CONTINUATION OF PROCEEDINGS AT FORT ENTERPRISE. SOME ACCOUNT OF THE
COPPER INDIANS. PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOURNEY TO THE NORTHWARD.
CONTINUATION OF PROCEEDINGS AT FORT ENTERPRISE. SOME ACCOUNT OF THE
COPPER INDIANS.
March 18, 1821.
I shall now give a brief account of the Copper Indians termed by the
Chipewyans _Tantsawhot-dinneh_, or Birch-rind Indians. They were
originally a tribe of the Chipewyans and, according to their own
account, inhabited the south side of Great Slave Lake at no very
distant period. Their language, traditions, and customs, are
essentially the same with those of the Chipewyans but in personal
character they have greatly the advantage of that people, owing
probably to local causes or perhaps to their procuring their food more
easily and in greater abundance. They hold women in the same low
estimation as the Chipewyans do, looking upon them as a kind of
property which the stronger may take from the weaker whenever there is
just reason for quarrelling, if the parties are of their own nation, or
whenever they meet if the weaker party are Dog-Ribs or other strangers.
They suffer however the kinder affections to show themselves
occasionally; they in general live happily with their wives, the women
are contented with their lot, and we witnessed several instances of
strong attachment. Of their kindness to strangers we are fully
qualified to speak; their love of property, attention to their
interests, and fears for the future made them occasionally clamorous
and unsteady; but their delicate and humane attention to us in a season
of great distress at a future period are indelibly engraven on our
memories. Of their notions of a Deity or future state we never could
obtain any satisfactory account; they were unwilling perhaps to expose
their opinions to the chance of ridicule. Akaitcho generally evaded our
questions on these points but expressed a desire to learn from us and
regularly attended Divine Service during his residence at the fort,
behaving with the utmost decorum.
This leader indeed and many others of his tribe possess a laudable
curiosity which might easily be directed to the most important ends;
and I believe that a well-conducted Christian mission to this quarter
would not fail of producing the happiest effect. Old Keskarrah alone
used boldly to express his disbelief of a Supreme Deity and state that
he could not credit the existence of a Being whose power was said to
extend everywhere but whom he had not yet seen, although he was now an
old man. The aged sceptic is not a little conceited as the following
exordium to one of his speeches evinces: “It is very strange that I
never meet with anyone who is equal in sense to myself.” The same old
man in one of his communicative moods related to us the following
tradition: The earth had been formed but continued enveloped in total
darkness, when a bear and a squirrel met on the shores of a lake; a
dispute arose as to their respective powers, which they agreed to
settle by running in opposite directions round the lake, and whichever
arrived first at the starting point was to evince his superiority by
some signal act of power. The squirrel beat, ran up a tree, and loudly
demanded light which, instantly beaming forth, discovered a bird
dispelling the gloom with its wings; the bird was afterwards recognised
to be a crow. The squirrel next broke a piece of bark from the tree,
endowed it with the power of floating, and said, “Behold the material
which shall afford the future inhabitants of the earth the means of
traversing the waters.”
The Indians are not the first people who have ascribed the origin of
nautics to the ingenuity of the squirrel. The Copper Indians consider
the bear, otter, and other animals of prey, or rather some kind of
spirits which assume the forms of these creatures, as their constant
enemies and the cause of every misfortune they endure; and in seasons
of difficulty or sickness they alternately deprecate and abuse them.
Few of this nation have more than one wife at a time and none but the
leaders have more than two. Akaitcho has three and the mother of his
only son is the favourite. They frequently marry two sisters and there
is no prohibition to the intermarriage of cousins but a man is
restricted from marrying his niece.
The last war excursion they made against the Esquimaux was ten years
ago when they destroyed about thirty persons at the mouth of what they
term Stony-Point River, not far from the mouth of the Copper-Mine
River. They now seem desirous of being on friendly terms with that
persecuted nation and hope through our means to establish a lucrative
commerce with them. Indeed the Copper Indians are sensible of the
advantages that would accrue to them were they made the carriers of
goods between the traders and Esquimaux.
At the time of Hearne’s visit the Copper Indians, being unsupplied with
firearms, were oppressed by the Chipewyans; but even that traveller had
occasion to praise their kindness of heart. Since they have received
arms from the traders the Chipewyans are fearful of venturing upon
their lands; and all of that nation who frequent the shores of Great
Slave Lake hold the name of Akaitcho in great respect. The Chipewyans
have no leader of equal authority among themselves.
The number of the Copper Indians may be one hundred and ninety souls
namely eighty men and boys and one hundred and ten women and young
children. There are forty-five hunters in the tribe. The adherents of
Akaitcho amount to about forty men and boys; the rest follow a number
of minor chiefs.
For the following notices of the nations on Mackenzie’s River we are
principally indebted to Mr. Wentzel who resided for many years in that
quarter.
The _Thlingchadinneh_, or Dog-Ribs, or, as they are sometimes termed
after the Crees, who formerly warred against them, _Slaves_, inhabit
the country to the westward of the Copper Indians as far as Mackenzie’s
River. They are of a mild, hospitable, but rather indolent disposition;
spend much of their time in amusements and are fond of singing and
dancing. In this respect and in another they differ very widely from
most of the other aborigines of North America. I allude to their kind
treatment of the women. The men do the laborious work whilst their
wives employ themselves in ornamenting their dresses with quill-work
and in other occupations suited to their sex. Mr. Wentzel has often
known the young married men to bring specimens of their wives’
needlework to the forts and exhibit them with much pride. Kind
treatment of the fair sex being usually considered as an indication of
considerable progress in civilisation it might be worthwhile to inquire
how it happens that this tribe has stepped so far beyond its
neighbours. It has had undoubtedly the same common origin with the
Chipewyans, for their languages differ only in accent, and their mode
of life is essentially the same. We have not sufficient data to
prosecute the inquiry with any hope of success but we may recall to the
reader’s memory what was formerly mentioned, that the Dog-Ribs say they
came from the westward, whilst the Chipewyans say that they migrated
from the eastward.
