4 8o SCIENCE PROGRESS 



The Labrador red fox is very common in the woods and the 

 " white " or arctic fox in the barrens and further south on both 

 coasts. The " cross," " silver," and " black " variations of course 

 occur, as they naturally increase towards the northern limits of 

 range. The " blue " is a seasonal change of the "white." The 

 wolverine and otter are common. The skunk is only known in 

 the south-west. The mink ranges through the southern third of 

 the peninsula. The Labrador marten, or " sable," is a sub- 

 species, generally distributed in the forested parts, like the 

 weasel. The " fisher," or Pennant's marten, is much more local, 

 ranging only between the " North Shore" and Mistassini. 



From the St. Lawrence to the Barren Grounds three-fourths 

 of the land has been burnt over since the white man came. The 

 resultant loss of all forms of life may be imagined, especially 

 when we remember that the fire often burns up the very soil 

 itself, leaving nothing but rocks and black desolation. Still, 

 there is plenty of fur and feather worth preserving. But 

 nothing can save it unless conservation replaces the present 

 reckless destruction. 



Destruction 



When rich virgin soil is first farmed it yields a maximum 

 harvest for a minimum of human care. But presently it begins 

 to fail and will fail altogether unless man return to it in one 

 form some of the richness he expects to get from it in another. 

 Now, exploited wild life fails even faster under wasteful treat- 

 ment but, on the other hand, with hardly any of the trouble 

 required for continuous farming, quickly recovers itself by 

 being simply let alone. So when we consider how easily it can 

 be preserved in Labrador and how beneficial its preservation 

 is to all concerned, we can understand how the wanton destruc- 

 tion going on there is quite as idiotic as it is wrong. 



Take " egging " as an example. The Indians, Eskimos and 

 other beasts of prey merely preserved the balance of nature by 

 the toll they used to take. No beast of prey, not even the white 

 man, will destroy his own stock supply of food. But with the 

 nineteenth century came the white-man market " eggers," 

 systematically taking or destroying every egg in every place 

 they visited. Halifax, Quebec and other towns were centres of 

 the trade. The " eggers " increased in numbers and thorough- 

 ness till the eggs decreased in the more accessible spots below 



