34 JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



Slave Lake to be repaired. The dog that came 

 to us on the 22d of October, and had become 

 very familiar, followed the party. We were in 

 hopes that it might prove of some use in drag- 

 ging their loads, but we afterwards learned, that 

 on the evening after their departure from the 

 house, they had the cruelty to kill and eat it, 

 although they had no reason to apprehend a 

 scarcity of provision. A dog is considered to be 

 delicate eating by the voyagers. 



The mean temperature of the air for November 

 was — 0°.7. The greatest heat observed was 

 25° above, and the least 31° below, zero. 



On the 1st of December the sky was clear, a 

 slight appearance of stratus only being visible 

 near the horizon ; but a kind of snow fell at in- 

 tervals in the forenoon, its particles so minute as 

 to be observed only in the sunshine. Towards 

 noon the snow became more apparent, and the 

 two limbs of a prismatic arch were visible, one 

 on each side of the sun near its place in the 

 heavens, the centre being deficient. We have 

 frequently observed this descent of minute icy 

 spicule when the sky appears perfectly clear, 

 and could even perceive that its silent but con- 

 tinued action, added to the snowy covering of 

 the ground. 



Having received one hundred balls from Fort 



