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Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent dtre filmis d des taux de reduction diffirents. Lorsque le document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul cliche, il est film* d partir de I'angle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche A droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images ndcessaire. Les diagrammes suivants iliustrent la m6thode. I 1 2 3 4 5 6 REPORT OF A JOURNEY OF SURVEY, ./ FROM VICTORIA TO FORT ALEXANDER, vi^ NORTH BENTINCK ARM. Bt LIEUTENANT II. SPENCER PALMER, ROYAL ENGINEERS. PRINTED AT THE ROYAL ENGINEER PRESS, NEW WESTMINSTER UUlTIiJII COLUMBIA. 1863. \. g h '■-■■^- '1 .' 1 - ': "') I RoVAL EVG INKER CaMP, New Westminster, British Columbia, 21tli November, 1802. Sir, T have the honour to enclose herewith for your in- formation a report, with maps, of my recent journey of survey over the route from North Bentinck Arm to the Fraser. During a reconnaissance extending over four months, from which I returned to Head Quarters on the 22nd ultimo, the Cariboo and other districts of British Columbia were subse- quently visited, and will form the subjects of a future paper as soon as time will admit of the astronomical and barometrical ob- servations being computed and the necessary maps prepared. The reasons for my submitting the report of this portion of my work in a detached shape are given at the end of the paper. I have the honour to be. Sir, Your most obedient Servant, Henry Spencer Palifer, Lieut. Royal Engineers. To Colonel R. C. Moody, R. E. Chief Commissioner of Lands & Works. &c., &c., &c. REPORT. The vovaso from Victoria to North BoiUiiick Arm, in length aljout 440 miles, aflorcls tho.-'o wlio perform it an oi)i)()rtunity of witnessing some of the most intricate, and perhaps the most wonderful inland navigation in the world. Tiie steamer course winds through an andiipelago of stu'passing beauty — islands of almost every ylze and shape, presenting an ever-rccurrin-j,- suc- c >s;vIon of mountnin and vnll;>y, headl.nid and hay, and emljra- cing all the beauties of altornr.to ])vairio :;nd woodland scenery. North of Jervis Inlet the mountains v.hich elustcr round it a-.id the otlier Inlets to the souih of it, and which, from tlieir detached position, have Ijcen spoken of as a distinet Coast range, become blended l>y continuous chains with the superior c;-o;;i of the Cascade Mountains which, from tins pdnt nortliward, may be said to run in a general nortlnvestcrly direction, parallel, or nearly so, to the coast, and distant fron It about 'v.) miles. This chain, which appears to increase in altitude Avith the increase of latitude, is here and there partially pierced by the mnnerous deep-water arms of the sea wliich form the principal character- istic feature of the "vvhole Avestern coast-line of British North America, and, extending inland to distances of from 2i) to 100 miles, have received severally the names of Arms, Inlets, Sounds and Canals. By the few who, for trading and other purposes, have pene- trated these arms of the sea strange stories are told of the grand and gloomy character of the neighbouring scenery. Glaciers, rarely met with elsewhere in the country, are here of frequent occunvnee, iuid, near Kiiiglit'M Caiuil, uo hear of a rivi'i* wliich Hows ibr lo miles tliroii.uli a mngniCiccnt glaoicM' limiiol 100 feet ill lieiglit and iVom lIH) to \'A) ynvth in hivadtli. Ill the Seymour Narrows, through whicli the steamer track l)asses, occurs the ti(hil juiietioii of the waters which separate Vamnrnver Ishiud from the mainhiud. Here the Hood tides from the Pacific, ilowlng respectively to the southeast through (iuocn Charlotte Sou)ul and to the northwest through the Culf of Georgia, meet and form violent, cross, jumping seas, which, cs- l)ecially when aggravated by high wi)ids, cause danger of no small moment to liglit craft. Tides are said to he of excessive stren:.:th thromihout nearly the whole of this inland navi'-ation, the winds usually extieniely variable and anchorages unfre* ([ueiit, ;nul hence it is reasonr.ble to infer that the passage to to the north by the Gulf of Georgia, although peculiarly favour- able to steam mivigation, should never be attempted by any large vessels without llu! assistance of steam power. Passing the north end of Vancouver Island, the course cross- es Queen Charlotte Sound and runs to the east of Calvert Island. The ►Sound thus crossed, aljout oO miles broad, is open to the North Paeifu', and subject therefore to heavy ocean swells, whose magnitude and consequent danger are heightened by the meet- ing of the el)lj tides which, rnnmng along the mainland in north- westerly and soutlnvestcrly directions, rush to the ocean through this Sound. Violent gales are at all seasons of frequent occur- rence here, and, until reaching Smith's Inlet, no harbour or an- chorage interrupts the bold, bluff front of the mainland. • North IJe.itinck Arm, a mere water-fdled indentation in the mountains, some 25 miles in length and from Ih to 2h miles in breadth, may be taken as a fair tjqie of the other inlets on the coast. Piles of mountains broken up towards the seaboard in -/j ^ m- Hingiiliirly tumbleil tliou^h rounded masMOs, Imt inoronsinj:!; in iiltitudo and compactness as they approach tlu? centre ol' the Cascade rang.', snowy peaks, pine-chid slo[)es, rngged cliOs and precipices, naked, shapeless masses ortra])pean and granitic focka jmyecting upwards to vast heights, gloomy valleys and i)lctu- resque waterfalls; these, In constant succession, Ibrni an ii;:gve- gate of sublime and wild, though strangely desolate and unat- tr.'itive scenery. liik*^ North Bentinck Ai-m, we are told, in these general (haracteristics, though perhaps even nioi'e wild and hlcak as the latitude Increases, are the other iidets on tlie nori Invest coast. In all th«' mailner meets with water of vast depth and rarely encounters obstacles to r. ivigation in the shape of rocks or shoals, though all are alike subject to violent wIikih and pow- erful tides and therefore unfavourable to navigation by sailing vessels of large size. North I'entlnck Arm receives at its h(>ad the waters of the Bella Coola or Nooklialk river, a rajtid m(*untain stream i)ro- bably 8 > mil s in length, which, rising beyond the princi[)al crest of the Cascade i^Iountains, Hows through