When bands of Dog-Ribs meet each other after a long absence they
perform a kind of dance. A piece of ground is cleared for the purpose,
if in winter of the snow, or if in summer of the bushes; and the dance
frequently lasts for two or three days, the parties relieving each
other as they get tired. The two bands commence the dance with their
backs turned to each other, the individuals following one another in
Indian file and holding the bow in the left hand and an arrow in the
right. They approach obliquely after many turns and, when the two lines
are closely back to back, they feign to see each other for the first
time and the bow is instantly transferred to the right hand and the
arrow to the left, signifying that it is not their intention to employ
them against their friends. At a fort they use feathers instead of
bows. The dance is accompanied with a song. These people are the
dancing-masters of the country. The Copper Indians have neither dance
nor music but what they borrow from them. On our first interview with
Akaitcho at Fort Providence he treated us as has already been mentioned
with a representation of the Dog-Rib Dance; and Mr. Back during his
winter journey had an opportunity of observing it performed by the
Dog-Ribs themselves.
The chief tribe of the Dog-Rib nation, termed Horn Mountain Indians,
inhabit the country betwixt Great Bear Lake and the west end of Great
Slave Lake. They muster about two hundred men and boys capable of
pursuing the chase. Small detachments of the nation frequent Marten
Lake and hunt during the summer in the neighbourhood of Fort
Enterprise. Indeed this part of the country was formerly exclusively
theirs, and most of the lakes and remarkable hills bear the names which
they imposed upon them. As the Copper Indians generally pillage them of
their women and furs when they meet they endeavour to avoid them and
visit their ancient quarters on the barren grounds only by stealth.
Immediately to the northward of the Dog-Ribs, on the north side of Bear
Lake River, are the _Kawcho-dinneh_ or Hare Indians who also speak a
dialect of the Chipewyan language and have much of the same manners
with the Dog-Ribs, but are considered both by them and by the Copper
Indians to be great conjurors. These people report that in their
hunting excursions to the northward of Great Bear Lake they meet small
parties of Esquimaux.
Immediately to the northward of the Hare Indians on both banks of
Mackenzie’s River are the _Tykothee-dinneh_, Loucheux, Squint-Eyes, or
Quarrellers. They speak a language distinct from the Chipewyan. They
war often with the Esquimaux at the mouth of Mackenzie’s River but have
occasionally some peaceable intercourse with them, and it would appear
that they find no difficulty in understanding each other, there being
considerable similarity in their languages. Their dress also resembles
the Esquimaux and differs from that of the other inhabitants of
Mackenzie’s River. The Tykothee-dinneh trade with Fort Good-Hope,
situated a considerable distance below the confluence of Bear Lake
River with Mackenzie’s River and, as the traders suppose, within three
days’ march of the Arctic Sea. It is the most northern establishment of
the North-West Company, and some small pieces of Russian copper coin
once made their way thither across the continent from the westward.
Blue or white beads are almost the only articles of European
manufacture coveted by the Loucheux. They perforate the septum of the
nose and insert in the opening three small shells which they procure at
a high price from the Esquimaux.
On the west bank of Mackenzie’s River there are several tribes who
speak dialects of the Chipewyan language that have not hitherto been
mentioned. The first met with on tracing the river to the southward
from Fort Good-Hope are the _Ambawtawhoot-dinneh_, or Sheep Indians.
They inhabit the Rocky Mountains near the sources of the Dawhootdinneh
River which flows into Mackenzie’s and are but little known to the
traders. Some of them have visited Fort Good-Hope. A report of their
being cannibals may have originated in an imperfect knowledge of them.
Some distance to the southward of this people are the Rocky Mountain
Indians, a small tribe which musters about forty men and boys capable
of pursuing the chase. They differ but little from the next we are
about to mention, the _Edchawtawhoot-dinneh_, Strong-bow, Beaver, or
Thickwood Indians who frequent the _Rivière aux Liards_ or south branch
of Mackenzie’s River. The Strong-bows resemble the Dog-Ribs somewhat in
their disposition; but when they meet they assume a considerable degree
of superiority over the latter who meekly submit to the haughtiness of
their neighbours. Until the year 1813 when a small party of them, from
some unfortunate provocation, destroyed Fort Nelson on the _Rivière aux
Liards_ and murdered its inmates, the Strong-bows were considered to be
a friendly and quiet tribe and esteemed as excellent hunters. They take
their names in the first instance from their dogs. A young man is the
father of a certain dog but when he is married and has a son he styles
himself the father of the boy. The women have a habit of reproving the
dogs very tenderly when they observe them fighting: “Are you not
ashamed,” say they, “are you not ashamed to quarrel with your little
brother?” The dogs appear to understand the reproof and sneak off.
The Strong-bows and Rocky Mountain Indians have a tradition in common
with the Dog-Ribs that they came originally from the westward, from a
level country where there was no winter, which produced trees and large
fruits now unknown to them. It was inhabited also by many strange
animals, amongst which there was a small one whose visage bore a
striking resemblance to the human countenance. During their residence
in this land their ancestors were visited by a man who healed the sick,
raised the dead, and performed many other miracles, enjoining them at
the same time to lead good lives and not to eat of the entrails of
animals, nor to use the brains for dressing skins until after the third
day; and never to leave the skulls of deer upon the ground within the
reach of dogs and wolves but to hang them carefully upon trees. No one
knew from whence this good man came or whither he went. They were
driven from that land by the rising of the waters and, following the
tracks of animals on the seashore, they directed their course to the
northward. At length they came to a strait which they crossed upon a
raft but the sea has since frozen and they have never been able to
return. These traditions are unknown to the Chipewyans.
