DAVID THOMPSON. 147 



and then a little west of south, to a point in Lat. 51° 57' 2 i", Long. 

 116° 27' 54", from which point he returned to the fort. 



Between August 30th and September 2nd he travelled on horse- 

 back from Eocky Mountain House to Fort Augustus passing by the 

 south end of Long (Gull) Lake. 



He is now lost sight of for a considerable time, and it is not till 

 November, 1802, that wc find him travelling from the head of Lesser 

 Slave River to the Fort on the west end of Lesser Slave Lake, which 

 he places in Lat. 55° 32' 36". By the beginning of the following year 

 he has reached the Fort on the Peace River, five miles above the 

 mouth of Smoky River, which he places in Lat. 56° 8' 17", Long. 117° 

 13' 14",with a variation for the compass of 23|° east. 



From January 18th to June 5th he kept a meteoi'ological journal 

 at this Post, jotting down at the same time many interesting notes, 

 one being that he had measured the river opposite the fort and had 

 found it to be 420 yards and 2 feet wide. On the latter date he states 

 that a canoe of the X. Y. Company arrived and put up 1 00 yards above 

 them where they are going to build. 



From June 5th to 24th he was hunting, &c., in the vicinity, and fi'om 

 June 25th to December 11th the meteorological joui-nal is kept regu- 

 larly. Between the latter date and Dec. 29th he made a trip with 

 dogs to Lesser Slave Lake and back. From this latter date to Feb- 

 ruary 28th 1804, he continued his meteorological journal. In it are 

 many notices of the X.Y. men. 



On Febi'uary 29th he started on foot with dogs and ascending on 

 the river reached Rocky Mountain House on Mai"ch 6th. This house 

 he places in Lat. 56^ 12' 54", Long. 120° 38' with a variation of the 

 compass of 25° east. On March 1 3th he again arrived at the Forks, and 

 on the 15th started down the river on the ice and reached Horse Shoe 

 House on the 20th. This House he placed in Lat. 57° 8', Long. 11° 

 39' 49", with variation 24" east. 



On April 30th the ice had broken and he left Horse Shoe House in 

 a canoe, passing Fort Vermilion on May 2nd, and descended the river 

 to Lake Athabasca, on which Athabasca House was situated in Lat. 

 58° 42' 50", Long 111° 8' 30". He arrived here on May 12th, and 



