In the Arctic Regions. 327 
after dusk, completely worn out with the fatigue of 
the day. Michel, too, arrived at the same time, and 
relieved our anxiety on his account. He reported that 
he had been in chase of some deer which passed near his 
sleeping-place in the morning, and although he did 
not come up with them, yet that he found a wolf 
which had been killed by the stroke of a deer’s horn, 
and had brought a part of it. We implicitly believed 
this story then, but afterwards became convinced from 
circumstances, the detail of which may be spared, 
that it must have been a portion of the body of Be- 
langer or Perrault. A question of moment here 
presents itself ; namely, whether he actually murdered 
these men, or either of them, or whether he found the 
bodies on the snow. Captain Franklin, who is the 
best able to judge of this matter, from knowing their 
situation when he parted from them, suggested the 
former idea, and that both Belanger and Perrault had 
been sacrificed. When Perrault turned back, Captain 
Franklin watched him until he reached a small group 
of willows, which was immediately adjoining to the fire, 
and concealed it from view, and at this time the smoke 
of fresh fuel was distinctly visible. Captain Franklin 
conjectures, that Michel having already destroyed Be- 
langer, completed his crime by Perrault’t death, in 
order to screen himself from detection. Although 
this opinion is founded only on circumstances, and is 
