42 Sir ALEXANDER MACKENZIE

1789 that I went this expedition in hopes of
getting into Cook’s River”; in another: “I
followed the course of the waters which had
been reported by Mr. Pond to fall into Cook’s
River.” It was a bitter disappointment when
he found that his route had taken him instead
to the ice-bound coast of the Arctic Ocean.

Pond must, therefore, be given some credit as |
the inspirer of a famous journey. ‘Though he
misled Mackenzie as to the result, he gave him
a definite question to answer: Into what ocean
drained the rivers and lakes of the Athabaska
region? Were they, as Pond believed, the
upper waters of Cook’s River on the Pacific?
‘The only way to find out was to go and see.