1
e 2
W.
The EDITH and LORNE PIERCE
COLLECTION of CANADIANA
trouble
that we
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4
‘A
HENRY’sS JOURNAL,
At the meeting of the m. The
Historical Society h 1889, Pre. | d k pa most terrible
sident ae N. Ball * a
ournal, coverin ve
ences in the fur trade in t
Country, from 1801 to 1806,” uent and
In the |]
dead] effect of the liquor
re’ outfits
h wines which
out to the Indi-
sent off a partv of
n meron, to Grand
ish a trading post. Men
ng Node Were also sent to the
st.
ras Court's daughter
girl) died, aged nine
Bay, and established a st on
he east side or the Red River in the vioke
y of where the town of
on an
ver Salle,”
g at
J. B.
to oppose them
On the 8rd TY notes that he
k one and a Is of
from his rd he east ban
th had
troyed ait 0
7
days Ow in | October
a) and b intel from Mo
ta
t place of several ulteaux having in ois thant gut about art ’
u our hous. as
RDERED EACH OTHER xactly at the sues th
match “nks where the river (
eft, issues out from the mo
d Assiniboines, Crees and Son
MEESTER TION 5
build a t atthe “Gran
the Pembina River.
The better to observe the movements of
Passage” on
watchmen St. Germain and
Le Diec.)
ains. E
THE FIRST RED RIVER CARTS.
The famous Red River cart now was
constructed apparently for the first time,
vehicles. Men now go
venient and advant
ticn.”
and that they had been advanced to such
has since been made.
purposes, anda new sort ofcart. They
straight, the spokes being placed
carts will carry about five pieces, and are
drawn by one horse.”
During the winter of 1801-2, little of par-
ticular interest took place. Stabbing af.
frays resulting from drinking matches”
were of frequent occurrence.
was deep and the cold intense, three
their hcrses dying from exposure. Tobacco
was passing between the Crees, Assini-
boines and Saulteaux from Leech Lake
at the head waters of the Mississippi
during the coming summer. The buil
ingsin the fort at Pembina must have
wide, built of oak logs.
A FORT BURNED.
In March the trading post of the H. B.
Co. at the Grand passage of the Pembina
river was burned, with great loss to the
traders, though their rivals appear to have
been delighted at their neighbors misfor-
tune.
As early as the 28th April, 1802, the H.
B. Co. 's people embarked for the Forks.
On the ard May arrived four Assini-
boines in company with the Saulteaux,
4
„Neither of my neighbors have a horse, | fort to trade and drink. They are very
all their transportation is on their men's suspicious of the Saulteaux and appear
’ backs.” The H. B. Co. people started to always on their guard with their arms in
with a clay found in the Pembina Moun-| the current forms a great bend
are about f feet high and year’s outfit, Henry
i de aS ae ginko hi canoes to the Red River district, arrivin
a dicularly without the least bending Guts at the Forks on the 4th Sept. He wen
wards, and only four in each wheel. These | on horseback
been large in size, as one store house is
mentioned as being 100 feet long by 20 Ne od dee e Indian woman
their hands. guns, bows and arrows. The
oung Saulteaux would fain insult them
Auriug their drinking matches, but the
his rivals in trade Henry had built in his | men and myself prevented them from re-
fort a watch tower fronting the door of | ceiving any insults.”
X. T. company’s fort, plac in it as that he set the first sturgeon net used in
Te Derc (or the river and it requi 90 fathoms to
The houses were whitewashed | reach across as the water was high and
Henry mentions
in the
1 Garden seeds were sown on the 15th
ay.
MAKING THE WABANO,
„The Indians, having finished the d
and fortunately we have given us a most medicine, are now making the Wabano.
interesting description of the original This ceremony is performed at all sea -
ain for meat sons of the year, but more
with small low carts, the wheels of which | the fall and apeing, when they are assem-
are of one solid piece sawed from the ends | bled together in la
of trees, whose diameter is three feet. | mony is not of that solemn nature as the
These carriages we find much more con- grand medicine, and does not require that
us than to load ceremonious admittance.
our horses on the back, aud the country ages and sexes may be partakers in the
being so smooth and level that we can|Outward show of singing and dancing,
make use of them to go in every direc- but it is not every one of them who are
It may be as well here to give an- | acquainted with the mysteries concerning
other entry in the journal made a year it, such as the different medicines that
late: which indicates that improvements are required for certain cures, songs, con-
had been made in the style of the carts | jurations, tricks, etc.
ticularly in
tge parties. The cere-
People of all
On the 30th May Henry left Pembina
a form of perfection that little change for the annual rendezvous of the North -
We require horses west traders at Grand Portage,
to transport the property, of which we/perior. After transacting the usual busi-
have now a sufficient number for all our | ness relating to the year’s trade and ob-
o Su:
taining the supply of goods for his next
* Bel 5 with his
TO PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE,
where he made the following spree
ments: E. Harrison at Po la Prairie,
L. Dorion at Bear’s Head River, J. Me-
Donell at Manitoaubance and Jos. St.
