Arctic travels; or, An account of the several land expeditions to determine the geography of the northern part of the American continent
None
”, A'^ <J> *' O N O ^ ' A*> ’> v' <, 'o.'.* ,0 r\^ -» ^ ^0 c - ^0^ ; <j5 ' .K r c5> '^n <p ' ♦ aS’/r/T^^ ^ * < O o -q? ^ ■* y 0 ** o * "*^0 \ "v/v'b' ‘ ^ •>. 4 <\ » • "o*;- ,0' 4 ,<^ /'■ o ">^ o'' : ^ *"'• ''i, * - 0^ **••'. - - Wl bV‘ ♦ <^ '• L V n M a 9 I 1 • ^ 0 ^ o ho'^ V ' A^ ^ <0 ^ L> » ^ ^ : •« ^ 4"^ / '\ \ 0^ 0_ ^ o 0* 4 '4'’ o K ,*^ o> ^ ^ "* rf> ^ '**4. 4j> ^ O N O ->p > '^;> V • <- ^ ^A\\^^//yio v^- d. : aVa » «?’ • O • *»,■.*’ * O , 0 ’ f '^ • o- ^cv <0^ ^ c «• r$>^ S 1 V '■•'T'.'T’' A -o..- <v> >1^. ■ 0^ <', • « "oK \0 ' lA o^ <nc . ^ V 9 4 1 O' o » o - ^ ♦ V^ "i'-S" *=V6 'O • ,. '* ,0 ^ V TV ^ V cSV\\\^'^-‘ •n^ 0^ 'O . » • CA 4^ 4 4 . o V -c V* 0^ \ "'I. -V I I 1 i. 4 / Hr-. I tA- . 'T S*v fSw • - *. .» $ V ■ •' sK", I « Rapids in the Coppermine River. 9 ARCTIC TRAVELS w OR, AN ACCOUNT OF THE SEVERAL LAND EXPEDITIONS TO DETERMINE THE GEOGRAPHY OF THE NORTHERN PART OF THE AMERICAN CONTINENT. Perforated Rock near Cape Parry. I' E W yORK ; PUBLISHED BY CARLTON & LANAHAN, SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, 200 MULBERRY-STREET. ► •* ^ » •. WAY 17 m %■ * INTRODUCTION TO ARCTIC TRAVELS. Mr. Jones, a merchant residing in the city of Waterford, in the south of Ireland, was not more respected by his neighbours for his character in trade, than for the paternal solici- tude with which he watched over the morals and education of his two sons, William and Patrick, and endeavoured to fit them for being useful members of society. During the day while he was engaged in his counting-house, they attended a school in the town, which was kept by a worthy and highly competent master ; but in the evening Mr. Jones generally had some rational plan of occupation, which com- bined instruction with amusement, and made home what a judicious parent will always strive to make it — a scene of cheerfulness and improve- ment. In the summer of the preceding year, he had been greatly assisted by a Mr. Mackey, captain of a trading vessel, who had come to Waterford with goods and stopped at his house all the time that his ship was unlading and taking in fresh cargo. He had related to the family circle the voyages and discoveries of Captains Ross and Parry, in the Arctic Seas 6 ARCTIO TRAVELS. and had excited their wonder by his account of the Esquimaux, with whom these expeditions had brought Europeans acquainted — their houses built of ice, the hardships these remote people endure in winter, their ignorance of all those inventions of art and science which have so much promoted the comforts of life ; and he thus led them to reflect, with thankfulness, upon the happier circumstances in which their lot hadbeen castby Providence. They acquired also, in this way, a knowledge of the geography of these hitherto unexplored parts of the earth ; while not the least advantage which accrued to them was, the important lesson which the nar- rative enforced, that zeal, intrepidity, and dis- cretion, can, with the divine aid, surmount the most appalling dangers ; while a firm reliance upon the care and protection of an ever-watchful Providence, and an unrepining fortitude under the trials which he sends, not only support the mind under suffering, but are often rewarded by the opening of a way of escape, when, to all' human appearance, it was hopeless. A year had now nearly elapsed since the sons of Mr. Jones had, in this way, been made ac- quainted with the enterprise and energy of British seamen in the Arctic Seas. Mr. Mackey had been twice in Waterford harbour during that interval ; but his stay was too short, and his time too much occupied, to permit his com- pliance with their request, that, in like manner as he had given them such an interesting ac- count of Arctic discoveries by sea, he would ARCTIC TRAVELS. 7 also communicate to them the result of those land expeditions which were sent out at differ- ent times to explore the northern parts of the North American continent, and to ascertain, by another mode, whether the northern shore of that vast region is washed by a sea connecting the x\tlantic and Pacific Oceans. At length, however, the time came when the boys were to have their laudable curiosity grati- fied. Captain Mackey, about the middle of September, making for the harbour of Waterford, had met the equinoctial gales, which, blowing with the fierceness of a hurricane, had carried away his main-yard, unshipped and washed away pa,rt of his rudder, and, while the ship was no longer under the guidance of the helm, had driven it ashore in Tramore Pay, happily without the loss of life or limb to any one aboard. The loss of the cargo would have been a serious injury to her owners. By the good seaman- ship, however, of Captain Mackey, and the weather becoming moderate, she was got off the next tide, and towed, in this crippled state, to her old berth at the quay, where she was un- loaded and laid down for repairs. “ There is something,” says an old writer, in the misfortunes of our best friends, to give us satisfaction which seems to imply, not tha- the good can ever be gratified at the calamities which befall a fellow-creature, but that the cup of evil is never unmixed with some mild ingre- dient, which qualifies its bitterness, and enables us more cheerfully to drink