THE EED KIVER EXPEDITION. 263 



table without being positively nauseous. At the 

 various other camps along the road, and subse- 

 quently during the advance upon Fort Garry, the 

 men caught pike by trolling from the boats. Those 

 with black backs were fair eating ; but the other sorts 

 were bony and soft, with a muddy flavour. Each 

 brigade was furnished with a fishing-net, as it was 

 expected that large quantities of fish would be ob- 

 tained along the line of route to vary the daily diet : 

 but it was subsequently found impossible to use 

 them ; for, being pressed for time, we never halted 

 for a day until we reached Fort Alexander, close 

 to Lake Winnipeg ; and as every one worked hard 

 from sunrise until dark, there was never time for 

 net-setting. 



Headquarters were moved on the 14th July, to a 

 spot within about three and a half miles of Shebando- 

 wan Lake. The 16th of that month had for some time 

 been named for the departure of the first detachment ; 

 but as the day drew near, so much still remained to 

 be done that few believed it possible to carry out the 

 programme laid down. The spot on the lake selected 

 as the starting-point was its extreme eastern end, 

 where there was a beach of bright yellow sand 

 for some hundreds of yards devoid of rocks or 

 stones. We named it M 'Neil's Bay. The forest 

 reaching down to the water's edge, entailed a 

 considerable amount of clearing before sufficient 

 space for a small camp, and for the marquees to 



