354 THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE BY LAND. 



of The Assiniboine's cool confession that it had been 

 his design at first to desert us at Jasper House, 

 when he had solemnly promised to go through to 

 the end, he had served us so well, and led us so ably 

 in a time of doubt and hardship, that we were sin- 

 cerely sorry to part with him and his family. They 

 sailed up the Fraser, and we stood watching them 

 out of sight, wondering whether any of the odd 

 chances of life would ever bring us across them 

 again. We heard before leaving Victoria that, on 

 his arrival at Kamloops, the man was employed as a 

 shepherd by Mr. McKay, and expected to return to 

 Fort Pitt in the following year, with a goodly string 

 of horses. , 



In the shallows of the Harrison Eiver we saw 

 many thousands of spent salmon wriggling and flop- 

 ping about, half- stranded, and pursued by a number 

 of Indians, who were engaged in spearing them. 

 Passing through Douglas and Pemberton by the lakes 

 and portages between them, we struck the Fraser 

 again at Lilloet, about 265 miles from New West- 

 minster, and 300 from Victoria. The scenery on 

 this route, especially on Lakes Anderson and Seton, 

 is exceedingly wild and grand. Mountains rise 

 abruptly from the shores of the lakes on each side, 

 steep, rugged, and barren; and when we saw them 

 their beauty was increased by the brilliant tints of 

 the American autumn. At various places on our 

 way to Lilloet we heard of our friend Mr. O'B., 

 who had followed this route on his journey down 

 from Kamloops, instead of the one by Yale. He had 



