expressed their regret and, being
ashamed of their panic, proposed to remedy the evil as much as possible
by going forward without stopping until they came to a favourable spot
for hunting, which they expected to do about thirty or forty miles below
our present encampment. Akaitcho accompanied them but previous to setting
off he renewed his charge that we should be on our guard against the
bears, which was occasioned by the hunters having fired at one is morning
as they were descending a rapid in their canoe. As their small canoes
would only carry five persons two of the hunters had to walk in turns
along the banks.

In our rambles round the encampment we witnessed with pleasure the
progress which vegetation had made within the few last warm days; most of
the trees had put forth their leaves and several flowers ornamented the
moss-covered ground; many of the smaller summer birds were observed in
the woods, and a variety of ducks, gulls, and plovers, sported on the
banks of the river. It is about three hundred yards wide at this part, is
deep and flows over a bed of alluvial sand. We caught some trout of
considerable size with our lines, and a few white-fish in the nets, which
maintained us with a little assistance from the pemmican. The repair of
our canoes was completed this evening. Before embarking I issued an order
that no rapid should in future be descended until the bowman had examined
it and decided upon its being safe to run. Wherever the least danger was
to be apprehended or the crew had to disembark for the purpose of
lightening the canoe, the ammunition, guns, and instruments were always
to be put out and carried along the bank, that we might be provided with
the means of subsisting ourselves in case of any accident befalling the
canoes.

The situation of our encampment was ascertained to be 65 degrees 43
minutes 28 seconds North, longitude 114 degrees 26 minutes 45 seconds
West, and the variation 42 degrees 17 minutes 22 seconds East.

At four in the morning of July 4th we embarked and descended a succession
of very agitated rapids, but took the precaution of landing the articles
mentioned yesterday wherever there appeared any hazard; notwithstanding
all our precautions the leading canoe struck with great force against a
stone and the bark was split, but this injury was easily repaired and we
regretted only the loss of time. At eleven we came to an expansion of the
river where the current ran with less fo