276 Journal of a Voyage through the 



bands of tw.o or three families. There is no regular go* 

 vernment among them ; nor do they appear to have a suffi- 

 cient communication or understanding with each other, to 

 defend themselves against an invading enemy, to whom 

 they fall an easy prey. They have all the animals common 

 on the West side of the mountains, except the btiffaloe 

 and the wolf ; at least we saw none of the latter, and there 

 being none of the former, it is evident that their progress 

 is from the Sout East. The same language is spoken, with 

 very little exception, from the extent of my travels down 

 this river, and in a direct line from the North-East head of 

 it in the latitude 53° or 54° to Hudson's Bay ; so that a 

 Chepewyan, from which tribe they have all sprung, might 

 leave Churchill River, and proceeding in every direction 

 to the North-West of this line, without knowing any lan- 

 guage except his own, would understand them all : I ex- 

 cept the natives of the sea coast, who are altogether a dif- 

 ferent people. As to the people to the Eastward of this ri- 

 ver, I am not qualified to speak of them. 



At twelve we ran our canoe upon a rock, so that we were 

 obliged to land in order to repair the injury she had re- 

 ceived ; and as the rain came on w T ith great violence, we 

 remained here for the night. The salmon were now driv- 

 ing up the current in such large shoals, that the water 

 seemed, as it were, to be covered with the fins of them. 



Wednesday 7. About nine this morning the weather 

 cleared, and we embarked. The shoals of salmon conti- 

 nued as yesterday. There were frequent showers through- 

 out the day, and every brook was deluged into a riven 

 The water had risen at least one foot and an half perpen- 

 dicular in the last twenty-four hours. In#the dusk of the 

 evening we landed for the night. 



Thursday 8. The water continued rising during the 

 night; so that we were disturbed twice in the course of it, 

 to remove our baggage. At six in the morning we were 

 on our way, and proceeded with continual and laborious 

 exertion, from the increased rapidity of the current. Af- 

 ter having passed the two carrying places of Rocky Point, 

 and the Long Portage, we encamped for the night. 



Friday 9. We set off at five, after a rainy night, and in 

 a foggy morning. The water still retained its height* 

 The sun, however, soon beamed upon us ; and our clothes 

 and baggage were in such a state that we landed to dry 

 them. After some time we re-embarked, and arrived at 



