Menzics' Journal. 



Off Frascr River. 63 



sent from Mexico by an order from the Court of Spain on 

 the same service with us, & propose! a junction of the 

 Vessels & Crews / to facilitate an examination of these 

 Streights in which he said their Pilots had been employd 

 last year & traced the great North West Arm as far as the 

 Island our party saw in Mid-Channel. 



After the Pinnace left the Spanish Vessels they had a 

 long & tedious pull along the outer edge of the Shoal 

 formerly mentioned without any resting place till 1 1 at 

 night which was about 14 hours on their Oars & four hours 

 before breakfast made 18 hours of constant & hard rowing 

 in this days run which was certainly very fatiguing & labori- 

 ous exercise for the Men. They encampd for the night to 

 the Westward of Cape Roberts & arrivd in Birch Bay as 

 already related about noon on the day following. 



In this excursion the Boats went over in their different 

 traverses up the winding arms & back again about a hundred 

 & five leagues. The general appearance which the Country 

 now assumd when compard to that which we had so lately 

 examined formd a very striking contrast, here they were 

 carried by narrow unfathomable Inlets among high ridgy 

 mountains whose summits were invelopd in perpetual snow 

 while their sides were clothd with a continued forest of 

 Pinery & adornd with Cascades of the most wild & rapid 

 torrents. — The Shore of the great North West Arm as far 

 as they went is in general rocky with a border of lowland 

 stretching along it producing Pines of immense dimen- 

 tions. — They found but few Inhabitants in the Northern 

 branches but if they might judge from the deserted Villages 

 they met in this excursion, the Country appeard to be 

 formerly much more numerously inhabited than at present, 

 tho they could form no conjecture or opinion on the cause 

 of this apparent depopulation which had not an equal 

 chance of proving fallacious / from their circumscribed 

 knowledge of the manners & modes of living of the Natives. 



In the afternoon the Tents & Observatory were struck, 

 the Artificers & Brewers with their different Implements 

 were all collected on board & every thing got ready for sail- 

 ing, from Birch Bay in Latitude 48° 35' — 30" North & 

 Longitude 237° 32' East of Greenwich. 



Early in the Morning of the 24th we both weigh d & 

 with a moderate breeze from the Eastward soon passed 



17'J2. 

 Juue 23ra. 



Texada Id. 



June 24th. 



