to Lake la. Rouge. Two unfortunate circumftances, however, happened
to them; which are as follow. ..
Mr. Wadin, a Swifs gentleman,, of|ftriQ; probity and known fobriety,
had gone there in the year 1779, and; remained during the fummer 1780.
.His partners and others, engaged in an oppofite intdreft, when at the
Grande Portage, agreed to lend a; quantity tof goods on their joint acr
count, which was accepted, and Mr. .Pond, was propofed by them to be
their reprefentative to ari,itt.coryun£lion with Mr. Wadin. Two meBhof
more oppofite characters, could oot, perhaps; have been fpundi Jin fhoit
from various caufes, .their fituations became very uncomfortable. to each
•other, and mutual ill-will was the natural confequenee : without enter;-
ing, therefore, into a minute hiftory of thefo tranfa^on%riit):W^ifcte E f ficient
to obferve, that, about the end of the year 1780/ or the beginning
of the year 1781, Mr. Wadin had received Mr. Pond anebone o f his
own clerks to dinner ; and, in the courfe of the night,,-the former w-as
fhot through thd^lower part of the thigh, when it was- faid thaL'b&i expired
from the lofs of blood, and was buried next morning* at eight
o’clock. Mr. Pond, and the clerk, were tried fpr this, murder at Montreal,
and acquitted: neverthelêfe, their innocence, was apt fo appacent
as to extinguish the ,original fulpicion.
The other; qircumftance .was, In the fprjpg vM&
,Pond lent the ^bqyementioned clerk to meet .the/fiadiapsf from.f the
.Northward, who„pfed to .go..annually: to Hudson’s Bay,;, when, he .eafily
perfoadedyhem to- trade with .him, and .return.,b;ack, that they -might fttjH
take
bad depopulated 6h§ country to, the Eaftward
of them: but mofl unfortunately they caught, it here, and carried it with
them, to the.deftruHion o f thepifelves and the neighbouring tribes.
i The country being thus depopulated, the graders and their friends
from Canada, < who, From. va.Hous caufes already/thentioaed, were, very
much reduced in number, betaine confined to two parties, who began
forfoufly-to think o f waking permanent eftablifhments100 the Mifljnipi
rives, and fele&ed their
beft qmoe-men, being ignorant that the fmall pox penetrated that way.
exp^irions,party vgelonly in to the; Portage la Loehe,
or Mi^y-auinigam;Pomgei whiehdmdesFbe waters of the Milfinipi from
thofe that fall into, the Elk river, to difpatch one canoe ftrong handed,
and light-loaded, to that? country; but, cm; their? arrival there,, they
found, in ^every 'direftiwif .theJaavagetf ©fjthe fmall; pox; fo that,
from the great diminution of the;natives, theysreturned in the fpring,
with no more than feven packages of beaver. | Thedlrong woods and
mountainous countries afforded a refuge to thofe who fled from the
contagion of the plains; but they were fo alarmed at the Turrounding
deftmaioD', that they avoided! the traders, and were difpirited from himt-
ing except for their fubfiftence. The traders! however, who returned
into the: country in the year 1782-3, found the inhabitants in fome fort
o f tranquillity, and more numerous than they had reafon to expe&, fo
that their* fueceft was proportionably better.
Duriojy the winter 1 o f i 783-4, the merchants of Canada, engaged in
.this trade, formed a jun£tion of interefts, under the name of. the Northi
Weft