PÈRE DUCHAMP--MR. S.'s INSTRUCTIONS--UNSUCCESSFUL--TRADING
EXCURSION--DIFFICULTIES OF THE JOURNEY--LOSE OUR WAY--PROVISIONS
FAIL--REACH THE POST--VISIT TO AN ALGONQUIN CHIEF--HIS ABUSIVE
TREATMENT--SUCCESS.
Mr. Siviright arrived about the latter end of August, accompanied by
another junior clerk, and a few days afterwards the opposition were
seen passing. I embarked with my fellow-scribe, and arrived next day
at the lower outpost, when I was much disappointed to find my old
interpreter, whom I had with me at the Chats, in the service of our
opponents. He was my Indian tutor, and took every pains, not only to
teach me the language, but to initiate me in the mysteries of the
trade, in which he was justly considered an adept. Our opponents
offered him a high salary, which he would not accept until he had
previously made a tender of his valuable services to the Company, whom
he had faithfully served for a period of thirty years and upwards. He
requested a small addition to his salary, which was refused.
My regard for the worthy old man, however, was not in the least
diminished by the circumstance of his being in opposition. Père
Duchamp and I had still our friendly _tête-à-tête_ whenever we had an
opportunity. The autumn passed without any incident having occurred
worthy of note, I and my opponent being occupied in the usual
way,--watching each other night and day, chasing each other, and
circumventing each other when we could.
Late in the month of October, I was surprised to observe a couple of
middle-sized canoes, deeply laden, put ashore at our opponent's, where
the crews, five in number, passed the night. Next morning, as soon as
they were gone, I called on my old friend, who happened to be alone at
the time, to inquire about his visitors.
He demurred for a little, and at length said: "For your sake, and
to you only, would I disclose the secret of these people's object
and destination. They called at Fort Coulonge yesterday, and gave
themselves out for a party of hunters, bound for the Temiscamingue
quarter;--they are a party of Iroquois, supplied with a valuable
assortment of goods for trade, and their destination is Lac de la
Vieille, in the very centre of the Algonquin hunting-grounds."
This was a most important piece of intelligence: some of these Indians
had been supplied at Fort Coulonge, some at my post, and all of them
were deeply indebted at the Lake of Two Mountains. I passed the day
in the anxious expectation of seeing Mr. S., or at least receiving
instructions from him with reference to these people. No one coming, I
resolved to proceed to Fort Coulonge, and communicate _viva voce_ the
information I had received.
Late in the evening, I embarked in a small canoe, with two men, and
reached the Fort at early dawn; and rousing Mr. S. from his slumbers,
I at once announced the object of my visit.
"Well," said he, "this requires consideration: retire to rest, and I
shall think about it."
I retired accordingly, and slept till breakfast-time, when the subject
was discussed; and his decision was, that I should send one of the two
young men who were at my post in pursuit of the Iroquois, with
instructions to follow them up, until the season should be so far
advanced as merely to admit of his return by open water, unless the
Iroquois pitched their tent before then.
I volunteered myself to go after them with an outfit; but no; it would
be dividing our forces, thereby allowing an advantage to our more
formidable opponents; besides, we had not much to apprehend from the
Iroquois with their trifling means. "_Très bien_," I said to myself,
and set off on my return forthwith. I of course lost no time in
executing the orders I had received. My bourgeois had his opinion of
the matter, and I had mine; I knew that the Iroquois, when left to
themselves, would make their own prices for their goods, and thus,
even with the small outfit they had, fleece the Indians of the
principal part of their furs.
Among the Indians whom I had supplied, was an individual whose
advances amounted to a heavy sum. I felt extremely anxious about him,
and resolved to pay him a visit as soon as travelling was practicable;
meantime, Swanston, who had been in pursuit of the Iroquois, returned
from his disagreeable voyage on the 28th November, having learned
nothing more than we already knew.
I set off the next day, ostensibly on a visit to Mr. S., but really
with the intention of starting from his post on my intended
"derouine,"[1] arrived at Fort Coulonge among the drift ice, and on
the 1st December started, accompanied by the interpreter Primeau and
another man, all of us with heavy burdens on our backs. This proved
the most toilsome trip I had yet undertaken; the smaller lakes only
were passable on the ice, and the rivers were nearly all open. The
difficulties we thus encountered necessarily retarded our progress,
and occupied so much more time than we had calculated upon, that our
provisions were nearly consumed by the time we reached the first
Indian camp, where we expected to procure a guide to conduct us to the
party we were in search of. We succeeded in hiring a young man, but we
only obtained a small supply of flour, the Indians having no other
kind of provision to spare.
[1] "Derouine,"--a trading visit to the Indians.
Three days travelling brought us to the borders of the Indian's lands,
where we soon discovered one of his early winter encampments; had we
been a few days sooner we could have easily traced him from this spot,
but the snow, which had recently fallen to a great depth, had nearly
obliterated the marks he had left behind him.[1] My interpreter,
accustomed to "tracking," followed the _scent_ for two days; our
guide, discontented with the short allowance, gave no assistance, till
coming to an extensive "brulé,"[2] he was completely _at fault_, as no
marks of any kind could be discovered.
