204 TRAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



reasonable cost, the Ked Eiver country never could 

 be settled by British subjects. 



A few disinterested travellers, such as English 

 officers on leave, bent on buffalo-hunting, now and 

 then penetrated into this much-aspersed land, and 

 canie back telling of its boundless plains and un- 

 paralleled fertility ; but as it is the English fashion 

 to pooh-pooh information coming from such sources, 

 their reports received but little attention. 



The secret was tolerably well kept for many years ; 

 but at last so much pressure was put upon the 

 Canadian Government that an exploring expedition 

 was despatched by it in 1858, with orders to report 

 fully upon the resources of the 2s"orth-West Territory. 

 The results of these explorations were published the 

 following year, and the people of Canada learnt, on 

 official authority, that it was fertile beyond the most 

 sanguine expectations. A few settlers from Ontario 

 soon after established themselves in the neighbour- 

 hood of Fort Garry, and so gave birth to a party 

 whose policy was progress, and whose constantly- 

 repeated demand was " Open out communication 

 between us and Canada ; let us have plenty of emi- 

 grants : all we require is population and facilities for 

 carrying our produce to a market." It was soon 

 known as the " Canadian Party " ; and its feeling 

 was disseminated throughout the neighbouring pro- 

 vinces through the columns of a newspaper estab- 



