258 JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



and fat ; these were both considered as 

 great luxuries, but still the feast was de- 

 fective from the want of rum, although we 

 promised them a little when it should 

 arrive. 



The early part of January proved mild, 

 the thermometer rose to 20° above zero, 

 and we were surprised by the appearance 

 of a kind of damp fog, approaching very 

 nearly to rain. The Indians expressed 

 their astonishment at this circumstance, and 

 declared the present to be one of the 

 warmest winters they had ever experienced. 

 Some of them reported that it had actually 

 rained in the woody parts of the country. 

 In the latter part of the month, however, 

 the thermometer again descended to — 49°, 

 and the mean temperature for the month 

 proved to be — 15°. 6. Owing to the fogs 

 that obscured the sky, the aurora was visi- 

 ble only upon eighteen nights in the month. 



On the 15th seven of our men arrived 

 from Fort Providence with two kegs of 

 rum, one barrel of powder, sixty pounds of 

 ball, two rolls of tobacco, and some cloth- 