[1] When Indians remove in winter, in passing on rivers and
lakes, they stick, at intervals, in the snow, branches of
balsam, inclining in the direction they may have gone. In the
woods, small saplings are cut or broken down; if there is no
underwood, an occasional "blaze" serves as a sign-post to the
experienced woodsman.
[2] "Brulé," a part of the forest consumed by fire.
Our situation was now extremely critical; we were reduced to one
solitary meal of flour and water per diem, and but a few handfuls of
this poor fare remained; to return by the way we came was out of the
question, to proceed to the post was in truth our only alternative,
and none of us was sufficiently acquainted with that part of the
country to be sure of finding it; while the Indian, positively
refusing to keep us company any longer, turned back, and left us to
get out of our difficulties as we best could.
The interpreter proposed that another attempt should be made to find
the Indian's encampment, and volunteered to go alone; this proved the
poor fellow's zeal, but he returned to our encampment next morning
unsuccessful; we therefore resolved to go back, and, finding our way
without much difficulty for a couple of days, we reached the upper end
of a long portage leading to the Ottawa River, where we encamped late
in the evening, and supped on the _hope_ of getting to the post next
forenoon.
We started early in the morning, the Canadian leading, and about noon
fell on fresh snow-shoe tracks--the tracks, we supposed, of some of
our people who had come to seek us; and feeling assured that our
sufferings would terminate with the day, we pursued our route with
renovated vigour and speed; when lo! our encampment of the preceding
night came in view, the excitement of our minds having prevented us
from discerning our mistake, as we might have done, sooner. The sun
was still high, but the circumstance of the encampment being already
prepared, induced us to put up there again for the night. It was a sad
disappointment, and I felt it as such, though I affected a gaiety that
was far from my heart; while with downcast looks and heavy hearts my
poor fellows betook themselves to rest at a very early hour.
Next morning we set off determined to be more cautious; the mistake of
the previous day was ascribed to the sound of a high cascade at the
head of the rapid, which we had mistaken for another considerably
farther down; our Canadian still acted as guide--the blind leading
the blind--and after two hours' walk we fell upon our own tracks
again;--the poor fellow had yielded so completely to despair, that he
walked about mechanically, scarcely knowing or caring whither he went;
he was therefore ordered to the rear, and Primeau succeeded as leader.
We saw nothing more of our tracks, but encamped in the evening with
much the same prospects as before. I felt extremely weak, having
carried Primeau's pack along with my own, as the old man could
scarcely move when beating the track in the deep snow. Having a few
fresh beaver skins, we cut off the thicker parts about the head and
legs, and made a _bouillon_ of them, which we drank, and then turned
in.
In the morning it became a subject of serious debate what direction we
should proceed in; the sky, however, having been clear the preceding
evening, I observed the sun setting, and determined in my own mind the
proper course; both my companions differed from me, but readily agreed
to follow me. I therefore took the lead, and was so fortunate as
to discover an old track, soon after leaving our encampment, which
we followed until it brought us in sight of the Grand River--the
long looked-for object of our fast failing hopes. Tears of joy burst
from my eyes, as I beheld before me the wide expanse of the noble
stream: although covered with ice and divested of the beauties of
summer, it never appeared more lovely to me. We reached the post after
night-fall; opening the door cautiously, I threw in my snow-shoes,
then bolting in myself, was gratified with the sight of a table
garnished with the best things the country afforded, which my two
friends had prepared for their Christmas dinner; the sight, however,
was all that prudence allowed us for the present to enjoy, our long
abstinence rendering it necessary to confine ourselves, for a time, to
a very weak diet.
Next day I despatched a messenger to Fort Coulonge with the narrative
of my adventures; and as soon as my strength was sufficiently
recruited I set off again, accompanied by a _tête de boule_ as my
guide, who led us direct to the camp of the Indian I had so long been
in search of; where I had the mortification to learn, that on my first
attempt I had returned from within a day's journey of him, and that
if I had then succeeded in finding him, I should have secured the
whole of the valuable hunts of him and his people, which were now
in possession of the Iroquois traders. On my return to the post I
communicated my sentiments freely to Mr. S. in writing, regarding the
oversight that had led to consequences so injurious to the Company,
and went afterwards, at his own request, to talk over the matter
with him. It was now decided that I should go with a party of men to
establish a post against them, i.e. to shut the stable-door after
the steed was stolen. To accomplish this object supplies of every
kind must be hauled on sledges by the men, at an enormous expense,
and after all we could not furnish the means of competing with the
Iroquois with any prospect of advantage. I however lost no time in
executing the orders of my superior, and set off with as many men as
could be spared for the purpose.
On arriving at our destination, we built a temporary hut for our own
accommodation, and a small store for the goods; but I soon discovered
that the Iroquois had not only already secured all the Indians' furs,
but had so completely ingratiated themselves with them that we were
scarcely noticed. I remained two months in this wretched situation,
and, as Mr. S.'s instructions left me in some measure to the exercise
of my own judgment, I resolved on transferring the _honourable_ charge
to persons less sanguine than myself, and returned to my post, where
I knew my services could be turned to better account. In returning I
happened to fall in with a small band of Indians, who had not yet been
visited by the Iroquois, one of whom was the brother of the Algonquin
chief, who had been so severely chastised the preceding winter. At
his lodge I passed the night, and was not only treated with the usual
Indian hospitality, but received a very pressing invitation to return
with a supply of goods, which he promised to trade.