The number of men and boys of the Strong-bow nation who are capable of
hunting may amount to seventy.
There are some other tribes who also speak dialects of the Chipewyan
upon the upper branches of the Rivière aux Liards such as the
_Nohhannies_ and the _Tsillawdawhoot-dinneh_ or Brushwood Indians. They
are but little known but the latter are supposed occasionally to visit
some of the establishments on Peace River.
Having now communicated as briefly as I could the principal facts that
came to our knowledge regarding the Indians in this quarter I shall
resume the narrative of events at Fort Enterprise. The month of March
proved fine. The thermometer rose once to 24° above zero and fell upon
another day 49° below zero but the mean was minus 11 1/2°.
On the 23rd the last of our winter’s stock of deer’s meat was expended
and we were compelled to issue a little pounded meat which we had
reserved for making pemmican for summer use. Our nets which were set
under the ice on the 15th produced only two or three small fish daily.
Amongst these was the round-fish, a species of Coregonus which we had
not previously seen.
On the following day two Indians came with a message from the Hook, the
chief next to Akaitcho in authority amongst the Copper Indians. His
band was between West Marten and Great Bear Lakes and he offered to
provide a quantity of dried meat for us on the banks of the Copper-Mine
River in the beginning of summer, provided we sent him goods and
ammunition. It was in his power to do this without inconvenience as he
generally spends the summer months on the banks of the river near the
Copper Mountain; but we had no goods to spare and I could not venture
to send any part of our small stock of ammunition until I saw what the
necessities of our own party required. I told them however that I would
gladly receive either provisions or leather when we met and would pay
for them by notes on the North-West Company’s post; but to prevent any
misunderstanding with Mr. Weeks I requested them to take their winter’s
collection of furs to Fort Providence before they went to the
Copper-Mine River. They assured me that the Hook would watch anxiously
for our passing as he was unwell and wished to consult the doctor.
Several circumstances having come lately to my knowledge that led me to
suspect the fidelity of our interpreters they were examined upon this
subject. It appeared that in their intercourse with the Indians they
had contracted very fearful ideas of the danger of our enterprise which
augmented as the time of our departure drew near, and had not hesitated
to express their dislike to the journey in strong terms amongst the
Canadians, who are accustomed to pay much deference to the opinions of
an interpreter. But this was not all; I had reason to suspect they had
endeavoured to damp the exertions of the Indians with the hope that the
want of provision in the spring would put an end to our progress at
once. St. Germain in particular had behaved in a very equivocal way
since his journey to Slave Lake. He denied the principal parts of the
charge in a very dogged manner but acknowledged he had told the leader
that we had not paid him the attention which a chief like him ought to
have received; and that we had put a great affront on him in sending
him only a small quantity of rum. An artful man like St. Germain,
possessing a flow of language and capable of saying even what he
confessed, had the means of poisoning the minds of the Indians without
committing himself by any direct assertion; and it is to be remarked
that, unless Mr. Wentzel had possessed a knowledge of the Copper Indian
language, we should not have learned what we did.
Although perfectly convinced of his baseness I could not dispense with
his services; and had no other resource but to give him a serious
admonition and desire him to return to his duty, after endeavouring to
work upon his fears by an assurance that I would certainly convey him
to England for trial if the Expedition should be stopped through his
fault. He replied, “It is immaterial to me where I lose my life,
whether in England or in accompanying you to the sea, for the whole
party will perish.” After this discussion however he was more
circumspect in his conduct.
On the 28th we received a small supply of meat from the Indian lodges.
They had now moved into a lake about twelve miles from us, in
expectation of the deer coming soon to the northward.
PREPARATIONS FOR THE JOURNEY TO THE NORTHWARD.
On the 29th Akaitcho arrived at the house, having been sent for to make
some arrangements respecting the procuring of provision and that we
might learn what his sentiments were with regard to accompanying us on
our future journey. Next morning we had a conference which I commenced
by showing him the charts and drawings that were prepared to be sent to
England, and explaining fully our future intentions. He appeared much
pleased at this mark of attention and, when his curiosity was
satisfied, began his speech by saying that although a vast number of
idle rumours had been floating about the barren grounds during the
winter he was convinced that the representations made to him at Fort
Providence regarding the purport of the Expedition were perfectly
correct. I next pointed out to him the necessity of our proceeding with
as little delay as possible during the short period of the year that
was fit for our operations, and that to do so it was requisite we
should have a large supply of provisions at starting. He instantly
admitted the force of these observations and promised that he and his
young men should do their utmost to comply with our desires, and
afterwards in answer to my questions informed us that he would
accompany the Expedition to the mouth of the Copper-Mine River or, if
we did not meet with Esquimaux there, for some distance along the
coast; he was anxious he said to have an amicable interview with that
people, and he further requested that, in the event of our meeting with
Dog-Ribs on the Copper-Mine River, we should use our influence to
persuade them to live on friendly terms with his tribe. We were highly
pleased to find his sentiments so favourable to our views and, after
making some minor arrangements, we parted mutually content. He left us
on the morning of the 31st, accompanied by Augustus who, at his
request, went to reside for a few days at his lodge.
On the 4th of April our men arrived with the last supply of goods from
Fort Providence, the fruits of Mr. Back’s arduous journey to the
Athabasca Lake, and on the 17th Belanger _le gros_ and Belanger _le
rouge_, for so our men discriminated them, set out for Slave Lake with
a box containing the journals of the officers, charts, drawings,
observations, and letters addressed to the Secretary of State for
Colonial Affairs. They also conveyed a letter for Governor Williams in
which I requested that he would if possible send a schooner to Wager
Bay with provisions and clothing to meet the exigencies of the party
should they succeed in reaching that part of the coast.