and drains a por- tion ol'that range and, subsequently, the chasm or valley Ibrm- ed by the continuation of the mountain Avails of North Bent luck Arm. Another stream of smaller dimensions, called by the na- tives Taantsnce, flows through a gap in the range to the north of the arm and discharges itself into its northeastern corner. On the 2nd of July 1862, at 1 p.m., the thermometer in the shade standing at 50° Fahrenheit, the temperature of the Nook- balk river was ascertained to be 49°7 Fahrenheit, and the same result was obtained with regard to the water of the head of the arm, which, owing to the volume of the Nookhalk, is fresh for some distance outAvards. •s« ■*'w^ Tho valk'y of tlu' Nooklinlk for 40 inilcH from its mouth is \iii(l(»ul)tc'dly of CHtimry ronimtion, low and, in luaiiy places, swampy throughout, and to the same process by which, lor ages past, tho land has been gradually forcing back the waters of the ocean, vi/ : the deposit of the vast quantities of alluvium and drill which have been brought down by the Nookbal',. is to be attributed the existence of llie large, Hat mud-shoal which ex- tends across the head of tlio arm. This shoal, composed of black, fetid mud, supports a rank vegetation of long swamp- grass for about half its distance outwards; it is l/are at low water spring tides for about 700 yards from high, water mark, and covered at high tide with from 1 to 8 feet of water, and at a distance of 800 yards from shore terminates abruptly in a steep, shelving bank on which soundings rapidly increase to 40 and soon to 70 fathoms. On this shelving bank, where it approaches the south shore of tlie arm, exists the only avail- able and partially sheltered anchorage in the neighl)ourhood, and, as instancing the extreme narrowness of the belt of water in which it is practicable to anchor, I may mention that, when here, I was assured by Captain Swanson of the Steamer Tjabou- chere, then lying in 10 fathoms water, that nothing but the out- ward tlow from the Nookhalk river prevented his vessel from swinging to the westerly winds which were blowing at the time, in which case, had she renuiined at anchor, she umst inevitably have tailed on the shoal. Another small anchorage is said to exist at the mouth of the Nomaamis river, about 3 miles down the north shore of the arm, but, as this point is too far removed to be of any impor- tance with reference to the future establishment of a route, I did not lose time in examining it. From the present anchorage upwards steep, rocky cliffs run i \ I In at 11 liigli angle into the w .iter of the firm, and, liirtluir west, into the low, swampy land, iuier.seeted l)y small ^■Icuj/t^ from 1 from the sea, which extends for itual liiivh water ma.vl:. To build the Nookhalk river an( some distance within ai wliarves and perhaps a lew sheds on the i-ocl; y shores of the jaichorage, and thence a road along the raoniitain sides to the spot indicated in the accompanying plan as suitable for ii tovai site is the only method lean arrive at by Avliich to meet the requirements of any future traiiic t'lat may occur on this r>)ute. The site I have selected is, in lael, the oidy available ground ill tlie neighbourhood, a sloping tract of land of about 1200 acres in extent, covered with a profa-.' v/i'id vegetation of clover, vetches or pea-vine, grass, and berry-])ushes of various descriptions, timbered in places and generally dry, but breaking up towards the river av.d tlie h'.ad of t'u' a.rm iii low swamps and ponds, and damp, grass}' hillocks and ri(l;.:( s. On the north side of the river much of tiie land is heavily limbered within the line of iiigh water mark villi cedar, cotton- v.ood and soi'ie species of (ir, but is so singuiariy dotted with low marshes and damip, steaming ground v.hicli eiieourages a d^>use grovv th .)f the penax /lorriJu as to be unadapted to white settlement, +'h(aigh the iiatives, who dsvell in confnied areas and dei'ivc many of their nccossarics from the products of swamp hinds, v/ould prob:ibly value it highly, and, retaining this, bo conteni to abandon to the ^^ bites the drier land on the south side of tlie ri\'-r. Half a mile from the mcjuth and on opposite sides ol the Nookhalk iire situated two Indian \illages, forming a settlement named Ko-om-ko-otz, and presided o\tr by the chief Po ^tlas. T\vo miles furiher up on the south ba)il< is another large vil- hv'e n;>m";l S )oi'.,)calini, ruled bv Anuokeetsum, cJid the whole 6 1"" population numboiVvl, wlion I was tlici'O, aljout 12(H) souls. The villnires arc .similar in tlieir general character to those met Avitk in thu .southern part of British Coluniljia, hut remain in their purely savage originality, unmodified by the touch of civilization. They consist of rude clusters of dwellings Ijuilt of posts and hiigc, rough slabs of cedar, and some of the lodges, more especi- ally those of the cliiels and medicine-men, are gaudily painted with strange devices, prominent among Avhich is the red hand, the Indian symbol of power. The natives themselves are phy- sically a fine race, tall, robust and active. The}-, as is • usual Avith the Indian tribes west of the Cascade mountains, sub.sist chielly upon salmon rnd berries eaten fresh in summer and dry in winter, and also on the llesh of the wild animals hunted for the sake of their furs during the winter months: but they pos- sess the usual native characteristic of improvidence, and, in the spring, are 'VecpienMy reduced by want of food iilmost to skele- tons. Tilt' salmon are caught in large quantities during the n^onths of July and August, partly in nets, but by far the great- er number in ingenious but rud'dy constructed weirs, -which arc built across tiie river and admit of the escapeoffew^ only of the fish. The arm is navigated by large canoes of the southern pattern, but tlios3 U-Sed on the Nookhalk are of a different description, and admirably adapted for the dangerous and difficult character of the navigation. The largest kinds of these are about 25 feet in leugtli and 2^ feet in breadth, built of cctton--\vood, that wood bcino- niorc easily worked than the cedar, wdth fiat fioors, and sides nearly straidit from stem to stern, a form wdiicli facilitates the work of poling. On raised platforms in the boAv and stern stand the two natives on whom principally depends the guidance of the canoe, and the unerring skill and nerve with which heavily laden canoes are propelled through dangers of no trifiing description is worthy of admiration. H.K1.0U-S Bay Uankots n.ul Bl.irts are the u.ual art, acs of na- two L, and they aciorn O.cn.h-es .vi.U ncso-nng. car-r.ng. ?!;. „ca.