18 JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



ing meat from some Indian lodges to Fort 

 Chipewyan, having a burden exceeding two 

 hundred and fifty pounds on his sledge, 

 which was dragged by two miserable dogs. 

 He came up to our encampment after dark. 

 We were much amused by the altercation 

 that took place between him and our Cana- 

 dian companions as to the qualifications of 

 their respective dogs. This, however, is 

 such a general topic of conversation among 

 the voyagers in the encampment, that we 

 should not probably have remarked it, had 

 not the old man frequently offered to bet 

 the whole of his wages that his two dogs, 

 poor and lean as they were, would drag 

 their load to the Athabasca Lake in less 

 time than any three of theirs. Having ex- 

 pressed our surprise at his apparent teme- 

 rity, he coolly said that the men from the 

 lower countries did not understand the ma- 

 nagement of their dogs, and that he de- 

 pended on his superior skill in driving ; 

 and we soon gathered from his remarks, 

 that the voyagers of the Athabasca depart- 

 ment consider themselves very superior to 



