136 JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



of the lake, which communicated to us that 

 there was an Indian guide waiting for us at 

 that post ; but, that the chief and the 

 hunters, who were to accompany the party, 

 had gone to a short distance to hunt, having 

 become impatient at our delay. 



Soon after landing, I visited the Hud- 

 son's Bay Post on the same island, and en- 

 gaged Pierre St. Germain, an interpreter 

 for the Copper Indians. We regretted to 

 find the posts of both the Companies ex- 

 tremely bare of provision ; but as the gen^ 

 tlemen in charge had despatched men on 

 the preceding evening to a band of Indians, 

 in search of meat, and they promised to 

 furnish us with whatever should be brought, 

 it was deemed advisable to wait for their 

 return, as the smallest supply was now of 

 importance to us. Advantage was taken of 

 the delay to repair effectually the canoe, 

 which had been broken in the Dog Rapid. 

 On the next evening the men arrived with 

 the meat, and enabled Mr. M'Cleod, of 

 the North- West Company, to furnish us 

 with four hundred pounds of dried provi- 



