"CONTENTdm"@en . "Harmon's Journal"@en . "http://resolve.library.ubc.ca/cgi-bin/catsearch?bid=1591370"@en . "British Columbia Historical Books Collection"@en . "Classics of American history"@en . "Haskel, Daniel, 1784-1848"@en . "Harmon, Daniel Williams, 1778-1843"@en . "2015-10-23"@en . "1903"@en . "\"(On spine: The trail makers; Advertisement page on the verso of the half-title: The trailmakers, a series of historic explorations, Prof. John Bach McMaster, consulting editor). A reprint edition with a four-page introduction by Robert Waite. Also published by the same publishers in the same year in their series 'Classics of American history'.\"-- Strathern, G. M., & Edwards, M. H. (1970). Navigations, traffiques & discoveries, 1774-1848: A guide to publications relating to the area now British Columbia. Victoria, BC: University of Victoria, p. 125.

Alternative title from cover page."@en . ""@en . "https://open.library.ubc.ca/collections/bcbooks/items/1.0222791/source.json"@en . "v-xxiii, 382 pages : advertisement, illustration, map (folded) ; 18 cm"@en . "application/pdf"@en . " yhxJL, fra^i) ^^0\nI\n/ ,\ni s^^^>p^\nl- H-nv^ g*kA> b4 ^^\n A L&s^iJk\u00C2\u00B1i*ky^l\nfto-*s\n\Js%\nLk5\ny\nL^p^9\nXi^^^S\n 'SGZjl\n&n Sgfo\n rft\niR^SIN FERl\n)R\" ABltlRICfll\nBetween the 47th and 58th Degrees of Ti\nextending from Montreal nearly to t\nPacific, a Distance of about\n5,000 Miles\nINCLUDING AMACCOUNT OF THE FRjM.CJPA\n--pre s -cm j^siMi^f - mm%m&&*\nJ0$P MlNETEEtf YEARS JN-B1E-\nWmX'EtfT partMof\nBY\nA PARTNER IN THE NORTHWEST COMPANY\nWITH INTRODUCTION AND MAP\nR K\nBAiSNES\niOM\u00C2\u00A3A\n1903\n A J JOURNAL of VOYAGES\nand TRAVELS in the INTERIOR of NORTH AMERICA\nBetween the 47th and 58th Degrees of N. Lat.,\nextending from Montreal nearly to the\nPacific, a Distance of about\n5,000 Miles\nINCLUDING AN A CCOUNT OF THE PRINCIPAL\nOCCURRENCES DURING A RESIDENCE\nOF NINETEEN YEARS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF\nTHE COUNTRY\nBY\nDANIEL WILLIAMS HARMON\nA PARTNER IN THE NORTHWEST COMPANY\nWITH INTRODUCTION AND MAP\nN EW YORK\nA. S. BARNES AND COMPANY\n1903\n Copyright 1903\nBy A. S. Barnes & Co.\nNovember 12.\n INTRODUCTION.\nThe world is very considerably indebted to\nvarious servants of the great North West Fur\nCompanies, not only for the valuable and\nuseful furs they have obtained for us, but for\nthe different kinds of wealth they have garnered in the guise of accurate and scientific\nknowledge regarding the wild inhabitants,\nthe fauna, flora, and the geographical configuration of the immense wilderness in which\ntheir lives for the most part have been spent.\nThe debt is none the less because many of\nthese men were obliged to undergo great\nhardships in their business\u00E2\u0080\u0094cut off for years\nfrom all civilized society, and compelled, if\nhuman companionship must be had, to be\ncontent with the company of the aboriginal\nsavages of the country. Some of these lonely\nwaifs occasionally varied the monotony of\ntheir regular employment by studying the\nstrange land and its people and writing down\nthe results either for the benefit of friends in\nthe far-away home, or for a still wider constituency, or from sheer lack of anything more\ncongenial to occupy their leisure hours. At\nall events, whatever the motive might have\nbeen, the literary world has been made the\n VI\nINTRODUCTION.\nricher by a number of well written books\nof great value, on account of the minute and\npainstaking care they display in describing\nthe denizens of a hitherto unknown world.\nThe Indian and his country are displayed\nbefore us; the languages, the folklore, the\nhabits, manners and customs of an alien people have received patient attention; and all\nthis has been accomplished in the intervals\nof long sledge and canoe journeys into the\npathless solitudes of the North West.\nAmong the books which had their origin in\nsome such way as this, the journal kept for\na number of years by Daniel W. Harmon of\nthe North West Fur Company ranks very\nhigh. Harmon spent nineteen years of his\nlife in the service of the Company,. eight\nyears of which were passed beyond the Rocky\nMountains, and between them and the Pacific\nOcean. When he first came among them the\nIndians still wandered through the country in\ntheir primitive simplicity, unconscious of the\nexistence of other human beings save themselves. He passed his life among these savages. He even took a wife, ad interim, from\none of the tribes and lived with her until he\nforsook the country forever. He was therefore in a good position to study the people\nfrom a very near standpoint.\nAlong with these valuable ethnographical\nstudies are interesting details respecting the\nproceedings of the North West Company and\nthe geographical configuration of the several\n INTRODUCTION.\nvii\nparts of America in which its establishments\nare situated. Harmon held the position of a\npartner in that Company, and was Superintendent of all its affairs beyond the Rocky\nMountains.\nThe Journal was written from day to day\namong the wild people and the scenes he\ndescribed. The account is a plain; unambitious narrative and is, all things considered,\nentitled to implicit credit for veracity. It is\nonly fair to state, however, that Field gives\nsome color to the suggestion that Mr. D.\nHaskell, who revised and published the work,\nintroduced some religious reflections into it\nnot made by the Author. Certainly such passages look very strange in the same book\nwith Mr. Harmon's confession of his reasons\nfor accepting female companionship. This\nconfession is worth quoting here: \" This\nday,\" he writes, \"a Canadian's daughter was\noffered to me; and after mature consideration concerning the step I ought to take, I\nhave finally concluded to accept of her, as it\nis customary for all gentlemen who remain\nfor any length of time in this part of the\nworld to have a female companion, with\nwhom they can pass their time more socially\nand agreeably, than to live a lonely life as\nthey must do if single.. If we can live in\nharmony together my intention now is to\nkeep her so long as I remain in this uncivilized part of the world.\"\nThis was hardly the unselfish view of the\n viii\nINTRODUCTION.\nmarriage state, one would naturally conclude, and scarcely in harmony with Christian\nprecepts. The consequence of this remarkable\nstate of affairs was that the North West Fur\nCompany beGame responsible for the maintenance of hundreds of women and children\nwhose natural protectors had deserted them,\nleft the country and returned to civilized\nsociety. Field, who was no mean authority,\nalso believed that the two subdivisions entitled, \"Account of the Indians Living East of\nthe Rocky Mountains,\" and \"Account of the\nIndians Living West of the Rocky Mountains,\"\nare written by another hand, although perhaps dictated by Harmon.\nA very valuable feature of the Journal is\nthe copious vocabulary of the Cree or Ejiist-\nenaux Indians.\nIt is rather strange that very few biographical details are extant regarding an author\nwhose repute has been steadily growing for\nso many years. He must still be judged\nalmost entirely by his book, of which, fortunately for the author, the critics long ago\nunanimously decided that the work had been\nworthily performed and most of the facts\ntherein cited uncontrovertible.\nROBERT WAITE.\nNew York, January, 1903.\n PREFACE,\nBY THE EDITOR.\nTTAYING prepared the following work for\nA the press, I have a few things to say\nrespecting it, and the part in regard to it,\nwhich I have performed.\nThe authour of these Voyages and Travels,\nhad no thought, while in the N. W. Country,\nof making publick his Journal. It was commenced and continued, partly for his own\namusement, and partly to gratify his friends,\nwho, he thought, would be pleased to be\ninformed, with some particularity, on his\nreturn, how his time had been employed,\nduring his absence. When he returned to\ncivilized society, he found that curiosity was\nawake, in regard to the state of the country\nwhich he had visited; and the repeated questions, relating to this subject, which he was\ncalled upon to answer, together with the\nsuggestions of some persons, in whose judgment he placed much confidence, that such a\npublication might be useful, first determined\nhim to commit the following work to the\npress.\n -mimnnriKHiSBfl\nWl?r tirrWii tmmiwi* whj i\u00C2\u00BBc\nPREFACE.\nHad he carried into the wilderness a greater\nstock of general information, and expected,\non his return, to appear in this manner before\nthe publick, his inquiries would undoubtedly\nhave been more extensive, and the result of\nthem would be more satisfactory, to men of\nscience. Had literary men been in the habit\nof traversing the regions which he has visited,\nhe would have left it to them, to give an\naccount of them to the publick. Having remained nineteen years in the interiour of\nNorth America, without visiting, during that\ntime, the civilized part of the world, and\nhaving, many times, changed the place of his\nresidence, while there, he has had an opportunity for taking a wide survey of the country, and of its inhabitants; and if the information which he has collected, be not equal\nto his opportunities, it is such as no other\nexisting publication will fully afford.\nMcKenzie's Voyages give some account of\na considerable part of the country which is\nhere described. His residence in it, however,\nwas much shorter than that of the authour\nof this work, and his personal acquaintance\nwith the different parts of it, was much more\nlimited. It is not intended, by this remark\nto detract from the reputation, which that\nrespectable traveller and his work, have deservedly gained. By his toilsome and dangerous voyage to the North Sea, and by\nleading the way, through the Rocky Mountains, to the Pacific Ocean, he has richly\n PREFACE.\nxi\nmerited the commendation which he has\nreceived. By comparing the following work\nwith that of McKenzie, it will appear, that,\nthough the geographical details are less\nminute, the country surveyed, if we except the\nvoyage to the North Sea, which is wholly\nout of the sphere of this publication, is considerably more extensive; and the information, in regard to the inhabitants, is much\nmore particular. Considerable additions are\nhere made, to the existing stock of geographical information, particularly as it respects the country beyond the Rocky Mountains. The basis of the map, here given to\nthe publick, is that of Sir Alexander McKenzie, drawn by Arrowsmith. That map has\nreceived many corrections, and to it many\nimportant additions have been made, by the\nauthour of this work; so that it is presumed\nnow to be the most correct map of the in-\nteriour of North America, which has ever\nbeen published.\nLiterary men have recently taken much\ninterest in comparing the different Indian\nlanguages, spoken on this continent, with\neach other, and with other languages, particularly with those anciently spoken on the\nother continent. A very considerable vocabulary of the one which is spoken, with a\nlittle variation of dialect, through the long\ntract of country, from a little back of Montreal to the Rocky Mountains, and one less\nextensive of the principal language spoken\n xu\nt\u00C2\u00BBttEFAC\u00C2\u00A3.\nbeyond it, are here given. Sir Alexander\nMcKenzie has given a vocabulary of the first,\nwhich will be found, on comparison, to be\nsomewhat different from that, which is contained in this work. Two reasons may be\nassigned for this. In the country about the\nAthabasca Lake, where McKenzie principally\nresided, the Cree or Knisteneux language is,\nin some measure, a mixed dialect; and it is\nfar less pure, than that which is spoken by\nthe inhabitants of the plains. The words,\nalso, are spelled by McKenzie, much according to the French sound of the letters, which\nis frequently calculated to mislead an English\nreader. Thus, the name of God, or the Good\nSpirit, which McKenzie spells Ki-jai-Manitou,\nis here spelled Kitch-e-mon-e-too. The above\nremark will account, in a great measure, for\nthis difference; and for that which will be\nfound, in the spelling of many other words.\nThis is the native language of the wife of\nMr. Harmon, (for so I may now call her,\nas they have been regularly married) and\ngreat pains have been taken to make this\nvocabulary correct, by marking the nice\ndistinctions in the sound of the words, as\nderived from her repeated pronunciation of\nthem. With this language he is, also, well\nacquainted, since it has been daily spoken\nin his family, and by himself, for many\nyears.\nThe education of the authour of this work\nwas not classical; and had it been more ex-\n PREFACE.\nxm\ntensive than it was, a residence for more\nthan half of his life, since he has arrived to\nyears of understanding, in a country where\nthe English language is rarely spoken, would\nhave poorly qualified him to give to this\npublication, a suitable English dress.\nThe editor undertook the business of preparing this work for the press, with some\nreluctance, arising from the shortness of the\ntime that could be allowed him for the performance of it, and the numerous avocations\nof the gospel ministry, which would leave\nbut a part of that time at his own command. For undertaking it at all, in such\ncircumstances, his only apology is, that, in\nthe opinion of the authour, there was no\nother person, conveniently situated for personal intercourse with him, who would be\nwilling to undertake it, whose circumstances\nwould be more favourable. It is by the particular request of the authour, and not because I suppose that I have performed the\noffice of an editor, in a manner creditable to\nmyself, that I have consented to connect my\nname with this publication.\nThe following work was furnished to my\nhand, fully; written out; and though I have\nwritten it wholly over, I should have been\nmuch better able to satisfy myself, with respect to its style, if I could as fully have\npossessed the materials, in the form of notes\nand sketches, or by verbal recitals. Every\nman's own mind is the mould of his Ian-\n XIV\nPREFACE.\nguage; and he who has attempted to vary\nthat of another, if he be at all accustomed\nto writing, must have found the task more\ndifficult than original composition. The\nstyle of this work is not properly my own,\nnor that of Mr. Harmon, but something\nbetween both.\nThere is one subject, on which I wish\nespecially to address a few remarks, through\nthe medium of this preface, to the christian\npublick, and to all who feel any regard for\nthe welfare of the Indian tribes, whose condition is unfolded in this work. As Mr.\nHarmon has returned to the interiour of\nNorth America, and, therefore, the observations which follow, will not be submitted\nto his inspection, before they are made publick, the editor alone must be made accountable for them.\nIn surveying the widely extended trade of\nthe North West Company, we perceive evidence of an energy and perseverance, highly\ncreditable to the members of it, as men of\nbusiness. They have explored the western\nwilds, and planted their establishments over\na tract of country, some thousands of miles\nin extent. They have made the savages of\nthe wilderness tributary to the comforts of\ncivilized society; and in many instances, they\nhave exhibited a surprising fortitude, in exposing themselves to hardship and to danger.\nThe souls of the Indians are of more value\nthan their furs; and to raise this people in\n < \u00C2\u00A3-*-\n 142\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nbuilt fort, pleasantly situated, with plains on\neach side of the river, in N. Lat. 56\u00C2\u00B0 and\nW. Lgn. 119\u00C2\u00B0.\nAbout the Fort a number of Iroquois\nhunters and a band of Beaver Indians, have\nencamped, who have been waiting our arrival, in order to obtain the articles which\nthey need. At this place I expect to pass the\nensuing winter. There will, also, be here,\nMessrs. D. McTavish, J. G. McTavish, J.\nMcGillivray, thirty two labouring men, nine\nwomen and several children, which renders\nthis place very different from my solitary\nabode the last winter.\nOur principal food will be the flesh of the\nbuffaloe, moose, red deer and bear. We have\na tolerably good kitchen garden; and we are\nin no fear that we shall want the means *of a\ncomfortable subsistence. Wehave,also, a provision for the entertainment and improvement of our minds, in a good collection of\nbooks. The gentlemen who are to remain\nwith me, are enlightened, sociable and pleasant companions; and I hope, therefore, to\nspend a pleasant and a profitable winter.\nFriday, 14. This morning, my old friend\nMr. F. Goedike, whom I have been happy to\nmeet at this place, left us, with his company,\nfor St. Johns, which is about one hundred\nand twenty miles up this river, where he is\nto pass the ensuing winter.\nSaturday, November 12. About a foot of\nsnow has fallen.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n143\nTuesday, December 20. During the last\nnight, this river froze over; and, at nine\no'clock this morning, the thermometer was\nat 40 degrees below 0.\nWednesday, January 4, 1809. Sent the\nexpress to the Lesser Slave Lake, which lies\nabout two hundred and fifty miles to the\nsouth east from this, whence it will be forwarded to Fort des Prairies.\npi\nWednesday, March 1. A band of our Indians have come in, who went a considerable\ndistance to the northward, the last autumn,\nin search of beavers. They state, that where\nthey were, the snow fell to an extraordinary\ndepth, in consequence of which, they suffered\ngreatly for want of provisions. In this vicinity, the snow was, at no- time, more than\ntwo feet and an half deep.\nMonday, 20. The snow is fast dissolving.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nMr. A. R. McLeod and company, have just\narrived from the Encampment Island; and\nthey bring the melancholy intelligence of the\ndeath of Mr. Andrew McKenzie, natural son\nof Sir Alexander McKenzie. He expired at\nFort Vermillion, on the 1st inst. The death\nof this amiable young man, is regretted by\nall who knew him.\u00E2\u0080\u0094They, also, inform us,\nthat several Canadians have lost their lives\nby famine, in the vicinity of Great Slave\nLake. Those who survived, were under the\nnecessity of subsisting, several days, upon\nthe flesh of their dead companions. It 'is\nreported, that one man killed his wife and\n 144\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nchild, in order to supply himself with food,\nwho, afterwards, himself starved to death.\nThese Canadians came up into this part .of\nthe world, free, to hunt the beaver, &c. and\nthey were at too great a distance from our\nestablishments, to receive any aid from us,\nuntil it was too late, for the greater part of\nthem.\nIt is not unfrequently the case, that, the\nsurviving part of a band of the Natives, subsist upon the flesh of their dead companions,\nwhen compelled to do it for want of other\nfood, sufficient to sustain life. I know a\nI woman who, it is said ate of no less than\nI fourteen of her friends and relations, during\nf one winter. In the summer season, the Indians can find food, almost any where; but\nthe case is far otherwise, when the ground is\ncovered with snow, to the depth of several\nfeet.\nWednesday, 22. Sent people to look for\nbirch bark, to make canoes, to take out our\nreturns to the Rainy Lake. The greater part\nof the canoes, in which we bring our merchandise into the country, will not answer\nto transport our Tuts below.\nThursday, April 6. The weather is mild.\nThe people, whom we sent for bark, have returned, with one hundred and eighty fathoms,\nwhich will make nine canoes, that will carry\nabout two tons burthen, each. Two men\nwill easily transport one of them on their\nshoulders, across the portages.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n145\nTuesday, 11. Geese and bustards begin to\ncome from the south.\nTuesday, 18. This morning, the ice in this\nriver broke up.\nSaturday, May 6. The surrounding plains\nare all on fire.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have planted our pota- \\ntoes, and sowed most of our garden seeds.\u00E2\u0080\u0094 '\nOur people are preparing to set out for the\nRainy Lake.\nThursday,* 11. We, yesterday, sent off\neleven canoes, loaded with the returns of this\nplace and of St. John's; and, early this morning, Messrs. D. McTavish, J. G. McTavish,\nF. Goedike and J. McGillivray, embarked on\nboard of two light canoes, bound for the\nRainy Lake and Fort William. But I am to\npass the ensuing summer, at this place.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The\nlast winter was, to me, the most agreeable\none that I have yet spent in this country.\nThe greatest harmony prevailed among us,\nthe days glided on smoothly, and the winter\npassed, almost imperceptibly, away.\nTuesday, 16- In the morning, Messrs.\nSimon Frazer and James McDougall and\ncompany,~arrived, in four canoes. The former\ngentleman came from the Rocky Mountain\nPortage, which is about one hundred and\neighty miles, up this River. The later is from\nNew, Caledonia, on the west side of the Rocky\n7 \u00C2\u00AB/\nMountain, which is distant from this, about\nfour hundred and fifty miles. After passing\nthe most of the day with me, they continued their route toward the Rainy Lake.\nio\n 146\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nFriday, June 2. The seeds which we sowed\nin the garden, have sprung up, and grow remarkably well. The present prospect is,\nthat strawberries, red raspberries, shad berries, cherries, &c, will be abundant, this season.\nThis river since the beginning of May, has\nrisen twelve feet perpendicularly; and it still\ncontinues to rise. This circumstance arises,\nin part, from the large quantity of rain,\nwhich has lately fallen, but more, I presume,\nfrom the dissolving of the snow, on and near\nthe Rocky Mountain.\nTuesday, 13. An Indian has come here,\nwho says, that one of their chiefs has lately\ndied; and he requests that we furnish a chief's\nclothing to be put on him, that he may be\ndecently interred; and, also, that we would\nsupply a small quantity of spirits, for his\nrelations and friends to drink, at his interment; all of which I have sent, for the deceased was a friendly Indian. Nothing pleases\nan Indian better, than to see his deceased\nrelatives, handsomely attired; for he believes that they will arrive in the other world,\nin the same dress^ with which they are clad,\nwhen they are consigned to the grave.\nWednesday, July 19. A few days since,\nMr. John Stuart and company, came Tiere,\nfrom New,Caledonia, for goods; and to day,\nthey set out on their return home. During\nthe few days which that gentleman passed\nhere, I derived much satisfaction from his\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n147\nsociety. We rambled about the plains, conversing as we went, and now and then stopping, to eat a few berries, which are every\nwhere to be found. He has evidently read\nand reflected much. How happy should I be\nto have such a companion, during the whole\nsummer. But such is our mode of life in\nthis country, that we meet but seldom; and\nthe time that we remain together, is short.\nWe only begin to find the ties of friendship,\nbinding us closely together, when we are\ncompelled to separate, not to meet again\nperhaps for years to come.\nBaptiste La Fleur, my interpreter, will\naccompany Mr. Stuart and his men, as far as\nSt. John's, in hopes of obtaining some information respecting his brother, who, it is\nsupposed, was killed by an Indian, the last\nspring, while on his was from the Rocky\nMountain Portage to St. John's.\nWednesday, July 19. Baptiste La Fleur\nhas returned from St. Johns, without having\nbeen able to obtain the least intelligence, respecting his poor brother, and the two Indians, who were coming down the river, in\nthe same canoe with him. We are, therefore,\napprehensive that all three of them have\nbeen drowned, in coming down the rapids,\nas their canoe was made of the bark of the\nspruce fir tree, and was, therefore, very\nweak. fjH\nFriday, 21. We have cut down our barley; and I think it is the finest that I ever\nmrQ\n 148\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nsaw in any country. The soil on the points\nof land, along this river is excellent.\nThe mother of the chief, who died this\nsummer, and who is far advanced in years,\nnow remains in a tent; at the distance of a\nfew rods from the fort. Many of the Natives,\nof both sexes, when they become old and infirm, and unable to travel with their relations, who depend upon the chase for subsistence, and are frequently moving from\nplace to place, settle down near our fort;\nand it is easy for us to render them more\neffectual aid, than their friends could possibly afford them.\nAlmost every day, just as the sun is sinking below the horizon, the old lady, above\nmentioned, goes to the place where her deceased son, when alive, was accustomed to\nencamp, when he came to the fort, and there\nweeps, and sings a mournful kind of song, of\nwhich the following is a translation. \"My\ndear son, come to me! why do you leave\nme, my son?\" This she repeats for two\nhours together, in the most plaintive and\nmelancholy tone imaginable.\nIt is customary for the women, among\nthe Beaver Indians, when they lose a near\nrelation, to cut off a joint of one of their\nfingers; and, in consequence of so barbarous\na custom, we frequently see some of their\naged women, who want the first two joints\nof every finger, on both hands. The men\ncontent themselves, on such occasions, by\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n149\ncutting off their hair, close to their heads,\nand by scratching or cutting their faces and\narms, frequently in a most barbarous and\nshocking manner.\nThe Beaver Indians are a peaceable and\nquiet people, and, perhaps, the most honest\nof any, on the face of the earth. Theft is\nrarely committed among them; and when one\nof their tribe is known to have stolen, he is\nregarded witli a detestation, like that which\nfollows a highwayman in civilized countries.\nFormerly, their clothing was made of the\nskins of the buffaloe, moose, and red deer,\nand their arms were bows and arrows; but\nthe greater part of them, are now clothed\nwith European goods, and are supplied with\nfire arms. They have, also, iron axes and\nknives, in the place of those which were made\nof stone and of bone.\nFriday, September 1. Fowls begin to\nleave the north, to go to the southward.\nFriday, October 6. As the weather begins to be cold, we have taken our vegetables out of the ground, which we find to\nhave been very productive.\nSaturday, 7. Mr. A. R. McLeod and company, passed this place, to-day, in three\ncanoes, which are on their way to the Rocky\nMountain Portage, and thence to New Caledonia. This gentleman delivered me letters,\nnot only from different persons in this country, but also from my relatives below. To\nbe informed, in this way, of the health and\n 150\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nprosperity of the latter, to attend to the effusions of their hearts, and a detail of many\nof the circumstances of their lives, transports\nme in imagination, for a short season, into\nthe midst of their society, and communicates a pleasure resembling that of personal\nintercourse. Excellent invention of letters !\nthus to enable us to keep up a kind of conversation with beloved friends, while separated from them by thousands of miles.\nSunday, February 25, 1810. On the evening of the 15th inst. my woman was delivered of two living boys. They appear,\nhowever, to have been prematurely born;\nand, from the first, little hope was entertained that they would long survive.\nOne of them died on the morning of the\n22d, and the other the last night; and today, they were 'both, buried in the same\ncoffin. He who gave them life, has taken\nit away. He had an undoubted right so\nto do; and though his ways are to us,\ninscrutable, he has the best reasons for whatever he does. It becomes us, therefore, humbly to acquiesce in this afflictive dispensation.\nThursday, May 3. This day, the ice in the\nriver broke up.\nTuesday, 15. Early this morning, Mr. D.\nMcTavish and company, set out for Fort\nWilliam; and this afternoon, Mr. J. Clarke\nand company, from St. John's, passed this,\non their way to the Rainy Lake. But I\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n151\nshall remain, if providence permit, at this\nplace, during another summer. The local\nsituation is pleasant; and we have good\nhorses, by means of which, I can, at pleasure make excursions into the surrounding\nplains, over which are scattered buffaloes,\nmoose, red deers, antelopes, black and grey\nbears, &c. I shall have no intelligent companion, with whom to converse. But this\ndeficiency wilFbe in a measure supplied, by\na good collection of books, with which I am\nfurnished. Were it not for this resource,\nmany a dreary day would pass over me.\nTuesday, 22. Messrs. J. Stuart, and H.\nFaries and company, passed this place in\nfour canoes, with the returns of New Caledonia and Rocky Mountain Portage; and,\nlike many others, they are on their way to\nthe Rainy Lake.\nSaturday, June 23. The last night was so\ncold, that the tops of our potatoes were\nfrozen. This morning, as several red deer\nwere crossing from the opposite side of the\nriver, one of our people leaped into a canoe,\nand pursued them, and succeeded in killing\none of them.\nThursday, September 13. Two men have\narrived from New Caledonia, who bring the\ndisagreeable intelligence, that salmon, this\nseason, do not come up the rivers of that\nregion, as usual. As this kind of fish forms\nthe principal article of food, both for the\nNatives and white people, it is apprehended\n 152\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nthat they will all be under the necessity of\nproceeding towards the Pacific Ocean, until\nthey find a people who have been more\nfavoured by Providence.\nWednesday, October 3. We have taken\nour potatoes out of the ground, and find,\nthat nine bushels, which we planted the 10th\nof May last, have produced a little more\nthan one hundred and fifty bushels. The\nother vegetables in our garden have yielded\nan increase, much in the same proportion,\nwhich is sufficient proof, that the soil of the\npoints of land, along this river, is good.\nIndeed, I am of opinion, that wheat, rye,\nbarley, oats, pease, &c. would grow well in\nthe plains around us.\nSaturday, October 6. Mr. John Stuart\nand company, in four canoes, have arrived\nfrom Fort Chippewyan, having on board,\ngoods for the establishment at the Rocky\nMountain Portage and New Caledonia. This\ngentleman delivered me a packet of letters\nfrom home, and also a number of others\nfrom gentlemen in this country, one of which\nis a joint letter, signed by three of the partners, requesting me to go and superintend\nthe affairs of New Caledonia; or, if I prefer\nit, to accompany Mr. Stuart, as second in\ncommand to him, until the next spring, at\nwhich time it is presumed, that I shall have\nlearned sufficient of the state of things in\nthat country, to assume the whole management myself. As Mr. Stuart has passed\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n153\nseveral years in that part of the country,\nthe information which his experience will\nenable him to afford me, will be of great\nservice. I prefer, therefore, accompanying\nhim, to going alone, especially in view of the\nlate unfavourable reports from that country, in regard to the means of subsistence.\nWednesday, October 10. St. John's. On\nthe 7th Mr. Stuart and myself, with our\ncompany, left* Dun vegan; and this evening,\nwe arrived here. The current in the river\nbegins to be much stronger than we found\nit below Dunvegan. On both sides of the\nriver, are hills of a considerable height,\nwhich are almost destitute of timber of any\nkind. At different places, we saw buffaloes,\nred deer, and bears. During our passage\nto this place, the weather has been bad. The\nsnow and rain have been very unpleasant,\nunprotected against them, as we are, in our\nopen canoes.\nThursday, 11. In the early part of the\nday, our people were busily employed in preparing provisions to take with us to New\nCaledonia. This afternoon, Mr. Stuart and\ncompany embarked in three canoes, for the\nRocky Mountain Portage. Having a little\nbusiness still to transact, I shall pass the\nnight here.\nMonday, 15. Rocky Mountain Portage\nFort. We here find nearly eight inches of\nsnow. Mr. Stuart and company reached here\nyesterday; and I arrived this morning. Be-\n gggsainn\n154\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nIt\ntween this place and St. John's, the river is\nvery rapid, its banks are high, and the country, on both sides of it, is generally clothed\nwith small timber. Ever since our arrival,\nwe have been employed in delivering goods\nfor this place, and dividing the remainder\namong our people, to be taken on their\nbacks, to the other end of the portage, which\nis twelve miles over, through a rough and\nhilly country. We leave our canoes and\ntake others, at the other end of the carrying\nplace.\nFrom the Great Slave Lake to this place,\nthere are few rapids, and only one fall; but\nat several places, the current is very strong.\nYesterday, we came up one of these places;\nand as our progress was very slow, I went\non shore alone, to walk along the beach.\nHaving proceeded some distance, I arrived\nat a place which I could not pass, without\nmaking a considerable turn into the woods.\nI, therefore, left the side of the river, and,\nafter having walked a mile or two, I fell upon a well beaten footpath, which I supposed\nwould take me directly to the fort. After I\nhad followed it for several miles, I perceived\nthat it had been trodden by wild animals,\nand was as I thought, leading me in a different direction from that which I ought to\nhave taken. I was unwilling to retrace my\nsteps; and I, therefore, proceeded in a different direction, hoping soon to come to the\nriver, farther up than the place where I left\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n155\nit. I marched a good pace, for a considerable time, through the snow, eight inches in\ndepth, until I found myself in a swampy\ncountry, thickly wooded, when the sun was\njust sinking below the horizon. Even while\nthe light lasted, I knew not which way to\nsteer; but it soon became so dark, that I\ncould not distinguish any object, at the\ndistance of more than ten yards from me.\nI had no meSns of striking fire; and without this cheering element, it would have\nbeen uncomfortable and unsafe encamping.\nI must have suffered severely with the cold;\nand might have been torn in pieces by wild\nbeasts, which are numerous in this region.\nI concluded it best, therefore, to continue\nwalking, until the light of the morning should\nenable me to find the bank of the river.\nContrary to my expectation, however, a\nkind Providence directed my way, out of\nthat dreary swamp, where at every step, I\nsunk up to my knees in snow, mud and\nwater.\nWith great joy, about ten o'clock, I\nreached the river side, which I followed down,\nsome distance, where I found our people,\nencamped around a large and cheering fire.\nDuring the greater part of this excursion,\nthe rain poured down in torrents.\nWednesday, 17. North West end of the\nRocky Mountain Portage. In the morning,\nMr. S. myself and our company, left' the\nfort; and, this evening, we reached this\n 156\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nplace, where we find some of our people,\nrepairing four, crazy, old canoes, in\nwhich, I should suppose that no one\nwould be willing to embark, who attaches\nmuch value to life. The remainder of our\nhands are employed in transporting our\nbaggage, which is still behind, to this place.\nThey are assisted in doing this, by some of\nthe Natives, who are Sicannies. They have\njust returned from the other side of the\nRocky Mountain, where they go to pass the\nsummer months. During the winter season,\nthey remain on this side of the Mountain,\nwhere they find buffaloes, moose and deer.\nOn the other side, none of these animals,\nexcepting a few straggling ones, are to be\n~found.\nThe Sicannies are a quiet, inoffensive people, whose situation exposes them to peculiar difficulties and distresses. When they\nproceed to the west side of the mountain,\nthe Natives of that region, who are Tacullies\nand Atenas, attack and kill many of them;\nand when they are on this side, the Beaver\nIndians and Crees, are continually making\nwar upon them. Heing thus surrounded by\nenemies, against whom they are too feeble\nsuccessfully to contend, they frequently suffer\nmuch for want of food; for when on the\nwest side, they dare not, at all times, visit\nthose places, where fish are in plenty, and\nwhen on the east side, they are frequently\nafraid to visit those parts, where animals\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n157\nabound. They are compelled, therefore, oftentimes to subsist upon the roots, which they\nfind in the mountains, and which barely\nenable them to sustain life; and their emaciated bodies frequently bear witness, to the\nscantiness of their fare.\nWe here begin to see lofty mountains at a\ndistance. This place is in the 56\u00C2\u00B0 of North\nLatitude, and 121\u00C2\u00B0 of West Longitude.\nMonday, 22T. It has snowed and rained,\nduring the whole of this day.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We are now\nin the heart of the Rocky Mountain, the\nlofty summits of which, on each side of the\nriver, tower majestically toward the heavens,\nand are perpetually whitened by snows,\nthat are never dissolved, by solar heat.\nThey are by far the highest mountains that\nI have ever seen. The timber, which grows\nupon them, is chiefly spruce fir, birch and\npoplar. It is a curious fact, in the geography of North America, that so many of\nthe lakes and rivers, on the west side of this\nlofty range of mountains, discharge their\nwaters through one narrow passage, in this\ngreat barrier, and eventually enter the North\nSea.\nWednesday, 24. Although we have found\nthe current in this river very strong, ever since\nwe left the Rocky Mountain Portage, yet,\nuntil this day, we have found no place where\nwe were under the necessity of unloading our\ncanoes, in order to stem the current. 'This\nafternoon, just as we got through the moun-\n 158\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\ntain, we passed Finlay's or the North Branch,\nwhich appears to be of about the same magnitude as the South Branch, which we are\nfollowing. These two branches take their\nrise in very different directions. The source\nof the South Branch, is in the Rocky Mountain, at the distance of nearly two hundred\nmiles from the place where we now are. The\nNorth Branch runs out of a very large lake,\ncalled by the Natives Musk-qua Sa-ky-e-gun,\nor Bears Lake. This lake, which is so large\nthat the Indians never attempt to cross it in\ntheir canoes, and which, those who reside at\nthe east end of it, affirm, extends to the\nWestern Ocean, is situated nearly west from\nthe place where the two branches form a\njunction, at the distance, as is thought of\nabout one hundred and fifty miles. Both\nbranches, before their junction, run along\nthe foot of the mountain, as if in search of\na passage through.\nThursday, November 1. McLeod's Lake\nFort. This place is situated in 55\u00C2\u00B0 North\nLatitude, and 124\u00C2\u00B0 West Longitude. The\ncountry lying between this place and Fin-\nlay's Branch, is thickly covered with timber,\non both sides of the river; and, on the right,\nin coming up, the land is low and level.\nMountains, it is true, are to be seen; but\nthey appear at a considerable distance. We\nhave not seen a large animal, nor even the\ntrack of one, since we left the Rocky Mountain Portage. About twenty miles from this\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n159\nplace, We left Peace River, and have come up\na small river, of five or six rods in breadth,\nwhich, a little below this, passes through a\nsmall lake. Here, we leave our canoes, and\ntake our goods by land, to the establishment at Stuart's Lake, which place is situated nearly one hundred miles to the west\nfrom this. There is a passage by water to\nthat lake; but it is so circuitous, that we/l\ncould not make it in less than twelve or\nfifteen days.\nMcLeod's Lake may be sixty or seventy\nmiles in circumference. Small white fish and\ntrout are here taken; but those who reside\nhere subsist, during the greater part of the\nyear, on dried salmon, which are brought in\nthe winter, on sledges, drawn by dogs, from\nStuart's Lake.\nThe Indians who frequent this establishment, are Sicannies, and belong to the same\ntribe with those who take their furs to the\nRocky Mountain Portage. Their dialect differs but little from that of the Beaver Indians. They appear to be in wretched circumstances, frequently suffering much for\nwant of food; and they are often driven to\nthe necessity of subsisting on roots. There\nare but few large animals, in this part of the\ncountry; and when the snow is five or six\nfeet deep, as is frequently the case in the\nwinter, few beavers can be taken, nor can\nmany fish be caught, in this cold season >of\nthe year. Yet after all the difficulties which\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A23\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nthese people encounter, in procuring a subsistence, such is their attachment to the\ncountry that gave them birth, that they\nwould not willingly exchange it, for any\nother part of the world.