Connoyer, who was much tormented with biliary calculi and had done
little or no duty all the winter, was discharged at the same time and
sent down in company with an Indian named the Belly.
The commencement of April was fine and for several days a considerable
thaw took place in the heat of the sun which, laying bare some of the
lichens on the sides of the hills, produced a consequent movement of
the reindeer to the northward and induced the Indians to believe that
the spring was already commencing. Many of them therefore quitted the
woods and set their snares on the barren grounds near Fort Enterprise.
Two or three days of cold weather however towards the middle of the
month damped their hopes, and they began to say that another moon must
elapse before the arrival of the wished-for season. In the meantime
their premature departure from the woods caused them to suffer from
want of food and we were in some degree involved in their distress. We
received no supplies from the hunters, our nets produced but very few
fish, and the pounded meat which we had intended to keep for summer use
was nearly expended. Our meals at this period were always scanty and we
were occasionally restricted to one in the day.
The Indian families about the house, consisting principally of women
and children, suffered most. I had often requested them to move to
Akaitcho’s lodge where they were more certain of receiving supplies
but, as most of them were sick or infirm, they did not like to quit the
house, where they daily received medicines from Dr. Richardson, to
encounter the fatigue of following the movements of a hunting camp.
They cleared away the snow on the site of the autumn encampments to
look for bones, deer’s feet, bits of hide, and other offal. When we
beheld them gnawing the pieces of hide and pounding the bones for the
purpose of extracting some nourishment from them by boiling we
regretted our inability to relieve them, but little thought that we
should ourselves be afterwards driven to the necessity of eagerly
collecting these same bones a second time from the dunghill.
At this time, to divert the attention of the men from their wants, we
encouraged the practice of sliding down the steep bank of the river
upon sledges. These vehicles descended the snowy bank with much
velocity and ran a great distance upon the ice. The officers joined in
the sport and the numerous overturns we experienced formed no small
share of the amusement of the party, but on one occasion, when I had
been thrown from my seat and almost buried in the snow, a fat Indian
woman drove her sledge over me and sprained my knee severely.
On the 18th at eight in the evening a beautiful halo appeared round the
sun when it was about 8° high. The colours were prismatic and very
bright, the red next the sun.
On the 21st the ice in the river was measured and found to be five feet
thick and, in setting the nets in Round Rock Lake, it was there
ascertained to be six feet and a half thick, the water being six
fathoms deep. The stomachs of some fish were at this time opened by Dr.
Richardson and found filled with insects which appear to exist in
abundance under the ice during the winter.
On the 22nd a moose-deer was killed at the distance of forty-five
miles; St. Germain went for it with a dog-sledge and returned with
unusual expedition on the morning of the third day. This supply was
soon exhausted and we passed the 27th without eating, with the prospect
of fasting a day or two longer, when old Keskarrah entered with the
unexpected intelligence of having killed a deer. It was divided betwixt
our own family and the Indians and during the night a seasonable supply
arrived from Akaitcho. Augustus returned with the men who brought it,
much pleased with the attention he had received from the Indians during
his visit to Akaitcho.
Next day Mr. Wentzel set out with every man that we could spare from
the fort for the purpose of bringing meat from the Indians as fast as
it could be procured. Dr. Richardson followed them two days afterwards
to collect specimens of the rocks in that part of the country. On the
same day the two Belangers arrived from Fort Providence having been
only five days on the march from thence.
The highest temperature in April was plus 40°, the lowest minus 32°,
the mean plus 4.6°. The temperature of the rapid, examined on the 30th
by Messrs. Back and Hood, was 32° at the surface, 33° at the bottom.
On the 7th of May Dr. Richardson returned. He informed me that the
reindeer were again advancing to the northward but that the leader had
been joined by several families of old people and that the daily
consumption of provision at the Indian tents was consequently great.
This information excited apprehensions of being very scantily provided
when the period of our departure should arrive.
The weather in the beginning of May was fine and warm. On the 2nd some
patches of sandy ground near the house were cleared of snow. On the 7th
the sides of the hills began to appear bare and on the 8th a large
house-fly was seen. This interesting event spread cheerfulness through
our residence and formed a topic of conversation for the rest of the
day.
On the 9th the approach of spring was still more agreeably confirmed by
the appearance of a merganser and two gulls, and some loons or arctic
divers, at the rapid. This day to reduce the labour of dragging meat to
the house the women and children and all the men except four were sent
to live at the Indian tents.
The blueberries, crow-berries, eye-berries, and cranberries, which had
been covered and protected by the snow during the winter might at this
time be gathered in abundance and proved indeed a valuable resource.
The ground continued frozen but the heat of the sun had a visible
effect on vegetation; the sap thawed in the pine-trees and Dr.
Richardson informed me that the mosses were beginning to shoot and the
calyptrae of some of the jungermanniae already visible.
On the 11th Mr. Wentzel returned from the Indian lodges having made the
necessary arrangements with Akaitcho for the drying of meat for summer
use, the bringing fresh meat to the fort and the procuring a sufficient
quantity of the resin of the spruce fir, or as it is termed by the
voyagers _gum_, for repairing the canoes previous to starting and
during the voyage. By my desire he had promised payment to the Indian
women who should bring in any of the latter article and had sent
several of our own men to the woods to search for it. At this time I
communicated to Mr. Wentzel the mode in which I meant to conduct the
journey of the approaching summer. Upon our arrival at the sea I
proposed to reduce the party to what would be sufficient to man two
canoes in order to lessen the consumption of provisions during our
voyage or journey along the coast and, as Mr. Wentzel had expressed a
desire of proceeding no farther than the mouth of the Copper-Mine
River, which was seconded by the Indians who wished him to return with
them, I readily relieved his anxiety on this subject, the more so as I
thought he might render greater service to us by making deposits of
provision at certain points than by accompanying us through a country
which was unknown to him, and amongst a people with whom he was totally
unacquainted. My intentions were explained to him in detail but they
were of course to be modified by circumstances.
