284 FORT NORMAN. 



that there was ample maintenance for my party at 

 Fort Norman dming the whiter, I decided, for various 

 reasons, of which the lateness of the season was the 

 most prominent, on proceeding no farther until the 

 spring, as I found that Bear Lake woidd afford my 

 party the same subsistence as they Avould have on 

 the Great Slave Lake. On learning my resolve, 

 Mr. Mac Kenzie kindly assisted to the best of his 

 power in rendering our sojourn as comfortable as 

 might be : we were supplied with additional blankets, 

 which had now become highly necessary, and sundry 

 other articles of wearing apparel, of which all stood 

 much in need. My condition was as little enviable 

 as that of the others, as I quitted the "Plover" in 

 the expectation of being absent about a month only, 

 and had not, therefore, provided a varied wardi'obe 

 nor many other conveniences. 



During more than a month's stay at Fort Norman, 

 rendered necessary by the state of the ice, which 

 prevented the journey to Bear Lake, not much of 

 incident occurred. The seamen, unaccustomed to the 

 peculiar fare of this region, made many wry faces 

 when presented, as a treat, with the carcase of a 

 beaver. One expressed his very strong conviction 

 that a cat would be preferable, and various other 

 facetious remarks were made. These objections Avere 



