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The McKenzie Department abandoned,
only be a silent observer, without enjoying the good fortune those whose endeavours have been more successful.
When I was at Fort William two years ago, Mr. Will McGillivray assured me that my name should not be forgota on the list of promotion; but ‘ out of sight is being out of min!
I dare not supplicate the interest of some powerful person il
my behalf, being fearful of giving cause of offence as becomiy troublesome, tho’ I am convinced that some have been advancx whose claims were not superior to my own. No doubtib# had the means to “turn the wheel” which I had not...
Turning to the affairs of the once celebrated Athabasca depar ment, whose trade has been so beneficial to the Concern «il increased by your successful care and management, à pers cannot help lamenting its present ruined state. The precedih year, the collective exertions of the whole department did w exceed 380 packs, including the returns of the year before frn
McKenzie’s River.
I cannot account for it, but, by some fatality or other, the à tives have taken a dislike to the Whites, and the reductions the returns may perhaps be as much attributed to this uni tunate circumstance as it may be to the pretended ruined stt of the country. Still, the cry of ‘ no beaver ” is the only groui on which the Concern have come to the resolution cf reduit very properly the number of posts in Peace River, and injudiciously relinquishing without reserve the whole dep ment of McKenzie’'s River, a place which might yet have be profitable consideration to the Company had a proper plant reform been tried; it only wanted that to make it beneficial
It would however seem as if reforms had no connexion w ever with the economical system lately adopted in all thingsh
the Concern respecting the trade, &c., of the North, so that Al
basca, which once commanded fifteen establishments, will
he pre ake, Dunve, deing t our in Notw acturet ieuten Prevost
Cravi
conclud
> good fortune( ssful.
go, Mr. Willian d not be forgotta eing out of min' ywerful person ie ence as becomiy ave been advancä n. No doubtihg had not...
he present gets Lo hand possess no more than eight, viz : Slave ake, Turtle Creek, Fort Chipewean, Fort Vermillon, Hay River Dunvegan, St. John's, and Pierre au Calumet in Athabasca River being two posts in the Slave Lake, two of Fort Chipewean and our in the Peace River.
Notwithstanding these gloomy appearances squires are manuhctured yearly with as much speed and confidence as Captains ieutenants and Ensigns were in His Excellency Sir George revost's time when I was, two yeaas ago, in Montreal.
Craving your indulgence for the length of this, I beg leave to bonclude with humble deference and respect.
| Athabasca depart > the Concern ail agement, à pers te, ‘The preceliihe epartment did 0 e year before fr
Dear Sir,
Your most grateful and obedient servant,
Waizn. FER». WENTZEL.
y or other, the \ the reductions { ited to this uni ended ruined sl is the only grou lution of reduti e River, anû
the whole depi bht yet have bee!
d a proper plait ke it beneficial
o connexion wlé ted in all things!
orth, so that Al ishments, will é
LETTER No. 7.
Fort Chipewean, May ?8th, 1816,
Dear Sir,
I duly received your friendly favor dated 1815, for which! beg leave to offer my grateful thanks, and entreat your forgiwe
ness that I should, (for want of time) have been less diffuse
this year than I shonld have wished, or a grateful remembrane for your kindness and generosity towards me would very wl
justify. Mr. Stuart, who will have the pleasure of seeing ya will testify how much I feel afflicted on that account. Hopiy however, from a conviction of having had recourse very seldon to such excuses, that you will overlook this, I respectfull request you will still honor me with a continuance of your «
respondence.
Herewith, I have the satisfaction of forwarding one of }f. Keith’s journals (1) containing an account of the unfortunit affair which occurred in the destruction of Fort Nelson:iti correct and I have Mr. Keith's leave to forward it. Next year shall endeavour to send the journal which you were pleased toa me whiie I was at Montreal. I obtained it too late to cor otherwise it would have gone with this
() Mr. Keith’s journal could not be found, but see : his letter 15th January, I
Bcause f
Res] in the the All letter :
Stuart
Atha worth}
success formid.
ding ve compet allon a tendent fit for t pels anc same ti
Main in
Such 1
towards
Respecting the late enterprise of the Hudson’s Bay Company, in the person of Mr. John Clarke as their superintendent, against the Athabasca department, I request leave to reter you to my letter addressed to Mr. James McKenzie as well as to Mr. John Stuart personally.