it. During tho 8 ARCTIC TRAVELS. delay which the refitting of the ship caused, Captain Mackey was induced to take up his abode with Mr. Jones, and this afforded the long wished-for opportunity of giving that gentleman’s family the promised narration. During the time of Captain Mackey’s stay at Mr. Jones’s, the family party, increased by the respected clergyman who presided over the school of Waterford, and who was greatly be- loved by William and Patrick, used to assembla each evening around the tea-table. The m<^> of North America being duly placed before the boys, corrected according to the discoveries of Captain Parry, Captain Mackey, after a kind encouragement to his young hearers freely to question him upon any subject which might require explanation, began. It is to be under- stood, that so long a narration must have occu- pied many evenings ; indeed, it furnished matter for conversation for above a fortnight ; but it is here given in an unbroken form, in order that it may be the more intelligible to the reader. ARCTIC TRAVELS. CHAPTER I. Capt. Mackey. Before I proceed to detail the events of Captain Franklin’s expeditions to explore the northern coast of America, it is ne- cessary to inform you of the reasons which in- duced geographers in general to believe, not only that there was a sea of communication between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but that it was not very far north of the latitude of the Strait of the Fury and Hecla, which Captain Parry had, unsuccessfully, attempted to pene- trate, his way being blocked up by ice. You already know that he ascertained that strait to lie between the north-eastern promontory of the continent of North America, and Cockburn Island, in the 70th degree of north latitude. William^ Yes, *sir, and we well remember that he satisfactorily established the fact, that beyond the strait, to the west, there lies a large collection of water, which, from its extent and the reports of the Esquimaux, there was every reason for believing is the sea which washes the northern shore of the American continent, and extends to Behring’s Straits. Capt. ill. The strength of these reasons you 10 ARCTIC TRAVELS. will the belter understand, when you learn that the merchants who carry on a trade with the North American Indians for furs, under the title of the Hudson’s Bay Company, and have long had a factory called Prince of Wales’s Fort, on the eastern shore of Hudson’s Bay, were in- duced, in the year 1769, to send out one of their agents, Mr. Samuel Hearne, to explore the country east and north of the factory ; and that this traveller actually penetrated to the banks of a great river, which ran northward, and emptied itself into the sea, in the latitude, as he reported, of 71° north, and longitude 120° west of London ; and that subsequent to that period, in the years 1789 and 1793, Mr. Alex- ander Mackenzie, one of the merchants traf- ficking also with the American Indians, as a partner in the North-west Company, establish- ed at Montreal, in Canada, set out with the de- sign of extending their transactions ; and after a journey equally perilous, and more lengthened than Mr. Hearne’s, reached the mouth of a very large river, and saw the sea in latitude 69° north, and longitude 131° west. Mr. Jones. It appears that in neither case was the immediate object the promotion of science. Mr. Capel. Nevertheless we ought not to deny them the praise which is due to an enterprising spirit, when if does not wander into rashness. A great nation, like England, may be influenced by the sole desire of advancing science ; but individuals and commercial companies will be ARCTIC TRAVELS. 11 influenced, partly, perhaps chiefly, by self- interest. Capt. M It was the hope of linding a shorter way to the East Indies which led Columbus to * the discovery of America. So that Hearne and Mackenzie are not to be disparaged, because they were actuated by an honest spirit of com- mercial industry. Mr. Capel. Our own times, however, have furnished a noble proof that men can be influ- enced by higher motives still than the love of science. Witness the patient and heroic mis- sionary ! Mr. Jones. If it would not trespass too much on Captain Mackey, my boys would, I know, be gratified in hearing a short account of the ex- peditions of Hearne and Mackenzie. They were not, perhaps, so scientific as those who came after them ; but we must still consider them as the pioneers of science, preparing the way for subsequent and more favourable results. Capt. M. When I was shut up in Winter Island with Captain Parry, in 1822, and we were expecting that the breaking up of the ice would open for us a way into the long sought for pas- sage, I read both these narratives, anxious, as you may suppose, to collect every information upon the subject which interested us. I shall therefore most willingly gratify the boys. Mr. Jones. What were the circumstances which led Mr. Hearne to undertake this expe- dition ? Capt. M. He states, Tlimself, that the Indians 12 ARCTIC TRAVELS. who range over the vast tracts of country which lie north and west of Churchill River, having repeatedly brought samples of copper to the factory of the Hudson’s Bay Company, the agents of that establishment conjectured that it was found not far from the settlement ; and, as the natives said that the specimens were col- lected on the banks of