68 



Harmon's journal. 



taken to them by the winter express, which 

 leaves this, tomorrow, and is to pass by the way of 

 Fort des Prairies, thence to the English River, and 

 thence directly to Athabasca. And, I am inform- 

 ed, there is an express, which every year leaves 

 Athabasca, in the month of December, and passes 

 through the whole country called the North West, 

 and in the latter part of March, reaches the Soult 

 St. Maries. Thus the gentlemen , who come up 

 from Montreal, obtain from the interiour, intelli- 

 gence respecting the transactions of the preceding 

 summer and fall much earlier than they could 

 otherwise do. This information, it is important 

 that they receive, as soon as possible. This con- 

 veyance of intelligence, extending to the distance 

 of nearly three thousand miles, is attended with 

 but a trifling expense to the Company. 



Thursday, 15. Beautiful weather. On the 

 eleventh, I accompanied six of our people to the 

 tent of one of our hunters ; and the day following, 

 they returned with their sledges loaded with 

 meat ; but I remained, to go along with the 

 hunter, farther in the prairie. Accordingly, the 

 next day, I proceeded with him, and saw, in dif- 

 ferent herds, at least a thousand buffaloes, graz- 

 ing. They would allow us to come within a few 

 rods of them before they would leave their pla- 

 ces. At this season, they are tame, and it is not 



