172 Н.Р. STEENSBY. 
the ancient Norsemen are not the only navigators who have judged the 
mouths of the rivers incorrectly. Many examples during the age of 
discovery can be named where North American river estuaries were 
taken for arms of the sea. 
I will call to mind that Newport, when seeking a way to the westerly - 
ocean in 1608, went a good way up James’ River; that Henry Hudson 
followed Hudson River as far as Albany before he had a clear under- 
standing as to it not being a strait; and that La Salle dreamt of the St. 
Lawrence being the waterway which led to the Pacific Ocean, on account 
of its tides?, 
On the basis of these reflections I have no hesitation in expressing 
the view that the place where Furdustrand changed its character for 
the Norsemen, and became fjord-indented, is at the mouth of the 
Saguenay, in the St. Lawrence. But is it the Saguenay or is it the St. 
Lawrence that the Norsemen called Straumfjord, and which of them 
did they sail into? There can be scarcely any doubt as regards the 
answer to this question, for the whole character of the Saguenay River 
is so monstrously uninviting that it cannot be supposed that the Norse- 
men preferred to make further acquaintance with this indentation. With 
Straumfjord, therefore, we must necessarily consider the St. Lawrence. 
More difficult it is to decide which point was Kjalarnes on the south 
coast of Labrador or on Furdustrands. Perhaps it will be impossible to 
decide, since there are, perhaps, several points that might agree with 
the report. It could be very tempting, with the map before one, to con- 
jecture Point de Monts?, but the appearance of this point is certainly 
more conspicuous on the map that it is in the terrain. One must sooner 
think of some point or other which lies nearer the mouth of the Saguenay, 
as it appears to be evident from the saga-text that Kjalarnes lay close 
to the place where Furdustrands was indented. After the mention of 
Kjalarnes there stands: “pa gerdist landit vägskorit;” — that is to 
say, now the coast became indented. One could possibly think of Point 
Vaches, which is described as “the north-eastern point of entrance to 
Saguenay River,” and also as one of “the most noticeable landmarks” 
on this tract of coast, on account of its sand-hills®. 
The saga now tells of the two swiftfooted Scots Hake and Hekja, 
who were sent out and three days later returned with a bunch of grapes 
and an ear of wheat. Finnur Jönsson, however, is of the opinion that 
this does not refer to this place, and that it does not belong at all to Karls- 
efni’s voyage; according to his interpretation, which depends upon textual 
observations, this episode belongs to the voyage of Leif the Fortunate. 
The saga then continues: ”They steered into a fjord, outside which 
+ cf. Е. С. Sempre, Influences of Geographic Environment [New York 1911] p. 337. 
2 It should be noted that Point de Monts derives its name from the French 
discoverer Monts, and that the name is not due to the condition of the ground. 
3 The Gulf and River St. Lawrence [Washington 1908] р. 454. 
