AND KAYAK 187 



evenings are always cool and chilly, and most 

 of the nights are frosty. It seems a pity that 

 the short summer should be spoiled by the 

 gnats, but so it is. 



Just when you are thankful that the winter s 

 cold is over, and just when you begin to find 

 the days warm enough to be enjoyable, the 

 time of the gnats begins. From the begin 

 ning of July to the end of August, and even 

 later, the summer air of Labrador swarms 

 with countless hosts of the blood-thirsty 

 creatures. 



Mosquitoes, we call them ; and rightly, I 

 suppose, for their scientific name is Culex ; 

 and they live fully up to the evil repute that 

 their family has for biting and stinging and 

 buzzing and swarming around. How, thought 

 I, can one be expected to enjoy this lovely 

 scenery, these otherwise delightful walks among 

 the hills, if one is compelled to be encased in 

 a gauze veil and a pair of thick gloves ? The 

 buzzing creatures perch on the meshes of your 

 veil, and you can see them striving to get 

 through ; if you have not adopted Eskimo 

 boots, which reach up to your knees, they 

 climb about your knitted socks, and sit there, 

 biting your ankles between the strands of wool, 

 and you can almost imagine them kicking their 

 heels with delight at the convenience of having 