a great river, Mr. Hearne was directed to explore the district, as far as was possible, searching diligently for the cop- per mine, should he reach the river, and follow- ing the stream till he found its mouth. Mr, Capel. Did they think that it would be found to flow into the Arctic Sea ? Capt. M. The existence of such a sea at that time was not ascertained. However, they de- sired Mr. Hearne to trace the course of the river to its mouth, conjecturing that it flowed into Hudson’s Bay : and that thus an easy mode would be discovered of transporting to their factory the metal, which they hoped to find in abundance. In reading the instructions which Mr. Hearne received from the company, I was particularly struck with their simplicity and good sense. He was to carry with him a sample of light trading goods, to be disposed of by way of pre- sent, and not of traffic ; and to smoke the calu- met of peace with the leaders of the Indians, in order to establish a friendship with them, dis- suading them, as much as possible, from going to war with each other, and recommending them rather to cultivate peace and good-will ARCTIC TRAVELS. 13 Patrick. I fear, at that period, portable soups and such comforts as are known in our day for those who undertake a journey into frozen re- gions, were not thought of ; nor was he so well provided with instruments for taking accurate observations. Capt. M. You shall hear the provision he made for all the contingencies that were likely to arise. He drew a map on a large skin of parchment, which contained twelve degrees of latitude, north, and thirty of longitude, west, of Churchill Factory, leaving the inland parts of it blank, in order that he might prick off his daily courses and distances. He had also a quadrant and a compasss. As for his own personal stock, but little, he says, was required, as the difficulty of travelling in those countries will never admit of carrying even the common articles of cloth- ing ; so that the traveller is obliged to depend on the country through which he is passing for raiment as well as for provisions. Ammu- nition, useful iron work, some tobacco, a few knives, and other indispensable things, make a sufficient load for any one who has besides to bear the weight of the gun, on which he prin- cipally relies for food, and is entering on a journey likely to last twenty months or two years. He took, therefore, only the shirt and clothes he had on, a spare coat and a pair of drawers, and as much cloth as would make three pair of Indian stockings, together with a blanket in which he might Avrap himself at night. 14 ARCTIC TRAVELS. William. Was it the summer season that he cliose for his expedition ? Capt. M. No, but winter ; because, having so much to take with him, he was obliged to make use of a sledge, which is drawn on the ice with great ease. On the 6th of November, 1769, he set out from the Tort accompanied by two of his coun trymen, William Isbester, sailor, and Thomas Merriman, landsman ; two southern Indians ; a northern Indian chief called Captain Choiw- chinahaw, his lieutenant, Nabyah, and eight northern Indians, with their wives and children. The weather was mild ; so that, for the first fortnight, they found the labour of hauling the sledges very severe. The road they followed was between west by north, and north-west, and was in general so rough and stony, that the sledges were daily breaking, while the land was so barren of trees, that they could not find the means of repairing them. At night, also, they thought themselves well off if they could scrape together as many shrubs as would make a fire ; but it was not in their power to make any other defence against the weather than by digging a hole in the snow down to the moss, and, wrapping themselves in their blan- kets, lying down in it, with the sledges set up edgeways to windward. Mr. Jones. He must have had a fine consti- tution to bear such hardships. Capt. M. He and his countrymen bore them, not only without complaint, but cheerfully. ARCTIC TRAVELS. 15 Not so the northern Indians, who got dis- heartened, and deserted, carrying with them several bags of ammunition, and other useful articles, and were quickly followed by Choiw- chinahaw and Nabyah ; so that Hearne, his two companions, and the tw^o southern Indians, were compelled, after suflering greatly from hunger, to return to the fort, where he arrived on the 8th of December. Patrick. I hope he was more successful when he undertook the expedition a second time. Copt. M. Nothing daunted by his failure, he again set out in quest of the river, on the 23d of February, in the following year, 1770 ; having engaged as guide a chief named Conne-e-quese, who said he had been very near the river where the copper was procured. It is not necessary, however, to detail the incidents of this journey, since, though he was eight nionlhs and twenty- two days absent from the Tort, he v/as unable to reach the desired point. Mr. Jones. What was the cause of this second failure ? Capt. M. The very same which frustrated his ■ lirst attempt — the misconduct of the northern Indians who accompanied him. While food continued plentiful, and could be procured without much exertion, they behaved tolerably well ; but as soon as it became scarce, and the road more dilhcult, they dropped oil’, one by one, carrying away several bags of gunpoAvder, and other