of skill,
contributed very little fresh meat to our store. Augustus and Ooligbuck
employed themselves in the same service, but from not being accustomed
to hunt in a woody country, they were not more successful.

The consideration of next importance to furnishing the party with food,
was to provide regular occupation for the men, who had not the resources
to employ their time which the officers possessed. Accordingly, some
were appointed to attend exclusively to the fishing nets, others to
bring home the meat whenever the hunters killed any deer; some were
stationed to fell wood for fuel, others to convey it to the house, and a
third set to split it for use. Two of the most expert travellers on
snow-shoes were kept in nearly constant employment conveying letters to
and from the posts in the Mackenzie and Slave Lake. As the days
shortened, it was necessary to find employment during the long evenings,
for those resident at the house, and a school was, therefore,
established on three nights of the week, from seven o'clock to nine, for
their instruction, in reading, writing, and arithmetic; and it was
attended by most of the British party. They were divided in equal
portions amongst the officers, whose labour was amply repaid by the
advancement their pupils made: some of those who began with the
alphabet, learned to read and write with tolerable correctness. Sunday
was a day of rest; and, with the exception of two or three of the
Canadians, the whole party uniformly attended Divine service, morning
and evening. If, on the other evenings for which no particular
occupation was appointed, the men felt the time tedious, or if they
expressed a wish to vary their employments, the hall was at their
service, to play any game they might choose; and on these occasions they
were invariably joined by the officers. By thus participating in their
amusements, the men became more attached to us, at the same time that we
contributed to their health and cheerfulness. The hearts and feelings of
the whole party were united into one common desire to make the time pass
as agreeably as possible to each other, until the return of spring
should enable them to resume the great object of the Expedition.

The officers found employment in making and registering the
thermometrical, magnetical, and atmospherical observations, which were
hourly noted from eight A.M. to midnight; and, in addition to the duties
which they had in common, each had a peculiar