— of. i- ;"'«y';™ - c : •n • tl.P influenco of Protestant or Roman Catholic Missioiu r:r:tr X--b' to tl.e oU Indian -P-«tiUo„s and " naiutaining, a. regards their roliga.us and other c ■ - \ ienlons -eereey which defies the scrutiny of the .vh.te ;:;::";;:« is the nro. guttural and di.^^^^^^^ "^"it n.oral character the Bella Coolas are degraded specimens of the red Indian. Prostitution, polygamy, and other worse vces a vhich civilised nten shudder are of freauent occurence amongst em Thieving is an art that all attain to pcrfecfon and, n> ! ereourse .vitl> them, I had unpleasant opportunU.es of becom- : acuainted .i.h the n.eredulity, falsehood and avance .dtteh ™ prominent traits of their character. S.r Alexander Mach- lie Listened Kconr-ko-ot. "Rascals' Vmage," andlwdhngly contribute my testimony to the justice of the t,tle. To their immoral habits of lile, and partly also to wars wtth the Hylahs, the bloodhounds of the northwest coast, may be at- ibut d the gradually progressing extinction of the race, clear V idenee of .-hieh is aflbrded by the sight, at diUerent potnts fur. ,1,.. rl vr of the ruins of deserted lodges, once tlie habita- roVllr :;■ ;les of Indians that have gradually dwindled away by death until the few survivors have incorporated them- selves with the larger bands. , .. , ,,, Smallpox has this year contributed a sad quota ol ceath. During my stay there this disease, which had only just bro- ken o,; when I arrived, spread so rapidly that, m a week, near- Iv all the healthy ha.1 scattered from the lodges and gone to en- cami>-l.y famiUes in the woods, only, it is to be feared, to carry a^i the seeds of infection and death in the blankets and other 8 articles tliey took with thoni. Numbers Avorc dying each cla\'; sick men and women were taken out into the woods and left with a blanket and two or three salmon to die by themselves and rot unburicd; sick children w^ere tied to trees, and naked, gray-haired medicine-men, hideously painted, howled and ges- ticulated night and day in front ol the lodges in mad efforts to stay the progress of the disease. On the 9th of July we commencedour journey up the valley, the party consisting of Lieutenant Colonel Foster, M.P.P., Sap- pers Edwards and Breakenridge of the Royal Engineers, a pack- er and myself, with eight horses. It would be tedious to des- cribe at length the various obstacles that opposed our progress, and the sundry shifts to which we were put in prosecuting our difficult journey. In this report I propose simply to divide the country travelled over into sections in which the leading natu- ral features are sufficiently uniform to admit of one general des- cription for each, and commence, accordingly, by speaking of the FIRST ST'CTioy, somc 43 miles in length, extending from North Bentinck Arm to Shtooilit the head of canoe navigation on the Noolchalk. The N(joklialk river, with its rapids and rocks, its numberless islands, l)ars and snogs^ w^hitish clay-charged water and densely wooded banks, boars a striking resemblance to the Lillooet river well known to yourself and to most travellers in British Columbia. Owing to the generally lcv(il character of the valley, the main stream and its slcughs water a larger area than the Lillooet, though its volume is probably not more than two-thirds as great. The banks, Avhich for some distance back arc usually low and flat, and liable in many places to inundation, support a thick growth of cotton- wood (a species of poplar), willow and other trees peculiar to damp soils, and an underbrush of the densest nature % ^ rr'^■\^-^v^)\^ and many other .•„nilar l>-hc. Tho "^ ^'^ ^^ ^^^,^„„^,,^ ,i,,™ating with througK alluvial so.k, is c:.ccs > ^ ^^^^^^ great regularity fro™ .idc to -^- , " ; ^ J.;„,,, ,,e taslc of approaching the i«ountau« - ^^^^ ;^ ,„perlluous to add that — n;:;:!:ti::;-s^^^^^^ the stream is mipa^saDic ^^^^^_ -^'^'-■*'%"t5:C^*^o:tinycascaacstoi™po^ Countless tributanes of eve ^^ ^^^^^^ ^^ .^^ ^^^^^„^ ^,„„„gi, „us mountain torrents, food the ^ ^^^^^^^_,^ ^^^ g„„„^. a^ehills. P-™-"'""''f *tl' et^rnceltanic fro» the south, ,,aeo,thoNoosatsumandthcT hee ^^^^ ^^^ „e T.lloon.t, «>o Ts«ot^^^^^^ ;^ ^^^^^^^^ ^^-^^ ^^^^^ north, all streams of some size valleys of the mountaiu system ^^^^^^^^^ ^^ „^, ^^"^■f r-^St- rou-onsideraUyattheconflu- ana a half miles m . «^ ^.^ ^^^,,,, ;, ^y giant mountains eneosoftheprineipal iita«i ^ ^^^^ .^ j^^.^,,_ p,,,, ting of from two thousand to six ^_^^^^^^,^ ^^^^^^^ j„ ,. usual varieti. of s«.ne^^^^^^^^^^^ ,^^^ ,,,.een diis eountry. Some of the «1°1- 1 .^ „f ,„;!, timber, Soonoehlini and ^^-'""is ' 'l>rupay from the valley, ,r eoverhig of any k-^. -^ ^ / ^,,„,,,„ ;„ stupendous massivcunbrokea walls of giam^^^^^ J^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^^ .^j^„,, contrast to the forest scenery ^^^ ^^„^^,, Thelineofthemo.televa^ estot ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^.^^^^^ ,,e Nookhalk near Kooskultst, -mile ^^^^_^^^^ ^^^ ,n, apparently ^"" ^^^ ti"""^ although a principal crest, tins is by ^^^.^^ ^^^^^ ^_^ ,,ed, for, in these latitudes, ^'^^^ , ,, ,,„ Nookhalk either slope of the range are quickly i ,her ring vith ircly k of tliat IS far pctu- [-OUg^ jnoot- south, n the udinal to one conflu- luntaius 3scnting ■avcls in between timber, e valley, ipendous lands. TG crosses maintain- line. But pal water- ill fall on Nooklialk and the otlier similar arterial streams near the coast, and restored by the most direct path to the sea. Two peaks of this range, Mounts Pope and Deluge, standing on opposite sides of the river and respectively about 5000 and GOOO feet in height, attract atten- tion by their massiveness and their superior altitude. The latter, crowned by a cluster of jagged, picturesque peaks, is the subject of tradition among the Bella Coola Indians, for they believe its summit to have been the abode of an ancient chief of their tribe and his squaw, who climbed there at the time of the Deluge and were saved to perpetuate their race. Other magnificent mountains and clusters of mountains are met with on the journey, embracing most of the elements of grandeui