The old man, contrary to the Indian
practice, asked each of our names and, in reply to a similar question on
our part, said his name was Terregannoeuck, or the White Fox, and that
his tribe denominated themselves Naggeooktormoeoot, or Deer-Horn
Esquimaux. They usually frequent the Bloody Fall during this and the
following moons for the purpose of salting salmon, and then retire to a
river which flows into the sea a short way to the westward (since
denominated Richardson's River) and pass the winter in snow-houses.
After this conversation Terregannoeuck proposed going down to his
baggage, and we then perceived he was too infirm to walk without the
assistance of sticks. Augustus therefore offered him his arm which he
readily accepted and, on reaching his store, he distributed pieces of
dried meat to each person which, though highly tainted, were immediately
eaten, this being a universal token among the Indians of peaceable
intention.
We then informed him of our desire to procure as much meat as we possibly
could and he told us that he had a large quantity concealed in the
neighbourhood which he would cause to be carried to us when his people
returned.
I now communicated to him that we were accompanied by some Copper Indians
who were very desirous to make peace with his nation, and that they had
requested me to prevail upon the Esquimaux to receive them in a friendly
manner, to which he replied he should rejoice to see an end put to the
hostility that existed between the nations and therefore would most
gladly welcome our companions. Having despatched Adam to inform Akaitcho
of this circumstance we left Terregannoeuck, in the hope that his party
would rejoin him but, as we had doubts whether the young men would
venture upon coming to our tents on the old man's bare representation, we
sent Augustus and Junius back in the evening to remain with him until
they came, that they might fully detail our intentions.
The countenance of Terregannoeuck was oval with a sufficiently prominent
nose and had nothing very different from a European face, except in the
smallness of his eyes and perhaps in the narrowness of his forehead. His
complexion was very fresh and red and he had a longer beard than I had
seen on any of the aboriginal inhabitants of America. It was between two
and three inches long and perfectly white. His face was not tattooed. His
dress consisted of a shirt, or jacket with a hood, wide breeches reaching
only to the knee, and tight leggings sewed to the shoes, all of deer
skins. The soles of the shoes were made of seal-skin and stuffed with
feathers instead of socks. He was bent with age but appeared to be about
five feet ten inches high.
