is shallow, and, as we advanced, became salt as brine. We had not the good fortune to fall in with buffaloes, though their tracks, and those of moose and bears, were numerous; but consoled ourselves in an attack upon the wild fowl attracted hither by the briny waters. There were swans; Canada and laughing geese; several species of ducks, the most remarkable of which were the beautiful light blue; and a very small but splendidly variegated teal, so tame as almost to allow itself to be caught with the hand. We had not to search long for salt: a single mound on the plain furnished us with thirty bags of the finest quality, and seemed undiminished by the removal of a quantity sufficient for our own wants, and for the supply of the Athabasca and Mackenzie River districts. A mountain, which terminates the plain at the distance of four or five miles, glistened as if incrusted with the same pure white substance. From the hill-sides gush delicious springs of fresh water. Having finished our work, we bivouacked and feasted under as lovely an evening sky as fancy could paint. A sudden gust of wind, which bent the tall pines and poplars like wands, cleared off the musquitoes; and we enjoyed a few hours of refreshing rest in the soft twilight, for there was no longer any night in these regions.
