174 JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 
horses ; and I assured them, if I heard of their 
continuing to behave kindly, that I would men- 
tion their good conduct in the strongest terms to 
their Great Father across the sea, (by which ap- 
pellation they designate the King,) whose favour- 
able consideration they had been taught by’the 
traders to value most highly. 
They all promised to follow my adyice, and 
assured me it was not they, but the Stone Indians, 
who robbed and annoyed the traders. The 
Stone Indian who was present, heard this accu- 
sation against his tribe quite unmoved, but he 
probably did not understand the whole of the 
communication. We left them to finish their 
rum, and went to look round the lodges, and ex- 
amine the pound, : 
The greatest proportion of labour, in savage 
life, falls to the women; we now saw them em- 
ployed in dressing skins, and conveying wood, — 
water, and provision. As they have often to 
fetch the meat from some distance, they are as- 
sisted in this duty by their dogs, which are not 
harnessed in sledges, but carry their burthens in 
_ 4 manner peculiarly adapted to this level cout 
try. Two long poles are fastened by a collar to 
the dog’s neck, their ends trail on the ground, 
and are kept at a proper distance by a hoop, 
Which is lashed between them, immediately be 