The 9 Germain at Ft. Dauphin and Prairie en
0
ngue. Thence he proceeded to Pembina
where the Indians were anxiously await-
ing his arrival to taste the “new milk” as
1 8 * termed the rum. Men were sent u
to Turtle river to establish a post an
river, to Lake Dauphin, to raise a large others to the Pinancewaywining; and
war party to raid in the Sioux 1 577 the Terre Blanche river near Rosseau
e.
A young man having offered to sory
he was allow
he was in love with, Henry notes This
proposal did not surprise me, having seen
several of these people as foolish as him
and would not hesitate in signing an
ie of perpetual bondage on con-
tions of our permitting them to have
' Indian woman that has struck his
ancy.
The winter of 1802-3 passed quietly, no-
thing of consequence transpiring.
GATHERING RAT TAILS.
In April 1803, Women gathering rat
the first Assiniboines that came to this tails to eat. This root is about the size of
maki
quia aden
People went 3
n
The ow 1
pot t obje,
Fort, store, sh
suffi
all and, amt
6
Aut. LaPointe, with another cart and] death of many, which agrees with the
two horses loaded with two pieces of goods | records of more modern days when 115
and baggage belonging to Brisbois, Jes - numbers of the natives are destroyed by
simin and Poulliotte and a kettle suspen- | whooping cough.
ded on each side.
A WIFE AT SIGHT,
Aug. Brisbois follows with only his
250 it L. ee and pipe in his mouth 11 is well known that the traders pur-
. 6 chased Indian women by trading horses
Mic. Jessimine goes next same as Bris- for them, but the following pass in the
bois, with gun and pipe, puffing out clouds journal seems extractainesy “Livernois
as exchanged his 28 for 7 oung wife
the Northwest, has nothing but pips and | bout lehteen years of age, Thi le 6 very
uch, Those three fellows having taken to give a horse for a woman.”
eir farewell dram and lighted fresh uch suffering was endured by the tra-
pipes, send forth clouds of smoke and go ders at The Fork Death river and
ph ag and merry, playing numerous | portage la Prairie, in January 1804, on ac-
8 count of the cold and scarcity of food.
Dom. 1 with a young mare, the When visiting the latter place, Hen
roperty of Langlois, loaded with weeds nat
lor obne an cla ‘Indian worsted bag, fers to Lake Manitoba as follcws ; “This
of smoke.
Mic. Poullotte, the greatest smoker in
longing to Madame H. Langlois. th
ext appeared Madame Cameron's
young mare kicking and raving, hauling
a traville which was loaded with a bag of
flour, some cabbages, turnips, onions and
t salt keg of water and a large kettle of
roth.
M. Langlois, who is master of the band,
now comes on leading a horse that draws
a traville that is nicely covered with a new
painted tent under which is laying his
daughter and Mrs. Cameron, extending at
INDIANS FIGHTING.
During the winter the indians, as usual,
were fighting in their camp near the fort,
By the 4th of April the River was
clear of iee, and on the 20th of that month
the canoes were laden and the brigade
started for Lake Superior. On leaving
pane VEU pee 11 8 N. hie 1 ron 3
9 and the Swan River Co. () mus a
of canopy’ has "a ‘pretty effect inthe | eet of 32 canoes and 5 bateaux. Quite «
gt est ada i ata Greer distance Henr 78 50 post at the forks atte Red
Madame Langlois now brings up the | and 488 ne rivers, where Mr, on
rear of the human beings following the pad peek im charge during the winter,
traville, with a slow step and melancholy 2 a 1 0 he post was placed ino
alr, atbending tothe wants of her daughter, A 8 N 4 n of
who notwithstanding her sickness can 1803 4 In the Red River district Were situ:
find no other terms of expressing her
ated at Po la Prairie, Lake Manitoba
gratitude to her parents than by calling Dead River (Nettly Creek), Port on
them dogs, fools and beasts, etc. Rear L
ongue, the Forks, Hare Hills, Park
guard consists of a long train of d Riv 28 dPenbian” „
twenty in number. Some bred for sleighs,
others for game, and some for pets of no nee pare I J uly Henry writes ;
use whatever only to snarl and destroy |, on vb Meg cult to hire this year as
meat. The total forms a string near & pear oor raion pt mp te
mile long, 12776 appears like a large band of and Milieux extra equipm ti, je Currenc
. of Hh At Maat Ba
GATHERING GARDEN STUFF. u found. | mes 8
to war since the 4th.” is is the second
In the middle of October the vegetables | excursion, the Assiniboines have now
were taken ages 175 en ane 19 15 Nr 1 aud fom a party oF 55
cal 8, ush. carro ush, men, of whic. are on horse A
onions, with turnips, beets, parsnips, etc., The Crees stole the traders’ horses at
‘and 420 bush. potatoes, the produce of 7 Pembina Mountain. A large crop of
bushels exclusive of ne Ace Mb have N teolee) including 1 Maw oe 606
eaten since our arrival here. was | squashes, corn, cabbages and 1,
probably the first gardening on a lar bushel of potatoes was raised at Pembina
scale bor 1 ad yd undertaken on the by the men ere in charge during the
banks of the | ver, summer mon
An account is given of a bad cough”| In November the traders were fired on
that attacked the Indians and caused the ! by the Indians near Nettly Creek.
our
of excellent 75