\nWednesday, 7. Stuart's Lake. This lake\nis called by the Natives NJuck-aws-lay, and\nthe establishment on it, where we noW'are, is\nsituated in 54\u00C2\u00B0 30' North Latitude, and in\n125\u00C2\u00B0 West Longitude. On the third instant,\nI left Mr. Stuart at McLeod's Lake, where he\ndesigns to pass the winter; and, accompanied\nby thirteen labouring men, I arrived at this\nplace, this afternoon. In coming here, I\npassed over an uneven country, which is in\ngeneral thickly covered with timber. We\nsaw, on our way, several lakes or ponds, one\nof which was about six miles long.\nThis fort stands in a very pleasant place,\non a rise of ground, at the east end of Stuart's Lake, which I am informed, is at least\nthree hundred miles in circumference. At the\ndistance of about two hundred rods from the\nfort, a considerable river runs out of the lake,\nwhere the Natives, who call themselves Tacul-\nlies, have a village or rather a few small huts,\nbuilt of wood. At these they remain during\nthe season for taking and drying salmon, on\nwhich they subsist, during the greater part of\nthe year.\nMonday, 12. I have sent J. M. Quesnel,\naccompanied by ten labouring men, with a\nsmall assortment of goods, to Frazer's Lake,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n161\nto reestablish the post there. That lake lies\nnearly fifty miles due west from this. We\nunderstand that the Indians, this fall, have\ntaken and dried a considerable quantity of\nsalmon, in that vicinity. I have also sent\npeople to the other side of this lake, hoping\nthey will take a few white fish, although the\nseason, in which we usually take them, is\nnearly past. A/(T^\nWednesday, ^4. The lake, opposite to the\nfort, froze over the last night. To day Mr.'\nStuart and company, arrived from McLeod's\nLake.\nSaturday, 17. We have now about eight\ninches of snow on the ground.\nSunday, 18. Mr. Stuart and company,\nhave gone to Frazer's Lake. I accompanied\nthem to the other side of this lake, where I\nsaw all the Indians belonging to the village\nin this vicinity. They amount to about one\nhundred souls, are very poorly clothed, and,\nto us, appear to be in wretched circumstances ; but they are, notwithstanding, contented and cheerful. My interpreter informs\nme, that their language strongly resembles\nthat spoken by the Sicannies; and no doubt\nthey formerly constituted a part of the same\ntribe, though they now differ from them, in\ntheir manners and customs. The Sicannies\nbury, while the Tacullies, bumi their dead.\nMonday, 26. The corpse of a woman of\nthis place, who died on the 20th instant,' was\nburned this afternoon. While the ceremony\nii\n 162\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nwas performing, the Natives made a terrible\nsavage noise, by howling, crying, and a kind\nof singing.\nSaturday, December 29. Frazer's Lake.\nIn coming to this place, I passed through a\ncountry, which is very rough, and thickly\ncovered with timber, consisting of spruce, fir,\npoplar, aspin, birch, cypress, &c. We crossed\none considerable mountain, and several small\nlakes.\nThis establishment is at the east end of\nFrazer's Lake, which received its name from\nthat of the gentleman, who first built here,\nin 1806. At the distance of about a mile\nfrom this, there runs out of this lake, a considerable river, where the Natives have a\nlarge village, and where they take and dry\nsalmon. This lake may be eighty or ninety\nmiles in circumference, and is well supplied\nwith white fish, trout, &c.\nTuesday, January 1,1811. This being the\nfirst day of another year, our people have\npassed it, according to the custom of the\nCanadians, in drinking and fighting. Some\nof the principal Indians of this place, desired\nus to allow them to remain at the fort, that\nthey might see our people drink. As soon as\nthey began to be a little intoxicated, and to\nquarrel among themselves, the Natives began\nto be apprehensive, that something unpleasant might befal them, also. They, therefore\nhid themselves under beds, and elsewhere,\nsaying, that they thought the white people\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n163\nhad run mad, for they appeared not to know\nwhat they were about. They perceived that\nthose who were the most beastly in the early\npart of the day, became the most quiet in the\nlatter part, in view of which, they exclaimed,\n\"the senses of the white people have returned\nto them again,\" and they appeared not a\nlittle surprised at the change; for, it was the\nfirst time, that they had ever seen a person\nintoxicated.\nSunday, 27. This day the Natives have\nburned the corpse of one of their chiefs, who\ndied in the early part of this month. Shortly\nafter his death, one of his nieces painted her\nface with vermillion; and, in other respects\narrayed herself in the gayest manner possible.\nHer mother, observing this unbecoming conduct, reproved her in the following manner.\n\"Areyou not ashamed, my daughter,\" said\nshe, \"to appear so gaily clad, so soon after\nthe decease of your uncle? You ought rather\nto daub your face with black, and to cut\nyour hair short to your head.\" This reproach for the apparent destitution of natural affection, so afflicted the girl, that, soon\nafter, she went into a neighbouring wood,\nand hung herself, from the limb of a tree.\nHappily for her, however, some people passed\nthat way, before she had long been in this\nsituation, and took her down. She was, at\nfirst, senseless; but soon after recovered.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nInstances of suicide, by hanging, frequently\noccur, among the women of all the tribes,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nwith whom T have been acquainted; but the\nmen are seldom known to take away their\nown lives.\nWednesday, 30. Two nights since, an Indian cut a hole in a window in my room,\nwhich is made of parchment, at the distance\nof not more than two feet from the foot of\nmy bed,. where I lay asleep, and took from\na table, near it, several articles of clothing.\nThe next morning, two other Indians brought\nback to me a part of the stolen property,\nand informed me who the thief was, and\nwhere he could be found. Soon after, accompanied by my interpreter, I went, and found\nthe young villain, in a hut under ground,\nalong with about twelve others, who are as\ngreat thieves as himself. I told him, that, as\nhe was young, I hoped this was the firstrtime\nhe had ever been guilty of theft; and, provided he would return all the property which\nhe had taken away, I would forgive this\noffence; but if he should ever in future be\nguilty of any misconduct toward us, he\nmight depend on being severely punished. I\nthen returned to our house; and, shortly\nafter, two Indians brought me the remainder\nof the property which had been stolen, and I\ngave them a little ammunition, for having\nmade known the thief.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Nearly all the Tacullies, or Carriers as we call them, are much\naddicted to pilfering; but there are few\namong them who dare steal from us.\nFriday, February 15. Yesterday and to-\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n165\nday, we found the cold to be more intense,\nthan at any other time this season.\nMonday, 18. Baptiste Bouche, my interpreter, has taken the daughter of one of the\nCarrier chiefs, as a wife. She is the first\nwoman of that tribe, ever kept by any of the\nwhite people.\nFriday, April 5. Stuart's Lake. In the\nmorning, I left and abandoned the post at\nFrazer's Lake, ana arrived here this evening.\nMonday, 15. The weather is pleasant, and\nseems to presage an early spring.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Swans\nand ducks of several kinds, have passed the\nwinter with us; but bustards and geese, now\nfirst begin to make their appearance.\nSunday, 21. A few days since, I sent the\ngreater part of my people to McLeod's Lake,\nto prepare for the voyage from that place to\nthe Rainy Lake. Tomorrow, I shall leave\nthis place myself, in company with Mr.\nQuesnel and others, for McLeod's Lake. I\nshall take with me my little son George,\nwho was three years old last December,\nfor the purpose of sending him to my\nfriends in the United States, in order that\nhe may receive an English education. Mr.\nJ. M. Quesnel will have the care of him, until\nhe shall arrive at Montreal.\nWednesday, 24. McLeod's Lake. I find\nMr. Stuart and the men very busy, in preparing for the voyage to the Rainy Lake.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe spring here is less advanced, by fifteen\ndays, than it was at Stuart's Lake. This\nr\nrv\nWfm\n*-\n 166\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\n1^\ngreat difference of climate, I conclude, is\nowing to the fact, that this place lies nearer\nthe mountains.\nWednesday, May 8. People have just arrived from Stuart's Lake, who inform me\nthat the mother of my^son was delivered on\nthe 25th ultimo, of a daughter, whom I name\nPolly Harmon.\nAs the ice in Peace River begins to be bad,\nit is expected that a few days hence the\nnavigation will be opened, when Messrs.\nStuart, Quesnel, and their. company, will embark, with the returns of this place, for the\nRainy Lake. Tomorrow, I design to return\nto Stuart's Lake, where I expect to pass the\nensuing summer. But my attention is chiefly\ntaken up with the separation, which is soon\nto take place between me and my beloved\nson. A few months hence, he will be at a\ngreat distance from his affectionate father;\nand, it may be, I shall never more see him,\nin this world. No consideration could induce\nme to send him down, especially while he is\nso young, excepting the thought, that he will\nsoon be under the fostering care of my kind\nrelatives, who will be able to educate him\nmuch better than it would be possible for me\nto do, in this savage country. As I do that\nwhich I apprehend will be for the benefit of\nmy little son, so I earnestly pray, that God\nwould graciously protect him, in his absence\nfrom me.\nSunday, 12. Stuart's Lake. Here, I ar-\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n167\nrived this afternoon, after having passed\nfour of the most disagreeable days that I\never experienced. My spirits were dejected, in\nview of the departure of my child; the snow,\nwhich was three feet in depth, had become\nsoftened by the late warm weather, so that\nwalking was attended with great fatigue; I\nbroke'my snow shoes, on the way, which the\nIndian lad with me mended as well as our\ncircumstances would permit, though but\npoorly; and finally we had scarcely any thing\nto eat. I am happy, therefore, to find myself\nat a place where I can enjoy a little repose,\nafter such an unpleasant jaunt.\nTuesday, 21. This afternoon, the ice in\nthis lake broke up. Musquetoes begin to\ncome about; and troublesome companions\nthey are in the wilderness.\nWednesday, 22. As the frost is now out of\nthe ground, we have planted our potatoes,\nand sowed barley, turnips, &c. which are the \\nfirpt that we ever sowed, on this west side of \\nthe mountain.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We now take trout in this \\nlake, with set hooks and lines, in considerable\nnumbers; but they.are not of a good kind.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nIt is, perhaps, a little remarkable, that pike*\nor pickerel have never been found in any of i\nthe lakes and rivers, on the west side of the/\nRocky Mountain.\nTuesday, June 11. Three Indians have\narrived from Sy-cus, a village, lying about\none hundred and thirty miles down this river,\nwho say, that it is reported by others, from\n 168\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nfarther down, that there is a very extraordinary and powerful being on his way here,\nfrom the sea, who, when he arrives, will\ntransform me into a stone, as weU as perform many other miraculous deeds; and the\nsimple and credulous Natives fully believe this\nreport.\nSunday, 16. A number of Indians have\narrived, in six large wooden canoes, from the\nother end of this lake; and among them are\ntwo, a father and his son, who say, that they\nbelong to a tribe, who call themselves Nate-\note-tains. These are the first of that nation,\nwhom we have ever seen here. They state,\nthat their tribe is numerous, and scattered,\nin villages, over a large extent of country,\nlying directly west from this; and that it is\nnot more than five or six days' march, to\ntheir nearest village. They, also, inform us,\nthat a large river passes through their country, and at no considerable distance from it,\nenters the Pacific Ocean. They, likewise, say,\nthat a number of white people Come up that\nriver, in barges, every autumn, in order to\ntrade with the Indians, who reside along its\nshores. But I could not learn from them, to\nwhat nation those white people belong. I\nimagine, however, that they are Americans,\nwho come round Cape Horn, to carry on,\nwhat is called a coasting trade; for, I cannot\nlearn that they ever attempted to make establishments, along the sea coast.\nTuesday, July 2. Yesterday, five Sicannies\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n169\ncame here, from McLeod's Lake, who form a\nsmall war party. Their leader, or war chief\ndesired me to allow them to go where they\nmight think proper; upon which, I inquired\nof them, whither they wished to direct their\ncourse, and what their business was. The\nspeaker replied, that, when they left their\nlands, their intention was to go and try to\ntake a scalp or two from the Indians of\nFrazer's Lake, \"wb\u00C2\u00A9,\" he added, \"have done\nus no injury. But we have lost a relation;\nand we must try to revenge his death, on\nsome one.\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094This is a custom common to a\ngreater or less extent to all the tribes.\nI asked him whether he supposed that we\nsupplied them with guns and ammunitions,\nto enable them to destroy their fellow creatures, or to kill the beaver, &c. I added,\nthat should they, in the fall, bring in an hundred scalps, they could not, with them all,\nprocure a pint of rum, or a pipe full of tobacco ; but, if they would bring beaver skins\nthey would able to purchase the articles\nwhich they would need. After reflecting for\nsome time on what I had said, the speaker\ninformed me, that they would, in compliance\nwith my advice, return and hunt the beaver;\nand they performed their promise, by proceeding immediately to their own lands.\nMonday, 29. Several days since, one of\nour men, who remains at McLeod's Lake,\ncame here with the information, that there\nwere Indians lurking around that fort, wait-\n 170\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\ning, as was supposed, for a favourable opportunity to attack it. I, accordingly, went\nover, hoping that I should be able to ascertain who they were; but I have not been\nable to obtain the least information respecting them. Probably, they had not courage\nto make the attack, and have returned to\ntheir own lands.\nShad berries begin to ripen, which is about\ntwenty days later than they ripen, in the\nsame Latitude, on the east side of the Rocky\nMountain.\nFriday, August 2. Our whole stock of\nprovisions in the fort, for ten persons, consists of five salmon, only. It is impossible,\nat this season, to take fish out of this lake\nor river. Unless the salmon from the sea,\nsoon make their appearance, our condition\nwill be deplorable.\nSaturday, 10. Sent all our people, consisting of men, women, and children, to\ngather berries at Pinchy, a village about\ntwelve miles distant from this, toward the\nother end of this lake. At no great distance\nfrom that village, as I am informed, there is\na small lake, out of which the Natives take\nsmall fish, which very much resemble a salmon in shape and in flavour, which are not-\nmore than six inches long. They are said to\nbe very palatable; but, if they were not so,\nthey would be very acceptable to us, in our\npresent circumstances.\nThursday, 22. One of the Natives has\n HARMON'S JOURNAL\n171\ncaught a salmon, which is joyful intelligence\nto us all; for we hope and expect, that, in a\nfew days, we shall have them in abundance.\nThese fish visit, to a greater or less extent,\nall the rivers in this region, and form the\nprincipal dependence of' the inhabitants, as\nthe means of subsistence.\nMonday, September 2. We now have the\ncommon salmon in abundance. They weigh\nfrom five to seven pounds. There are, also,\na few of a larger kind, which will weigh\nsixty or seventy pounds. Both of them are\nvery good, when just taken out of the water.\nBut, when dried, as they are by the Indians\nhere, by the heat of the sun, or in the smoke\nof a fire, they are not very palatable. When\nsalted, they are excellent.\nAs soon as the salmcn come into this lake,\nthey go in search of the rivers and brooks,\nthat fall into it; and these streams they\nascend so far as there is water to enable\nthem to swim; and when they can proceed\nno farther up, they remain there and die.\nNone were ever seen to descend these streams.\nThey are found dead in such numbers, in\nsome places, as to infect the atmosphere,\nwith a terrible stench, for a considerable\ndistance round. But, even when they are in\na putrified state, the Natives frequently\ngather them up and eat them, apparently,\nwith as great a relish, as if they were fresh.\nTuesday, 17. Between nine and ten\no'clock, this forenoon, the sun was eclipsed,\n/ V (\n 172\nHARMON'S JOUBNAL.\n. Jt\ncA\nx \u00C2\u00AB\nN\nfor nearly half an hour, which event alarmed\nthe Natives greatly; for they considered it as\nforeboding some great calamity, about to\nfall upon them. They therefore cried and\nhowled, making a savage noise. Their\npriesjbs or magicians took their hands full\nof swan's down, and blew it through their\nhands toward the sun, imploring that great\nluminary to accept of the offering, thus made\nto him, to be put on the head of his sons,\nwhen engaged in dancing, and to spare the\nIndians. They suppose that the sun has\nchildren, who, like those of the Carriers, are\nfond of putting swan's down on their heads,\nwhen they dance.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I explained to them the\ncause of the darkness; at which they appeared\nboth pleased and astonished, and acknowledged that my account of the subject was\nrational, but wondered how I could obtain\na knowledge of such hidden and mysterious\nthings.\nMonday, 23. Bustards and geese begin to\ncome from the north.\nIn the early part of the day, I found it\nnecessary to chastise the chief of this village,\nwith considerable severity. He is the first\nIndian that I have ever struck during a residence of eleven years, in this savage country.\nThe following circumstances attended this\ntransaction. The name of the Indian, who\nwas chastised, was Quas. He had a friend,\nwho was a worthless fellow, to whom he\nwished me to advance ffoods on credit, Which\n HARMON'S JOURNAL\nI declined doing for two reasons. The first\nwas, that I did not believe that the Indian\nwould ever pay me for them. The other was?\nthat Quas wished to make the Indians believe, that he had a great deal of influence\nover us, which would be prejudicial to our\ninterest, if he should effect it. He tried every\nmethod, which he could devise, to persuade\nme to advance the gonads, but to no purpose;\nfor I perceived what was his object. He then\ntold me, that he saw no other difference between me and himself, but this only : 'you,'\nsaid he, 'know how to read and write; but I\ndo not. Do not I manage my affairs as well,\nas you do yours? You keep your fort in\norder, and make your slaves,' meaning my\nmen, 'obey you. You send a great way off\nfor goods, and you are rich and want for\nnothing. But do not I manage my affairs as\nwell as you do yours? When did you ever\nhear that Quas was in danger of starving?\nWhen it is the proper season to hunt the\nbeaver, I kill them; and of their flesh I make\nfeasts for my relations. I, often, feast all the\nIndians of my village; and, sometimes, invite\npeople from afar off, to come and partake of\nthe fruits of my hunts. I know the season\nwhen fish spawn, and, then send my women\nwith the nets which they have made, to take\nthem. I never want for any thing, and my\nfamily is always well clothed.\"\u00E2\u0080\u0094In this manner, the fellow proceeded, for a considerable\ntime.\n 174\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nI told him that what he had said, concerning himself and his family, was true; yet,\nI added, 'I am master of my own property,\nand shall dispose of it as I please.' 'Well,'\nsaid he, 'have you ever been to war?' 'No,'\nreplied I, 'nor do I desire to take the life of\nany of my fellow creatures.' 'I have been to\nwar,' continued he, 'and have brought home\nmany of the scalps of my enemies.' I was\nnow strongly tempted to beat him, as his\nobject manifestly was, to intimidate me. But\nI wished to avoid a quarrel, which might be\nevil in its consequences; and especially to\nevince to the Indians, who were spectators of\nwhat passed between us, that I was disposed\nto live in peace with them.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quas proceeded\nto try me another way. He asked me if I\nwould trust him with a small piece of cloth, to\nmake him a breech cloth? This I consented\nto do, and went into the store, to measure it\noff. He followed me together with my interpreter, and ten or twelve other Indians. I\ntook up a piece of cloth, and asked him, if he\nwould have it from that? He answered, no.\nI then made a similar inquiry, respecting another piece, to which he made a similar reply.\nThis persuaded me, that his only object was\nto provoke me to quarrel with him. I, therefore, threw down the cloth, and told him, if\nhe would not have that, he should have\nthis, (meaning a square yard stick which I\nhad in my hand) with which I gave him a\nsmart blow over the head, which cut it, con-\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n175\nsiderably. I then sprang over the counter,\nand pelted him, for about five minutes, during which time, he continually caUed to his\ncompanions, all of whom had knives in their\nhands, to come and take me off. But, they\nreplied that they could not, because there\nwere two other white people in the room, who\nwould prevent them. It was happy for us\nthat these Indians stood in such fear of us;\nfor there were only _our white men, at this\ntime in the fort, and they could easily have\nmurdered us.\u00E2\u0080\u0094As Quas and his company left\nus, he told me that he would see me again\ntomorrow, when the sun should be nearly in\nthe south, meaning between ten and twelve\no'clock.\nMonday, October 7. The next day after I\nchastised the Indian, as above described, he\nsent one of his wives to request me, either to\ncome and see him, or to send him some\nmedicine. I, therefore, sent him some salve,\nwith which to dress the wound in his head.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nA few days after, he became so well as to be\nable to hunt; and he killed and brought\nhome a number of beavers, with which he\nyesterday made a feast. He sent an invitation to me to attend this feast; and I concluded that it would be necessary for me to\ngo, or he might think that I was afraid of\nhim. I, accordingly, put a brace of pistols in\nmy pocket, and hung a sword by my side,\nand directed my interpreter to arm himself in\na similar manner, and to accompany me. We\n 176\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nproceeded to the house of the chief, where we\nfound nearly an hundred Indians, assembled.\nAs soon as we arrived, he requested us to be\nseated. He then rose, and stood in the middle of the circle, formed by* the guests, and\nwith a distinct and elevated voice, made a\nlong harangue, in which he did not forget to\nmake mention of the beating which he had\nlately received from me. He said, if it had\nbeen given to him by any person but the\nBig Knife (the name which they give to me)\nhe would have either lost his own life, or\nhave taken that of the person attacking him.\nBut now, he said, he considered himself as\nmy wife; for that was the way, he said, that\nhe treated his women (of whom he has four)\nwhen they behave ill. He said, that he\nthanked me for what I had done, for it had\ngiven him sense.\u00E2\u0080\u0094To this I replied, that, in\na remote country, I had left my friends and\nrelations, who wanted for none of the good\nthings of this world, and had come a great\ndistance, with such articles as the Indians\ngreatly needed, and which I would exchange\nfor their furs, with which I could purchase\nmore; and in this way, I could always supply\ntheir necessities; that I considered the Indians as my children, and that I must chastise them when they behaved ill, because it\nwas for their good. 'You all know,' said I,\n'that I treat good Indians well, and that I\nstrive to live in peace with you.'\u00E2\u0080\u0094'Yes,' replied the father-in-law to the chief, ' Big Knife\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nspeaks the truth. My son had no sense, and\nvexed him, and therefore deserved the beating\nwhich he has received.'\u00E2\u0080\u0094Quas then told the\nIndians, that if he ever heard of any of them\nlaughing at him for the beating which he had\nreceived, he would make them repent of their\nmirth.\nAfter this the feast was served up in a\nmanner, which I shall describe in another\nplace.\u00E2\u0080\u0094It will be see% by this account, that\nthe white people have a great ascendency\nover the Indians; for, I believe that this chief\nis not destitute of bravery. But it is very\nnecessary, in order to secure ourselves from\naggression, that we manifest that we are not\nafraid of them.\nSaturday, 12. During the last three days,\nit has snowed continually; and it has fallen\nto the depth of nearly two feet.\nMonday, 21. We have now in our store,\ntwenty five thousand salmon. Four in a day\nare allowed to each man.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I have sent some\nof our people to take white fish.\nThursday, 31. Two men have arrived\nfrom McLeod's Lake, and have delivered me\nseveral letters, one of which, from Mr. James \\nMcDougall, who accompanied our people from\nthe Rainy Lake, informs me, that the canoes\nwere stopped by the ice, on the 12th inst.\nabout three days' march below McLeod's\nLake, where they still remain, together with\nthe property which they had on board.\nSaturday, November 16. Our fishermen\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nhave returned to the fort, and inform me\nthat they have taken seven thousand white\nfish. These fish, which, singly, will weigh\nfrom three to four pounds, were taken in nine\nnets, of sixty fathoms each.\nSunday, 17. Clear and cold. The last\nnight, the lake, opposite to the fort, froze\nover.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The greater part of the snow, which\nfell in October, is now dissolved.\nFriday, December 13. On the 20th ult. I\nset off, accompanied by twenty of my people,\nfor the goods which were stopped by the taking of the ice in Peace River, the last October.\nWe aU returned this evening accompanied by\nMr. McDougall, who has come to pass the\nholidays with us. Our goods were drawn oh\nsledges by dogs. Each pair of dogs drew a\nload of from two hundred, to two hundred\nand fifty pounds, besides provisions for themselves and their driver, which would make the\nwhole load about three hundred pounds. I\nhave seen many dogs, two of which would\ndraw on a sledge, five hundred pounds,\ntwenty miles, in five hours. For a short distance, two of our stoutest dogs will draw\nmore than a thousand pounds weight. In\nshort, there is no animal, with which I am\nacquainted, that would be able to render half\nthe service that our dogs do, in this country,\nwhere the snow is very deep in the winter\nseason. They sink but little into it, in following a person on snow shoes.\nWednesday, January 1, 1812. This being\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n179\nthe first day of the year, Mr. McDougall and\nI dined with all our people, in the hall.\nAfter our repast was ended, I invited several\nof the Sicanny and Carrier chiefs, and most\nrespectable men, to partake of the provisions\nwhich we had left; and I was surprised to see\nthem behave with much decency, and even\npropriety, while eating, and while drinking a\nflagon or two of spirits.\nAfter they had finished their repast, they\nsmoked their pipes, and conversed rationally,\non the great difference which there is, between\nthe manners and customs of civilized people,\nand those of the savages. They readily conceded, that ours are superior to theirs.\nTuesday, 7. On the 4th inst. accompanied\nby several of our people, I set off for Tachy,\na village, toward the other end of this lake.\nWe there saw a number of Indians, who ap^\npear to be very indolent, and who are, of\ncourse, wretchedly clad, and not better fed.\nFrom that place, we proceeded up a considerable river, about half a day's march, to another village, inhabited chiefly by Sicannies,\nwho appear to be more industrious than the\ninhabitants of the former village; and, therefore, they are better clothed, and live more\ncomfortably. Their principal food consists\nof salmon, white fish, and trout; and they,\nat times, kill a beaver, or a cariboo. The\ncountry around the lake is hilly; but, on\nboth sides of this river, it is level; and from\nthe appearance of the timber which grows\n 180\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\non it, I should think that the soil is not\nbad. !^g\nMonday, 13. On the 9th inst. a Sic'anny\ndied at this place; and the following circumstances attended his incineration, to day.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThe corpse was placed on a pile of dry wood,\nwith the face upwards, which was painted\nand bare. The body was covered with a\nrobe, made of beaver skins, and shoes were\non the feet. In short, the deceased was\nclothed in the same manner as when alive,\nonly a little more gaily. His gun and powder\nhorn, together with every trinket which he\nhad possessed, were placed by his side. As\nthey were about to set fire to the wood, on\nwhich the deceased lay, one of his brothers\nV 7\nasked him if he would ever come among\nthem again; for, they suppose that the soul\nof a person, after the death of the body, can\n.revisit the earth, in another body. They\nl must, therefore, believe in the immortality,\nthough they connect with it the transmigration, of the soul.\nThe deceased had two wives, who were\nplaced, the one at the head, and the other at\nthe foot of the corpse; and there they lay\nuntil the hair of their heads was nearly consumed by the flames, and they were almost\nsuffocated by the smoke. When almost senseless, they rolled on the ground, to a little\ndistance from the fire. As soon as they had\nrecovered a little strength, they stood up, and\nbegan to strike the burning corpse with both\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\ntheir hands alternately; and this disgusting,\nsavage ceremony was continued, until the\nbody was nearly consumed. This operation\nwas interrupted by their frequent turns of\nfainting, arising from the intensity of the\nheat. If they did not soon recover from\nthese turns, and commence the operation of\nstriking the corpse, the men would seize them\nby the little remaining hair on their beads,\nand push them into the, flames, in order to\ncompel them to do it. This violence was\nespecially used toward one of the wives of the\ndeceased, who had frequently run away from\nhim, while he was living.\nWhen the body was nearly burned to\nashes, the wives of the deceased gathered\nup these ashes, and the remaining pieces of\nbones, which they put into bags. These\nbags they will be compelled to carry upon\ntheir backs, and to lay by their sides, when\nthey lie down at night, for about two years.\nThe relations of the deceased will then make\na feast, and enclose these bones and ashes\nin a box, and deposit them under a shed,\nerected for that purpose, in the centre of the\nvillage. Until this time, the widows are kept\nin a kind of slavery, and are required to\ndaub their faces over with some black substance, and to appear clothed with rags,\nand frequently to go without any clothing,\nexcepting round their waists. But, at the\ntime of this feast, they are set at liberty\nfrom these disagreeable restraints.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nThursday, 30. On the 17th inst. accompanied by Mr. McDougall, twelve of my men\nand two carriers, I set out on a journey\nto the territory of the Nate-ote-tains, a tribe\nof Indians, who have never had any intercourse with white people, and few of whom\nhave ever seen them. After travelling, with\nall possible expedition, during seven days,\ngenerally on lakes, we arrived at their first\nvillage. The inhabitants were not a little\nsurprised and alarmed to see people come\namong them, whose complexion was so different from their own. As their village stands\non a rise of ground, near to a large lake,\nthey saw us coming, when we were at a considerable distance from them; and the men,\nwomen and children came out to meet us,\nall of whom were armed, some with bows\nand arrows, and others with axes and clubs.\nThey offered no offence; but, by many savage\ngestures they manifested a determination\nto defend themselves, in case they were attacked. We soon dissipated their fears, by\ninforming them, that we came not to make\nwar upon them, but to supply them with\narticles which they needed, and to receive their\nfurs in exchange. They treated us with much\nrespect and with great hospitality.\nThe day following, we proceeded on our\nroute, and, during our progress, we saw four\nmore of their villages. At the second of these,\nwe found the two men who, the last summer,\nvisited my fort. These people were not, there-\n HARMON'S JOURNAL\nfore, surprised at seeing us among them;\nfor, I had promised these two men, that, in\nthe course of the winter, I would visit their\ncountry. They gave us the same account as\nthey had before given at the fort, of the\nwhite people, who come up a large river,\nalready mentioned. And to convince us of\nthe truth of the account, they showed us\nguns, cloth, axes, blankets, iron pots, &c.\nwhich they obtained from their neighbours,\nthe Atenas, who purchase them directly of\nthe white people.\nThe five villages which we visited, contain\nabout two thousand inhabitants, who are\nwell made and robust. They subsist principally on salmon, and other small fish. The\nsalmon here have small scales, while those\nat Stuart's Lake, have none.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The clothing\nof these people, is much like that of the Carriers. I procured from them vessels, curiously wrought, of the smaller roots of the\nspruce fir, in different shapes. Some of them\nare open, like a kettle, and will hold water.\nThey also, let me have a blanket-or rug,\nwhich was manufactured by the Atenas, of\nthe wool of a kind of sheep or goat. These\nanimals are said to be numerous, on the\nmountains, in their country.\u00E2\u0080\u0094They told us\nthat we had seen but a small part of the\nNate-ote-tains, who, they say, are a numerous\ntribe. They speak a language peculiar to\nthemselves, though the greater part of them\nunderstand that, spoken by the Carriers.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nThe country, which we travelled over, in\nthis route, is generally level. Few mountains\nare to be seen. A heavy growth of timber\nevinces, that the soil is good.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We saw no\nlarge animals, excepting the cariboo; but\nwe were informed, that black bears, and other\nkinds of the larger animals, exist in considerable numbers, in that region.\nSunday, February 23. I have just returned\nfrom a jaunt of eight days, to Frazer's Lake\nand Stilla. The latter place lies about twenty\nmiles beyond the former. Wherever we went,\nthe Natives, as usual, appeared to be pleased\nto see us, and treated us hospitably.\nMonday, April 6. Six Indians have arrived\nfrom Frazer's Lake, who delivered to me a\nletter, written by Mr. David Thompson,\nwhich is dated August 28th, 1811, at Hk-\nkoy-ope Falls, on the Columbia River. It informs me, that this gentleman, accompanied\nby seven Canadians, descended the Columbia\nRiver, to the place where it enters the Pacific\nOcean, where they arrived on the 16th of\nJuly. There they found a number of people,\nemployed in building a fort for a company\nof Americans, who denominate themselves\nthe Pacific Fur Company. He also writes,\nthat Mr. Alexander McKay and others, have\nproceeded to the northward, in the vessel\nthat brought them there, on a coasting\ntrade.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Thompson, after having remained\nseven days with the American people, set out\non his return to his establishments, which\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nare near the source of the Columbia River.\nFrom one of these posts, he wrote the letter\nabove mentioned, and delivered it to an Indian, to bring to the next tribe, with the\ndirection, that they should forward it to the\nnext, and so on, until it should reach this\nplace. This circumstance accounts for the\ngreat length of time, that it has been on the\nway; for the distance that it has come, might\nbe travelled over, in* twenty five or thirty\ndays.\nMonday, May 11. This morning I returned\nfrom McLeod's Lake, where I have been to\nsend off my people, who are to go to the\nRainy Lake. While there, one of my men,\nPieere Lambert, while crossing a small lake\non a sledge, fell through the ice; and, before\nhis companions who were near could extricate him, he was drowned. The day following, his corpse was brought to the fort and\ninterred.\nOn my way home, the walking was exceedingly bad. The snow was three feet deep,\nand the weather was so mild, that it had\nbecome very soft. About ten miles from this\nplace, I left my guide, and came on forward\nof him. I had not proceeded far, before I\nwandered from my proper course. I might\nhave followed my tracks back; but this I was\nunwilling to do, and I continued, therefore\nto wander about during the remainder of the\nday. The night came upon me, while I was\nin a thick wood; and, as I had nothing to\n 186\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\neat, I could only kindle up a fire, and endeavour to solace myself, by smoking my\npipe.\u00E2\u0080\u0094I passed the greater part of the night\nin melancholy reflections on the unpleasant\ncondition, into which I had brought myself,\nby leaving my guide. Very early in the morning, I left my fire, and commenced travelling,\nwithout knowing what direction to take.\nThe sun was concealed by clouds, and the\nrain fell copiously. Before I had gone far, I\nperceived, at no great distance from me, a\npretty high hill, which I at length ascended,\nwith much difficulty. From its summit, I was\ncheered by a prospect of this lake, at a considerable distance from me. Having ascertained the course which I must take, I descended into the valley, and took the following method to keep in the direction to the\nfort. I at first marked a tree; and from\nthat, singled out one forward of me, / to\nwhich I proceeded; and by means of these\ntwo fixed upon another, in a straight line\nahead; and continued the same operation,\nfor several hours, until, with great joy, I\nreached the fort. And now, therefore, I desire\nto return thanks to kind Providence, for\nhaving once more directed my steps to my\nhome and my family.\nThursday, 21. The last night, an east\nwind drove the ice to the other end of the\nlake.\nTuesday, 23. This morning, the Natives\ncaught a sturgeon that would weigh about\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n187\ntwo hundred and fifty pounds. We frequently\nsee in this lake, those which are much larger,\nwhich we cannot take, for the want of nets,\nsufficiently strong to hold them.\nSaturday, August 15. Salmon begin to\ncome up this river. As soon as one is caught\nthe Natives always make a feast, to express\ntheir .joy at the arrival of these fish. The\nperson, who first sees a salmon in the river,\nexclaims, Ta-loe nas-lay! Ta-loe nas-lay!\nin English, Salmon*have arrived! Salmon\nhave arrived ! and the exclamation is caught\nwith joy, and uttered with animation, by\nevery person in the village.\nWednesday, September 2. Mr. McDougall\nand company, who came here on the 25th\nult. set out this morning, on their return\nhome, to McLeod's Lake. This visit has\nafforded me much satisfaction. In this lonely\npart of the world, we enjoy the pleasures of\nsocial intercourse, when we are permitted to\nspend a little time with a friend, with the\nhighest relish.\nSunday, October 25. Early this morning,\nmy people returned from the Rainy Lake.\nBy them I have received letters from home,\nwhich have given me more satisfaction than\nI can express. My friends are in good health,\nand my beloved son George has arrived\nsafely among them. For these blessings, I\ncannot be sufficiently thankful, unless a\nmerciful God is graciously pleased to change\nmy heart of stone into a heart of flesh.\n 188\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nFriday, November 6. We have now about\nsix inches of snow on the ground.\u00E2\u0080\u0094On the\n27th ult. I set out for McLeod's Lake, where\nI arrived on the 29th. I there found Mr.\nJohn Stuart, who, with his company, arrived\nthe day before, from Fort Chipewyan. His\nmen are on their way to the Columbia\nRiver, down which they will proceed under\nMr. J. G. McTavish. The coming winter,\nthey will pass near the source of that river.\nAt the Pacific Ocean, it is expected 'that\nthey wiU meet Donald McTavish, Esq., and\ncompany, who were to sail from England,\nlast October, and proceed round Cape Horn\nto the mouth of Columbia River. This afternoon Mr. Stuart and myself, with our company, arrived at this place, (Stuart's Lake)\nwhere both of us, God willing, shall pass\nthe ensuing winter. With us, are twenty-one\nlabouring men, one interpreter, and five\nwomen, besides children.