Page:Narrative of the Discoveries on the North Coast of America.djvu/241

FORT CONFIDENCE. had seen a line of fires stretching along the monntains towards the Coppermine River—here only thirty miles distant. The whole day was occupied in searching for further marks of the stronger, to no purpose; from which I inferred that he had retraced his steps southward. But, in case he should return to the same place, we erected marks to guide him to the Indian lodges, not far removed from the borders of the lake. This new branch of M'Tavish Bay is enclosed by a range of barren rocky hills of considerable height—the favourite haunts of the shaggy musk-ox. It becomes continually narrower till near its northern termination, where it contracts to the width of half a mile, and again expands into a circular basin three miles in diameter, which is the nearest approach of Great Bear Lake to the Coppermine River, and is undoubtedly the part indicated by The Hook to Sir John Franklin on that officer's first expedition. The extensive peninsula comprehended between Dease and M'Tavish bays, and terminating in Cape M'Donell, is the hunting-ground from whence we derived the greater portion of our subsistence during a winter of nine months.

On the 29th of December, Le Sourd—the very man who had caused the natives such an alarm—arrived at Fort Confidence, in company with P 2