ask sixteen for them. L'Esperance himself wasn't at home when we
got there; but his wife, a fine, tall woman, speaking a peculiar
French patois, showed us "around," also the pemmicain, which is
buffalo-meat pounded, dried, and pressed into bags of skins, it
keeping good for years in that way. It looked nasty, but the
children were chewing it apparently with great relish. Whilst in
the shanty we heard a great noise, and, running out, found our
horse, which had either taken right or been stung by some fly,
tearing past us with the buggy through the old lady's potato-field
into the bush. E---- tore after it, and in a few hundred yards
came up to the horse standing trembling, and gazing at the shattered
remains of our poor vehicle. He had tried to turn the corner, when
the whole thing capsized topsy-turvy, and he had almost freed
himself of all the harness; luckily he was considerate enough not
to have given that "one more struggle" which would have indeed
settled the whole question, and obliged us to foot it on our ten
toes home. Curiously enough the shafts were not broken, but the
splinter-bar was. There was quite a procession back to the shanty,
the half-breed woman and one girl dragging the buggy, one child
carrying the cushion, another the whip and wraps, and E---- leading
the horse. We set to work to make good the damage as best we
could, with thin strips of buffalo-hide, and started homewards;
but without buying our robes, not daring to add to our weight. The
man at the ferry-boat gave us an extra binding up, and by going
cautiously we got home, though we feared every moment would be our
last, as regards driving, as the bound-up parts creaked most
ominously all the way, and we fully expected at every rough bit to
go in half. The horse is generally so quiet that we never mind
where we leave him standing. I luckily have just given A---- a new
carriage, which will come in very handy. It is to be a "democrat,"