\nSaturday, January 23, 1813. On the 29th\nult. Mr. Stuart and myself, with the most\nof our people, went to purchase furs and\nsalmon, at Frazer's Lake and StiMs. The\nlast faU, but few salmon came up this river.\nAt the two places, above mentioned, we were\nso successful as to be able to procure a sufficient quantity. While at Frazer's Lake\nMr. Stuart, our interpreter and myself, came\nnear being massacred by the Indians of that\nplace, on account of the interpreter's wife,\nwho is a native of that village. Eighty or\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n189\nninety of the Indians armed themselves, some\nwith guns, some with bows and arrows, and\nothers with axes and clubs, for the purpose\nof attacking us. By mild measures, however,\nwhich I have generally found to be the best,\nin the management of the Indians, we succeeded in appeasing their anger, so that we\nsuffered no injury; and we finally separated,\nto appearance, as good friends, as if nothing\nunpleasant had occurred. Those who are\nacquainted with the disposition of the Indians\nand who are a little respected by them, may,\nby humouring their feelings, generally, con-\ntroul them, almost as they please.\nSunday, February 21. Rocky Mountain\nPortage Fort. Here I arrived this afternoon,\naccompanied by five Canadians and one\nCarrier. We left Stuart's Lake on the 6th\ninst. and are on our way to Dunvegan, where\nI am going to transact some business with\nMr. John McGillivray, who is there. As the\nmountains,. on both sides of the river, for\nthe distance of seventy or eighty miles, are\nvery lofty, there is generally a strong wind\npassing, either up or down the stream, which,\nat this season, renders it extremely cold and\ndisagreeable travelling. On the 18th, we\nwere in the heart of those mountains; and\nwe had to encounter such a strong head\nwind, that my upper lip became very much\nfrozen, without my having perceived it at\nthe time. It is now much swollen, and very\npainful. We all caught severe colds, in con-\nI\n 190\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\n\"b\nsequence of a fall of snow upon us, to the\ndepth of eight inches, after we had encamped\nand resigned ourselves to sleep, the second\nnight after leaving Stuart's Lake; and I have\nbecome unable to speak, excepting in a\nwhisper. It requires indeed, a strong constitution, to conflict with the hardships,\nincident to our mode of life.\nWe here find no person, excepting two Canadians. Mr. A. R. McLeod, who has charge\nof this place, Is\" now absent on a visit to his\nhunter's tent, which is five days' march from\nthis. From such a distance, provisions are\nobtained for this post, as there are very few\nlarge animals at this season, in this vicinity,\nin consequence, I presume, of the great depth\nof snow, which always falls in places, so near\nthe mountain, as this. The people who are\nhere say, that the hunters had such difficulty\nin finding animals of any kind, the last fall,\nthat they all passed five days, without any\nkind of food.\nMonday, March 1. Dun vegan. I have, at\nlength, reached this place, where I passed the\nyears 1809 and 1810, and revisiting it, many\na pleasing scene is recalled by memory, and\nmany hours of agreeable conversation, which\nI passed, with the gentlemen who were then\nhere, rise fresh to my recollection.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. Mc-\nGillivray is now absent, on a visit to the\nLesser Slave Lake; and Mr. Collin Campbell\nhas charge of the fort.\nSunday, 14. Mr. McjGrillivray returned, on\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n191\nthe 10th inst. He is an amiable and excellent\nman; and I have enjoyed his society, during\nmy short stay here, very highly. Having\ncompleted my business here, I shall set out\ntomorrow, on my return to Stuart's Lake.\nI here received the intelligence, that Niagara\nand Makana had surrendered to the British\nforces; but not before many valuable lives\nwere lost, on both sides.\nSunday, April 4. ^ Stuart's Lake. We left\nDun vegan on the 16th ult. and arrived here\nthis evening, without having experienced any\ndisaster by the way.\nSaturday, May 1. Present appearances\njustify the expectation, that the ice in the\nriver will soon break up, so that our people\nwill be able to commence their journey to the\nRainy Lake with our returns, all of which\nwe have sent to McLeod's Lake, together\nwith letters to people in this country, and to\nour friends in the civilized part of the world.\nThursday, 13. The weather is fine. In the\nearly part of the day, Mr. J. Stuart, accompanied by six Canadians and two of the\nNatives, embarked on board of two canoes,\ntaking with him a small assortment of goods,\nas a kind of pocket money, and provisions\nsufficient for a month and a half. They are\ngoing to join Mr. J. G. McTavish and his\ncompany, at some place on the Columbia\nRiver; and to proceed with them to the\nocean. Should Mr. Stuart be so successful as\nto discover a water communication, between\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nthis and the Columbia, we shall, for the\nfuture, obtain our yearly supply of goods\nby that route, and send our returns out that\nway, to be shipped directly for China, in\nvessels which the company, in that case,\ndesign to build on the North West coast.\nWhile the execution of this comprehensive\nplan is committed to others, my more humble\nemployment, in which, however, I am quite\nas sure of being successful, is to be, the superintendence of the affairs of New Caledonia.\nNo other people, perhaps, who pursue business to obtain a livelihood, have so much\nleisure, as we do. Few of us are employed\nmore, and many of us much less, than one\nfifth of our time, in transacting the business\nJ of the Company. The remaining four fifths\nare at our own disposal. If we do not, with\nsuch an opportunity, improve our under\nstandings, the fault must be our own; for\n\ there are few posts, which are not tolerably\n| well supplied with books. These books are\nnot, indeed, all of the best kind; but among\nthem are many which are valuable. If I were\ndeprived of these silent companions, many a\ngloomy hour would pass over me. Even with\nthem, my spirit at times sinks, when I reflect\non the great length of time which has elapsed,\nsince I left the land of my nativity, and my\nrelatives and friends, to dwell in this savage\ncountry. These gloomy moments, thank\nGod, occur but seldom, and soon glide away.\nA little reflection reconciles me to the lot,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n193\nwhich Providence has assigned me, in the\nworld.\nSaturday, June 12. A Sicanny has just\narrived, who states, that a little this side of\nMcLeod's Lake, where he was encamped with\nhis family, an Indian of the same tribe,\nrushed out of the wood, and fired upon them,\nand killed his wife. Her corpse he immediately burned upon the spot; and then, with\nhis son and two slaughters, he proceeded\ndirectly to this place.\u00E2\u0080\u0094All the savages, who\nhave had a near relation killed, are never\nquiet until they have avenged the death,\neither by killing the murderer, or some person\nnearly related to him. This spirit of revenge\nhas occasioned the death of the old woman,\nabove mentioned, and she undoubtedly, deserved to die; for, the last summer, she persuaded her husband to go and kill the cousin\nof her murderer, and that, merely because\nher own son had been drowned.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The custom,\nwhich extensively prevails among the Indians,\nof revenging the natural death of a relative,\nby the commission of murder, seems to\narise from a superstitious notion entertained\nby them, that death, even when it takes place\nn this manner, has, in some mysterious way,\nbeen occasioned by a fellow creature.\nSunday, 20. Yesterday, an Indian of this\nvillage killed another, who was on a visit\nfrom the other end of this lake, just as he\nwas entering his canoe to return. The former\napproached the latter, and gave him five\n13\ni\n**\n 194\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nstabs with a lance, and ripped open his\nbowels, in such a shocking manner, that his\nentrails immediately feU upon the ground;\nand he, of course, instantly expired. The\nmurderer made his escape; and the chief of\nthe village, wrapped the corpse in a moose\nskin, and sent it to his relations. Notwithstanding this conciliatory act, the people of\nthis place are apprehensive, that the relations\nof the person murdered, will make war upon\nthem; and they will, therefore, set out tomorrow, to go a considerable distance down\nthis river, where they will pass a greater\npart of the summer, until harmony is re\nstored between the two villages.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This murderer has a wife, who is known to be a\nworthless woman, with whom he supposed\nthat the person murdered had had improper\nintercourse; and it was to revenge this, that\nthe act was committed.\u00E2\u0080\u0094All the Carriers are\nextremely jealous of their wives; while, to\n\u00E2\u0080\u00A2oJ**&\ their unmarried daughters, they cheerfully\nWW\nallow every liberty!\nThursday, August 12. Salmon begin to\nmake their appearance in this river, which\nis a joyful event to us; for the stock of provisions which we have in the fort, is sufficient,\nbut for a few days, and the Natives, for some\ntime past, have suffered greatly for the want\nof food. We ought to be thankful to our\nmerciful Preserver and Benefactor, who continually watches over us, and supplies our\nwants. Often has he appeared for our relief,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n19_\nwhen we were in urgent need, and taught uS$\nthat he is the proper object of our confidence.\nWednesday, September 1. A few days since,\nMr. McDougall arrived here from McLeod's\nLake, and took all the people, belonging to\nthis fort, with him to Pinchy, to gather berries. Having been left entirely alone, I have\nhad a favourable opportunity for serious\nreflection, and for self examination; and I\nhave been disposed to employ it for this pur^\npose. On reviewing the exercises of my heart,\nand the course of my conduct, during my\npast life, I have been filled with astonishment\nand with grief, in view of my wide departures\nfrom the path of duty. My sins have risen\nin gloomy array before me, and I have been\nled to feel, that I am, indeed, the chief of\nsinners; and that, on account of my transgressions, I deserve to be banished forever\nfrom the gracious presence of God, and to be\nconsigned to the world of future misery.\nThis view of my guilt would have been overwhelming, had not God been graciously\npleased, as I trust, to reveal the Saviour to\nme, in his glorious fullness, as an all sufficient\nand an accepted Mediator between sinful men\nand the offended majesty of heaven. He has\nappeared to me amiable in himself, and en-,\ntirely suited to my necessities; and I humbly\nhope that I have committed my soul to him,\nto be washed from the defilement of sin in\nhis blood, to be accepted of God through his\nintercession, and to be sanctified by his\n 196\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nSpirit. The change in my views and feelings, is certainly great; and it is surprising\nto myself. What I once considered as the\nfoibles and follies of my youth, now appear\nto be grievous sins, against a righteous and\na long suffering God; and a religious course\nof life, I regard as the path, not only of wisdom, but of happiness; and by the aid of\nDivine grace, it is my resolution, for the\ntime to come, to labour after a compliance\nwith every Divine requirement.\nUntil this day, I have always doubted\nwhether such a Saviour as the scriptures describe, ever really existed, and appeared on\nearth! So blind was I, that I could see no\nnecessity for an atoning Mediator between\nGod and men. Before I left the civilized part\nof the world, I had frequently heard the\ncavils of infidelity urged; and these cavils\nfollowed me into the wilderness, frequently\ncame fresh to my recollection, and contributed to overshadow mv mind with the\ngloomy doubts of infidelity. My intention,\nhowever, was, by no means to cast off all\nreligion; but, I attempted to frame to myself\na religion, which would comport with my\nfeelings, and with my manner of life.\u00E2\u0080\u0094For\nseveral years past, however, my mind has\nnot been at rest. I was taught in early life,\nby parents whom I respected and love$, the\ntruths and duties of Christianity; and I had\na wish to believe in the same religion which\nthey professed, and from which, I have fre-\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n197\nquently heard them say, they derived the\nmost substantial consolation. I, therefore,\nsome time since, commenced reading the\nBible, with more attention than I had before\ndone; for, from my youth up, I had been\naccustomed to read it. I also read all other\nbooks that I could find, which treated of the\nchristian religion. Some excellent notes, respecting the Saviour, in the Universal History,\naffected my mind much; as did, also, the\nserious letters which I received, every year,\nfrom my brother Stephen. I also prayed a\ngracious God to enable me to believe on 1 is\nSon, the Lord Jesus Christ. As I was praying to-day, on a sudden, the faith, respecting\nwhich I was so solicitous, was, I trust, graciously granted to me. My views cof the Saviour,- underwent a total change. I was enabled, not only to believe in his existence,\nbut to apprehend his superlative excellency;\nand now he appears to be, in truth, what\nthe scriptures describe him to be, the chiefest\namong ten thousand, and one altogether\nlovely. May the grace of God enable me to\nfollow his heavenly example through life,\nthat I may dwell with hitn in glory, forever!\nAs I seem to myself to have hitherto led\na more wicked life than the rest of my fellow\ncreatures, I deem it proper, for the time to\ncome, to devote the first day of every month\nto religious fasting, employing it in reading\nthe scriptures, in devout meditation, and in\nprayer, that I may keep in mind the great\nL.\n 198\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\np\nbusiness of life, which I now consider to be,\na preparation for eternity. My prayer shall\never be, that a gracious God would be\npleased to blot out my numberless and aggravated transgressions, for the sake of the\natonement which Jesus has made; and that\nhe would keep me, by his grace, without\nwhich, I am convinced I can do nothing-\nacceptable to him, in the path of holiness,\nuntil it shaU terminate in heavenly glory.\nTuesday, 7. I have this day composed\ntwo prayers, which I design to use regularly\nand devoutly, morning and evening. It is\nnot only a duty, but a privilege, thus to approach the mercy seat of the great Sovereign\nof the Universe, in the name of a prevalent\nIntercessor, and to supplicate the numerous\nblessings which we need, as well as to give\nthanks for those which we are continuaUy\nreceiving.\nSaturday, 25. An Indian has arrived, from\na considerable distance down this river, who\nhas delivered to me three letters from Mr. J.\nStuart. The last of them is dated at O-ke-\nna-gun Lake, which is situated at a short\nwdistanee from the Columbia River. Mr.\n[Stuart writes, that he met with every kind-\nf ness and assistance from the Natives, on\n?his way to that place; that, after descending\nthis river, during eight days, he was under\n*the necessity of leaving His canoes, and of\ntaking his property on horses, more than\none hundred and fifty miles, to the above\n ill.\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\n199\nmentioned Lake. From that place, he states,\nthat they can go all the way by water, to\nthe Ocean, by making a few portages; and\nhe hopes to reach the Pacific Ocean, in twelve\nor fifteen days, at farthest. They will be delayed, for a time, where they are, by the\nnecessary construction of canoes.\nFriday, October 11 The first of my ap-\npointe ! days of religious fasting, has arrived;\nand I have endeavoured to observe it, agreeably to my resolution.\nSunday, November 7. This afternoon, Mr.\nJoseph La Roque and company arrived from\nthe Columbia River. This gentleman went,\nthe last summer, with Mr. J. G. McTavish\nand his party, to the Pacific Ocean. On their\nreturn, they met Mr. Stuart and his company.\nMr. La Roque, accompanied by two of Mr.\nStuart's men, set off thence, to come to this\nplace, by the circuitous way of Red Deer\nRiver, Lesser Slave Lake, and Dunvegan,\nfrom which last place, they were accompanied\nby my people, who have been, this summer,\nto the Rainy Lake. By them I have received\na number of letters from people in this\ncountry, and from my friends in the United\nStates.\nTuesday, December 14. On the 1st inst. I\nset out for McLeod's Lake; and I there received several letters from my brothers below,\nwhich announce the truly afflicting intelligence, that my beloved son George is no\nlonger to be numbered among the living!\nvL,/\n%\n 200\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nHe was in good health on the second of\nMarch last, and a corpse on the eighteenth\nof the same month.\u00E2\u0080\u0094For some time, I could\nscarcely credit this intelligence; though I had\nno reason to doubt its truth. This dispensation of divine providence is so unexpected,\nand so afflictive, that at first, I could scarcely bear up under it, with a becoming christian resignation. My tenderest affection was\nplaced upon this darling boy; and I fondly\nhoped, that he would be the solace of my declining years. But how delusive was this expectation ! How frail and perishing are aU\nearthly objects and enjoyments. A few days\nsince, in my imagination, I was often wandering with delight, to the remote land of my\nkindred, and parental love centered in this\npromising son, for whom, principally, I wished\nto live, and for whom I would have been\nwilling to die. Perhaps this child occupied\na place in my heart, which my God and\nSaviour only may of right occupy. I hope\nthat this affliction may be the means of disengaging my affections from an inordinate\nattachment to earthly objects; and that it\nmay induce me to fix my confidence and hope\non things, which will never disappoint my expectation. The Judge of all the earth has\ndone right; and it becomes me to be still\nand know, that he is God. I, too, must soon\ndie; and this dispensation is, perhaps, a seasonable warning to me, to be prepared to\nmeet my own dissolution. I desire that the\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n201\nHoly Spirit may sanctify this affliction to\nme, and make it subservient to this important end.\nOn my return from McLeod's Lake, I was\naccompanied by Mr. McDougall and family,\nwho came to mourn with me, and the mother\nof my departed son, the loss of this dear\nobject of our mutual affection.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Her distress,\non receiving this intelligence, was greater,\nif possible, than mv^ own. I endeavoured,\nby some introductory remarks, on the uncertainty of earthly things, to prepare her mind\nfor the disclosure, which I was about to\nmake. Her fears were alarmed, by these\nremarks; and, probably, she discovered in\nmy countenance, something to confirm them.\nWhen I informed her that our beloved son\nGeorge was dead, she looked at me, with aj\nwild stare of agony, and immediately threw\nherself upon the bed, where she continued,!\nin a state of delirium, during the succeeding\nnight.\nSaturday, January 22, 1814. On the 4th\ninst. Mr. McDougall and family, left this\nplace, to return home. They were accompanied by two men, who have gone to Peace\nRiver, with letters.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The same day, Mr. La\nRoque and myself, accompanied by fourteen\nof my people, went to Frazer's Lake. On the\n9th I sent him, accompanied with two Canadians and two Indians, with letters to the\npeople, who are on the Columbia River.\nAfter having purchased what furs I could,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nand a sufficient quantity of salmon, I set\nout on my return home, where I arrived\nthis evening.\nFriday, February 4. This evening, Mr.\nDonald McLeunen and company, arrived here\nfrom the Columbia Department, with a packet of letters. One of these is from Mr. John\nStuart, informing me that the last autumn,\nthe North West Company purchased of the\nPacific Fur Company, aU the furs which they\nhad bought of the Natives, and all the goods\nwhich they had on hand. The people who\nwere engaged in the service of that company,\nare to have a passage, the next summer, to\nMontreal, in the canoes of the North West\nCompany, unless they choose to enter into\nour service.\nSunday, April 17. As the ice appears to be\nout of this river, I have sent Mr. McLeunen,\naccompanied by two Canadians, in a small\ncanoe, with letters to the gentlemen on Columbia River.\" I am, therefore, deprived of\nan agreeable companion, who, I expected\nuntil lately, would pass the summer with me.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Happy are those, who have an amiable\nand intelligent friend, with whom they can,\nat pleasure, converse.\nFriday, 22. Sent off my people to McLeod's Lake, in order that they may be in\nreadiness to embark for the Rainy Lake, as\nsoon as the navigation opens. By them I\nhave, as usual, forwarded my letters, and\naccounts of the place. If God permit, I shall\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n203\npass another summer at this place, having\nwith me ten persons.\nAs this is the only season of the year when\nwe can leave this country, now it is, that we\nhave the most ardent desire of visiting the\nland of our nativity. At other seasons, the\nimpossibility of a departure, suppresses the\nrising wish to go, stern necessity binds us to\nour situation, and we rest in quietude until\nthe return of another spring. Then all the\nfiner feelings of affection take possession of\nour souls; and their strength seems to be\nincreased, by the previous restraint, which\nhad been laid upon them.\nSaturday, May 7. The weather is fine\nand vegetation is far advanced, for the season. This lake is clear of ice; and the frost\nis chiefly out of the ground. Swans,\nbustards, and ducks, are numerous in the\nrivers and lakes; and, during the last ten\ndays, an incredible number of cranes have\npassed this, on their way to the north; but\nnone of them stopped here.\nThree Indians have come to this place\nfrom Frazer's Lake, to obtain the piece of a\ngarment, belonging to an Indian of that\nplace, which they say, was cut off by an\nIndian of this village. They are so superstitious as firmly to believe, that, by virtue\nof this piece of garment, the Indian, who has\nit in his possession, is able to destroy the life\nof its owner, at pleasure.\nFriday, August 5. Salmon begin to come\n 204\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nV\nup this river. They are generaUy to be taken,\nin considerable numbers, until the latter\npart of September. During about a month,\nthey come up in multitudes; and we can take\nany number of them that we please.\nTuesday, September 20. We have had\nbut few salmon here, this year. It is only\nin every second season, that they are very\nnumerous; the reason of which, I am unable\nto assign.\nI have sent an Indian, with letters, to\nDunvegan, on Peace River, which is distant\nfrom this place, at least, five hundred miles.\nFriday, 30. We have had but a few sal-\nmon in this river, during the past season.\nWe hope, however, that a kind Providence\nhas sent them to some of our neighbouring\nvillages, where we shall be able to purchase\nwhat will be necessary, in addition to the\n*/ 7\nwhite fish, which we expect to take, for our\nconsumption, during the ensuing winter. But\nlet my condition be ever so deplorable, I\nam resolved to place all my dependence on\nthat Being, who depends on no one.\nTuesday, October 18. This afternoon, I\nwas agreeably surprised by the arrival of\nMr. J. La Roque and company, in two\ncanoes, laden with goods, from Fort George,\nat the mouth of the Columbia River, which\nplace they left, the latter part of last August. Our_vessels arrived there, in the\nmonths of March and April; and, soon after,\none of them set sail again, loaded with furs,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n205\nfor Canton in China.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Mr. La Roque brings\nthe melancholy intelligence, that Messrs. D.\nMcTavish, Alexander Henry, and five sailors\nwere drowned, on the 22d of May last, in\ngoing out in a boat, from fort George, to\nthe vessel called the Isaac Tod, which lay\nat anchor without the bar, in going over\nwhich, this disaster befel them. With the\nformer gentleman, I passed two winters at\nDunvegan, on Peace River. He stood high\nin my esteem, and I considered him as one\nof my best friends; and I shall ever lament\nthe sad catastrophe, which has thus suddenly\nremoved - him from my society, and from\nall earthly scenes. I hope that I may not\nbe regardless of the admonition, addressed\nto me by this providence, to be also ready\nfor my departure, to the world of spirits.\nMonday, 24. Sent Mr. La Roque, and\nthe people who came up with him, to reestablish the post at Frazer's Lake.\nSaturday, 29. My people have returned\nfrom the Rainy Lake, and delivered me letters from my relatives below. They afford\nme renewed proof of the uncertainty of earthly\nobjects and enjoyments, in the intelligence,\nthat a brother's wife has been cut down by\ndeath, in the midst of her days, leaving a\ndisconsolate husband, and two young children, to mourn over her early departure. I\nought, however, to be thankful, that the\nrest of my numerous relatives, are blessed\nwith health, and a reasonable portion of\naLiJi\n 206\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\ni 0 \\n&\n$u$\nearthly comforts. I have also received a\nletter from Mr. John Stuart, who has arrived at McLeod's Lake, desiring me to go\nand superintend the affairs at Frazer's Lake,\nand to send Mr. La Roque, with several\nof the people who are there, to this place,\nthat they may return to the Columbia department, where it is presumed they will be\nmore wanted, than in this quarter. Tomorrow, therefore, I shaU depart for Frazer's\nLake.\nThursday, November 3. Frazer's Lake.\nHere we arrived this afternoon, and found\nMr. La Roque and his people, busily employed, in bartering with the Natives, for\nv^furs and salmon, and in constructing houses.\nt^With this gentleman, I have spent a pleasant\n\"i evening; and I am happy to find that, from\n\u00C2\u00A3(f having been thoughtless and dissolute, he\n\ now appears to be the reverse of this. It is\nJ manifest, that he has recently reflected much,\non the vanity of this world, and on the importance of the concerns of eternity; and he\nnow appears determined, by the aids of\nGod's Holy Spirit, on a thorough reformation. May he be enabled to persevere in\nthis important undertaking.\nTuesday, December 20. Messrs. Stuart\nand McDougall, with a number of men, have\narrived from Stuart's Lake, for the purpose\nof proceeding with me to Stijl&, in order to\npurchase salmon. The Indians of this village have not a sufficiency for themselves and\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n207\nfor us, owing to the scarcity of salmon at\nseveral neighbouring villages, whose inhabitants flock to this place, in hopes of obtaining a subsistence, during the winter.\nSaturday, January 7, 1815. On the 29th\nult. I accompanied my two friends to Stuart's\nLake, where we passed the holidays together,\nin the intercourse of an intimate and endearing friendship. Each related how he had\npassed his youthful days, and even in what\nmanner he had lived to the present hour;\nand we all readily acknowledged, that our\nlives had been very different from what we\nthen wished they had been. I hope and\nbelieve, that we all parted, fully determined\non a thorough reformation of conduct. May\nnone of us fail to carry this resolution into\neffect.\nFriday, February 3. During the whole\nof the last month, it has been the coldest\nweather, by far, that I have ever experienced, in New Caledonia.\nOn the 11th ult. accompanied by six of\nmy people and two of the Natives, I set\nout to visit the lands of the Nas-koo-tains,\"^\nwhich lie along Frazer's River. This river\nMr. Stuart followed some distance, when\nhe left this place to proceed to the Columbia\nRiver. The above mentioned Indians never\nhad any intercourse with the white people,\nuntil I went among them. We reached their\nfirst village, on the 19th; but as they were\nnearly destitute of provisions, and we had\nI\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nexpended those which we took with us from\nthis place, we passed only one night with\nthem. The next morning, we continued\nour route down the river, every day passing\none or two small villages, until the 22d,\nwhen we met people from the Columbia River,\nwith letters, &c.\nFrazer's River is about fifty rods wide,\nand has a pretty strong current. On the\nnorth side, the bank is generaly high; but,\non the other, it is low, and the country is\nlevel. In going from this, to the place where\nwe fell upon the river, we occupied nine days,\nand the country which we passed over, is\nvery uneven. We, however, crossed several\nponds and small lakes, which were from\none to fifteen miles in length. At these\nwaters, the Natives pass the greater part of\nthe summer, and subsist on exceUent white\nfish, trout and carp; but, towards the latter\npart of August, they return to the banks\nof the river, in order to take and dry salmon,\nfor their subsistence during the succeeding\nwinter.\nSunday, 12. ^As salmon are becoming\nrather scarce among the Indians of this\nvillage, they are preparing to visit the neighbouring lakes, in order to obtain a subsistence, from the fish that they hope to be\nable to take out of them.\nMonday, 27. The weather is serene and\ncold; and thus far,\" this has been much the\ncoldest winter that I have experienced in this\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n209\npart of the country.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The winters are, generally milder here, than in most parts of\nthe North West. Mr. Stuart has just left\nme, on his return home. The few days which\nhe has spent here, were passed much to our\nmutual satisfaction; and I hope that we\nshall reap some benefit from this visit. Religion was the principal topic, on which we\nconversed, because, to both of us, it was\nmore interesting tjian any other. Indeed,\nwhat ought to interest us so much, as that\nwhich concerns our eternal welfare? I, at\ntimes, almost envy the satisfaction of those,\nwho live among christian people, with whom\nthey can converse, at pleasure, on the great\nthings of religion, as it must be a source\nof much satisfaction, and of great advantage,\nto a pious mind.\nThursday, April 6. About ten days since,\nan Indian of this place lost his wife, after\na lingering illness of several months; and,\nshortly after, the disconsolate husband hung\nhimself from the limb of a tree. For several\ndays previous to the fatal act, he appeared\nto be much cast down, which being observed\nby his companions, they endeavoured to cheer\nhis spirits, by the consideration, that what\nhad befallen him, had been suffered by multitudes of others, and was the common lot.\nHe replied that he should conduct as his\nown feelings dictated; and that he had not\nforgotten the request of his dying companion,\nwhich was, that he would accompany her.\n14\n 210\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nNot long after, he was missing; and, search\nbeing made for him, he was found in the\nsituation above mentioned. The strength\nof conjugal attachment is not an unfrequent\ncause of suicide, in every part of the Indian\ncountry.\nMonday, 24. The snow is fast leaving us,\nand fowls begin to come from the south.\nWednesday, 26. I have sent letters to\ne/ 7\nmy friends below, to Stuart's Lake, which\nplace they will leave, on their way, the first\nof next month. I expect to pass the ensuing\nsummer here, having but a few people with\nme. But, by dividing my time between reading, meditation and exercise, I hope that\nit will pass not unpleasantly, away.\nWednesday, May 10. We have surrounded\na piece of ground with palisades, for a garden,\nin which we have planted a few potatoes,\nand sowed onion, carrot, beet and parsnip\nseeds, and a little barley. I have, also,\nplanted a very little Indian corn, without\nthe expectation that it will come to maturity.\nThe nights in this region are too cool, and\nthe summers are too short, to admit of its\nripening. There is not a month in the whole\nyear, in which water does not congeal;\nthough the air in the day time, in the summer, is warm, and we even have a few days\nof sultry weather.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The soil, in many places\nin NewjCaledonia, is tolerably good.\nTuesday, May 30. I have just returned\nfrom a visit to Mr. Stuart, who passes the\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n211\nsummer at Stuart's Lake. On the mountain,\nwhich I crossed in going there, I found snow,\ntwo feet, at least, in depth.\nFriday, June 16. Soon after the Natives\nleft their village, last February, to go to\nthe small lakes, for the purpose of taking\nfish, four of their number deceased. Their\ncorpses were kept, by their relations, to the\npresent time, when they are bringing them\nto the village in orller to burn them. Little\nelse but the skeletons, now remain.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the\nwinter season, the Carriers often keep their\ndead in their huts during five or six months,\nbefore they will allow them to be burned.\nAt this season, the coldness of the weather\nenables them to keep the bodies, without\ntheir becoming offensive; and they are unwilling that the lifeless remains of the objects\nof their affection, should be removed forever\nfrom their sight, until it becomes a matter\nof necessity.\nSunday, 18. This afternoon eight of the\nNate-ote-tains came to pay a visit to the\nIndians of this village, by whom they were,\nat first, treated in a friendly manner; Soon\nafter their arrival, they began to play, as is\nthe custom of the Indians, whenever the\npeople of different villages meet. Things\nproceeded smoothly, until the strangers\nbegan to be winners, when disputes arose.\nAn open contest was prevented, by the restoration of the property won; but a coolness\nbetween the parties, was visible. The stran\nds*\n 212\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\ngerssoon set out, to return home; but as they\nwere embarking in their canoes, a worthless\nfellow fired upon them, and killed one of\nthem. This disaster caused them to hasten\ntheir departure, uttering at the same time\nthe threat, that they would soon return,\nwith a large band of their relations, to\nrevenge the death of their companion.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nHuman life is often sacrificed for a trifle,\namong the savages; and he only may feel\nsecure, who is prepared to oppose strength\nto aggression.\nMonday, July 24. Fruits, of various\nkinds, now begin to ripen. Of this delicious\nfood, the present prospect is, that we shall\nsoon have an abundance; and for this favour,\nit becomes us to be grateful to the Bestower.\nThe person who is surrounded with the comforts of civilized life, knows not how we\nprize these delicacies of the wilderness. Our\ncircumstances, also, teach us to enjoy and\nto value the intercourse of friendship. To\nbe connected, and to have intercourse, with\na warm and disinterested friend, who is able,\nand will be faithful, to point out our faults,\nand to direct us by his good counsel, is\nsurely a great blessing. Such a friend, I\nhave, in my nearest neighbour, Mr. Stuart.\nFor some time past, he has frequently written to me long, entertaining and instructive\nletters, which are a cordial to my spirits,\ntoo often dejected, by the loneliness of my\nsituation, and more frequently, by reflections\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n213\non my past life of folly and of sin. Mr.\nJames McDougall, also, another gentleman in\nthis department, is equally dear to me. His\ndistance from me, renders intercourse less\npracticable; but when we meet, we endeavour\nto make up in conversation, for our long\nseparation.\nFriday, August 4. The holy scriptures\ncontain the most abundant instruction, in regard to the duties w&ich we owe to God, and to\nour fellow creatures To aid me in keepingthese\ninstructions, habitually and distinctly in view,\nthat my life may thereby be more exemplary,\nI think proper to form the following resolutions, which I hope, by the aid of the Holy\nSpirit, to be enabled to observe, during my\nlife. || | i\nResolved, that the scoffs of the wicked, directed against serious religion, shall never\nhave any other effect upon me, than to\nmake me strive, the more earnestly, to lead\nthe life of a sincere christian.\nResolved, to be in the company of the\nwicked, as little as possible; and when among\nsuch people, to endeavour to persuade them\nin such a way as may be consistent with\npropriety, to forsake their evil courses.\nResolved, to assist the poor and needy,\nso far as may be consistent with my means;\nhoping that avarice may never prevent me\nfrom judging correctly, in regard to this\nsubject.\nResolved, never to let a day pass, when.\n 214\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nat home, or when convenient, abroad, with*\nout reading a portion of the holy scrij>\ntures, and spending half an hour or more)\nin meditating on what I have read; and that\nthe whole of the Sabbath, when it is not in\nmy power to attend publick worship, shall\nbe spent in prayer, reading the bible, or\nsermons, or some other religious book, in\nself examination, and in meditating on the\neternal world.\nResolved, to offer up daily prayers to\nthe throne of grace, for a right temper of\nmind, that I may be constant and diligent,\nin strictly observing the above resolutions.\nAnd I pray that my humble endeavours may,\nby the blessing of God, keep me in the path\nof holiness, so that I may, from day to day,\nbecome better prepared to enter the world\nof bliss, whenever my Maker and Redeemer\nshall see fit to terminate my mortal course-\nAmen.\nMonday, 7. At half past seven, A. M.\nwe had an earthquake, which lasted about\ntwenty seconds. At that time I was sitting\nin a chair, in the house, and the agitation\nput me, and the whole house, in a motion\nlike that of a canoe when rolled about by\nconsiderable swells. The Natives say, that\na similar shaking of the earth occurs, almost\nyearly, at this place.\nSunday, 13. Salmon begin to come up\nthis river, which lights up joy in the countenances, both of ourselves and of the Natives;\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n215\nfor we had all become nearly destitute of\nprovisions, of any kind. A kind Providence\nwill not allow us to suffer want, though we\nso little deserve favours.\nMonday, October 2. Within a few days\npast, we have caught, in nets made for the\npurpose, of strong twine, three sturgeon, one\nof which measured ten feet and three inches\nin length, and four feet and one inch round\nhis middle, which*might weigh about four\nhundred pounds. All that we have taken,\nwere uncommonly fat, and of the best flavour\nof any that I have ever eaten.\nFriday, 13. This afternoon, the Natives\nsent for me to come and see one of their\nyoung women, who lay at the point of death,\nat their village; and, merely to please them,\nI went, without expecting to render her any\nservice, especially with the medicines which\nwe have here. I found her so far gone that\nI thought it would not be proper to give her\nany thing. I told the Indians, moreover,\nthat if she should die, shortly after taking\nour medicines, they would say, as they ever\ndo in such cases, that I was the cause of\nher death. They assured me however, to\nthe contrary; and I gave her a simple medicine, which I supposed could do her neither\ngood nor harm, with which they were\nsatisfied.\nI understood that her relations had said,\nthat a certain Indian, by his magic, had caused\nher illness, and that he would finally take\n 216\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nher life. I, therefore, took this opportunity\nof repeating again, I what I had often told\nthem before, that God, the infinitely powerful being, who made every thing, had alone\nthe power of causing their dissolution, whenever he thought proper. Upon this, one of\nthe chiefs, who thought himself more knowing\nthan the others, observed, that it was the\nGod of the salmon, who remained at the\nsea, who was taking the girl's life. I replied, that God is in heaven above; but\nthat, so searching are his eyes, he can easily\nsee what takes place on the face of the whole\nearth. They said, it might be so; but they\ncould not conceive, by what means I came\nto have a knowledge of these things. This,\nI endeavoured to explain to them.\nWednesday, November 1. This afternoon,\nthree of our men arrived from the Rainy\nLake, who say that they left the remainder\nof their company at McLeod's and Stuart's\nLakes. They delivered me letters from people\nin this country; but none from home. By\nthe men in the other canoes, I hope to receive letters from my friends below. We\nare happy to be informed,, that peace has\ntaken place between Great Britain and the\nUnited States. My earnest desire is, that\nthey may long continue to enjoy this blessing.\nThursday, 16. We have now about three\ninches of snow on the ground.