224 THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. CHAP. xrv. 



Charles Tache enumerates the elk and ground hog as 

 common about the Saugenay previous to 1823. The elk 

 was hunted down chiefly by the Montagnais Indians for 

 the sake of their skins, which they disposed of to the 

 fur traders. Tache considers the destruction of the elk 

 as one of the reasons of the rapid disappearance of the 

 Montagnais nation from the neighbourhood of Lake 

 St. John and the Saugenay. The moose was also very 

 common in the country drained by this river, and in the 

 time of the Pere Le Jeune it formed one of their chief 

 sources of food. In 1670 Pere Albanel stated that the 

 moose approached the country of the Oumamiwek on or 

 near the Eiver Godbout. 



We found it necessary to adopt an expedient to hurry 

 on the men, who were getting dismayed and scared at 

 the wild and inhospitable appearance of the country as 

 we approached the burnt land. We sent Pierre with a 

 canoe to the end of the Burnt Portage, and told the cook 

 to follow, and cross over to the other side of the next 

 lake, which was a small one, and prepare our supper there. 



Leaving the men to carry the things across the portage, 

 we went on in advance, and, in crossing the lake, began to 

 look out for our camp ground. The cook came to me to 

 ask for matches to light the fire, but I had recently changed 

 my coat, as the evening promised to be cold, and left the 

 match-box in the pocket othe garment which I had packed 

 in my leather bag at the other end of the portage path. No 

 one else had any dry matches, and we had to draw the 

 charge of shot and fire off a gun in order to light a lucifer 

 match from the burning wad, not being disposed to wait 

 until Michel could procure fire for us with his drill. We 



