14 THE DRAMA OF THE FORESTS 



Forest are generally called — lie about one hundred and fifty 

 miles apart. 



The natural overland highways throughout the country, 

 especially those intersecting the watercourses and now used as 

 the roadbeds for our great transcontinental railways, were 

 not originally discovered by man at all. The credit is due to 

 the big game of the wilderness ; for the animals were not only 

 the first to find them, but also the first to use them. The In- 

 dian simply followed the animals, and the trader followed the 

 Indian, and the ofiicial "explorer" followed the trader, and the 

 engineer followed the "explorer," and the railroad contractor 

 followed the engineer. It was the buffalo, the deer, the bear, 

 and the wolf who were our original transcontinental path- 

 finders, or rather pathmakers. Then, too, the praise bestowed 

 upon the pioneer fur traders for the excellent judgment shown 

 in choosing the sites upon which trading posts have been 

 established throughout Canada, has not been deserved; the 

 credit is really due to the Indians. The fur traders erected 

 their posts or forts upon the tribal camping grounds simply 

 because they found such spots to be the general meeting places 

 of the Indians, and not only situated on the principal highways 

 of the wilderness but accessible from all points of the surround- 

 ing country, and, moreover, the very centres of excellent fish 

 and game regions. Thus in Canada many of the ancient 

 tribal camping grounds are now known by the names of 

 trading posts, of progressive frontier towns, or of important 

 cities. 



Now, as of old, the forest Indians after their winter's hunt 

 return in the early summer to trade their catch of furs, to meet 

 old friends, and to rest and gossip awhile before the turning 

 leaf warns them to secure their next winter's "advances" from 

 the trader, and once more paddle away to their distant hunting 

 grounds. 



The several zones of the Canadian wilderness are locally 



