Of the former he had seen no traces but he had followed the tracks
of Mr. Back's party for a considerable distance until the hardness of the
ground rendered them imperceptible. Junius was well equipped with
ammunition, blankets, knives, a kettle, and other necessaries; and it was
the opinion of Augustus that when he found he could not rejoin the party
he would endeavour to gain the woods on the west end of Point Lake and
follow the river until he fell in with the Esquimaux who frequent its
mouth. The Indians too with whom we have since conversed upon this
subject are confident that he would be able to subsist himself during the
winter. Credit on his hunting excursion today found a cap which our
people recognised to belong to one of the hunters who had left us in the
spring. This circumstance produced the conviction of our being on the
banks of the Copper-Mine River which all the assertions of the officers
had hitherto failed in effecting with some of the party, and it had the
happy consequence of reviving their spirits considerably. We consumed the
last of our deer's meat this evening at supper.
Next morning the men went out in search of dry willows and collected
eight large fagots with which they formed a more buoyant raft than the
former but, the wind being still adverse and strong, they delayed
attempting to cross until a more favourable opportunity. Pleased however
with the appearance of this raft they collected some tripe de roche and
made a cheerful supper. Dr. Richardson was gaining strength but his leg
was much swelled and very painful. An observation for latitude placed the
encampment in 65 degrees 00 minutes 00 seconds North, the longitude being
112 degrees 20 minutes 00 seconds West, deduced from the last
observation.
On the morning of the 1st of October the wind was strong and the weather
as unfavourable as before for crossing on the raft. We were rejoiced to
see Mr. Back and his party in the afternoon. They had traced the lake
about fifteen miles farther than we did and found it undoubtedly
connected, as we had supposed, with the lake we fell in with on the 22nd
of September and, dreading as we had done, the idea of coasting its
barren shores, they returned to make an attempt at crossing here. St.
Germain now proposed to make a canoe of the fragments of painted canvas
in which we wrapped our bedding. This scheme appearing practicable, a
party was sent to our encampment of the 24th and 25th last to collect
pitch amongst the small pines that grew there to pay over the seams of
the canoe.
In the afternoon we had a heavy fall of snow which continued all night. A
small quantity of tripe de roche was gathered and Credit, who had been
hunting, brought in the antlers and back bone of a deer which had been
killed in the summer.