\nSunday, March 17, 1816. In consequence\nof the late arrival, at fort Chipewyan, of\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n217\nthe men who went to the Rainy Lake, two\ncanoes, which were expected last fall, could\nnot then proceed here, which is the reason why\nI have but just received the letters that I then\nexpected, from my friends below. They bring\nme the distressing intelligence, that two of\nmy brothers are brought, by a consumption, to the borders of the grave. Happy\nshould I consider myself, could I once more\nsee them in this world. But, if this may\nnot be, the will oFthe Lord be done. By\nthis affliction I have renewed proof, that\nthis world cannot be my rest; and I pray\nGod to prepare me, and my dying brothers,\nfor that happy abode, where a separation\nof friends never causes the heart to bleed.\nMonday, April 15. My desire to return\nto my native country has never been so\nintense, since I took up my abode in the\nwilderness, as it is now, in consequence of\nthe peculiar situation of my friends; yet,\nI cannot think of doing it this season, as\nit is absolutely necessary that I should pass\nthe ensuing summer at this place.\nI shall write to my friends below, a few\ndays hence; and as we live in a world of\ndisappointment and death, I am resolved\nto forward to them by Mr. John Stuart,\na copy of my Journal, in order that they\nmay know something of the manner in which\nI have been employed, both as it respects\nmy temporal and spiritual concerns, while\nin the wilderness, if I should never enjoy\n\u00C2\u00AB=\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n ss-w\n218\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nI\nthe inexpressible pleasure of a personal intercourse with them.\nWednesday,, 24. I have just returned\nfrom Stuart's Lake. While there, I agreed\nwith Mr. George McDougall to remain in\nthis country two years or more, as clerk to\nthe North West company. He came out\nthe last summer from Canada, with Lord\nSelkirk's party, without having obligated\nhimself to continue with them, for any definite time. After they arrived at Fort Vermilion on Peace River, he was treated by\nhis superiour, Mr. John Clarke, in so unbecoming a manner, that he left them, and had\ncome into this quarter to visit his brother,\nMr. James McDougall, before he should return to Canada, which he designed to do\nthe ensuing summer.\nSaturday, July 20. Strawberries begin\nto ripen, and we have the prospect of an\nabundance of them, as well as of other kinds\nof fruit.\nI now pass a short time every day, very\npleasantly, in teaching my little daughter\nPolly to read and spell words in the English language, in which she makes good\nprogress, though she knows not the meaning of one of them. In conversing with my\nchildren, I use entirely the Cree, Indian language; with their mother I more frequently\nemploy the French. Her native tongue, however, is more familiar to her, which is the\nreason why our children have been taught\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n219\nto speak that, in preference to the French\nlanguage.\nTuesday, September 9. Salmon begin to\ncome up this river.\nThursday, October 3. We have taken\nour vegetables out of the ground. We have\nforty-one bushels of potatoes, the produce\nof one bushel planted the last spring. Our\nturnips, barley, &c. have produced well.\nSaturday, November 23. By our people\nwho returned this afternoon from the Rainy\nLake, I have received letters, which announce\nthe afflictive intelligence, that two of my\nbrothers, of whose decline I had before been\ninformed, are gone into eternity. The happy\ndays that I had fondly hoped that I should\npass in their society on earth, I shall never\nenjoy. Such is the uncertainty of all earthly\nexpectations. But the Judge of all the earth\nhas done right.\u00E2\u0080\u0094My departed brothers gave\nevidence, to those around them, that they\ndied in the faith and hope and peace of\nthe gospel. They are gone, I trust, to a\nworld where sin and suffering .cannot follow\nthem.\nWhen the cold hands of death shall have\nbeen laid upon a few more of my relatives,\nthere will be nothing remaining on the earth\nto console me for their loss. Nothing revives\nmy drooping spirits in view of the departure\nof my friends, one after another, from year\nto year, into eternity, like the hope that,\nthrough rich grace, I may be at length per-\n 220\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nmitted to join their society, in a world of\nperfect purity and of uninterrupted and everlasting joy.\nWe rarely prize our blessings in a suitable\nmanner, until we learn their value by being\ndeprived of them. I feel the force of this\ntruth, in regard to my deceased brothers.\nTo one of them in a particular manner, I am\ndeeply indebted; and I have never been fully\nsensible of his worth, until now. During\nthe whole period of my residence in this\ncountry, he has written to me annually,\nlong, affectionate, and instructive letters.\nFor a number of years past, religion was the\ngreat subject of them. He was tenderly concerned for my spiritual welfare; and doubtless learned from my letters, that I was\nlingering on the gloomy confines of infidelity,\nand little disposed to heed, as I ought to\nhave done, his friendly admonition. So\nfar from being discouraged by this circumstance, it only rendered him more vigorous\nand persevering in his efforts; and his letters\nstand chief among the means, which have\nbeen blessed, as I would hope, to my conversion from the love and practice of sin,\nto the fear and service of God. These letters\nhave also been of use to the few friends, to\nwhom I have shown them. It would have\ngiven me great pleasure to have acknowledged, in person, the obligation which I am\nunder to him; but it becomes not me to\ndictate to infinite wisdom.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n221\nI have, also, received letters from gentlemen in different parts of this country, which\ninform me of the many disasters that befel\nthe people whom Lord Selkirk sent the year\nbefore, from Scotland, the Orkney Islands,\nand Canada, some of whom were destined\nto form a colony on the Red River, and\nothers to traffic with the Natives, in different parts of the Indian country. They\nconsisted at first, as I am informed, of two\nor three hundred men, together with a few\nwomen and children. Those, who went to\nestablish themselves on the Red River, at a\nshort distance from its entrance into the\ngreat Winnipick Lake, began, soon after\ntheir arrival, to behave in a hostile manner\ntoward the people of the North West Company, who have establishments in that quarter. Of some of our forts, they actually\ntook possession, and carried away the property which they found in them; and, in some\ninstances, they set fire to the forts, and\nreduced them to ashes. They also took\nDuncan Cameron Esq. a partner of the North\nWest Company, and another gentleman,\nwho is a clerk, whom they carried, in the\nspring, to Hudson's Bay, with the intention,\nas they stated, of taking them to England.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nIn the course of the winter, as the Express\nof the North West Company was passing\nthat way, destined to the Soult St. Maries,\nthey took possession of that also, perused\nthe letters and other papers which had. fee^n\n 222\nHARMON'S JOURNAL,\nsealed up, and finally carried them to York\nFactory, at Hudson's Bay.\nAll this unmerited treatment, at length so\nprovoked the people of the North West Company, that they proceeded to retake their\nown forts, which had not been burned, as\nWell as some property belonging to those\ndisturbers of the peace.\nIn June, a number of the Brules, that is,\npeople whose fathers were white men, and\nwhose mothers were Indian women, proceeded\nfrom the upper part of Red River, toward\nthe place of its entrance into the Lake, in\norder to guard some property there belonging to the N. W. Company. On their\nway, they were obliged to pass, for about\ntwo miles, over an open plain, directly behind\nLord Selkirk's establishment. As soon as\nf^hey were observed, his people came out in\na body, and fired upon them, twice. This\nwas unexpected by the Brules; neither were\nthey prepared for such an encounter, as\nmany of them had neither gun nor ammunition. Perceiving however, that they must\ndefend themselves or be cut off, those who\nhad arms returned the fire; and the contest\ncontinued, until twenty two of the noble\nEarl's people fell, and some others were\nwounded. The Brules had only one man\nkilled, and one wounded.\u00E2\u0080\u0094This unhappy\naffair broke up the colony. Some of the\npeople went to Hudson's Bay; but the\ngreater number returned to Canada.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n223\nThose of Lord Selkirk's people who came\nto the English River and Athabasca, suffered greatly for the want of provisions.\nOut of nearly one hundred who came to\nAthabasca, twelve actually lost their lives\nby starvation; and all the others must have\nshared the same unhappy fate, had not the\npeople of the North West Company supplied\nthem with provisions. In short, Lord Selkirk lost the last year, in fight and by starvation, sixty eight of his men! and still,\nwith the phrenzy of a madman, he is resolved on pursuing his wild projects.\nWednesday, December 4. There is now\nabout a foot and an half of snow on the\nground.\nI have sent fifteen men, with each a sledge\ndrawn by two dogs and loaded with salmon,\nto McLeod's Lake, for the subsistence of\nthe people who are to pass the winter there\nand for the additional number who will be\nthere in the spring, to make up the furs into\npacks. Salmon are our chief subsistence\nhere; and they are taken only in the waters\nwhich are discharged into the Pacific Ocean.\nThe outlet of McLeod's Lake enters Peace\nRiver, whose waters, are finally discharged\ninto the North Sea.\nThursday, January 2, 1817. I have just\nreturned from a neighbouring village, where\nmy interpreter gave one of the natives a\ndecent drubbing, for having stolen from us.\nSoon after, the Indian who had been beaten,\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nwith a number of his relations, flew to arms,\nand surrounded our camp; but they proceeded at first no farther than to gesticulate\nin a threatening manner. This I permitted\nthem, for a short time, to do, when I ordered\nmy men to load their guns; though I was\ndetermined that they should not fire, unless\nt/ 7\nit became a matter of necessity. I then told\nthe Natives that we were prepared to defend\nourselves, and, if they intended to fire upon\nus, to begin; or otherwise, to walk off, and\nlay aside their arms, which if they would\nnot do, we should fire upon them. They\nconcluded to retire, and shortly after came\nback without their arms, and began to trade,\nas if nothing had happened.\nMonday, February 10. This evening the\nmother of my children, was delivered of a\ndaughter, whom I name Sally Harmon.\nWednesday, 19. I am this day thirty\nnine years of age. When I reflect on the\nevents of my past life, and recollect, especially, in how many instances a merciful God has\nsnatched me from the very jaws of death,\nWhen it would undoubtedly have delivered\nme over to everlasting destruction, I am\ngrieved and ashamed, in view of the ingratitude with which I have requited such\ninfinite kindness. My past life now appears\nto me to have been a continual course of\nsins, committed against a merciful Creator,\nBenefactor and Redeemer. I have even denied the Lord that brought me, and that\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n22a\nbecause I could see no need of that atonement for sin, which is the only thing that\nhas stood between me and hopeless perdition!\nIf I have indeed been rescued from such a\nwretched condition, if I have been effectually\nconvinced of my sinfulness, and have been\nled, in the exercise of faith, to apply unto\nthe Lord Jesus Christ for pardon and for\nsanctification, surely, it can be attributed to\nnothing but the grace of God. Much of\nmy life has been spent in the service of sin;\nthe little that remains, ought to be sacredly\ndevoted to God and the Redeemer. May\nthe Holy Spirit enable me to live in the time\nto come, as a disciple of the blessed Saviour.\nMonday, September 1. Stuart's Lake.\nOn the 8th of May last, I left New Caledonia, and went as far as Fort Chipewyan,\non the Athabasca Lake. This afternoon,\nI returned to this place. While I was at that\nlake, the Indians who were encamped about\nthe fort, to the number of about one hundred, rose up in arms against us, on account\nof a quarrel between one of their people and\none of our men. We did not, however, come\nto blows; and, after a parley, the Indians\nwere persuaded to lay down their arms.\u00E2\u0080\u0094\nThose Chipeways are a savage people; and\nthey have as I believe, killed more white\nmen, than any other tribe in the North\nWest country. A few years since, they burned\none of our forts, and killed every person\nbelonging to it.\n15\n 226\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nOn the 21st of June, I left Athabasca\nLake, at which period, there was still ice\nfloating about in it. In coming up Peace\nRiver, we saw many of the buffaloe and red\ndeer, and killed as many of them as wg\nwanted for our own consumption. Black\nbears, also, were in plenty; and of them, we\nkilled eleven. One day as I was walking\nalong the beach alone without my gun, a\nblack bear, that had cubs, pursued me for\nnearly a mile. Happily for me, I could outrun her; and I therefore escaped from her\nterrible paws.\nA little below the Rocky Mountain Portage, along the side of the river, there is a\nkind of marsh where earth, of a beautiful\nyeHow colour is found, which when burned,\nbecomes a pretty lively red. The natives use\nit as paint, for which it answers tolerably\ns well. We, also, use it to paint our forts and\nj houses.\nSaturday, October 4. This evening, an\nIndian arrived from Frazer's Lake, bringing\nthe disagreeable intelligence, that yesterday\nin the afternoon, our fort there was con-\nI sumed by fire. We have reason to be thank-\n\ ful, however, that most of the property which\nwas in it, was saved.\nThursday, 16. We have taken our vegetables out of the ground. In consequence of the\nvery dry summer, they have yielded but\npoorly. There were months, during which\nnot a drop of rain feU.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Fruit of all kinds\n HARMON'S JOURNAL;\n227\nhas been uncommonly abundant this season;\nWednesday, February 18, 1818. I have\njust returned from a jaunt of twenty three\ndays, to a place down Frazer's River; While\ntherej the Natives had concerted a plan to\nMassacre us all; but I discovered it, and kept\nmy people on their guard. The Indians, perceiving this, dared sot attempt to execute\ntheir bloody and unprovoked purpose.\nSaturday, May 2. Expecting that the ice\nin Peace River will soon break up, I have\nsent off the last of our people who are going\nto the Rainy lake; and by them I have forwarded, as usual, my accounts of the place,\nand letters to my friends below. I look forward, with pleasing anticipation, to the return of another spring, when I hope, if my\nlife is spared, I shall myself leave this country on a visit to the civilized world.\nThursday, September 3. Last night, there\nfell about four inches of snow, which is earlier\nthan I have ever before seen it fall, in this\npart of the country. On the 6th ult. salmon\nbegan to come up this river; but they are\nnot very numerous. \u00E2\u0080\u00A2\nIn the month of June, we took out of this\nlake twenty one sturgeon, that were from\neight to twelve feet in length. One of them\nmeasured twelve feet two inches, from its extreme points, four feet eleven inches round the\nmiddle; and would weigh from five hundred\nand fifty, to six hundred pounds. All the\n 228\nHARMON'S JOURNAL.\nsturgeon that we have caught, on this side of\nthe mountain, are far superior in flavour, to\nany I ever saw in any other part of the\nworld.\nA few days since, we cut down and threshed\nour barley. The five quarts, which I sowed\non the first of May, have yielded as many\nbushels. One acre of ground, producing in\nthe same proportion that this has done,\nwould yield eighty four bushels. This is\nsufficient proof that the soil, in many places\nin this quarter, is favourable to agriculture.\nIt will probably be long, however, before it\nwill exhibit the fruits of cultivation. The\nIndians, though they often suffer for the want\nof food, are too lazy to cultivate the ground.\nI have frequently tried to prevail on some of\nthem to hoe and prepare a piece of ground,\npromising them that I would give them potatoes and turnips, with which to plant it;\nbut I have not succeeded. Having been from\ntheir infancy trained up to privation, the fear\nof want is a much less powerful stimulus to\nexcite them to industry, than it is to those\nwho have always been accustomed to the\ncomforts of civilized life.\nTuesday, October 13. We have several\ninches of snow on the ground.\nFor several years past, Iroquois from\nCanada, have been in the habit of coming\ninto different parts of the North West country, to hunt the beaver, &c. The Natives of\nthe country, consider them as intruders. As\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n229\nthey are mere rovers, they do not feel the(\nsame interest, as those who permanently\nreside here, in keeping the stock of animals\ngood, and therefore they make great havock\namong the game, destroying alike the animals which are young and old. A number of\nIroquois have passed several summers on\nthis side of the mountain, which circumstance\nthey knew to be displeasing to the Indians\nhere, who have often threatened to kill them\nif they persisted in destroying the animals on\ntheir lands. These menaces were disregarded.\nA month since, an Iroquois, with his wife and\ntwo children, Were all killed, while asleep, by\ntwo Carriers of this village, which melancholy\nevent, I hope, will prevent any of the Iroquois from coming into this region again.\nSaturday, November 7. We have now\nabout a foot of snow on the ground.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Today our people returned from the Rainy\nLake, and say that, on account of the large\nquantities of ice that was drifting in Peace\nRiver, they were obliged to leave the greater\npart of the goods, which they had on board\nof the canoes, but a short distance this side\nof the Rocky Mountain Portage. We shall\nbe obliged, therefore, to bring these goods on\nsledges, drawn by dogs from that place,\nwhich is distant from this, about two hundred and eighty miles.\nSaturday, February 28, 1819. Mr. George\nMcDougall has arrived here from Frazer's\nLake, to remain, as I am going to McLeod's\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\"\"-'\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\"'\u00E2\u0096\u00A0'\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nLake, to prepare for a departure for Head\nQuarters; and my intention is, during the\nnext summer, to visit my native land. I\ndesign, also, to take my family with me, and\nleave them there, that they may be educated\nin a civilized and christian manner. The\nmother of my children will accompany me;\nand, if she shall be satisfied to remain in that\npart of the world, I design to make her regularly my wife by a formal marriage. It will\nbe seen by this remark, that my intentions\nhave materially changed, since the time that\nI at first took her to live with me; and as\nmy conduct in this respect is different from\nthat which has generally been pursued by the\ngentlemen of the North West Company, it\nwill be proper to state some of the reasons\nwhich have governed my decision, in regard\nto this weighty affair. It has been made\nwith the most serious deliberation; and, I\nhope, under a solemn sense of my accountability to God.\nHaving lived with this woman as my wife,\nthough we were never formally contracted to\neach other, during life, and having children\nby her, I consider that I am under a moral\nobligation not to dissolve the connexion, if\nshe is willing to continue it. The union which\nhas been formed between us, in the providence\nof God, has not only been cemented by a\nlong and mutual performance of kind offices,\nbut, also, by a more sacred consideration.\nEver since my own mind was turned effectually\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n231\nto the subject of religion, I have taken\npains to instruct her in the great doctrines\nand duties of Christianity. My exertions have\nnot been in vain. Through the merciful\nagency of the Holy Spirit, I trust that she\nhas become a partaker with me, in the consolations and hopes of the gospel. I consider\nit to be my duty to take her to a christian\nland, where she may enjoy Divine ordinances,\ngrow in grace, and ripen for glory.\u00E2\u0080\u0094We have\nwept together over the early departure of\nseveral children, and especially, over the\ndeath of a beloved son. We have children\nstill living, who are equally dear to us both.\nHow could I spend my days in the civilized\nworld, and leave my beloved children in the\nwilderness? The thought has in it the bitterness of death. How could I tear them from a\nmother's love, and leave her to mourn over\ntheir absence, to the day of her death? Possessing only the common feelings of humanity, how could I think of her, in such circumstances, without anguish? On the whole,\nI consider the course which I design to pursue, as the only one which religion and humanity would justify.\nMr. McDougall informs me, that, not long\nsince, an Indian died at Frazer's Lake, and\nleft behind him a widow, who had been in\nsimilar circumstances before, by the loss of a\nformer husband. A day or two before the\ncorpse was to be burned, she told the relations of her late husband, that she was\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\nresolved not to undergo a second slavery.\nShe therefore left the tent, secretly, in the\nevening, and hung herself from a tree.\nAmong the Carriers, widows are slaves to\nthe relations of their deceased husbands, for\nthe term of two or three years from the\ncommencement of their widowhood, during\nwhich, they are generally treated in a cruel\nmanner. Their heads are shaved, and it belongs to them to do all the drudgery, about\nthe tent. They are frequently beaten with a\nclub or an axe, or some such weapon.\nSaturday, May 8. McLeod's Lake. I arrived here about two months since. Yesterday, the most of our people embarked with\nthe returns of this place, in three canoes; and\na few hours hence, I shall, with my family,\nproceed in another, which will be pushed on\nby six Canadians.\nIt is now eight years and an half, since I\ncame to the west side of the Rocky Mountain.\nMy life, which has often been in jeopardy, is\nstiU preserved; my family have generally enjoyed, in a high degree, the comforts, which\nthis part of the world affords; and, especially,\nthey have been extensively blessed with\nhealth of body, and contentment of mind.\nOur worldly affairs have prospered, to as\ngreat an extent as we could reasonably expect. For all these blessings, it becomes us\nto return unfeigned thanks, to the great\nGiver of every good gift.\nFriday, 14. Rocky Mountain Portage.\n HARMON'S JOURNAL.\n233\nAll the way to this place, we have drifted\ndown, amidst great quantities of ice, by\nwhich, at five different places, the river was\ncompletely blocked up, so that we were\nobliged to tarry, until the water rose so\nhigh, as to remove these barriers. This is\nthe reason why we have been so long in coming to this place. Had the river been high,\nand yet clear from ice, the current is so\nstrong, that we might have reached here in\ntwo days.\nWednesday, August 18. Fort William. I\nhave at length arrived at head quarters. In\ncoming from New Caledonia to this place,\nwhich is a distance of at least three thousand\nmiles, nothing uncommon has occurred. A\nfew days hence, I shall leave this place, to\nproceed to Canada. As I have already described the country between this, and Montreal, I shall here conclude my Journal.\n CHARACTER\nOF THE CANADIAN VOYAGERS.\nLike their ancestors the French, the Canadian Voyagers possess lively and fickle dispositions; and they are rarely subject to\ndepression of spirits, of long continuance,\neven when in circumstances the most adverse.\nAlthough what they consider good eating\nand drinking constitutes their chief good,\nyet, when necessity compels them to it, they\nsubmit to great privation and hardship, not\nonly without complaining, but even with\ncheerfulness and gaiety. They are very talkative, and extremely thoughtless, and make\nmany resolutions, which are almost as soon\nbroken as formed. They never think of providing for future wants; and seldom lay up\nany part of their earnings, to serve them in\na day of sickness, or in the decline of life.\nTrifling provocations will often throw them\ninto a rage; but they are easily appeased\nwhen in anger, and they never harbour a\nrevengeful purpose against those, by whom\nthey conceive that they have been injured.\nThey are not brave; but when they appre-\n CANADIAN VOYAGERS\nhend little danger, they will often, as they\nsay, play the man. They are very deceitful,\nare exceedingly smooth and polite, and are\neven gross flatterers to the face of a person,\nwhom they will basely slander, behind his\nback. They pay little regard to veracity or\nto honesty. Their word is not to be trusted;\nand they are much addicted to pilfering, and\nwill even steal articles of considerable value,\nwhen a favourable opportunity offers. A\nsecret they cannot keep. They rarely feel\ngratitude, though they are often generous.\nThey are obedient, but not faithful servants.\nBy flattering their vanity, of which they have\nnot a little, they may be persuaded to undertake the most difficult enterprises, provided\n*\ntheir lives are not endangered. Although\nthey are generaUy unable to read, yet they\nacquire considerable knowledge of human\nnature, and some general information, in\nregard to the state of this country. As phey\nleave Canada while they are young, phej\nhave but little knowledge of the principles of\nthe religion, which their Priests profess to\nfoUow, and before they have been long in the\nIndian country, they pay little more attention to the sabbath, or the worship of God,\nor any other Divine institution, than the\nsavages themselves.\n *w\nAN\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS\nLIVING WEST OF THE\nEOCKY MOUNTAIN\n ACCOUNT, &c.\nAs the Indians living on the west side of\nthe Rocky S Mountain\", differ greatly in their\nlanguage, manners, customs, religion, &c.\nfrom those on the east side, it may be proper\nto give concisely a separate account of them,\nand of the country which they inhabit. In\ndoing this, I shall dwell more particularly on\nthose things which are peculiar to these people, as I design, in another place, to give a\ngeneral description of the Indians, which shall\nhave a principal reference, however, to the\nmore numerous tribes on the east side of the\nMountain. I shall, I hope, be pardoned, if\nsome repetition shall be found, of things contained in my journal, as it cannot easily be\navoided.\nThat part of the country, west of the\nRocky Mountain, with which I am acquainted, has, ever since the North West\nCompany first made an establishment there,\nwhich was in 1806, gone by the name of\nNew Caledonia; and may extend from north\nto south, about five hundred miles, and from\neast to west, three hundred and fifty or four\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nhundred. The post at Stuart's Lake, is\nnearly in the centre of it, and lies, as already\nmentioned in my Journal, in 54\u00C2\u00B0 30' North\nLatitude, and in 125\u00C2\u00B0 West Longitude from\nGreenwich. In this large extent of country,\nthere are not more than five thousand Indians, including men, women and children.\nNew Caledonia is considerably mountainous. Between its elevated parts, however,\nthere are pretty extensive valleys, along\nwhich pass innumerable small rivers and\nbrooks. It contains a great number of small\nlakes, and two which are considerably large.\nThese are Stuart's Lake, which is about three\nhundred miles in circumference, and Nate-\note-tain Lake, which is nearly twice as large.\nI am of the opinion that about one sixth\npart of New Caledonia, is covered with water.\nThere are but two large rivers. One of these\nI denominate Fraser's River, which may be\nsixty or seventy rods wide. It rises in the\nRocky Mountain, within a short distance of\nthe source of Peace River; and is the river\nwhich Sir Alexander McKenzie followed a\nconsiderable distance, when he went to the\nPacific Ocean, in 1793, and which he took to\nbe the Columbia River; but it is now known\nto be several hundred miles north of that noble\nstream. The other large river of New Caledonia, arises near Great Bear's Lake; and\nafter passing through several considerable\nlakes, it enters the Pacific Ocean, several\nhundred miles north of Fraser's River.\n 1\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n241\nThe mountains of New Caledonia, in point\nof elevation, are not to be compared with\nthose which we pass through in coming up\nthat part of Peace River, which lies between\nthe Rocky Mountain portage and Finlay's\nBranch. There are some, however, which are\npretty lofty; and on the summits of one in\nparticular, which we see from Stuart's Lake,\nthe snow lies during the whole of the year.\nThe weather is rfbt severely cold, except\nfor a few days in the winter, when the mercury is sometimes as low as 32\u00C2\u00B0 below zero,\nin Faranheit's thermometer. The remainder\nof the season, is much milder than it is on\nthe other side of the mountain, in the same\nLatitude. The summer is never very warm,\nin the day time; and the nights are generally\ncool. In every month in the year, there are\nfrosts. Snow generally falls about the fifteenth of November, and is all dissolved by\nabout the fifteenth of May. About McLeod's\nLake the snow sometimes falls to the depth\nof five feet; and I imagine that it is to be\nattributed to the great depth of the snow,\nthat no large animals of any kind, excepting\na few solitary ones, are to be met with.\nThere are a few Moose; and the Natives\noccasionally, kill a black bear. Cariboo are\nalso found, at some seasons. Some smaller\nanimals are found, though they are not\nnumerous. They consist of beavers, otters,\nlynxes or cats, fishers, martins, minks, wolverines, foxes of different kinds, badgers, pole-\n16\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\ncats, hares and a few wolves. The fowls are\nswans, bustards, geese, cranes, ducks of\nseveral kinds, partridges, &c. All the lakes\nand rivers are well furnished with excellent\nfish. They are the sturgeon, white fish, trout,\nsucker and many of a smaller kind. Salmon,\nalso, visit the streams, in very considerable\nnumbers, in Autumn. A small share of industry, therefore, would enable the Natives,\nat all times, to provide for themselves a sufficient supply of agreeable, wholesome and\nnutritious food.\nThe Natives of New Caledonia, we denominate Carriers; but they call themselves Ta-\ncul-lies, which signifies people who go upon\nwater. This name originated from the fact\nthat they generally go from one village to\nanother, in canoes. They are of the middle\nstature, and the men are well proportioned;\nbut the women are generally short and\nthick, and their lower limbs are disproportionately large. Both sexes are remarkably\nnegligent and slovenly, in regard to their\npersons; and they are filthy in their cookery.\nTheir dispositions are lively and quiet; and\nthey appear to be happy, or at least contented, in their wretched situation. They are\nindolent; but apparently more from habit\nthan by nature; and probably this trait in\ntheir character, originates from the circumstance, that they procure a livelihood, with\nbut little labour. Whenever we employ any\nof them, either to work about the fort or in\n 1\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n243\nvoyaging, they are sufficiently laborious and\nactive; and they appear to be pleased, when\nwe thus furnish them with employment.\nThey are not in the habit of stealing articles\nof great value; but they are the sliest pilferers, perhaps, upon the face of the earth.\nThey will not only pilfer from us, but, when\nfavourable opportunities offer, they are\nguilty of the sameS-low vice among their\nfriends and relations. They are remarkably\nfond of the white people. They seldom begin\na quarrel with any of us, though they are\nnaturally brave. When any of our people,\nhowever, treat them ill, they defend themselves with courage, and with considerable\ndexterity; and some of them will fight a\ntolerable Canadian battle.\nTheir language is very similar to that of\nthe Chipewyans, and has a great affinity to\nthe tongues, spoken by the Beaver Indians\nand the Sicannies. Between all the different\nvillages of the Carriers, there prevails a difference of dialect, to such an extent, that\nthey often give different names to the most\ncommon utensils. Every village has its particular name, and its inhabitants are called\nafter the name of the village, in the same\nmanner as people in the civilized world receive a name, from the city or country which\nthey inhabit.\nTheir clothing consists of a covering made\nof the skins of the beaver, badger, muskrat,\ncat or hare. The last they cut into strips,\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nabout one inch broad, and then weave or\nlace them together, until they become of a\nsufficient size to cover their bodies, and to\nreach to their knees. This garment they\nput over their shoulders, and tie about their\nwaists. Instead of the above named skins,\nwhen they can obtain them from us, they\ngreatly prefer, and make use of blankets,\ncapots, or Canadian coats, cloth or moose\nand red deer skin. They seldom use either\nleggins or shoes, in the summer. At this\nseason the men often go naked, without any\nthing to cover even that part of the body\nwhich civilized, and the most, also of savage\npeople, think it necessary to conceal. Indeed\nthey manifest as little sense of shame in regard to this subject, as the very brute creation. The women, however, in addition to\nthe robe of beaver or dressed moose skins,\nwear an apron, twelve or eighteen inches\nbroad, which reaches nearly down to their\nknees. These aprons are made of a piece of\ndeer skin, or of salmon skins, sewed together.\nOf the skin of this fish, they sometimes make\nleggins, shoes, bags, &c. but they are not\ndurable; and therefore they prefer deer skins\nand cloth, which are more pliable and soft.\nThe roughness of salmon skins, renders them\nparticularly unpleasant for aprons.\nA few of the male Carriers recently make\nuse of the breech-cloth, made of cloth which\nthey procure from us; but as evidence that\nno great sense of delicacy has induced them\n ill\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n245\nto wear it, you will see it one day at its\nproper place, the next, probably, about their\nheads, and the third around their necks; and\nso on, repeatedly shifted from one place to\nanother.\nBoth sexes perforate their noses; and from\nthem, the men often suspend an ornament,\nconsisting of a piece of an oyster shell, or a\nsmall piece of brass or copper. The \u00C2\u00BBwomen,\nparticularly those who are young, run a\nwooden pin through their noses, upon each\nend of which they fix a kind of shell bead,\nwhich is about an inch and an half long, and\nnearly the size of the stem of a common clay\npipe. These beads, they obtain from their\nneighbours, the At-e-nas, who purchase them\nfrom another tribe, that is said to take them\non the sea shore, where they are reported to\nbe found in plenty.\nAll the Indians in this part of the country, are remarkably fond of these beads; and\nin their dealings with each other, they constitute a kind of circulating medium, like the\nmoney of civilized countries. Twenty of these\nbeads, they consider as equal in value to a\nbeaver's skin. The elderly people neglect to\nornament their heads, in the same manner as\nthey do the rest of their persons, and generally wear their hair short. But the younger\npeople of both sexes, who feel more solicitous\nto make themselves agreeable to each other,\nwash and paint their faces, and let their hair\ngrow long. The paint which they make use\n 246 ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nof, consists of vermilion, which they occasion\naUy obtain from us; or more commonly, of a\nred stone, pounded fine, of which there are\ntwo kinds. The powder of one kind of these\nstones, mixed with grease, and rubbed upon\ntheir faces, gives them a glittering appearance.\n\u00E2\u0099\u00A6The young women and girls wear a parcel\nof European beads, strung together, and tied\nto a lock of hair, directly behind each ear.\nThe men have a sort of collar of the shell\nbeads already mentioned, which they wind\nabout their heads, or throw around their\nnecks. In the summer season, both sexes\nbathe often; and this is the only time, when\nthe married people wash themselves. One of\ntheir customs is sufficient to evince their extreme filthiness, and that is, whenever they\nblow their noses, they rub the mucus between\nboth hands, until they become dry.\nAmong the Carriers, it is customary for\nthe girls, from the age of eight to eleven\nyears, to wear a kind of veil or fringe over\ntheir eyes, made either of strung beads, or of\nnarrow strips of deer skin, garnished with\nporcupine quills. While of this age, they are\nnot aUowed to eat any thing, excepting the\ndriest food; and especially they may not eat\nthe head of any animal. If they should, their\nrelat'ons, as they imagine, would soon languish and die. The women, also, during their\npregnancy, and for some time after they are\ndelivered, are restricted to the same kind of\nfood.\n w\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n247\nThe lads, as soon as they come to the age\nof puberty, tie cords, wound with swan's\ndown, around each leg, a little below the\nknee, which they wear during one year, and\nthen, they are considered as men.\nThe Carriers are unusually talkative; and\nwhen fifteen or twenty of them get into a\nhouse, they make an intolerable noise. Men,\nwomen and children keep their tongues constantly in motion; and in controversy, he\nwho has the strongest and clearest voice is\nof course heard the most easily, and, consequently, succeeds best in his argument. They\ntake great delight, also, in singing, or humming, or whistling a dull air. In short,\nwhether at home or abroad, they can hardly\nbe contented with their mouths shut. It was\na long time before we could keep them still,\nwhen they came to our forts. And even yetj\nwhen they visit us, which is almost every\nday, during the whole year, they will often,\ninadvertently, break out into a song. But\nas soon as we check them, or they recollect\nof themselves what they are about, they stop\nshort; for they are desirous of pleasing.\nThe above trait in their character, certainly\nevinces much contentment with their condition, and cheerfulness of spirit.\nBoth sexes, of almost every age, are much\naddicted to play, or rather gambling. They\npass the greater part of their time, especially\nin the winter season, and both days and\nnights, in some kind of game; and the men\n 248\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nwill often loose the last rag of clothes, which\nthey have about them. But so far from\nbeing dejected by such ill fortune, they often\nappear to be proud of having lost their all;\nand will even boastingly say, that they are\nas naked as a dog, having not a rag with\nwhich to cover themselves. Should they, in\nsuch circumstances, meet with a friend, who\nshould lend them something to wrap around\ntheir bodies, it is highly probable, that they\nwould immediately go and play away the\nborrowed garment. Or, if the borrower belonged to another village, he would be likely\nto run off with it, and the owner would\nnever hear of him afterward; for I never\nknew a Carrier to be grateful for a favour bestowed upon him. At play, they often loose\na part of a garment, as the sleeves of a coat,\nwhich some of them now purchase from us,\na whole, or the half of a leggin, which they\nwill tear off, and deliver to the winner. They\nhave been known to cut off a foot or more\nof their guns, when lost at play; for, like\nmore gentlemanly gamblers, they consider\nsuch debts, as debts of honour.\nThe Carriers are not so ingenious as their\nneighbours, the Nate-ote-tains and At-e-n&s.\nThe men, however, make canoes, which are\nclumsily wrought, of the aspin tree, as well as\nof the bark of the spruce fir. The former,\nwill carry from half a ton to a ton and a\nhalf burthen, while the latter, will carry\nfrom one to four grown persons. The women\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n249\nmake excellent nets, of the inner bark of the\nwillow tree, and of nettles, which answer\nbetter for taking small fish, than any which\nwe obtain from Canada, made of twine or\nthread.\nThe Carriers, in common with the other\nIndian tribes, before their country was visited\nby white people, made use of stones, instead\nof axes, and of bones^for knives; and with\nthese, they constructed wooden dishes, and\nother vessels of the rind of the birch and\npine trees, &c. Some of these vessels were\nused to cook their victuals in, and many of\nthese people still make use of them; for they\nare too poor to purchase brass or copper\nkettles from us. They have, also, other vessels, which are manufactured of the small\nroots or fibers of the cedar or pine tree,\nclosely laced together, which serve them as\nbuckets to put water in. I have seen one at\nFraser's Lake, made of the same materials,\nthat would hold sixty or seventy gallons,\nwhich they make use of when a feast is given\nto all the people of the village. All the vessels fabricated of roots, as well as the most\nof their bows and arrows, they obtain from\ntheir neighbours, above mentioned.