few yards apart. The river precipitates |
| itself into it over a rock, forming two magnificent and picturesque |
| falls close to each other. The upper fall is about sixty feet high, and |
| the lower one at least one hundred, but perhaps considerably more, |
| for the narrowness of the chasm into which it fell prevented us from |
| seeing its bottom, and we could merely discern the top of the spray |
| far beneath our feet. The lower fall is divided into two, by an |
| insulated column of rock which rises about forty feet above it. The |
| whole descent of the river at this place probably exceeds two |
| hundred and fifty feet. The rock is very fine felspathose sandstone. |
| It has a smooth surface and a light red colour. I have named these |
| magnificent cascades Wilberforce Falls, as a tribute of my respect |
| for that distinguished philanthropist and Christian. Messrs. Back and |
| Hood took beautiful sketches of this majestic scene, which are |
| combined in the annexed plate. |
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| The river being surveyed from the summit of a hill, above these |
| falls, appeared so rapid and shallow, that it seemed useless to |
| attempt proceeding any farther in the large canoes. I therefore |
| determined on constructing out of their materials two smaller ones |
| of sufficient size to contain three persons, for the purpose of crossing |
| any river that might obstruct our progress. This operation was |
| accordingly commenced, and by the 31st both the canoes being |
| finished, we prepared for our departure on the following day. |
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| The leather which had been preserved for making shoes was |
| equally divided among the men, two pairs of flannel socks were given |
| to each person, and such articles of warm clothing as remained, were |
| issued to those who most required them. They were also furnished |
| with one of the officers' tents. This being done, I communicated to |
| the men my intention of proceeding in as direct a course as possible |
| to the part of Point Lake, opposite to our spring encampment |
| which was only distant one hundred and forty-nine miles in a |
| straight line. They received the communication cheerfully, considered |
| the journey to be short, and left me, in high spirits, to |
| arrange their own packages. The stores, books, &c., which were not |
| absolutely necessary to be carried, were then put up in boxes to be |
| left en cache here, in order that the men's burdens might be as light |
| as possible. |
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| The next morning was warm, and very fine. Every one was on |
| the alert at an early hour, being anxious to commence the journey. |
| Our luggage consisted of ammunition, nets, hatchets, ice chisels, |
| astronomical instruments, clothing, blankets, three kettles, and |
| the two canoes, which were each carried by one man. The |
| officers carried such a portion of their own things as their strength |
| would permit;the weight carried by each man was about ninety |
| pounds, and with this we advanced at the rate of about a mile an |
| hour, including rests. In the evening the hunters killed a lean cow, |
| out of a large drove of musk-oxen; but the men were too much |
| laden to carry more than a small portion of its flesh. The alluvial |
| soil, which towards the mouth of the river spreads into plains, |
| covered with grass and willows, was now giving place to a more |
| barren and hilly country; so that we could but just collect sufficient |
| brush wood to cook our suppers. The part of the river we skirted |
| to-day was shallow, and flowed over a bed of sand ; its width about |
| one hundred and twenty yards. About midnight our tent was blown |
| down by a squall, and we were completely drenched with rain before |
| it could be re-pitched. |
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| In the morning of the 1st of September a fall of snow took |
| place; the canoes became a cause of delay, by the difficulty of |
| carrying them in a high wind, and they sustained much damage |
| from the falls of those who had charge of them. The face of the |
| country was broken by hills of moderate elevation, but the ground |
| was plentifully strewed with small stones, which, to men bearing |
| heavy burthens, and whose feet were protected only by soft moose |
| skin shoes, occasioned great pain. At the end of eleven miles we |
| encamped, and sent for a musk-ox and a deer, which St. Germain |
| and Augustus had killed. The day was extremely cold, the ther-mometer |
| varying between 34 deg and 36 deg. In the afternoon a heavy |
| fall of snow took place, on the wind changing from north-west to |
| south-west. We found no wood at the encampment, but made a |
| fire of moss to cook the supper, and crept under our blankets for |
| warmth. At sun-rise the thermometer was at 31 deg, and the wind |
| fresh from north-west; but the weather became mild in the course |
| of the forenoon, and the snow disappeared from the gravel. The |
