198 A JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



took in so much water that we were obliged to disembark on a small 

 island. The river here is from one mile and a quarter to one mile 

 and three quarters wide. Its banks are of moderate height, sandy, 

 and well wooded. 



July 24. — We made more progress notwithstanding the continu- 

 ance of the wind. The course of the river is very winding, making in 

 one place a circuit of seven or eight miles round a peninsula, which 

 is joined to the west bank by a narrow isthmus. Near the foot of this 

 elbow, a long island occupies the centre of the river, which it divides 



into two channels. The longitude was obtained near to it 113° 25' 36", 

 and variation 27° 25' 14" N., and the latitude 60° 54' 52" N., about 

 four miles farther down. We passed the mouth of a broad channel 

 leading to the north-east, termed La Grande Riviere de Jean, one of 

 the two large branches by which the river pours its waters into the 

 Great Slave Lake ; the flooded delta, at the mouth of the river is in- 

 tersected by several smaller channels, through one of which, called 

 the Channel of the Scaffold, we pursued our voyage on the following 

 morning, and by eight A.M. reached the establishment of the North- 







West Company on Moose Deer Island. We found letters from 

 Mr. Wen tzel, dated F or t Providence, on the north side of the lake 

 which communicated to us, that there was an Indian guide waiting 





for us at that post ; but, that the chief and the hunters, who were 

 to accompany us, had gone to a short distance to hunt. They were 

 becoming impatient at our delay. 



Soon after landing, I visited the Hudson's Bay post on the same 

 island, and engaged Pierre St. German, an interpreter for the Copper 

 Indians. We regretted to find the posts of both the Companies ex- 

 tremely bare of provision ; but as the gentlemen in charge had des- 

 patched men on the preceding evening, to a band of Indians, in 



search of meat, and they promised to furnish us with whatever 

 should be brought, it was deemed advisable to wait for their return, 

 as the smallest supply was now of importance to us. Advantage 