that can be imagined in scenery of this description, and the numberless waterfalls which are seen in many parts, though more particularly towards the upper end of the valley, and which, on the melting of the snow, precipitate themselvos in considerable volume down the crannies and crevices of the mountain sides, are worthy of notice, as adding much to the sublimity of the scenery. The valley abounds with the natural features usually met with at low altitudes in this country; tracts of heavy forest and dense underbrush, such as we see in the valley of the Lower Fraser, sue. ded here and there by groves of alder, willow and swamp woods; occasional open patches of low berry- bushes, forests of smaller timber with a comparative absence of brusuAvood, large alluvial flats, abrupt mountain sides, poor gravelly soil, patches of swamp land, innumerable brooks and aleufjlis, and large quantities of fallen and, occasionally, burnt timber; these are the prominent characteristics of the Nookhalk valley, and will at once be recognized as incidental to the val- leys of most of the mountain streams on the coast. i 'i! . •, f,l„.l•uacst(kscril.tion^vmd9 up the valley, usually following th -« - ^^^^^, ^^ ,, .„p,„,«. ,,, ^.eat i'-V^— :^^^^^^^^ .ectlon on account of the ex- cablc to pack the ^°'>^' ^ „,t„c of the trail, the t,en.e narrowuc. and f'-lj J^os L, and the baggage .as fallen timber, the absence ol budges, W ^ transported as far as ^^^-f '"/. "^^J^ "^ ,« afford Indian villagcsitos we found s„ffic,eng>a^.g- .^^^ te„>porary subsistence for the -"^J J ,.^^„„^ ,,,p,,. are named NooUeetz, Asananny an ^<« K^^ ^ ,,„, ten.;-" ™; -^r f:",eft to the right and, at the latter, the traU ^^_^ ^j^^^ .an. of the river ^ ^^j^^^X ,arge village, at P-P-.-;?CreIi^-"Nllcleia, thirty-four miles from present n.UaUted ex ^- of the KahyUU and the Nook- ::::rdtrl" v^ fo.. .. feed for a day or two for our -ii::::::::se„t..i.sse.tbr.^a^^^ avoid low, -ft S--^;; ~; ,„y kind U made, I think it distance matonally. H a roaa / jj^^ i„aian cross- cannot do better than f""- *^ f ' ';" if „„„,, rfgUt bank „, at Nooskultst, thus -Idrng wo ^^.ff^ - '^ J^^, ^„„. at Soonochlim and A^ananny rcspcctne.y, ,„„e as f-;"tr: :^^^^^^^^^ absence of rocky Happily nr tins v^^* ^:^ . ^^, ^ „ „,,,,,itate the task of Wnfis running sheer mto «- ^^^„^, ,,,,, „f the blasting, for the stream rarely appi cache. L^ i. iw I ley, ftcr- [icti- cx- ,tlic ■was ertcd ifford sites espec- :o-otz, right tr tliat \gG, at s from Nook- for our deal of path or bt, care ssary to »rten tlie think it m cross- jilt bank and con- } of rocky he task of ises of the I 12 mountains, and "canouH" or "passes" nowhere occur. There is an unavoidable slide of fragmentary rock, half a mile in length, at 27 miles from Ko-om-ko-otz, and rock in situ would be met with at a point about 2 miles above Nootkleia, but n ;- thcr difficulty is likely to prove of a serious nature. A good mule- trail from North Bentinck Arm to Shtooiht should not exceed 35 miles in length and £1400 in cost. At Shtooiht, a small Indian village situated in the heart of piles of majestie but strikingly bleak and forbidding mountains, the trail leaves the Nookhalk and travels up the Atnarko, a large, clear-water tributar^^, here nearly equal in size to the Nookhalk. The latter river, Avhich from this point upwvards receives the Indian name Talchako, runs in a south-southeaster- ly direction, its course being traceable for about ten miles, and the Atnarko takes a general east-northeasterly direction as far as Cokelin or the Great Slide, fourteen miles distant, at which point will terminate the second section of the journey. Although the Atnarko valley is similar in many general cha- racteristics to that of the Nookhallc, as its stream is ascended so do the difficulties of progress increase. The valley, which near its mouth is about one mile in width, gradually contracts, and the mountains, although diminishing sensibly in apparent altitude, become more and more rugged, and frequently jut out in low, broken masses into the stream. The Atnarko receives two tributaries of some size from the north, viz; the Snookhalk at six miles, and the Cheddeakulk at ten miles from its mouth; it gradually contracts in volume, soon losing the proportions of a river and dwindling, beyond the Cheddeakulk, to a mere brawling torrent with a very rapid fall and hemmed in bv steep and continuous cliffs. Here the first serious obstacles to road maldng are met with. Hi IS ..^^^^^^::,^^!:^^^^ suae r^o.ni^'^^^-'^^.t^lj^^.u.ry t.„P ™ckH ot aU sj oVm.- to tad ^vcalhcv, tvou* -d^ ;,, „{ odvan- ;: r^on nearly cost us our l^'c ) and ^ ^^^^^.^^^ ^ „;ofl cHitccn aayB. ^^ .i hoon packed ^•■"^' r a";;:3:e :/^^ »-. *» ^s: i^rou. »™au party .vere aUe - 7-™; r.^^^vlucod ,ne tUt it.as^^.- L trail l^cyond the latter P" ^^^^ ^^ t. the r _ .ahle to push on -'^houtjl- ^^ ^^^^ ^,^, don^ """"oliley 16 miles in Icngll', cxtendmg Sro'f fte Precipice. ^j ^^.e sea, fo«ous T CoUeliu, UIO f-t *Xrt.V-^^ S^o. in great pr. fusioir, the trail lea%e. I 14 I and strikes to tlio north wind, directly up the face of the Great Slide, at a high angle of elevation. The slide, similar in cha- racter to those frequently met with in the mountains, though perhaps the stones composing it are smaller than is usual, is shnplj a mountain side of disintegrated trap rock about one mile in length, forming the northern slope of the valley of the Atnarko, and only separated from the slides lately passed by the glen of a mountain torrent. The height of the actual loose rock, as indicated by barometric measurement, is about 1120 feet, the trail barely even wdnding up this portion, but wriggling almost directly up the face in would-be zigzags bitterly trying to pedestrians. Above this it is lost among cliffs and hollows dotted with small timber, and rises more gradually until, 5 miles from Cokelin, an altitude of 1780 feet (2890 feet above the sea) is attained. Corresponding to this increased elevation is the change in the character of the vegetation and the scenery. The trail now emerges on an elevated, rolling district, where the mountains, with whose summits we are nearly on a level, seem of in- considerable height and lose much of their rugged appearance. Small, stunted firs take the place of the large pines and cedars of the valleys, the trail, though here and C .re rocky, improves, the soil becomes stoidy and light but firm, brush less plentiful, and grass, though of poor quality, appears in patches. Down by a gradual descent of 500 feet to the brook Ilotharko, a tri- butary of the Atnarko, and up its valley 7 miles in an east-north, easterly direction to its forks, ■ -^eting with no serious obstruc- tions but fiilleu timber and occasional small rocky slides. The space between the forks of the Ilotharko, which run in south- easterly and w^esi>northwesterly directions, is occupied by a pe- culiar mountain mass of basaltic rock, 1350 feet in height, w^hich H.m^ 15 ..ruo Prccil-ice." The ascent of tW« ta, received the «.une X - ^^ „„, „„„u,g up the mountain «exees«vely.ter,^^^_^^.