KLATSASSAN.

303

the only food to be procured was a musk rat, which
formed the dinner of the strongest digestion of the party.
His lordship, we believe, on that occasion preferred to do
penance and fast ; doubtless deeming it hardly consistent
with the dignity of the Bench to dine on rat.

Judge Begbie reached Quesnelmouth, September 27th ;
on the day following the trial began, and was concluded
the next day. The evidence against the prisoners was
unmistakably clear. And as the law was equally un-
mistakable, the judge had no option but to condemn
the prisoners to death, with the exception of Chiddeki or
George—against whom there was not sufficient evidence.
There were five sentenced :—

Klatsassan, for the murder of a man uamed Smith, at
Homathco ; cf Macdougal, the packer, &e.

Taloot, for the murder of several whites at Homathco,
and stabbing Buckley.

Tapeet, for the murder of Manning.

Chesuss, for that of Brewster, of one Jim Gaudet, at
Homatheo.

And lastly, Pierre, for aiding and abetting in the
murders.

XI.

PRISONERS OF HOPE.
QUESNELMOUTH is a thriving settlement, at the head of
navigation on the Upper Fraser. The features of the
country here are very different from those of the lower
part of the river. There the banks are steep and pre-
cipitous, often the stream has to force its way through
canyons or mountain gorges; often it flows or rushes
past where on either side is an elevated ridge. The
towns on the Lower Fraser are built on plains of limited
extent, and are fenced in on all sides by lofty hills. Such
are Lillooet, Lytton, Yale. At Quesnelmouth, on the con-
trary, there are no hills to be seen, except in the far
distance. The plain on which the town is built is vast.
The river banks are low, and the stream, much wider
here than it afterwards becomes, flows serenely along,
affording little indication of the headstrong fury of its
current farther on its course, where it dashes and foams
over in ripples, or roars like mufiled thunder through
its canyons. J arrived at Quesnelmouth on the 2nd October,
on my way down South from the mining district. The
place, though very recent in its origin, had an air of
comfort and civilization which, after the rude life of the
gold diggings was most grateful. The little town was alive
with home-returning miners. As I entered I observed
the stately form of the “ Enterprise ” steamer, moored by
the quay, with her steam up. Hurrying on, I reached the
quay in time to exchange a word with the judge, who
having now finished his assize, had embarked to return
to New Westminster. He told me of the Indians, and I
said I should stay and instruct them. The judge then pro-
mised to use his influence at head-quarters to ensure sufli-
cient time before the execution of the sentence, and then
the “ Enterprise” blew her last whistle and moved away.

Here, then, was I left with five Indians to instruct.
Five criminals to be prepared for eternity! Here was a
definite piece of work cut out for one, work more practi-
cable, seemingly, than promiscuous preaching to gold
diggers. But how to instruct them? for their language
was absolutely unknown to me. The Chilcoaten dialect is
as dissimilar from Lillooet or Shushwap as French is from
Spanish or Italian. I was accordingly obliged to look for

an interpreter. Through the kindness of the stipendiary
magistrate, I found one in a half-caste named Baptiste,
the only man in the place who knew a word of the
language. We went together to the prison, Baptiste and
I, and found it to be no regular gaol but an improvised
affair, a mere log house, with part partitioned off for a
cell. Here were the unhappy prisoners, sitting squatting
on the floor as wretched as could be. To add to their
misery, they were all heavily shackled; the insecurity of
the building seemingly rendering this precaution neces--
sary. No doubt the gaoler (who by the way had once
held H. M. commission in the Navy—such are the
reverses of fortune, now a colonial turnkey !) was as
kind to them as the nature of the case admitted, but
then this was not much. For men hitherto exulting in
liberty to be kept in durance vile was of itself an awful
fate, with the terrible prospect of death, too, at the end.
Stjll they bore up wonderfully. First they fancied
themselves martyrs for their country, and this thought
sustained their courage, but afterwards, as they came to
understand more of the real state of the case, they dis-
covered, in the faith and hope of the Gospel, better
grounds of consolation and of strength.

The prisoners struck me as fine powerful men, much
superior in size and appearance to the Indians of the
Lower Fraser and its tributaries. There was no mistaking
the chief. He sat opposite us as weentered the cell. His
strong frame, piercing dark blue eye, aquiline nose, and
very powerful under-jaw, proclaimed the man of intelli-
gence, ambition, strong force of will. On the other hand,
the very dark complexion; the face, narrow at the fore-
head, wide at the centre; and the high cheekbouvs,.
indicated the characteristics of the North American
savage. Yet when he spoke one could scarcely believe
that this was a man charged with murder. His expres-
sion eager and animated, his voice low and plaintive, his
gentle manner; could these characterize a brigand and a
murderer? One fancied, to hear him speak, that he was
rather like a child who had committed some trivial pecca-
dillo, and who had been consigned to the dark closet till he
should learn better manners—than a ruffian steeped in
crimes and blood.

Next to Klatsassan sat Tapeet, by no means a bad-
looking Indian, strong, well-built, and in the prime of life.
Then came Taloot, a man of great authority with his
tribe. Then Pierre, a mere innocent looking boy of
eighteen. And lastly, Chesuss, who quite made up for
any failings in badness of expression that the others
might have been chargeable with. He looked every whit
the villain he was. He had the countenance of a fiend.

The prisoners received us well, and after some pre-
liminary conversation, we set about our proper-task. I
spoke now Chimook, now French, and Baptiste inter-
preted in Chileoaten. We spoke of Law and of Sin, and
of wrath consequent upon Sin. They received all this
quietly, but when, in our next visit, I applied the
subject, and, speaking of the law against murder, said
they had broken it, and incurred the Divine displeasure,
they resented this. They had only killed the white men,
they said, because otherwise the whites would have
destroyed them (alluding to the small-pox story), and
they could not see that they had done wrong. I said we
were all in one way or other sinners, needing salvation,
for all, whites and Indians alike, had broken one or other
of God’s commandments. Supposing, for a moment, the

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