Such invitations are never neglected. The moment I arrived at my post
I laid aside the articles required by the Indians, and after one day's
rest, started, myself and two men, carrying everything on our backs.
It being late in the season, we encountered every possible difficulty
on our way: the small streams overflowed, and the ice was so bad
on the rivers as to preclude travelling on them. We were therefore
under the necessity of taking to the woods, through a horridly rugged
country, now ascending hills so steep that we could only scramble up
their sides by holding on by the branches and underwood, the descent
on the opposite side being equally difficult and laborious; now
forcing our way through deep ravines overgrown with underwood, all but
impervious; sinking to the ground at every step, and raising on our
snow-shoes a load of half-melted snow, which strained the tendons of
the legs and caused acute pain.
Early in the morning of the sixth day we arrived at the camp, but, to
our astonishment, neither heard the voice nor saw the form of a human
being, though there were infallible signs that the camp was inhabited.
It was the sugar season. I entered the great man's hut with a cautious
step, and found every soul in it fast asleep. I marked with surprise
the confusion that prevailed around,--sugar kettles upset, pots,
pans, wearing apparel, blankets, and other articles, scattered about
in every direction;--what could it mean? I awoke the chief, and
the mystery was solved. He appeared to be just recovering from the
effects of the night's debauch,--the Iroquois were in the camp. Mine
host "grinned horribly a ghastly smile" as he placed himself, rather
unsteadily, in a sitting posture in his bed, and in a hoarse tremulous
voice bade me welcome, at the same time rousing his better-half, who
appeared to be in the same _happy_ state as himself.
A clatter ensued that soon set the whole household in motion, and I
hastened to make the customary offering of a small keg of rum to the
chief, and another of shrub to the squaw, who immediately ordered a
young woman (the family drudge) to prepare my breakfast. Meanwhile the
chief, along with two of his relatives, amused himself quaffing his
nectar, which evidently began to have its usual effects, and from the
expressions I overheard, I could gather that he had neither forgotten
his brother's treatment last winter, nor forgiven me the part I had
acted on the occasion. I listened with affected indifference for a
time to the taunts he began to throw out, and at last, to get rid
of them, went to visit the other huts, where I found the Iroquois
preparing for their departure; they had several parcels of beaver,
which they took no pains to conceal from me, but there was still much
more remaining.
After seeing them depart I returned to my chief, who received me
with a volley of abuse, in which he was joined by his associates.
The women, who were sober, observing by my looks that I was getting
excited, requested me to withdraw. I did so, but was followed by the
chief to the next hut, which I quitted immediately; I found myself
still pursued by the same insufferable insolence. My philosophy being
unequal to so severe a trial, I turned upon my tormentor, and seizing
him by the throat, dashed him to the ground, and left him there
speechless. I then made for a hut a short distance apart from the
others, belonging to a _tête de boule_, where I remained in quietness
for about the space of fifteen minutes; when suddenly my Canadian came
rushing into the hut, his countenance betraying the utmost alarm, and
staring me wildly in the face, he stammered out, "Les sauvages! les
sauvages, monsieur, prennent leurs armes! Sauvons-nous! Sauvons-nous!"
The Iroquois, coming in the next instant, confirmed his report; but I
had, in fact, been flying the whole morning, and thought it now high
time to take my stand. My Iroquois appearing quite calm, I told him I
was determined not to stir from the spot, and asked if he would remain
with me.
"I came here for that purpose," said he, "and shall stand by you to
the last."
Our _tête de boule_ had two guns, which he loaded; Sabourin had his,
which he promised to use in his own defence: thus prepared, we awaited
the expected attack. The remainder of the day, however, passed without
molestation, and after night-fall, I sent out my trusty Iroquois to
reconnoitre; he soon returned with the welcome intelligence that the
Indians had all retired to rest. We did the same.
Next morning I went to the chief's lodge, and found him perfectly
sober; I saluted him according to custom, which he returned with a
scowl, repeating my words in a contemptuous manner; this exasperated
my yet excited feelings to the highest degree. I felt assured that
the fellow had invited me on purpose to insult me, if not for a worse
purpose; and, addressing him in language that plainly bespoke my
feelings, I immediately ordered my men to prepare for our departure.
He remained silent for a moment, and then whispered in his wife's ear;
she turned round to me, smiling, and asked if I had not brought the
goods, my men were packing up, to trade?
"Yes," I replied.
"Then," said she, "you must not be in such a hurry to go away."
The husband now spoke to me in a conciliatory tone, begging me to
place all that had happened to the account of the "fire-water," and
for heaven's sake not to acquaint his father with his conduct.
This I readily assented to; we entered upon business, and nearly all
the goods I had were exchanged for their full value in beaver. We
found the travelling much better on our return, the small streams
having subsided, and the snow so much diminished, that we could walk
without snow-shoes.