murchison's rapids. 301 



fish were marked like a salmon -trout, but with larger 

 heads. They were sluggish fish, lying at the bottom 

 of the deepest holes, and would not take a fly or 

 spinning bait, preferring, like the other barbarous fish 

 of the country, a piece of meat to more delicate food. 

 They had very much the flavour of ordinary trout, 

 but their flesh was whiter and less firm. 



The aspect of the counbry now changed, and on the 

 12th of August we entered a region rocky and barren, 

 where the timber was of smaller size, but grew much 

 more thickly, and the surface of the ground was 

 covered only by moss and a few small lilies. The 

 ravine suddenly narrowed, its sides became precipitous, 

 and the river rushed over a bed of huge boulders, 

 a roaring, mighty rapid. The fallen timber lay as 

 thickly and entangled as the spiculse in the children's 

 game of spelicans ; we had literally to force our way by 

 inches. We met with a godsend, however, in the 

 way of provisions, shooting a porcupine which had 

 been "treed" by the dog Papillon. We found it 

 delicious, although rather strong-flavoured, a thick 

 layer of fat under the skin being almost equal to that 

 of a turtle. The road at this point became so imprac- 

 ticable from the steep, encumbered hill-sides which 

 came down to the water's edge, that we were fre- 

 quently obliged to pull up and wait for hours whilst 

 The Assiniboine found a way by which it was possible 

 to pass. We expected every day to come to some 

 barrier which would completely prevent our further 

 advance. What course could we take then? Take 

 to a raft or abandon our horses and climb past on 