Athabasca, tho’ unfortunate these many years back, is yet worthy of notice; and never, [ believe, had the Concern better May 28th, 1816 cause for exultation in the prosperity of their affairs than the success which has attended their measures this year against the formidable opposition by which they were assailed the preceding year. Unsuspicious of contention, without an outfit or à
815. for which competent number of hands to defend it, Athabaska is attacked u
reat your forgire een less diffusire!
all on a sudden by upwards 100 men, 10 clerks and a superintendent bringing in 14 loaded canoes full of merchandise, &c.,
fit for the Indian trade, and, proud I am to say, as suddenlvy re-
eful remembrant pels and crushes them for at least upwards à year, and, at the
> would very wl ire Of seeing yo account. Hopix ourse very seldon is, I respeclfil; ance of your tir
same time, increases its exports.
Four hundred packs have been shipped off for Lac La Pluie, while the Hudson’s Bay party have not 5 packs in weight in
urs throughout the whole department. No less than 15 men, |
clerk with a woman and child died of starvation going up Peace iver, and of four establishments they had formed in the fall, not one could weather out the winter; all were obliged to enter into terms with the North-West Compauy to save themselves rom starving to death. The major part of their goods still remain in our stores, and are to continue there until the month of Dctober and December ensuing.
B Such has been the consequence of the infatuated presumption Df Mr. Clarke, that, out of his once numerous crew which he Drought in this department last Fall, only between fifty and ixty remain, the residue, besides those dead, having gone owards Lesser Slave Lake and Fort des Prairies, where they are
arding one of M f the unfortuni rort Nelson: iti dit. Next year ere pleased toi too late to cop
tter 15th January, IS
Theo Hud-
son Bay Company in Athabaska.
scattered in all directions. Only four out of the fourteen canwx he brought in are gone out.
Having nothing more worthy of notice to add, I beg leave t conclude with most respectful sentiments of regard to Mn McKenzie and my little friend, Master Alexander. (1)
Remaining with gratitude and respect,
Dear Sir,
Your grateful and most obedient servant,
Wizp. FErp. WENTZL
(1) Hon. Roderic MoKenzie’s eldest son.
Since think giving Slave L am wril row mo
Respe
0 you L better a] ing state put bett amonnti
packs 01 have not
De Quoi
Departm
servant is, witl
Dpponen!
(1) Mr.I nd had jo aspices.
e fourteen canox
d, I beg leave f regard to Mn LETTER No. 8.
ler. (1)
Lac La Pluie, August 4th, 1818.
ect,
Dear Sir,
lient servant, | Since my arrival at this place, I have hardly had time to
think about any thing, having consitantly been employed in giving out equipments and advances to the Athabaska and Lesser Slave Lake men whose accounts I have closed to-day, so that I am writing this with the utmost haste, being ordered off to-mor row moruing for Athabaska.
Respecting the local concerns of the country, it will be pleasing he trade.
o you to hear that the Company’s affairs appear to wear a much etter appearance than could be expected in the present fermentng state of the country. In Athabasca, the returns have turned put better than last year, the produce of the present year amonnting to 430 odd packs, making an increase of nearly fifty Mpacks over the preceding year. The Hudson’s Bay Company have not even a half pack to boast of altho’ the celebrated Mons. De Quoine (1) was their acting agent in Athabasca. Lac La Pluie Department however lost thirty-two packs, the Hudson’s Bay servant trading that number while Mr. Dean had but forty; is, with thirty pack collected at Green Lake by Mr. W. Henry’s bpponent, forms the amount of the chartered Concern's returns.
