142 HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY OF NEWFOUNDLAND 



was guarded for some thirty miles by fences for impounding 

 deer, while on their way from their summer haunts in the wild 

 woody north to their winter haunts on the wilder woodless 

 barrens in the middle south. The pounds belonged to the 

 Bcothics, who were themselves migratory, living partly by the 

 inland lake on venison, partly by the shore on birds and eggs, 

 and partly by the river-banks on venison. * A few years later 

 two salmon fishers on the Exploits repeated this expedition, 

 in order to destroy these salmon-like migrants in their 

 uppermost haunts, reached their winter villages by the lake, 

 shot or drove off the inhabitants, and burnt the houses, with 

 the approval of their fellow-countrymen. 2 In September, 

 1803, a Beothic woman was brought by an Englishman to the 

 Governor, who loaded her with gifts, iropwv uTrepctcrio. eSva, 

 and sent her back, vainly expecting to make the rich-returned 

 lady an ambassadress of peace. s In 1810 Captain Buchan, 

 R.N., left two marines for a few hours with the Beothics of 

 Exploits Bay as pledges of peace ; and the marines were 

 duly welcomed and decapitated. Haie and Whitbourne 

 observed long ago that the redskins had fled northward and 

 westward before the white men. Guy parleyed with them in 

 Trinity Bay, but they too were scared and fled next summer. 

 Then for a century and a half history was silent or gave dark 

 hints as to the doings and sufferings of this shy persecuting 

 but persecuted people. And now- in these latter days, when 

 northern extension brought Englishmen near their last lairs, 

 the Beothics flitted fitfully once more across the tragic stage, 

 were still the same treacherous fugitive phantoms, but fewer 

 and more implacable than of yore, were last seen in their wild 

 state in 1823, and then vanished for ever, even as the white 

 bears and great auks, which early travellers saw, have vanished 



1 C. Pedley, History of Newfoundland, 1863, p. 480. 



- First Report of the House of Commons on Newfoundland, I793> 

 p. 38, Major Cartwright's evidence. 



8 Rev. L. A. Anspach, History of Newfoundland, 1819, p. 245 ; 

 C. Pedley, op. '/., p. 226, 



