e at Fort William a bitter animosity was expressed
against Lord Selkirk and the company which had endorsed his colonizing
project. It was the Nor'westers' misfortune and fault that some of
their number were prepared to vent this outspoken enmity in deeds of
criminal violence.

Two 'wintering partners' of the {68} North-West Company--men who
remained in the interior during the winter--appear to have been
entrusted by their fellows with the task of dealing with the settlers
on the Red River. Both these men, Duncan Cameron and Alexander
Macdonell, had a wide experience of the prairie country. Of the pair,
Cameron was unquestionably the more resourceful. In view of the fact
that later in life he became a trusted representative of the county of
Glengarry in the legislature of Upper Canada, there has been a tendency
to gloss over some of his misdemeanours when he was still a trader in
furs. But he was a sinister character. His principal aim, on going to
the Red River, was to pay lavish court to the settlers in order to
deceive them. He was a born actor, and could assume at will the
gravest or the gayest of demeanours or any disposition he chose to put
on.

Alexander Macdonell, the other emissary of the Nor'westers, was of an
inferior type. He was crafty enough never to burn his own fingers.
Macdonell had some influence over the Indians of the Qu'Appelle
district and of the more distant west. His immediate proposal was to
attract a band of redskins to the neighbourhood of Colony Gardens with
the {69} avowed intention of creating a panic among the settlers.

Shortly after the July meeting at Fort William these two men started on
their mission for the Red River. On August 5, while at a
stopping-point by the way, Alexander Macdonell dated a letter to a
friend in Montreal. The tenor of this letter would indicate that only
a portion of the Nor'westers were ready to adopt extreme measures
against the settlement. 'Something serious will undoubtedly take
place,' was Macdonell's callous admission. 'Nothing but the complete
downfall of the colony,' he continued, 'will satisfy some, by fair or
foul means--a most desirable object if it can be accomplished. So here
is at them with all my heart and energy.'

Towards the end of August the twain arrived at Fort Gibraltar, where
they parted company. Alexander Macdonell proceeded to his winter
quarters at Fort Qu'Appelle, on the river of the same name which
empties into the