40 THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE BY LAND. 



compelled to rush out of the tent, to escape being 

 stifled. 



. During our stay, Lord Dunmore, and a party of 

 officers of the Gruards stationed at Montreal, arrived 

 on their way to hunt bufialo on the plains. Their 

 preparations were soon completed, and they started 

 before us for Fort Ellice, on the Assiniboine. 



We found, upon careful inquiry, that it was already 

 too late in the season to attempt crossing the moun- 

 tains before winter. We therefore decided to travel 

 westward, to some convenient point on the river 

 Saskatchewan, and winter there, in readiness to go 

 forward across the mountains the following summer. 

 We also learnt that several parties of emigrants, 

 about 200 in all, chiefly Canadians, had passed 

 through in the early part of the summer, on their 

 w^ay to British Columbia. 



By the evening of the 22nd of August we had 

 completed our arrangements, ready to start on the 

 morrow. We had engaged four men — Louis La Ronde, 

 our head man and guide, Jean Baptiste Vital, Tous- 

 saint Youdrie, and Athanhaus Bruneau, all French 

 half-breeds. La Eonde had a great reputation as a 

 hunter and trapper, and was very proud of having been 

 out with Dr. Bae on some of his extraordinary journeys. 

 He was a fine, tall, well-built fellow, with a handsome 

 face and figure, and was reported to be quite irresistible 

 amongst the fair sex. Yital was a sinister-looking dog, 

 thick-set and bull-necked, surly and ill-conditioned. 

 He professed to have been out with Captain Palliser's 

 expedition, and was eternally boasting of his skill and 



