70 THE LABRADOR PENINSULA. CHAP. v. 



some 300 feet above us. Its breadth was scarcely 

 20 feet ; but it was not difficult to trace its great magni- 

 tude during the winter, caused by the freezing of the 

 spray, well marked by a clear stripe of rock fully double 

 the width of the fall in its present state. 



In deep crevices as well as in valleys between hills, and 

 on the north side of some of the mountains, frozen snow 

 of great thickness still remained. In most instances the 

 edges of these little glaciers were overhung by the deli- 

 cate foliage of the birch, just corning into full leaf. We 

 passed during the morning perpendicular rocks fully 500 

 feet high. The flats at the foot of these huge walls were 

 clothed with fine spruce and birch, and in every crevice, 

 high up then" sides, where a little soil could accumulate, 

 small birch, larch, and spruce found room to grow. Animal 

 life began soon to show itself. Salmon were jumping out of 

 the water; brook trout glided and shot over the shallows 

 at the approach of the canoes ; and barked willows with 

 fresh tracks showed that beaver were near at hand. 



4 We must be close to a beaver dam,' I said to Pierre ; 

 ' there are plenty of tracks on the soft mud at the edge of 

 the water.' 



' Only two,' answered Pierre ; ' two beaver on their 

 summer hunt : perhaps there is a dam up the little river 

 yonder, but the beaver are all away ; they will not go 

 back to it until the fall.' 



' You don't find beaver generally in the dam, then, 

 during summer ? ' I said, anxious to draw out Pierre, who 

 was a very observant and accurate hunter, of whom I had 

 heard an excellent character for truthfulness and industry. 



' ' Not often, ' he replied ; ' sometimes the mother with 