^^^^„„„„„„„>V U„, frag,ne„t» of roc., - ; « , ., ,,„,, m feet h„U. the summit of tl.e V^n--^^ ,, ,,,-,., its name. ,,Uich crowns tl.e mass, and 1- ^^^^^^ . ^ ^,^ ,, The cliff is composed of blocl.8 ^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^.^^^^ ^^^^^^ ,^,,„„t ol-multangular prisms ="''^» .^^^ „f , jull rod colour and two cubic feet in sr/,e, '^»" ' > f^^.j together as perleet- somewhat vesciculav. ''^'''''^^l ,ve horizontal; thus, , ,, if by hmuan agency, and t e > ^^^^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^ ^^.^,, „^, the summit, «luel> « pe,lc.c 1 ^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^,^^ ..„,„„ i„ ,vlnch, tlie scant sod havm ^^^^ ji,,„ie pavement, „f these singular stones, al.no.t ^^^^^^ ^^.^ ,^^,.^^ ^,„,. i. clearly visible; -"^' '''^^•'"^'';; ,,%,, leaving standing in tions of the roe. have crun Ue^^ - >• ^_^ ^_^^^^, „, „,, ,,et „„,„. places al,rupt, colu, - ; ^^^^ ,huost assuu.e in heiglrt, v.l,lcb, viewed f>om ^,^,^,^^,„,„ted structures, the appearance of mass.-e art fiu^d ^^^^^ _.^^^„^ ^, If . trail be made over the ^>^ ^^^^.^^_^ ^.^ , ^,„ s^e two serious obstacles spoken ., __^^^^ ^,,,^.,„^, , t „nd tbe Precipice, may b ^^ ^^^^^_^,^ ^^ ,^, „„thaAo leaving the Atnarko mdd »ea b ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^^_^^,^^ ^„^ .f the latter by following the sout i„,u„ation. U, tbe level of tbc ^^^^^.^ L„. as these will i« The actual lines to be f Uosvc 1 . ^^^^ ^ ^^^^^^ ^^.^,^^^ ,j,, decided on when tbe trad .f-«> , ^ ^ ,„,,tions of tbis eba- time nor tbe ^^-;^'^;:^, 1 tbis occasion t« delay .aeter, and did not thmk ^]^J^ ,^,, ^^^e in tbe Nook- balk valley, It ^^l^\'^ IC b- tli ill, apo )0\lt tbct- lUus, \vit\i nting incut, e por- ng in ty feet vHSUino icturoK. Lite, tlic . by uot otliarko, 3 and atr n. sc will be iitlier the tbis cba- n to debiy tbe Nook- 3ses to the in high hind exist by the valleys of the northern tributaries of that or of the Atnarko river, among which I would mention, as likely to afford such, the Kahylkst, the Snookhalk and the Cheddea- kulk. Thus the bad road from the Cheddeakulk to Cokelin would be avoided, and the level mountain plateaux be soon- er reached, — obvious advantages. Tiie experience of this coun- try has shewn that the first road through an uninhabited forest district is rarely on the best line, and that it is only when settlement affords opportunity for detailed exploration that the most favourable route in detail can be discovered. I do not, therefore, speak positively on these poirifcs, but confine myself to making suggestions where it appears reasonable to do so. The FOunxH descriptive section embraces sixty miles of the route, viz; from the Precipice to the Summit Lake. Arriving at the top of the Precipice, 3840 feet above the level of the sea, the traveller enters on the level ofthe great elevated plateau which intervenes between the Cascade mountains and the Fraser. Looking eastward the plateau presents but few objects to attract attention, and the eye grows weary in wandering over a vast expanse of waving forest, unbroken save by the lakes and marsh- es which are invisible from the general level. To the west the towering peaks ofthe Cascade range come clearly into view; its limits, which we have now reached, being indicated by isolated clusters of hills to the south of us, here and there soaring up into great, massive, lonely peaks, but preserving no distinct arrangement. Again with the increased altitude is noticed a characteristic change in the vegetation, and the verdure of the plateau seems to grow thinner and inferior as we travel eastward. Shallow, meagre soil, consisting chiefly of decomposed granitic and trappean rocks, supports a dense forest growth of stunted firs 1 1. $^ . ! ■5 ^ 111 • V w n, .Vwuiiotcr, and an inferior graHS, a distance of about mty live 1 ^^.^^e elevations of . 1 i c ft font above the nea. inc cxuv-i" f„a by the frociuent showers .Inch f'' f' "'^ ^ ^ „, ,,,„3, and fonnin, the hon.o, of va.t ,„a. - ^^^^^^^^ ^^^^ industrioi.8 labouv is m a great m>,.«"n Tbeainuci^i. .+„ i1,p .ronevallv level cbarac- *"' " .1 ooL from lake to hvko througl> «va,nps ol :::;::::uLX-.-ofu„a.hieh.u.aeo„e from another. .nuare miles down- ;::c::«atthee„.^^^^^^^^ Haaea^a^pgrassof h>.r. , .u IS \ I ver- ily, a tU of h the whicU sacd at and a iions of e than ; gentle narshes titudeH, > -whose tod the ing long ;1 charac- rceptible, ^vanips of ivide one les down- but usual- ith coarse- le swamps he travel- lack blood- i Mupking i\y. prevail in j^rcutor or less a)»undanco during the sum- mer nionth.s tli(' whole way from the Slide to Alexander, the cold- ness of the nights in no vay nppeariiigto hinder their existence, and, in the worst pliioes, they can only be described as forming a dense living cloud which cover.'! the country to a height of twenty feet from the ground. All the waters of the plateau abound in Ci^h. particularly Kahnon-trout and suckers, and are frequented l)y v.'irieties of water-fowl, as loons, wild duck,teal,&c. But one ofthe most cingular characteristics of this part of the country is theeoin])firative nbsenceoriand-birds and animals, an absence wliich heightens the generally desolate nature of these extensive wilds. Three descriptions of grouse, viz: the stone- grouse peculiar to high alliludes, the ordinary willow-grouse of the forest and the prairie-fowl of the grass plains, a few gray jays and wotjd-pigcons and an occasional hawk or eagle or sand- hill crane Avere, with the exception of wild-fowl, the only birds we saw in a journey of 200 miles; animals were even more scarce, two varieties of squirrel, some water-rats, musk-rats and field-mice being tlio only animals encountered. But it is un- derstood that the plateau is the resort in the winter months of gome larger de.