o f mortifes, were fewed two thin broad bars lengthwaySjat a fmall distance
froni eaehr@tber; .thefe frames were.fixed together with three or
four crofs bars, tied fail upon the runners; and on the lower edge .of the
latter^ fmall pieces of horn were fattened, by wooded pegs, that .they
might Aide with greater facility. They are drawn by fhafts,-which i
imagine are-applied to any particular fledge as they are wanted, as I Taw
no more than oune pair of them.
About half paft one we. came oppofite.to the.firft fpBi£Ges-.tree that we
had feen for Tome time: there are but very few of them on the main land,
and they are very fmall; thofe. are larger which are found on the
illands, where they grow in patches, and clofe-together. It is, indeed,
.very extraordinary that there Ihould he any wood whatever in a country
where the ground never thaws above five inches from the.Turface* ,W.e
landed at feven. in the evening. The. weaker was-cnow vpry pW fant,
and in the courfe of the day we law great numbers o f' wil d fowl} with
their young ones,but they were fo fhy that we could not approach them.
The Indians, were not very Tuceefsful in their foraging party, as they killed
only two grey cranes, and a grey goofe. Two o f them were employed
on the high land to the.Eaftward, through the greater part o f the. day,
in fearch of rein-deer, but they could difeover nothing more than a few
tracks of that animal. I alfo afeended the high land, from whence I had
a delightful view.of the river, divided into innumerable ftreams, meandering
through iflands, Tome o f which were covered with wood, and
others with grafs. The mountains, that formed the oppofite horizon,
.were at the diftance of. forty,- miles.- - The. inland view; was neither,To
extenfive nor agreeable, being terminated by a near range of, bleak,
barren
barren hills, between which are fmall lakes o r ‘ponds,’ while the fur-
rounding1 country is .covered with tufts of mofs, without the (hade of a —sr— '
finglê1 treèV-Aldnfg the; hills is a 1 kind of fence, made with branches,
where the natives had fet fnares to catch white partridges. ' a
The nets did not producer fingtè fifty and at three 'o’ëfoçk in-the morn- Satufi^ i8*
ing'wehook oundeparturfe: uÆBhe weather was fine and clear, and we patted
fevërâTencampments.jt--As; the_prjnts\fo.f human feet .were,v-eary ; frefh in
the fand; it could, not havebeeiT long fince 'thematives'hattfvifited1 the
fpot. -- We now proceeded in the hope oTmeetingfwith Tome of them at
the river, whither our gùide wâs conducing us With that expectation.
Wb obferved a' great number oftüees, in different plaicès-, whofe branches
had been 'lopped'bff^to the tops.' They denote the immediate abode o f
the nat-iv‘es/ahd prëfeæîHy ferve for lignais tos>direct éaëh-other to their re-
fpëftive winter ^quarters. Our hunters, in the fburfe ofthe day killed two
rein-deer, which were'the only large animals that wë had feen fincejWe had
been in this river, and proved a veryTeafënâJate.Füpplyj as our PeiAmican
had-bee'ethe mouldy for fôme ^lime paft; though in that fituation'we
were under the neceflity of eating it-
In the vallies and low-lands near, the-river,/-cranberries- are -found
» g re a t abundance, particularjydn TavO&rable afpeéts. « It-is a lingular
ci¥CWhttance^ that the fruittof .twèNfpeeeeding years'm^ÿ'be;gatbeîçd at
the fame time, from the Tame Ihrub. Here was alfo another, berry, of
a very pale yellow colour, that 1 efembles a rafpberry, ;a'fid is of a very
agreeable flavour. There is a great variety of iother plants and,herbs,
whofe tiatnes and properties are .unknown- to. me*-.
The