| afternoon was remarkably fine, and the thermometer rose to 50 deg. |
| One of the hunters killed a musk-ox. The hills in this part are |
| lower and more round-backed than those we passed yesterday, and |
| exhibited but little naked rock; they were covered with lichens. |
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| Having ascertained from the summit of the highest hill near the |
| tents, that the river continued to preserve a west course; and fear-ing |
| that by pursuing it further we might lose much time, and un-necessarily |
| walk over a great deal of ground, I determined on |
| quitting its banks the next day, and making as directly as we could for |
| Point Lake. We accordingly followed the river on the 3d, only to |
| the place where the musk-ox had been killed last evening, and after |
| the meat was procured, crossed the river in our two canoes lashed |
| together. We now emerged from the valley of the river, and entered |
| a level, but very barren, country, varied only by small lakes and |
| marshes, the ground being covered with small stones. Many old tracks |
| of rein-deer were seen in the clayey soil, and some more recent |
| ones of the musk-ox. We encamped on the borders of Wright's |
| River, which flows to the eastward; the direct distance walked to-day |
| being ten miles and three-quarters. The next morning was |
| very fine, and,as the day advanced, the weather became quite |
| warm. We set out at six A. M., and, having forded the river, |
| walked over a perfectly level country, interspersed with small lakes, |
| which communicated with each other, by streams running in various |
| directions. No berry-bearing plants were found in this part, the |
| surface of the earth being thinly covered in the moister places with |
| a few grasses, and on the drier spots with lichens. |
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| Having walked twelve miles and a half, we encamped at seven P.M., |
| and distributed our last piece of pemmican, and a little arrow-root |
| for supper, which afforded but a scanty meal. This evening was |
| warm, but dark clouds overspread the sky. Our men now began to |
| find their burdens very oppressive, and were much fatigued by this |
| day's march, but did not complain. One of them was lame from an |
| inflammation in the knee. Heavy rain commenced at midnight, and |
| continued without intermission until five in the morning, when it |
| was succeeded by snow on the wind changing to north-west, which |
| soon increased to a violent gale. As we had nothing to eat, and |
| were destitute of the means of making a fire, we remained in our |
| beds all the day ; but the covering of our blankets was insufficient to |
| prevent us from feeling the severity of the frost, and suffering in-convenience |
| from the drifting of the snow into our tents. There |
| was no abatement of the storm next day ; our tents were completely |
| frozen, and the snow had drifted around them to a depth of three |
| feet, and even in the inside there was a covering of several inches on |
| our blankets. Our suffering from cold, in a comfortless canvass tent |
| in such weather, with the temperature at 20 deg, and without fire, |
| will easily be imagined;it was, however, less than that which we |
| felt from hunger. |
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| The morning of the 7th cleared up a little, but the wind was still |
| strong, and the weather extremely cold. From the unusual con-tinuance |
| of the storm, we feared the winter had set in with all its |
| rigour, and that by longer delay we should only be exposed to an |
| accumulation of difficulties; we therefore prepared for our journey, |
| although we were in a very unfit condition for starting, being weak |
| from fasting, and our garments stiffened by the frost. We had no |
| means of making a fire to thaw them, the moss, at all times difficult |
| to kindle, being now covered with ice and snow. A considerable |
| time was consumed in packing up the frozen tents and bed clothes, |
| the wind blowing so strong that no one could keep his hands long |
| out of his mittens. |
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| Just as we were about to commence our march, I was seized with |
| a fainting fit, in consequence of exhaustion and sudden exposure to |
| the wind; but after eating a morsel of portable soup, I recovered, so |
| far as to be able to move on. I was unwilling at first to take this |
| morsel of soup, which was diminishing the small and only remaining |
| meal for the party; but several of the men urged me to it, with |
| much kindness. The ground was covered a foot deep with snow, |
| the margin of the lakes was incrusted with ice, and the swamps over |
| which we had to pass were entirely frozen; but the ice not being |
| sufficiently strong to bear us, we frequently plunged knee-deep in |
| water. Those who carried the canoes were repeatedly blown down |
| by the violence of the wind, and they often fell, from making an |
| insecure step on a slippery stone; on one of these occasions, the |
