FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB. 75 



my face was frost-bitten, and had to be revived in the usual 

 way by gently rubbing it with snow. Going on, however, in the 

 thick wood we felt no great inconvenience. 



It must be remembered that though so cold it is extremely 

 dry, and the light snow shakes off you like dust, leaving you 

 perfectly dry. 



At the request of my friend Mr. Devenish, to whom I remem- 

 ber telling the story many years ago, when we were camping out 

 together on the Ortoire River, I will tell you what he calls the 

 " last match " story. It is nothing very wonderful but it was a 

 very wet night, for it can rain in New Brunswick nearly as 

 heavily as in Trinidad. 



It was in one of our summer canoe voyages. We had gone 

 up the upper waters of the right hand branch of the Tobique, 

 and wished to get to two large almost unknown Lakes — Long 

 Lake and Tobique Lake — out of which the tributaries of this 

 branch of the Tobique take their rise. At a place called the Forks, 

 we found the streams so low that the canoes, loaded, could go 

 no further, and we camped. 



Next morning (Saturday, 8th August) leaving our canoes 

 and baggage and most of the men and telling Gabe and 

 another Indian to start in an empty canoe at day-break next 

 day to try to get up to Tobique Lake and meet us, the " Sagum," 

 " Loks " and I started with three Indians by land for Long Lake. 

 The portage was said to be eight miles, but it was a long ten, 

 and no track or path of any kind. On reaching Long Lake 

 we set the Indians to work to make a " scratch " spruce bark 

 canoe. 



Next day (Sunday 9th August) the canoe was finished about 

 12 and we embarked with Noel, one of the Indians, and pro- 

 ceeded up the Lake, telling the other Indians to wait where 

 we had camped for the night till towards evening, in case we 

 should have to return. If we did not, they were to recross the 

 portage to the depot camp. 



After paddling several miles up the Lake, we found a port- 

 age track and crossed by it to Tobique Lake, where we found 

 Gabe and Lola. They said they had got up with very great 

 difficulty, there being hardly any water in the river and that it 

 would be impossible to take more than two in the canoe. 



So the " Sagum " and " Loks " went with them, and I 

 returned the way we came with Noel, across the portage to 

 Long Lake, with great difficulty, however, for the wind was rising 

 strong against us and it was a very frail and temporary canoe and 

 was already showing signs of coming to grief. We hoped to 

 catch the two men at our last night's camp, for they had " grub " 

 and we had none. 



