404 Thirty Years 



fortunately terminated without bloodshed. We could 

 not, however, gain any satisfactory account of the 

 movements of the Esquimaux. The only answers to 

 our repeated questions on these points were, that the 

 Esquimaux came in sixty canoes to Red Kiver, and 

 that they supposed them to have gone down the 

 eastern channel, for the purpose of fishing near its 

 mouth. The chief, however, informed us that he had 

 mentioned our coming to their lands this spring, and 

 that they had received the intelligence without com- 

 ment ; but from his not having alluded to this com- 

 munication until the question was pressed upon him, 

 and from the manner of his answering our inquiries, I 

 thought it doubtful whether such a communication 

 had really been made. 



We had been led to expect much informal i on from 

 the Loucheux respecting the channels of the river, and 

 the coast on the east and west side near its mouth, but 

 we were greatly disappointed. They were ignorant of 

 the channel we ought to follow in order to arrive at 

 the western mouth of the river ; and the only intelli- 

 gence they gave us respecting the coast on that side 

 was, that the Esquimaux represented it to be almost 

 constantly beset by ice. They said also that they 

 were unacquainted with the tribes who reside to the 

 westward. Several of the party had been down the 

 eastern channel, of which they made a rude sketch ; 