\nThe Carriers are remarkably fond of their\nwives, and a few of them have three or four;\nbut polygamy is not general among them.\nThe men do the most of the drudgery about\nthe house, such as cutting and drawing fire\nwood, and bringing water. In the winter\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nmonths, they drink but little water; but to\nquench their thirst, they eat half melted\nsnow, which they generally keep on the top\nof a stick, stuck into the ground, before the\nfire.\nAs the Carriers are fond of their wives,\nthey are, as naturally might be supposed,\nvery jealous of them; but to their daughters,\nthey allow every liberty, for the purpose, as\nthey say, of keeping the young men from\nintercourse with the married women. As the\nyoung women may thus bestow their favours\non whom, and as often as they please, without the least censure from their parents, or\nreproach to their character, it might naturally be expected that they would be, as\nI am informed they actually are, very free\nwith their persons.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the following particular, the Carriers differ from all the other\nIndian tribes, with whom I have been acquainted. Among other tribes, the father\nor mother in law, will never, excepting when\ndrunk, speak to a son or daughter in law;\nbut the Carriers make no distinction, in this\nrespect.\nThe Carriers reside a part of the year in\nvillages, built at convenient places for taking\nand drying salmon, as they come up the\nrivers. These fish they take in abundance,\nwith little labour; and they constitute their\nprincipal food, during the whole year. They\nare not very palatable when eaten alone;\nbut with vegetables, they are pleasant food.\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nThe Natives, however, are too slothful to\nraise vegetables, and use none, excepting a\nfew which they obtain from us.\nToward the middle of April, and sometimes sooner, they leave their villages, to go\nand pass about two months at the small\nlakes, from which, at that season, they take\nwhite fish, trout, carp, &c. in considerable\nnumbers. But when these begin to fail, they\nreturn to their villages, and subsist on the\nsmall fish, which they dried when at the lakes,\nor on salmon, should they have been so\nprovident as to have kept any until that\nlate season; or they eat herbs, the inner\nbark or sap of the cypress tree, berries, &c.\nAt this season, few fish of any kind, are to be\ntaken out of the lakes or rivers of New Caledonia. In this manner the Natives barely\nsubsist, until about the middle of August,\nwhen salmon again begin to make their appearance, in all the rivers of any considerable magnitude; and they have them at most\nof their villages in plenty, until the latter end\nof September, or the beginning of October.\nFor about a month, they come up in crowds;\nand the noses of some of them are either\nworn or rotten off, and the eyes of others\nhave perished in their heads; and yet, in this\nmaimed condition, they are surprisingly alert,\nin coming up the rapids. These maimed\nfishes are generally at the head of large\nbands, on account of which, the Natives\ncall them Mi-u-ties, or Chiefs. The Indians\n 252\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nsay that they have suffered these disaster\nby falling back among the stones, when coming up difficult places in the rapids which\nthey pass.\nThe Carriers take salmon in the following\nmanner. AU the Indians of the village assist\nin making a dam across the river, in which\nthey occasionally leave places, to insert their\nbaskets or nets of wicker work. These baskets are generally from fifteen to eighteen feet\nin length, ^and from twelve to fifteen feet in\ncircumference. The end at which the salmon\nenter, is made with twigs, in the form of the\nentrance of a wire mouse trap. When four\nor five hundred salmon have entered this\nbasket, they either take it to the shore to\nempty out the fish; or they take them out\nat a door in the top, and transport them to the\nshore in their large wooden canoes, which are\nconvenient for this purpose. When the salmon\nare thrown upon the beach, the women take\nout their entrails, and hang them by their\ntails on poles, in the open air. After remaining in this situation for a day or two, they\ntake them down and cut them thinner, and\nthen leave them to hang for about a month\nin the open air, when they wiU have become\nentirely dry. They are then put into their\nstore houses, which are built on four posts,\nabout ten feet from the ground, to prevent\nanimals from destroying them; and provided they are preserved dry, they will remain good for several years.\n 1\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n253\nThe Carriers take beavers in nets, made\nof thongs of cariboo skins, or in baskets\nmade of young cypress stadles; and sometimes they shoot them with bows and arrows,\nor guns, or take them in steel traps, which\nwe sell to them, and of which they begin to\nunderstand the value. Cats, martins, fishers,\nfoxes, minks, &c. they take in a kind of\nspring trap, which consists of a large piece\nof wood, which thesfc animals, by nibbling\nat the bait, cause to fall upon and crush\nthem. Bears, swans and hares they generally take in snares, and the cat, also, they\nsometimes take in this manner. They hunt\nthe beaver and bear, more for the sake of\ntheir flesh, than to obtain the skins; for\nit is with the meat of these animals that\nthey make their feasts, in remembrance of\ntheir deceased relatives.\nAt such festivals, they cut up as many\ndressed moose and red deer skins as they\ncan well procure, into slips, about eighteen\ninches long, and twelve inches broad, and\ndistribute them among their friends and\nrelatives. And they firmly believe, that\nthese ceremonies must be performed, before\ntheir departed relative can be at rest, in the\nplace whither he has gone, which they think\nto be the interiour of the earth, where they\nexpect that they shall all at length be\nhappy.\nThe Carriers have little that can be denominated civil government, in the regulation\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nof their concerns. There are some persons\namong them, who are called Mi*u-ties or\nChiefs, and for whom they appear to have\na little more respect than for the others;\nbut these chiefs have not much authority or\ninfluence over the rest of the community.\nAny one is dubbed a Mi-u-ty, who is able and\nwilling, occasionally, to provide a feast, for\nthe people of his viHage. An Indian, however, who has killed another, or been guilty\nof some other bad action, finds the house or\ntent of the chief a safe retreat, so long as he\nis allowed to remain there. But as soon as\nhe leaves it, the Chief can afford the criminal\nno more protection, than any other person of\nthe village can, unless he lets him have one\nof his garments. This garment of the Chief,\nwill protect a malefactor from harm, while\nhe wears it; for no person would attack\nhim, while clothed with this safe guard,\nsooner than he would attack the chief himself ; and if he should, the chief would revenge\nthe insult, in the same manner as if it were\noffered directly to himself. The revenge which\nthe Chief, in this case, would take, would be\nto destroy the life of the offending person,\nor that of some of his near relations, or the\nlife of one of the same tribe, if he should\nhappen to be a stranger.\nWhen two or more persons disagree at\nplay, as is frequently the case, or contend\non any other account, the chief, or some\nrespectable and elderly man, will step in\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n255\nbetween the two wranglers,. and settle the\ndispute, generally without their coming to\nblows.\nThe people of every village have a certain\nextent of country, which they consider their\nown, and in which they may hunt and fish;\nbut they may not transcend these bounds,\nwithout purchasing the privilege of those\nwho claim the land?\" Mountains and rivers\nserve them as boundaries, and they are not\noften broken over.\nThe people of one village do not often visit\nthose of another, as there are generally misunderstandings existing between them, which\nare occasioned by murders, and at times\nby the hunting of the people of one village,\nin a clandestine manner, on the territories\nof their neighbours. By one cause or another,\nthey are kept in a perpetual broil. They\nsay however, that murders do not occur so\nfrequently among them as they did before\nthey were visited by the white people.\nThe Carriers are the most ignorant people\namong whom I have ever been. They appear\nto have only a very confused and limited\nidea of the existence of a Supreme Being,\nthe maker and governour of the world, or\nof the devil or any evil spirit; and they,\ntherefore, neither worship the former nor fear\nthe latter. But they believe, as it has been\nalready observed, in the immortality of the\nsoul, and think when it leaves its present\nbody, it goes into the bowels of the earth,\n n\n256\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nwhere, they suppose it will be more happy\nthan when an inhabitant of its surface. But\nthey seem to have no idea of future rewards\nor punishments, in consequence of any thing\nwhich they may have done, while resident\non earth. And whether the soul will be furnished with another body, when it leaves\nthat which it animated on earth, they say\nthey cannot tell, it being, as they add, beyond their comprehension. They firmly believe, however, that a departed soul can, if it\npleases, come back to the earth, in a human\nshape or body, in order to see his friends,\nwho are still alive. Therefore, as they\nare about to set fire to the pile of wood,\non which a corpse is laid, a relation of the\ndeceased person stands at his feet, and asks\nhim if he will ever come back among them.\nThen the priest or magician, with a grave\ncountenance, stands at the head of the corpse,\nand looks through both his hands on its\nnaked breast, and then raises them toward\nheaven, and blows through them, as they\nsay, the soul of the deceased, that it may\ngo and find, and enter into a relative. Or,\nif any relative is present, the priest will hold\nhis hands on the head of this person, and\nblow through them, that the spirit of the\ndeceased may enter into him or her; and\nthen, as they affirm, the first child which\nthis person has, will possess the soul of the\ndeceased person.\nWhen the Carriers are severely sick, they\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n257\nli\nit\noften think that they shall not recover, unless they divulge to a priest or magician,\nevery crime which they may have cojnmitted,\nwhich has hitherto been kept secret. In such\na case, they will make a full confession, and\nthen they expect that their lives will be\nspared, for a time longer. But should they\nkeep back a single crime, they as fully believe\nthat they shall suffer almost instant death.\nThe crimes which they most frequently confess, discover something of their moral character, and therefore deserve to be mentioned.\nA man will often acknowledge that he has\nhad a criminal and incestuous connexion with\nhis own daughter or sister, or a criminal intercourse with a bitch! and a woman will confess, that she has had the same infamous connexion with her own relations, or with a dog!\nMurder is not considered by the Carriers\nas a crime of great magnitude; and, therefore, it makes no part of their acknowledgments, in their confessions to the priests or\njiagicians. If a murder be committed on a\njerson belonging to a tribe with whom they\nare at enmity, they regard it as a brave and\nnoble action. Should one Indian kill another,\nbelonging to the same village with himself,\nthe murderer is considered as a person void\nof sense; and he must quit his village and\nremain away, until he can pay the relations\nof the deceased for the murder; and even\nafter this has been done, it often occasions\nquarrels, between the parties.\n17\n 258\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nThe Carriers are so very credulous, and\nhave so exalted an opinion of us, that they\nfirmly believe, though I have often assured\nthem of the contrary, that any of the\nTraders or Chiefs, as they call us, can, at\npleasure, make it fair or foul weather. And\neven yet when they are preparing to set out\non an excursion, they will come and offer to\npay us, provided we will make or allow it\nto be fair weather, during their absence\nfrom their homes. They often inquire of us\nWhether salmon, that year, will be in plenty\nin their rivers. They also think, that by\nmerely looking into our books, we can cause\na sick person to recover, let the distance\nwhich he may be from us be ever so great.\nIn short, they look upon those who can\nread and write, as a kind of supernatural\nbeings, who know all that is past, and who\ncan see into futurity.\nFor a considerable time after we had been\namong them, they were fully of the opinion,\nthat the white people had neither fathers nor\nmothers; but came into the world in a supernatural way, or were placed on the earth\nby the sun or moon.\nAs a further specimen of their limited\nconceptions, they now firmly believe that a\nwatch is the heart of the sun, because it is\never in motion, as they say, like that great\nbody of light. They add further, that unless\na watch and the sun were nearly related, it\nwould be impossible for the watch, consider-\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n259\ning the distance which there is between them,\nto point bu_ so precisely the minute when\nthe sun is to make its appearance and to\nleave us< In short, they say that the one\nmust know perfectly well what the other is\nabout, and that there must be the same connexion between them, as between the members of the human body.\nThe Carriers give the following account\nof a tradition, which fliey believe, respecting\nthe formation of the earth, and the general\ndestruction of mankind, in an early period\nof the world. Water at first overspread the\nface of the world, which is a plain surface*\nAt the top of the water, a muskrat was\nswimming about, in different directions. At\nlength he concluded to dive to the bottom, to\nsee what he could find, on which to subsist;\nbut he found nothing but mud, a little of\nwhich he brought in his mouth, and placed\nit on the surface of the water, where it remained. He then went for more mud, and\nplaced it with that already brought up; and\nthus he continued his operations, until he\nhad formed a considerable hillock. This\nland increased by degrees, until it overspread\na large part of the world, which assumed\nat length its present form. The earth, in\nprocess of time, became peopled in every\npart, and remained in this condition for\nmany years. Afterwards a fire run over it all,\nand destroyed every human being, excepting\none man and one woman. They saved them-\n 260\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nselves by going into a deep cave, in a large\nmountain, where they remained for several\ndays, until the fire was extinguished. They\nthen came forth from their hiding place; and\nfrom these two persons, the whole earth has\nbeen peopled.\nBesides the feasts, made for their dead,\nwhich have been described in my Journal,\nthe Carriers give others, merely to entertain their guests, who are frequently all the\npeople of a village, as well as a few who\nbelong to a neighbouring village. The following ceremonies attend such festivals. The\nperson who makes the entertainment, who is\nalways a Chief, boils or roasts several whole\nbeavers; and as soon as his guests are seated\naround a fire, which is in the centre of his\nhouse, he takes up a whole beaver, and with\na raised voice, relates how and where he\nkilled it, that all present may know that it\ncame from his own land. After that necessary explanation is over, he steps forward,\nand presents the tail end to t>he most respectable person of the house, and stands\nholding the animal with both hands until\nthis person has eaten what he chooses. The\nchief then passes on with his beaver to the\nsecond person, who eats as the first had\ndone; and then to a third; and so on, until\nhe has presented it to the whole circle. Should\nany part now remain, it is laid down near\nthe centre of the house; and another whole\nbeaver is taken up, which is served round\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n261\nin the same manner as the first. And thus\nthe chief continues to do, until his guests\nhave tasted of every beaver, which he had\nprepared for the feast. The remaining fragments of the beavers, are now cut up into\nsmaller pieces, and distributed among the\nwomen and children, or put into dishes,\nwhich the men have before them, and which\nthey always bring w&h them, when they\nattend upon a feast. The women then come\nin with large dishes full of berries, and each\nputs a ladle full into every dish of the men.\nWhen they have eaten what they choose of\nthe berries, (for the Indians never urge their\nguests to eat more than they please) both\nmen and women join, in singing several\nsongs. The airs of many of these songs,\nwhich have been composed and set to musick,\nby their poets, expressly for the occasion,\ngreatly resemble those which I have heard\nsung, in Roman Catholic churches. After\nsinging is concluded, each guest rises, with\nhis dish and whatever it contains, and returns\nto his own dwelling, and thus the festival\nends. At these feasts, there are frequently\nIndians, who will drink at least a quart of\nmelted bear's oil, merely to show how much\nthey can drink.\nAt some of their festivals, the men and\nwomen join in a dance. Their musick on\nthese occasions, consists of the singing of\none person or more, accompanied by the\nshaking of the she-she-qui, which is, ordinari-\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nly, a covered dish, with a handle; but sometimes it is curiously made in the form of a\nbird, and within it, are either gravel stones\nor shot. Others beat on a drum, with but\none head; and these are all the musical instruments, if they can with propriety be so*\ndenominated, which I have ever seen among\nthem. When they dance, they paint their\nfaces, and put swan's down on their heads,\nand while they are dancing, others are almost continually blowing more through both\ntheir hands, on the dancers. They have\nnot many different kinds of dancing; but\nthey have a great variety of songs, the airs\nof which are pleasant to the ear when heard\nat some distance from the singers, who generally have strong voices. All Indians have\naccurate ears; and, therefore, they keep exact\ntime when they dance or sing.\nThe Carriers are almost entirely ignorant\nof medicine, not having any knowledge of\nthe virtue which is found in roots and herbs,\nwhen administered to the sick. When one of\nthem is sick, they call in the priest or doctor,\nfor the same person discharges the functions\nof both; and he is joined by several other\npersons in singing a very melancholy air,\nover the sick person, which they think serves\ngreatly to mitigate his pain, and often restores him to perfect health. Before the\ndoctor will afford his assistance, in doing\nwhich he makes many jestures, and goes\nthrough much ceremony, he must receive a'\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n263\npresent. But should his patient die under\nhis care, he must restore to the relations of\nthe deceased, the present which he had received. The Carriers are the only Indians\nwith whom I have been acquainted, who\nmake no use of roots and herbs, and the\nbark of certain trees, with the sick. They,\nhowever, place great confidence in our medicines.\nDuring the winter r&onths many of the\nCarriers make their dwellings in the earth,\nin the following manner. They dig a hole\nin the ground to the depth of about two\nfeet, from the opposite sides of which, they\nerect two considerable sticks, to support\na ridge-pole. They then lay poles from the\nmargin of the hole to the ridge-pole, until\nthey have completely enclosed the dwelling,\nexcepting a hole which is left near tne top,\nwhich serves the double purpose of a door\nby which they enter, and leave the hut, upon\nan upright post, in which, notches are cut;\nand an opening for the smoke to pass off.\nThe poles are made tight, by stopping the\ninterstices with hay, or by covering them\nwith bark; and dirt is then thrown over\nthem, to a considerable thickness. These\nhuts are far from being healthy; but they\nare commodious for people who are clad as\npoorly, as are most of the Carriers.\nThe Indians on the west side of the Rocky\nMountain, erect buildings, in which they\ndeposit the ashes and bones of their dead.\n 264\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nThe side posts of these structures, are about\nsix feet high; a roof, covered with bark, is\nerected upon these posts, in the form of the\nroofs of houses in the civilized part of the\nworld; and around their sides, are broad\nboards, made by splitting trees, which they\nhew, and then smooth over with a crooked\nknife. On these boards, which are about an\ninch thick, they paint images to represent\nthe sun, moon, stars and different kinds of\nanimals. Within these buildings, the remains\nof the dead are contained in boxes, of different dimensions, which in some instances,\nstand on the top of one upright post, and\nin other cases, are supported by four. The\npaints which they use, in describing the\nfigures on these buildings, consist of black\nand red stones, which they grind fine, and\nof a yellow and a red earth. These substances, they mix with glue, which they\nobtain by boiling the feet of the buffaloe,\nor from the inside of sturgeon, where these\nfish are in plenty. They put on their paints\nwith a brush, made of the hair which they\ntake from the leg of the moose.\nAmong the Carriers, there are some conjurors, who whenever they please, will vomit\nblood, or swallow a small toad, alive. By\ndoing the latter, however, they are made\nsick, for three or four days; and yet they\nare ever ready to do it, for a mere trifling\nrecompense.\nAmong the Indians who inhabit New\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n265\nCaledonia, the Sicannies deserve to be mentioned. They are a small part of a tribe\nwho, but a few years since, came from the\neast side of the Rocky Mountain. They now\nbring the produce of their hunts to McLeod's\nLake. The winter months, however, a greater\npart of them pass among their relations,\non the east side of the Mountain, where\nthey subsist on buffaloe, moose and red\ndeer. Notwithstanding they are tolerable\nhunters, they would not be able to kill a\nsufficiency of beavers to serve themselves\nand families, during the winter, where the\nsnow is so deep, as it generally is in New\nCaledonia.\nThe people who are now called Si-can-nies,\nI suspect, at no% distant period, belonged\nto the tribe, called Beaver Indians, who\ninhabit the lower part of Peace River; for\nthey differ but little from them in dialect,\nmanners, customs, &c. Some misunderstanding between the Sicannies and the rest of the\ntribe to which they formerly belonged, probably drove them from place to place, up\nPeace River, until they were, at length,\nobliged to cross the Rocky Mountain. The\nSicannies, are more brave, and better armed\nthan the Carriers, who have, as yet, but\nfew fire arms; and it is probable that the\nformer will make encroachments upon the\nlatter. The Sicannies, however, are a wretched people; for they suffer greatly for the\nwant of food, during nearly one fourth part\n 266\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nof the year, when they barely support life,\nby means of a few unpalatable roots. Yet\nthey are remarkably fond of the country,\nwhere they now are; and frequently intermarry with the Carriers, and pass a part\nof their time with them, at their villages.\nThey have, also, adopted many of the customs of the Carriers, one of which is, to\nburn their dead; whereas, while they resided\non the other side of the Mountain, they\nwere accustomed to bury them in the earth.\nThe Sicannies are not an ingenious people;\nand I know of nothing which they manufacture, excepting a few ill wrought bows\nand arrows, wooden dishes, &c.\nThere is a tribe of Indians not far from\nthe Columbia River, who are called Flat-\nHeads. By fixing boards upon the heads\nof their children, they compress them in such\na manner as to cause them to assume the\nform of a wedge. Another tribe in New\nCaledonia, denominated Nate-ote-tains, pierce\na hole through the under lips of their daughters, into which they insert a piece of wood,\nin the shape of the wheel of a pulley; and\nas the girls grow up, this wheel is enlarged,\nso that a woman of thirty years of age,\nwill have one nearly as large as a doUar.\nThis they consider, adds much to their beauty;\nbut these wheels are certainly very inconvenient, and to us, they appear very uncouth and disagreeable.\n ill\nA GENERAL\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS\nON THE EAST SIDE OF THE\nROCKY MOUNTAIN.\n ACCOUNT, &c.\nI have been acquainted with fifteen different tribes of Indians, which are the Sau-\nteux, Crees, Assiniboins, Rapid Indians,\nBlack feet Indians, Blood Indians, Sursees,\nCautonies, Muskagoes, Chipeways, Beaver Indians, Sicannies, Ta-cullies, Atenas and Nate-\note-tains. The parts of the country, which\nthey severally inhabit, have already been\nnoticed, in my Journal.\nThe tribes that are the most enlightened,\nand that have advanced the farthest toward\na state of civilization, are the Sauteux or\nChipeways, the Muskagoes and the Crees,\nor Knisteneux, as they have been sometimes\ndenominated. These tribes have a greater\nknowledge than the other Indians, of the\nmedicinal qualities of the bark of trees, and\nof herbs, roots, &c. and their medical skill,\nenables them heavily to tax the other tribes.\nIndeed, their medicines, with their skill in\nregard to their application, form considerable\narticles of commerce with their neighbours.\nSometimes, for a handsome compensation,\nthey will instruct a person where to procure\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\ningredients, and how to prepare them as\nmedicines, to be used in particular cases.\nIt is very probable, however, that the Indian doctors, like some apothecaries in the\ncivilized world, sell some medicines, of little\nor no value. It is also well known to those\nacquainted with the Indians, that their\nphysicians frequently effect cures with their\nroots, herbs, &c. in cases, which would baffle\nthe skill and the drugs, of a scientifick physician.\nThe white people have been among the\nabove mentioned tribes, for about one hundred and fifty years. To this circumstance\nit is probably to be attributed, that the\nknowledge of these Indians is more extensive,\nthan that of the other tribes. But I very\nmuch question whether they have improved\nin their character or condition, by their\nacquaintance with civilized people. In their\nsavage state, they were contented with the\nmere necessaries of life, which they could\nprocure, with considerable ease; but now\nthey have many artificial wants, created by\nthe luxuries which we have introduced among\nthem; and as they find it difficult to obtain\nthese luxuries, they have become, to a degree,\ndiscontented with their condition, and practise fraud in their dealings. A half civilized\nIndian is more savage, than one in his original state. The latter has some sense of\nhonour, while the former has none. I have\nalways experienced the greatest hospitality\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n271\nand kindness among those Indians, who\nhave had the least intercourse with white\npeople. They readily discover and adopt\nour evil practices; but they are not as quick\nto discern, and as ready to follow the few\ngood examples, which we set before them.\nThe Indians in general, are subject to\nfew diseases. The venereal complaint is\ncommon to all the triHes of the north; many\npersons among them, die of a consumption;\nfevers, also, frequently attack them; and\nthey are likewise troubled with pains in their\nheads, breasts and joints. Many of them,\nand especially the women, are subject to\nfits. For a relief, in nearly all of their diseases, they resort to their grand remedy,\nsweating.\nThere is no material difference in the size,\nfeatures and complexion of the different\ntribes, with whom I have been acquainted.\nThe Sauteux, Crees and Assiniboins, together with the other Indians who inhabit\nthe prairies, are, however, the fairest and\nmost cleanly. The Sauteux women differ\nfrom all others, by turning their toes very\nmuch inwards, in walking. The Assiniboins,\nof both sexes, are the best made, and walk\nthe most erect, of any tribe that I have\never seen. Fools and disfigured persons, are\nseldom to be met with among the Indians;\nthe reason of which, I believe to be, that\ntheir mothers put them to death as soon\nas they discover their unhappy condition,\n 272\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nAll Indian children, when young, are laced\nin a kind of bag. This bag is made of a\npiece of leather, about two feet square, by\ndrawing a string, inserted in the lower end,\nand lacing the two sides together. Some\nmoss is placed in the bottom of this bag;\nthe child is then laid into it, and moss is\ninserted between its legs. The bag is then\nlaced the fore side of the child as high as\nits neck. This bag is laid upon a board, to\nwhich it is fastened by means of a strip of\nleather, passing several times round both\nthe board and the bag. At the top of this\nboard, a bow passes round from one side\nto the other, perpendicular to its surface,\non which the Indians fasten small bells,\nwhich they obtain from us, or the claws\nof animals, by way of ornament, and which\nrattle,when the child is carried by its mother^\nsuspended from her shoulders, by means of a\ncord or belt fastened to the board. From\ntwo points in this bow, equally distant from\nthe board, two strips of leather, worked\nwith porcupine quills, are suspended, at the\nends of which, tassels, composed of moose\nhair, are fixed. This bag is commonly ornamented, in different parts, with porcupine\nquills. The women who are particular in\nkeeping their children clean, shift the moss\nwhich is put into these bags, several times\nin a day; but others do it not more than\ntwice. They often fix conductors so that\ntheir male children never wet the moss. The\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n273\nCarrier women will nurse their children,\nwhen thus suspended at their backs, either\nby throwing their breasts over their shoulders or under their arms. Their breasts are\nlarger and longer than those of the other\ntribes; but I am unable to assign any cause\nfor this peculiarity.\nThe dress of the Indians is simple and\nconvenient. They wear tight leggins, each\nof which is composed of a single piece of\nleather or cloth, sewed up with a single\nseam, about an inch from the edge, which\nprojects upon the outside. These garments\nreach from the ancle nearly to the hip. Theji\nhave a strip of cloth or leather, called assi-\nan, about a foot wide, and five feet long,\nwhich passes between the legs, and over a\nthong tied round the waist, so that the\nends hang down, behind and before. The\nbody is covered with a shirt, reaching down\nto the thighs, which is belted with a broad\npiece of parchment, fastened together behind.\nThey wear a cap upon the head, composed\nof a single piece of fur sewed up, or of the\nskin of a small animal of a suitable size,\nwhich is cut off at both ends, and sewed up\nat the top; and at some times it is only\ncut off at the end towards the head, while\nthe tail is left at the top, to hang down\nbehind, by way of ornament. They have,\nalso, at the proper season, the tail of a\nbuffaloe, fastened to one of their wrists,\nwhich they use in keeping off flies. A sort\n18\n 274\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nof robe or blanket is occasionally worn over\nthe rest of their dress. They also wear shoes\nand mittens. The articles of their clothing\nby day, constitute their covering when they\nlie down at night. The materials of which\ntheir clothing is composed vary with the\nseason, consisting of dressed moose skins,\nbeaver prepared with the fur, or European\nwoollens. The leather, they frequently paint\nor work with porcupine quills, with no small\ndegree of taste. The skirts of their shirts,\nand the seams of their leggins, are often\nornamented with fringe and tassels, composed of the hair of the moose, which is\nnaturally white, but which they die yellow\nand red. Their shoes and mittens have,\nlikewise, an appropriate decoration. At a\nfeast or dance, they wear the feathers of the\nswan, eagle and other birds; and they occasionally wind a string of the teeth, horns\nand claws of different animals, around their\nhead or neck. They all rub greese upon their\nhair, which gives it a smooth and glossy\nappearance.\nIt belongs to the women to make up the\narticles of clothing. In sewing leather, instead of thread, they make use of the sinews\nof animals. When this substance is some\nmoistened, they separate a fibre, and by\nrunning their finger along between it and\nthe main sinew, they part it to a sufficient\nlength. The sinews of the cariboo may be\nmade as fine and even, as fine thread. These\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n275\nfibres, when thus separated, they twist at\none end between their fingers, which gives\nthem a sharp stiff point, when they are dry.\nThey use awls, which they obtain from us,\nor an instrument of bone which they construct themselves, in sewing. The men paint\ntheir faces and ornament their persons, with\nno less care than the women; and the married women, while \%ej neglect not their\nown persons, are still more attentive to the\nappearance of their husbands. The young\nwomen often make some ornamental articles,\nparticularly garters, neatly worked with\nporcupine quills and present them to their\nfavourites; and the standing of a young\nmale Carrier among the young females may\noften be determined by the number of garters\nwhich he wears.\nThe female dress is made of the same\nmaterials as that of the men, but differently\nconstructed and arranged. Their shoes are\nwithout ornament; their leggins are gartered\nbeneath the knee; the shirt or coat, which\nis so long as to reach the middle of the leg,\nis tied at the neck, is fringed around the\nbottom, and fancifully painted, as high as\nthe knee. Being very loose, it is girded\naround the waist with a stiff belt, ornamented\nwith tassels, and fastened behind. The\narms are covered as low as the wrists with\nsleeves, which are not connected with the\nbody garment. These sleeves are sewed up,\nas far as the bend of the arm, having the\n 276\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nseam the under side; and extend to the\nshoulders, becoming broader toward the\nupper end, so that the corners hang down\nas low as the waist. They are connected\ntogether, and kept on, by a cord, extending\nfrom one to the other, across the shoulders.\nThe cap, when they have one, consists of a\npiece of cloth, about two feet square, doubled,\nand sewed up at one end, which forms an\nenclosure for the head; and it is tied under\nthe chin. The bottom of it falls down the\nback, like a cape, and in the centre, is tied\nto the belt. This cap is fancifully garnished\nwith ribbon, beads or porcupine quills. The\nupper garment, is a robe or garment, similar\nto that worn by the men. Their hair is\nparted on the top of the head, and tied\nbehind; or, at some times, it is fastened\nin large knots over the ears, and covered\nwith beads of various colours. They prefer\nEuropean clothes, when they can obtain\nthem, to the skins, furnished by their own\ncountry. For ornaments they use bracelets,\ncomposed of brass, bone or horn; and rings,\nand similar trinkets. Some of the women\ntattoo a line, which is sometimes double,\nfrom the middle of the under lip, to the\ncenter of the chin; and two other lines, extending from the corners of the mouth, somewhat diverging from the other line, down\nthe sides of the chin.\nThe greater part of the Indians, who make\nuse of European cloths for their dress, fr&-\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n277\nquently cleanse them, by washing them in\ncold water, without soap. They do not\nunderstand the art of making soap; and if\nthey did, the process is so laborious, that\nthey would readily forego the use of this\narticle, which they consider of very little\nvalue. When their clothing consists of leather,\nthey occasionally cleanse it, by rubbing it\nover with a ball of white earth. This earth,\nwhich is the same which we use for white\nwashing, they moisten, and mould into balls,\nand thus preserve it for use.\nThe Indians who subsist principally on\nfish, and who kill but few large animals,\ncover their habitations with some kind of\nbark, or with mats made of rushes. But\nthose who subsist on the buffaloe, moose\nand red deer, dress their skins, and cover\ntheir tents with them, as described in my\nJournal. When they are in their tents they\nsit or lie down on buffaloe or bear skins,\nwhich constitute, also, their beds; and when\nin bed, they cover themselves with a buffaloe\nskin, dressed with the hair on, or with a\nblanket. But many of the Carriers, have\nnothing to lie on, excepting the branches\nof the spruce fir tree, with little or nothing\nwith which to cover themselves; and their\nhuts constitute but a poor shelter. To\nkeep themselves from freezing, in cold winter\nnights, therefore, they are under the necessity\nof keeping up a constant fire, to which they\nare compelled to turn their sides, alternately;\n 278\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nand they are, at such times, able to procure\nbut little sleep. Indeed, almost any other\npeople, in the same condition, would freeze\nto death. But as they have always been\naccustomed to such a mode of living, they\nseem not at all aware of the misery of their\ncondition.\nThe Sauteux, Muscagoes, many of the\nChipewyans and some of the Crees, in short\nall the Indians who live about large lakes,\nsubsist principally on fish, which they take\nwith hooks and lines, or in nets. Their\nhooks they frequently obtain from us; and\nwhen this is impracticable, they make them,\nby inserting a piece of bone obliquely into\na piece of wood, and reducing the upper\neAd of the bone to a point. Their lines are\neither single thongs of leather, tied together,\nor they are braided of the bark of the willow.\nThe Assiniboins, Rapid Indians, Black feet\nIndians and those Crees who remain in the\nstrong thick woods, or on the large plains,\nlive upon the flesh of the buffaloe, moose,\nred deer, antelope, bear, &c. which they\neither boil or roast. Those of them who\ncan obtain brass or copper or tin kettles\nfrom us, use them for boiling their food;\nand hang them over the fire. Those who\ncannot obtain such kettles, use those which\nare made of bark. Although water might\nbe made to boil in these bark kettles over\nthe fire,* yet they would not be durable;\nand therefore, this operation is more com-\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n279\nmonly performed, Tby throwing into them,\nheated stones. Those Indians, however,\nwho have only bark kettles, generally roast\ntheir meat. This they do, by fixing one end\nof a stick, that is sharpened at both ends,\ninto the ground, at a little distance from\nthe fire, with its top, on which the meat\nis fixed, inclining towards the fire. On this\nstick, the meat is occasionally turned, when\none part becomes sufficiently roasted.\nThe Indians, in general, like to have their\nfood, whether boiled or roasted, thoroughly\ndone; but those who inhabit the plains,\nfrequently make their meals without the\naid of fire, of particular parts of the entrails\nof the buffaloe, which I have, also, eaten\nraw, and have found to be very palatable.\nWhen there is no water to be found, they\nat times kill a buffaloe, and drink his blood,\nor the water which they find in his paunch.\nThe paunch of a male buffaloe, when well\ncooked, is very delicious food. The Natives\nscarcely ever wash it; but boil it with much\nof its dung, adhering to it; and even then,\nthe broth has an excellent taste, to those\nwho can forget, or from habit pay no regard\nto the filth, which settles, to the thickness\nof two fingers, at the bottom of the kettle.\nMany consider a broth, made by means of\nthe dung of the cariboo and the hare to be\na dainty dish.\nThe Chipewyans can never patiently see a\nfish without gouging out its eyes, and eating\n 1\n280\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nthem in a raw state; and they say, that\nthey are delicious. They, also, often make\ntheir meals upon raw fish or meat, that is\nfrozen; and appear to relish it fully as well,\nas when cooked.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Carriers, when they\ntake fish that have roes in them, squeeze\nthem, with their thumb and finger, through\ntheir natural outlet, into their mouths,\nand swaUow them down, with avidity. They\nalso bury in the earth large boxes, filled\nwith the roes of salmon, where they are\nsuffered to remain, until they are a little\nputrified, when they take them out, and\neat them, either cooked or raw; and they\nappear to relish them well, though they\nfill the air with a terrible stench, for a considerable distance round. A person who eats\nthis food, and rubs salmon oil on his hands,\ncan be smelt in warm weather, to the distance of nearly a quarter of a mile.