84 NAREATIVE OF THE EXPEDITION. 



accomplislied tlie passage, -vvhicli compelled us hastily to land on 

 the Point Iroquois shore. This storm detained us five or six 

 hours before the waters were snihciently calm to embark. Among 

 the boulders, I picked up a fine specimen of graphic granite, 

 most perfectly characterized. About two o'clock, we entered this 

 great inland sea. How feeble and inadequate are all geographical 

 attempts to describe this vast body of water, with its imposing 

 headlands, shores, and islands. The St. Mary's Eiver passes out 

 between two prominent capes, called Gros Cape and Point Iro- 

 quois, The former rises up in elevated barren peaks of sienite and 

 hornblende rock; the latter consists of nearly equally elevated 

 masses of horizontal red sandstone, covered with a dense forest. The 

 line of separation is, perhaps, three leagues, forming a geological 

 gap, through which, at ancient periods, the drift and boulder 

 strata has been forced, with an amazing power. For we find 

 these boulders, of the disrupted sienites, hornblende, trap, and 

 sandstone rocks of these northern latitudes heaped in profusion 

 along the entire shores of the river, and cast out, far and wide, 

 into the basin of Lake Huron. 



There is a little island, called Isle des Iroquois, just off the foot 

 of the American cape, which is a noted stopping-place for boat 

 and canoe voyagers. On passing this spot, the lake spreads out 

 like a sea. Towards the north, can be seen on the horizon the 

 blue peaks of distant mountains. Southerly, the Point Iroquois 

 formation of sandstone appears skirting the shore, at several miles 

 distance. At the computed distance of fifteen miles, we passed the 

 mouth of the Taquimenon Eiver. It was already evening when we 

 came here, but we were far out from shore, and the guides thought 

 best to keep on their course a league farther, which brought us, 

 at 11 o'clock at night, into the mouth of the Onzig, or Shelldrake 

 Eiver. At this spot, we found an encampment of Chippewa 

 Indians, who were friendly, and quite profuse in their salutation 

 of hosJio: At the moment we were ready to embark, the next 

 morning, a brigade of traders' boats, on the route to Michili- 

 mackinac, was descried, coming in to the same point. This inter- 

 view detained us till 8 o'clock. Within a league, we met eighteen 

 or twenty Chippewa canoes on their journey towards the same 

 point ; and at the computed distance of three leagues from the 

 Onzig, we reached, and turned the bleak shores of White-Fish 