-criptions of wild animals, such as the marten, the bear and the deer, and, in the grassy districts near Chilcotin river, the silver fox highly prized for its fur. Of reptiles, frogs and toads abound in the swamps, and harmless snakes are met with in the rock}- parts of the forest. Small migratory bands of Indians, named after their chiefs or classified by the Indian names ofthe district)^ they inhabit, but all known as "Atnayos," make the plateau their home, roaming at successive seasons of the year to the various hunting and fish- ing grounds from which they can best procure their food, and trading their furs with the Bella Coolas, wdio prohibit their 19 .„„d preserve a Btrict monopoly of *e trade passing to the coart and preser with the v^hltes. ^ ^^^.^ ^,. ,,ried cha- 0„r journey lay along a narrow ^^^^^^^^^^ ,.^^ .acter, sometimes pas^ngovc. -^^-^ ^„, ,„„,i,, t^ds, travel, sometimes t'-^^'^^Jj^'l^slWe the swamps, and winding a great ^-^ *;-°;f ^^ J^:; "^ w invariably at the c-»«n^^:;r;l:at-Ucalof.allentimherwas narrowest part. In t >o ^v » ^^^_.^^„,^ ^^^„y „,et .vith, and our path f-^^» "^^^ ;7,,^„,,„,a by the passage ,.etsof naked ^^'^^^^^^ «-todhy ligMning or of the forest fires, winch are f^a - J .^^^_^^^ ^^^^,, the negligence of the nat.ve., ^«1 -J J ^,^ j,,.,,, guides, In travelling over a porUon o ttaj * _^ ^^^ ^^^^^^^^^ ^ desu.us of visiting the vA age Su • ^^^^ ^^^.^^ ion. detour, hut, as regards the > et c^ 1 ^P^^ .^^^ ^^^.^^ "lLbeltofcountrylyingh.w.^^^^^^^^^ Chileotin river, and formu: t e n « ^^^.^^ ^^ ^^^^ „4-fi.nptivG features tiian a-uj i . , • i,+ presents more -"^» :^' „j ^, „„,„ as 1000 feet m he.ght route. Ranges of rollmg hills o ^^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^. enclose broad, open valleys, ^v-t"^^ J ^ ^ considerable .eUishedwith ehainsof picturesque aU. A ^^^^^ ^^^ mountain slope., this gives y ^^^^ similkaa"^'*" .>e^. grassy country, su^ s met . ^^^^^ ^^^_^^,^^^^ ^^^ ^,^ ::::: ire ent, which aiford bunch-gr^^^ i 4 ; 20 :rade cha- it for beds, 3, and at the er was dreary )assage ning or Lteas. q;uides, L-atlier a e devior I dnriug rail was i and the journey, ion ot the in height 3, and cm- iisiderahle [id on the I open-tim- milkaiaeen a, and the open prai- jaaturage in i lair abundance and will probably be found to be convenient wintering posts for some of the animals of the upper country. But the soil cannot be said to possess properties favourable to agriculture ; it is cracked and ssndy and excessively dry, and the bunch-grass, nowhere growing thickly, is mixed witb large quantities of artemisia peculiar to poor, unproductive lands. At Puntzee, signifying in Carrier language "Small Lake,"thirty- nine miles from the Summit Lake, my Indians left me, and I was detained six d:iys in efforts to procure other means of transport for the remainder of the journey. From an elevated point in its neighbourhood a fme view was obtained of the surrounding country. Looking back to the west the cloudy outlines of the Cascade range, distant from GO to 100 miles, and bounding half the circle of the horizon, presented an almost unbroken front, a solitary gap in the southeast disclosing the probable entrance to the valley of the Ilomaltho river flowing to Bute Inlet. In the northeast and east the view was limited by the high mountain- ous districts of the Quesnel and Swift rivers, and the terraced ranges bordering the valley of the Fraser, the intervening districts on all sides being occupied by j, great, v/aving forest plateau, em- bracing high, dry ridges, swamps, lakes, valleys and prairies, such such as have formed the subjects of foregoing descriptions. As regards routes from the coast, the impression conveyed by this glimpse at a very large tract of country is that, on emerging from the Cascade range, the principal difficulties of travel are passed, ar.d that, thence, there is no impracticability in making a road across the plateau to strike the Fraser valley at almost any point south of the fifty-third parallel. The determination of the best lint through so extensive a district would necessan * be a labour involving w^eks or even months of exploration, the main object of course being to avoid as far as possible the lakes m 1 21 , -lodln the relative geographical position, .„a .— , ^^^l ^.^ , „.a a. ti.e «atural fe. ot the termini, to la> "" tures of the eountry admit J • ^_^^^^^ ^^.^ ^^^ ^,, At Punt.ee the Indian * ^1/°'^ „„,bly 125 miles) tives to be distant five good daj. travel, a joins thattrom North ««"«"* ^™^^^^^ „„he favonrite fishing Fortunately wowerehere^n*^ - ^ ^^^^^^^^. 3^,,, „„d hunting grounds « the Inu^ , ^^^^.^ ,„eampment at the ridge,B.E.,^-ho travelled o, m ^ .ring horses ,tte of old Fort Chileotm, ^va. suceu ^.exander on the and a gnide,.e resumed '^^^^^^^^"^ ^ ^ '^'^ ^"'^ StUofAugust ~;:;X«:elaUe of that name the ot the Chileotin rivei 10 mi e ,^.^„ti.,a,terly diree- valley preserving at this par a g nera ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^ ^^^^^,^^, tion. The stream here is f^'J^l^^ ^^^,,,,dour middles, and, in plaees, swift. In wad^ ^ ^^^^^ ^^.„„,, ^ ,„... and it is therefore a ^ .^^^^ 530 aud 46 r,^> foil- and water were respe „„,v,.soutliea5t for a <^°" atures of air anu . ^^ih sox The valley of the Traser, ^ ^^^ f^^.^ two to .Biles iu v^idth, s en ^^^^^^ ^^^^.