New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-07-31
WHERE MAPS ARE USELESS.
JOURNEYS INTO UNEMPLOYED PARIa OF
NORTH AMERICA.

Ey Warburton PIE. PIP. IL. 800 MACMILLAN
4 Co.
To follow with even the latest OF oruiharS maps
tho lime If Mr. Pixies journcy it will be necessary
for the reader to imagine chuiu Vi i'Nee en-
tending along the ll2th meridian from point
y, cre., slave Lake about midway between the
o2d and s3d parallels OF north latitude TO point
on the Gath paralel As the adventurous traveller
had no Instruments with which 10 test his oDser-
vatious his charts and descriptions will doubtless
have 70 be corrected in many details Ihe point.
however which his Investigations make clear Is
that tho lakcs he describes exist in region when
has been deineated as blank Inc largest OF
these bodies OF water which Mr. flke namea Lake
Nlackay is supposed TO be about lOV miles long
and lies about the same distance north OIL "reat
Slave Lake The interval Is hled up WIN shiaii
lakes SO near each other that seventeen are
crowded into the space ON the char'' buV 'hese
are not connected with each other anu the "o'ei-
way that really exists between the TWO greas
Iokcs il Lockhart's River which flows almost in
a half-circle east south and southwest from Lake
Mackay through Aylmer, Clinton ooideh, rtai-
migan and Artillery Lakes into Mcleods Bay
From the point Where Mr. Pike LETT "rea' Save
Lake for his Journey nOrthward ahother chaih oi
lakes leads off ENTHUSIASTICALLY 10 'he heau oi
Aylmer Lake. All this gives very VIVA ldca
of how completely unknown a great part OF .ie
British Possessions is to all except the lhdlan
and half-brrcd hunters who traverse IL Ill Search
OF caribou and musk-oX
Anparentlv il was the desire OF shooting a
musk-ox that led Mr. Pike on his journey, jour
nev marked by the usual dangers and privaiions
which were endurcd-or at all events, have been
described with imperturbable good nature. lie
found the French half-brccd far from easy TO deal
with on account Of n disposition 10 quarrel and
steal. but nevertheless indspensably useful. One
ceases 10 wonder al the failure of expeditions ike
that Of Sir John Franklin, when he sees in Mr..
Pixies narrative how often these wild men, Doth
half-brecds and Indians were brought to the verge
Of death by famine. When the carlbou-as IL has
trick OF doing-took new course In lts mgra-
ton from the Barren Grounds TO the forests, "a
whole tribe Of Indians might starve before they
could come up with the animals. In the foggy.
murly weather that prevailed north OF Lake
Mackay, il was impossible TO sight game nj any
distance and the author has a curious story OF the
way the whole camp excited by seeing an
animal supposed 10 be musk-ox bounding along
the horizon Guns were snatched from the
slcghs even the dogs charged al gallop IN pur-
suit Of the strange animal After rush Of ten
yards the quarry disippeared the first mar had
put his foot il and il turned out 70 be one OF
the small mice so common IN the Barren Ground. -
The explorer had a thorough disproof of the
mythical assertion that Indians and half-breeds
can find their way hy instinct even in snow
storm. IN relating an adventure Of this sort on
Lac dc Gras twenty miles north OF Lake Mackay,
he saws: Il never saw children more hopccssly
lost than these men accustomed all their lives 70
Barren Grounds travel - In this case. after they
had bundercd to a camping place, and had fallen
asleep, Mr. Pike was awakened by tremendous
uproar Indians ana halfhrecis were repeating
the chant Hi hi ne, no hi he, while III" dogs far
out on the ice o. the lake were bowling dismay
II appears that OF the mer had discovered star
blinking through rift IN the clouds and thc NOISE
was intended to bring out one Of the large con-
stclations. by which the travellers might take
their hearings. When day dawned It was found
that the march through the storm had been IN
wide circle and whiL tho party had walked at
least fourteen miles. it was only five miles from
the starting plac>.
Two JOURNEYS Were made 10 the Barren Grounds
by the line OF lake. lying along the 9TH meridian.
bu; when Mr. Pike determined 10 spend the
whole OF one short Arcti, summer on that remote
table land whic: ia in reality only the area Of
divisio, between IN, northern and the southern
water9 he and his native companions followed
the chaia Of lakes already mentioned. which led
chosen in order the sooner TO reach the hcadwOters
Of Great Fish River. which the party descended in
canoes as far as Lake Brechey In returning TO
the south NJ. Pike and his companions followed
the course Of LOckharts River from Aymer Lake
to Great Slave Lake and found no little reason
for complaining Of the maps now in use as mac
curatc. and TO a party with scant supplies dan
generously misleading
The book throughout IL the writing OF sports
Here is the description of the killing OF the
first musk-oX Soon after leaving camp we came
TO rough piece Of country. full of patches OF tho
broken rocks that | have described and mounting
II small hill, saw single old bull walking directly
toward us at distance OF 800 yards. We lay
down in the snow, md had capital chance Of
watching him through the glasses AS lie picked lis
way quietly over the slippery rocks, sight which
went far TO repay all the trouble we had taken in
penetrating this land Of desoaton. In crossing
occasional piece OF level ground, he walked with
curiore rolling notion probably accounted for by
the waving of the long hair on the tanks; this hair
reaches almost TO the ground, and gives the legs
such an exaggerated appearance Of shortness that,
at first sight, would declare the animal 10 he
incapable OF any rapid motion. The shaggy head
carried high, aud when he finally pulled up
at sight OF rs. within 40 yards, with his neck
slightly arched and CLEAN OF sunshine lighting
up the huge white boss formed by the junction OF
the horns, he presented most formidable appear
ance. His fate was not long in doubt, my first
shot settled him, and the main object OF my trip
accomplished; whatever might happen after
this | could always congratulate myself on hav-
ing killed muslS-oX, and this made up for great
deal Of the misery that we had afterwards to un-
dergo'
While resting at Fort Resoluton-a post Of the
Hudson Bay Company near the lower end of Great
Slave Lakc-in the interval between his journeys
TO the Barren Ground, the traveller made trial of a
kind of sport that is rare now in North America
lie hunted and shot buffalo. The animal haunts
the forest in small Numbers and ia c,IIod tbo