ANTICOSTI. 189 



flesli of their comrades — the only food at hand — the lady in 

 her turn yielded up her life to the man who notched the 

 weary days upon his tally-stick. He must have been a 

 Initcher by trade so artistically did he dismember the body ! 

 Morsel by morsel, piece by piece, hmb by limb, sparingly, 

 the ghoul di'cw upon his larder. And then the trunk alone 

 remained. Too weak to cut it up he dragged it bodily 

 upon the coals ; and then the fire got low — the fuel was 

 exhausted. Feebly, with one final effort, he dragged himself 

 outside the tent to gather more, and the wild-beasts in wait- 

 ing carried him unresisting to their lau's in the woods — and 

 there the frightful record ended ! No wonder the British 

 Government hastened to pro^^de against the recurrence of 

 another such tragedy, by placing upon the island means of 

 rescue. 



Anticosti now is stripped of half its terrors, though the 

 unseen dangers of its mysterious currents remain. Friendly 

 beacons show far out at sea, and there are havens of rest for 

 the stonn-tossed and stranded. It is now proposed to colo- 

 nize the island and thereby develop its valuable resources. 

 The "Anticosti Company," a number of leading capi- 

 talists of Canada, have purchased it from the proprietors, and 

 this year they will set about their task. It is 120 miles in 

 length by 30 wide, in the broadest part, and contains an area 

 of two millions and a quarter of acres. The only means of 

 visiting it is by chartering a boat or shallop, or securing pas- 

 sage at Quebec upon some of the fishing vessels which go 

 down in May. Sometimes there is an opportunity by the 

 Government vessels in the light-house service, which make 

 periodical visits to the several stations along the coast. 

 However, there is more generally a disposition to keep a safe 

 distance from the island than to seek it. 



