196 A NIPPING WINTER. 



was completed too late to return that same year, so 

 another dreary winter was spent at Colville : the 

 cold was so intense that the ink froze in the pens, 

 even when it was kept hot before the fire, and 

 thus put a stop to all writing; the steam 

 rising from the teacups would freeze into a kind 

 of sleet, and fall again on the table. Still, in spite 

 of this intense cold, if the air was still, as it 

 usually happened to be, no inconvenience was 

 felt, and we all wandered about with but 

 little if any warmer clothing than we wore at 

 Vancouver Island. 



Whilst we remain here, I may as well give a 

 brief account of packing, camping, and pro- 

 visioning, and the general features of the Boun- 

 dary line, as well as the natives and their dogs. 



