254 THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE BY LAND. 



to spend tlie night in a bare sand-pit, where there w^as 

 not a blade of grass for our hungry and tired animals, 

 who ranged restlessly to and fro until the morning. 



Moose Lake is a fine sheet of water, about fifteen 

 miles in length, and not more than three miles in 

 breadth at the widest point. The scenery was very 

 wild and grand, and forcibly reminded us of Wast 

 Water. On the south side, the hills rose perpen- 

 dicularly out of the water for perhaps 2,000 feet, 

 beyond which was the usual background of rocky 

 and hoary peaks. Over the edge of this mighty 

 precipice a row of silver streams poured with unbroken 

 fall, the smaller ones dissipated in mist and spray ere 

 they reached the lake below. This beautiful series of 

 cascades we named the Eockingham Falls. 



Continuing to follow the Eraser on the morrow, 

 we reached an open space a few miles beyond the end 

 of the lake, and stayed there the remainder of the 

 day. The place was rich in grass and vetches, and 

 our horses ate greedily after their long fast, whilst we 

 overhauled. our provisions. The flour and pemmican 

 had been greatly injured by the repeated wettings of 

 the last few days, but the greater part of it we 

 rendered available by careful drying in the sun. Our 

 desiccated vegetables were, however, past redemption, 

 but we made the best of the misfortune by living 

 almost entirely upon them for the next few days. 

 Mr. O'B. was missing for some time after we arrived, 

 and we learnt from The Assiniboine that he had heard 

 frequent calls for help coming from " Le Vieux," as he 

 called him, who had, as usual, fallen behind, but he 



