Fort Carleton, Sk. 10 Au 1879 Marcus Smith letter to his wife
Lot 23 in our auction Saturday 17th July 2021
#marcussmith #bcsurveyor #canadianrailways #bchistory
Fort Carleton (Saskatchewan)
Aug 10th, 1879
My dear Wife
I wrote you on my arrival at Fort Ellis, about 4 weeks ago- From thence I travelled westward passing between the Tonchwood hills and the L’appelle river and struck the South Saskatchewan some 25 miles south of where the telegraph and railway line (Fleming’s location) crosses- I then came 50 miles down the river to the ferry and thence to this place- where I arrived on Friday evening and have staid over two days to rest- for I was very weak having had diarrhea for 6 days very badly through having to drink the abominable alkali water which we could not avoid as we were over 6 days in the country where there was no other water and we were also without wood not even a brush a foot high did we pass for several days.
I heard of Tom here he does not seem to have got on very well with the party and wanted to leave them and wait till I came up.- but Mr. Clarke (the Hudson Bay Co. agent) persuaded him to go on to Green lake with Mr. Clarke (a young man from Guelph I think) and they were properly furnished with supplies &.c.- so that they will have no trouble-
O’Keefe with the rest of the party is gone in another direction but they will all return here before the end of September The mosquitoes have been and continue to be fearfully annoying I start to-morrow for Prince Albert settlement down the river- and Fort A’la Corne below the forks of the River- thence I cross the Pasquia hills to Fort Pelly- and down the Assiniboine to Shell River-thence to Shoal lake where there is a post office and where I will get my first letter as the mail will not arrive here for nearly a week yet and I cannot wait-
I shall write you from Shoal lake which is only about 150 miles from Winnipeg so you see I am already on my way homeward
Love and Kisses to all the children
Yours ever
M. Smith