| largest canoe was so much broken as to be rendered utterly unser-viceable. |
| This was felt as a serious disaster, as the remaining canoe |
| having through mistake been made too small, it was doubtful |
| whether it would be sufficient to carry us across a river. Indeed |
| we had found it necessary in crossing Hood's River, to lash the two |
| canoes together. As there was some suspicion that Benoit, who |
| carried the canoe, had broken it intentionally, he having on a former |
| occasion been overheard by some of the men to say, that he would |
| do so when he got it in charge, we closely examined him on the |
| point; he roundly denied having used the expressions attributed to |
| him, and insisted that it was broken by his falling accidentally; and |
| as he brought men to attest the latter fact, who saw him tumble, we |
| did not press the matter further. I may here remark that our |
| people had murmured a good deal at having to carry two canoes, |
| though they were informed of the necessity of taking both, in case |
| it should be deemed advisable to divide the party; which it had |
| been thought probable we should be obliged to do, if animals proved |
| scarce, in order to give the whole the better chance of procuring |
| subsistence, and also for the purpose of sending forward some of the |
| best walkers to search for Indians, and to get them to meet us with |
| supplies of provision. The power of doing this was now at an end. |
| As the accident could not be remedied we turned it to the best |
| account by making a fire of the bark and timbers of the broken |
| vessel, and cooked the remainder of our portable soup and arrow-root. |
| This was a scanty meal after three days' fasting, but it served |
| to allay the pangs of hunger, and enabled us to proceed at a quicker |
| pace than before. The depth of the snow caused us to march in |
| Indian file, that is in each other's steps; the voyagers taking it in |
| turn to lead the party. A distant object was pointed out to this |
| man in the direction we wished to take, and Mr. Hood followed |
| immediately behind him, to renew the bearings, and keep him from |
| deviating more than could be helped from the mark. It may be |
| here observed, that we proceeded in this manner throughout our |
| route across the barren grounds. |
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| In the afternoon we got into a more hilly country, where the |
| ground was strewed with large stones. The surface of these was |
| covered with lichens of the genus gyrophora, which the Canadians |
| term tripe de roche. A considerable quantity was gathered, and |
| with half a partridge each, (which were shot in the course of the |
| day,) furnished us with a slender supper, which we cooked with a |
| few willows, dug up from beneath the snow. We passed a comfortless |
| night in our damp clothes, but took the precaution of sleeping upon |
| our socks and shoes to prevent them from freezing. This plan was |
| afterwards adopted throughout the journey. |
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| At half past five in the morning we proceeded; and after walking |
| about two miles, came to Cracroft's River, flowing to the westward, |
| with a very rapid current over a rocky channel. We had much diffi-culty |
| in crossing this, the canoe being useless, not only from the bot-tom |
| of the channel being obstructed by large stones, but also from its |
| requiring gumming, an operation which, owing to the want of wood |
| and the frost, we were unable to perform. However, after following |
| the course of the river some way, we effected a passage by means of a |
| range of large rocks that crossed a rapid. As the current was strong, |
| and many of the rocks were covered with water to the depth of two |
| or three feet, the men were exposed to much danger in carrying their |
| heavy burthens across, and several of them actually slipped into the |
| stream, but were immediately rescued by the others. Junius went |
| farther up the river in search of a better crossing place, and did not |
| rejoin us to-day. As several of the party were drenched from head to |
| foot, and we were all wet to the middle, our clothes became stiff with |
| the frost, and we walked with much pain for the remainder of the day. |
| The march was continued to a late hour, being anxious to rejoin the |
| hunters who had gone before, but we were obliged to encamp at the |
| end of ten miles and a quarter, without seeing them. Our only |
| meal to-day consisted of a partridge each, (which the hunters shot,) |
| mixed with tripe de roche. This repast although scanty for men, |
| with appetites such as our daily fatigue created, proved a cheerful |
| one, and was received with thankfulness. Most of the men had to |
| sleep in the open air, in consequence of the absence of Credit, who |
| carried their tent; but we fortunately found an unusual quantity of |
| roots to make a fire, which prevented their suffering much from the |
| cold, though the thermometer was at 17 deg. |
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| We started at six on the 9th, and at the end of two miles re-gained |
