Our
company, consisted in addition to ourselves, of only one person, Mr.
Levalley, a gentleman from Ottawa. We passed four nights under canvas.
The journey was not a lonely one, the ships of the prairie were
continually on the go, we passed several companies of freighters with
harnessed oxen, half-breeds and Indians. It was also full of incident
and adventure; on one occasion, when cooking our tea, we set fire to
the prairie, although we worked hard to put it out, it in a very few
minutes spread in a most alarming manner, and entirely beyond our
control, and we let it go looking on enjoying the scene. Upon nearing
Battleford a number of half-famished squaws came to us begging for
something to eat, but we were not in a position, unfortunately, to
supply their wants, on account of our larder having run dry. We
entered Battleford on the 19th of October.
The town of Battleford is situated on the Battle river. The old on one
side, the new on the other, in the direction of the fort. When the
Indians plundered that place it was the town on the south bank. The
houses on the opposite bank were protected by the guns at the fort. My
husband had a store on the north bank in the direction of the fort.
The town is very scattered, covering a large area of ground, it is
verily a place of distances and quite in keeping with the north-west
generally.
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