130 TRANSACTIONS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. [VoL. I. 



erect a stage near the river to put the pork, &c., on when brought down 

 from the encampment. Having accomplished this, upon our return we cut 

 a few trees to make a bridge upon a bad pass in the swamp. Keturned to 

 camp about two o'clock, and shortly afterwards to the stage with seven of 

 the rangers, all with packs which we put upon the stage. We here met 

 Messrs. Givens and Aitken, having returned with the canoes. Tlie whole 

 then returned to camp only me, who remained to take care of the baggage. 

 In about two hours the whole came down, and we immediately embarked 

 into five canoes, viz., the Governor, Mr. Aitken, an Indian, and two 

 rangers in one ; Messrs. Pilkington and Darling, with their two servants^ in 

 the second ; Mr. Givens and two Indians in a third ; an Indian and two 

 rangers with me in the fourth ; and Mr. Aitken's surveying party in the 

 fifth. AVe dragged our canoes till we came to the river, over a part of the 

 swamp where it would be impossible to walk without their support, it being 

 a quagmire, the skin or surface of which was very thin. Proceeded 

 about a mile and a half or two miles along the river, which in this short 

 distance has several turns. Went about a quarter of a mile up a smaller 

 river which empties itself into the former, and encamped. Soon after 

 making our fires, the Great Tail and his family (Messessagues), who were 

 encamped further up the river, came to visit their Great Father, the Gover- 

 nor, to whom they presented a pair of ducks, some beaver's meat, and a 

 beaver's tail. His Excellency gave them some rum and tobacco. 



29th. — Embarked into our canoes in the same manner as the preceding 

 day, paddled down the river, which is a dead water, bordered on each side 

 with quagmires similar to the one we hauled our canoes over. About two 

 hours after leaving camp, Mr. Givens came into my canoe and the Indian 

 went into his ; but our canoe made much water and we could not keep up 

 with the others ; we shortly after got the Indian back again. At twenty 

 minutes after one we entered Lake LaClaie, now Lake Simcoe, so called in 

 memory of Captain Simcoe of the R. N. At the entrance of the lake we 

 saw two canoes, Avho upon seeing us paddled off to their village, which was 

 upon a point about four miles off, to apprise them of the Governor's arrival. 

 We paddled on towards the point and passed the village close in shore. 

 The Indians who were by this time assembled, fired a feu de joie to com- 

 pliment His Excellency, which we answered with three cheers, and then 

 doubled the point, and put on shore in a small sandy bay to dine. Soon 

 after our landing the Indians came in a body to wait on the Governor, to 

 whom they presented a beaver blanket, which he declined taking then, but 

 promised to take it upon his return from Matchetache Bay. They were all 

 more or less drunk and made rather an unintelligible speech. They got 

 liquor from four Canadians who had been sent from Matchetache Bay by 



