OF THE POLAR SEA. 



235 



the barren grounds to the unusual mildness 

 of the season. On this occasion, by melt- 

 ing some of our pewter cups, we managed 

 to furnish five balls to each of the hunters, 

 but they were all expended unsuccessfully, 

 except by Akaitcho, who killed two deer. 



By the middle of the month Winter River 

 was firmly frozen over, except the small 

 rapid at its commencement, which remained 

 open all the winter. The ice on the lake 

 was now nearly two feet thick. After the 

 16 th we had a succession of cold, snowy, 

 and windy weather. We had become 

 anxious to hear of the arrival of Mr. Back 

 and his party at Fort Providence. The 

 Indians, who had calculated the period at 

 which a messenger ought to have returned 

 from thence to be already passed, became 

 impatient when it had elapsed, and, with 

 their usual love of evil augury, tormented 

 us by their melancholy forebodings. At 

 one time they conjectured that the whole 

 party had fallen through the ice ; at ano- 

 ther, that they had been way-laid and cut 

 off by the Dog-ribs. In vain did we urge 



