and died, a chief-factor, at St. Boniface, Man. His son, my
companion, also entered the service, in 1857, at his father's
post of Isle a la Crosse, served seven years at Cumberland, nine
at other distant points, and, finally, fifteen years as trader
at Reindeer Lake, a far northern post bordering on the Barren Lands,
and famous for its breed of dogs. My friend had some strange
virtues, or defects, as the ungodly might call them; he had never
used tobacco or intoxicants in his life, a marvellous thing
considering his environment. He possessed, besides, a fine
simplicity which pleased one. Doubled up in the Edmonton hotel
with a waggish companion, he was seen, so the latter affirmed,
to attempt to blow out the electric light, a thing which, greatly
to his discomfiture, was done by his bed-fellow with apparent
ease. Being a man of scant speech, I enjoyed with him betimes
the luxury of it. But we had much discourse for all that, and
I learnt many interesting things from this old trader, who seemed
taciturn in our little crowd, but was, in reality, a tower of
intelligent silence beat about by a flood of good-humoured chaff
and loquacity.

At our first night's camp we were still in sight of the Landing,
which looked absurdly near, considering the men's hard pull; and
from there messengers were sent to Baptiste Lake, the source of
Baptiste Creek, which joins the Athabasca a few miles up, and
where there was a settlement of half-breed fishermen and hunters,
to procure additional trackers if possible. On their unsuccessful
return, at eleven a.m., we started again--newo pishawuk, as they
call it, "four trackers to the line," as before and early in the
afternoon were opposite Baptiste Creek, and, weather compelling,
rowed across, and camped there that evening. It rained dismally