they frequently make great flaughter among them; and upon thefe occafions they have no regard to futurity, or providing for an unfuc cessful day. Whether they happen to be pining under the grasp of pinching neceffity, or enjoying themfelves in all the happiness of health and plenty, they kill all they can, having an incontrovertible maxim among them, which is, "the more they kill, the more they have to kill:" and this opinion, though diametrically oppofite to reafon or common fenfe, is as pertinaciously held by them, as his tenets are by the moft bigotted enthufiaft. Indeed, they too frequently find it to their coft to be grounded on folly, as they fometimes suffer extreme hunger through it; nay, many have been ftarved to death, and others have been reduced to the fad neceffity of devouring their own offspring.

As a great part of the Factory provifions confifts of geefe killed by the Indians, the English fupply them with powder and fhot for this purpofe, allowing them the value of a beaver skin for every ten geese they kill; accordingly, after the Indian has got this fupply, he fets off from his tent early in the morning into the marshes, where he fets himself down, with a degree of patience difficult to be imitated, and being fheltered by a few willows, waits for the geefe. They shoot them flying, and are so very dexterous at this fport, that a good hunter will kill, in times of plenty, fifty or fixty in a day. Few Europeans are able to endure cold, fatigue, hunger, or adverfity in any fhape, with an equal degree of magnanimity and compofure to that which is familiar to the natives of this country. After being out a whole day on a hunt, exposed to the bleakest winds and most penetrating cold, and that without the east thing to fatisfy the calls of nature, an Indian comes home, warms himself at the fire, fmoaks a few pipes pf tobacco, and then retires to reft, as calm as if in the midst of plenty ; but if he happens to have a family, he cannot always boast of this equanimity; when reduced to extremity, his affection for them pre dominates over his philosophy, if it might be so called, and it gives way to the most pungent forrow.

A belief in fome over-ruling invifible power bears a principal share in the character of these unpolished Indians. By this he is induced to impure every occurrence of his life to fupernatural caufes. His good or bad fuccefs in hunting, the welfare of his friends and family, his duration in this mortal ftate, &c. all depend upon the will and pleafure of fome invifible agent, whom he supposes to prefide over all his undertakings: for inftance, one man will invoke a confpicuous ftar, another a wolf, one a bear, and another a particular tree; in which he

imagines the Great Being refides, and influences his good or ill fortune in this life.

The religious fentiments of thefe people, though confufed, are in fome refpects juft. They allow that there is a good Being, and they fometimes fing to him; but not out of fear or adoration, for he is too good, they fay, to hurt them. He is called Kitch-e-man-e-to, or the Great Chief. They further fay, there is an evil Being, who is always plaguing them; they call him Whit-ti-co, Of him they are very much in fear, and feldom eat any thing, or drink any brandy, without throwing fome into the fire for Whit-ti-co. If any misfortune befals them, they fing to him, imploring his mercy; and when in health and profperity do the fame, to keep him in good humour. Yet, though obfequious fometimes, at others they are angry with him, efpecially when in liquor; they then run out of their tents, and fire their guns in order to kill him. They frequently perfuade themfelves that they fee his track in the mofs or fnow, and he is generally described in the most hideous forms. They believe that both the good and the bad Being have many fervants; thofe of the former inhabiting the air, but thofe of the latter walking on the earth. on the earth. They have likewife an opinion that this country was once overflowed; an opinion founded on meeting with many fea fhells far inland.

They have no manner of government or fubordination. The father, or head of a family, owns no fuperior, nor obeys any command. He gives his advice or opinion of things, but at the fame time has no authority to enforce obedience: the youth of his family follow his directions, but rather from filial affection or reverence, than in confequence of any duty exacted by a fuperlor. When feveral tents or families meet to go to war, or to the Factories to trade, they choose a leader, but it is only voluntary obedience they pay to the leader fo chofen; every one is at liberty to leave him when he pleases, and the notion of a commander is quite obliterated as foon as the voyage is MERIT ALONE GIVES THE TITLE TO DISTINCTION; AND THE POSSESSION OF QUALITIES THAT ARE HELD IN ESTEEM

over.

IS THE ONLY METHOD TO OBTAIN RESPECT. Thus a perfon who is an experienced hunter; one who knows the communication between the lakes and rivers; one who can make long harangues; is a conjuror; or if he has a family; fuch a man will not fail of being followed by feveral Indians, when they happen to be out in large parties; they likewife follow him down to trade at the fettlements: he is, however, obliged to fecure their attendance upon this occafion by promises and rewards, as the regard paid to his abilities is of too weak

a nature

a nature to command fubjection. In war a mutual refentment against their enemies forms their union for perpetrating their revenge. Per fonal courage, patience itnder hardships; and a knowledge of the manners and country of their adverfaries, are the qualifications fought after in the choice of a leader. They follow him, whom they have thus chofen, with fidelity, and execute his projects with alacrity; but their obedience does not proceed from any right in the leader to command, it is folely founded on his merit, on the affection of his followers, and their defire

fubduing their enemies. Thefe fentiments actuate every breaft, and augment the union, while in more civilized nations fuch a compact is effected by a flavish fubmiffion to military laws; for as the foldier has no choice in his commander, it frequently happens that neither his abili ties nor his character are calculated to gain their efteem.

The Indian's method of dividing the time, is by numbering the nights elapsed, or to come; thus, if he be asked how long he has been on his journey, he will answer, "fo many nights." From this nocturnal divifion, they proceed to the lunar or monthly divifion, reckoning thirteen of thefe in the year, all of which are expreffive of fome remarkable event or appearance, that happens during that revolution of the moon. Their method of computing numbers is rather abftrufe, as they reckon chiefly by decades; as follows -Two tens, three tens, &c. Ten tens, or an hundred tens. A few units over or under, are added or subtracted. Thus, thirty-two in their tongue is expreffed, by faying three tens and two over.

