In the Artic Regions. 111 
the Great Slave Lake, to receive the supplies of 
ammunition and some other stores in the winter which 
were absolutely necessary for the prosecution of our 
journey, or to get the Esquimaux interpreter, whom 
we expected. If I had not deemed these circumstances 
paramount I should have preferred the route by Bear 
Lake. _ 
Akaitcho and the guides having communicated all 
the information they possessed on the different points 
’ to which our questions had been directed, I placed my 
medal round the neck of the chief, and the officers 
presented theirs to an elder brother of his and the two 
guides, communicating to them that these marks of 
distinction were given as tokens of our friendship and 
as pledges of the sincerity of our professions. Being 
conferred in the presence of all the hunters, their ac- 
quisition was highly gratifying to them, but they stu- 
diously avoided any great expression of joy, because 
such an exposure would have been unbecoming the 
dignity which the senior Indians assume during a con- 
ference. They assured us, however, of their being 
duly sensible of these tokens of our regard, and that 
they should be preserved during their lives with the 
utmost care. The chief evinced much penetration and 
intelligence during the whole of this conversation, 
which gave us a favorable opinion of his intellectual 
powers. He made many inquiries respecting the 
