10 CAPTAIN M'CLURE's DESPATCHES. 



o'clock ill the morninc^ ; the whole trihe hfid immediately taken to 

 their haidars, with their most valuahle skins, and left the settlement, 

 with the exception of the chief and his son, who remained to defend 

 their property, as it would have hcen imdignified to retire when danger 

 was apprehended, A sick son and his mother, seeing our friendly dis- 

 position, soon joined us. Dr. Armstrong examined the poor lad's foot ; 

 it was in a frightful state of mortification. The chief stated that they 

 were at war with the neighbouring tribes, and had occasional skirmishes 

 with the Indians ; that they had no communication with any i)erson 

 belonging to the Great lUver (Mackenzie), nor had they seen any white 

 people before ; but, when the sea freezes (the latter end of next month), 

 the whole tribe proceed west and trade^vith the Esquimaux whom we had 

 met near Jones's Island. The interpreter told him that he had found 

 a brother in the chief of one of those tribes, whose name was Attau- 

 was ; the old chief clapped his hands and said he knew him well ; that 

 he was the great chief he traded with, and their reason for going such 

 a distance, in preference to the Mackenzie, was that the white man had 

 given tlie Indians very bad water, which killed many, and made others 

 foolish (drunk), and that they would not have any such water ; from 

 this it evidently appears that the Company lose annually many valuable 

 skins, which find their way to the Colville, instead of the Mackenzie. 



Observing an old flat brass button suspended from the car of the chief, 

 he said it was taken from a white man who had been killed by one of his 

 tribe, who went away in his kyack when the vessel was seen. The white man 

 belonged to a party which had landed at Point Warren, and there built 

 a house ; nobody knew how they came, as they had no boat, but that 

 they went inland ; the man killed had strayed from the party, and that 

 he and his son buried him upon a hill at a little distance. The only 

 answer we could obtain as to the probable time when this transaction 

 took place was, ''that it might be last year, or when I was a child.*' 

 To examine the grave I was very anxious, but was prevented by the 

 state of the weather, becoming foggy with fresh breeze, which compelled 

 our immediate return to the ship ; so, making them a few presents, we 

 parted on very amicable terms. This intelligence appeared of so 

 important a nature, with respect to the white men on the point, that I 

 determined to remain until it became sufficiently clear to land and 

 examine the house, which might possibly contain some indication of 

 t lie missing expedition — this detained me 18 hours, hut to have ^ett 

 witli a doubt would have been a subject of perpetual regret. 



At 2 a.m., on the following morning, the 2r)th, we reached the Point, 

 the weather l)eing tolerably clear. The interpreter, Dr. Armstrong, 

 and myself, went on shore in eager expectation of discovering some chie 

 that would lead to a knowledge of the parties ; but in t bis we were 

 miseraldy disappointed ; two inits, indeed, were there, to excite hopes, 

 but upon apjiroaching them we found the woodwork to be perfectly 

 rotten, and of a very old (late, without any description of mark to yit'ld 

 the slightest information. 'J'be general a]»pearance of tlie country 

 about the Point was low and marshy, c«nered with grass, moss, and 

 flowers, tlie brccding-plarc of the eider-<lnck, and every species of wild 

 fowl ; we ;ilso remarked the footmarks of tlic fox and reindeer ; so 

 fertile a landscape I could not antieipafe upon the shores of the P(»l:ir 

 Sea. The interpreter, from his knowledge of the customs of the 

 ]'iSr|nimnnx, is of opinion thnt Iho story of the white mnn is trnditionnry, 