On the 14th a robin (_Turdus migratorius_) appeared; this bird is
hailed by the natives as the infallible precursor of warm weather.
Ducks and geese were also seen in numbers and the reindeer advanced to
the northward. The merganser (_Mergus serrator_) which preys upon small
fish, was the first of the duck tribe that appeared; next came the teal
(_Anas crecca_) which lives upon small insects that abound in the
waters at this season; and lastly the goose which feeds upon berries
and herbage. Geese appear at Cumberland House in latitude 54° usually
about the 12th of April; at Fort Chipewyan in latitude 59° on the 25th
of April; at Slave Lake in latitude 61° on the 1st of May; and at Fort
Enterprise in latitude 64° 28′ on the 12th or 14th of the same month.
On the 16th a minor chief amongst the Copper Indians attended by his
son arrived from Fort Providence to consult Dr. Richardson. He was
affected with snow-blindness which was soon relieved by the dropping of
a little laudanum into his eyes twice a day. Most of our own men had
been lately troubled with this complaint but it always yielded in
twenty or thirty hours to the same remedy.
On the 21st all our men returned from the Indians and Akaitcho was on
his way to the fort. In the afternoon two of his young men arrived to
announce his visit and to request that he might be received with a
salute and other marks of respect that he had been accustomed to on
visiting Fort Providence in the spring. I complied with his desire
although I regretted the expenditure of ammunition and sent the young
man away with the customary present of powder to enable him to return
the salute, some tobacco, vermilion to paint their faces, a comb and a
looking-glass.
At eleven Akaitcho arrived; at the first notice of his appearance the
flag was hoisted at the fort and upon his nearer approach a number of
muskets were fired by a party of our people and returned by his young
men. Akaitcho, preceded by his standard-bearer, led the party and
advanced with a slow and stately step to the door where Mr. Wentzel and
I received him. The faces of the party were daubed with vermilion, the
old men having a spot on the right cheek, the young ones on the left.
Akaitcho himself was not painted. On entering he sat down on a chest,
the rest placed themselves in a circle on the floor. The pipe was
passed once or twice round and in the meantime a bowl of spirits and
water and a present considerable for our circumstances of cloth,
blankets, capots, shirts, etc., was placed on the floor for the chief’s
acceptance and distribution amongst his people. Akaitcho then commenced
his speech but I regret to say that it was very discouraging and
indicated that he had parted with his good humour, at least since his
March visit. He first inquired whether, in the event of a passage by
sea being discovered, we should come to his lands in any ship that
might be sent? And being answered that it was probable but not quite
certain that someone amongst us might come, he expressed a hope that
some suitable present should be forwarded to himself and nation, “for”
said he, “the great Chief who commands where all the goods come from
must see from the drawings and descriptions of us and our country that
we are a miserable people.” I assured him that he would be remembered,
provided he faithfully fulfilled his engagement with us.
He next complained of the non-payment of my notes by Mr. Weeks, from
which he apprehended that his own reward would be withheld. “If,” said
he, “your notes to such a trifling amount are not accepted whilst you
are within such a short distance and can hold communication with the
fort, it is not probable that the large reward which has been promised
to myself and party will be paid when you are far distant on your way
to your own country. It really appears to me,” he continued, “as if
both the Companies consider your party as a third company, hostile to
their interests, and that neither of them will pay the notes you give
to the Indians.”
Afterwards in the course of a long conference he enumerated many other
grounds of dissatisfaction, the principal of which were our want of
attention to him as chief, the weakness of the rum formerly sent to
him, the smallness of the present now offered, and the want of the
chief’s clothing, which he had been accustomed to receive at Fort
Providence every spring. He concluded by refusing to receive the goods
now laid before him.
In reply to these complaints it was stated that Mr. Weeks’ conduct
could not be properly discussed at such a distance from his fort, that
no dependence ought to be placed on the vague reports that floated
through the Indian territory, that for our part, although we had heard
many stories to his (Akaitcho’s) disadvantage, we discredited them all,
that the rum we had sent him, being what the great men in England were
accustomed to drink, was of a milder kind but in fact stronger than
what he had been accustomed to receive, and that the distance we had
come and the speed with which we travelled precluded us from bringing
large quantities of goods like the traders, that this had been fully
explained to him when he agreed to accompany us and that, in
consideration of his not receiving his usual spring outfit, his debts
to the Company had been cancelled and a present, much greater than any
he had ever received before, ordered to be got ready for his return. He
was further informed that we were much disappointed in not receiving
any dried meat from him, an article indispensable for our summer voyage
and which he had led us to believe there was no difficulty in
procuring, and that in fact his complaints were so groundless in
comparison with the real injury we sustained from the want of supplies
that we were led to believe they were preferred solely for the purpose
of cloaking his own want of attention to the terms of his engagement.
He then shifted his ground and stated that if we endeavoured to make a
voyage along the sea-coast we should inevitably perish, and he advised
us strongly against persisting in the attempt. This part of his
harangue, being an exact transcript of the sentiments formerly
expressed by our interpreters, induced us to conclude that they had
prompted his present line of conduct by telling him that we had goods
or rum concealed. He afterwards received a portion of our dinner in the
manner he had been accustomed to do, and seemed inclined to make up
matters with us in the course of the evening, provided we added to the
present offered to him. Being told however that this was impossible
since we had already offered him all the rum we had and every article
of goods we could spare from our own equipment his obstinacy was a
little shaken, and he made some concessions but deferred giving a final
answer until the arrival of Humpy his elder brother. The young men
however did not choose to wait so long and at night came for the rum,
which we judged to be a great step towards a reconciliation.
