110 THE GREAT NORTH-WEST 



those who think they are doing good in this way. But 

 the state of mind into which I usually led my followers 

 may be the best illustration of the value of my system, 

 if I may say so without incurring the charge of self- 

 conceit. Achil Guelle, and many years afterwards, George 

 and Joseph in Brazil, besides several other Roman Catho- 

 lics with whom I associated in my journeyings, fell 

 heartily into my views on this subject, and resumed 

 those devotions which they had neglected since child- 

 hood. The Indians were often indifferent, yet gradually 

 came to acquiesce in the propriety of daily acknowledging 

 the Almighty ; while even such a morose and undemon- 

 strative an individual as Tom exclaimed that "it was 

 right that the Great Spirit should be thanked." I 

 mention these matters as incidents of life in the wilder- 

 ness that may have some interest. 



Having made up my mind to spend the coming winter 

 in the wilds, we, at the end of September, made a move, 

 and journeyed nearly a hundred miles in a north-easterly 

 direction. The principal reason for this change of camp 

 was that we never met with any deer at the place 

 first selected, and venison was required for our support. 

 The journey to the new camp took us five days to 

 accomplish, the first three of which we walked overland, 

 carrying the canoe with the stores in it on our shoulders. 

 It is probable that we did not advance more than twenty 

 miles in those three days, for the ground was rough and 

 rocky, without being very hilly. At the end of the 

 third day we came to a stream large enough to float the 

 canoe, and down this we proceeded in the direction of 

 Hudson Bay. Our new position was about two hundred 

 miles north-east of Lake Winnipeg, on a tributary of the 

 River Severn, and some twenty miles from that river. I 

 did not follow the tributary right down to the Severn, 

 because it seemed to me that we had reached a spot 

 that was in every way fit for our purpose. Achil agree- 

 ing with me, we commenced at once to make a small 



