At two this morning the hunters returned with two small deer and a brown
bear.
Augustus and Junius arrived at the same time, having traced the
river twelve miles farther up without discovering any vestige of
inhabitants. We had now an opportunity of gratifying our curiosity
respecting the bear so much dreaded by the Indians, and of whose strength
and ferocity we had heard such terrible accounts. It proved to be a lean
male of a yellowish brown colour and not longer than a common black bear.
It made a feeble attempt to defend itself and was easily despatched. The
flesh was brought to the tent but, our fastidious voyagers supposing,
from its leanness, that the animal had been sickly, declined eating it;
the officers however being less scrupulous boiled the paws and found them
excellent.
We embarked at ten A.M. and, proceeding down the river, took on board
another deer that had been killed by Credit that evening. We then ran
along the eastern shore of Arctic Sound, distinguished by the name of
Banks' Peninsula in honour of the late Right Honourable Sir Joseph Banks,
President of the Royal Society and, rounding Point Wollaston at its
eastern extremity, opened another extensive sheet of water, and the
remainder of the afternoon was spent in endeavouring to ascertain from
the tops of the hills whether it was another bay or merely a passage
enclosed by a chain of islands. Appearances rather favouring the latter
opinion we determined on proceeding through it to the southward.
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