24 NEWFOUNDLAND 



Later Lieutenant John Cartwright, a brother of the famous 

 Captain Cartwright of Labrador, was sent on an expedition 

 up the Exploits River in 1768, and obtained a little infor- 

 mation of the habits of the Red Indians.' Soon after this 

 Captain Buchan went twice up the Exploits to Red Indian 

 Lake, and on the first occasion had two of his marines 

 killed. 



In the winter of 18 10 Captain Buchan forced an interview 

 with the Beothicks on Red Indian Lake. Hostages were 

 exchanged, but on the Captain retiring to bring up some 

 presents which he had left at a depot, the Indians became 

 suspicious, fearing he had gone to obtain reinforcements with 

 which to surround and capture them. In consequence they 

 murdered the two white men that had remained in their hands 

 and retired into the interior. Captain Buchan was mystified 

 to find that the Indians had departed on his return, and the 

 whole story was not made clear until 1828, when the particulars 

 were explained by Shawnawdithit. 



In the year 1828 there was a society in St. John's known 

 as the Beothick Institution, whose business it was to com- 

 municate with and if possible civilise the Red Indians, as 

 well as to ascertain the habits and history of that "unhappy 

 race of people." The President was W. E. Cormack, who 

 took a kindly interest in the fate of the Indians, and who 

 became so interested in them that he undertook a journey 

 to Red Indian Lake for the purpose of establishing com- 

 munication with the Red men. On October 31, 1828, he 

 entered the country at the north of the Exploits in company 

 with three Indians — an Abenakie from Canada, a mountaineer 

 from Labrador, and a Micmac from the south coast of New- 

 foundland. He took a north-westerly route to Hall's Bay, 



1 Report of the Beothicks, MS. by Lieutenant J. Cartwright, 1768. 



