156 AN OLD-TIME CARIBOU HUNT 



and then poured into a birch bark mould to cool. 

 A god sized cake will weigh about ten to fifteen 

 pounds, as white as driven snow, with the bits of 

 marrow looking like raisins in it, and it is really 

 delicious eating. After the meat is dry, the 

 strips are packed and pressed down into a par- 

 cel of about sixty pounds, then wrapped up in 

 thin birch bark and laid aside till required. It 

 will keep good for two years or more, the outside, 

 only, becoming a little blue-moulded, as is seen 

 on hams or bacon at times. We spent a week 

 with these Indians, and had a good time, eating 

 lots of venison and watching all these different 

 operations. How many caribou we killed be- 

 tween my brother and I we shall never know, 

 but in the division of the spoils by the head man, 

 old Pierre, my share was set down as two. It was 

 all neatly cut up and partly dried for us, and a 

 bit of fat cake added. We made no claim for the 

 stomach pudding. 



Citrtlt^ft <Karib0u 



There is an immense difference between our 

 wild northern caribou and what I call the civi- 

 lized animal, such as is found near the settle- 

 ments around Matane, Quebec, and Baie St. 

 Paul. Here we have to take the greatest pre- 

 caution in locating their feeding ground, for if 

 they cross our tracks they will be miles away in 

 twenty- four hours if they can manage it. The 



