"Made 6 meals and 17 miles to-day, rowing 7, sailing 10.
"July 18. - Left Stony Island at 6.55; could not get the crew started
sooner; sailing with a light breeze which soon died down and left
us on a sea of glass. I never before realised how disgusting a calm
could be.
"Camped at 9.15 on one of the countless, unnamed, uncharted islands
of the lake. It is very beautiful in colour, red granite, spotted
with orange and black lichen on its face, and carpeted with caribou
moss and species of cetraria, great patches of tripe-de-roche, beds
of saxifrage, long trailers, and masses of bearberry, empetrum,
ground cedar, juniper, cryptograma, and many others; while the
trees, willow, birch, and spruce are full of character and drawing.
Sky and lake are in colour worthy of these rich details, the bird
life is well represented and beautiful; there is beauty everywhere,
and 'only man is vile.'
"I am more and more disgusted with my Indian crew; the leader in
mischief seems to be young Beaulieu. Yesterday he fomented a mutiny
because I did not give them 'beans,' though I had given them far
more than promised, and beans were never mentioned. Still, he had
discovered a bag of them among my next month's stores, and that
started him.
"To-day, when sick of seeing them dawdling two hours over a meal
when there are 6 meals a day, I gave the order to start. Beaulieu
demanded insolently: 'Oh! who's boss?' My patience was worn out.
I said: 'I am, and I'll show you right now,' and proceeded to do
so, meaning to let him have my fist with all the steam I could get
back of it. But he did not wait. At a safe distance he turned and
in a totally different manner said: 'I only want to know; I thought
maybe the old man (the guide). I'll do it, all ri, all ri,' and he
smiled and smiled.
"Oh! why did I not heed Pike's warning to shun all Beaulieus; they
rarely fail to breed trouble. If I had realised all this last night
before coming to the open lake I would have taken the whole outfit
back to Resolution and got rid of the crowd. We could do better
with another canoe and two men, and at least make better time than
this (17 miles a day).
"Yesterday the Indian boys borrowed my canoe, my line, and in my
time, at my expense, caught a big fish, but sullenly disregarded
the suggestion that, I should have a piece of it.
"Each of them carries a Winchester and blazes at every living
thing that appears. They have volleyed all day at every creature
big enough to afford a mouthful - Ducks, Gulls, Loons, Fish, Owls,
Terns, etc.