\nThe natives in a part of the country\ncalled Nipigon, as well as in some other\nparts of the country, are frequently obliged,\nby necessity, to subsist on a kind of moss,\nwhich they find adhering to the rocks, and\nwhich they denominate As-se-ne Wa-quon-uck,\nthat is, eggs of the rock. This moss when\nboiled with pimican, &c. dissolves into a\nglutinous substance, and is very palatable;\nbut when cooked in water only, it is far\notherwise, as it then has an unpleasant,\nbitter taste. There is some nourishment\nin it; and it has saved the life of many of\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n281\nthe Indians, as well as of some of our voyagers.\nOn the Columbia River, there is a people\nwho subsist, during the greater part of the\nsummer, on nothing but roots, and a kind\nof bread, if it may be so called, made of the\nmossy stuff, which grows on the spruce fir\ntree, and which resembles the cobwebs, spun\nby.spiders. This subsrance contains a little\nnourishment. They gather it from the trees,\nand lay it in a heap, on which they sprinkle\na little water, and then leave it, for some\ntime, to ferment. After that, they roll it\nup into balls, as large as a man's head,\nand bake them in ovens, well heated, which\nare constructed in the earth. After having\nbeen baked about an hour, they are taken\nout for use. This substance is not very\npalatable; and it contains but little nourishment. It will, however, barely support life,\nfor a considerable time.\nThe Indians frequently eat the flesh of\nthe dog; and our Canadian voyagers are\nas fond of it, as of any other meat. I have\nfrequently eaten of them myself; and have\nfound them as palatable as a young pig,\nand much of the same flavour. These dogs\nare small; and in shape, very much resemble\nthe wolf. The large dogs are of a different\nbreed, and their flesh always has a rank\ntaste; but this is never the case with the\nsmaU kind.\nPerhaps I cannot more properly, than\n 282\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nin this connexion, state, that all the Indians,\nwhen they look in each other's heads, and\nfind lice, of which they have a plenty, both\nthere and on their bodies, crush them between their teeth, and frequently swallow\nthem. The reason which they give for this\nnauseous custom is, that, as the lice have\nfirst bitten them, they are only retaliating\nthe injury upon them.\nAs the Indians use no salt in the preservation of their meat, the lean part is\ncut into thin slices, and hung up in their\ntents, and dried in the smoke,' and the fat\nis melted down; and in this situation, it\nwill keep for years. They make marrow\nfat, by cutting the joints of the bones, which\nthey boil for a considerable time, and then\nskim off the top, which is excellent to eat\nwith their dried meat. They find a root in\nthe plains, that is nearly a foot long, and\ntwo or three inches in circumference, which\nis shaped like a carrot, and tastes like a\nturnip, which they pound fine, and then\ndry it in the sun. This, when boiled in fat\nbroth, is one of their most dainty dishes,\nat their feasts. The ordinary drink of the\nIndians is the broth of flesh or fish, or only\nwater.\nThe Indians on the east side of the Rocky\nMountain, pound choke cherries fine, and\ndry them in the sun, which are palatable,\neither eaten alone, or boiled in broth. They\nhave also a small berry, about the size of\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n283\na common currant, shaped like an egg, which\nI have called, in my Journal, shad berries,\nas I have heard them so denominated in New\nEngland, which they dry in the sun, and\neither boil them in broth, or mix them with\npounded meat and fat, in making pimican.\nBut the Carriers prepare these berries in a\ndifferent manner, in order to preserve them.\nThey make a kind of $ub, which will contain twenty or thirty gallons, of the bark\nof the spruce fir tree. Into the bottom of\nthis tub they put about a peck of these\nberries, and upon the top of them stones,\nthat are nearly red hot; they then put another layer of berries, and upon these, a\nlayer of stones, and so on until the tub is\nfull. They then cover it up, and let it remain in that situation for about five or\nsix hours, when they will have become perfectly cooked. They are then taken out,\nand crushed between the hands, and spread\non splinters of wood, tied together for the\npurpose, over a slow fire; and, while they\nare drying, the juice which ran out while\nthey were cooking in the tub, is rubbed\nover them. After two or three days drying,\nthey will be in a condition to be kept for\nseveral years. They are very palatable,\nespecially when a few whortleberries are\nmixed with them. The above described\nmethod of cooking berries, is far better than\ndoing them in brass or copper kettles, as I\nhave proved by repeated experiment.\n 284\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nThe Carriers cut off the heads of salmon,\nand throw them into the lake, where they\npermit them to remain a month, or at least\nuntil they become putrified. They then take\nthem out, and put them into a trough, made\nof bark, filled with water. Into this trough\nthey put a sufficiency of heated stones, to\nmake the water boil for a time, which wiU\ncause the oil to come out. of the heads of\nthe salmon, and rise to the top of the water.\nThis they skim off, and put into bottles\nmade of salmon skins; and they eat it with\ntheir berries. Its smell however is very disagreeable; and no people would think of\neating it excepting the Carriers.\nThe Indians are not regular in their meals;\nand they will eat a little, half a dozen times\nin a day, if they have food at hand. But\nthey are not great eaters; and they often\nsubsist for a great length of time, upon a\nvery little food. When they choose, however, and in a particular manner, sometimes\nat feasts, they will gorge down an incredible\nquantity. They do not drink largely, excepting the Carriers, who live upon dry fish.\nThey will sometimes swallow, at one draught,\nthree pints, or two quarts. When they can\nprocure food that is palatable, they will\neat in the same proportion. No favour\nwhich can be bestowed upon them is so gratefully received, as the means of making a\ngood meal.\nFrom the month of June, until the latter\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n285\nend of September, all animals have but little\nfur; and therefore, at this season, the Indians\ndo not hunt them much. The greater part\nof the Indians, on the east side of the Rocky\nMountain, now take the beaver in steel traps,\nwhich we sell them; frequently they shoot\nthem, with fire arms; and sometimes they\nmake holes through their lodges or huts,\nand then spear them. *Otters they take in\nthe same manner as beavers. The lynx or\ncat, they take in snares. Foxes, fishers,\nmartins, minks, &c. they take in a spring\ntrap.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The large animals are hunted chiefly\nfor their flesh; and are therefore killed,\nprincipally when they are the fattest, which\nmost of them are in the fall, and some of\nthem in the winter. Buffaloes, moose, red\ndeers, bears, &c. are generally killed with fire\narms. The Indians, however, in the plains,\nhave other methods of killing the buffaloe.\nSometimes the young men mount their\nhorses, and pursue them and bring them\ndown with their bows and arrows, which\nthey find more convenient for this purpose\nthan fire arms, as they can more easily\ntake an arrow from the quiver, than load\na musket, in such a situation. The following,\nis another method of taking the buffaloe.\nThe Natives look out for a small grove of\ntrees, surrounded by a plain. In this grove\nthey make a yard, by falling small trees,\nand interweaving them with brush; and they\nleave an opening into it about twenty feet\n 286\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nbroad. They select, for this purpose, a rising\npiece of ground, that the yard may not be\nseen at a distance. From each side of this\nopening, they fix two ranges of stakes, at\nabout an angle of ninety degrees from each\nother, extending about two miles into the\nplains. These stakes rise about four feet\nabove the ground, and are about forty feet\napart. On the top of each stake, they put\nbuffaloe dung, or tie a wisp of hay. After\nthis preparation, when a herd of buffaloes is\nseen at no great distance off, thirty or forty\nor more young men mount their racers,\nwhich are well trained to this business, and\nsurround them; and little difficulty is found\nin bringing them, within the range of the\nstakes. Indians are stationed by the side\nof some of these stakes, to keep them in\nmotion, so that the buffaloes suppose them\nall to be human beings. The horsemen press\nforward by the sides of the herd and behind\nthem, until, at length, with their tongues\nlolling from their mouths, they are brought\nto the entrance of the yard; and through\nit they rush without perceiving their danger,\nuntil they are shut in, to the number, oftentimes, of two or three hundred. When they\nfind themselves enclosed, the Indians say,\nand I have frequently seen myself, that they\nbegin to walk around the outside of the\nyard, in the direction of the apparent revolution of the sun, from east to west. Before any of them are killed, the Indians go\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS. 287\ninto the tent of the chief to smoke, which\nthey denominate making the buffaloe smoke.\nThey then go out to the yard, and kill the\nbuffaloes with bows and arrows; and there\nare Indians, who will send an arrow, entirely\nthrough one buffaloe, and kill, at the same\ntime, a second. When the buffaloes are all\nkilled and cut up, the tongues of all of them\nare taken to the tent ofcthe chief; and with\na part of them he makes a feast, and the\nremainder he allows his neighbours to keep.\nThe meat and skins are then distributed\namong the people of the whole camp; and\nwhether equally or not, no one will complain.\nShould any be displeased with their share,\nthey will decamp, and go and join another\nparty.\nThe Natives generally cut up. the body of\nan animal into eleven pieces, to prepare it\nfor transportation to their tents, or to our\nforts. These pieces are the four limbs, the\ntwo sides of ribs, the two sinews on each\nside of the back bone, the brisket, the croup,\nand the back bone. Besides these, they save\nand use the tongue, heart, liver, paunch,\nand some part of the entrails. The head,\nthey carry home, the meat which is on it\nthey eat; and the brains they rub over the\nskin, in dressing it.\u00E2\u0080\u0094After they have taken\nall the meat off from the skin, they stretch\nit on a frame, and suffer it to dry. They\nnext scrape of all the hair, and rub the\nbrains of the animal over the skin, and\n *>\n'288\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nthen smoke it; after which they soak it in\nwater, for about a day. They then take it\nout and wring it as dry as possible; and a\nwoman takes hold of each end, and they\nhold it over a fire, frequently pulling it and\nchanging its sides, until it is perfectly dry.\nAfter this it is smoked with rotten wood,\nand it becomes fit for use. This last part\nof the process, is to prevent it from becoming hard after it has been wet.\nThe Sauteux, who remain about the Lake\nof the Woods, now begin to plant Indian\ncorn and potatoes, which grow well. The\nMandans, also, along the Missouri River,\ncultivate the soil, and produce Indian corn,\nbeans, pumpkins, tobacco, &c. As they do\nnot understand curing their tobacco, it is of\nlittle use to them. The Sauteux, who live\nback from Mackana, raise large quantities of\nIndian corn, beans, &c. And also make\nmuch sugar, from the maple tree, which they\ndispose of to the North West Company, for\ncloth and other articles. As soon as the\nanimals become scarce, that are hunted for\ntheir furs, the Natives must till the ground\nfor subsistence, or live upon fish. This state\nof things already exists, in many places;\nand must, in all probability, be extended.\nThe Indians sometimes take the largest\nfish, such as sturgeon, trout, and some\nwhite fish, with spears. At other times, they\ntake their fish in drag-nets or scoop-nets.\nBut the more general way of taking them\n II\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n289\nis the following. They have nets, of from\ntwenty to sixty fathoms, in length, which\ncontain from twelve to forty meshes, of from\ntwo to seven inches in depth. Upon lines,\nwhich are fixed upon each side of the net,\nfor the purpose of strengthening it, they\nfasten, opposite to each other, a small stone\nand a wooden buoy, once in about the distance of two fathoms. The net is carefully\nthrown into the water, and by means of the\nstones on the one side, and the buoys on the\nother, it becomes extended, to its full breadth.\nThe ends of the net, which forms a semicircle,\nare secured by stones; and it is visited every\nday, and taken out of the water every second\nday, to be cleaned and dried. This is a\nvery easy operation, when the water is not\nfrozen. But the ice which, at some places,\nacquires the thickness of five feet, renders\nthe setting and taking out of the nets, a\nwork of greater difficulty. They then cut\nholes, at the distance of thirty feet from\neach other, to the whole length of the net,\none of which, is larger than the rest, being\ngenerally about four feet square, and is called\nthe basin. Through these holes, by means\nof poles of a suitable length, the net is placed\nin and drawn out of the water.\nThe Indians, throughout the whole country\nthat I have visited, have no other animals\ndomesticated, excepting the horse and the\ndog. Of the latter, they have several different species. Some of them are very large\n19\n 290\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nand strong, and are employed in carrying\nburdens; while others, which are small, assist\ntheir masters in the chace.\u00E2\u0080\u0094All Indians are\nvery fond of their hunting dogs. The people\non the west side of the Rocky Mountain,\n*/ 7\nappear to have the same affection for them,\nthat they have for their children; and they\nwill discourse with them, as if they were\nrational beings. They frequently call them\ntheir sons or daughters; and when describing\nan Indian, they will speak of him as father\nof a particular dog which belongs to him.\nWhen these dogs die, it is not unusual to\nsee their masters or mistresses place them\non a pile of wood, and burn them in the\nsame manner as they do the dead bodies\nof their relations; and they appear to lament\ntheir deaths, by crying and howling, fully\nas much as if they were their kindred. Notwithstanding this affection, however, when\nthey have nothing else with which to purchase articles which they want, they will\nsell their dogs.\nThose Indians, who live in a woody country,\nmake no use of horses, but employ their large\ndogs, to assist in carrying their baggage\nfrom place to place. The load is placed\nnear their shoulders, and some of these dogs,\nwhich are accustomed to it, will carry sixty\nor seventy pounds weight, the distance of\ntwenty five or thirty miles in a day.\nThe Assiniboins, Rapid Indians, Black feet\nand Mandans, together with all the other\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n291\nIndians who inhabit a plain country, always\nperform their journies on horse back. Indeed\nthey seldom go even a short distance from\ntheir tents, in any other manner. They\nhave some excellent horses, which will carry\nthem a great distance in a day. They sometimes go seventy miles, in twelve hours;\nbut forty or forty five miles is a common\nday's ride. They do not often use bridles,\nbut guide their horses with halters, made\nof ropes, which are manufactured from the\nhair of the buffaloe, which are very strong\nand durable. On the back of the horse,\nthey put a dressed buffaloe skin, on the top\nof which, they place a pad, from which are\nsuspended stirrups, made of wood, and covered with the skin of the testicles of the\nbuffaloe.\nSome of these Indians have forty or fifty\nhorses; and they attach a great value to\nthose, that are distinguished for their speed.\nWhenever an Assiniboin sells a racer, he separates from him, in a most affectionate manner.\nImmediately before delivering him to the purchaser, he steps up to the favourite animal,\nand whispers in his ear, telling him not to\nbe cast down or angry with his master for\ndisposing of him to another, for, he adds,\n\"you shall not remain long where you are.\nI sold you to obtain certairh articles, that I\nstood in great need of; but before many\nnights have passed, I will come and steal\nyou away.\" And, unless great vigilance on\n 292\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nthe part of the purchaser prevent, he gener-\nally fulfils his promise; for they are the greatest horse thieves, perhaps upon the face of\nthe earth. As there never falls much snow\non the large plains, the horses have not much\ndifficulty in finding a sufficiency of grass, on\nwhich to subsist, during the whole year; and\nthey are generally in good order.\nThe Indians who reside about large lakes\nand rivers, voyage about in the summer\nseason, in canoes, made \u00E2\u0080\u00A2 of the bark of the\nbirch or spruce fir tree; and two persons in\none of them, will easily go fifty miles in a\nday. The paddles, with which the canoe is\nmoved, are about five feet long, half of which\nlength, is a blade, four inches wide.\nThe Indians are good walkers; and will\nat sometimes, travel forty miles in a day,\nwith a pretty heavy load upon their backs.\nIn the winter season, the Indians use snow\nshoes; and it would be impossible to travel\nwithout them. They are constructed in several different shapes; but the following is the\nmost common form. They take a piece of\nwood, and with a crooked knife, work it\ndown, until it is about two inches wide, and\nan inch thick. These sticks are fastened together at one end, which constitutes the hind\npart; they are then bent so as to be about\na foot asunder in the middle, and to come\nnearly together forward. The space between\nthese sticks, they fill up with a lace work of\nthongs of deer skin. Other snow shoes come\n ll\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n293\nquite to a point before, where they are turned\nup; the side pieces are from eighteen to\ntwenty four inches apart, and, in the fall of\nthe year, when the snow is light, they are\nseven feet in length. The inner side piece is\nnearly straight, and the outside is arching,\nand the extremities behind, come together in\na point. The space between them, is worked\nas above mentioned. It is a little surprising that the Indians, who are accustomed to\nthem, will walk farther in a day on good\nsnow shoes, than they could do on bare\nground. But it is very fatiguing for those to\nwalk on them, who are not accustomed to do\nit. The Indians are trained to this exercise\nfrom the age of four years. Even at that\nearly age, they will go five or six miles in a\nday upon them, through the whole winter,\nas often as the Indians decamp, which, at\nsometimes, is every day, and at other times,\nonce in eight or ten days. Indians, who\nlive upon the chace, in a country where animals are scarce, cannot remain long in a\nplace; and those who hunt the beaver and\nsome other animals, must continually shift\ntheir residence.\nFew of the Indians live in a state of celibacy. They generally marry when they are\nbetween eighteen and twenty five years of age.\nPolygamy is allowed among all the tribes;\nbut only a few persons among them, have\nmore than one wife, each. I knew, however, a chief, among the Beaver Indians,\n-si\n 294\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nwho had eleven wives, and more than forty\nchildren.\nTheir courtship and marriage are conducted in the following manner. A young\nman who is desirous of taking a wife, looks\naround among the young women of his acquaintance, to find one that pleases his fancy.\nHaving thus singled out one, to her he makes\nknown his intentions; and if his addresses are\nfavourably received, he visits her, in the night\nseason, by crawling softly into the tent where\nshe lodges, and where she is expecting him,\nafter the other inhabitants of the lodge are\nasleep. Here they pass the night, by conversing in a whisper, lest they should be\nheard by the rest of the family, who aU occupy the same apartment. As the morning\nlight approaches, he withdraws in the same\nsilent manner, in which he came. These\nnocturnal visits are kept up for several\nmonths; or, until the young couple think\nthat they should be happy, in passing their\ndays together. The girl then proposes the\nsubject to her mother, and she converses with\nthe father in regard to the intended match.\nli he give his consent, an67 the mother\nagree with him in opinion, she will direct her\ndaughter to invite her suitor to come and\nremain with them. It is now only, that they\ncohabit; and whatever the young man kills,\nhe brings home and presents it to the father\nof his wife. In this way he lives, during a\nyear or more, without having any property\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n295\nthat he can call his own. After his wife has\na child, she calls her husband by no other\nname but the father- of her son or daughter.\nAnd now he is at liberty to leave the tent\nof his wife's father, if he pleases. All the\nIndians on the east side of the rocky mountain, think it very indecent for a father or\nmother in law, to speak to, or look in the\nface of a son or daughter in law; and they\nnever do either unless they are very much\nintoxicated. The reason which they give for\nthis custom, when questioned on the subject\nis, the peculiar intercourse which this person\nhas had with their child.\nWhen two young persons of different sexes,\nhave an affection for each other, and wish\nto be connected in marriage, to which the\nfather of the girl will not consent, they frequently leave the tents of their parents, and\ngo and join some distant band of Indians,^\nThey are, however, often pursued, by the\nfather of the young woman; and should he\novertake them, he will bring his daughter\nback, and keep a strict watch over her conduct, to prevent all intercourse between her\nand her suitor. All neighbouring tribes frequently intermarry.\nChastity in young women, is considered as\na virtue, by the Indians, generally, on the\neast side of the Rocky Mountain; and many\nmothers, among some tribes are so particular, that they never allow their daughters,\nwho have arrived at a certain age, to go\n 296\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nfrom home alone, but always send some person with them, as a protector. Chastity\nin married persons is universally regarded as\na virtue; and the want of it in a woman,\nis frequently the cause of her being rejected\nby her husband. A separation, also, at some\ntimes, takes place, on account of the slothful-\nness of the woman. When such an event\ndoes occur, all the children, if small, remain\nwith their mother, but should they have sons,\nadvanced beyond the period of childhood,\nthey remain with their father. Their separations, however, are seldom lasting; and\nafter a few days absence, the parties gener-\naUy have an inclination to return to each\nother. These separations commonly take\nplace in obedience to the wiU of the husband,\nonly because, possessing greater physical\nstrength, he has more power to drive his\nwife from him, or to retain her with him,\nagainst her choice, than she has to treat\nhim in a similar manner.\nThe Indian women sit down in a decent\nattitude, placing their knees close to each\nother. They are very particular, also, in\nregard to their behaviour, during their periodical Illness. They then leave the tents\nwhere their families reside, and go and put\nup temporary ones, at a little distance from\nthem, where they remain during the continuance of their illness. While they are there,\nthe men will not deign to hold any conversation with them; nor will they suffer\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n297\nthem to make use of any article, which they\nexpect to want the use of afterwards. This\ncustom prevails among all the tribes, with\nwhom I have been acquainted. The first\ntime that the young women, among the\nSauteux, Crees and some other tribes, experience this illness, they run into the woods,\nand remain there for several days. They\nthen return to their tents, and immediately\nproceed to cut and pile up a cord of wood,\nas high as their heads; after which all the\nwomen of the camp come and scramble for\nit, and carry it away, saying, that the person who cut the wood, is now a woman like\nthemselves, and that they hope she will prove\nto be industrious.\nThe men among the Indians, are very subject to be jealous of their wives. In their fits\nof jealousy, they often cut off all the hair\nfrom the heads of their wives, and, not un-\nfrequently, cut off their noses, also; and\nshould they not in the moment of passion\nhave a knife at hand, they will snap it off\nat one bite, with their teeth. But such a\ncircumstance does not ordinarily produce a\nseparation between them. The man is satisfied in thus revenging a supposed injury;\nand having destroyed the beauty of his wife,\nhe concludes that he has secured her against\nall future solicitations to offend.\nAll the Indians consider women as far in-\nferiour in every respect, to men; and, among\nmany tribes, they treat their wives much as\n 298\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nthey do their dogs. The men chastise their\nwives, frequently, with an axe, or with a\nlarge club; and in the presence of their husbands, the women dare not look a person in\nthe face. When they decamp, the women\ntransport the baggage; and when they stop,\nwhile the men are quietly smoking their\npipes, the women are required to pitch the\ntents, and to set the encampment in order.\nAmong the Sauteux, Crees, Muscagoes and\nAssiniboins, however, the women are treated\nwith more gentleness and respect. The husband shares the labour with his wife; and\nthe women govern every thing in their tents,\nso that the husband presumes not to dispose\nof the most trifling article, without the consent of his wife. Among them the husband\nkills animals and generally brings the meat\nto his tent, where his wife prepares it for\ndrying, and melts down the fat. She, also\ngeneraUy does the cooking; not, however,\nwithout the occasional assistance of her husband. He assists her, likewise, in taking-\ncare of the children; and, if his wife is too\nmuch loaded, in marching from one place of\nencampment to another, he will take one of\nthe smaU children in addition to the load\nalready on his own back. But the Indians,\nwho inhabit the plains, never carry any\nthing on their backs, as they are well supplied with horses.\nThe following ceremonies attend the birth\nof children. When the time of a woman ap-\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n299\nproaches, she erects a small hut, at a little\ndistance from the tent in which she usually\nlives; and at the time of labour, she sends\nan invitation to several neighbouring women,\nto come to her assistance. As soon as the\nchild is born, it is washed in water, that\nhad been previously prepared, by boiling in\nit a sweet scented root. The mother then\norders a feast to be prepared. As soon as\nit is ready, the most aged woman of the\ncompany, takes a little out of the dish, and\nthrows it into the fire, and then helps the\nwhole company; not passing by the mother\nof the child, who is generally able to join\nthem in the repast. The old lady of ceremonies, now offers up a short prayer to the\nCreator, or the Master of life, as they denominate him, in behalf of the new born babe,\nthe substance of which is, that its life may be\nspared, and that it may grow; and if a son,\nbecome a handsome young lad.\nA woman after child birth, remains in the\nseparate dwelling which she had erected, for\nthe space of about thirty days, during which\ntime, no man would, on any account, enter\nthe place of her residence. At the close of\nthis period, she returns to her tent, and the\nfather of the child prepares a feast to which\nall their neighbours are invited, the object of\nwhich as they say, is, to welcome the arrival\nof the little stranger, from a far country.\nShould a male child live, the parents dry\nthe meat of the first animal that he kills,\n 300\nACCOUNT OP THE INDIANS.\nand carefuUy keep it, until they can collect\na sufficiency of something to make a feast.\nThey then invite their friends, of both sexes,\nto come and partake of the fruits of the\nhunt of their son; for, they so call it, because\nthe animal which he kiUed, they mix with\nwhat his parents have procured. Before any\ntaste of the feast, one of the most respectable\nmen present, takes a little out of the dish,\nand throws it into the fire; and then beseeches the Great Spirit, to be kind to the\nlad, and to aUow him to grow up, and to\nbecome a skilful hunter; and to cause that\nwhen he goes to war, he may not behave\nlike an old woman, but may return with the\nscalps of his enemies.\nIndian women appear to suffer less pain in\nchild birth, than women in civilized countries.\nThey rarely ever take any medicine, at the\ntime of delivery, though they do, at times,\ndrink water, in which the rattle of a rattlesnake has been boiled. In the season of\nlabour, they place their knees upon the floor\nor ground, and lean forward over something,\nraised about two feet high, ft is seldom\nmore than a quarter or a half an hour, before the child is born; and, in a few days the\nmother is as active and vigorous as ever.\nThe Indian women rarely ever die, at this\ncritical period.\nAmong the natives, those persons who are\nin any way deformed, or have any blemish\nabout them, receive their name from this\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n301\ncircumstance; while the others are named,\nafter some beast or bird. No Indian will\ninform another, even if requested, what his\nown name is; though he will, if asked, give\nthe name of other Indians. Of the reason of\nthis reserve I am ignorant.\nIt is not often that an Indian chastises\nhis children; and, indeed, it is not necessary,\nfor they appear, in general, to have much\naffection and respect for their parents, and\nare therefore ready to obey them. A father\nnever interferes in the bringing up of his\ndaughter; but leaves her wholly to the care\nof her mother. When a son becomes of a\nsuitable age, his father takes him with him in\nhunting, and learns him the different modes\nof taking animals. A son until he is married,\nconsiders himself as under his father's con-\ntroul; and even after that, he will generally listen to any advice, which his father\nmay give to him. The aged are commonly\ntreated with much respect, which they consider themselves as entitled to claim. Should\na young man behave disrespectfully toward\nan old man, the aged will refer him to his\nhoary head, and demand of him, if he be\nnot ashamed to insult his grey hairs. In\nshort, the aged of both sexes are generally\ntreated with kindness; and are not suffered\nto want anything which they need, and which\nit is in the power of their relations to procure\nfor them.\nThe superior influence of the white people,\n 302\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nWhere they have, for a considerable time,\nresided among the Indians, has very much\ndiminished their respect for their own chiefs;\nthough there are some among them, who\nbear this title. The feasts are commonly\nmade by the chiefs; and they, also, generally make the harangues, in behalf of their\nbands, when they visit our forts. Their war\nchiefs have considerable influence over the\nyoung men, who accompany them, in their\nwar parties.\nMurder and theft are considered as crimes;\nand the former is always punished with\ndeath, unless the murderer makes his escape,\nwhich is generally the case. Theft, also, is\nfrequently punished in a similar manner.\nSometimes, the party offended will be appeased, by the restoration of the stolen\nproperty, or of an equivalent.\nGenerosity is among the Indian virtues.\nThey are more ready, in proportion to their\nmeans, to assist a neighbour who may be in\nwant, than the inhabitants, generally, of\ncivilized countries. An Indian rarely kills an\nanimal, without sending a part of it to a\nneighbour, if he has one near him.\nThe private property of the Indians, consists of horses, dogs, tents, guns, and the\nutensils that belong to their tents. Some\nof these things, a little before their death,\nthey bequeath to some of their friends; but\nall of their clothing, guns, powder horns, &c.\nare buried with them. Indeed, the Indians\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n303\nsuffer nothing to remain in or about the\ntent of a person who has died, which he was\naccustomed to make use of while he was\nalive. They consider it a kind of sacrilege to\nmention the name of a person after he is\ndead; and they never speak of him as dead,\nbut as miserable, because, they say, he has\ntaken a long journey alone, to the country,\nto which his deceased relations had gone before him.\nWhenever any one is very sick, the whole of\nhis family, and frequently all of his relations,\nwill give some part of their clothing in sacrifice to the devil or evil spirit, who, they\nsuppose, is the cause of his illness. They,\nhowever, pray to the Good Spirit, or Master\nof life, for his recovery, as they believe that\nhe has the power, if he choose to exercise it,\nof restoring him to health, notwithstanding\nthe design which the evil spirit has, of taking his life from him.\nAll the Indians on the east side of the\nRocky Mountain, bury their dead. After a\nperson is dead, some of his deceased relatives\ncut off a lock of his hair, which they carefully lay up; and they sometimes preserve\nsuch relicks, for a great number of years.\nPreparatory to its interment, they dress the\ncorpse in as gay a manner as possible; and\nthen wrap a blanket, over the whole. But\nthey never sew or pin this blanket together,\nlest he should be unable to shake it off with\nease, when he arrives in the other world. If\n 304\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nit were fastened, they say, he might lie in it\nfor several days, after his arrival in the land\nof his departed relations, before any one\nwould meet with, and release him. The bottom and sides of the grave, which is two or\nthree feet deep, are lined with the branches\nof trees. The corpse is then deposited in it;\nand along with it, a pipe and tobacco, a dish\nor small kettle, an awl and sinews to repair\nhis shoes, and a sufficiency of provisions, to\nsupport him for a few days, until he shall\narrive in the land of plenty. They then\ncover the body with branches, and fill up the\ngrave with earth; and on the top of it, they\nplace bark, to protect it from the rain or\nsnow. They then clear off the bushes and\ngrass, for eight or ten feet around the grave;\nand every spring, the ground is thus renew-\nedly cleared, for several years after. About\nthe grave, they set up a few stakes on which\nthey hang strips of cloth, tobacco, &c. While\nthe ceremonies of interment are performing,\nthe relatives and friends of the deceased,\nmake the most dismal moans and cries;\nand, to convince others of their grief, and,\nas they say, to ease their wounded hearts,\nsome of them cut the hair of their heads\nshort, or make incisions in their faces and\narms, while others, to whom the deceased\nwas more dear, will seize an arrow, in an\nagony of grief, and run it through the fleshy\npart of their thighs.\nThe Indians generally appear to be more\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n305\nafflicted with the loss of an infant, helpless\nchild, than of a person that has arrived to\nmature age; for the latter, they say, can\nprovide for himself, in the country whither\nhe has gone, while the former, is too young\nto depend upon himself.\nThe men appear to be ashamed to manifest their grief at the loss of any one, however dear he might have been to them; but\nthe women give full vent to the feelings of\nnature. The fond mother, when she looses a\nyoung child, will pull out all the hair of her\nhead; cut her face, arms and legs, in a shocking manner; burn all her clothes, excepting a\nfew rags, which she has upon her; and, to\nrender herself as wretched, as she expresses\nit, as her child, when the weather is stormy,\nshe will stand for hours at a time, in the\nopen air, and pitifully moan, in such language as this. \"How wretched are you, my\nchild, to be torn from your friends while so\nyoung and helpless; and to be sent alone,\ninto a strange country! Who will now give\nyou bread when you are hungry, and water,\nwhen you are thirsty, and make a covering\nfor you to lie under when it rains or snows!\n0 that I could once more press you, my dear\nchild, to my troubled breast! Of what use\nto me are all my medicines, since they could\nnot save your life, and keep you a little longer\nwith us !\" Then, in a rage of passion and of\ngrief, she will rush into her tent, and seize\nher medicine bag, and throw it into the fire.\n20\n 306\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nAll the Indian tribes are frequently at war\nwith each other; and at some times, two\ntribes will league together, against one\ntribe or more. Those who reside in a woody\ncountry, do not as frequently wage war\nagainst their neighbours, as those who live\nin the large plains. The latter, generally\nengage in war, either offensive or defensive,\nat the opening of every spring. The summer\nis the only season of military operations,\namong the Indians; though they frequently\nemploy much time in the winter, in providing\nbows, arrows, guns and ammunition, with\nreference to a campaign, the ensuing season.\nPreparatory to hostilities, the chiefs, toward\nthe close of winter, send young men with\npresents of tobacco, to the whole tribe, who\nare scattered over their territory, inviting\nthem to meet, at a specified place, early in\nthe spring, in general council. At this meeting, chiefs are appointed to conduct the war.\nThe war pipe is then lighted up, and those\nwho are willing to become soldiers in the\ncampaign, smoke the pipe. None are compelled to enlist; but, to excite in the young\nmen a martial spirit, and to stimulate them\nto become his followers, the war chief makes\na long harangue, in which he relates the injuries, that they have received from their\nenemies. By a strong appeal to their savage\nfeelings, he labours to convince them, that\nit will be sweet and manly, to revenge these\ninsults; and to return from the war, with the\n4a_,\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n307\nscalps of their enemies, and with their wives,\nand children, and horses, &c.\nA feast is then made, of which all partake,\nafter which, the young men dance, and sing\nwar songs. After these ceremonies are ended,\nthe chief or chiefs set out on the war expedition, with as many as choose to follow\nthem; and as they leave the camp, the war\nparty join in a war song. After their departure, the old men and women and children\npursue their usual occupations, to obtain a\nsubsistence. Frequently, after the war party\nhas been gone several days, some of the\nyoung men return, to join their relations or\nlovers. All the punishment to which they\nsubject themselves is, to be called old women,\nby which is meant, cowards; a charge which\ntouches an Indian to the quick.\nWar parties frequently travel four or five\nhundred miles, before they reach the territory\nof their enemies. On their way, they subsist\nupon animals which they kill, and fish which\nthey take, from the lakes and rivers. These\nsupplies are often very inadequate, and they\nsuffer greatly by hunger.\nHaving arrived near the place where they\nexpect to find their enemies, the chiefs send\nout scouting parties, in order to ascertain\ntheir position, numbers and any other circumstances which it may be necessary for\nthem to know, in order to form a plan for\ntaking them by surprise. The Indians never\nattack their enemies in the open day; but\n 308\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nfall upon them when asleep, near the approach of the light of the morning.\nIf they succeed in conquering their enemies,\nas is generally the case, since those who\nmake the attack have greatly the advantage,\nthey make terrible havoc among the men;\nbut they labour to take as many of their\nwomen and children alive, as they possibly\ncan, in order to carry them home as slaves.\nThey never torture these captives; but keep\nthem to perform the menial service about\ntheir tents, or dispose of them to others.\nSometimes they are adopted into the families\nof their enemies, in the place of children that\nthey have lost; and then they are treated\nwith all the tenderness and affection, which\nwould be exercised toward a near relation.\nOn their return from the expedition, the\nwar party approach the tents of their band,\nwith their faces blackened, and singing the\nwar song. Their relations immediately make\na feast, \"at which the warriours dance, with\nthe scalps of their enemies which they have\ntaken, in their hands; and recount the history of the expedition, particularly relating\nthe manner in which they fell upon their\nenemies, the number of men that they killed,\nand of slaves, horses, &c. which they have\ntaken. They then distribute a part of the\nbooty, among the aged chiefs, and most\nrespectable men of the tribe, who remained\nat home. The young men, who deserted the\nparty, are treated with contempt; and the\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n309\nyoung women, whose charms may have attracted them back, frequently compose songs\nof derision, in regard to their behaviour.