Volume 1

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RED RIVER—NETLEV CREEK.
4I
fishes, such as catfish, piccanan, male achegan, brim, poi's
d'oile, etc. They use a seine about five fathoms in length,
hauled between two canoes. We purchased some fish for
liquor, and proceeded up Red river, with a gentle current
and deep water. Our course was S. until we passed the
other two channels, when we turned W. and soon came to
Riviere aux Morts,'* about nine miles from the lake. Here
was another small camp of Indians, who had plenty of fish,
some dried meat, and a few beaver skins which I
traded.
This small river comes in from the W., receiving its
waters from some lakes and bogs a little E. of Lake Manitoubane
[Manitoba]. It derives its melancholy name from
a tragic event which happened many years ago, when the
Crees, who had no other means of procuring necessaries
than by making an annual journey to York Factory, on
Hudson's bay, generally assembled at this spot in the
spring. Having made every necessary preparation, the
chiefs and most active young men and women embarked in
small canoes with their furs, leaving the old people and
children to pass the summer at this place, where there was
plenty of game and fish. Once, during the absence of the
main party, the Sioux fell upon this helpless camp, and
destroyed a great number of old men, women, and children.
The others arrived too late to revenge themselves upon the
enemy. At this river the mainland really begins, although
it is nearly nine miles from the lake ; Red
about a quarter of a mile wide,
river is here
*^ R. aux Morts translates the aboriginal name which, in its application to
this creek, is found as Nipuwin, or Nipuwinsipi ; in James' Tanner's Narr.
Ne-bo-wese-be {i. e., Nebowe r.), p. 177 ; in Keating's Long's Exp. Onepowe
it is translated River of the Dead, Dead r., and Death r. The tragic event
Henry narrates is said to have occurred about 1780. The stream is nowcalled
Netley or Nettley cr. ; it falls in at the N. border of the large Indian
reserve, which hence extends up both sides of the river for about 11 m., the
mouth of the creek being in Tp. 15 of R. v, E, of the princ. merid. Slightly
below this point Red r. expands into a liUle lake, also called Netley ; and also
receives Devil's cr., a small stream from the S. E. which cuts the N. E. comer
of the Indian reserve, and in passing that point presents the dilatation known as
Devil's 1.