/mej of a ^j /af/^o/n ^A^or//? Canoe' iv/// 6y Crev^ 

 /r/r^^/i oi^ra// ^' //\ over 0unwo/eJ ^?'S' 



Hudson's Bay Company 4!2-Fathom North Canoe, of the 

 type built by Crees at posts near James Bay in the middle of the 

 igth century, for cargo-carrying. 



valuables. Also carried was a travelling case — a lined 

 box for medicine, refreshments for the officers, and 

 what would be needed quickly on the road. 



Provisions such as meat, sugar, flour, etc. were 

 carried in tins and were stowed in baskets which were 

 usually of the form known to woodsmen as pack- 

 baskets. Baskets also served to carry cooking utensils 

 and other loose articles. Bedrolls consisted of blankets 

 or robes, made up in a tarpaulin or oilskin ground- 

 sheet and were used in the canoe as pads or seats. 

 The voy-ageur's term for the canoe equipment — 

 paddles, setting poles, sail, mast, and yard, and the 

 rigging and hauling lines — was agrh, or agrets. 



The term pacton was applied to packs made up 

 ready for portage; they were ordinarily made up of 

 two or more packages, so the weight carried was at 

 the very least 180 pounds. No self-respecting 

 voyageur would carry less, as it would be disgraceful 

 to be so weak. The pacton was carried by means of a 

 collier, or tump-line similar to that used to portage 

 canoes (see p. 122). It was made of three pieces 

 of stout leather. The middle piece was of stout 

 tanned leather about 4 inches wide and 18 inches 

 long, tapered toward each end, to which were sewn 

 pliant straps 2 or 2}i inches wide and 10 feet long. 

 These were usually slightly tapered toward the free 

 ends. The middle portion of this piece of gear was of 



thick enough leather to be quite stiff, but the straps 

 were very flexible. Sometimes the middle portion and 

 2 or 3 feet of the end straps were in one piece with 

 extensions sewn to the latter. The pacton was lifted 

 and placed so that it rested in the small of the carrier's 

 back, with its weight borne by the hips. The ends of 

 the collier were tied to the pacton so as to hold it in place, 

 with the broad central band around the carrier's 

 forehead. On top of the pacton was placed a loose 

 package, cassette, or perhaps a keg. The total load 

 amounted to 270 pounds on the average if the trail 

 was good; the maximum on record is 630 pounds. 

 With his body leaning forward to support the load, 

 the carrier sprang forward in a quick trot, using 

 short, quick paces, and moved at about 5 miles an 

 hour over a good trail. A carrier was expected to 

 make more than one trip over the portage, as a rule. 

 The traditional picture of the fur-trade voyageur 

 as a happy, carefree adventurer was hardly a true one, 

 at least in the 19th century. With poor food hastily 

 prepared, back-breaking loads, and continual ex- 

 posure, his lot was a very hard one at best. The 

 monstrous packs usually brought physical injury and 

 the working life of a packer was very short. In the 

 early days, and during the time of the North West 

 Company, the canoemen were allowed to do some 

 pri\ate trading to add to their wages, but when the 



143 



