s
of these hills, and followed an Indian track along its northern bank, by
which we avoided the White Mud and Good Portages. We afterwards followed
the river as far as the Pine Portage, when we passed through a very
romantic defile of rocks, which presented the appearance of Gothic
ruins, and their rude characters were happily contrasted with the
softness of the snow, and the darker foliage of the pines which crowned
their summits. We next crossed the Cascade Portage, which is the last on
the way to the Athabasca Lake, and soon afterwards came to some Indian
tents, containing five families, belonging to the Chipewyan tribe. We
smoked the calumet in the Chiefs tent, whose name was the Thumb, and
distributed some tobacco and a weak mixture of spirits and water among
the men. They received this civility with much less grace than the
Crees, and seemed to consider it a matter of course. There was an utter
neglect of cleanliness, and a total want of comfort in their tents; and
the poor creatures were miserably clothed. Mr. Frazer, who accompanied
us from the Methye Lake, accounted for their being in this forlorn
condition by explaining, that this band of Indians had recently
destroyed every thing they possessed, as a token of their great grief
for the loss of their relatives in the prevailing sickness. It appears
that no article is spared by these unhappy men when a near relative
dies; their clothes and tents are cut to pieces, their guns broken, and
every other weapon rendered useless, if some person do not remove these
articles from their sight, which is seldom done.--Mr. Back sketched one
of the children, which delighted the father very much, who charged the
boy to be very good, since his picture had been drawn by a great chief.
We learned that they prize pictures very highly, and esteem any they can
get, however badly executed, as efficient charms. They were unable to
give us any information respecting the country beyond the Athabasca
Lake, which is the boundary of their peregrinations to the northward.
Having been apprized of our coming, they had prepared an encampment for
us; but we had witnessed too many proofs of their importunity to expect
that we could pass the night near them in any comfort, whilst either
spirits, tobacco, or sugar remained in our possession; and therefore
preferred to go about two miles further along the river, and to encamp
among a cluster of fine pine-trees, after a journey of sixteen miles.

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