72 THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. CHAP. v. 



woods on the Bersamits Eiver, and in the morning heard 

 frogs. I went in the direction of the sound, and came to 

 a steep cliff. Looking over the cliff, I saw a small lake 

 with beaver in it. I climbed down, and went all round 

 the lake, but there was no outlet ; it lay in a hollow 

 between hills, and there were plenty of beaver in it which 

 had never been disturbed.' 



' Are beaver numerous in the country now ? ' 



' Pretty much ; the Indians tell me they are more 

 plentiful than years ago. But here ! a fine beach for 

 landing would you like to get breakfast?' 



'A terre ! a terre ! ' Pierre shouted, as I nodded an 

 affirmative to the question. The canoes soon touched the 

 shore, and Louis a moment afterwards turned round and 

 said, ' Mash-qua ^' 



' Mash-qua ? why "Mus- qua " is Ojibway for bear. Did 

 you see a bear, Louis ? ' He pointed to the ground about 

 five yards from the shore, and in the sand we saw a 

 fresh bear-track. 



' How long is it since he passed?' I asked. 



' Last night ; perhaps early this morning.' 



The cry of breakfast put a stop to further enquiries, 

 and we sat down to our meal with such appetites as 

 health, exercise, hard work, and abstinence can give. 



About noon we arrived at the Forks, passing by many 

 grand old rocks, gray and stern, and gradually increasing 

 in height. The Moisie seemed to flow with a winding 

 course in a huge crack between them, for the river swept 

 the bases of a towering wall-like precipice, first on one 

 side, then on the other, of this great crack in the earth. 

 Drift clay, capped by sand, had partially filled the 



