128 THE BARREN-GROUND CARIBOU 



those might carry one " across the line " in but 

 an hour or two if one was stricken when out alone 

 in the all-forsaken land of merciless cold. 



However, to return to the Caribou and the 

 main object of this narrative, during my winter 

 travels I was fortunate to see thousands upon 

 thousands of those graceful animals. 



Once in particular I witnessed the purposeful 

 migration of Caribou. This was when returning 

 in December, short of food and short of sled- 

 dogs, from the region of the Barren Lands, where 

 no Caribou had been seen. Indeed, not one 

 animal was encountered north of the locality I 

 speak of, a point about sixty miles north of Rein- 

 deer Lake. Here one morning, after camping over- 

 night on the edge of a small lake that only 

 had a range of view of about a mile, from day- 

 light until I struck camp about 11 a.m., I 

 witnessed countless herds of Caribou crossing the 

 lake in a south-easterly direction — one herd 

 following another, company on company, regi- 

 ment on regiment : and they were still passing 

 when I left. It would be impossible to estimate 

 them. One could not tell where the column 

 began nor where it ended, nor if similar columns 

 were passing behind us to the north or beyond 

 vision in the south. I attempted to count some 

 herds as they crossed ; one numbered close on one 

 hundred before it disappeared into the forest and 

 I could count no further. Many were bands of 

 between twenty and forty. All appeared intent 

 on travelling, and were, as far as one could see, 

 all does and fawns. The Indians assert that the 

 does and fawns are now moving north again 