| our hunters, who were halting on the borders of a lake amidst |
| a clump of stunted willows. This lake stretched to the westward as |
| far as we could see, and its waters were discharged by a rapid stream |
| one hundred and fifty yards wide. Being entirely ignorant where |
| we might be led by pursuing the course of the lake, and dreading |
| the idea of going a mile unnecessarily out of the way, we deter-mined |
| on crossing the river if possible; and the canoe was gummed |
| for the purpose, the willows furnishing us with fire. But we had to |
| await the return of Junius before we could make the traverse. In |
| the mean time we gathered a little tripe de roche, and breakfasted |
| upon it and a few partridges that were killed in the morning. |
| St. Germain and Adam were sent upon some recent tracks of deer. |
| Junius arrived in the afternoon, and informed us that he had seen |
| a large herd of musk-oxen on the banks of Cracroft's River, and had |
| wounded one of them, but it had escaped. He brought about four |
| pounds of meat, the remains of a deer that had been devoured by |
| the wolves. The poor fellow was much fatigued, having walked |
| throughout the night, but as the weather was particularly favourable |
| for our crossing the river, we could not allow him to rest. After he |
| had taken some refreshment we proceeded to the river. The canoe |
| being put into the water was found extremely ticklish, but it was |
| managed with much dexterity by St. Germain, Adam, and Peltier, |
| who ferried over one passenger at a time, causing him to lie flat in its |
| bottom, by no means a pleasant position, owing to its leakiness, but |
| there was no alternative. The transport of the whole party was |
| effected by five o'clock, and we walked about two miles further, and |
| encamped, having come five miles and three quarters on a south-west |
| course. Two young alpine hares were shot by St. Germain, which, |
| with the small piece of meat brought in by Junius, furnished the |
| supper of the whole party. There was no tripe de roche here. The |
| country had now become decidedly hilly, and was covered with snow. |
| The lake preserved its western direction, as far as I could see from |
| the summit of the highest mountain near the encampment. We |
| subsequently learned from the Copper Indians, that the part at |
| which we had crossed the river was the Congecatha-wha-chaga of |
| Hearne, of which I had little idea at the time, not only from the |
| difference of latitude, but also from its being so much farther east of |
| the mouth of the Copper-Mine River, than his track is laid down. |
| He only making one degree and three quarters difference of lon-gitude, |
| and we, upwards of four. Had I been aware of the fact, |
| several days harassing march, and a disastrous accident would have |
| been prevented by keeping on the western side of the lake, instead |
| of crossing the river. We were informed also, that this river is |
| the Anatessy or River of Strangers, and is supposed to fall into |
| Bathurst's Inlet; but although the Indians have visited its mouth, |
| their description was not sufficient to identify it with any of the |
| rivers whose mouths we had seen. It probably falls in that part of |
| the coast which was hid from our view by Goulburn's or Elliot's |
| Islands. |
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| text-align="start">September 10. |
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| We had a cold north wind, and the atmosphere |
| was foggy. The thermometer 18 deg at five A.M. In the course of |
| our march this morning, we passed many small lakes; and the |
| ground becoming higher and more hilly as we receded from the |
| river, was covered to a much greater depth with snow. This ren-dered |
| walking not only extremely laborious, but also hazardous in |
| the highest degree;for the sides of the hills, as is usual throughout |
| the barren grounds, abounding in accumulations of large angular |
| stones, it often happened that the men fell into the interstices |
| with their loads on their backs, being deceived by the smooth |
| appearance of the drifted snow. If any one had broken a limb |
| here, his fate would have been melancholy indeed; we could neither |
| have remained with him, nor carried him on. We halted at ten to |
| gather tripe de roche,but it was so frozen, that we were quite |
| benumbed with cold before a sufficiency could be collected even for |
| a scanty meal. On proceeding our men were somewhat cheered, by |
| observing on the sandy summit of a hill, from whence the snow had |
| been blown, the summer track of a man; and afterwards by seeing |
| several deer tracks on the snow. About noon the weather cleared |
| up a little, and, to our great joy, we saw a herd of musk-oxen |
| grazing in a valley below us. The party instantly halted, and the |
| best hunters were sent out; they approached the animals with the |
| utmost caution, no less than two hours being consumed before they |