articles. Mr. C. One would think that, when North 16 ARCTIC TRAVELS. America abounds in lakes, where fish is plentiful, and the woods contain such numbers of rein- deer, any want of food must have been the effect of great mismanagement. Capt. M. So thoughtless of the future was the party which accompanied Mr. Hearne, that he never could induce them to lay up a store for a time of scarcity. A fortnight after they had set out, they reached the borders of a lake, where their nets procured for them a daily supply of fish ; and, by the advice of Conne-e-quese, it was agreed to remain there till the geese should begin to fly northward, which is seldom before the middle of May. On the 1st of April, the fishing nets were found empty, and continued so ; the Indian, therefore, took his gun and went off to look for game ; but the others, indolent and thoughtless, passed their time smoking and sleeping. On the 10th Conne-e-quese returned with the blood and 'some fragments of two deer, which he had killed. 'I'his roused the sleeping Indians, who, for three preceding days, had taken no refreshment, except a pipe of tobacco and a draught of water. In an instant they were on their feet, and soon busily employed in cooking a large kettle of broth. The follow- ing day two more deer were killed, and subse- quently five, and three beavers ; yet nothing could make them provident. Such a quantity of meat would, with prudence, have sufficed for some time ; but the Indians thought only of the present. While the supply lasted, 'they spent viight and day in feasting and gluttony ; but never ARCTIC TRAVELS. 17 during the whole time could they be induced to attend to the fishing nets ; so that many fish which had been taken in them were entirely spoiled ; and in a fortnight they were as much distressed as ever. William, What was the cause that imme- diately led'to their desertion? Capt. M, When the snow melted ofi* the ground, the snow shoes and sledges were dis- carded ; the former, as no longer serviceable ; the latter, from the difficulty and labour of drawing them over the rugged ground. The baggage, therefore, was divided between the party, who were obliged to carry it on their backs. Patrick. The badness of the road was suffi- cient to weary them, without having to carry a heavy load. Capt. M. It soon disheartened the Indians ; but Mr. Hearne was a man of too much resolu- tion to be cast down. Although more unaccus- tomed to bear such hardships, his load weighed sixty pounds. He was often obliged to eat his meat raw, from the impossibility of finding fuel to make a fire. Sometimes half fed ; at other times obliged to leave quantities of food behind : now drenched with rain — again, like a sailor, when the storm is over, forgetting the past hard- ship. Still he would have gone on with good spirits, if the Indians had not left him, after hav- ing stolen his ammunition and rifled his knap- sack. Tbus left alone once more with his two southern Indians, and the winter cold again 2 ■ 18 ARCTIC TRAVELS. becoming severe, he was indebted to a chief ^ named Matonnabee (whom he casually met as he was returning) for a supply of food, and snow shoes, and for guiding him safely to tne fort, where he arrived on the 25th of November, 1770. CHAPTER II. William. I think if Mr. Hearne had not en- cumbered himself with so much baggage he might have succeeded better ; but how then could he have requited the services which he received from the Indians whom he met ? Patrick. He might have given them an order for payment upon the governor at Prince of Wales’s Fort. Capt. M. When they were several hundred miles from the factory, such an order would have been little prized. For the least assistance they expected immediate payment ; and if they gave the least morsel of victuals, they always asked something in exchange, which, in gene- ral, was three times the value of what they could have got for the same articles at the fort, even after going a long journey. The failure of this second attempt Mr. Hearne himself as- cribed to his having been recommended by the governor not to take the wives of his Indian guides with him. Mr. Capel. I should have thought women ill .ARCTIC TRAVELS. 19 able to bear the fatigues of such a journey, and, therefore, an impediment that might have been well dispensed with. Capt. M. In North America the Indian does little more than carry his rifle, and hunt down the game ; all other occupations he considers beneath him ; or as a chief said to Mr. Hearne, “ When men are to hunt or travel to any con- siderable distance, they must not be heavily laden. In case they meet with success, who is to cook the food ; who to carry our provisions ; who to pitch our tents, make and mend our clothing, or haul our nets 1 In fact,” he added, “ there is no such thing as travelling any considerable distance, or for any length of time, without their assistance.” This, how- ever strange it may appear, is too true a de- scription of the situation of women in that part of the world. Patrick. Mr. Hearne was not, of course, dis- couraged, for we have not yet heard of any dis- coveries made by him ; but I long to hear of his again setting out. Capt. M. On the 25th of November, as 1 have mentioned, he returned to the fort, and on the 7th of December he again took leave of the governor. Past experience, however, had made him wiser — he declined taking any southern Indians with him ; but engaged Matonnabee to be his guide ; and as he was a chief of con- siderable reputation, and had already shown such a contrast to the rest of his countrymen, by his disinterested kindness, there was every 20 ARCTIC TRAVELS.