Page:Narrative of the Discoveries on the North Coast of America.djvu/125

 taking to flight, when we called out to them who we were, upon which they instantly turned their canoes towards us. They were in dread, they said, of the Mountain Indians, and did not know what to make of our noiseless approach. We treated them to their favourite luxury, tobacco, and fell in with many more of them during the day. At 10 we reached Fort Norman, having travelled two hundred and fifty miles in exactly forty-eight hours.

At this northerly spot, situated in lat. 64° 40′, a small quantity of green barley, and of potatoes, almost as big as pigeon eggs, is now annually raised. I was afterwards surprised to find this vain attempt to vanquish nature made even at Fort Good Hope, with turnips and radishes. Next day our hunters cast up about noon. We hired three Dog-ribs to guide and complete the crew of the luggage-boat to Dease River, at the north-eastern extremity of Great Bear Lake, where our winter quarters were to be established. John Hitch, our boat-builder, was intrusted with the execution of this most important duty, assisted by John Norquay and Laurent Cartier, fishermen, and François Framond, a rough carpenter. Ritch's instructions were, to erect the necessary buildings on a very small scale, agreeably to a plan drawn by me, to establish a fishery