The Forks, 13th February, 1875.
My Dear Edward, —
The night before we left the camp (No. 15) at head of N. Branch of N. Fork of N. Fraser River, we had a heavy snowstorm, and consequently had no track to return on. This was expected, as so far it has always been the case. I won’t trouble you with a history of each day’s journey over familiar ground, except to say that the portages around the canons gave us as much trouble and hard work as the up trip. We got hero yesterday having done the 63 miles in 4 days. Capital time considering the road we had. It would have been amusing if not so serious, to see the number of times a sled had to be turned up to get the slush off its bottom in each mile. However, we arrived safely and are glad to be here. This morning Jarvis sent Alec, Johnny, and Ah Kho, ahead up S. Branch to make a trail, as ’tis the only way we can work at all. They took a hand sled as the snow is too deep to take dogs without a track. Tsayass and Te Jon were sent to Fort George with seven dogs and one sled. They are to got their provisions at my cache and seem to be delighted at the chance of going away. Before starting they said good bye to their Indian friends and said that was the last they would ever see of them. This was comforting to them to say the least of it. We sent Sam out by them, also Chun and Tyepaw, a Fort George dog, which I drove as long as he could go, and these with Tsayass' train made up the seven. We have been going over our supplies, and by a free use of the Multiplication Table, and some addition thrown in, we find that we still have one month's grub on hand. Just the same as we had two weeks ago, some sense in this kind of grub which gets larger every day. We have invented a scale by which we can weigh our stuff. 25 rifle cartridges make a pound is Alec’s belief, so on that we work, with a bag of cartridges on one end of a stick and some grub on the other, we lay out each day’s grub for each man, and the beauty of the arrangement is, that we can shorten the rations by taking out a few cartridges while it appears as if we were giving good weight. But it is cheating our own stomachs after all, and I would like one square meal occasionally.
Camp (17) 16th February, 1875.
My Dear Edward, —
Early on the 14th we left camp, and wont up the South Branch. Imagine our disgust when 3 miles up we found Alec making a portage around a “ fall as high as a tree, ” we camped and the whole party went at it in the afternoon. The next day Alec left early to finish portage and go on ahead with the trail, while we took over half loads, dropped them at the end and came back to camp. This was the worst portage yet, very full of holes and hills and fallen trees, and dogs take advantage of these places, when they get stuck going up hill, and the driver takes the rope ahead to haul on, the brutes turn about and go; then after pulling and working your hardest you got them to the top, away they go down the other side, and no power on earth can stop them till they got to the bottom, whore when you reach it you will probably see sled and dogs piled in a confused heap and well used up, and it takes a good humoured man to get them started again without some swearing and a good deal of whip. I regret to say that I haven't a temper of that kind. The worst place in the trail was where it takes to the river again. Alec made that part of it, and I think he must have let his sled go. My dogs took a run when they got near the top and laughed when I Called “ Ulwa" ! I held on to the rope as long as I could and then go when dogs and sled disappeared. When I got to the edge a pretty sight met my view, about half way down stood a tree, on one side of this was the sled and on the other the dogs in a sweet state. Evidently they had been unable to got out of the way of the sled and tried a side trail with the above result; I cut the tree, and told them to go to below and they won't, the sled first and the dogs yelling and struggling after, lastly your humble servant who had some broken harness to mend and some bruised dogs to attend to when he got down. We went back to camp after the one trip and found Sam and Chun who had evidently broken away from their keepers.
This morning Jarvis shot them both after asking me to do so. I couldn't shoot Sam at any rate. He worked himself nearly to death for us, and it is too hard. But we haven't very many salmon for them now and can’t afford it. This was a very warm day with snow and drizzling rain, we got over the portage all right and camped in Alec’s camp of yesterday, 14 miles from the Forks; I hope we have got clear of those canons, a few more would kill our dogs completely, and our own condition wouldn't be improved by them. For my own part I can only say that on this trip I have worked harder than ever before; physically I mean, otherwise there is little to do.
We are travelling through an unknown country without a guide and take things as they come. Good night.
CHAS.
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