St. Germain, the most intelligent of our two interpreters and the one
who had most influence with the Indians, being informed that their
defection was in a great measure attributed to the unguarded
conversations he had held with them, and which he had in part
acknowledged, exerted himself much on the following day in bringing
about a change in their sentiments and with some success. The young
men, though they declined hunting, conducted themselves with the same
good humour and freedom as formerly. Akaitcho being as he said ashamed
to show himself kept close in his tent all day.
On the 24th one of the women who accompanied us from Athabasca was sent
down to Fort Providence under charge of the old chief who came some
days before for medicine for his eyes. Angelique and Roulante, the
other two women, having families, preferred accompanying the Indians
during their summer hunt. On the 25th clothing and other necessary
articles were issued to the Canadians as their equipment for the
ensuing voyage. Two or three blankets, some cloth, ironwork, and
trinkets were reserved for distribution amongst the Esquimaux on the
sea-coast. Laced dresses were given to Augustus and Junius. It is
impossible to describe the joy that took possession of the latter on
the receipt of this present. The happy little fellow burst into
ecstatic laughter as he surveyed the different articles of his gay
habiliments.[24]
[24] These men kept their dresses and delighted in them. An Indian
chief on the other hand only appears once before the donor in the
dress of ceremony which he receives and then transfers it to some
favourite in the tribe whom he desires to reward by this robe of
honour.
In the afternoon Humpy the leader’s elder brother, Annoethaiyazzeh,
another of his brothers, and one of our guides arrived with the
remainder of Akaitcho’s band; as also Long-legs, brother to the Hook,
with three of his band. There were now in the encampment thirty
hunters, thirty-one women, and sixty children, in all one hundred and
twenty-one of the Copper Indian or Red-Knife tribe. The rest of the
nation were with the Hook on the lower part of the Copper-Mine River.
Annoethaiyazzeh is remarkable amongst the Indians for the number of his
descendants; he has eighteen children living by two wives, of whom
sixteen were at the fort at this time.
In the evening we had another formidable conference. The former
complaints were reiterated and we parted about midnight without any
satisfactory answer to my questions as to when Akaitcho would proceed
towards the river and where he meant to make provision for our march. I
was somewhat pleased however to find that Humpy and Annoethaiyazzeh
censured their brother’s conduct and accused him of avarice.
On the 26th the canoes were removed from the places where they had been
deposited as we judged that the heat of the atmosphere was now so great
as to admit of their being repaired without risk of cracking the bark.
We were rejoiced to find that two of them had suffered little injury
from the frost during the winter. The bark of the third was
considerably rent but it was still capable of repair.
The Indians sat in conference in their tents all the morning and in the
afternoon came into the house charged with fresh matter for discussion.
Soon after they had seated themselves and the room was filled with the
customary volume of smoke from their calumets the goods which had been
laid aside were again presented to the leader, but he at once refused
to distribute so small a quantity amongst his men and complained that
there were neither blankets, kettles, nor daggers amongst them, and in
the warmth of his anger he charged Mr. Wentzel with having advised the
distribution of all our goods to the Canadians and thus defrauding the
Indians of what was intended for them. Mr. Wentzel of course
immediately repelled this injurious accusation and reminded Akaitcho
again that he had been told on engaging to accompany us that he was not
to expect any goods until his return. This he denied with an effrontery
that surprised us all, when Humpy, who was present at our first
interview at Fort Providence, declared that he heard us say that no
goods could be taken for the supply of the Indians on the voyage; and
the first guide added, “I do not expect anything here, I have promised
to accompany the white people to the sea and I will therefore go,
confidently relying upon receiving the stipulated reward on my return.”
Akaitcho did not seem prepared to hear such declarations from his
brothers and, instantly changing the subject, began to descant upon the
treatment he had received from the traders in his concerns with them
with an asperity of language that bore more the appearance of menace
than complaint. I immediately refused to discuss this topic as foreign
to our present business and desired Akaitcho to recall to memory that
he had told me on our first meeting that he considered me the father of
every person attached to the Expedition, in which character it was
surely my duty to provide for the comfort and safety of the Canadians
as well as the Indians. The voyagers, he knew, had a long journey to
perform and would in all probability be exposed to much suffering from
cold on a coast destitute of wood, and therefore required a greater
provision of clothing than was necessary for the Indians who, by
returning immediately from the mouth of the river, would reach Fort
Providence in August and obtain their promised rewards. Most of the
Indians appeared to assent to this argument but Akaitcho said, “I
perceive the traders have deceived you; you should have brought more
goods but I do not blame you.” I then told him that I had brought from
England only ammunition, tobacco, and spirits and that, being ignorant
what other articles the Indians required, we were dependent on the
traders for supplies, but he must be aware that every endeavour had
been used on our parts to procure them, as was evinced by Mr. Back’s
journey to Fort Chipewyan. With respect to the ammunition and tobacco
we had been as much disappointed as themselves in not receiving them,
but this was to be attributed to the neglect of those to whom they had
been entrusted. This explanation seemed to satisfy him. After some
minutes of reflection his countenance became more cheerful and he made
inquiry whether his party might go to either of the trading posts they
chose on their return, and whether the Hudson’s Bay Company were rich,
for they had been represented to him as a poor people? I answered him
that we really knew nothing about the wealth of either Company, having
never concerned ourselves with trade, but that all the traders appeared
to us to be respectable. Our thoughts I added are fixed solely on the
accomplishment of the objects for which we came to the country. Our
success depends much on your furnishing us with provision speedily,
that we may have all the summer to work and, if we succeed, a ship will
soon bring goods in abundance to the mouth of the Copper-Mine River.