\nThe occasions of war among the Indians\nare various. Sometimes a person in one\ntribe has been murdered by a person belonging to another tribe; sometimes the\nmembers of one tribe have hunted on the\nlands of another; and sometimes horses\nhave been stolen. The Indians, who inhabit\nthe large plains, who always go to war on\nhorseback, frequently attack their neighbours\nmerely to obtain, by this means, horses and\nslaves. It is not uncommon, also, for the\nNatives, when they lose a respected chief,\nor any other person generally beloved, either\nby an ordinary or a violent death, to form\na war party, for the purpose of killing one\nperson or more, of a neighbouring tribe; and\nthe case is the same, whether this tribe be\nat peace with them, or not. This slaughter,\nthey say, enables them to calm their grief,\nand sets their hearts at rest, as blood has\nthus been offered to the manes of their departed friend.\nA person appointed to head a war party,\nis called a chief, or O-ke-maw. He must\nhave given distinguished proof of his bravery,\nprudence and cunning, in former war expeditions, in order that he should be considered as qualified to fill this post. Great\nskill, in coming upon an enemy by surprise,\nas on this circumstance the success of an\n 10\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nattack depends, is considered as the first requisite in a military leader. It is considered\nnecessary, also, that he should be well acquainted with the situation of the territories\nof the enemy, and with the course leading to\nthem, in which provisions can most easily be\nobtained. A war party sometimes consists\nof several hundreds; but frequently it does\nnot amount to more than twenty. The war\nchief has no authority over his followers,\nbut his advice is generally respected and followed.\nIt is not often that two tribes, who have\nbeen in the habit of carrying on war against\neach other, formaUy enter into terms of\npeace. When such an event does take place,\nthe following circumstances attend it. One\nchief or more, and- several young men of his\ntribe, go with their pipe of peace, to find\ntheir enemies; and on their arrival among\nthem, they express a desire to hold a council\nwith them. Upon this, all the elders of the\ntribe visited are called together; and the\nchief, who is an ambassadour for peace,\nmakes known his business, and strives to\nconvince his enemies, that it will be for their\nadvantage to live on amicable terms with\nhis tribe.\nShould the terms of peace be agreed on,\nthe parties smoke in each ether's pipes, after\nwhich a feast is prepared; and when that is\nconcluded, the remainder of the night is spent\nin singing and dancing.\u00E2\u0080\u0094But should the\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n311\nembassy be unsuccessful, the chief, with his\nattendants, will return, and make report of\nhis proceedings to his own tribe; and those\nof them who are able and willing to bear\narms, will immediately, though as secretly as\npossible, commence making preparations for\na campaign, the ensuing spring. The points\nof the arrows, which the Indians use in attacking their enemies, are sometimes dipped\nin a poisonous liquid which they extract\nfrom certain roots.\nAll the Indians spend much of their time\nin some kind of amusement. The inhabitants of the plains, generally, and of New\nCaledonia, live in large bands; and are much\nmore addicted to a usements, than the inhabitants of woody countries who are more\nscattered. Every tribe has amusements peculiar to itself; but some plays are common to all, who reside on the east side of\nthe Rocky Mountain. The Assiniboins, as\nwell as all the other Indians in the plains,\nspend much of their time about their horses,\nand are fond of trying their speed. Their\nyouth, from the age of four or five to that\nof eighteen or twenty years, pass nearly\nhalf of their time in shooting arrows at a\nmark; and to render this employment more\ninteresting, they always have something at\nstake, which is generally nothing more than\nan arrow, or something of small value. From\nso early and constant a practice, they become,\nat length, the best marksmen, perhaps, in\n 312\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nthe world. Many of them, at the distance\nof eight or ten rods, will throw an arrow\nwith such precision, as twice out of three\ntimes, to hit a mark of the size of a doUar.\nThe young men often amuse themselves, in\nthe summer season, by a game of ball.\nWhat is denominated by the Indians, the\ndish game, is played with peculiar interest,\nby all the tribes with whom I have been\nacquainted. Eight or ten little pieces of\nbones, or so many buttons, or some similar\nthings, have a certain number of marks upon\ntheir different sides, so that they bear\nsome resemblance to dice. These are put into\na dish, which two persons shake alternately,\nand turn its contents on the ground. The\nmarks on the sides of the bones, &c. which\nare uppermost, are then counted; and, in a\ngiven number of throws, he who can count\nthe greatest number of marks, wins whatever\nis at stake; for they never play, without\nsomething.\nThe Sauteux\" and Crees are very fond of\nplaying at draughts; and they are considerably skilful, at this game. They have, also,\nmany other plays and diversions, which\nenable them to pass away the greater part\nof their leisure time, gaily. The Indians,\ngenerally, appear cheerful and contented,\nwhen oppressed by no present difficulty or\ndanger; for they take little thought for the\nthings of the morrow.\nThe Indians do not often dance, in the\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n313\nday time; but they frequently spend their\nlong winter evenings, in this amusement,\naccompanied by singing; and they appear\nto enjoy themselves fully as well, on such\noccasions, as civilized people do, at their\nmore refined assemblies.\nAll the Natives are accustomed to make\nfeasts, on various occasions, and particularly\nwhen any uncommon or important business\nis to be transacted. When a band of from\nthirty to fifty tents is collected, scarcely a\nday passes without an entertainment, made\nby some one of the number.\nWhen a chief proposes to make a feast, he\ninvites such guests as he pleases, by sending\nto them quills, or small pieces of wood.\nEvery person, who attends, brings with him\na dish and a knife. The chief generally receives his guests, standing, but oftentimes,\nsitting; and a person who assists him, seats\nthem, according to their ages or respectability, the most honourable place being\nnext to the chief. After having made a division of what had been provided, into a number of parts, equal to the number of persons\npresent, the chief lights his pipe, and smokes\na few whiffs himself; and he then presents\nthe stem toward the sun, as if offering it\nto that luminary, and to the earth, and\nthen to his deceased relations, pointing it\ntoward the fire. These ceremonies being over,\nhe presents it successively to each person\npresent, who smokes a few whiffs in his turn.\n 314\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nA small quantity of meat or drink is then\nsacrificed, by throwing it into the fire, or\non the earth, and the provisions are served\nround. While the company are partaking of\nthem, the chief sings, and accompanies his\nsong, by the che-che-quy or tambourin. The\nperson who devours his portion the soonest,\nis considered as deserving applause. If any\ncannot eat all that is set before him, as custom does not aUow him to leave any thing,\nhe endeavours, by the promise of a reward\nof tobacco or ammunition, to prevail upon\nhis friends to assist him. These substitutes,\nit is frequently difficult to procure, as the\nfood provided on these occasions, is generally much more than is necessary to satisfy\nthe calls of nature. At some of their feasts,\na more rational custom prevails, of permitting the guests to carry away what they do\nnot wish to eat, of their portions. The meat\nwhich is generally eaten on these occasions,\nis that of the beaver; and the bones of this\nanimal, which are extremely hard, that remain after the feast, are burned, lest the\ndogsr by attempting to break them, should\ninjure their teeth.\nThe public feasts are conducted in the\nsame manner, but with additional ceremony.\nSeveral chiefs unite in preparing a suitable\nplace, and in collecting sufficient provisions,\nfor the accommodation of a numerous assemblage. To provide a place, poles are fixed\nobliquely into the ground, enclosing a suf-\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n315\nficient space to hold several hundred, and at\ntimes, nearly a thousand people. On these\nposle, skins are laid, at the height of twelve\nor fifteen feet, thus forming a spacious court,\nor tent. The provisions consist both of dried\nand of fresh meat, as it would not be practicable to prepare a sufficient quantity of\nfresh meat, for such a multitude, which,\nhowever, consists only of men. At these/\nfeasts, the guests converse only on elevated\ntopics, such as the public interests of the\ntribe, and the noble exploits of their progenitors, that- they may infuse a publick and\nan heroic spirit, into their young men. Dancing always forms the concluding ceremony,\nat these festivals; and the women, who are\nnot permitted to enter the place where they\nare celebrated, dance and sing around them,\noften keeping time with the music within.\nAll the different tribes of Indians, on the\neast side of the Rocky Mountain, believe in\nthe existence of one Supreme Being, the\ncreator and governour of the world, whom\nthey call Kitch-e-mon-e-too, or the Great\nSpirit; and to him they ascribe every perfection. They consider him as the authour\nof all good, and as too benevolent to inflict\nany evil upon his creatures. They render him\nlittle worship; but occasionally supplicate of\nhim success in their important undertakings, and very rarely, render him some sacrifices, consisting of some part of their property.\n 316\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nThey, also, believe in the existence of a\nbad spirit, whom they call Much-e-mon-e-too,\nto whom they ascribe great power, and who,\nthey believe is the authour of all evils; by\nwhich mankind are afflicted. To him, therefore, in order to obtain deliverance from\nevils which they either experience or fear,\nthey offer many, and sometimes expensive,\nsacrifices. They consider him as ever employed, in plotting against their peace and\nsafety; and they hope, by such means, to\nappease his anger.\nThey, also, believe that there are good\nand bad spirits, of an inferiour order, who\nare superiour to men in the scale of existence,\nand who have allotted spheres of action, in\nwhich they are contributing to the happiness\nor misery of mankind. These beings they\nsuppose preside over all the extraordinary\nproductions of nature, such as large lakes,\nrivers and mountains, and spacious caverns,\n&c. and likewise over the beasts, birds, fishes,\nvegetables, and stones, that exceed the rest\nof their species in size, or in any other remarkable quality. On this account, they pay\nto all these objects, some kind of adoration.\nThey, also, believe in a future state of\n\u00C2\u00AB/ 7 J\nexistence. Those who, while in the present\nworld, have, according to their ideas of right\nand wrong, led a good life, will, at death,\nimmediately enter on another and a better\nstate of existence, where they will meet their\ndeparted relatives and friends, who will\n \u00C2\u00AB\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n317\nwelcome them in the most affectionate manner,\nto their happy abode. In the future world,\nthey believe that they shall possess bodies\nmore beautiful and healthy and vigourous,\nthan those which they animated on earth;\nand that they shall be much more happy,\nthan they were in the present life, since the\ncountry in which they will reside, abounds\nwith all kinds of game, which they will be\nable to take, with little or no trouble, and\nsupplies every gratification, in which they\nnow delight, in perfection and without end.\nBut those who lead wicked lives on earth,\nthey suppose will, at death, be conveyed\ninto the middle of an extensive swamp or\nmarsh, where they will, for a considerable\nlength of time, be doomed to wander about\nalone, in search of their deceased friends.\nAfter having suffered greatly, from hunger\nand cold, they suppose that they will, at\nlength, arrive at the pleasant habitation of\ntheir departed relatives, and participate with\nthem, in all its delights forever.\nThe religious observances of the Indians,\nconsist of prayers, of feasts, and of a sacrifice\nof some part of their property.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Their prayers, which are offered only on special occasions, are always, addressed to the Supreme\nBeing, or Master of Life. Their religious\nfestivals are attended with much serious ceremony. They commence with opening the\nmedicine bag, and displaying its contents,\nand with smoking out of the sacred stem.,\n 318\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nAlmost every male Indian has a medicine bag,\nwhich is commonly made of leather, and is\nabout two feet long, and a foot broad. The\nfoUowing articles are generally contained in\nthis bag. The principal in importance is\na small image, carved to resemble a bird,\nbeast or human being, which they seem to\nconsider as the peculiar residence of their tutelary spirit. This image, they carefully wrap\nin down, around which a piece of birch bark\nis tied, and the whole is enclosed in several\nfolds of red and blue cloth. Every Indian\nappears to have a reverence for the Image\nin his own medicine bag; but will often\nspeak disrespectfully of one, belonging to\nanother person. The next article in the\nbag, is the war cap of its owner, which is\ndecorated with the plumes of scarce birds,\nand with the claws of the beaver, eagle, &c.\nIt has also a quill or feather, suspended from\nit, for every enemy, whom its owner has slain\nin battle. The other contents of the bag are\na piece of tobacco, and some roots and other\nsubstances, which are supposed to possess\nvaluable medicinal qualities. To the outside\nof the bag, the sacred stem is tied, which is\ngenerally about six feet long. This stem is\nused only for smoking on sacred occasions.\nThis medicine bag is generaUy hung, in fair\nweather, on the limb of a tree, or on a stake,\nat a little distance from the tent; and an\nIndian would severely beat his wife, if she\nshould presume to touch it. This is the\n A\nm\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n319\nonly article which the men invariably carry\nthemselves, when they are decamping. Many\nof them pretend, that by examining it, they\ncan foretel future events.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The women, also,\nhave their own medicine bag; but they are\nnot considered as of a sacred character, and\nmerely contain their own articles of medicine.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094Smoking out of the sacred stem, is performed with numerous ceremonies, many of\nwhich are probably unmeaning.\nSome Indians make a promise to the\nMaster of Life, that they will make a feast\nevery spring during a certain number of successive years, if their lives are spared; and\nthey religiously fulfil such vows.\nSome of their feasts are designed to propitiate the evil spirit, as are nearly all the\nsacrifices which they make of their property.\nSometimes in an open enclosure, on the bank\nof a river or lake, they make large sacrifices\nof their property. They choose a conspicuous\nsituation, that those who pass by, may\nbe induced to make their offering. If any\nof the tribe that makes these offerings, or\neven a stranger who is passing these places,\nshould be in urgent want of anything\nwhich has been deposited as an offering, he\nis allowed to take it, by replacing it with\nanother article which he can spare, though\nof inferiour value; but to take wantonly any\nof those devoted articles, is considered as\nsacrilege.\nThere are also certain large rocks and\n 320 ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\ncaves, which they never pass without leaving\nat them some trifling article; for they suppose that they are the habitations of\nsome good or evil spirits. Indeed they\nthink that almost every lake, river and\nmountain has its tutelary spirit, whom they\nattempt to propitiate, by some offering.\nAll the Natives suppose the earth to be\nan extensive plain, and that it is always at\nrest; and that the sun and moon and many\nof the stars continually revolve around it*.\nThe sun, they believe to be a large body\nof fire. To many of the stars they have\ngiven names, such as the morning star, the\nevening star, and the seven stars; and\nby their position in the heavens, they are\nable to determine the time of night. They,\nalso, direct their course by them in travelling, in the night season. The stars which\nthey have named, they perceive change their\nposition continually in the heavens; and they\nbelieve that, like the sun and the moon, they\nrevolve around the earth. Of the motion of\nthe other stars, they take no notice and consider them as stationary^! The following is\nthe manner in which they divide a day and\nnight, or twenty four hours: from the first\nappearance of day light to sunrise, from this\ntime till noon, from noon to sunset, from\nthis to midnight, and from midnight to day\nbreak. They are ignorant of the number of\ndays, which there are in a year; but reckon\nthirteen moons, to complete the four seasons.\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n321\nThe following are the names of the four\nseasons, in the Cree tongue. Winter, A-pe-\npook or Pepoon; Spring, Me-is-ka-mick or\nSe-gum-uck; Summer, Nic-pin; Autumn, Tuck-\nwa-gin.\nThe names, which they give to the moons\nthat compose the year, are descriptive of\nthe several seasons, and in Cree, are the\nfollowing:\nMay, I-ich-e Pes-im, Frog Moon.\nJune, O-pin-a-wa we Pes-im, the Moon in\nwhich birds begin to lay their eggs.\nJuly, O-pus-ko we Pes-im, The Moon when\nbirds cast their feathers.\nAugust, O-pavko we Pes-im, The Moon when\nthe young birds begin to fly.\nSeptember, W&-w\u00C2\u00A3ls-kis o Pes-im, The\nMoon when the moose cast their horns; or\nA-pin-nas-ko o Pes-im, The Moon when the\nleaves fall off from the trees.\nOctober, O-no-chi-hit-to-wa o Pes-im, The\nrutting Moon; or O-ke-wa-ow o Pes-im, The\nMoon when the fowls go to the south.\nNovember, Ay-e-coop-ay o Pes-im, Hoar\nfrost Moon. Kus-kut-te-no o Pes-im, Ice\nMoon.\nDecember, Pa-watch-e-can-a-nas o Pes-im,\nWhirlwind Moon.\nJanuary, Kush-a-pa-was-ti-ca-num o Pes-\nim, Extreme cold Moon.\nFebruary, Kee-chay o Pes-im, The Moon\nwhen small birds begin to chirp or sing;\nor Kich-ee o Pes-im, Big, or old Moon.\n21\n 322\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nMarch, Me-ke-su o Pes-im, Eagle Moon.\nApril, Nis-ka o Pes-im, Goose Moon, as at\nthis season, these animals return from the\nsouth.\nThe Indians compute the distance from\none place to another, by the number of\nnights which they have passed, in performing a journey from one to the other.\nAll the Natives employ hieroglyphicks,\nfor the purpose of conveying information\nto those who are distant from them; and\nthis mode of communication, is often of\ngreat service to them, as the following circumstances wiU evince. Portions of each\ntribe, generally assemble at certain places,\nevery year. When they separate, they proceed\nin different directions; and at every place\nwhere they severally encamp, they fix a number of sticks in the ground, leaning towards\nthe place where they next intend to pitch\ntheir tents. If they have been successful in\nthe chace, they paint or draw on a piece of\nbark, the number and kinds of animals which\nthey may have killed, and hang the bark\nupon a stake. When Indians who have been\nunsuccessful in regard to killing animals, fall\nupon these notices, they derive important\nadvantages from them, as they are thus\nguided to the place, where they may probably obtain a supply of food. Indeed, without some such regulation, the Natives would\noften be in great danger of perishing with\nhunger. On the piece of bark, containing\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n323\ninformation respecting their past success, and\ntheir future course, they leave, also, the date\nof their encampment, by painting the animal,\nor whatever else it is that gives name to the\nthen present Moon, or month, and by describing the figure of the Moon at that particular time. And so correct is this mode of\nconveying intelligence, that a person accustomed to it, will generally ascertain, within\nfrom twelve to twenty four hours, the time\ndesigned to be specified.\nThe Indians possess a quick perception,\nand strong curiosity, and a very retentive\nmemory; and every circumstance which occurs, and the various objects which present\nthemselves to their view, are noticed and recollected. And, therefore, at the expiration\nof twenty years after they have passed only\nonce through a country, to the distance of\nseveral hundred miles, they will return by the\nsame way in which they came. Mountains,\nhills, prairies, lakes, valleys, remarkable rocks,\n&c. are the objects which they especially\nnotice, and the situation of which, they treas-.\nure up in their memories; and by these they\nare enabled to follow a former track. Almost any Indian, who has passed once\nthrough a country, is able to draw so correct\na chart of it, with a piece of charcoal, on\nbark, that an entire stranger, by its assistance, would be able to direct his course t_\na particular place, several hundred miles distant, without varying a league from his\n 324\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nobject.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The Natives are never at a loss in regard to the different points of the compass,\nparticularly in a woody country, as they well\nknow, that on* the north side of the trees,\nmore moss is found, than on the other sides.\nThe priest among the Indians, is also a\nphysician and a conjurer or magician.\u00E2\u0080\u0094When\nhe acts as priest, he presides at feasts and\nfunerals.\u00E2\u0080\u0094In the capacity of physician, when\nsent for, he visits the sick and wounded, and\nprescribes medicines for their healing, and\ndirects in their application, in doing which\nhe goes through with many ceremonies, with\ngreat gravity. If the patient is very ill, he\nattends him at least every morning, and\nsings and shakes his che-che-quy, for an hour\nor two, over his head, making an unpleasant\nnoise, which, it would seem, must do injury\nto the sick person. These Indian physicians\ndo at times, however, perform distinguished\ncures. Their medicines consist of the bark\nof particular trees, of roots and of herbs,\nused at some times in their simple state, and\nat others in a compounded form. For wounds\nand sores, they use, chiefly, decoctions of\nroots. The doctor is always well paid for\nhis services, and his profession is the most\nlucrative of any among the Indians.\u00E2\u0080\u0094When\nhe acts as conjurer, he shuts himself up in\na small cabin, where he is completely concealed from the view, and where he remains\nsilent, during ten or fifteen minutes. He\nthen begins to sing, and to beat his drum,\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS\nand continues to do so, for about half an\nhour. And then, if any one has a question\nto propose respecting futurity, he is ready\nto answer it, which, however, he will not do,\nwithout a trifling recompense. It is not uncommon for events to take place, much as\nthese conjurers predict; but whether this is\nto be attributed to their natural sagacity,\nor to accident, or to other circumstances,\nI pretend not to determine.\nA person who is desirous of becoming a\nphysician or conjurer, is publickly initiated,\nwith much mysterious ceremony. Among\nthese ceremonies are the following. The old\nphysicians prepare an entertainment for a\ncertain number of people; and for the young\ncandidate, they have a peculiar mess, which\nconsists of a bitch, boiled with her young in\nher. A part of this animal, he must eat; and\nthey suppose that it possesses the magical\npower, of inspiring him with a knowledge\nof the medicinal qualities of all kinds of\nbarks, herbs, roots, &c\u00E2\u0080\u0094A woman, who\nwishes to become a midwife, must not only\neat a part of the bitch,' but must, also,\npartake of her puppies, and drink of the\nbroth in which they were boiled; and by\nthis means, she gains, as is supposed, all\nthe knowledge requisite to the practice of\nthis difficult art.\nThe Indian physicians never fail of leaving\nin the place where they collect the roots,\nherbs, &c. which they use as medicines,\n 326\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nsome trifling article, as a recompense to the\nguardian spirits, that preside over these\nsubstances, for what they have taken. An\n7 */\nomission of this would, in their apprehension,\ndestroy most, if not all the efficacy of their\nmedicines.\nThe Natives, in general, are very credulous and superstitious. They believe that\nmany of their own medicines, when properly\napplied, will effect almost any thing. They\nthink, however, that we possess some, which,\nfor certain purposes, are much more efficacious than their own. All Indians are very\ndesirous of having a numerous offspring; and,\ntherefore, those, whose wives are barren, will\nfrequently apply to us for such a medicine\nas will cause them to become the mothers of\nchildren.\u00E2\u0080\u0094The young women, also, make use\nof a certain powder, of their own composition, for the purpose of engaging or increasing the affections of their favourites, for\nthem. By throwing this even upon a stranger, who is passing, they believe, it will cause\nhim to be in love with them. In a word,\nthey ascribe a power to this medicine, like\nthat, which more refined imaginations have\nattributed to the arrows of Cupid. The\nyoung women, also, employ many other\nmagical arts, to accomplish the same object.\n\u00E2\u0080\u0094A woman who is fond of her husband, and\nwho supposes that he has little affection for\nher, will rub a certain medicine in the palm\nof her hand, as she is going to bed; and\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n327\nafter he falls asleep, she will lay her hand\non his heart; and the medicine, she thinks,\npossesses the power of uniting their hearts\ntogether, and of causing their affection, ever\nafterward, to be reciprocal.\nThe Indians have no professional mechan-\nicks among them. Every man is his own\nartificer, and is able to construct the few\ndomestick manufactured articles, which he\nuses. Some persons among them, more in\ngenious than the rest, are frequently applied\nto, to execute some things which require\nconsiderable skill, such as putting a stock\nto a gun; but they take no compensation,\nfor such a service. Their bows and arrows\nare neatly constructed. In order to make\ntheir arrows round and straight and\nsmooth, after they have been reduced nearly\nto their proper size with a knife, they use the\nfollowing method. They take two pieces\nof wood, of suitable thickness, which are\nseveral inches long, and cut in each of them\na straight channel, of the same size, and\nof such a shape, that, when both are placed\ntogether, they form a circular hole. Over this\nchannel, they spread glue, and upon that\nthey sprinkle sand; and they repeat the\noperation, until a complete file is formed.\nThe arrow is then placed in the channel,\nbetween the two pieces of wood, and is\nbriskly passed backward and forward, until\nit is reduced to its proper size. Their pipes\nare made oi a soft stone. The bowl, into\n 328\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nwhich the tobacco is put, is circular, and\nat the bottom it is flat, and much broader.\nThese pipes are frequently carved, in a curious manner. The pipe is connected with its\nstem by a chain, generally made of brass\nwire, which the Indians obtain from us, and\nwhich hangs loosely from one to the other.\nThe stem is of wood, such as has a smaU\npith; and as their sacred stems are about\nsix feet in length, the manner in which they\nextract this pith, deserves to be mentioned.\nThey use, for this purpose, a piece of seasoned hard wood. It is sharpened to a\npoint, at one end; and at a little distance\nfrom this, it is reduced to a smaller size,\nby a perpendicular cut around it, by which\na kind of head or barb is formed. By\npushing this in and drawing it out, the\npith is gradually extracted. The wood which\nforms the handle to this barb, is reduced to\na very smaU size, as fast only as is required\nby the length of the hole. Wooden dishes,\nthey construct, with crooked knives. The\nwomen manifest much ingenuity and taste,\nin the work which they execute, with porcupine quills. The colour of these quills is\nvarious, beautiful and durable; and the art\nof dying them, is practised only by females.\nTo colour black, they make use of a chocolate coloured stone, which they burn, and\npound fine, and put into a vessel, with the\nbark of the hazel-nut tree. The vessel is\nthen filled with water, and into it the quills\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n329\nare put, and the vessel is placed over a small\nfire, where the liquor in it is permitted to\nsimmer, for two or three hours. The quills\nare then taken out, and put on a board, to\ndry, before a gentle fire. After they have\nbeen dried and rubbed over with bear's oil,\nthey become of a beautiful shining black,\nand are fit for use. To dye red or yellow,\nthey make use of certain roots, and the\nmoss which they find, on a species of the\nfir tree. These are put, together with the\nquills, into a vessel, filled with water, made\nacid, by boiling currants or gooseberries,\n&c. in it. The vessel is then covered tight,\nand the liquid is made to simmer over the\nfire, for three or four hours, after which the\nquills are taken out and dried, and are fit\nfor use. Feathers, they also dye in a similar manner, and these colours never fade.\nMany of the Indians, particularly those\non the west side of the Rocky Mountain,\nwho have not procured steels from us, for\nthe purpose of striking fire, produce it, by\nplacing one end of a small dry stick against\nanother piece of dry wood; and by rolling\nit briskly between their two hands, the friction, in a short time communicates fire to\ndry hay or touchwood, placed around it.\nAmong the Indians, there are poets, who\nare also musicians. The person who composes a song, does it by singing it over\nalone, in the air which he designs shall accompany it; and he repeats this exercise,\n 330\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nuntil he has committed both sufficiently to\nmemory. After that, he frequently teaches\nit to others. Songs are frequently composed\nfor particular occasions, such as feasts, &c.\nAmong the Carriers, there are often several\ncompetitors for this honour; and he who\ncomposes the best song, is rewarded, while\nthe unsuccessful poets are treated with derision. The subjects of their songs are generally love and war, though they have some\nwhich are ludicrous and obscene. They have\na great variety of songs; and I have known\nan Indian who could sing at least two hundred, and each song had its peculiar air.\nFemale poets are not common among them.\nSome of the women, however, are exceUent\nsingers.\nNo two, of the fifteen tribes of Indians,\nwith whom I have been acquainted, speak\nprecisely the same language; but the languages of nine of them only, seem to be\nradically different. There is only a variation\nof dialect among the Crees, Sauteux and\nMuscagoes. The same is true of the Chipe-\nwyans, Beaver Indians, Sicannies, Tacullies\nand Nateotetains. The language spoken by\nthe Sauteux, Crees and Muscagoes is by far\nthe most copious and manly; but that used\nby the Assiniboins, is the most harmonious\nand elegant.\nEvery tribe has its particular tract of\ncountry; and this is divided again, among\nthe several families, which compose the tribe.\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n331\nRivers, lakes and mountains, serve them as\nboundaries; and the limits of the territory\nwhich belongs to each family are as well\nknown by the tribe, as the lines which sep-\nrate farms are, by the farmers, in the civilized world. The Indians who reside in the\nlarge plains, make no subdivisions of their\nterritory; for the wealth of their country\nconsists of buffaloes and wolves, which exist\nin plenty, everywhere among them. But the\ncase is otherwise, with the inhabitants of the\nwoody countries. These people have nothing\nwith which to purchase their necessaries, excepting the skins of animals, which are valuable for their fur; and should they destroy\nall these animals in one season, they would\ncut off their means of subsistence. A prudent Indian, whose lands are not well stocked\nwith animals, kills only what are absolutely\nnecessary to procure such articles as he cannot well dispense with.\nThe foregoing account of the Natives, having a principal reference to the tribes on the\neast side of the Rocky Mountain, it may be\nproper, in concluding it, to make a few general remarks on the country which they\ninhabit.\nThat part of it which lies between the\n44th and the 52d degrees of north latitude,\nis a plain or prairie country, almost wholly\ndestitute of timber, of any kind. It is, in\ngeneral, sufficiently dry for any kind of cultivation; and is covered with grass, which\n 332\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\ncommonly grows to the height of from six\ninches to a foot, though in some marshy\nplaces it is much higher. This grass furnishes food for innumerable herds of buffaloes, which are constantly roving about,\nfrom place to place, followed by thousands\nof wolves, and many grey and black bears,\nthat are always on the watch, for favourable\nopportunities to fall upon and devour them.\nThe grey bear, on account of his strength\nand ferocity, may well be denominated the\nmonarch of the forest; and should he at any\ntime find an hundred wolves or more, feeding on the carcase of the buffaloe, the sight\nof him would cause them aU to retire, with\nall the humility and submission of conscious\nweakness, and he would be permitted to\nmake his meal, at his leisure and in quietness.\nThe country lying between the 5 2d and\nthe 70th degree of north latitude, may be\ndenominated mountainous. Between its elevated parts, however, there are valleys and\nplains, of considerable extent, and which are\ncovered with timber, of a small growth,\nmore than one fourth part of which is the\nspruce fir. The other kinds of timber are\naspin, poplar, birch, hemlock, spruce, cedar,\nwillow, and a little pine. Much of this country, in its less elevated parts, is covered\nwith large rocks and stones, with so thin\na coat of earth upon them, that it could\nnot be cultivated. I am of opinion, however,\n ACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\n333\nthat one fourth, if not one third part, of\nthe whole of this great extent of country,\nmight be cultivated to advantage. The soil,\nin general, is tolerably good; and, in many\nplaces, is not exceeded in richness, by any\npart of North America. I think it probable,\nthat as much as one sixth part of the whole\nof this country, is covered with water. The\ngreat number of large lakes, which are scattered over it, and of noble streams, which\npass through it, afford a water communication, in almost every direction.\nAs this country is so extensive, it is natural to suppose, that the climate is various.\nIn all parts it is considerably cold. In\nlatitude 54\u00C2\u00B0 or 55\u00C2\u00B0 the mercury, for\nseveral successive days, in the month of\nJanuary, is as low as 30 or 32 degrees below zero. There are not, however, more\nthan ten or twelve days, during a winter,\nthat are so severely cold. The summers are\nsufficiently warm and long, to bring most\nkinds of grain and vegetables to perfection.\nIndian corn will never ripen farther north,\nthan about latitude 53\u00C2\u00B0.\nThe following fact may be interesting to\nsome persons, as perhaps no similar discovery has been made, equally far north.\nIn the summer of 1816 there was found, on\nthe margin of a small stream that falls into\nPeace River, in about the 56th degree of\nnorth latitude, and the 118th of west longitude, a part of the thigh bone of a Mam-\n 334\nACCOUNT OF THE INDIANS.\nmoth, which was about eighteen inches in\nlength, and which weighed twenty eight\npounds. During that summer, the waters\nrose very high, in all the streams in that\nregion; and when they subsided, the banks\nin many places, fell in. It was in such a\nplace, that this bone was found. It was\nsent to Canada, and I believe, thence to\nEngland.\n 1!\nA SPECIMEN\nOP THE\nCREE OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE,\nWHICH IS SPOKEN, BY AT LEAST THREE FOURTHS\nOP THE INDIANS OP THE NORTH WEST\nCOUNTRY, ON THE EAST SIDE OF THE\nROCKY MOUNTAIN.\nGood Spirit\nEvil Spirit\nMan\nWoman\nYoung man\nYoung woman\nInfant\nHead\nForehead\nCheek\nChin\nHair\nEye\nNose\nKitch-e-mon-e-too\nMutch-e-mon-e-too\nA-ye-nu\nEs-qui\nOs-kin-e-gew\nOs-kin-e-gis-qui\nA-wa-sis\nIs-te-gwen\nMis-kaw-tick\nMon-o-wy\nTa-lis-kun\nMis-te-ky-ah\nMis-kee-sick\nMis-kee-won\n 336\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nNostril\nMouth\nTooth\nTongue\nBeard\nBrains\nEar\nNeck\nThroat\nArms\nHands or fingers\nThumb\nNail\nSide\nBack\nBelly\nThigh\nBody\nKnee\nLeg\nFoot\nHeart\nSpirit or soul\nFather\nMother\nSon\nDaughter\nBrother (elder)\nSister (elder)\nBrother (younger)\nSister (younger)\nGrand Father\nGrand Mother\nO-tay-e-cum\nMee-toon\nMee-pit\nO-tay-e-nee\nMay-ist-won\nWe-it-tip\nMe-ta-wa-ki\nMe-qui-yow\nMe-koo-ta-gun\nMis-pe-toon\nMe-chee-chee\nMe-se-chee-chon\nMis-cus-see\nOse-pe-ki\nMis-pis-quon\nMot-ti\nMe-pwam\nMe-yow\nMitch-e-quon\nMis-k&te\nMe-sit\nMe-tay\nMe-cha-chake\nO-ta-we\nE-ka-we\nE-qus-sis\nE-ta-nis\nE-stays\nE-miss\nE-shim\nE-mo-shome\nO-kome\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n337\nUncle\nAunt\nNephew\nNiece\nFather in law\nMother in law\nBrother in law\nSister in law\nFriend\nHusband\nWife\nOld man\nOld woman\nChief\nThief\nCoat\nShirt\nBreech cloth\nLeggin\nGarter\nShoe\nHat or cap\nHandkerchief\nMittens (a pair)\nPetticoat\nBracelet\nRing\nEar knobs\nComb\nNeedle\nPin (headed needle)\nScissors\nBlanket\n22\nO-ko-mis\nE-to-sis\nE-to-sim\nE-to-sim-es-qui\nE-sis\nE-se-goose\nIsh-taw\nE-tim\nE-wich-i-wa-gun\nNe-na-bem\nE-che-m^-gun\nKis-a-ye-new\nNo-to-ca-ow\nO-ke-mow\nKe-mo-tisk\nPis-is-cow-e-gun\nPe-puck-e-wy-un\nAs-si-an\nMe-tass\nSis-ca-pis-soon\nMos-ca-sin\nAs-to-tin\nTa-bis-ka-gun\nUs-tis-uck\nKis-ke-sa-ki\nUs-ton\nUs-ton-is\nTa-be-ta-soon\nSe-ca-hoon\nSa-bo-ne-gun\nIs-te-goine Sa-bo-ne-gun\nPus-co-ma-to-in\nWa-bo-e-un\n 338\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nGown\nPa-to-nis\nHorse\nMish-ta-tim\nBuffaloe\nMoos-toosh\nFerret\nSe-goose\nSkunk\nSe-hawk\nElk\nA-was-kis\nMoose\nMoose-wa\nCarriboo\nAt-tick\nBeaver\nA-misk\nWolverine\nKe-qua-a-kisk\nSquirrel\nAn-nick-o-chass\nMink\nAt-cha-kass\nOtter\nNe-kick\nWolf\nMy-e-gun\nHare\nWa-poos\nMartin\nWa-pis-ton\nBear\nMusk-quaw\nFisher\nO-chake\nLynx\nPe-su\nHog H\nKo-koosh\nPorcupine\nKa-quaw\nFox\nMuck-ca-sis\nMusk rat\nWa-chesk\nCat\nKa-sha-kess\nMouse\nA-pe-co-sik\nMeat\nWee-as\nDog\nAt-tim\nBitch\nKis-ke-sis\nEagle\nMe-ke-su\nDuck\nSee-sip\nCrow\nK&-k\u00C2\u00A3t-ku\nSwan\nWa-pis-see\nPheasant\nO-kis-kew\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n339\nBird\nPe-a-sis\nOutard\nNis-ka\nWhite goose\nWhy-why\nGrey goose\nKitch-a-ca-pi-sis\nPartridge\nPe-yew\nWater hen\nSe-kip\nPigeon\nO-ma-mee\n\u00C2\u00AEgg\nWa-wa\nPike\nI-e-ne-ke-no-see\nCarp\nNa-ma-be\nWhite fish\nAt-tick cum-mick\nPickerel\nO-cow\nFish (in general)\nKe-no-see\nFish roes\nWa-quock\nFish scales\nWa-wa-ki\nTrout\nNa-ma-goose\nFrog\nI-ick\nWasp\nA-mo\nTurtle\nMis-^ca-nack\nSnake\nKe-na-bick\nRattle snake\nSi-si-qua ke-na-bick\nToad\nPe-pe-quot-ta-tu\nLizzard\nO-sick-ke-ask\nOwl\nOh-ho\nFire steel\nPe-w^-bisk Ap-pit\nFire wood\nMis-tick\nCradle\nWa-wa-bis-soon\nDagger\nTa-cuch-e-gun\nLance\nSe-m&-gun\nBow\nA-cha-pee\nArrow\nAt-toos\nFish hook\nQuas-qui-pitch-e-gun\nAxe\nChee-ki-e-gun\n I\n340\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nHoe Pe-mich-e chee-ki-e-gun\nNet I-ap-pee\nTree (wood standing\nupright) Mis-tick A-che-mus-so\nPaddle\nCanoe\nBirch bark\nBark\nTouch wood\nGun Flint\nGrass\nLeaf (of a tree)\nRaspberries\nStrawberries\nWhortleberries \"\nChoke berries\nGooseberries\nGrapes\nAshes\nFire\nCurrent\nRapid\nWinter\nSpring\nSummer\nAutumn\nIsland\nLake\nRiver\nSun\nMoon (night sun)\nStars\nSky\nA-buy\nO-see\nWas-qui\nWy-a-kisk\nPoos-sa-gun\nChak-is-say-e-gun\nMos-ko-se-ah\nNe-pee-ah\nI-os-cun-nuck\nO-ta-me-nah\nI-e-ne-me-nah\nTuck-quy-me-ne-na-nah\nSa-sa-bo-min-uck\nSho-min-is-uck\nPe-co\nEs-quit-tu\nKis-se-che-win\nPow-is-tick\nPe-poon\nMe-os-kum-ick\nNe-pin\nTuck-wa-gin\nMe-nis-tick\nS\u00C2\u00A3t-ki-e-gun\nSe-pee\nPe-sim\nTip-is-co pe-sim\nAt-tack\nKee-sick\n nmirmmxsmpsfamm\nOR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n341\nClouds\nMa-ma-musk-wow\nThunder\nPe-is-su\nLightning\nW&-w\u00C2\u00A3s-sis-quit-a-pi-u\nRain\nKe-me-won\nSnow\nMis-poon\nHail\nSa-sa-gun\nCalm\nI-was-tin\nDay light\nWa~bun\nMorning\nKe-ke-jape\nDay\nKe-se-cow\nNight\nTip-is-cow\nNoon (half the day ]\nA-be-tow Ke-se-cow\nSun setting\nPung-kis-se-mo\nMidnight\nA-be-tow Tip-is-cow\nSnow\nKo-nah\nDrift\nPe-won\nIce\nMis-co-mi\nFrost\nYa-ya-co-tin\nDew\nA-co-sa-pa-ow\nWater\nNe-pee\nWorld\nMis-si-wa-as-kee\nMountain\nWa-chee\nSea\nKitch-e-ga-ming\nPortage\nO-ne-gape\nRivulet\nSe-pe-sis\nSand\nYa-cow\nEarth\nAs-kee\nHeat\nKe-se-ta-ow, or Ke-jas\nta-ow\nTomorrow\nWa-bunk\nYesterday\nO-ta-ca-sin\nTo day\nA-nouch ke-se-cow\nBone\nOse-kun\n 342\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nBroth\nProvision\nFeast\nGrease or oil\nMarrow fat\nMarrow\nSinew\nLodge or tent\nBed \u00C2\u00A7 ^J\nDoor\nDish\nSpoon or ladle\nPlate\nKnife\nFork\nKettle\nTea kettle\nSack or bag\nTrunk\nTable\nChair\nFort or house\nFloor\nWindow\nChimney\nCupboard\nKeg .1- ?3\nSledge\nCincture or belt\nSocks\nCloth\nThread\nSmoking bag\nMich-e-ma-boi\nMe-chim\nWe-ko-ka-ow\nPe-me\nOse-kun-e-pe-me\nWe-ne\nAs-tis\nMe-ke-wape\nNe-pa-win\nEs-qua-tem\nWe-^rgun\nA-me quen\nNa-puck-e-a-gun\nMo-cum-mon\nChis-ti-e-gun\nAs-kick\nSe-sip as-kick\nMus-ca-moote\nMis-tick-o-wis\nMit-te-sou-win-a-tic\nTa-e-tup-pe-win\nWas-ky-e-gun\nA-nas-cun\nW&s-sa-e-mon\nCou-ta-na-bisk\nA-cou-cha-gun\nMuck-kuck\nTa-bin-ask\nPa-qua-ta-h oon_\nAs-se-gun\nMon-ne-too-wa-gen\nAs-se-bape\nAp-pit\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n343\nPortage sling\nPowder\nBalls\nShot\nPowder horn\nShot bag\nGun\nRamrod\nGun case\nPistol\nSteel trap\nGrave\nGrave yard\nSpirits\nWine\nMilk\nBreasts\nButter\nFlour or bread\nIndian corn\nPotato\nTurnip\nOnion\nCarrot\nTea or medicine water\nSugar\nWild rice\nGlass or mirror\nGeneral or great\nchief\nSoldier\nAp-pe-can\nKus-ke-ta\nMo-sus-se-nu\nNis-cus-se-ne-uck\nPa-che-pa-quon\nPa-tus-se-non\nPaw-skis-se-gun\nSe-se-quit-is-ca-we-Ei.