le occurred for a
long time. The conjurer continued his song at intervals and it was
occasionally taken up by those without. In this manner an hour and a half
elapsed; but at length our attention, which had begun to flag, was roused
by the violent shaking of the conjuring-house. It was instantly whispered
round the circle that at least one devil had crept under the moose-skin.
But it proved to be only the "God-like man" trembling with cold. He had
entered the lists stripped to the skin and the thermometer stood very low
that evening. His attempts were continued however with considerable
resolution for half an hour longer, when he reluctantly gave in. He had
found no difficulty in slipping through the noose when it was formed by
his countrymen; but in the present instance the knot was tied by Governor
Williams who is an expert sailor. After this unsuccessful exhibition his
credit sunk amazingly, and he took the earliest opportunity of sneaking
away from the fort.

About two years ago a conjurer paid more dearly for his temerity. In a
quarrel with an Indian he threw out some obscure threats of vengeance
which passed unnoticed at the time but were afterwards remembered. They
met in the spring at Carlton House after passing the winter in different
parts of the country, during which the Indian's child died. The conjurer
had the folly to boast that he had caused its death and the enraged
father shot him dead on the spot. It may be remarked however that both
these Indians were inhabitants of the plains and had been taught, by
their intercourse with the turbulent Stone Indians, to set but
comparatively little value on the life of a man.

It might be thought that the Crees have benefited by their long
intercourse with civilised nations. That this is not so much the case as
it ought to be is not entirely their own fault. They are capable of being
and, I believe, willing to be, taught; but no pains have hitherto been
taken to inform their minds,* and their white acquaintances seem in
general to find it easier to descend to the Indian customs and modes of
thinking, particularly with respect to women, than to attempt to raise
the Indians to theirs. Indeed such a lamentable want of morality has been
displayed by the white traders in their contests for the interests of
their respective companies that it would require a long series of good
conduct to efface from the minds of the native population the ideas they
have formed of the whit