(1) Mr. Decoigne, an old North-Wester who had been long in the Athabasca district nd had joined the Hudson Bay Company under Lord Selkirk and Mr, Robertson’s
In Red River, the settlers seem to be taking a deeper roottly ever; their crops of wheat appeared fine, tho’ it was only 1} 12th June when I got 1cre. Since that date, three priests han passed here bound foi at quarter, besides Mr. Colin Roberts Peter Andries (?), &c., with a number of clerks and fourt canoes. We are informed here that the former and latter bound for the Athabasca s0 that there is every likelihood of: strong struggle this ensuing season; but every one here seem to behold this formidable appearance with cool contempt an little care and no apprehensions respecting the probable resul
Mr. John McGillivray retires this year and Mr. John Geo McTavish goes into Athabasca, where he is to assume the lead i place of Mr. John McKenzie. The outfit is however raths scanty for want of hands to take in the goods necessary for th trade. This has been occasioned by a bungling error of }f Rocheblave, (1) the acting agent at Fort William, in consequent of which many sour faces are made, and indeed with just caue at a moment when the opposition seem to be getting down heat ed, à moment which should be seized without loss of timen order to complete what the Company's enemies wished to di themselves. However, every one looks bold and seems nott
(1) The Honorable Pierre de Rocheblave cntered early in the North-West fur tnk in which he made a considerable fortune. In 1801, he was a partner in the new c cern formed under the auspices of Sir Alexander MacKenzie, then commonly call the X. Y,. Company, and superintended its interests in the Athabaska region. H became one of the most influential members of the North-West Company after the er alition of 1804 and was, in 1818, at Fort William, where he had been sent the ya before to procure the arrest of Lord Selkirk for his illegal seizure of the Compuy! property and his forcible entrance into their fort.
After leaving the North-West, Mr. de Rocheblave devoted much of his time t public affairs. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly for the City of Montra, and afterwarde appointed to the Legislative and Executive Councils of Lower Can He also held the position of Commissioner for the civil erection of parishes.
Mr. de Rocheblave married Miss Elmire Bouthiller and left two daughters : w still living in Montreal ; the other, married to a British officer, Captain Willougbby
dread
may
Bei
deeper rootthy it was only tk hree priests han Colin Robertson, rks and fourtey ner and latter a ; likelihood of:
‘y one here seem ol contempt ai Le probable resul Mr. John Georg assume the lead ir however ratha necessary for ll ling error of M LM, ini consequent:
read any advantage to their opponents, which I heartily wish may turn out CPP
APLOOOLLLCLEELEELLELELELLELELEEL ELLE EEE RS 000000000000.
Being with the highest sentiments of esteem and gratitude, Dear Sir, Your most grateful servant,
Wicp. FERD. WENTZEL.
he Honorable Roderic McKenzie, Terrebonne,
Lower Canada.
:d with just caus etting down heat ut loss of timen ies wished to à and seems not ti
he North-West fur tri partner in the new cu , then commonly calki Athabaska region. Bt st Company after the er à had been sent the ya izure of the Comparr
ed much of his time l or the City of Montral buncils of Lower Cani bn of parishes.
eft two daughters : 0 , Captain Willougbby.
Struggles with the Hudson
Bay pany.
Com-
LETTER No. 1.
Athabasca Department,
Great Slave Lake, April 5, 1819
Dear Sir,
A person unacquainted with the wilds of this country woul take little pleasure in perusing at any time the dry details ofit concerns, but to you, Sir, who have ever been its patron ani shared in an eminent degree the toils and dangers attendant m a long and successful residence in Athabasca, a relation of tk: occurrences now transpiring in this momentous period canni be unacceptable. TI therefore should deem it the height of im. pudence in me to make an apology for offering the followix statement of events of which I was an eye witness.
Towards the latter end of September, last Fall, Messrs. Col Robertson, John Clarke, MacAulay, Halcro, attended by a certi number of other clerks, interpreters, &c., with nineteen canox containing each five men and fifteen pieces, made their appear ance at Fort Chipewean and took up their former quartersi one of the islands in the name of the Hudson’'s Bay Companj. A great mob of the Chipeweans being at that time in the vicinit some families ranged themselves under the banners of these ner comers. However, the defection was nnt very serious. Or
people were late in coming in from Lac La Pluie ; they did nl
arrive until the beginning of October; Mr. Clarke had alrealt been off for Peace River wtth ten canoes well appointed.
The up M!
our pe the fal Slave Mr. C Messrs men il massa( and ou and de has be:
tion he
In th
The settlement and distribution of the outfits necessarily took up much time, and, the season being considerably advanced, our people were stopped by the ice; those of the Peace River,below the falls, and the MacKenzie River brigade, at Moose Deer Island, Slave Lake. Before I left Fort Chipewean, on the 11th of October, Mr. Colin Robertson was brought to the fort, a prisoner, by Messrs. Samuel Black and Simon McGillivray. Several of our men informed that he had threatened to excite the Natives to massacre the North-West Company’s servants at Fort Chipewean, and our men refused to do their duty unless he was apprehended and detaiued in safe custody. This occasioned his arrest and he has been kept confined ever since, but treated with every attention he could expect in such a situation.
partment,
e, April 5, 1812
ais country wouli e dry details ofis ‘en its patron an gers attendant 01 a relation of ll ous period canni the height of in.
ing the followix ness.
