RIVER LIFE. 201 



paid their tribute, passed on, and left the mountain white with 

 snow. This took place on the 20th of September. 



" Crossing the lake — 'Millnoket, a most beautiful sheet of wa- 

 ter, containing a great number of small islands, from which cir- 

 cumstance it takes its name' — we reached the carrying-place at 

 the head of a long creek, where we pitched our camp amid a few 

 poplar-trees, which were of second growth, or have sprung up 

 since the forests were burned. The want of good fuel and of 

 boughs for a bed was severely felt, since we were obliged to re- 

 pose on naked rocks, and the green poplar-trees appeared to give 

 more smoke than fire. The night was cold and the wind violent, 

 so that sleep was out of the question. Early in the morning we 

 prepared to carry our boats over to Ambijejis Lake, and the la- 

 bor was found very difficult, since the water was low, and we 

 had to traverse a long tract of boggy land before reaching the 

 other lake. 



" Tracks of moose and cariboo abound in the mud, since they 

 frequent the shallow parts of the lake, to feed upon the lilypads 

 or the leaves of the Nuphan lutea, which here abound. A no- 

 ble-looking cariboo suddenly started from the woods, and trotted 

 quietly along the shores of the lake quite near us, but we were 

 not prepared to take him, and he presently darted into the forest 

 and disappeared. 



" Our provisions having been reduced, owing to the circum- 

 stance that our journey proved much longer than we had antici- 

 pated, I thought it necessary to put the whole party on a regu- 

 lar allowance, which was mutually agreed to. Our Indian, 



Neptune, ineoeeded in oatehing half a dozen musquash, which 



we were glad to share with him, and a lew trout which were 

 also taken, and served to save a portion of our more substantial 

 food. At Pock-WOck-amui Falls, where the river rushes over a 

 Ledge of granite, large trout are caught abundantly, and we 

 Stopped a short time, to obtain a BUpply. They arc readily taken 



I ■: 



