138 EXPLORATION OF THE PRAIRIES, 1879 



carried them up to the prairie above. My man was there with 

 the horses and we erected our tents and got our things under 

 cover as soon as possible. We had three tents — one for myself 

 and nephew, another for Mr. Wilkins and his brother-in-law, and 

 another for Matheson and Ogilvie. When we had all our be- 

 longings together and our four carts and two buckboards, my 

 assistant, Wilkins, came to me and said: '"Professor, we will 

 never be able to take all this stuff on our conveyances; we simply 

 cannot do it under any circumstances." I knew now was my 

 time to assert myself and I said: "Boys, from what Mr. Wilkins 

 says there is some doubt as to our ability to take all our stuff 

 with us and I wish to tell you that can't' is not in my vocabulary 

 and the man who uses it on this trip can consider himself dis- 

 missed. The boat has not gone back yet and any man who 

 wishes to return is at liberty to do so at once, but I wish to tell 

 you that, from this time forth, any man who thinks he knows 

 more about his work than I do ceases to be an employee of mine." 

 I gave orders, on retiring that night, that we were to rise at 5 

 o'clock every morning while on our trip, that the tents were to 

 be pulled down at six and we would be ready to start as individuals 

 at seven. Next morning, my nephew was out at five and called 

 the camp and all the men were on the alert but my friend Wil- 

 kins, who was still in his tent at six o'clock. Matheson came to 

 me and said: "Professor, Mr. Wilkins is not out of his tent yet; 

 shall we leave it standing?" I said: "What did I tell you all 

 last night?" He said: "To pull down the tents at six." "Well," 

 I said, "Carry out the order." I may say that he was only too 

 glad to do it, and four of the boys pulled out the pegs and let the 

 tent down with a smash on Wilkins, who might have been standing 

 up at the time but, when the tent fell, he went down with it and 

 came out on his hands and knees swearing at the men. I told 

 him that the men had had my permission and every day that he 

 was late in coming out of his tent the same thing would happen. 

 My next order was to separate all the men's belongings. Mr. 

 Wilkins and myself were to take everything that belonged to us 

 on our buckboards and, to each of the men, I assigned a cart and 

 he packed his share of the stuff in it in his own way with the 