In the month of December, we had, tho’ noi directly, news from the Peace River importing that Mr. John Clarke, in his progress up that way, had partially seized Mr. William Mclntosh, and had attempted to break open the North-West Company's stores at Fort Vermillon for a supply of provisions, but had been repulsed by the steady and resolute behaviour of Malataire, one of the interpreters of the Concern. Since that, we have had
all, Messrs. Co no other intelligence from that quarter.
ended by a certal h nineteen canoë ade their appt brmer quarters i ’s Bay Comp; me in the vicinit, nners of these ner ery serious. Ût uie; they did ni arke had alreaïr appointed.
With respect to this quarter, we have been opposed all winter by Mr. MacAulay and nineteen men besides a Canadian clerk, but they have continued in statu quo, not having even conversed with an Indian, but subsisted by the produce of their nets, not, however, without suffering incredible privations. Thus it may be said that that opposition (at least so far as our information goes) have as yet no solid footing in Athabasca.
McKenzie’s River Department having been again assumed by the Concern the preceding year, it produced ninety packs of valuable peltries, and, if the outfit of the present year had not
been stopped in the ice, a considerable increase would have
Salarics,
been the consequence. With regard to the general appearancey the returns of Athabasca this year, nothing certain can be sa tho’ it is presumed that no considerable diminution will 4, place on account of the McKenzie’s river returns.
The prices of the men’s wages have increased considerahy: a middle man gets now a thousand livres, Halifax Currenr, and a Bout, fourteen hundred ; interpreters, from sixteen to br thousand ; clerks, from one hundred and fifty to two hundw pounds same currency. Some of the Hudson’s Bay Company, clerks have three hundred vounds sterling, others less, ani] believe few have more except those who are styled “(4 vernors,” these have five hundred
I beg leave to conclude with deference and respect,
Dear Sir, Your ever grateful servant,
Wizo. FER». WENTzEL
[ha receipt beg to D you obbed Hudson he bud pn the t Ds also 1]
d anol Drry on jocose ained n:
[hope sduen dudson's elieve :
rsons, casion etermin re made èive wh:
day evad
ral appearance( ‘tain can be sail lution will tak TA
ed considerabiy Aalifax currency »m sixteen to twy to two hundr 8 Bay Company others less, ani!
are styled ‘Gr
respect,
ful servant,
FEnD. VVENTZEL.
LETTER No. 10.
Great Slave Lake,
Mountain !. land, May 23th, 1820.
Dear Sir,
beg to offer my grateful thanks. I had the pleasure of writing p you last year, but the Athabasca light canoe having been obbed at Grand Rapid by a set of desperadoes in the pay of the dudson's Bay Company, my letters to Canada were seized with he budget of papers going out and, Ï suppose, are now lying bn the table of some magistrate or sheriff’s office. This, no doubt, Bs also the fate of a letter I addressed to Captain John McKenzie d another I had written to Master Alexander. I feel a little orry on account of the two latter because they were written in jocose style and perhaps rather too free, however they conained nothing of treason ! or obscenity.
[hope the system of such lawless deeds will soon meet with ts due merit, altho’ no fears on that account seem to trouble the dudson's Bay Gentry, since it is currently reported, and 1 elieve as currently credited, that a guard is again to seize ersons, &c., at the same place this year, which will perhaps asion bloodshed again, for I understand our gentlemen are etermined to resist such injustifiable aggressions if any attempts re made to follow up this plan in future. Indeed, I cannot conive what is the benefit of laws to society when-daring persons day evade or act in defiance of them.
[have the honor of acknowledging with much respect the The Grand = ‘ Rapi receipt of your very obliging favor of the 1st June, for which I rage.