^ ^nd do ^"'' riyl>encl-ofvariousl-J^^'^ ^^„,,,ere. .t with furtl^er np tn^ are met ^vuu T^nrclied. ,4. .Tio vcar . stmnc^ely sterile and parci ^^^^^^^ ^^ the ye arc stian, > ^^^^^^^y ti,c coia ^^ ^^^^^ ■ ^^''^""''TTi^: former the ^^--^^ersld other in- . .t Ale-^^^^^\'^^'',aconntleBB grasshoppers an 7n° j^ahrenheit, anu vivcr is closeu w ce, and c^^*^^^^^''"' ice, 24 d ch .of cent 3 20 feet. Liithe ,s 58° mper- jnlicit. a con- tliree ,t 1000 i\x small )ccuplcd ,asturage to be I'C- iquaUtles rich lau the Frasor })cins the only points where hills worth mention occur, As will he gleaned from previous descriptions, swamps are very .reneral, so much so that, after leaving the summit of the Pre- cipice, we never encamped with dry feet. Prohably, in all, the actual extent of swamps traversed, in pieces of from 20 to 400 yards in length, does not exceed ten mues, but, to ensure this immunity, frequent long detours were made in gaining the nar- rowest crossing points of the marshes. I estimate that the con- struction of a good bridle-road from the foot of the Slide to Fort Alexander would involve an outlay of £0000. Of the climate of the plateau I can not give an\- reliable data, though it is probable that, owing to its great altitude, which from^the Slide eastwards nearly everywhere exceeds 2000 feet, and reaches to more than 4000 feet above the level of the sea, the snow lies on the greater part of it for at least seven months of the year, viz; from November to May inclusive; and it is not likely that it will in this respect compare favourably with the elevated districts traversed by the routes lying east of the Frar ,er, where the open nature of large tracts of the country f\ivours the early disappearance of snow to an extent not likely to oh- tain in the dense forests of the Atnayo and Chilcotin plateaux. Another route, branching from the main trail to the west of the Precipice and reuniting with it near the Alexis Lakes, 67 miles from Alexander, runs to the north of it, passing through the Nacoontloon district, a chain of lakes and swamps whose waters flow into Dean s Canal at Kemsquit, five miles from its head. White men have travelled by this route from Alexander to the Nookhalk, and pronounce it forty miles shorter than that traversed by myself and party, though they ad- .it that swamps are more numerous, and Indian information ascribes to 28 iU hi,lK.i. Ic vol. If, on the future dovc.lo,,nK.ut of this clouv Z:rr7r""""7' ...U,on,o„t .,„„,., e.to.Uothe:S: .rn . r. ^^^^^^'^ ^>^"S Ij^'twceii Hand the honf] "f Dean „ Cana, a«o.J faoiUti„« fo,. ., eo,u,nu„icatio„ whi ^ ^I a glance at the .uap, »eon. Hkel, to be high,, „„va„tat!: J T; ' T'" ""' "'^' '™' '■""' ^'^-t t: aL h ;: r; T ' """™'' "■°"'" ™P--™e„t. at the '.».d. of a Mr. Hood a„,l his party, who brought a train of 1. r , T 7f ^^ ""'"' '''""^'''' "' North Beutinck Arm on the 2nd .Tu„, ..nd reached Fort Alexander on the 31„t i:;.,: yo.?„ . o '""■";"""-^ ' '-"■''>- -" ^o ''"'e to form jou o„n o,„n,o„s on the feasibility of a route from North Bonfuci. Am, ,„ the Fra»er. It but remains for me briet ™." up the various advantages and disadvantages ,vhic the report . intended to illustrate, and to submit them : ^ ! for your consideiaiion. " ''"^""'"y Apart n-om the ,,ues,i„ns of sea or river transport, the actu.l —to land travel fron, North Bentinck Annto'the mo ofQuesnel m-.,. eou,pares iavourably with that by the othe routes ,vh,eh ai ..eseut conduet the trade to Cariboo Ou - »n oubtedly u,e ,„.int to which a line of road from tl^ Shi -u.dbeduv..,.„,inasmueha,atacostofaboutlOn -. laud trav., a, point forty miles nearer to the nnnes t Alexander ,s would ,« reached,^^ and since, it is highly probable the coast Mtoul.l l,e .lircTtetl to if. month -'ih^Z'^^ T-"] T """' "'<^''^''^'<'. « ''oa-i fron, of t!.c countn- to bo M,l,H..iuc.n'l,- 1 .Vt - ^'"^^'"l''"^'"' r^-^""-'„ mnl to tl,c d.^rnctcr of tlio that an improvod road Iroin North Benliuck Ann to Qaesncl would not exceed 210 miles in length, it and Lillooct may be considered as approximately equidistant ftom Cariboo. The country under discussion also presents many features favourable to road-making, such as the generally easy gradients, small timber, scarcity of bruslnvood and comparative absence of rock hi situ. On the other hand, the formidable slides in the valley of the Atnarko, the number and extent of the swamps on the plateau and the small size of the timber (which, though favourable in (.ne respect, is a serious drawback where much corduroying and bridging are required) are obstacles deserving attention. But,°in discussing the practicability of a projected higlnvay of commerce to an extensive and populous gold region, the gra- ver questions of soil and pasturage claim attentive consideration, and in these two highly important respects it is impossible to speak favourably of the Bcntinck Arm route. You will have gleaned from a perusal of the report tliat the country traversed after leaving the Bella Coola valley is exces- sively sterile and unproductive, and usually destitute of interest- ing and attractive features. I cannot say that I passed on the entire journey a single tract of land likely to aflord encourage- ment to settlers, though perhaps, as a desperate resource, it might be possible to reclaim at considerable outlay portions of the swamp lands which, it can scarcely be doubted, possess proper- ties of productiveness. Again, you will have noticed that the fifth section of the jour- ney, 50 miles in extent, is the only portion that affords good bunch-grass pasturage. On the remainder there is either no feed at all, or merely the poor inuutritivc grass that prevails in ele- I 2f t voted, thickly-wooded lands, r v i 1 1 1 , n ^"^'•''^n horses can and do subsist and even work and keep C , . „ ''"osist, bear mo out iu t!,c as.or'" "" f'.'"."'"^' '"" ''™'^"'^"' "'^» »•'" for mules a„,l horse. ' ""' ''"' " '■' ™' ^"""""^''^ "°»™l"''i; loreign to the country. It may be ur";e +i,„4. , ,^ , rativel/n„i„,,: , ':T " r" , , "'""^ " ""'^ '^ " ""'"P"^ I-Vtton ,L '^ '"■*'"'" """"^ '■™"' J^"l»«' and of the ■ , ™ '■' "°' """"«"' *» ^•^«'"> «'« '■oquirements t apally ,„ereusi„g Cariboo traffic, and can no longer be <= .,ded on a. the «„,e ..hsi.tence for the animak But these Hs pass through favoured and highly productive districts, where cv.hzat.on ,s steadily on the increase, and where active .teps are now bcn,g taken to grow barley and other cereals in . quant,t,es sud-ceat to meet the increasing demand; it is found that ,„ the sheltered valleys east of the Fraser, the soil which y>eklsan ahuudauee of rich, luxuriant grass can be turned to .mproved account by the growth of more substantial and nntri- tive descriptions of forage. After what has been written of the country traversed on my journey, it is scarcely necessary to add tluit the soil of the ste- rile plateau between the Cascades and the Fraser admits of „„ resources sucli as tills. It is the province of the na,igator to discuss at length the mertts of North Bcntinck Arn, as a harbour, and to weFgh the relative advantages as ports Ibr foreign eomnierce aiforded by it and by 1 ietoria or Xew Westminster respectively; and the lat. er questu.,, has, in all probability, received ere this the atten- tion o! oihccrs of Her Majesty's Navy. Apart from these eon- sRlerations, as well as from the questions of climate and road- making, my own impression is that, viewed simply with refer- , , . 