Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
any other clothing than that of nature, to climb to the masthead by the
ratlings, with an agility which the young sailors, who hastened to fol-
low them, could scarcely equal; and, more than once, the tarry top was
transformed into a temple of Gnidus.
4
Marchand reached the coast of North America in August and in
the region of Queen Charlotte Islands he found a group of Amerin-
dians willing to trade in furs. Uncouth these fellow human beings
may have seemed to sophisticated eyes - and noses: 'on approaching
them the olfactory organs experience a most unpleasant sensation,
be shrewd businessmen. They were used to dealing with white men,
mainly Spaniards, and were quite clear about what they wanted in
exchange for their skins. Pots, pans and tools were welcomed, as
were any utilitarian metal goods. Trinkets, beads and decorative
items did not interest them at all. They were vaguely aware that the
Europeans had come a long way to obtain furs and could not afford
to return empty-handed. They were in a sellers' market, and they
knew it. The 'civilised' Frenchmen discovered that there was nothing
they could teach the 'primitives' about business. For example, when
one of the Indians struck a particularly good bargain, his neigh-
bours immediately put him in charge of negotiating on their be-
half. However, patience and persistence brought their reward: after
a couple of months, Marchand had a hold well loaded with otter, seal,
bear, beaver, racoon and marmot skins.
He set sail across the Pacific and, via the Sandwich Isles and
the Marianas, he came to Canton. There he had a double shock. The
Chinese, having recently concluded a commercial treaty with the
Russians, had put an embargo on trade in furs with all other for-
eign nationals. The other unwelcome news came from Captain James
Ingraham of the United States brig
Hope.
Ingraham had been on a
similar voyage. He, too, had called at the Marquesas and he had dis-