The Act of Parliament extending the jurisdiction of {y Canada Courts of Justice to the trial of offences committejÿ the wild parts ought also, I think, to have suggested somethiy to protect individuals residing in the country from violence xl oppression. A poor man might live and die a slave befork could find means to convey himself to Canada to havwli wrongs redressed. How, also, are we to have satisfatiy afforded to us if any of our people are murdered by the Native! We have no legislature residing in the country to have recon to; but perhaps 1 may be told that my narrow understand; too shallow to comprehend the extent of the Legislatun: meaning in the enaction of laws for the Indian territories; th may be, and probably is s0, tho’ I am still convinced that som may obtain redress whilst, on the other hand, hundreds mayh
oppressed thereby, an instance of which we have in the là
trials in Upper Canada.
No doubt some will say, “why do we leave our count} expose ourselves to such vexations” ? that is likewise true li I believe that if commerce was confined solely to a single vince, or even a kingdom, what would the revenue for the sy port of Government then be? I think loaves and fishes wo then be as little sought after as a beggar’s wallet is now.
Perhaps I am too free; therefore humbly request you vi please pardon the liberty I have taken, and accept the follow
as an imperf2ct though true situation of affairs in this count
which I might have stated more correctly at length, ifm orders were not in opposition to it, on account of the apprel sions entertained by our people that our letters may again il
into the hands of our rivals, and afford them much useful infor
ation, if not likewise handles for fresh prosecutions and mi expense.
This consideration requires that I should be more than usti reserved on the present situation of both companies’ affairsi
proba much rain ( 00 mi The W nfluer Emolu:
How Every | The wi and, b:
parties whiche DOssess Affairs | may be Back th ÿ may
Braders
BonsLitu jon of he cor pelanc] ations This ] Disher :
ludson’ ear, Ii den, fel Cicredib ned for D desire jay to t dem, an
robable issue of returns this year. In fact the Natives are so much disorganized in Athabasca, that if they are in the same rain of living in other parts of the North-West, it will not be 00 much to say that the fur trade is ruined for some years to come. The Whites at present possess but a faint resemblance of that nfluence which they formerly turned so well to their own Emolument and thereby also to the benefit of their country. How long this contest is yet to continue a subject of regret to very good man is still in the bosom of time, no one knows.
urisdiction of {y nces committel ÿ ggested somelhix from violence a slave before k anada to haveli have satisfactin red by the Native!
ry to have recou , The weight of purses may serve to keep alive expenses and loss,
and, by that means, lengthen the contest, but, eventually, both parties may find themselves involved in the same ruin, for?
w understanding}
f the Legislatuni
an territories; thi : re 0 , à ares s ,
snvinced that sm hichever side preponderates, must remain a long while in
d, hundreds mayh
ve have in the ll
possession of the country before they can expect to retreive their
airs in a sufficient manner to afford them profit, and then, it may be yet a matter of doubt if it will be practicable to bring Back the Natives to assume their former habits and industry,
2ave our Count || t may perhaps turn out that many of the most respectable
Sraders now in the countrv will be obliged, from age, broken bonstitutions and other infirmities, to retire before the termina-
s likewise true, li ely to a single pr evenue for the sy es and fishes woil allet is now.
[y request you fl accept the follonit airs in this countràs ly at length, it ant of the appreke ters may again il much useful infor secutions and m
ion of the existing troubles, or remain to leave their bones in
he country where golden dreams attracted them, with the delancholy reflection of having lost their all amongst savage
ations and in savage parts. Sad consolation !!!
This has been the fate of the unfortunate Mr. Benjamin Fro- Death'of Disher who had been seized and detained a prisoner by the Frobisher. ludson’s Bay Company’s servants at Jack River the preceding
ear, In September last he made his escape with two of his
jen, fellow prisoners, and, after undergoing and surmounting
credible privations and difticulties, he found himself so weak-
ded for want of subsistance, that he was obliged, in Lac Bourbon,
) desire his companions in sufferings to make the best of their
jay to the nearest establishment, if their strength would allow
dem, and procure him assistance.
be more than usuil bmpanies” affairs
The two men reluctantly left him at Pointe-au-Lièvre, in, forementioned lake, and had the good fortune to reach One (! the North-West Company's establishments at a place aly Moose Lake, in the r‘cinity of Cumberland House and in the care of Mr. George Nelson who, on hearing of the situaiy of Mr. Frobisher, immediately sent some of his men with m visions, dogs, &c., &c., to convey him to the Fort. Sad howerw to relate, his generous endeavours were exerted too late, forkÿ
men found only the remains of poor Mr. Frobisher in the saw
place where he had been left, but in a situation sufficientlyü tressing to draw a tear from the eyes even of his enemies, {y half his body was burned or rather consumed by the fire in tk encampment.