Those Indians of whom we have now been treating and of whom the Peltries are obtained are known by the following names, viz. The Ne-beth-arw-a, the Affinne-poetucs the Fall, the Suffee, the Black-fects the Pargan, and the Blood Indians. These are the only Indians with which the Company trade, and confequently the only ones whofe manners, cuftoms, &c. are known.

The laudable zeal of the Moravian clergy induced them, in the year 1752, to fend miffionaries from Greenland to this country. They fixed on Nefbit's harbour for their fettlement; but of the first party, fome of them were killed, and the others driven away. In 1764, under the protection of the British government, another attempt was made. The miffionaries were well received by the Efquimaux, and the miffion goes on with fuccefs.

ANIMALS.

The animals of thefe countries are, the moose deer, ftags, rein deër, bears, tygers, buffaloes, wolves, foxes, beavers, otters, lynxes, martins, fquirrels, ermines, wild cats, and hares. The rein deer pafs in vaft YOL, IV,

E

herds

herds towards the north in October, feeking the extreme cold. The male polar bears rove out at fea, on the floating ice, most of the winter, and till June; the females lie concealed in the woods, or beneath the banks of rivers, till March, when they come abroad with their twin cubs, and bend their courfe to the fea in fearch of their conforts. Several are killed in their paffage; and thofe that are wounded fhow vaft fury, roar hideously, and bite and throw up in the air even their own progeny. The females and the young, when not interrupted, continue their way to the fea. In June the males return to fhore, and by August are joined by their conforts, with their cubs, by that time of a confiderable fize. The feathered kinds are, geefe, buftards, ducks, growfe, and all manner of wild fowls. Indeed multitudes of birds retire to this remote country, to Labrador and Newfoundland, from places more remotely fouth, perhaps from the Antilles; and fome even of the most delicate little fpecies. Most of them, with numbers of aquatic fowls, are feen returning fouthward with their young broods to more favourable climates. The favages in fome refpects regulate their months by the appearance of birds; and have their goofe-month, from the vernal appearance of geefe, from the fouth. All the growse kind, ravens, cinereous crows, titmouse, and Lapland finch, brave the fevereft winter; and several of the falcons and owls feek shelter in the woods. Of fish, there are whales, morfes, feals, codfish, and a white fish, preferable to herrings; and in their rivers and fresh waters, pike, perch, carp, and trout.

All the quadrupeds of the fe countries are clothed with a clofe, foft, warm fur. In fummer there is here, as in other places, a variety in the colours of the feveral animals; when that feason is over, which holds only for three months, they all affumé the livery of winter, and every fort of beafts, and meft of their fowls, are of the colour of the fnow; every thing animate and inanimate is white. This is a furprising phenomenon. But what is yet more furprifing, and what is indeed one of the most striking things, that draw the most inattentive to an admitation of the wifdom and goodness of Providence, is, that the dogs and cats from Britain that have been carried into Hudfon's Bay, on the approach of winter have entirely changed their ap pearance, and acquired a much longer, fofter, and thicker coat of hair than they had originally.

DISCOVERY AND COMMERCE.

'The knowledge of thefe northern feas and countries was owing to a project started in England for the difcovery of a north-west passage to

China and the Eaft Indies, as early as the year 1576. Since then it has been frequently dropped and as often revived, but never yet compleated; and from the late voyages of discovery it seems probable, that no practicable paffage ever can be found. Farbifher difcovered the Main of New Britain, of Terra de Labrador, and those freights to which he has given his name. In 1585, John Davis failed from Portfmouth, and viewed that and the more northern coafts, but he seems never to have entered the bay. Captain Hudfon made three voyages on the fame adventure, the first in 1607, the fecond in 1608, and his third and last in 1610. This bold and judicious navigator entered the freights that lead into the bay known by his name, coasted a great part of it, and penetrated to eighty degrees and a half, into the heart of the frozen zone. His ardour for the discovery not being abated by the difficulties he struggled with in this empire of winter, and world of froft and fnow, he stayed here until the enfuing fpring, and prepared, in the beginning of 1611, to purfue his difcoveries; but his crew, who fuffered equal hardships, without the fame spirit to support them, mutinied, seized upon him and feven of those who were most faithful to him, and committed them to the fury of the icy feas in an open boat. Hudfon and his companions were either fwallowed up by the waves, or gaining the inhofpitable coaft, were deftroyed by the favages; but the ship and the rest of the men returned home.

and

Other attempts towards a discovery were made in 1612 and 1667;

la patent for planting the country, with a charter for a company, was obtained in the year 1670. In 1646, Captain Ellis wintered as far north as 57 degrees and a half, and Captain Chriftopher ats tempted farther difcoveries in 1661. But befides thefe voyages, we are indebted to the Hudfon's Bay Company for a journey by land; which throws much additional light on this matter, by affording what may be called demonftration, how much farther North, at least in fon.e parts of their voyage, ships must go, before they can pafs from one fide of America to the other. The northern Indians, who came down to the Company's factories to trade, had brought to their knowledge a river, which, on account of much copper being found near it, had ohtained the name of the Copper Mine River. The Company being defirous of examining into this matter with precision, directed Mr. Hearne, a young gentleman in their fervice, and who having been brought up for the navy, and ferved in it the war before last, was extremely well qualified for the purpofe, to proceed over land, under the convoy of thofe Indians, for that river; which he had orders to furvey, if poffible, quite down to its exit into the fea; to make obferva