394 Mr W. E. Cormack's Journey in aearch of 



jiln this cemetery were deposited a variety of articles, in some 

 instances the property, in others the representations of the pro- 

 perty and utensils, and of the achievements, of the deceased. 

 There were two small wooden images of a man and woman, no 

 doubt meant to represent husband and wife ; a small doll, which 

 we supposed to represent a child (for Mary March had to leave 

 her only child here, which died two days after she was taken) : 

 several small models of their canoes ; two small models of boats ; 

 an iron axe ; a bow and quiver of arrows were placed by the 

 side of Mary MarcKs husband ; and two fire-stones (radiated 



foundland, to take back this woman to the lake, where she was captured, and 

 if possible, at the same time, to open a friendly intercourse with her tribe. 

 But she died on board Captain B.'s vessel, at the mouth of the river. Cap- 

 tain B., however, took up her body to the lake ; and not meeting with any of 

 her people, left it where they were afterwards likely to meet with it. It ap- 

 pears the Indians were this winter encamped on the banks of the River Ex- 

 ploits, and observed Captain B.'s party passing up the river on the ice. 

 They retired from their encampments in consequence ; and, some weeks after- 

 wards, went by a circuitous route to the lake, to ascertain what the party had 

 been doing there. They found Mary Marches body, and removed it from 

 where Captain B. had left it to where it now lies, by the side of her husband. 

 With the exception of Captain Buchan's first expedition, by order of the lo- 

 cal government of Newfoundland in the winter of 1810, to endeavour to open 

 a friendly intercourse with the Red Indians, the two parties just mentioned 

 ^re the only two we know of that had ever before been up to the Red Indian 

 Lake. Captain B. at that time succeeded in forcing an interview with the 

 principal encampment of these people. All of the tribe that remained at that 

 period were then at the Great Lake, divided into parties, and in their winter 

 encampments, at different places in the woods on the margin of the lake. 

 Hostages were exchanged ; but Captain B. had not been absent from the In- 

 dians two hours, in his return to a depot left by him at a short distance down 

 the river, to take up additional presents for them, when the want of confidence 

 of these people in the whites evinced itself. A suspicion spread among them 

 that he had gone down to bring up a reinforcement of men, to take them all 

 prisoners to the sea coast ; and they resolved immediately to break up their en- 

 campment and retire farther into the country, and alarm and join the rest oi 

 their tribe, who were all at the western parts of the lake. To prevent their 

 proceedings being known, they killed and then cut off the heads of the two 

 English hostages ; and, on the same afternoon on which Captain B. had left 

 them, they were in full retreat across the lake, with baggage, children, &c 

 The whole of them afterwards spent the remainder of the winter together, at 

 a place twenty to thirty miles to the south-west, on the south-east side of the 

 lake. On Captain B.'s return to the lake next day or the day after, the cause 

 of the scene there was inexplicable ; and it remained a mystery until now, 

 when we can gather some facts relating to these people from the Bed Indian 

 woman Shawnawdithii, i 