| got within gun-shot. In the mean time we beheld their proceed-ings |
| with extreme anxiety, and many secret prayers were, doubtless, |
| offered up for their success. At length they opened their fire, and |
| we had the satisfaction of seeing one of the largest cows fall; another |
| was wounded, but escaped. This success infused spirit into our |
| starving party. To skin and cut up the animal was the work of a |
| few minutes. The contents of its stomach were devoured upon |
| the spot, and the raw intestines, which were next attacked, were |
| pronounced by the most delicate amongst us to be excellent. A few |
| willows, whose tops were seen peeping through the snow in the bottom |
| of the valley, were quickly grubbed, the tents pitched, and supper |
| cooked, and devoured with avidity. This was the sixth day since we |
| had had a good meal. The tripe de roche, even where we got |
| enough, only serving to allay the pangs of hunger for a short time. |
| After supper, two of the hunters went in pursuit of the herd, but |
| could not get near them. |
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| We were detained all the next day by a strong southerly wind, |
| and were much incommoded in the tents by the drift snow. The |
| temperature was 20 deg. The average for the last ten days about |
| 24.5 deg. We restricted ourselves to one meal to-day as we were at |
| rest, and there was only meat remaining sufficient for the next day. |
| </fo:block> |
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| The gale had not diminished on the 12th, and, as we were |
| fearful of its continuance for some time, we determined on going |
| forward; our only doubt regarded the preservation of the canoe, |
| but the men promised to pay particular attention to it, and the |
| most careful persons were appointed to take it in charge. The snow |
| was two feet deep, and the ground much broken, which rendered |
| the march extremely painful. The whole party complained more of |
| faintness and weakness than they had ever done before; their |
| strength seemed to have been impaired by the recent supply of |
| animal food. In the afternoon the wind abated, and the snow ceased; |
| cheered with the change we proceeded forward at a quicker pace, |
| and encamped at six P. M., having come eleven miles. Our supper |
| consumed the last of our meat. |
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| We set out on the 13th, in thick hazy weather, and, after an hour's |
| march, had the extreme mortification to find ourselves on the |
| borders of a large lake, which we subsequently learned from the |
| Indians was named Contwoy-to, or Rum Lake; neither of its extre- |
| mities could be seen, and as the portion which lay to the east |
| seemed the widest, we coasted along to the westward portion in |
| search of a crossing-place. This lake being bounded by steep and |
| lofty hills, our march was very fatiguing. Those sides which were |
| exposed to the sun, were free from snow, and we found upon them |
| some excellent berries. We encamped at six P. M., having come |
| only six miles and a half. Credit was then missing, and he did not |
| return during the night. We supped off a single partridge and |
| some tripe de roche;this unpalatable weed was now quite nau-seous |
| to the whole party, and in several it produced bowel com-plaints. |
| Mr. Hood was the greatest sufferer from this cause. This |
| evening we were extremely distressed, at discovering that our im-provident |
| companions,since we left Hood's River, had thrown |
| away three of the fishing-nets, and burnt the floats ; they knew we |
| had brought them to procure subsistence for the party, when the |
| animals should fail, and we could scarcely believe the fact of their |
| having wilfully deprived themselves of this resource, especially |
| when we considered that most of them had passed the greater part of |
| their servitude in situations where the nets alone had supplied them |
| with food. Being thus deprived of our principal resource, that of |
| fishing, and the men evidently getting weaker every day, it became |
| necessary to lighten their burthens of every thing except ammunition, |
| clothing, and the instruments that were required to find our |
| way. I, therefore, issued directions to deposit at this encampment |
| the dipping needle, azimuth compass, magnet, a large thermometer, |
| and a few books we had carried, having torn out of these such parts |
| as we should require to work the observations for latitude and |
| longitude. I also promised,as an excitement to the efforts in |
| hunting, my gun to St. Germain, and an ample compensation to |
| Adam, or any of the other men who should kill any animals. |
| Mr. Hood, on this occasion, lent his gun to Michel, the Iroquois, |
| who was very eager in the chase, and often successful. |
| </fo:block> |
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| text-align="start">September 14. |
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| This morning the officers being assembled round |
| a small fire, Perrault presented each of us with a small piece of meat |
