82 A JOURNEY TO THE 



1770. away our sledges, and every one to take a load on his 



^"'^^ back. 



This I found to be much harder work than the winter 

 carriage, as my part of the luggage consisted of the following 

 articles, viz. the quadrant and its stand, a trunk containing 

 books, papers, &c., a land-compass, and a large bag containing 

 all my wearing apparel; also a hatchet, knives, files, &c., be- 

 side several small articles, intended for presents to the natives. 

 The aukwardness of my load, added to its great weight, which 

 was upward of sixty pounds, and the excessive heat of the 

 weather, rendered walking the most laborious task I had ever 

 encountered ; and what considerably increased the hardship, 

 was the badness of the road, and the coarseness of our lodging, 

 being, on account of the want of proper tents, exposed to the 

 utmost severity of the weather. The tent we had with us was 

 not only too large, and unfit for barren ground service, where 

 no poles were to be got, but we had been obliged to cut it 

 up for shoes, and each person carried his own share. Indeed 

 my guide behaved both negligently and ungenerously on this 

 occasion ; as he never made me, or my Southern Indians, 

 acquainted with the nature of pitching tents on the barren 

 ground ; which had he done, we could easily have procured 

 a set of poles before we left the woods. He took care, how- 

 ever, to procure a set for himself and his wife ; and when 

 the tent was divided, though he made shift to get a piece 

 large enough to serve him for [30] a complete little tent, he 

 never asked me or my Southern Indians to put our heads 

 into it. 



Beside the inconvenience of being exposed to the open air, 

 night and day, in all weathers, we experienced real distress 

 from the want of victuals. When provisions were procured, 

 it often happened that we could not make a fire, so that we 

 were obliged to eat the meat quite raw ; which at first, in the 

 article of fish particularly, was as little relished by my Southern 

 companions as myself. 



