Volume 1

LAKE MANITOBA—DESJARLAIX. 237
river, jd. Arrived at Desjarlaix's house, opposite Maple
'^
island ; he is making nothing. He takes daily a number
of fine large whitefish in his nets. This fishery is abundant
the whole year, but more particularly in the autumn, when
almost any number may be caught ;
they generally weigh
from 12 to 20 pounds. This part of the lake is erroneously
called by us Manitoaubanc. It is a considerable body of
water running nearly N. and S., and near the middle narrows
to a strait not a league across. The S. part is called
by the natives Rush lake, and the N. is called Manitoaubanc.
From Desjarlaix's house we can see Fort Dauphin
mountain very distinctly; the distance may be 12 leagues
—that is, about one day's walk. Madame Desjarlaix
show
contrived to get intoxicated, and, in her endeavors to
her art of cooking, came near poisoning us with filth, ^th.
camped at the old encampment.
We set off homeward ;
6th. A terrible gale blew all day, and prevented our starting
until sunset, when the wind ceased and we set out on
the lake ;
traveled all night
;
excessively dark ;
the ice
smooth and clear. Our dogs had no footing, and my fellow-traveler,
Mr. Harrison, is one of the most awkward and
miserable winter-travelers in the North West he can
;
neither walk, run, or ride with dogs. He lost us much time
" Two of the points along the E. shore of Lake Manitoba are now called
Marshy and Long. The only considerable island I can find is one now called
Duck isl., high up in the southern division of the lake, directly off the present
Sousonse Indian reserve.
lake are specially interesting.
Henry's remarks on the native nomenclature of the
Antoine Desjarlaix, Desjarlais, Dejarlais, or Dejarlet, clerk and interpreter
of the N. W. Co., the one here in mention, is probably to be distinguished
from another Antoine Desjarlaix, who was in that country in 1799, and left
N. W. Co. in 1805, as this one could not read. The latter long lived on that
Lac a la Biche or Red Deer 1. which discharges by a river of the same name
into Athabasca r. Thompson found him there May 29th, 1812, with his
family, living in two tents and trading with the H. B. Co. I note him again
of date June 5th, 1814, with wife, two sons, and two or more daughters ;
he
had sisters in the parish of Vercheres.—One Desjarlaix, N. W. Co., was horsekeeper
to the Rocky Mountain house, Oct. nth, 1806 ;
no doubt one of the
two, Fran9ois and Joseph, who were in
with Thompson, winter of 1810-11.
the
the Rocky mts., on Columbian waters