1 u T>..,f;r'^ -^^''"i I'outu iM, Iroui it.s null once to land travel, the Beiitiu ' fe ir ^ iVw.crenoral iibsence ofoood soil continuous elevation, and from the- o ^ • " and pasturage in the districts whicn^^ traverses, unlikdy, for the present at least, to acquire impcn-tar^ ^^ an arterial hi^h- way to the established gold mines of this ct^^^O'- Bute Inlet appears to possess iiir greater ad^P^^ages of geo- graphical position, and we learn from the Adniiralt;^»»'vt'y that there is a passable anchorage at its head; but, witho^^ pausing to consider this question in detail, I will simply obsdic that the same grave objections of altitude, soil and pasturage a^h-Ii obtain in the case of the North Bentinck Arm route will, in\l ^ probability, apply to that from Bute Inlet, since similar and, for i\ large portion, identical tracts of country are in each case traversed. Glowing accounts of both have from time to time been received, many men emerge from the obstructive forests of the valleys in the Cascade region and hail with pleasure the sight of open country and grass of any kind, but do not stop to consider the quality of the pasture or to study the reproductive powers of the soil that }icl(ls it. Similarly, the tides and winds of the ocean arc matters which do not occupy general attention ; the casual traveller arrives at North Bentinck Arm, and pronounces it a splendid land-locked harbour, easy of access, witliout, pcrliaps, bestinving a thought upon the difficulties of his recent vuyago, or inquiring the depth of tlie water which surrounds him. Partly to causes such as these, and, in a great measure, to the for^^etfulness and, perhaps, the careless remarks of imui who have travelled without pausing to make notes of their journey may be attributed the highly favourable impressions of the coast route prevalent last summer in Cariboo and industriously kept alioat bv interested people, and, since the general idea in tlie upper 30 r:::;r-"""- Hence it isinforrcd tlnf o fv„+i r- i tiack Ann tnil will ,! """^'"■^^l'»' O" «>« North Bon- v.,u t,.„l ivill have some effect i„ settling a public nues ;,::i;;r;r''''n-r ' ""'•*"" "-'- *° -'»'^ ^'^ X^^ as lik,.|y to throw light on the matter '^ At a„ early date I trust to have the honour of forwardin. n I liavo tlie lionbnr to be, Sir, Your mo^t obedioiit servant, Henry Sj'Exycer Palmer, Lieut. Royal Endneers. A.ri'KNI)IX. TABLE I. SHEWING THE Al'I'UOXIMATE ASTIIONOMICAI. I'OSITIONS OF SOME PLACES ON THE NOllTII BENTINCK AUM TRAIL. ••••••• do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. do. Encampment half-a-mile vrcut of Ko-om-ko-ot!5, do. at Nookcetz (mined villnjru), ... at Asananny (niini'd villa-^tO) " at Nootkk'ia (inhabited village), nt Slitooiht (Spring's) at Taparntowoot, at Cokelin (foot of Great Slide), j two miles cast of the Prec'pico, | at Niinpoh, half way along shore of Lake Tow- teestsnn, one mile west of the Snmmit, at the head of Lake Chant-hopet'n, at the erossing of thebrook riuitzeako, at Piuitzcc, ••••• at crossing of first stream cast oi' the Chilcolin, near east end of Lake Tahartee, at western crossing of the bmok Nantnelkyok, at Fort Alexander do. r)2''22';3f)"N, r)2 2;5 21 .. .52 21 10 .. :)•> •>:> .'57 .. f)2 21 ;ii; .. r)2 21 27 .. .'')2 22 11 .. .'>2 2(; 01 .. *rj2 22 51 .. 52 in 5:1 .. 52 (tl) 2'.) .. 52 OS 53 .. 52 12 52 ., 52 12 10 ., 52 1 I 1 1 . *52 21 ;52 . 52 29 M . ! 52 ;i3 40 , ApI'KOXMIATK LoNOITUDK. 120° 47' 31" W. *12(5 12(5 120 121) 125 125 *125 125 I 125 , 121 1 124 ' 121 I 124 07 07 57 10 43 21 57 48 20 3.-; 13 25 24 123 M 52 123 02 49 122 40 51 122 20 50 35 30 11 5 57 50 .".() 13 00 ■17 30 11 02 NOTE. The rcBulU mnrlio.l vllh an a3t At Fort Alexander, on the 15th of August, iLwas 2< 41 Easterly, do. do. SHE Nook Asam Noosl Nootk Shtoo Atnar Stmim Summ Ilotha Sumni Nimpo Lake 1 Summi Summi Lake C Lake C Fort a: NOTE. II. s. p. AITE^DIX. I TABLE 11. SHEWING TIIEA PPROXIMATE ALTITUDES ABOVE THE SEA OF SOME POINTS ON THE NORTH I3ENHNCK ARM ROUTE. Station. Nookcefz (ruinpfl village,) Asananny do., ' " Nooskultst do., Nootkleia (inhabited village,) Shtooiht (Springs,) Atnarko river at Taparntowoot, '"■ (In. at Cokclin (loot of Great Slide") Summit of the Groat Slide, '^ Summit of the nu.untain aWe'the 'slide, '. ' ' Hotharko brook at the foot of the Precipice ' Summit of the Precipice, '^^^^'Pice,..., Nimpoh, Lake Towtccatsan, Summit altitude of the trail on the' plateau, "" Summit Lake, ^ ' Lake Chantslar, Lake Chant-hopeen, Fort Alexander, Approzimati nuOBT IN PUT ABOVI TUI UIA IITIL. 107 227 316 392 464 923 1110 2230 2890 2490 3840 3601 3580 4360 4020 3820 3780 1470 ''^' C^rSL'nn^„rirrx=."'»^-^ "'""-"- ^or altituao b.i„, ta.cn totwcon Ln.o 11. s. p. APPKNDIX. TABLE III. SUEWim THE ESTIMATED DISTANCES BY THE EXISTING INDIAN TRAIL BETWEEN CERTAIN POINTS OF THE N. B. A. ROUTE. Ko-ora-ko-oU, Nookeetz, Asananny, Nooskultst, Nootkleia, Shtooiht,... Tapariitowoot, Cokelin, (foot of Great Slide) Top of the Precipice, Nimpoh, .♦« Sutleth, ... Summit Lake, Lake Chant-hopeen, Puntzce, Cliilcotin River, Alexis Lake, liake Tahartec, Sananorringlee, Estimated distance in MILES. Nookeetz, Asananny, Nooskultst, (crossing of Nook lialk) Nootkleia, Shtooiht •" Taparntowoot, Cokelin, (foot of Great Slide), Top of the Precipice, Nimpoh, ♦•• Sutleth, Summit'Lake, Head of Lake Chant-hopeen, Puntzee, Ford of Chilcotin River Alexis Lake, Lake Tahartee ... ^ Western crossing of Sananor- ringlee, Fort Alexander, ... Total. 10 G 12 8 6 IG 21 3 i)G 11 28 11 20 29 20 18_ 270 Fort Alexander bears N. 8G° E. from Ko-om-ko-otz and ^'^ f''^'^'^^,^'^';\^l about 183 miles in a single air-line, the value due to a degree -f longitude o^^^ the mrallel .'')2= 28' N. being adopted as a mean in the computation. bimilarl> tne mou 1 Que^nel river ^ears N. 78^ E. from Ko-om-ko-otz, and is distant about Iss'miles The a-regate of the absolute distances between the various astio - nomiasations (twenty in number) on the route is about 197 imles; the esti- maT d disLce by the trail, as seen above, is 270 miles, the proportion being very uZy that of 3 fo 4 ; that is to say that the Indian trail, between pomts which are three direct miles apart, traverses, according to the estimate, about four miles cifToiind. II S P