10 COISTTEI^TS 



Slave Lake — Great hay meadows on the Lesser Slave River — 

 The island in Lesser Slave Lake — Trackers' gambling games 

 — Swan River — A dangerous squall — Chief Factor Shaw — 

 A free-traders' village . .43 



CHAPTER III. 



TREATY AT LESSER SLAVE LAKE. 



The Treaty point at last — Our camp at Lesser Slave Lake — The 

 Treaty ground and assembly — "Civilized" Indians — Kenoo- 

 shayoo and Moostoos — The Treaty proceedings — The Treaty 

 Commissioners separate — Vermilion and Fort Chipewyan 

 treaties — Indian chief asks for a railway — Wahpooskow Treaty 

 — McKenna and Ross set out for home — Commission issued 

 to J. A. Macrae — Numbers of Indians treated with . . 52 



CHAPTER IV. 



THE HALP-BKBED SCRIP COMMISSION. 



The half-breeds collect at Lesser Slave Lake — They decide upon 

 cash, scrip or nothing — Honesty of the half-breeds and Indians 

 — Ease of parturition amongst their women — Cree family 

 names and their significance — Catherine Bisson — Native traits 

 — The mongrel dog — Gambling and dancing — The "Red 

 River jig ".......... 68 



CHAPTER V. 



RESOURCES OP LESSER SLAVE LAKE REGION. 



Indian lunatics : The Weeghteko — Treatment of lunatics in old 

 Upper Canada — Lesser Slave Lake fisheries — Stock-raising at 

 the lake — Prairies of the region — The region once a bufialo 

 country — Quality of the soil — Wheat and roots and vegetables 

 — Unwise to settle in large numbers in the country at present 

 — The " blind pig '' — A native row ..... 76 



CHAPTER VI. 



ON THE TRAIL TO PEACE RIVER. 



On the trail to Peace River — The South Heart River — Good farm- 

 ing lands — The Little Prairie — Peace River Crossing — The 

 vast banks of the Peace a country in themselves — Wild fruits 

 — Prospectors from the Selwyn Mountains — The Poker Flat 

 Mining Camp — Bufialo paths and wallows — Magnificent 



