DOWN THE PEACE RIVER 113 



"Having decided to rest one day at Vermilion, I employed it 

 in a botanical survey of the neighborhood. I first examined the 

 field and garden, and found with the utmost astonishment that, 

 although more than two degrees further north than Dunvegan or 

 St. John's, the barley and vegetables were much further advanced. 

 Barley was standing in shocks in the field, having been cut on 

 the 6th of August, while scattered ears of wheat, which I found 

 around the fence, were fully ripe, (August 12th). Wheat is sel- 

 dom cultivated in the North- West, owing to the fact that barley 

 is more useful, as the former is only used when boiled with meat, 

 while the latter is fed to horses in the winter. The barley was 

 sown on the 8th of May and reaped on the 6th of August, having 

 been in the ground just ninety days. The heads averaged from 

 four to six inches in length, and were full of large grains of a beauti- 

 ful colour. In fact, both wheat and barley were the plumpest I 

 ever saw, and must weigh as much as that brought from Fort 

 Chipewyan. They stood very thick in the ground and were 

 uncommonly stout, and must have yielded very heavily. Turnips 

 and Early Rose potatoes were quite large, and both gave indica- 

 tions of a heavy crop." 



We started for Little Red River at noon on August the 15 th, 

 but, owing to the head winds and great breadth of the river (over 

 1,000 yards) we feared to cross it. Towards evening, a thunder- 

 storm came up, but passed off on one side of us and the wind fell. 

 We now redoubled our energies and reached Point-aux-Cache 

 before dark. Wearied out and exhausted, we spread our blankets 

 on the sand and soon fell fast asleep. At the first streak of dawn, 

 we were up and ready to proceed. 



We were now approaching the chutes, or falls as they are 

 called now. There are two portages at the chutes. The first 

 chute is only a rapid, but the next one is a fall of at least ten feet. 

 By noon, we had descended to the very brink of the fall and were 

 within two miles of Little Red River. We never expected to 

 take the canoe over the fall, but intended to cache our baggage 

 and go on to the Fort on foot. After examining the fall, however, 

 we resolved to try our old experiment of a bow and stern line, and, 

 after dinner, we shoved the canoe off and let her take her chance. 



