An Indian Was Also Despatched To Akaitcho With Directions For Him To Come To This Place Directly And Bring Whatever Provision He Had As We Were Desirous Of Proceeding Without Delay To The Copper-Mine River.

In the evening our men brought in the carcasses of seven reindeer which two hunters had shot yesterday and the women commenced drying the meat for our journey.

We also obtained a good supply of fish from our nets today.

A heavy rain on the 23rd prevented the men from working either at the building or going for meat; but on the next day the weather was fine and they renewed their labours. The thermometer that day did not rise higher than 42 degrees and it fell to 31 degrees before midnight. On the morning of the 25th we were surprised by some early symptoms of the approach of winter; the small pools were frozen over and a flock of geese passed to the southward. In the afternoon however a fog came on which afterwards changed into rain and the ice quickly disappeared. We suffered great anxiety all the next day respecting John Hepburn who had gone to hunt before sunrise on the 25th and had been absent ever since. About four hours after his departure the wind changed and a dense fog obscured every mark by which his course to the tents could be directed, and we thought it probable he had been wandering in an opposite direction to our situation as the two hunters who had been sent to look for him returned at sunset without having seen him.

Enter page number Go  Previous Next
Page 298 of 649
Words from 80294 to 80560 of 176017