North-West Continent of America* 



229 



very unceremoniously, opened the bark and shewed us 

 the bones which it contained, while the other threw down 

 the pole, and having possessed himself of the feathers 

 that were tied to it, fixed them on his own head. I there- 

 fore conjectured, that these funeral memorials belonged 

 to an individual of a tribe at enmity with them. 



We continued our route with a considerable degree of 

 expedition, and as we proceeded, the mountains appeared 

 to withdraw from us. The country between them soon 

 opened to our view, which apparently added to their awful 

 elevation. We continued to descend till we came to the 

 brink of a precipice, from whence our guides discovered 

 a river to us, and a village on its banks. This precipice, 

 or rather succession of precipices, is covered with large 

 timber, which consists of the pine, the spruce, the hem- 

 lock, the birch, and other trees. Our conductors inform- 

 ed us, that it abounded in animals, which, from their 

 description, must be wild goats. In about two hours we 

 arrived at the bottom, where there is a conflux of two 

 rivers, that issue from the mountains. We crossed the 

 one which was to the left. They are both very rapid, and 

 continue so till they unite their currents, forming a stream 

 of about twelve yards in breadth. Here the timber was 

 also very large ; but I could not learn from our conductors 

 why the most considerable hemlock trees were stripped of 

 their bark to the tops of them. I concluded, indeed, at 

 that time, that the inhabitants tanned their leather with it. 

 Here were also the largest and loftiest elder and cedar 

 trees that I had ever seen. We were now sensible of an 

 entire change in the climate, and the berries were quite 

 ripe. 



The sun was about to set, when our conductors left us 

 to follow them as well as we could. We were prevented, 

 however, from going far astray, for we were hemmed in 

 on both sides, and behind by such a barrier as nature never 

 before presented to my view. Our guides had the pre- 

 caution to mark the road for us, by breaking the branches 

 of trees as they passed. This small river must, at certain 

 seasons, rise to an uncommon height and strength of cur- 

 rent most probably on the melting of the snow ; as we saw 

 a large quantity of drift wood lying twelve feet above the 

 immediate level of the river. This circumstance impeded 

 our progress, and the protruding rocks frequently forced 

 us to pass through the water. It was now dark, without 



