JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



unsatisfactory that they were not worth at- 

 tention ; his description of Bouleau's Route, 

 (which he said was the shortest and best, 

 and abundant in animals,) was very defec- 

 tive, though the relative points were suffi- 

 ciently characteristic, had we not possessed 

 a better route. He had never been at the 

 sea ; and knew nothing about the mouth of 

 the Copper-Mine River. In the evening 

 he made his young men dance, and some- 

 times accompanied them himself. They 

 had four feathers in each hand. One com- 

 menced moving in a circular form, lifting 

 both feet at the same time, similar to jump- 

 ing sideways. After a short time a second 

 and a third joined, and afterwards the 

 whole band was dancing, some in a state of 

 nudity, others half dressed, singing an un- 

 musical wild air with (I suppose) appro- 

 priate words ; the particular sounds of which 

 were, ha ! ha ! ha ! uttered vociferously, and 

 with great distortion of countenance and 

 peculiar attitude of body, the feathers being 

 always kept in a tremulous motion. The 

 ensuing day I made the chief acquainted 



