In the Arctic Regions. 65 
day recommenced our journey, and were much amused 
by the novelty of the salute given at our departure, 
the guns being principally fired by the half-breed._ wo- 
men in the absence of the men. Our course was di- 
rected to the end of the lake, and for a short distance 
along a small river ; we then crossed the woods to the 
Beaver River, which we found to be narrow and very 
serpentine, having moderately high banks. We en- 
camped about one mile and a half further up among 
poplars. The next day we proceeded along the river ; 
it wag winding, and about two hundred yards broad. 
We passed the mouths of two rivers whose waters it 
receives ; the latter one, we were informed, is a chan- . 
nel by which the Indians go to the Lesser Slave Lake. 
The banks of the rivér became higher as we advanced, 
and were furnished with pines, poplars, and willows. 
Though the weather was very cold, we traveled more 
comfortably than at any preceding time since our de- 
parture from Cumberland, as we were enabled, by 
having light carioles, to ride nearly the whole day, 
and to be warmly covered up with a buffalo robe. 
Mr. M‘Leod, of the North-West Company, joined us. 
‘He had kindly brought some things from Green Lake, 
which our sledges could not carry. Pursuing our 
route along the river, we reached at an early hour the 
upper extremity of the “ Grand Rapid,” where the ice 
was so rough that the carioles and sledges had to be 
