320
»793» a fire for us,, and were fitting by it. My . holpitable7 friendAiuraediately
—v-— > brought me Come berries arid roafted falmon,. and his companions foöh
followed his example. Théformer, which eonfifted amdng many others,
of goofeberries, whirtleberries and rafpberriesj were the fîneft I ever law
or tailed, o f their toTpêéÉvè kinds. .-They alfo brought the'dried roes of
fiflh to eat with the berries.
Salmon is fo abundant in this river, that thefc people, have a conftànt
and plentiful fupply o f that excellent filh. : ; T o take: them with more
facility* they had, with great labour; formed’ an ; embankment or weir
acrofe the river for the purpbfo o f placing their fifliiog machines* which
they difpofed both above and below it. I expreffed my wife to yifit
this extraordinary work, but thefe people are ferfoperftkious; that^they
would not allow me a nearer examination than I CouM* obtain by viewing
it from foe bank. The river is about fifty y àfos dh breadth, and by
©bferving a man fifh with a dipping net*! judged-itto be aboÉt fob feet
deep at the foot o f the fell. . Tfeë‘ wdt h labour, and
contrived with confiderable ingenuity. It was near fourféët above the
level o f the water, at the time I faw it, and nearly the b ^ h t fo f fob bank
on which I ftood to examine it. The ftrearn is flopped nearly two thirds
by it. It is eonftru&ed by fixing fmall trees ‘in the bed ó f the 'river
in a flanting pofition (which could be practicable only when thé water
is much lower than I faw it) with the thick part downwards; Over
thefe is laid a bed of gravel, on which is placed a range Of lèflêr
trees* and fo On alternatelyfotill thé wófk is bfOught to fe* proper
height.. Beneath it ; the machinés arç. placed, into which the falmon
fall when they attempt to leap over. On either fide there is a large
frame
frame of timberrwork fix feet above -the level of the upper water, In
which paflages are left for the falmon leading dircftly into the machines,
which are ;taken up atpleafure.,,At the foot of the fall dipping nets
at© aJfoTao^ftfully employed* >,
*703.
July*
The water of this river is of the colour o f alfes milk, which I attributed
in part to- the limeftone that in many places fdr-ms the' bed of the river,
but principally to the< rivulets w-hich fall from mountains ©f the fame
m a te r ia l.,
4 Thefe people indulge an extreme fuperftition rgfpe&ing. their fiii, as
4t, is apparently their only animal food: Flelh they never taftö/ and on®
of their dogs having, picked and fwallowedpart p f % bbgte which» we had
left, was beaten by his matter till lie difgorged it. One of my people
alfo having thrown a bone df the deer into the rivbr,. a natiye, who had
obfepved- foe: eiroUmflande, immediately dived and brought it up, and*
having; configned it to the fire* inftantly proceeded to walh his polluted
hands.-
^ As we were ftill at fome dillance from the fea, I made application to
rny friend- t©. ■ procure us a canoe .or two^ with people td -conduél? us
thitfipr. i After he had made various exeufes* I at length comprehended
that his-©nlyJobje^'foQ was tof thé embarking veHriion in a canoe on their
river, as the filh , would inftantly fmellfot and abandbftthem, fo that he,
his friends* and relarif pSj muffc flar ve; I) fooneafed his apprehenfiorts orf
that point, and defined to know what I. niufl do with thé vehifon that
remained, when he-told me to give it to* ode -of thé Grangers whom he
T t ; pointed