* reason to believe that he would behave far ^ differently, and faithfully fulfil the duty which he undertook. It is not, however, my intention to follow the track of Mr. Hearne by a narrative of each day’s proceedings. They were nearly the same as those of the two former journeys, except in one particular — Matonnabee was true to his engage- ment, and conducted Mr. Hearne to the Cop- permine River, which they reached on the 14th of July, 1771. Patrick. How many miles did they walk in a day ? Capt. M. The average was from eight to ten miles, when they were on journey ; but there were many days when the Indians would not move, and that was generally when they lighted on a good supply of food : on such occasions an Indian wdll eat at a sitting as much as would serve six moderate men ; but their indulgence of appetite brings with it its own punishment, for they usually become so ill from repletion as to be unable to move for several days. Without minutely detailing their course, I may mention that, on the 6th of February, they crossed the main branch of the Catha- whachaga River, lying north-west of the fort. It was at that part three-quarters of a mile broad ; and, walking a short distance farther, they came to the side of Cossed Whoie, or Partridge Lake, which they crossed on the following day, over the ice, and found it four- teen miles wide. ARCTIC TRAVELS. 21 Patrick, Looking at the map, I perceive they (lid not take the shortest road to the Copper- mine River. Capt. M. They were obliged to remain among the wooded parts of the country for the sake of food, which they found in such great plenty, that they often killed the animals for the marrow and tongue, and left the carcass behind to rot. William. This was a great abuse of the kind- ness of Providence. Mr. C. So it was ; but among people so ig- norant, every thing appears as the mere effect of chance ; they do not consider that they are wasting the provisions which the Almighty places before them, and which they may them- selves feel the want of at a future time : there- fore they think it neither wrong nor improvi- dent to live upon the best the country will aflbrd. Capt. M. On the 20th of May the party, aug- mented by several Indian families whom they had met in their course, arrived at the Clowey Lake, where they began to build canoes for crossing the river which lay between them and the Coppermine River. These vessels, though very slight and simple in their construction, are, nevertheless, the best that can be contrived for the use intended, as it is frequently necessary to carry them one hundred or one hundred and fifty miles at a time, without having occasion to put them into the water. Patrick. Are they neatly made ? Capt. M. So neatly that they could not be excelled by our most expert mechanics, assisted 4 22 ARCTIC TRAVELS. with every tool they could wish for. The only ^ tools used by the Indian consist of a hatchet, a knife, a file, and an awl. In shape this canoe resembles a weaver’s shuttle, being flat-bottomed, with straight upright sides, and sharp at each end. Mr. C. Living so long among these wander- ing people, Hearne must have had frequent op- portunities of observing their habits. Capt. M. From what I have mentioned about their indolence and gluttony, you may suppose he saw much to condemn. Their vices, indeed, were great; but we should not censure them too harshly. They were ignorant and uneducated, and they had not, as we have, the pure morality of the Christian religion to correct and guide them. But that which showed their barbarism most, was their treatment of the female sex. Maton- nabee had no less than seven wives, or rather, I should say, servants, to carry his tent and fur- niture, and cook his victuals, dress the skins, and make them up into clothing. Hearne says that he has seen a woman carrying a burden weighing nearly a hundred pounds, in summer, and hauling a much gveater weight in winter, while Matonnabee either sat in his tent smok- ing his pipe, or walked slowly on before with nothing but his gun in his hand. The custom of these uninstructed people was, to wrestle for the woman to whom they were attached, the strongest always carrying off the prize ; hence a weak man was seldom permit- ted to keep a wife that a stronger man thought ARCTIC TRAVELS. 23 worth his notice, more particularly if the latter had more baggage than his wives were able to carry. This wrestling is, in fact, nothing but pulling each other about by the hair of the head, to prevent which one of the combatants, and sometimes both, will come out with their hair close shorn, and their ears greased. But the worst feature in these savages re- mains still unmentioned. While they were at Clowey, they entered into an inhuman combi- nation to surprise and massacre the Esquimaux, who were understood to frequent the Copper- mine River in considerable numbers. Patrick, Did not Mr. Hearne endeavour to dissuade them from such an inhuman and cold- blooded scheme ? — it was his instructions to do so. Capt. M. He states that he did his utmost as soon as he became acquainted with the inten- tions of his companions, and