CHAPTER VI. 



>R many years I had read, heard, and 

 dreamed of the Frazer, that mysterious 

 stream which flows out from among 

 the icy fastnesses of the Cascades, in 

 the far-off confines of British Columbia. 

 For many years had I longed to see 

 with my own eyes some of the grand 

 scenery of the region it drains, and now, 

 at last, that mighty stream flowed at my 

 feet. How eagerly I drank in the beauty of 

 the scene ! How my heart thrilled at the 

 thought that I stood face to face with this land 

 of my dreams and was about to explore a portion, 

 at least, of the country in which this great river 

 rises. The beautiful lines penned by Maria Brooks, 

 on the occasion of her first visit to the St. Law- 

 rence, came vividly to my mind : 



' ' The first time I beheld thee, beauteous stream, 



How pure, how smooth, how broad thy bosom heaved; 

 What feelings rushed upon my heart ! a gleam 

 As of another life my kindling soul received." 



I left New Westminster at seven o'clock Monday 

 morning on the steamer Adelaide, for the mouth of 

 Harrison river, sixty miles up the Frazer. There 

 were over twenty Indians on board, going up to the 

 mouth of the Chilukweyuk, to attend the funeral of 

 Douglass Bill's deceased relative. As soon as I 



'(59) 



