Keith, George. An Account of Mackenzie River (Letters to Roderick Mackenzie), 1807-1817. An electronic transcription. MFTP #0033

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of their occasional peregrinations. As Aborigines they may not perhaps be considered as defective in population, in comparison to the number of Families, which cannot be easily computed, as we see but very few of them at this or any other Establishment; and they appear very shy or evasive when questioned upon the subject. However their limited Territory, exclusive of other considerations, prevents them from being very formidable in this Respect. Polygamy is likewise countenanced amongst them, yet they very seldom take advantage of this general indulgence, arising perhaps from the difficulty sometimes experienced of supporting a single woman with the offspring resulting therefrom, which I am induced to think amounts in most cases from

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