saw their warlike preparations ; but without effect ; — nay, that they even accused him of cowardice, a reproach which would have endangered his own person- al safety. William. But did he stand by and see such preparations going on? He should have remem- bered his instructions, “to dissuade them as much as possible from going to war with each other.” Matonnabee was employed by him, for a promised reward, to be his guide — his going to the Coppermine River was solely at Mr. Hearne’s desire. Hearne, therefore, should at once have turned back, if all his efforts to pre- 24 ARCTIC TRAVELS. vent the perpetration of such a crime were un- successful. Copt. M. So he should, my boy, even at the risk of his life ; and so you would be still more inclined to think, if you heard the account of this massacre. On the 14th of July, having reached the river, they sent three spies to report what Esquimaux were inhabiting the banks be- tween them and the sea ; and having learned that there were five tents, the Indians began to get their arms in order, painted their shields with the figure of the sun or moon, or some bird or beast of prey ; painted their faces, some all black, some red ; and, to prevent their hair from blowing into their eyes, tied it before and be- hind, or else cut it short all around, pulled olT their stockings, and tucked up their sleeves close to the shoulders, and thus set upon their victims, whom they found asleep, and put them every one to death, sparing neither age nor sex. None but savages — none but those who knew^ not God, and feared not punishment in another wmrld — could be guilty of such a bloody act ; and I quite agree with William, that Mr. Hearne should rather have suffered the Indians to pierce him with their spears than allow such a cruelty to be perpetrated. But let us leave such a painful subject. On his arrival at the river, Hearne found it very dif- ferent from the description given of it by the In- dians at the factory ; for, instead of being so large as to be navigable for shipping, it was scarcely deep enough to float a canoe, being AIICTIC TR.\^*ELS. 20 every where full of shoals, and no less than three falls in sight ; nor was it Ijetter adapted for shipping nearer the mouth, being all the way full of shoals and falls, and emptying itself into the sea over a ridge or bar. At a short distance from the mouth, the sea was full of islands, and great numbers of seals were sporting on the ice, which was, however, melted away for about three-quarters of a mile from the main shore. Mr. C. Did Hearne determine the latitude and longitude of the mouth of the river ? Capt. M. He states that the weather was not fair enough to determine the latitude’s exact po- sition by observation ; but, from the extraordi- nary care he took in observing the courses and distances which he walked, he computes the latitude to have been 71° 5D north, the longi- tude 120° 30^ west. The mode, however, was a rough one, and, as might be expected, gave an incorrect position : of this, however, we shall have occasion to speak hereafter. Mr. C. Did Hearne find much copper ? Capt. M. The Copper Indians conducted him to what they called the mine, which was about twenty-nine miles to the south-south-east ; but gTeat was his disappointment on finding that, so far from its deserving the report made by the Indians, that ship-loads could be easily obtained, the hills being, as they said, entirely composed of that metal, — there was only a heap of stones and gravel, and so little appearance of the copper, that, after a search of some hours, but one piece of any size could be found. 26 ARCTIC TRAVELS. On the 18th of July, the party set out on their return, and by great exertion reached, on the 31st, the place where the Indians found their wives and children, whom they had left behind. Hearne suffered greatly from fatigue : his legs and ankles swelled so much, that he had no power to direct his feet when walking ; so that he frequently knocked them forcibly against the stones, and at last was in such a condition, that he left the prints of his feet in blood almost at every step he took, the raw parts being greatly irritated by the sand and gravel, which he could by no means exclude. Patrick. What would they have done if his strength had not been equal to the exertion of keeping up with them ? Capt. M. I do not suppose Matonnabee would have left him behind to perish ; but it is a fact, that, in the journey which they made, after having rejoined the women, one of the Indian women, who was afflicted with consump- tion, and unable to travel, was left, without any sign of regret, to perish on the road. This, he says, is their common practice : they generally, however, leave some food and water, and, if the place will afford it, a little firing ; they then tell the road which they intend to take, in order that, if the patient recovers, he may follow. The poor woman whom Hearne mentions over- took the party three several times after having been left ; at length the poor creature dropped behind, and no one attempted to go back in search of her. ARCTIC TRAVELS. 