Snbian'g (Opinion 

 of g>ir Cbmunb 



3N 1859, while we were at Mingan, Sir Ed- 

 mund Head came down to fish that river for 

 salmon. My father, who was the Hudson Bay 

 Company's agent there, had received orders to 

 make all the necessary preparations for his recep- 

 tion and transport to the fishing grounds near the 

 falls. With this object in view, a lot of Indians 

 and canoes had been hired to carry all the bag- 

 gage, &c. over a short portage behind the post 

 to the river and then up the stream. These men 

 were under the guidance of a very smart and ac- 

 tive fellow named Sam Meshkina 'The Track- 

 er." He was about forty- five years old, a 

 splendid hunter and trapper, and could boast of 

 speaking fairly good English. It was principally 

 for this accomplishment that he had been selected 

 as the leader. 



Sir Edmund was greatly pleased to see how 

 quickly everything had been attended to by Sam, 

 and in the evening, after dinner, the latter was 

 invited to the Governor- General's tent, where he 

 was thanked for the able manner in which he had 

 acquitted himself of his work. As Sam was not 

 at all shy, he was asked many questions about 

 the Indian mode of life, and especially about bea- 