The two men interred him on the spot which the fire hàl
thawed and returned to the fort with the melancholy accom They found (and brought to Mr. Nelson) in the pocket of ik deceased a kind of Journal which had been kept in pencilu
scraps of paper by this unfortunate gentleman and containing: narrative of his sufferings from the time of his arrest wi within a short period of his death. This document is nowi the hands of Mr. William Connolly (1) who manages the Con pany’s concerns at Cumberland House.
() Mr. William Connelly, on joining the North-West Company, in 1802, was m to the Athabasca District where he married, à a façon du pays, a young Cree gi whom he had several children. After having made a handsome fortune in the semis of the North-West and Hudson Bay Companies, he returned to Lower Canad,i 1831, taking own with him his Indian wife and children whom he settled ati Eustache.
Mr. Connelly, soon after his return, married, at l’Assomption, a Miss Woolrict,} whom he also had children. He then sent back his ‘“ Squaw ?” to the North-Westul had her properly taken care of in the Convent of St. Boniface where she died.
The validity of these two marriages was, soon after the death of Mrs. Connelly- Miss Woolrich—tested in the Courts of law at the instance of one of Mr. Comneljl sons by his Indian wife, who brought in an action against his father’s estate for th recovery of the alleged rights of his mother consequent upon her marriage which, claimed, was regular, having been contracted à la façon des pays d’en haut.
This cause célèbre is fully reported in the 1st volume of La Revue Légale, publi by Messrs. Mathieu & Germain, of Sorel.
Mes:
infornr on bo:
John engagés sent to ance t Justice Bay C engagés
This, warran Canada or rath loss in several are said way ou also. I will ag determi
Respe quarter been de escaped
Mall were
River, ] found ne he pooi Some of umberl PasOn.
e-au-Lièvre, intl Messrs. A. Shaw and George MacTavish, .we have been to reach one informed, obtained and took their passage for England last Fall t a place cal on board of one of the Hudson’s Bay Company's ships. Mr. Touse and une John Duncan Campbell, with a number of other prisoners,
g of the situation pages of the North-West Company, are reported to have been s men with pr sent to Albany or Moose Factory as a prelude to their conveyrt. Sad howe Rance to Canada, in order to bring them before the Courts of
d too late, fort Justice of these provinces, to answer the charges the Hudson'’s sher in the sam Bay Company have against them. Amongst'the number of the on sufficiently di engagés is old Joseph Paul, the famous pugilist.
“his enemies, fr This, Sir, is one item of the oppression emanating from bench
by the fire in tk warrants sent to this country by the Attorney-General of Lower Canada, and obtained through the influence of a titled, envious, hich the fire kr rather covetous individual. Thus confusion keeps pace with elancholy accoui loss in the country. We are likewise led into a belief that he pocket of te several other Gentlemen and engagés, against whom warrants n kept in pencilu are said to have been issued, are to be seized this spring, on their and containing ay out by the Hudson’s Bay Company, and perhaps the packs of his arrest ui also. It is this circumstance which makes me fear that blood “ment is nowi will again be spilled, for our people go out armed and fully manages the Co determined to defend themselves against such lawless aggressions. Respecting the Colony in Red River, accounts from that Famine in | quarter mention that all their crops of the preceding season had DE tte) been destroyed by grasshoppers, a kind of locust. Nothing me fortune in the serit escaped the voracity of these insects; wheat, barley, potatoes, bd to Lower Canad, ii . : :
whom he settied {ALL Were destroyed, and fire having overrun the plains in Red | River, buffaloes had become so scarce that none were to be Es. cle ound nearer than at the upper part of Pembina River, so that
where she died. he poor colonists were reduced to great distress and want: bath of Mrs. Connllj-
Of one of Mr. Come 0€ of them have been running throughout the country up to s father’s estate for umberland and Lac La Pluie to obtain seed for the ensuing h her marriage which} asON.
paye d’en haut.
Revue Légale, publié 29
Sir John Franklin's expedition.
