North-TV ?st Continent of America, 1 77 



with the utmost expedition. The two men, however, 

 who had been with us, appeared very naturally, to possess 

 the greatest share of courage on the occasion, and were 

 ready to receive us on our landing ; but our demeanor 

 soon dispelled all their apprehensions, and the most fa- 

 miliar communication took place between us. When I 

 had secured their confidence, by the distribution of trin- 

 kets among them, and treated the children with sugar, I 

 instructed my interpreters to collect every necessary in- 

 formation in their power to afford me. 



According to their account, this river, whose course 

 is very extensive, runs towards the mid-day sun ; and 

 that at its mouth, as they had been informed, white peo- 

 ple were building houses. They represented its current 

 to be uniformly strong, and that in three places it was al- 

 together impassable, from the falls and rapids, which 

 poured along between perpendicular rocks that were 

 much higher, and more rugged than any we had yet 

 seen, and would not admit of any passage over them. 

 But besides the dangers and difficulties of the navigation, 

 they added, that we should have to encounter the inhabit- 

 ants of the country, who were very numerous. They 

 also represented their immediate neighbours as a very 

 malignant race, who lived in large subterraneous recesses; 

 and when they were made to understand that it was our 

 design to proceed to the sea, they dissuaded us from pro- 

 secuting our intention, as we should certainly become a 

 sacrifice to the savage spirit of the natives. These peo- 

 ple they described as possessing iron, arms, and utensils, 

 which they procured from their neighbours to the West- 

 ward, and were obtained by a commercial progress from 

 people like ourselves who brought them in great canoes. 



Such an account of our situation, exaggerated as it 

 might be in some points, and erroneous in others, was 

 sufficiently alarming, and awakened very painful reflec- 

 tions ; nevertheless it did not operate on my mind so as to 

 produce any change in my original determination. My 

 first object, therefore, was to persuade two of these peo- 

 ple to accompany me, that they might secure for us a fa- 

 vourable reception from their neighbours. To this pro- 

 position they assented, but expressed some degree of dis- 

 satisfaction at the immediate departure, for which we 

 were making preparation; but when we were ready to 

 enter the canoe, a small one was seen doubling the point 



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