NEWFOUNDLAND IN THE 'SEVENTIES 231 



the canoe, and to keep your pole perpendicularly 

 under you, so that you can draw the canoe towards 

 it or push her away, according as you may wish. 

 If you plant your pole too far out or too much 

 under the canoe, and throw your weight across 

 her or hang over on your own side, a capsize is 

 probable, if not inevitable. Thirdly, if your pole 

 gets jammed and you cannot snatch it out in a 

 second, let go instantly ; for if you hold on and 

 drag at it, either the canoe will upset or she will 

 slip in the most miraculous manner from under 

 your feet, and you will find yourself suspended 

 for a second in space, and then plunged into a 

 raging flood. 



We made camp early that afternoon, for the work 

 had been very severe, and we needed rest ; but 

 seeing a lot of salmon on the shallows, we deter- 

 mined, in spite of fatigue, to do a little bit of poach- 

 ing and burn the water before turning in. An 

 Indian fish-spear is a very simple affair, but it is far 

 superior to any civilised instrument of the same kind. 

 It consists of a straight iron spike about six inches 

 long, let into the end of a pole of ash, or some other 

 heavy wood, and two wooden jaws lashed one on 

 each side of the spike. These jaws must be made 

 of some tough elastic material, and are so shaped 



