46 LABRADOR 



parts of the world can equal. From the hilltops the land 

 is a giant opal, changing, in a million moods, from the 

 tenderest gray or blue, through vivid emerald or most 

 royal purples, to the unsurpassed gold and reds of the long 

 twilights and dawns. In the summer season north of 

 Hamilton Inlet the sky is seldom clouded over completely, 

 and cumulus, stratus, or ocean mist simply enhance the in- 

 imitable play of nature's colouring. Thunder-storms are 

 very rare; when one of these storms, coming from the 

 west, does pass out to sea, it may be an event in one's life. 

 I shall never forget one dark night when the huge cliffs of 

 Mugford Tickle through which we steamed, and a group of 

 great icebergs stranded at their feet, leapt out of the black- 

 ness as stroke after stroke of lightning blazed from the 

 clouds. It seemed that one could scarcely imagine a sight 

 more thoroughly awe-inspiring. Even the short nights 

 of the summer and early autumn are blest with light and 

 exquisite colour, for the auroral displays are, on this coast, 

 among the most frequent and extensive of all those re- 

 corded throughout the world. Very often, beneath this 

 strange sky, the sea is intensely phosphorescent ; the traveller 

 by night may find endless entertainment, watching from 

 the bow of his moving vessel the weird lights set flashing 

 by schools of frightened fish. 



If the visitor seeks large rivers for exploration by canoe, 

 he can find a good number, and all are well stocked with 

 salmon and trout. Trout are known always to be taken 

 with the fly, but beyond the latitude of 53 50' north, little 

 fly-fishing has been attempted, and contrary reports are 

 given as to the measure of success in getting salmon to 

 rise. The noblest of the rivers is, of course, the Hamilton, 



