And Mr. Grant of the North-West Company
and Mr. Colin Robertson of the Hudson's Bay Company, all of whom kindly
gave very satisfactory answers to a series of questions which we had
drawn up for the occasion and promised all the aid in their power.
PREPARATIONS FOR OUR JOURNEY TO THE NORTHWARD.
Furnished with the information thus obtained we proceeded to make some
arrangements respecting the obtaining of men and the stores we should
require for their equipment as well as for presents to the Indians; and
on the following day a requisition was made on the Companies for eight
men each and whatever useful stores they could supply. We learned with
regret that, in consequence of the recent lavish expenditure of their
goods in support of the opposition, their supply to us would of necessity
be very limited. The men too were backward in offering their services,
especially those of the Hudson's Bay Company who demanded a much higher
rate of wages than I considered it proper to grant.
June 3.
Mr. Smith, a partner of the North-West Company, arrived from the Great
Slave Lake bearing the welcome news that the principal chief of the
Copper Indians had received the communication of our arrival with joy and
given all the intelligence he possessed respecting the route to the
sea-coast by the Copper-Mine River; and that he and a party of his men,
at the instance of Mr. Wentzel, a clerk of the North-West Company whom
they wished might go along with them, had engaged to accompany the
Expedition as guides and hunters. They were to wait our arrival at Fort
Providence on the north side of the Slave Lake. Their information
coincided with that given by Beaulieu. They had no doubt of our being
able to obtain the means of subsistence in travelling to the coast. This
agreeable intelligence had a happy effect upon the Canadian voyagers,
many of their fears being removed: several of them seemed now disposed to
volunteer; and indeed on the same evening two men from the North-West
Company offered themselves and were accepted.
June 5.
This day Mr. Back and I went over to Fort Wedderburne to see Mr.
Robertson respecting his quota of men. We learned from him that,
notwithstanding his endeavours to persuade them, his most experienced
voyagers still declined engaging without very exorbitant wages. After
some hesitation however six men engaged with us who were represented to
be active and steady; and I also got Mr. Robertson's permission for St.
Germain, an interpreter belonging to this Company, to accompany us from
Slave Lake if he should choose. The bowmen and steersmen were to receive
one thousand six hundred livres Halifax per annum, and the middle men one
thousand two hundred, exclusive of their necessary equipments; and they
stipulated that their wages should be continued until their arrival in
Montreal or their rejoining the service of their present employers.
I delivered to Mr. Robertson an official request that the stores we had
left at York Factory and the Rock Depot with some other supplies might be
forwarded to Slave Lake by the first brigade of canoes which should come
in. He also took charge of my letters addressed to the Admiralty. Five
men were afterwards engaged from the North-West Company for the same
wages and under the same stipulations as the others, besides an
interpreter for the Copper Indians; but this man required three thousand
livres Halifax currency which we were obliged to give him as his services
were indispensable.
The extreme scarcity of provision at the posts rendered it necessary to
despatch all our men to the Mammawee Lake where they might procure their
own subsistence by fishing. The women and children resident at the fort
were also sent away for the same purpose; and no other families were
permitted to remain at the houses after the departure of the canoes than
those belonging to the men who were required to carry on the daily duty.
The large party of officers and men which had assembled here from the
different posts in the department was again quickly dispersed. The first
brigade of canoes laden with furs was despatched to the depot on May 30th
and the others followed in two or three days afterwards. Mr. Stuart, the
senior partner of the North-West Company, quitted us for the same
destination on June 4th; Mr. Robertson for his depot on the next day; and
on the 9th we parted with our friend Mr. Keith, to whose unremitting
kindness we felt much indebted. I entrusted to his care a box containing
some drawings by Mr. Back, the map of our route from Cumberland House,
and the skin of a black beaver (presented to the Expedition by Mr. Smith)
with my official letters addressed to the Under-Secretary of State. I
wrote by each of these gentlemen to inform Dr. Richardson and Mr. Hood of
the scarcity of stores at these posts and to request them to procure all
they possibly could on their route. Mr. Smith was left in charge of this
post during the summer; this gentleman soon evinced his desire to further
our progress by directing a new canoe to be built for our use which was
commenced immediately.
June 21.
This day an opportunity offered of sending letters to the Great Slave
Lake and I profited by it to request Mr. Wentzel would accompany the
Expedition agreeably to the desire of the Copper Indians, communicating
to him that I had received permission for him to do so from the partners
of the North-West Company. Should he be disposed to comply with my
invitation I desired that he would go over to Fort Providence and remain
near the Indians whom he had engaged for our service.