Such is the information given by our gentlemen of the Ry River concerning this land of milk and honey! Forty souls, pri cipally Germans, have arrived at the Bay for settlement : ihÿ number will only increase the number of victims sacrifice] y the sinister views of a noble impostor. Surely, Governme might institute an enquiry into the truth of all these cr. cumstances, [ mean the possibility of establishing and Sup porting a settlement in that country, as well as to ascertin whether the ground is fit for cultivation, and likely to vie} subsistance to the number of poor families attracted thither }y the plausible and fanciful insinuations of the Earl of Selkirk ani of his agents. Certainly, the Legislature could not act à mor generous part in support of humanity than rescue so many po people from untimely death and sufferings scarcely to ke believed.
These Colonists imported with them the measles and chincough which have been so fatal among the Na'ives, that one fifth ç the population of the country is said to have been destroyed ll the way from Lac La Pluie to Athabasca, so that it would seem as if Governor Semple, as he was styled, from a presage of ht might happen, had prophesied this melancholy accident, when he wrote to Mr. Alexander MacDo:ell at Qu’appelle, in {li that ‘he possessed means to make his power felt, the shockof which should reach from Montreal to Athabasca.” Such is now the state of a country which once seemed to have attracted the envy even of sovereigns.
It is however with sincere pleasure I turn from this disagre: ble subject to one of a more pleasing and interesting nature, n doubt more interesting on account of its novelty, and the noix a scene s0 new in these paris occasions amongst all classes di peopl®, tho’ the intent and purpose must conceal some mysterr
which may be developed hereafter.
On ped b Chipe MeGil leave ing th subjoi the Rc March siderec will su enterpi to settl the exp lected t the mo:
The :
ave tw ieuten ence to its way will be « Red Kn Mountai with ani Duo rein-d oaded n What Df this ex dy the e:
edious s ion in w De hande!
On the 26th of March, the Commander of an expedition equipped by His Majesty's Government in England arrived at Fort
‘men Of the Re orty souls, pri settlement ; th ims sacrificed {y
Chipewean and delivered à general circular from Mr. Simon McGillivray, a copy of which I herewith enclose and therefore,beg ly, Governma Jeave to refer to it for the object and other particulars respectf all these cr. ing the enterprise. To this letter [ have taken the liberty of subjoining the copy of another from F. Franklin (Lieutenant of the Royal Navy and Commander of the expedition), dated 3rd
March, from Fort Chipewyan. Both these papers may be con-
ishing and su Il as to ascertan | likely to yieli racted thither x rl of Selkirk an not act à mor ue SO Many poor
sidered as public documents on this interesting subject. As they will sufficiently explain the nature and views of this hazardous enterprise, 1 have only to mention that I have been appointed to settle the Indians required for leaders, guides and hunters to the expedition, in which [ have so far succeeded as to have collected the choicest hunters of the Red Knive Tribe, as well as the most powerful leaders and knowing men amongst them. The route to be taken is yet undetermined, as the Indians have two in view and wait to know which will be accepted by
scarcely to be
s and chincough, that one fifth oi een destroyed al ieutenant Franklin. I think, however, he will give the preference to that which takes a branch of the Martin Lake River in its way to the Coppermine River. The only seeming difficulty
at it would seem
à presage of wlut
accident, when appelle, in 86 felt, the shock Red Knife River which falls into Slave Lake, in the vicinity of Mountain Island, on account of its being abundantly stocked with animals, whereas they say the other way is notso plentiful
will be on the part of the Natives who wish to proceed by the
a” Suchisnow ave attracted the rein-deer, but vet it is the most practicable for moderately oaded north canoes.
om this disagre bsting nature, D , and the noi rst all classes dl 1 some myslerf
Whatever intelligence I may hereafter obtain of the progress f this expedition, I shall take the liberty of transmitting to you dy the earliest opportunity, therefore shall conclude this long edious scrawl with a hope that you will forgive my presumpion in wishing to give an account. of circumstances which will e handed to you by abler pens and more official accuracy.
With sentiments of humble respect to Mrs. McKenzie ay hearty wishes for the health and welfare of your worthy cerns, I have the honor to remain with grateful considerati and respect,
Dear Sir,
Your ever obliged and most thankful servant,
Wie. FERD. WENTZEL
To the Hon. Roderic McKenzie, Seigneur of Terrebonne,
Lower Canada.
