INTERCOURSE WITH THE NATIVE INDIANS.

339

vent this, he was shot by a musket ball, when all his companions, save the woman, precipitately fled. The woman returned with Mr. Peyton and his party, and was placed under the care of the episcopal missionary of Twillingate. She appeared to be about twentythree years of age, of a gentle disposition, and intelligent enough to acquire and retain many English words which she was taught. It was ascertained that she had a child of three or four years old; it therefore became an object dictated by the first feelings of humanity to restore her to her tribe. She was first brought to St. John's, where she remained several months, exciting a strong and kindly interest towards herself by her modest and intelligent demeanour, and where to many she is still the subject of a pleasant memory, which is recalled by the mention of the name of Mary March.

The charge of returning her to her people was entrusted to Captain Buchan, who had before been engaged in expeditions to the Indians, and it was intended he should set out in the following spring to effect her restoration, and if possible open up some friendly communication with her people. Unfortu nately, before Captain Buchan's enterprise could be This sad event accomplished, the woman died. occurred on January 8, 1820, and was only too likely to increase the obstacles in the way of estab lishing an intercourse with her suspicious race, that could be done in the way of conciliation was domes Captain Buchan proceeded on his journey, taking with him the body of the dead woman, which had been

wrapped in linen and placed in a coffin. This he left on the margin of a lake in the interior, where it was likely to be found by her people, who, it is said, did in fact discover it, and afterwards conveyed it to the place of sepulture of the tribe.

In the spring of 1823, William Cull, whose name has before appeared in this work, being employed with some other men in taking furs into the interior of the island, fell in with an Indian man and an old woman. The former fled, but the other approached and joined Cull and his party, whom she shortly led to where her two daughters were. One of these was about twenty, the other sixteen, years of age. All three were brought by Cull, and placed in the charge of Mr. Peyton, he being a magistrate.

Being well aware that the Government was very anxious to bring about an amicable intercourse with the natives, Mr. Peyton deemed it the best thing he could do to bring the women to St. John's. On their arrival there, however, it soon appeared that one of them was far gone in consumption, and the health of the other, too, was very precarious. It was, therefore, judged proper to hasten the return of two of them.*

The service of conducting them devolved on Mr. Peyton, who was furnished with a large number of presents, consisting of such articles as were calculated to gratify a barbarous tribe. These his instructions directed him to use as circumstances and his own dis

*The third was left behind in St. John's, where she lived for some years, dying at last of consumption.

ABORTIVE ATTEMPTS TO CONCILIATE THE INDIANS. 341

cretion might render most suitable as an incitement to these poor creatures to repose confidence in our people in that part of the coast they frequent.'

Whether any immediate good effect was produced by this new attempt at conciliation does not appear in the Records of the colony. That this, as well as former efforts of the same character, was without any permanent beneficial fruits, is evident from the fact that traces of the Indians gradually grew fainter: until now, for many years not one of them has been seen, and it is questionable whether at the present time a single individual of the race exists in the island.*

*The period of the administration of Sir Charles Hamilton was marked by the most earnest attempt to explore the interior of the country by Mr. Cormack. Extracts from his narrative of the expedition will be found in Appendix No. 5.

CHAPTER XIII.

1825.

IN 1825, Captain Sir Thomas John Cochrane was commissioned to succeed Sir Charles Hamilton in the government of the island. In his appointment to this office, the rule, which had been followed for many years, of making it an appendage to the functions of the admiral in command of the squadron on the station, was departed from, probably from the greater importance which had grown up in the civil affairs of the colony. Captain Cochrane occupied the post for a longer period than any other governor either before or since; and this fact, together with the great changes introduced by the Imperial Parliament, and the active interest His Excellency manifested in the internal arrangements of the country, which led him to effect considerable improvements, especially in the neighbourhood of the capital, makes the period of his rule one of the most important in the annals of the colony on whose condition no other governor has left so many abiding marks of his presence and his sway.

To sketch the course of events in his time is the object of the present chapter: and as the years embraced in the narrative are approaching this side of

the

ADMINISTRATION OF SIR T. J. COCHRANE.

343

proper historical period, the author intends as far as possible to confine himself to the principal occurrences and their causes, and to touch on these with a brevity which he desires to make more evident in the progress of what remains of this work.

The commission of Governor Cochrane contained a clause which indicated the introduction of a further change in the mode of directing the affairs of the colony. Whereas previously the representative of the crown had been left to his own discretion, aided by such instructions as he received from the authorities at home -no one in the island sharing the responsibilities which devolved on him—it was now ordered that a council should divide with him the burden of the charge. The clause enjoining this new arrangement ran as follows:

-

And our will and pleasure is, that there shall henceforth be a council within our said island and territories, to advise and assist you, the Governor thereof; and we hereby require that you, the said Sir Thomas John Cochrane, shall, upon your arrival in our said island of Newfoundland, forthwith call together as many as can be conveniently assembled of the persons whom by our instructions, under our signet and sign-manual, herewith given to you, we have nominated and appointed to be members of our said council.

On Saturday, October 8, 1825, the commission of His Excellency was read and published in the presence of the judges, the lieutenant-colonel commanding the forces, the principal officers, civil and military, and inhabitants assembled at Government House the Governor taking the oaths of office, and then administering the same oaths to Chief