228 The Ottawa Naturalist. [March 



Valley I was much surprised to note the difference in vegetation. 

 It was at least two or three weeks ahead of that about Lesser 

 Slave Lake, and this is said to be always the case. The poplars 

 and tamaracks were all in leaf and mosquitoes plentiful. 



It is of interest to us who have so long- known the North 

 West Territories, and I think have observed how frost does 

 damage in valleys whilst high ground escapes, that in the Upper 

 Peace River Valley the contrary is the case ; frost blights vegeta- 

 tion on high ground but not in the valley. This is probably due 

 in part to the great height of the table lands and in part to the 

 enormous body of water contained in the river. 



On May 20th, south of Clear Hills on the road to Fort St. 

 John, I noticed strawberries, raspberries, saskatoon, wild cherries, 

 and snap-dragon in flower, anemones and wild flax in seed. At 

 Peace River they informed me that the season was always a couple 

 of weeks ahead of Lesser Slave Lake. The depth of Pine Valley 

 I made out from the aneroid to be 725 feet. On the 21st, 22nd, 

 and 23rd of May we found the grass very much more in advance 

 of what it had been elsewhere, and it appears that, as the moun- 

 tains are neared in, going up the Peace River, the vegetation 

 becomes more rapid and the season earlier. 



At Vermillion on the night of June 23rd at its darkest I was 

 able to read print ouside of my tent, and night was only twilight 

 on Slave River on July 14th. Strawberries, gooseberries, and 

 saskatoon berries were ripe. 



The pelicans, which gather in great numbers at Pelican 

 Rapids on Slave River, had gone north ten or twelve days before 

 July i8th. 



At Fort Chipewyan, Fort Smith, and Fort Resolution I made 

 close inquiries into the number of Wood Bjffalo remaining, hav- 

 ing an opportunity to do this owing to meeting so many Indians 

 fresh from their grounds — such as, I think, ao one else has en- 

 joyed. Some of the Indians who came in to meet me at each place 

 had lately been near the buffalo, and had counted the different 

 herds, which are, generally speaking, three in number ; one rang- 

 ing from Salt River to Peace Point on Peace River, one from Salt 

 River north to Great Slave Lake, and one from Salt River east 

 and west. They number I conclude from 500 to 575 head. You 



