In this despatch, Merivale minutes that he cannot find the Couteau River on the maps, but he presumes from the description to be between Fraser & Thom[p]son's rivers. The Couteau region, also known as the Thompson Region, draws its name from the First Nations bands in the area. However, there is currently
no known river in British Columbia called “Couteau”. It is likely that there never was a river named Couteau in BC,
and Merivale appears to be mistaken.