| which he had saved from his allowance. It was received with great |
| thankfulness, and such an act of self-denial and kindness, being |
| totally unexpected in a Canadian voyager, filled our eyes with tears. |
| In directing our course to a river issuing from the lake, we met |
| Credit, who communicated the joyful intelligence of his having |
| killed two deer in the morning. We instantly halted, and having |
| shared the deer that was nearest to us, prepared breakfast. After |
| which, the other deer was sent for, and we went down to the river, |
| which was about three hundred yards wide, and flowed with |
| great velocity through a broken rocky channel. Having searched |
| for a part where the current was most smooth, the canoe was |
| placed in the water at the head of a rapid, and St. Germain, Solomon |
| Belanger, and I, embarked in order to cross. We went from the |
| shore very well, but in mid-channel the canoe became difficult to |
| manage under our burden as the breeze was fresh. The current |
| drove us to the edge of the rapid, when Belanger unfortunately |
| applied his paddle to avert the apparent danger of being forced |
| down it, and lost his balance. The canoe was overset in con-sequence |
| in the middle of the rapid. We fortunately kept hold of |
| it, until we touched a rock where the water did not reach higher |
| than our waists; here we kept our footing, notwithstanding the |
| strength of the current, until the water was emptied out of the |
| canoe. Belanger then held the canoe steady whilst St. Germain |
| placed me in it, and afterwards embarked himself in a very dexterous |
| manner. It was impossible, however, to embark Belanger, |
| as the canoe would have been hurried down the rapid, the moment |
| he should have raised his foot from the rock on which he stood. |
| We were, therefore, compelled to leave him in his perilous situation. |
| We had not gone twenty yards before the canoe, striking on a |
| sunken rock, went down. The place being shallow, we were again |
| enabled to empty it, and the third attempt brought us to the shore. |
| In the mean time Belanger was suffering extremely, immersed to |
| his middle in the centre of a rapid, the temperature of which was |
| very little above the freezing point, and the upper part of his body |
| covered with wet clothes, exposed in a temperature not much above |
| zero, to a strong breeze. He called piteously for relief, and |
| St. Germain on his return endeavoured to embark him, but in vain. |
| The canoe was hurried down the rapid, and when he landed he was |
| rendered by the cold incapable of further exertion, and Adam at-tempted |
| to embark Belanger, but found it impossible. An attempt |
| was next made to carry out to him a line, made of the slings of the |
| men's loads. This also failed, the current acting so strongly upon |
| it, as to prevent the canoe from steering, and it was finally broken |
| and carried down the stream. At length, when Belanger's strength |
| seemed almost exhausted, the canoe reached him with a small cord |
| belonging to one of the nets, and he was dragged perfectly senseless |
| through the rapid. By the direction of Dr. Richardson, he was |
| instantly stripped, and being rolled up in blankets, two men un-dressed |
| themselves and went to bed with him; but it was some |
| hours before he recovered his warmth and sensations. As soon as |
| Belanger was placed in his bed, the officers immediately sent over |
| my blankets, and a person to make a fire. Augustus brought the |
| canoe over, and in returning he was obliged to descend both the |
| rapids, before he could get across the stream; which hazardous |
| service he performed with the greatest coolness and judgment. It |
| is impossible to describe my sensations as I witnessed the various |
| unsuccessful attempts to relieve Belanger. The distance prevented |
| my seeing distinctly what was going on, and I continued pacing up |
| and down upon the rock on which I landed, regardless of the |
| coldness of my drenched and stiffening garments. The canoe, in |
| every attempt to reach him, was hurried down the rapid, and was |
| lost to the view amongst the rocky islets, with a rapidity that |
| seemed to threaten certain destruction; once, indeed, I fancied that |
| I saw it overwhelmed in the waves. Such an event would have |
| been fatal to the whole party. Separated as I was from my com-panions, |
| without gun, ammunition, hatchet, or the means of making |
| a fire, and in wet clothes, my doom would have been speedily sealed. |
| My companions too, driven to the necessity of coasting the lake, |
| must have sunk under the fatigue of rounding its innumerable arms |
| and bays, which, as we have learned from the Indians, are very |
| extensive. By the goodness of Providence, however, we were spared |
| at that time, and some of us have been permitted to offer up our |
| thanksgivings, in a civilized land, for the signal deliverances we then |
| and afterwards experienced. |
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