27 As the Indians in Hearne’s company had determined to winter about Athabasca Lake, he was obliged to go along with them, though it greatly retarded his return to the fort. On the 1 1th of January, 1772, as the party was hunt- ing, they saw the track of a strange snow-shoe, and, following, it, came to a little hut, where they discovered a young woman sitting alone. She proved to be a western Dog-rib, taken pri- soner by the Athabasca Indians, in the summer of 1770, but who, in the following summer, 1771, had eloped from them with the design of returning to her own country. The distance, however, was so great, and so many rivers were to be crossed, that she was forced to give it up ; she had therefore built the hut to protect her from the weather, and there had resided seven months without seeing a human face. William, How did the poor creature support herself? Capt. M. By snaring partridges, rabbits, and squirrels. Indeed, when discovered, she had a small stock of provisions in her hut, and was in excellent health and condition. Patiick. But she had other wants beside that of food. How did she supply herself with clothes ? Capt. M. The methods she practised were truly admirable, and proved the truth of the saying, “ that necessity is the mother of in- vention.” She sewed her clothing with the sinews of the rabbits’ legs and feet, twisting them together with great dexterity and success 28 ARCTIC TRAVELS. or the skins she made a suit of neat and warm '^clothing for the winter, and even showed great taste in ornamenting her work with curious sewing. Her leisure hours, after hunting, she had employed in twisting the inner rind or bark of willows into small lines, like net-twine, with which she intended to make a fishing-net as soon as the spring advanced. Patrick. What tools had she ? Caj)t. M. Five or six inches of an iron hoop, made into a knife, and the shank of an arrow head of iron, which served her as an awl ; and with them she contrived also to make herself complete snow-shoes, and several other useful articles. Her story was a melancholy one. The tribe to which she belonged, and which lived far to the westward, had been surprised in the night by the Athabasca Indians, who killed every one in the tent except herself, and three other young women. Among the slaughtered were her fa- ther, mother, and husband. Her young child she concealed in a bundle of clothing, and took with her undiscovered. But when she arrived at the place where the Athabascans had left their wives, and they began to examine the bundle, one of the women took it from her and killed it on the spot. Mr, C. Such is man in a state of ignorance and barbarism ! Capt M. This was more than a mother’s af- fection for her infant could bear ; and there- fore, seizing the first opportunity, she fled from arctic travels. 29 ilicin into the woods, choosing rather to expose herself to misery and want than live with per- sons who had made her childless, a widow, and an orphan. It is not necessary to follow more minutely the track of Mr. Ilearne, as he returned home- ward to the fort. They crossed the Athabasca iTdke, and also the river of the same name, where it was two miles wide ; Large Pike Jrake, Bedsdid Lake, Hill Island Lake. On the llth of May they threw away their snow shoes, as the ground was in most places so hare as not to require any such assistance. On the 18th, finding the ice so far melted in the river as to render walking on it dangerous, they built their canoes, which were now be- come necessary for crossing the waters which lay in their way; and, to be brief, reached the fort on the 29th of June, 1772, having been absent eighteen months and twenty-three days. Mr. C. The courage and resolution of Mr. Hearne cannot be too much admired ; but ex- cept the fact of having ascertained that the Cop- permine River flowed northward into the sea, lie does not appear to have added much to our geographical knowledge. Capt. M. ^Ve must not, however, undervalue the importance of that one discovery ; for, con- joined with the knowledge that the Macken- zie also poured its waters into a northern sea, it led the way to the expeditions of Captains Parry and Franklin. Ilearne had not the instruments necessary for laving down his course withpreci- so ARCTIC TRAVELS. sion ; but he showed the practicability of living ^ among the Indians, and in their company of taking a long and perilous journey into the Arctic regions, where, for a certain period of the year, the sun never rises above the hori- zon ; where the cold is so intense during win- ter, that the inferior animals leave it to seek the shelter of a more southern climate ; and where the whole face of the country presents one un- varying appearance of snow. CHAPTER III. Mr. Jones. What was the immediate cause of Mackenzie’s journey, which I believe was the next that was undertaken in these regions ? Capt. M. He belonged to the North-west Fur Tradirfg Company, which carried on a lucrative traffic with the Indians living to the north-west of Lake Superior, in North Ame- rica ; and, being of an inquisitive mind and en- terprising spirit, together with a constitution and frame of body, as he states himself, equal to the most arduous undertakings, he determined to explore the country northwards, which furnish- ed the furs to the hunters, and, if possible, open new^ channels of trade to the commercial esta- blishment with which he was connected. Patrick. Where do the company, who carry on this trade, reside ? Copt. M. At Montreal, in Canada ; and it is» AIICTIC TRAVELS. 