I2f) F V 
affairs of this company been carried on, that trading pofls 
are now eftablidied within five hundred miles of the Pa¬ 
cific Ocean. One gentleman, Mr. Mackenzie, a part¬ 
ner in the houfe at Montreal, has even penetrated to the 
Pacific Ocean itfelf. The journal kept by him upon thefe 
expeditions, and which has been recently publifiiedjis re¬ 
plete with information of the inofl: interefting nature. In 
the firft attempt which Mr. Mackenzie made to pene¬ 
trate to the ocean, he fet out early in the fpringfrom the 
remotefi of the pofls belonging to the company. He took 
with him a fingte canoe, and a party of chofen men ; and 
after pafling over prodigious tradls of land, never before 
traverfedby any white perfon, he at laft came to a large 
river. Here the canoe, which was carried by the men an 
their fhoulders, was launched, and having all embarked, 
they proceeded down the flream. From the courfe this 
river took for a very great diftance, Mr. Mackenzie was 
led to imagine that it was one of thofe rivers he was in 
spiefl of ; namely, one which emptied itfelf into the Pa¬ 
cific Ocean ; but at the-end of feveral weeks, during 
which they had worked their way downward with great 
eagernefs, he was convinced, from the gradual inclina- 
tion of the river towards another quarter, that he muft 
liave been miflaken ; and that it was one. of thofe im- 
menfe rivers, fo numerous on the continent of North 
America, that run into Baffin’s Bay, or the Ardtic Ocean. 
The party was now in a very critical fituation ; the lea- 
fon was far advanced, and the length of way which they 
had to return was prodigious. If they attempted to go 
back, and were overtaken by winter, they mufl in all 
probability periffi for want of provifions in an uninhabit¬ 
ed country ; if, on the contrary, they made up their 
minds to fpend the winter where they were, they had no 
time to lofe in building huts, and going out to hunt 
and fiffi, that they might have fufficient ftores to fupport 
them through that dreary feafon. Mr. Mackenzie repre- 
fented the matter, in the moftopen terms, to his men, and 
left it to themfelves to determine the part they would 
take. The men were for going back at all hazards; and 
the refult was, that they reached their friends in falety. 
The difficulties they had to contend with, and the exer¬ 
tions they made in returning, were almoft furpaffing belief. 
The fecond expedition entered upon by Mr. Macken¬ 
zie, and which fucceeded to his wifhes, was undertaken 
loon afterwards. He fet out in the fame manner, but 
well provided with thofe articles which he found the 
want of in his firft expedition. He was extremely well 
furnifhed with aftronomical inftruments, and in particular 
with a good time-piece, that he procured from London. 
He took a courfe fomewhat different from the firft, and 
paired through many nations of Indians who had never 
before feen the face of a white perlbn, amongft fome of 
whom he was for a time in imminent danger; but he found 
means to conciliate their good will. From fome of them 
he learned, that there was a ridge of mountains at a little 
diftance, beyond which,the rivers all ran in a weftern di- 
rebtion. Having engaged fome guides, he proceeded ac¬ 
cording to their directions until he came to the moun¬ 
tains, and after afeending them with prodigious labour, 
found, to his great fatisfaCfion, that the account the In¬ 
dians had given was true, and that the rivers on the op- 
pofite fide did indeed all run to the weft. He followed the 
courfe of one of them, and finally came to the Pacific 
Ocean, not far from Nootka Sound. Here he was given 
to underftand by the natives, and their account was con¬ 
firmed by the fight of fome little articles they had amongft 
them, that an Engliflt velTel had quitted the coaft only 
fix weeks before. This was a great mortification to Mr. 
Mackenzie; for had tliere been a ffiip on the coaft, he 
would moft gladly have embarked in it rather than en¬ 
counter the fame difficulties, and be expofed to the fame 
perils, which lie had experienced in getting there : how¬ 
ever there was no alternative ; he fet out after a ftiort time 
on lus journey back again, and having found his canoe 
R. 
quite fafe itmTer fome buffies, near th.e head of the river, 
v.'here he had hid it, together wiih fome provifions, left 
on ooing down to the coaft the natives might have proved 
unfriendly, and have cut off his retreat by (eizing upon 
it, lie finally arrived at one of the trading pofts in feciirity. 
