Ttte de Boulc Indians. 29 



I was even informed that sliould these oigagcs of the fur 

 companies, find parcels of fnrs at an encampment when 

 the owners are absent, they will seldom scruple to take them, 

 and leave a tally for the amount, indicating to which of 

 tlie posts they are indebted for the kindness of saving them 

 the trouble of carrying their own goods to market. The 

 men emi)!oyed to visit the Indians in this manner arc 

 always Canadians, or half-breeds, and mostly daring 

 fellows and skilful voyagcurs ; they are known by the 

 {patois) appellation of Gens Derrouine, and they always 

 put me in mind of bees returning to their hives, or posts, 

 laden with plunder, and ready for another excursion, as 

 soon as they have safely deposited the treasure with which 

 they Avere laden. 



From the personally distinctive title bestowed upon this 

 race, I had expected to sec their heads very remarkably 

 shaped. — This is not the case. I do, indeed, acknowledge 

 that the* prominent parts of their cheekbones are some- 

 what more broadly apart than usual, but by no means so 

 conspicuously as to authorize the peculiar nick-name by 

 which they are distinguished. The young people arc 

 gem-rally good looking ; and a family of children which we 

 met with were, 1 believe, unanimously considered by the 

 party, to have fine intelligent countenances. Nor did 

 advanced age seem to destroy their claim to general 

 appearance. We saw men and women of twenty, fortv, 

 sixty, ninety, an<l one hundred and ten years, and to the 

 best of my judgment, as personable at those respective 

 ages, as other classes of Indians, at least such a-* it has 

 been my chance to fall in with. I cannot help (pnn nlling 

 with this ridiculous title of Ttte de IJoule, as in ihc fii-st 

 place, it led me astray, in supposing that I was aljoui to 