31 au interesting fact, that, in the year 1789, this traffic carried those who were engaged in it to the astonishing distance of four thousand miles westward of Montreal, that is, to Fort Chipe- wyan, on the banks of the Lake of the Hills, in latitude 58° north, longitude 110° west. Subsequently, however, as we shall find, this company extended its establishment much far- ther to the north. William. I should like to hear some account of their traffic.. Capt. M. It would be tedious to follow the route which is travelled by the agents, who leave Montreal at the beginning of May, in or- der to meet those who had spent the winter in the different establishments north of Lake Su- perior. It is sufficient to say, that, embarking in slight canoes of bark, they are obliged to un- load them in order to tow them up above two hundred rapids, while the cargoes are conveyed on men’s shoulders by land ; that these same canoes, with their lading, are transported over no less than one hundred and thirty carrying places, called portages, from twenty-five paces to thirteen miles in length. Mr. Capcl. Looking at the ijiap, it appears to me that there is a direct channel of communi- cation between Lake Winnipeg, in longitude 97^ west, and the southern shores of Hudson’s Bay, which, therefore, would be a much shorter way of sending the furs than the great distance they are said to be carried. Capt. M. It is, doubtless, a far shorter way, 32 ARCTIC TRAVELS. but the passage belongs to the Hudson’s Bay o Fur Company, who could scarcely be expected ^to assist their rival in the trade, in sending furs to the market on cheaper terms, and thus un- derselling them. Mr. Jones. It must take a very long time be- fore the capital expended in carrying on this trade brings in a return. Capt. M. The following statement will show that very clearly : — The orders for the goods are sent ^ -i 09^ to England in October, J ’ They are shipped from London >. in March, \ ’ They arrive in xMontreal, in Ca- ) , 09^ nada, in June, J ’ They are despatched inland in ) , May, ^ ^ They arrive in the interior and ) are exchanged for furs in > 1827, 1828, winter, ) Which furs come to Montreal in > , September, S ’ And arrrive in London, and are paid for, in June, William. That is very curious. But if Mr. Mackenzie’s chief object was trade, what could have brought him to the shores of the Arctic Ocean In that inclement region, which we find all animals leaving as winter commences, the Indian hunter would not find much to re- ward him for the toils and hardships he must undergo. 1829. ARCTIC TRAVELS. 33 Capt. M. A great part of the furs which are obtained by the North-west Company are in- tended for the Chinese market. Mr. Mackenzie, therefore, thought that if he could reach the Pacific Ocean, a shorter route would be dis- covered for sending them by. He, therefore, set out from Fort Chipewyan, on the Lake of the Hills, on the 3d of June, 1789, and passed down the Peace or Slave River, to the Great Slave Lake, which he crossed to its main outlet, toward the north-west, in latitude 61° north. This stream carried him forward for twenty- seven days, with a rapid and safe current, till he was warned of his approach to the sea by the action of the tide in the channel and on the shore. The violence of the swell, and the lateness of the season, prevented him from going any farther ; but it was not until then that he gave up the hope of some bend in the river leading westward to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. I do not give you the particu- lars of the expedition, because Captain Frank- lin’s two narratives will present to you a much more interesting detail of occurrences over the very same course. Patrick. Who were Mackenzie’s companions? Capt. M. The crew of his canoe, which was made of birch bark, consisted of a German and four Canadians, two of whom were attended by their wives. He was also accompanied by an Indian, called English Chief, and his two wives, in a small canoe, with two young Indians, his followers, in another small canoe. The Indian 3 34 ARCTIC TRAVELS. was one of tlie followers of Matonnabee, who '^had conducted Mr. Hearne to the Coppermine River, and had afterward become a principal leader of his tribe. Mr. C. Was Mr. Mackenzie qualified to take the necessary observations ? Capt. M. It would appear as if his instru- ments were not very good. He mentions, how- ever, on the 1st of July, having sat up all night to observe the sun, which never set. This shows that he was north of the Arctic circle, which is in latitude 67^ north. “ I called,” he says, “ one of the men to view a sight which he had never before seen. When he saw the sun so high, he thought it was a signal to embark, and began to call the rest of his companions. They returned to rest, however, when they found that the sun had not descended nearer the horizon, and that it was but a short time past midnight.” When he arrived at the utmost point of his journey northward, he took an observation which gave him 69° north latitude. We shall find, however, that in the longitude he was mistaken. He calculated it at 1 35^ west. Mr. C. How did he know that the body of water which he reached was the sea ? Capt. M. He says that the White Man’s r^ake, as his Indian guide called it, appeared covered with ice from about two leagues’ dis- tance, and no land ahead. They saw whales ; from which circumstance he called an island on which he landed Whale Island. There was ARCTIC TRAVELS. 