148 My Dogs in the Northland 



still perilous, so we got into the habit of 

 always putting Voyageur at the head, where 

 dangers seen, and more frequently unseen 

 by the human eye, beset our trail. 



Thus for years he was the undisputed 

 leader of the first train. Generally on my 

 long trips, the Indian guide was at the front 

 running on ahead. His snowshoes left suffi- 

 cient track for the dogs, even if he himself 

 were miles on ahead. No matter how 

 crooked the path he thus marked out, the 

 trained dogs followed on it exactly as thus 

 indicated. But when a great lake was 

 reached and the guide was weary of the 

 monotony of having been, it may be for days, 

 running on ahead alone, he would gladly re- 

 sign the leadership to Voyageur. Gallantly 

 would the noble dog take up the work thus 

 assigned to him, and with the route once in- 

 dicated, would push on, hour after hour, 

 with unflagging energy, while the guide thus 

 released, would travel on in the rear with 

 the other Indians with whom he could chat 

 and smoke as thus they followed in the trail 

 or on the frozen lake. 



Among the many remarkable instances of 

 his intelligence and sagacity where in all 

 probability Voyageur saved a number of 



