anoe must
be frequently carried over land for considerable distances, to avoid the
numerous obstacles which occur. It was necessary, therefore, that we
should leave at this place the Dolphin and Union, and every thing that
was not absolutely necessary for our journey. We determined, however, on
taking with us Colonel Pasley's canvass boat, the Walnut-shell, in the
hope of its occasionally relieving the men of their burdens for a short
time, should any part of the river admit of its use. The afternoon
was employed in arranging the loads for crossing the barren grounds. Twenty
pounds of pemmican were allotted to each man, and the packages of
maccaroni, arrow-root, portable-soup, chocolate, sugar, and tea, were
equally distributed; together with the nautical almanack, astronomical
tables, charts, two fishing nets, the collection of plants, specimens of
rocks, and the portable boat, kettles, and hatchets; all of which, with
the blankets, spare shoes, guns, and ammunition, made a load of about
seventy-two pounds a man. Mr. Kendall undertook to carry the sextant and
azimuth-compass; and I took the artificial horizon and a package of
paper for drying plants, besides which we each carried a blanket, gun,
and ammunition. As I feared that some of the party would over-rate their
strength, and, through a desire of saving some favourite article, load
themselves too heavily at the outset, which could not fail to prove very
injurious to the regularity and speed of our march, I informed them,
that, as soon as we were at a convenient distance from our present
encampment, I should halt and examine all their bundles.

The boats were drawn up on shore, out of the reach of any flood, and the
remainder of the articles, that we had brought to give the Esquimaux,
were put into boxes and placed in the tents, that they might be readily
found by the first party of that nation that passed this way. They
consisted of fish-hooks, lines, hatchets, knives, files, fire-steels,
kettles, combs, awls, needles, thread, blue and red cloth, gartering,
and beads, sufficient to serve a considerable number of Esquimaux for
several years. The tents were securely pitched, and the Union Jack
hoisted, partly for the purpose of attracting the attention of the
natives, and partly to show them the mode of using the tents, which may
prove to be very useful in their summer journeys. That no accident might
occur from the natives finding any of our powder, all that we did