Many other individuaJs belonging to the North Weft 
Company, before Mr. Mackenzie fet out, penetrated far 
into the country in different directions, and much beyond 
what any perfon had done before them, in order toeftab- 
lifli pofts. I n fome of thefe excurfions they tinexpedled- 
!y fell in with the agents of the Hndfon’s Bay Company, 
who were alfo extending their polls from another qnar. 
tef ; this cafual meeting between the tvvo companies, gave 
rife to fome very unpleafantaltercations, and the Hudfon’s 
Bay Company threatened the other with an immediate 
profccittion for an infringement of its charter. TJie North 
Weft Company, however, refted perfeflly eafy about the 
menaces or a profecution, fatisfied that they had infring¬ 
ed upon the rights of no one. The Hudfon’s Bay Com¬ 
pany, though it threatened, never attempted to put its 
threats in execution: but continued neverthelefs to watch 
the motions of its rival with a jealous eye ; and as in ex¬ 
tending their refpective trades, the pofts of the two com¬ 
panies were approximatingneaVerand nearer ter each other 
every year, there was great reafon to imagine that their 
differences would become ftiil greater, and finally, per¬ 
haps, lead to confequences of a ferious nature. A cir- 
cumftance, liowever, unexpectedly took place, which 
happily reconciled them to each other, and terminated all 
their difputes. 
Avery powerful nation of Indians, called tlie AJjini. 
boins, who inhabit an extended traCt of country to the 
foutli-weft of Lake Winnipeg, conceiving that tlte Hud¬ 
fon’s Bay Company had encroached unreafonably upon 
their territories, and had otherwife maltreated a part of 
their tribe, formed the refolntion of deftroyiiig a poll: 
eftablilhed by that company in their neighbourhood. A 
large body of them foon collected together, and breath¬ 
ing the fierceft fpirit of revenge, marched nnp'erceived 
and unfufpedled by the party againft whom their expedi¬ 
tion was planned, till within a Ihort diftance of their 
poft. Here they halted according to cuftom, waiting only 
for a favourable moment to pounce upon theirprey. Some 
of the agents of the Nortli Weft Company, who were 
fcattered about this part of the country, fortunately got 
intelligence of their defign. They knew the weaknefsof 
the place about to be attacked, and forgetting the rival, 
ftiip fubfifting between them, and thinking-only howto 
fave their countrymen, tliey immediately difpatched a 
melfenger to give the party notice of the aftault that was 
meditated; they at the fame time fent another meflenger 
to one of their own pofts, defiring that inftant fuccour 
might be fent to that belonging to the Hudfon’s Bay Com¬ 
pany, which the Indians were about to plunder. The de¬ 
tachment arrived before the attack commenced, and the 
Indians were repulfed ; but had it not been for the timely 
affiftance their rivals had afforded, the Hndfon’s Bay peo¬ 
ple were fully perfuaded that they muft have fallen vic¬ 
tims to the fury of the Indians. This fignal fervice w^as 
not undervalued nor forgotten by thofe who had been 
faved; and as the North Weft Company was fo much 
ftronger, and on fo much better terms with the Indians in 
this part of the country, than its rivals, it now evidently- 
appeared to be the intereft of the latter to have the pofts 
of the North Weft Company eftablilhed as near its own 
as poffible. This was accordingly done for their mutual 
fafety, and the two companies, in July 1 ']%’], adopted the 
wife refolntion of forming an union of interefts, 
Befides the furs thus conveyed down to Montreal from 
the north-weftern parts of the American continent, by¬ 
means of the Utawas river, there are large qiuntities alfo 
brought there acrofs the lakes, and down the river St. 
Lawrence. Thefe are colle6led at the various tovvns and 
polls along the Lakes Huron, Erie, and Ontario, where 