The Indians talked together for a short time after this conversation
and then the leader made an application for two or three kettles and
some blankets to be added to the present to his young men; we were
unable to spare him any kettles but the officers promised to give a
blanket each from their own beds.
Dinner was now brought in and relieved us for a time from their
importunity. The leading men as usual received each a portion from the
table. When the conversation was resumed the chief renewed his
solicitations for goods, but it was now too palpable to be mistaken
that he aimed at getting everything he possibly could and leaving us
without the means of making any presents to the Esquimaux or other
Indians we might meet. I resolved therefore on steadily refusing every
request and, when he perceived that he could extort nothing more, he
rose in an angry manner and, addressing his young men, said: “There are
too few goods for me to distribute; those that mean to follow the white
people to the sea may take them.”
This was an incautious speech as it rendered it necessary for his party
to display their sentiments. The guides and most of the hunters
declared their readiness to go and came forward to receive a portion of
the present which was no inconsiderable assortment. This relieved a
weight of anxiety from my mind and I did not much regard the leader’s
retiring in a very dissatisfied mood.
The hunters then applied to Mr. Wentzel for ammunition that they might
hunt in the morning and it was cheerfully given to them.
The officers and men amused themselves at prison-bars and other
Canadian games till two o’clock in the morning, and we were happy to
observe the Indians sitting in groups enjoying the sport. We were
desirous of filling up the leisure moments of the Canadians with
amusements, not only for the purpose of enlivening their spirits but
also to prevent them from conversing upon our differences with the
Indians, which they must have observed. The exercise was also in a
peculiar manner serviceable to Mr. Hood. Ever ardent in his pursuits he
had, through close attention to his drawings and other avocations,
confined himself too much to the house in winter, and his health was
impaired by his sedentary habits. I could only take the part of a
spectator in these amusements, being still lame from the hurt formerly
alluded to.
The sun now sank for so short a time below the horizon that there was
more light at midnight than we enjoyed on some days at noon in the
wintertime.
On the 27th the hunters brought in two reindeer. Many of the Indians
attended divine service this day and were attentive spectators of our
addresses to the Almighty.
On the 28th I had a conversation with Long-legs whose arrival two days
before has been mentioned. I acquainted him with the objects of our
Expedition and our desire of promoting peace between his nation and the
Esquimaux, and learned from him that his brother the Hook was by this
time on the Copper-Mine River with his party and that, although he had
little ammunition, yet it was possible he might have some provision
collected before our arrival at his tents. I then decorated him with a
medal similar to those given to the other chiefs. He was highly pleased
with this mark of our regard and promised to do everything for us in
his power. Akaitcho came in during the latter part of our conversation
with a very cheerful countenance. Jealousy of the Hook and a knowledge
that the sentiments of the young men differed from his own with respect
to the recent discussions had combined to produce this change in his
conduct, and next morning he took an opportunity of telling me that I
must not think the worse of him for his importunities. It was their
custom he said to do so however strange it might appear to us, and he
as the leader of his party had to beg for them all; but as he saw we
had not deceived him by concealing any of our goods and that we really
had nothing left he should ask for no more. He then told me that he
would set out for the river as soon as the state of the country
admitted of travelling. The snow he remarked was still too deep for
sledges to the northward and the moss too wet to make fires. He was
seconded in this opinion by Long-legs whom I was the more inclined to
believe knowing that he was anxious to rejoin his family as soon as
possible.
Akaitcho now accepted the dress he had formerly refused and next day
clothed himself in another new suit which he had received from us in
the autumn. Ever since his arrival at the fort he had dressed meanly
and pleaded poverty but, perceiving that nothing more could be gained
by such conduct, he thought proper to show some of his riches to the
strangers who were daily arriving. In the afternoon however he made
another though a covert attack upon us. He informed me that two old men
had just arrived at the encampment with a little pounded meat which
they wished to barter. It was evident his intention was merely to
discover whether we had any goods remaining or not. I told him that we
had nothing at present to give for meat, however much we stood in need
of it, but that we would pay for it by notes on the North-West Company
in any kind of goods they pleased. After much artful circumlocution and
repeated assurances of the necessities of the men who owned the meat he
introduced them and they readily agreed to give us the provision on our
own terms.
I have deemed it my duty to give the details of these tedious
conversations to point out to future travellers the art with which
these Indians pursue their objects, their avaricious nature, and the
little reliance that can be placed upon them when their interests jar
with their promises. In these respects they agree with other tribes of
northern Indians but, as has been already mentioned, their dispositions
are not cruel and their hearts are readily moved by the cry of
distress.
The average temperature for May was nearly 32°, the greatest heat was
68°, the lowest 8°.
We had constant daylight at the end of the month and geese and ducks
were abundant, indeed rather too much so for our hunters were apt to
waste upon them the ammunition that was given to them for killing deer.
Uncertain as to the length of time that it might be required to last we
did not deem a goose of equal value with the charge it cost to procure
it.
Dr. Richardson and Mr. Back having visited the country to the northward
of the Slave Rock and reported that they thought we might travel over
it I signified my intention of sending the first party off on Monday
the 4th of June. I was anxious to get the Indians to move on before,
but they lingered about the house, evidently with the intention of
picking up such articles as we might deem unnecessary to take. When
Akaitcho was made acquainted with my purpose of sending away a party of
men he came to inform me that he would appoint two hunters to accompany
them and at the same time requested that Dr. Richardson or, as he
called him, the Medicine Chief, might be sent with his own band. These
Indians set a great value upon medicine and made many demands upon Dr.
