42 Bird-Nestivg 



side of the railway track, were two o]oat piles oi" Imfiiilo 

 skulls and horns ; there must have been several hundi"eds o'i 

 them, and they were all sizes, from that of the largest bull to 

 those of the smallest calves. 



We are now entering a pai-adise for sportsmen. The lakes 

 become numerous: some are salt, some a]e alkaline, and otheis 

 are clear and fresh. AVild geese become very plentiful, so do 

 ducks of many species ; and gulls, terns, })lovers, sandpipei's, 

 and avosets are connnon. Waterfowl blacken the sxu-face of 

 the lakes, and long, wliite lines of pelicans dispoi-t themselves 

 along the shores, and we hear the notes and cries of man}' 

 strange birds. At Cha})lin we come to one of the old wives' 

 lakes, which are extensive bodies of water having no outlet, 

 and are conse(|uently alkaline. At Moi-se, we pass anotlier 

 large lake which swarms witli gidls, and seventeen miles 

 further Rush Lake appeals in sight — this being my destiia- 

 tion. We run along the side of the hdvc for two miles ai.d 

 then the train comes to a standstill at the small platform, and 

 I Avas the only passenger to alight The train moves otl' and 

 resumes its course, and will continue to do so for anothi i" 

 thousand miles yet until Vancouver is reached. The journey 

 from Montreal to Vancouver by the Canadian Pacihc lailway 

 takes live days and eigliteen hours, and it is surprising liow 

 ])unctual the trains are, considering the long journey from tlie 

 Atlantic to the Pacific. After the train had moved off, the 

 station master came up to me and en(|uired, " What has brought 

 you to this city / " I soon informed liim, and lie expressetl 

 himself pleased to have my company for a few days, as he 

 leads a lonely and monotonous life out here : he was the only 

 hand at the station, and was station master, telegraph opera- 

 tor, Vjaggage man and everything else. Behind the station 

 was a single house, where, I was infoi'ined. I should be aiile to 

 secure a room and meals. I soon found out that my newly 

 made friend was a sportsman who had travelled all thi'ough 

 the Saskatchewan region and understood the Indian langufige. 

 He WTas well accjuaintecl with the district around Rush Lake 

 for miles, and he told me that after dinner he would take nie 



