Then he yielded to the passionate desire of his people to withdraw inland from the possibly dangerous inhabitants of the coast, and returned with them to the encampment where the porcupine had been eaten.  Here the guide made off into the woods.  Mackenzie followed him, and thus reached a village from which two men issued armed with daggers and intending to attack him.  While stopping to defend himself, many other people assembled, and amongst them he recognized the irritating person who incessantly repeated the names “Makuba” and “Benzins”.  However, this threatened danger was narrowly averted, and eventually they left the village with a supply of food; but also in a state of considerable irritation with—­fleas!  For some of the houses of these Pacific coast villages swarmed with fleas to such an extent that Mackenzie and his men were obliged to take to the water to rid themselves of these vermin, which swarmed also on the ground that was bare of grass.

The return journey up the Salmon River was a series of bewildering vicissitudes.  Sometimes Mackenzie and his party were received in the most threatening way by persons who had been warm friends on their downward journey, then seemingly inevitable war was transformed into peace, but guides deserted, or the Amerindians from across the Rocky Mountains attempted to mutiny.  However, they struggled through all their difficulties, till at last they reached the place known as the Friendly Village, and were here fortunately received with great kindness, being once more entertained “with the most respectful hospitality”.  “In short, the chief behaved to us with so much attention and kindness that I did not withhold anything in my power to give which might afford him satisfaction....  I presented him with two yards of blue cloth, an axe, knives, and various other articles.  He gave me in return a large shell which resembled the under shell of a Guernsey oyster, but was somewhat larger.  Where they procure them I could not discover, but they cut and polish them for bracelets, ear-rings, and other personal ornaments....”

The women of this place were employed in boiling sorrel and different kinds of berries in large square kettles made of cedar wood.  This pottage, when it had attained a certain consistency, they took out with ladles, and poured it into frames about twelve inches square.  These were then exposed to the sun, until their contents became so many dried cakes.  This was their principal article of food, and probably of traffic.  These people had also made portable chests of cedar, in which they packed these cakes, as well as their salmon, both dried and roasted.  The only flesh they ate in addition to the salmon was that of the sea otter and the seal; except that one instance already mentioned of the young Indian who feasted on the flesh of the porcupine.

“Their faces are round, with high cheekbones, and their complexion between olive and copper.  They have small grey eyes with a tinge of red,... their hair is of a dark-brown colour.”  The men wore their hair long, and either kept it well combed and hanging loose over the shoulders, or plaited it and bedaubed it with brown earth so as to make it quite impervious to the comb.  Those who adopted this fashion had to carry a bone bodkin about with them to ease the frequent irritation which arose from the excessive abundance of vermin in their hair.