176 ACROSS THE SUB-ARCTICS OF CANADA. 



flats and long points of sand and boulders separated the 

 hills from the water. 



During the afternoon of the 6th, the northerly of the 

 two rivers discharging the waters of Baker Lake was 

 discovered. The approach to it is well marked on the 

 north bank by a round bluff some two hundred feet in 

 height. At first no current could be observed in the 

 river, which, in reality, was a deep narrow fiord, but 

 when we had advanced a distance of about two miles a 

 stiff current, almost approaching a rapid, was met ; but 

 instead of moving with us, as would naturally be ex- 

 pected, it was flowing to the westward. At first sight 

 it caused some doubts as to whether we were on the 

 right road. The canoemen were all persuaded that we 

 were ascending some big river and would have at once 

 turned back, but concluding that we had already reached 

 tide water, though sooner than we had expected, we 

 pulled on, and before long witnessed the seemingly 

 strange phenomenon of a river changing its direction 

 of flow. 



So smooth and bare were its glaciated shores that we 

 had some difficulty in effecting a landing. One night 

 was spent on this rocky bank, and the day following 

 being fair and bright, saw us on the waters of Chester- 

 field Inlet. The magnetic compasses were now found to 

 work very unsatisfactorily, but for one day the sunlight 

 enabled me to make liberal use of my solar instrument. 

 During the next and several succeeding days the 

 weather was dark and gloomy, and we encountered 

 such tide rips in the Inlet that my survey was much 

 interfered with. 



On the 10th of September, as we were pulling down 



