﻿1848. ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSION. 105 



the Chepewyans for honesty, docility, aptness to re- 

 ceive instruction, and attention to the precepts of 

 their teachers, was one of ahiiost unqualified praise, 

 and formed, as they stated, a strong contrast to that 

 of the volatile Crees. They have already taught 

 many of their pupils here to read and write a 

 stenographic syllabic character, first used by the 

 late Reverend Mr. Evans, a Wesleyan missionary, 

 formerly resident at Norway House, but which 

 Monsieur La Fleche has adapted to the Chepewyan 

 language. On asking this gentleman his opinion 

 of the afiSnity between the Cree and Chepewyan 

 tongues, both of which he spoke fluently, he told me 

 that the grammatical structure of the Chepewyan 

 was difi^erent, the words short, and the sounds dis- 

 similar, bearing little resemblance to the soft, flow- 

 ing compounds of the Cree language. 



As there is generally some difficulty in making 

 an early start from a fort, v\^e moved in the evening 

 to the point of the bay, that we might be ready to 

 take advantage of the first favourable moment for 

 proceeding on our voyage. 



June 2Qth. — We embarked before 3 A. m., but a 

 strong head-wind blowing, we could proceed only 

 by creeping along-shore under shelter of the pro- 

 jecting points. For some days past the water has 

 been covered with the pollen of the spruce fir, and 

 to-day we observed that it was thickly spread with 



