Farewell to Kate—Departure of the brigade—Charley becomes a voyageur.

On the following day at noon, the spot on which the late combat had taken place became the theatre of a stirring and animated¹ scene. Fort Garry, and the space between it and the river, swarmed² with voyageurs, dressed in their cleanest, newest, and most brilliant costume. The large boats for the north, six in number, lay moored³ to the river’s bank, laden⁴ with bales of furs, and ready to start on their long voyage. Young men, who had never been on the road before, stood with animated looks watching the operations of the guides as they passed critical examination upon their boats, overhauled⁵ the oars⁷ to see that they were in good condition, or with crooked⁸ knives (a species of instrument in the use of which voyageurs and natives are very expert) polished off the top of a mast, the blade of an oar⁶, or the handle of a tiller. Old men, who had passed their lives in similar occupations, looked on in silence—some standing⁹ with their heads bent¹⁰ on their bosoms¹¹, and an expression of sadness about their faces, as if the scene recalled some mournful event of their early life, or possibly reminded them of wild, joyous¹³ scenes of other days, when the blood coursed warmly in their young

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