-\ngun-a-tick\nAs-pick-e-n&-gun\nP&w-skis-se-gun-is\nPe-w^-bisk-won-a-e-gun\nNi-e-now\nA-qu^-os-cun\nSquit-te-wa-bo\nSho-min-a-bo\nTo-toos-a-bo\nTo-toos\nTo-toos-a-bo pe-me\nPa-qui-se-gun\nMun-d&-nin-uck\nAske-pwow-wS,\nO-te-se-Mn\nWe-cha-kus-ka-se\nOs-kate-ask\nMus-ca-kee-wa-bo\nSe-se-bas-quit\nMus-co-se-me-nah\nWa-bim-oon\nKitch-e-o-ki-mow\nSe-m^-gun-is\n 344\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nHome\nIron\nMoney\nBook or letter\nMedicine\nLover\nPipe\nTobacco\nWeed for smoking\nPart (of a thing)\nSlave\nOrphan\nPeninsula\nRelation\nShip\nSword\nStone\nStore\nWhite earth\nTatler\nLiar\nBad man\nGood man\nEarthquake\nTrack (ofthe-feet)\nRoad or path\nWhirlwind\nGood weather\nBad weather\nMale\nFemale\nE-ke-nake\nPe-wa-bisk\nSo-ne-ah\nMish-e-my-e-gun\nMus-ca-kee\nJim-is-sim\nOs-poa-gun\nChis-ta-mow\nA-cha-ca-che-puck-wow\nPuck-ee\nA-WEi-kun\nKe-WEitch-e-wa-sis\nKis-is-tig-guy-ow\nE-to-tame\nNa-pe-quon\nShe-maw-gun\nAs-se-ne\nTut-tow-o-way-gum-\nmick\nWa-but-toon-isk\nO-zom-e-toon-ew\nKa-ke-as-ku\nMuch-e-pe-m^-tis-su\nMe-u-pe-ma-tis-su\nAn-ne-mus-kum-ke-py-\nyou - |r\nI-a-sa-se-ta-you\nMays-ke-now\nCus-tin\nMe-u-ke-si-cow\nMut-cha-ke-si-cow\nN^-bew\nO-ne-cha-nee\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n345\nCloudy\nA-quos-quon\nWindy\nE-o-tin\nNorth\nKe-wa-tin\nSouth\nS^-win-oke\nEast\nCos-kow-kos-take\nWest\nKe-wa-noke\nStraight\nQui-esk\nCrooked\nWa-kow\nRed\nMe-quow\nBlue\nChe-ba-tock-wow\nYellow\nO-saw-wow\nGreen\nAs-ke-tuck-wow\nBlack\nKus-ke-ta-wow\nUgly\nMy-a-te-su\nHandsome\nCut-e-w^-se-su\nBeautiful\nMe-u-nog-won\nDeaf\nNavmo-ta-wa-cow\nGtfod natured\nMe-w^-tick-e-su\nPregnant\nPwow-wew\nFat or fleshy\nWe-in-no\nLarge\nMe-chus-ca-wa-ke-su\nSmall\nUp-pe-se-se-su\nShort\nChe-mis-se-su\nTall\nMe-sick-e-tu\nMerry\nMe-wa-tick-won\nMelancholy\nPe-kis-ca-tum\nLong\nKeen-wow\nStrong\nMus-ca-wow\nWeak\nNa-ma mus-ca-wow\nCowardly\nSa-koo-ta-ow\nBrave\nSo-ca-te-ow\nLean\nSe-kut-chu\nFoolish\nKe-squiow\n 346\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nSensible\nI-e^ne-su\nStiff\nSe-t^-wow\nSick\nA-quis-su\nDead\nNe-poo\nAlive\nPe-m^-tis-su\nMiserable\nKit-te-msl-ga-su\nUpper\nIs-pe-mink\nLower\nTup-pa-sis\nAll\nKuck-e-ow\nHalf\nA-be-tow\nDrunken\nKe-squi-ba-ow\nEnglish\nA-qui-as-se-wock\nFrench\nWa-mis-to-go-she-wock\nEqual or alike\nT\u00C2\u00A3t-bis-kootch\nFar off\nWy-yow\nNigh\nKis-se-w&ke\nFew or little\nUp-pa-sis\nFatigued\nTy-is-co-sin\nGood\nMe-w^-shin\nBad\nMy-^-ton\nAvaricious\nS^-sa-kis-su\nGenerous\nMay-ye-kis-ku\nGreedy\nKa-shock-ca-ow\nHidden\nKas-so\nLazy\nKit-te-mew\nLame\nMus-kip-pi-you\nMuch\nMe-chet\nFlat\nNah-puck-ow\nRound\nWa-way-ye-you\nQuick\nKa-ke-e-pe\nThat\nA-o-co\nThis\nMuck-o-mao\nToo little\nO-som-up-pe-sis\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n347\nToo much\nDeep\nShallow\nFrightful\nWicked\nDifficult\nFirst\nBehind\nLast\nMore\nBetter\nGood scented\nEach\nOther\nMy own\nYour own\nHis or her own\nTheir own\nOur own\nWe?\nWho?\nWhat?\nI am angry\nI fear\nTo rejoice\nTo hear\nTo see\nTo smell\nTo taste\nTo feel\nTo come in\nTo sing\nTo halloo\nO-sqm-me-chet\nTee-mew\nP^ke-wow\nSa-sis-ke-na-guon\nMy-a-che-ta-ow\nI-ye-mon\nNe-kan\nO-take\nSqui-atch\nMe-nah\nKa-me-wa-shin\nWe-cum-a-gun\nPa-pa-uck\nPa-toosh\nNene-ty-un\nKene-ty-un\nWe-ah-one-ty-un\nWe-ah-wow-one-ty-un\nNene-ty-un-e-non\nNe-on\nA-Way-nah\nKa-qui\nNe-kis-se-wa-sin\nNe-koos-ta-chin\nMe-wa-tum\nPa-tum\nWa-ba-tum\nMe-a-tum\nGoo-chis-tum\nGoo-te-num\nPe-to-ca\nNe-cum-moon\nTa-boi\n 348\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nTo whistle\nTo weep\nTo laugh\nTo sigh\nTo arrive\nTo depart\nAssist me\nTo beat\nTo believe\nTo rattle\nTo suck\nTo puke\nTo carry\nI am cold\nTo take courage\nTo dance\nTo jump\nTo slide\nTo run\nTo walk\nTo ride (horseback)\"\nTo finish\nTo starve\nTo fall\nTo strike fire\nTo find\nTo loose\nTo paddle\nTo give\nTo take\nTo hate\nTo keep\nTo know\nQues-qui-su\nMa-too\nPa-pee\nMa-ca-ta-tum\nTuck-a-shin\nChe-boi-ta-ow\nNe-sho-cum-a-win\nO-tom-me-wow\nTa-boi-tum\nSe-se-quin\nNo-nu\nPa-cum-moon\nNi-och-e-ga-ow\nNe-cow-a-chin\nYe-ag-wa-me-se\nNe-me-too\nQuas-quit-ta\nSo-squotch-e-wew\nPe-me-pa-tow\nPe-mo-ta-ow\nTay-tup-pew\nPo-ne-ton\nKa-wa-cut-tis-so-wock\nPunk-a-sin\nSe-ka-ta-ow\nMis-cum\nWon-e-ton\nPim-is-cow\nMe-yow\nO-te-nah\nMuch-a-ye-mow\nKun-ne-wa-e-ten\nKis-ka-e-ta-gwun\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n349\nTo leave\nTo love\nTo go to bed\nTo arise from bed\nTo sit down\nTo get up\nTo marry\nTo play\nTo make peace\nTo make war\nTo pray\nTo take notice\nTo respect\nTo sail\nTo steal\nTo sleep\nTo talk\nTo lie\nTo go\nTo lend\nTo groan\nTo beat\nTo cut\nTo cover\nTo dispute\nTo give\nTo do\nTo tie\nTo unite\nTo sew\nTo sit down\nTo fall \u00C2\u00A7\nTo work\nNuck-a-tum\nSa-ke-how\nKa-wish-e-mo\nO-nis-caw\nAp-pee\nPus-se-co\nWee-ke-mow\nMa-te-way\nWe-tus-ke-to-wuck\nNa-to-py-e-wuck\nI-ye-me-how\nCun-ne-wa-bum\nKe-tay-e-mow\nA-cus-tim-moon\nKe-mo-tu\nNe-pow\nA-che-moon\nKe-as-ku\nKe-to-tain\nOw-wc-hin\nMarma-pin-ow\nO-tom-me-wew\nKis-ke-sah\nA-quoon-e-hah\nKe-ka-to-wuck\nMay-gu\nOo-she-hah\nTuck-oop-e-tah\nAp-pu-co-nah\nKus-ke-qua-so\nUp-pu\nPun-ga-sin\nO-se-che-ga-ow\n 350\nSPECIMEN OF THE CREE\nTo Ml\nTo sell\nTo come\nAlways\nBecause\nBy and bye\nDoubtless\nFormerly\nHere\nHow\nHow many\nImmediately\nLately\nNever\nNo\nYes\nNot yet\nNot at all\n.Good for nothing\nThere\nTruly\nTogether\nWhere\nYet\nOh\nNow and then\nSometimes\nSeldom\nThank you\nWhat is that?\nWhat now?\nWho is there?\nNe-pa-how\nUt-ta-wa-ow\nUs-tom-e-tay\nKa-ke-ca\nA-o-co-chee\nPitch-is-qua\nMos-kootch\nGy-ass\n0-taw\nTa-ne-say\nTa-ne-tut-to\nKa\u00C2\u00ABqui-ah-ho\nGy-ass-an-e-watch\nNa-mow-we-katch\nNa-maw\nAh-hah\nNa-mas-qua\nNa-ma w-waw-watch\nNa-maw-ca-qui-me-wa-\nsin\nA-quo-tah\nTa-boi\nTa-bis-cootch\nTa-ne-tay\nKa-avbitch\nAh! I\nI-os-cow\nWe-na-cum-ma\nKa-qui-o-ko\nTa-ne-me-ne-kick\nA-way-na-nah\n OR KNISTENEUX TONGUE.\n351\nGet out of the way A-wis-se-tay\nWhat is your name? Ta-ne-tick-o-way-on\nWhere areyou going? Ta-ne-ta ke-we-to-tain\nI wish to depart\nWhat do I hear?\nWill you trade?\nNe-we-ke-won\nKa - qui - ka-pa-tum-\nmon\nKe-we-ut-t a-won-chee\n NUMERICAL TERMS\nOF THE CREES OR KNISTENEUX.\nOne\nPa-uck\nTwo\nNe-sho\nThree\nNish-to\nFour\nNay-o\nFive\nNay-ah-nun\nSix\nNi-co-twa-sick\nSeven\nTa-boo-coop\nEight\nI-a-na-na-on\nNine\nKa-gate me-ta-tut\nTen\nMe-ta-tut\nEleven (and\none\nmore)\nMe-ta-tut pa-uck o sawp\nTwelve\nMe-ta-tut ne-sho sawp\nThirteen\nMe-ta-tut nish-to sawp\nFourteen\nMe-ta-tut nay-o sawp\nFifteen\nMe-ta-tut nay-ah-nun o\nsawp\nSixteen\nMe-ta-tut ne-co-twa-sick\no sawp\nSeventeen\nMe-ta-tut ta-boo-coop\ntah-to sawp\nEighteen\nMe-ta-tut i-a-na-na-ow\ntah-to sawp\n m\nTACULLY OR CARRIER TONGUE. 353\nNineteen\nKa-gate me-ta-tut tah-\nto sawp\nTwenty\nNe-sit-te-no\nTwenty one\nNe-sit-te-no pu-uck o\nsawp\nTwenty two &c.\nNe-sit-te-no ne-sho sawp\nThirty\nNish-to mit-te-no\nForty\nNay-o mit-te-no\nFifty\nNay-ah-nun o mit-te-no\nSixty\nNe-co-twa-sick o tut-to\nmit-te-no\nSeventy\nTa-boo-coop o tut-to\nmit-te-no\nEighty\nI-a-na-na-ow o tut-to\nmit-te-no\nNinety\nKa-gate me-ta-tut o ||1\nmit-te-no\nHundred\nMe-ta-tut-to mit-te-no\nOne thousand\nMe-ta-tut o tut-to mit-\nte-no\nA SPECIMEN OF\nTHE TACULLY OR CARRIER TONGUE.\nMan\nTen-nee\nWoman\nCha-ca\nYoung man\nChilk\nInfant\nChu-tun\nHead\nPit-sa\nEyes\nO-now\n23\n 354 SPECIMEN OF THE TACULLY\nHair\nOte-zega\nNose\nPa-nin-chis\nTeeth\nOh-goo\nTongue\nTsoo-ia\nEars\nO-cho\nHands\nO-la\nBelly It\nO-put\nLegs\nO-ca-chin\nKnees\nO-kate\nFeet\nO-ca\nNails\nE-la-ki\nGrand father\nUt-che-yan\nGrand mother\nUt-soo\nFather\nAp-pa\nMother\nUn-nung-cool\nSon\nE-yaze\nDaughter\nE-a-cha\nBrother\nE-chill\nSister\nE-taze\nNephew\nQuaze\nGrand child\nE-chi\nHusband\nE-ki\nWife |\nAy-eye\nAunt\nA-ki\nOld man\nO-yun\nBlood\nSko\nPath or road\nTee\nChief\nMe-u-tee\nExcrement\nChou \u00C2\u00A7\nUrine\nAl-luze\nCoat\nChute\nBreech cloth\nChon\nLeggins\nCa-chy\n I\nOR CARRIER TONGUE.\n355\nShoes\nKis-eoot\nHat or cap\nTcha\nHandkerchief\nZa-zo\nMittens\nPat\nPetticoat\nCha-ca-chute\nBracelet\nNal-ton\nComb\nChil-cho\nRing\nNe-ia-ta-ah\nNeedle\nA-a-bate-so\nScissors\nClay-yee\nBlanket\nA-a-pi\nFrock or robe\nNal-tay\nGoat or sheep\nSpye\nFerret\nNah-pye\nMoose\nTen-nee\nCariboo\nO-chee\nBeaver\nCha\nOtter\nA-bay\nHare\nKah\nMartin\nChin-nee\nBear\nSuss\nLynx\nWas-say\nPorcupine\nCho\nMusk rat\nCha-kate\nFisher\nChin-ne-cho\nMouse\nTen-ne-tay\nMeat or flesh\nUt-son\nDog\nCling\nBitch\nClee-chay\nCrow\nTate-sun -\nSwan\nChin-cho\nOutard\nHokjj\nPartridge\nTeel\n 356 SPECIMEN OF THE TACULLY\nWater hen\nEggs\nLoon\nSturgeon\nWhite fish\nFish (in general)\nFish roes\nTrout\nSalmon\nFire steel\nWood or tree\nDagger\nBow\nArrow\nAxe\nNet\nPaddle\nCanoe (bark)\nCanoe (wooden)\nTouch wood\nGun flint\nGrass or hay\nWhortleberries\nAshes\nFire\nWinter\nAutumn\nSummer\nSun\nMoon (night sun)\nStars\nThunder\nBay\nChel\nO-gaze\nTad-joy\nClay-cho\nClo\nCloo-lay\nO-koon\nPilt\nTal-loo\nKone\nTuch-in\nPa-she-al\nAl-tung\nKa\nCha-chill\nClim-pelt\nChell\nAl-ia-chee\nTuch-in-chee\nKel-cha\nSa-zo-en\nClo\nChil-cho\nClees\nKone\nYas-ca\nTa-ca-ta\nOle-ol-ta\nsa\nCha-oi-cus sa\nClum\nDate-nee\nJa-ness\n OR CARRIER TONGUE.\n357\nRain\nNa-ol-ton\nSnow\nNa-chaze\nNight\nAl-cheese\nMorning\nPun-e-ta\nSun setting\nNa-ah\nIce\nClum or Ton\nWater\nToo\nWorld\nTon-ate-suck\nMountain\nChell 1\nSea\nE-a-pack\nEarth\nOte-luss\nHeat\nO-zell\nTomorrow\nPun-tay\nYesterday\nHul-ta\nTo day\nUn-tit\nBroth\nTa-zell\nGrease\nKane-loo\nSinews\nTsay\nTent or lodge\nYah\nBed |\nKus-tee\nDoor\nTa-tee\nDish\nTsi\nKettle\nO-sa\nSpoon or ladle\nChin-ne-sko\nKnife\nCles-tay\nSack or bag\nAze-ia\nTrunk or box\nChin-kale\nChimney ,\nPa-kone-tas-kone\nFort or house\n' Yock j|\u00C2\u00A7|\nSledge\nSclu-sa\nCincture or belt\nSay\nSocks\nCa-tell\nCloth\nTell-kuz-za\n 358 SPECIMEN OF THE TACULLY\nThread\nGarters\nMedicine\nPortage sling\nPowder\nBalls f. j\u00C2\u00A7|\nShot\nPowder horn\nShot bag\nGun\nGun case\nSteel trap\nStench\nSkin\nMelancholy\nSpirits\nBreasts\nFlour or bread\nVegetables\nHeart\nEntrails\nHome\nIron\nLetter or book\nLover\nPipe\nTobacco\nOrphan\nShip\nStone\nGooseberries\nStrawberries\nWhite earth\nA-a-bate-say\nChal-chase\nYou\nKa-nal-ta\nAl-la-cha\nCa-tee\nNo-do-tone\nDa-ka\nNo-do-to-bost-ia\nAl-tee\nAl-tee-zus\nCha-co\nHl-chun\nO-zuss\nCho-let-nee\nKone-too\nTsoo\nClays\nHon-elt-ya\nO-gee\nAt-zee\nE-yok\nCles-tay\nDush-lush\nNa-ho-hul-ya\nDa-kate-say\nDa-ka |\nTill-in-yaze\nChee-cho\nTsay\nTon-gueese\nIn-gee\nClis-paw\n OR CARRIER TONGUE.\n359\nWindy\nDays-chee\nWhite\nYell\nRed\nTen-il-cun\nBlack\nTel-kuz-zay\nYellow\nDat-leese\nUgly\nNe-chay\nHandsome\nNe-zo\nDeaf\nOt-so-hoo-lah\nPregnant\nEl-chon\nShort\nEn-took\nLong\nEn-yeaze\nStrong\nNa-chet\nWeak\nAt-too-na-chet\nHeavy\nNa-kull 111\nFoolish\nWos-se-nay\nSensible\nHo-na\nSick\nTut-tay\nDead\nTas-si\nAlive\nAn-na\nMiserable\nTil-len\nAll If\nTche-ow\nDrunken\nToo-nis-to\nFrench\nNed-do\nDistant\nNee-zolt\nNigh\nNill-took\nFew or little\nEn-soole\nShameful\nClou-cha\nFull\nDees-pun\nGood\nOo-choh\nBad\nNi-ka-tel\nAvaricious\nKane-chee\nMuch\nClyne\nQuick\nUt-cho-in-tin\n-\nm\n ' _ 0.\n360 SPECIMEN\nOF THE TACULLY\nDeep\nTa-kull\nShaUow\nToo-hoos-ka\nI am angry\nSon-e-chee\nTo hear\nAt-tade-zuck\nTo see\nNee-tlen\nTo smeU\nIn-chis\nTo feel\nOan-ton\nTo eat\nA-al\nTo drink\nAte-ni\nTo sing\nUt-chin\nTo halloo\nCa-an-ni\nTo whistle\nYool J\n*\"\u00E2\u0096\u00A0'*-\nTo weep\nA-chuck\nTo laugh\nAt-lo\nTo arrive\nTo depart\nAssist me\nTo beat\nTo suck\nTo be cold\nTo dance\nTo walk\nIt is done\nTo starve\nTo fall |-\nI will go\nCome with me\nTo give\nTo take\nTo hate\nI do not know\nTo keep\nTo know\nNa-teU\nNi-ne-tell\nSly-en-e-lay\nChil-tul-ta\nEl-took\nNa-zes-lay\nNate-tah\nNi-yah\nA-chel-ist-la\nNe-cho-al-hoo-lah\nNal-chet\nO-che-to-se-ah\nAn-nee\nWon-nel-lay\nHl-shute\nO-cha-dus-se-ne\nTuch-a-hoo-ny\nHone-lay\nAt-dy-e-tay\n OR CARRIER TONGUE.\n361\nTo love\nTo lie down\nTo arise from bed\nTo sit down\nTo be merry\nTo paddle\nTo steal\nTo sleep\nGo away\nTo talk\nTo lie\nThat\nMy own\nYour own\nOur own\nI or me\nThou or thee\nWe :|\nAbove\nBecause\nBye and bye\nEnough\nQui-see or Kane-chee\nSin-tee\nTa-deen-yal\nSin-taw\nOus-ta\nAt-to\nWay-to\nNa-mis-tee\nUs-se\nYal-tuck\nOn-chit\nIn-tee\nSe-ilt sun\nNe-ne-ilt sun\nWa-ne-ilt sun\nSe\nNe or Ye\nWa-ne\nYa-took\nA-doo-aw\nKud-dah\nCoo-la or Ate-sel\nFormerly\nui-ta\nHere\nNe-chan\nHow\nTuch-ah\nHow many\nTa-nil-suck\nImmediately\nAn-tit\nNo\nOwn-too\nYes\nAh-ah or A-ma\nNot yet\nKatch-ah-own-too\nThere\nEn-chan\nTruly\nAl-iate-ne\nToo little\nStan-sool\n 362 TACULLY OR CARRIER TONGUE.\nToo much\nWhere\nYet\nI thank you\nWhat is that?\nWhat is the matter?\nWho is there?\nWhat is your name?\nWhere are you going?\nLet us depart\nWiU you trade?\nWhence are you?\nStan-clyne\nEn-chay\nKa-cha\nSe-na-chal-le-ah\nTee % 4*\nTa-how-cha\nTe-ween-tal\nBa-zee\nNe-cha-en-e-gal\nNa-zo-tell\nBa-che-o-kate\nNe-cha-si-il-tal\n THE\nNUMERICAL TERMS\nOF THE TACULLIES.\nOne\nClot-tay\nTwo\nNong-ki\nThree\nToy f '\nFour\nTing-kay\nFive\nSkoon-e-ly\nSix\n' Al-ke-tate\nSeven\nTe-kal-ti\nEight 1\nAl-ke-tin-ga\nNine\nClo-hoo-ly\nTen\nLan-ne-zy\nEleven\nO-un-na Clot-tay\nTwelve\nO-un-na Nong-ki\n&c. to\nTwenty {SI\nNot-won-ne-zy\nTwenty one\nNot-won-ne-zy O-at Clo\nTwenty two\nNot-won-ne-zy O-at\nNong-ki\n&c. to\nThirty\nTat-won-ne-zy-ah\nForty\nTit-won-ne-zy-ah\nFifty\nSkoo-nee-lot-won-ne-zy\nSixty\nAl-ke-tate-won-ne-zy\n 364\nNUMERICAL TERMS.\nSeventy\nTee-kal-ty-o-tate-won-\nne-zy\nEighty\nAl-ke-t ing-o-t at e-w o n-\nne-zy\nNinety\nClo-hoo-ly-o-tate-won-\nne-zy\nHundred\nNa-ne-zy-o-ne-ze-ah\nThousand\nLan-ne-zy-o-ian-ne-zy-o\nian-e-zy\n A CONCISE ACCOUNT\nOF\nTHE PRINCIPAL ANIMALS\nWHICH ARE FOUND IN THE NORTH WESTERN\nPART OF\nNORTH AMERICA.\nBuffaloes are found in great numbers, in\nall of the plain or prairie countries, on both\nsides of the Rocky Mountain, as far north\nas about latitude fifty six or seven. The\nbull is larger than an ox, has short black\nhorns, and a beard under his chin; and his\nhead is filled with a long, fine hair, which\nfalls over his eyes, and gives him a frightful\naspect. On his back is a bunch or excrescence, commencing a little forward of his\nhaunches, the highest part of which, is over\nhis shoulders, and which terminates at the\nneck. His whole body is covered with a long\nhair or wool, of a dark brown colour, the\nwhole of which, and particularly that which\nis on the fore part of the body, would answer well for manufacturing coarse cloths\n 366\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS\nand blankets. The head of the buffaloe is\nlarger than that of the bull, his neck is\nshort, his breast is broad; and his body\ndecreases towards the buttocks. He will\ngenerally flee, at the approach of a man,\nexcepting the male, at the rutting season,\nWhen he becomes ferocious.\nThe flesh of the buffaloe is excellent food;\nthe hide is applied to many important uses;\nand the long soft hair, the natives put into\ntheir shoes, about their feet, which supplies\nthe place of socks; and it is fully as warm.\nThe speed of the buffaloe, is much the same\nas that of an ox; and when he runs he inclines his fore feet considerably on one side\nof his body, for a short distance, and then\nshifts them upon the other, and continues\nthus, alternately to change them.\nThose that remain in the country between\nthe Sisiscatchwin and Peace rivers, are called\nthe wood buffaloes, because they inhabit a\nwoody country; and they are considerably\nsmaller than those, which inhabit the plains.\nThey are, also, more wild and difficult to\napproach.\nThe horses, which the Indians possess,\ncame originally from Mexico, and are of the\nSpanish breed. They are in general stout,\nand well built; and many of them are of\ngreat speed. They are very serviceable to\nthe Natives in the plain countries, are used\nto transport their property from place to\nplace; and on them they run down and kill\n ACCOUNT OF ANIMALS\ntheir game. These animals will subsist, during the winter months, on the grass which\nthey find under the snow, which is seldom\nmore than six inches deep, on the plains.\nThere are but few horses to be found, farther\nnorth than latitude fifty four or five.\nThere are three kinds of bears, the grey,\nthe brown or chocolate coloured, and those\nwhich are perfectly black. The grey bear,\nwhich are by far the largest, are about the\nsize of a common cow; and are remarkably\nstrong built, and very ferocious. They attack human beings, as well as all kinds of\nbeasts, that fall in their way; and in their\nterrible paws, the resistance, even of the\nmale buffalo, weighing fourteen or fifteen\nhundred pounds, is utterly vain. Three or\nfour of the Natives join together whenever\nthey attempt to hunt them, and each man\nis well armed, with a musket and a long\nspear.\nThe grey bear differs but little in shape,\nfrom those of a smaller kind and of a different colour. Their heads are rather shorter,\nin proportion to their bodies, their noses\nare less pointed; and they are more stoutly\nbuilt. Their colour is a beautiful lively silver grey. Their flesh has not so good a\nflavour as that of the black bear, it being\nmore rank. The Natives, formerly, made\nuse of their skins for beds; but now, they\nalways exchange them with us, for blankets,\n&c.\n 368\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\nThe grey, in common with the other kinds\nof bears, pass the winter months, without\ntaking any kind of nourishment. Their\nretreats are by the sides of the roots of\nlarge trees, that have faUen down, or\nin the caverns of rocks; and in some instances they dig holes, in the sides of hills.\nThese habitations are enclosed on every side,\nwith the branches of trees, filled in with moss,\n&c. so as completely to surround the animal,\nexcepting his nose, where a smaU hole is\nleft, to enable him to breathe fresh air. They\nleave these retreats, as soon as the warm\nweather comes on in the spring, when they\nare apparently as fat, as they were when\nthey entered them, in the preceding autumn.\nThis flesh has less substance, probably,\nas they loose most of it, soon after their\negress; though they then devour, with an\nappetite rendered strong by a winter's abstinence, whatever comes in their way. Their\nfood, however, at this season, is not so\nabundant as it is afterwards, as they generally live upon roots, and the different kinds\nof fruit. They eat, likewise, ants and honey,\nwhenever they meet with that which is made\nby bees and wasps. They rarely eat animal\nfood.\nThe brown and black bear differ little,\nexcepting in their colour. The hair of the\nformer, is much finer than that of the latter.\nThey usually flee from a human being. One,\nhowever, that has been wounded, or a female\n TnriiiriiTmmrTTnr^TiTTnnT-\u00E2\u0084\u00A2^\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\n369\nthat has cubs, will attack a pursuer. The\nbrown and the black bear, climb trees, which\nthe grey, never does. Their flesh is not\nconsidered so pleasant food as that of the\nmoose, buffaloe or deer; but their oil is\nhighly valued by the Natives, as it constitutes an article at their feasts, and serves,\nalso, to oil their bodies, and other things.\nOccasionally, a bear is found, the colour\nof which is like that of a white sheep, and\nthe hair is much longer than that of the\nother kinds which have been mentioned;\nthough, in other respects, it differs not at all\nfrom the black bears.\nThere are two kinds of wolves, one of\nwhich is rather larger than a stout dog,\nand the other is not more than half as\nlarge. Their legs are long, in proportion\nto their slender bodies. Their heads, also,\nare long; and their noses are sharply pointed.\nTheir tails are long and bushy. The colour\nof the larger kind, is generally a light grey;\nbut some of them, are nearly white. The\nsmaller kind are commonly a silver grey;\nbut some of them are nearly black. They\nare all very voracious; but they never attack a human being, unless when suffering\ngreatly from hunger. They display great\ningenuity and cunning; generally, herd together, especially in the winter season; and\nmake a hideous noise, particularly when\nthirty or forty of them are employed in\nsurrounding a herd of the buffaloe or deer,\n24\nj.\n 370\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\nin order to drive them down a precipice.\nThey frequently take this method to make\nthese animals their prey; and, in order to\ncarry a project of this kind into execution\nthey form lines, by separating to a certain\ndistance from each other, and frequently\nmake noises, resembling the human voice;\nand they appear to act in concert, as regularly as the Indians themselves do, when they\ndrive the buffaloes into their yards.\nThe wolves know the effects of a discharge\nof a musket; and when a hunter fires his gun\nat a buffaloe or deer, in a few minutes, from\nten to twenty of them will rush to the spot\nwhence the report proceeded; and, at some\ntimes, they are so pinched with hunger, that\nwhile standing beside his game, it is with\ndifficulty that the hunter preserves it from\nbeing devoured by them.\nThere are three sorts of foxes, which,\nhowever, differ only in their colour. The\nmost common are of a yellowish red, some\nare of a beautiful silver grey, and some in the\nmore northern latitudes, are almost black.\nThe last, are by far the most valuable.\nThe Indians have several kinds of dogs.\nThose which they make use of in hunting,\nare small, their ears stand erect; and they\nare remarkable for their fidelity to their\nmasters.\u00E2\u0080\u0094They now have a large breed\namong them, which were brought into their\ncountry from Newfoundland, by the English,\nwhen they first established themselves on\n ACCOUNT OF ANIMALS\n371\nHudson's Bay; and from that place they\nhave been spread into every part of the\ncountry, east of the Rocky Mountain. They\nare used only as beasts of burthen. In the\nsummer season, they carry loads upon their\nbacks; and in the winter when there is snow,\nthey draw them upon sledges. These sledges\nare made of two thin boards, turned up at\nthe fore end, and joined closely together,\nso that this vehicle is twelve or fourteen\ninches broad, and seven or eight feet in\nlength. The collar, by which the dogs draw,\nis much like that with which a horse is usually harnessed, in the civilized parts of the\ncountry. Their weight is, generally, from\nsixty to one hundred pounds.\nThe cat or lynx, in its shape and nature\nresembles the domestic cat; but is much\nlarger. It has long legs and a long body;\nbut a very short tail. Its hair is exceedingly fine, considerably long, and of a lively\nand beautiful, silver grey colour. When full\ngrown, the cat will weigh thirty five or forty\npounds; and when fat they are excellent\nfood. They generally live on mice, the dead\nfish which they find along the rivers and\nlakes, and partridges and hares. In taking\ntheir prey, they manifest all the adroitness\nand activity of the domestic cat. In some\nyears, these animals are very numerous;\nand, frequently, the following year, very few\ncan be found.\nThere are two species of the deer. One of\n_J.\n 372\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS\nthese, denominated the jumping deer, is like\nthose which are found in the northern parts\nof the United States; and none of them are\nfound farther north than about latitude\n48\u00C2\u00B0 or 50\u00C2\u00B0. The other kind is sometimes\nCalled the red deer or the elk. They are\nabout the size of a horse; and their bodies,\nare shaped like those of the jumping deer.\nTheir tails are remarkably short, being not\nmore than three inches long. Their hair,\nwhich is three inches in length, is of a light\ngrey colour, and is as coarse as that of the\nhorse. The horns of these animals grow to\na prodigious size, their extreme points are\nabout six feet asunder; and they branch\nout before and behind, like those of the\ncommon deer. Their bodies are well proportioned, their air is noble; and, on the\nwhole, they are the most majestick animal,\nthat I have ever seen. They shed their horns,\nin the month of February or March; and by\nAugust, the new ones are nearly at their\nfuU growth. Notwithstanding the size and\nstrength of these animals, and the means\nof defence with which they are furnished,\nthey are as timorous as a hare. Their skins\nare very useful, and will dress as well as\nthat of a buck. They feed on grass and\nbuds, and the twigs of trees. Their flesh\nis tender, and of a fine flavour.\nThe moose is, in size, next to the buffaloe,\namong the animals of the North West. The\nbody is in shape, somewhat like that of\n ACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\n373\nan ox, raw boned, with high haunches;\nbut its neck and head resemble those of a\nhorse. The ears are large, like those of an\nass. The horns are flat, and branched out\nonly behind; and are shed every year. The\nfeet resemble those of the deer, excepting\nthat they are much longer and broader; and\nwhen it puts them on the ground, the hoofs\nseparate, two or three inches. The head is\nabout two feet long. The upper is much\nlonger than the under lip of this animal;\nand the nostrils are so wide, that a man\nmight thrust his hand into them, to a considerable distance. The colour of the moose\nis a light grey, mixed with a deep red, and\nthe hair is so elastic, that its shape cannot\nbe altered by beating. The flesh of this\nanimal is exceedingly good food, it being\neasy of digestion, and very nourishing, as\nwell as very palatable. The nose and the\nupper lip, which is large, and loose from the\ngums, are esteemed a great delicacy; it is\nof a consistence between marrow and gristle,\nand when properly dressed, it is a rich and\nluxurious dish. The hide of this animal\nmakes excellent leather, as it is thick and\nstrong; and when dressed it is soft and pliable. The pace of the moose, is a walk or\ntrot; and it is exceeded in swiftness, by few\nof its fellow tenants of the forest. It will,\nwith ease, trot over a fallen tree, of five\nfeet in diameter. This animal is commonly\nfound in low grounds, where it feeds on\n 374\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\nmoss, and the buds of trees. The moose,\ngenerally, remains alone; though at sometimes five or six of them are found together.\nTheir senses of hearing and smelling are\nuncommonly acute; and, therefore the least\nnoise made by a hunter, such as the rustling\nof dry leaves, or the breaking of a small\nbranch, will be heard by this animal, at\na great distance, and will alarm its fears.\nWhen put to flight, the moose does not like\nthe deer and most other animals, run a\nlittle distance, and then stop, until a new\nappearance of danger; but, oftentimes, he\nwill not make the least halt, until he has\nrun ten or fifteen miles. No other animal\nthat runs in the woods, is so difficult of\napproach.\nThere are two kinds of the cariboo. The\nonly difference between them is, that the\none is about twice as large as the other,\nand the hair of the smaller, is of a much\nlighter colour. The larger, will Weigh nearly\nas much as the elk; but, in shape and the\ncolour of the hair, it more nearly resembles\nthe moose; and like this animal it feeds\nonly on moss, and the buds of trees. The\nhorns are round, like those of the elk; but\nthey approach nearer to each other, at the\nextremities, and bend more over the face,\nthan those of either the moose or the elk.\nThe gait of this animal is much the same\nas that of the moose, and it is almost as\ndifficult of approach.\n \u00E2\u0096\u00A0gfi-fiH^*'-\nitfffTrffffffnrTOriin-TiTnnnni i1 m^ s.\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\n375\nThe flesh is equally good for food; and\nthe tongue, particularly, the Natives consider as one of the greatest dainties, which\ntheir country affords. The skin, being\nsmooth and free from veins, makes the finest\nof leather; and of it, excellent leggins and\nshirts are made. The Indians attach great\nvalue also to the dung of the cariboo, of\nwhich they make, what they consider, a\ndelicious broth. They make use of the lower\nbone of the leg of this animal, in the place\nof a tanner's scraping knife, to separate the\nhair from skins.\nThere are two kinds of antelope, which\ndiffer only in size, and in the colour of their\ntails, which are about two inches long. The\ncolour of these animals is a light grey or\nmouse colour, with here and there a spot\nof white. The tail of the larger, is of the\nsame colour as the body, while that of the\nsmaller, is white. The larger, is about the\nsize of the jumping deer, which animal it,\nalso, very much resembles, in shape. The\nsmaller, will weigh about as much as a sheep;\nand the flesh resembles mutton, in its taste.\nThese animals herd together, like the deer,\nand always remain in an open country; and\ntheir speed is little inferiour to that of the\nhorse. They are very timorous, and as\nsoon as they perceive a human being, they\nrun off to a considerable distance, but soon\nmake a halt; and, if the person hides himself, they will soon return, near to the spot\n 376\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\nwhere they had seen the object which alarmed\nthem. It is thus that the Natives manage,\nin hunting them. Their skin is thin, and will\ndress equally well with that of the chamois;\nand the leather is very suitable for leggins\nand shirts for the Natives, during the summer\nmonths. The males have horns, resembling\nthose of the deer, excepting that they are\nsmaUer.\nThe carcajou or wolverine, in shape and\nthe colour of the hair, greatly resembles\nthe skunk: but it is nearly twice as large.\nThe hair of the carcajou is about the same\nlength as that of a bear: and its colour\nis black, excepting a narrow strip of white,\non the rump. The tail is about six inches\nlong, and is very bushy. This animal is\nremarkably strong built, for its size: and is\nextremely voracious. He feeds on dead fish,\nwhich he finds along the shores of the rivers\nand lakes: and on mice, hares, &e.~ He is\noften found about the places where human\nbeings have been interred; and, if they have\nnot been buried deep in the earth, he will\ntake them up, and feed on their carcases.\nOn this account, the Natives never feed on\nthe flesh of this animal, though it has an\nexcellent flavour. When he falls upon a large\nanimal, that has been killed and cut up and\nleft by the hunter, he will, within a very short\ntime, remove the whole of it to a considerable distance, and strive to hide it under the\ngrass, or the branches of trees.\n PTfOTfTirriTTFTIi i i In ililM\n''''\u00E2\u0096\u00A0'' i'lfrrrF\u00C2\u00AB^\u00C2\u00BB=q=yy=\u00C2\u00BBp\u00C2\u00BB^__g\nJiy-r-i\u00E2\u0080\u0094vT-T-ff'f, l|ij\u00E2\u0080\u009EL'^.'iiBg\n\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\u00E2\u0096\u00A0\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\n\u00C2\u00A3l r^ r?\nThe skunk differs not at all from the same\nanimal, as it is found in most parts of the\nUnited States: and it is too well known to\nneed a description.\nThe porcupine, in shape, and size, differs\nbut little from the skunk. Its tail is much\nshorter, and has little hair on it. The body\nis covered with hair of a dark brown colour,\nabout four inches in length. This hair is\ninterspersed with quills, about the size of a\nstraw, that are white, with black ends, sharply pointed: and for about half an inch from\nthe end, they are covered with a kind of\nbeard, which renders it very difficult to extract them from any soft substance which\nthey have entered. These quills are merely\ndefensive weapons: for it is not true, though\nit has by some been asserted, that they can,\nat pleasure, eject them from their bodies.\nThey are an inoffensive animal, move very\nslowly; and when overtaken by man or\nbeast, they place their heads and their legs\nunder their bodies, and place all their reliance on their quills, for protection. The\nIndian women highly value these quills,\nwhich they die of different colours, and use\nfor garnishing their shoes, leggins, &c. They\nalso hold their flesh in high estimation, as\nan article of food.\nThere is a small animal, found only on\nthe Rocky Mountain, denominated, by the\nNatives, Quis-qui-su, or whistlers, from the\nnoise which they frequently make, and always\n 3?8\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\nwhen surprised, strongly resembling the noise\nmade by a person in whistling. They are\nabout the size of a badger, are covered with\na beautiful long silver grey hair, and have\nlong bushy tails. They burrow in the sides\nof the mountain, and feed on roots and\nherbs. Their flesh is very delicious food.\nThey generally produce two young at a\ntime; and sit upon their hind feet when they\ngive them suck. The skins of these animals\nare very useful to the Natives, for clothing-\nThey dress them, with the hair on; and sew\na sufficient number of them together, to make\na garment, as large as a blanket, which they\nwrap around their bodies.\nThe racoon ~is an animal never found\nfarther north, than about latitude forty\neight. It is considerably smaller than a\nbeaver, with legs and feet resembling this\nanimal. The legs are short in proportion\nto the body, which is like that of a badger.\nIt has a head like that of a fox; but with\nears shorter, rounder, and more naked. The\nhair is thick, long, soft and black at the\nends, like that of a fox. On the face there\nis a broad stripe, that runs across it, which\nincludes the eyes, which are large. The tail\nis long and round, with annular stripes\nupon it, like those of a cat. The feet have\nfive slender toes, armed with sharp claws,\nby which it is enabled to climb trees. It\nfeeds itself with its fore feet, as with hands.\nThe flesh of this animal is very good, in the\n ACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\n379\nmonths of September and October, when\nfruit and nuts, on which it likes to feed,\nare found in plenty.\nThe martin is some larger than a squirrel,\nwhich it resembles in shape, excepting that\nits legs and claws are considerably shorter.\nIn the darkness of the night, the eyes have\na shining appearance, like those of a cat.\nIt has short ears, which are of a roundish\nshape. The whole body is covered with a\nthick fur, which in a mild climate, is of a\nyellowish colour; but in the colder regions\nof the north, it becomes of a dark brown,\nand, in some instances, is nearly black. The\nskins, which have this dark coloured fur,\nare much more valuable than the others.\nThe tail is covered with long hair; and under\nthe neck, even of those of the darkest colour,\nthere is a small spot, of a yellowish cast.\nThe flesh of this animal has a rank, disagreeable taste; and is, therefore seldom\neaten.\nThe muskrat, which receives its name\nfrom the musk that it affords, resembles\nthe beaver, in every respect excepting its\nsize, which is little larger than the badger.\nIt builds for itself a cabin in marshy places,\nat no great distance from some water: and\nfeeds on roots, herbs, mice and fish, which\nit finds dead, on the margin of lakes and\nstreams. In the spring, these animals leave\ntheir huts, as they are built in places so\nlow, that they are generally, at that season,\n 380\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\noverflowed by water. During the summer\nmonths, they have no fixed residence: but\nare found in different places, among the\ngrass. As the winter approaches, they erect\nnew huts, in which they pass the winter.\nCarver is surely mistaken when he states,\nthat they winter in hollow trees, without\nany sustenance, and that, in the summer,\nthey feed on raspberries, strawberries and\nother kinds of fruit.\nIn the North West country, there are only\nthree kinds of squirrels, which are the red,\nthe striped and the flying. The black and\ngrey squirrel, seldom go farther north, than\nlatitude forty five or six.\nThe beaver has been so frequently and so\nminutely described, and his sagacity, ingenuity and industry are so well known,\nthat a very particular account of this animal,\nin this place, would be superfluous. As some\nother animals, in the foregoing description,\nhave been compared with the beaver, it may\nbe necessary to state, that his weight is\nusually about sixty pounds: that his body\nis about four feet in length, and that his\nlegs are short, particularly his fore-legs,\nwhich are not more than four or five inches\nin length. His fore feet are armed with\nclaws, and his hind feet are furnished with\na web or membrane between the toes, for the\nconvenience of swimming, as he is an amphibious animal. His fore-teeth stand obliquely, projecting forward out of his mouth,\n ACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\n381\nand are broad, crooked and sharp. His\nincisors, or side teeth, are firmly set and\nsharp, and his grinders are very strong. By\nmeans of these teeth, he is able to cut down\nconsiderable trees, and to break the hardest\nsubstances. The ordinary colour of the\nbeaver is brown, which becomes darker in\nthe northern, and lighter in the more southern latitudes. The number of beavers in\nthe North West country, is continually diminishing. The skins of this animal constitute, with the Natives, the principal article\nof trade; and the price of other things is\ncomputed, by comparing them with a beaver\nskin.\nThe otter is an amphibious animal, bearing some resemblance to the beaver, and yet\nin many respects, differing from it. His body\nis, in every part, less than that of the beaver,\nthough it is nearly as long. His teeth are\ndifferent, being in shape like those of a dog\nor wolf. The hair of the otter is not more\nthan half the length of the beaver; and in\nsome parts particularly under the neck,\nstomach and belly, is more greyish. This\nanimal, when closely pursued, will not only\ndefend himself; but he will attack dogs and\neven men. His food consists of roots and\nfish; and his* flesh tastes and smells of the\nlatter, and is not very palatable food.\nThe mink is of the otter kind, and subsists on similar food, and resembles this\nanimal in its colour. In shape and size.\n I\n382\nACCOUNT OF ANIMALS.\nit bears a strong resemblance to the martin;\nbut its hair is much shorter. A musky scent\nproceeds from this animal. It is generally\nfound along smaU rivers.\nThe following catalogue of animals, will\nexhibit the comparative value of the furs,\nwhich are annually purchased and exported\nto the civilized parts of the world, by the\nNorth West Company. The animal is first\nmentioned, the skins of which will amount\nto the greatest sum; and so on, in order,\nto the last, the skins of which, will amount\nto the smallest sum.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Beaver, otter, musk-\nrat, martin, bear, fox, lynx, fisher, mink,\nwolf, buffaloe.\nThe following catalogue will exhibit the\ncomparative weight of the skins, of the different animals, which are annuaUy purchased\nand exported, as above mentioned.\u00E2\u0080\u0094Beaver,\nmartin, muskrat, bear, otter, wolf, buffaloe\nlynx, &c.\nEND.\n fl'l Hill illU fliTi'iiiriJIiililidiliiTfnilltli'l I ' \"fi'ill'hl I' I I ih il ' I'n'i'MnMswwTOBnT-Ta\nm\n r\n amaaau\nwnawjMii&TiiSiinfifiiMi\nnW^mPHtm\n /.\nn\n "@en . "Other Copies: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/3406424"@en . "Books"@en . "Travel literature"@en . "FC3212.1 .H37 1903"@en . "II-0245-i"@en . "10.14288/1.0222791"@en . "English"@en . "Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library"@en . "New York : A. S. Barnes and Company"@en . "Images provided for research and reference use only. For permission to publish, copy, or otherwise distribute these images please contact digital.initiatives@ubc.ca."@en . "Original Format: University of British Columbia. Library. Rare Books and Special Collections. FC3212.1 .H37 1903"@en . "Indians of North America--Canada"@en . "Cree language--Glossaries, vocabularies, etc"@en . "Carrier language--Glossaries, vocabularies, etc"@en . "Northwest, Canadian--Description and travel"@en . "A journal of voyages and travels in the interior of North America between the 47th and 58th degrees of N. Lat., extending from Montreal nearly to the Pacific, a distance of about 5,000 miles, including an account of the principal occurrences during a residence of nineteen years in different parts of the country. With introduction and map"@en . "Text"@en .