WATER-HEN RIVER. 



41 



poplar, aspen, birch, and tamarac. The land on the river 

 is low, not ten feet above the water ; in the rear we found 

 a tamarac swamp, with belts of white spruce. The 

 channel through which our course lay was about three 

 hundred feet broad and three feet deep, with a flat lime- 

 stone bottom. The water was clear and brilliant, fish 

 very numerous, and water-fowl abundant. 



October 3rd. — En route at 9 a.m., — the early part 

 of the morning being employed in drying clothes after 

 the rain of yesterday. We commenced pulling up 

 Water-hen Eiver, which here appears to contain many 

 low islands, and its aggregate breadth must be several 

 hundred yards near our camp. Signs of the approach of 

 cold weather began to thicken around us ; a large flock 

 of pelicans, wheeling in circles far above, suddenly formed 

 into an arrow-headed figure, and struck straight to the 

 south ; and yellow leaves drifted through the air before a 

 cold north wind, promised us, as the half-breeds said, by 

 the beautiful aurora of last night. Islands, low and reedy, 

 continued to appear until we arrived at the Great Bend, 

 where a band of Indians have their winter quarters. The 

 Indians are Koman Catholics, originally from Oxford 

 House. I persuaded one of them to act as guide up 

 Moss Eiver to Dauphin Lake, after we had visited the 

 salt works. Their tents were dirty and excessively odo- 

 rous. In general, the Indians of Lake Winnipeg and 

 Manitobah, in point of cleanliness, cannot bear comparison 

 with the Prairie Indians. 



We met here, also, a freighter's boat, in charge of a 

 French half-breed, who, with his family, was returning 

 from the Salt Springs to Oak Point, with about twelve 

 bushels of salt. We exchanged a little tea and tobacco 

 for ducks and fish ; and on the following morning started 

 by the Middle Branch of Water-hen Eiver for Winnipeg- 