Richardson on the prospect of his departure. He had to make up little
packets of the different articles in his chest, not only for the leader
but for each of the minor chiefs who carefully placed them in their
medicine bags, noting in their memories the directions he gave for
their use. The readiness with which their requests for medical
assistance were complied with was considered by them as a strong mark
of our good intentions towards them and the leader often remarked that
they owed much to our kindness in that respect, that formerly numbers
had died every year but that not a life had been lost since our arrival
amongst them. In the present instance however the leader’s request
could not be complied with. Dr. Richardson had volunteered to conduct
the first party to the Copper-Mine River whilst the rest of the
officers remained with me to the last moment to complete our
astronomical observations at the house. He therefore informed the
leader that he would remain stationary at Point Lake until the arrival
of the whole party, where he might be easily consulted if any of his
people fell sick as it was in the neighbourhood of their hunting
grounds.
On the 2nd the stores were packed up in proper-sized bales for the
journey. I had intended to send the canoes by the first party but they
were not yet repaired, the weather not being sufficiently warm for the
men to work constantly at them without the hazard of breaking the bark.
This day one of the new trading guns which we had recently received
from Fort Chipewyan burst in the hands of a young Indian, fortunately
however without doing him any material injury. This was the sixth
accident of the kind which had occurred since our departure from Slave
Lake. Surely this deficiency in the quality of the guns, which hazards
the lives of so many poor Indians, requires the serious consideration
of the principals of the trading Companies.
On the 4th at three in the morning the party under the charge of Dr.
Richardson started. It consisted of fifteen voyagers, three of them
conducting dog sledges, Baldhead and Basil, two Indian hunters with
their wives, Akaiyazzeh a sick Indian and his wife, together with
Angelique and Roulante, so that the party amounted to twenty-three
exclusive of children.
The burdens of the men were about eighty pounds each, exclusive of
their personal baggage which amounted to nearly as much more. Most of
them dragged their loads upon sledges but a few preferred carrying them
on their backs. They set off in high spirits.
After breakfast the Indians struck their tents, and the women, the
boys, and the old men who had to drag sledges, took their departure. It
was three P.M. however before Akaitcho and the hunters left us. We
issued thirty balls to the leader and twenty to each of the hunters and
guides with a proportionate quantity of powder, and gave them
directions to make all the provision they could on their way to Point
Lake. I then desired Mr. Wentzel to inform Akaitcho in the presence of
the other Indians that I wished a deposit of provision to be made at
this place previous to next September as a resource should we return
this way. He and the guides not only promised to see this done but
suggested that it would be more secure if placed in the cellar or in
Mr. Wentzel’s room. The Dog-Ribs, they said, would respect anything
that was in the house as knowing it to belong to the white people. At
the close of this conversation Akaitcho exclaimed with a smile, “I see
now that you have really no goods left (the rooms and stores being
completely stripped) and therefore I shall not trouble you any more but
use my best endeavours to prepare provision for you, and I think if the
animals are tolerably numerous we may get plenty before you can embark
on the river.”
Whilst the Indians were packing up this morning one of the women
absconded. She belongs to the Dog-Rib tribe and had been taken by force
from her relations by her present husband who treated her very harshly.
The fellow was in my room when his mother announced the departure of
his wife and received the intelligence with great composure as well as
the seasonable reproof of Akaitcho. “You are rightly served,” said the
chief to him, “and will now have to carry all your things yourself
instead of having a wife to drag them.” One hunter remained after the
departure of the other Indians.
On the 5th the Dog-Rib woman presented herself on a hill at some
distance from the house, but was afraid to approach us until the
interpreter went and told her that neither we nor the Indian who
remained with us would prevent her from going where she pleased. Upon
this she came to solicit a fire-steel and kettle. She was at first
low-spirited from the non-arrival of a countrywoman who had promised to
elope with her, but had probably been too narrowly watched. The Indian
hunter however, having given her some directions as to the proper mode
of joining her own tribe, she became more composed and ultimately
agreed to adopt his advice of proceeding at once to Fort Providence
instead of wandering about the country all summer in search of them at
the imminent hazard of being starved.
On the 7th the wind, shifting to the southward, dispersed the clouds
which had obscured the sky for several days and produced a change of
temperature under which the snow rapidly disappeared. The thermometer
rose to 73°, many flies came forth, mosquitoes showed themselves for
the first time, and one swallow made its appearance. We were the more
gratified with these indications of summer that St. Germain was enabled
to commence the repair of the canoes, and before night had completed
the two which had received the least injury. Augustus killed two deer
today.
On the 10th the dip of the magnetic needle, being observed, showed a
decrease of 22′ 44″ since last autumn. The repairs of the third canoe
were finished this evening.
The snow was now confined to the bases of the hills and our Indian
hunter told us the season was early. The operations of nature however
seemed to us very tardy. We were eager to be gone and dreaded the lapse
of summer before the Indians would allow it had begun.
On the 11th the geese and ducks had left the vicinity of Fort
Enterprise and proceeded to the northward. Some young ravens and
whiskey-johns made their appearance at this time.
On the 12th Winter River was nearly cleared of ice and on the 13th the
men returned, having left Dr. Richardson on the borders of Point Lake.
Dr. Richardson informed me by letter that the snow was deeper in many
parts near his encampment than it had been at any time last winter near
Fort Enterprise, and that the ice on Point Lake had scarcely begun to
decay. Although the voyagers were much fatigued on their arrival, and
had eaten nothing for the last twenty-four hours, they were very
cheerful and expressed a desire to start with the remainder of the
stores next morning. The Dog-Rib woman, who had lingered about the
house since the 6th of June, took alarm at the approach of our men,
thinking perhaps that they were accompanied by Indians, and ran off.
She was now provided with a hatchet, kettle, and fire-steel, and would
probably go at once to Fort Providence in the expectation of meeting
with some of her countrymen before the end of summer.