Page:The Columbia river , or, Scenes and adventures during a residence of six years on the western side of the Rocky Mountains among various tribes of Indians hitherto unknown (Volume 1).djvu/121

 companions in front of the fort, indulging in gloomy reflections on the fate of the Tonquin, and the unpromising appearance of our general affairs, we were surprised by the arrival of two canoes with Messrs. Robert Stuart, M'Lellan, Reed, and Farnham, together with Messrs. David Stuart, and R. Crooks. The unexpected return of the four first individuals, who had only left the fort on the 30th March, was caused by a serious rencontre which they had with the natives in ascending. On arriving at the portage of the falls, which is very long and fatiguing, several of the Indians in a friendly manner tendered their horses to transport the goods. Mr. Stuart, having no suspicion of their dishonesty, gladly accepted the offer, and entrusted a few of them with several small packets of merchandize to carry. On arriving, however, in a rocky and solitary part of the portage, the rascals turned their horses' heads into a narrow pathway and galloped off with the goods, with which they escaped. Their comrades on foot in the mean time crowded about the voyageurs who were carrying the packages, and as Mr. Stuart observed the necessity of greater precaution, he took his post at the upper end of the portage, leaving Messrs. Reed and McClellan in charge of