North-West Continent of America, 



195 



bear had occasioned the alarm ; but when day appeared, 

 it proved to be an old, grey-haired, blind man, who had 

 been compelled to leave his hiding-place by extreme 

 hunger, being too infirm to join in the flight of the natives 

 to whom he belonged. When I put my hand on this ob- 

 ject of decaying nature, his alarm was so great, that I ex- 

 pected it would have thrown him into convulsions. I im- 

 mediately led him to our fire which had been just lighted, 

 and gave him something to eat, which he much wanted, as 

 he had not tasted food for two days. When his hunger 

 was satisfied, and he had got warm and composed, I re- 

 quested him to acquaint me with the cause of that alarm 

 which had taken place respecting us among his relations 

 and friends, whose regard we appeared to have conciliated 

 but a few days past. He replied, that very soon after we 

 had left them, some natives arrived from above, who in- 

 formed them that we were enemies ; and our unexpected 

 return, in direct contradiction to our own declarations, 

 confirmed them in that opinion. They were now, he said, 

 so scattered, that a considerable time would elapse, before 

 they could meet again. W e gave him the real history of 

 our return, as well as of the desertion of our guide, and, 

 at the same time, stated the impossibility of our proceed- 

 ing, unless we procured a native to conduct us. He re- 

 plied, that if he had not lost his sight, he would with the 

 greatest readiness have accompanied us on our journey. 

 He also confirmed the accounts which we had received of 

 the country, and the route to the Westward. I did not 

 neglect to employ every argument in my power, that he 

 might be persuaded of our friendly dispositions to the in- 

 habitants wheresoever we might meet them. 



At sun-rise we perceived a canoe with one man in it on 

 the opposite side of the river, and at our request, the blind 

 man called to him to come to us, but he returned no an- 

 swer, and continued his course as fast as he could paddle 

 down the current. He was considered as a spy by my 

 men, and I was confirmed in that opinion, when I saw a 

 wooden canoe drifting with the stream close in to the other 

 shore, where it was more than probable that some of the 

 natives might be concealed. It might, therefore, have 

 been an useless enterprize, or perhaps fatal to the future 

 success of our undertaking, if we had pursued these people, 

 as they might, through fear, have employed their arms 

 against us, and provoked us to retaliate. 



