NARRATIVE. 63 



midst of the wilderness, beyond the reach of all compulsion, — rarely 

 or never neglect to pay every fai'thing. Their sense of honor 

 among themselves, too, seems, in some points at least, acute. We 

 were told that if an Indian finds a beaver-lodge, he cautiously traps 

 a beaver or two, and then leaves them alone for the season, since 

 otherwise the animals would forsake the place altogether. This he 

 does year after year in perfect security that no one will meddle with 

 them after he has proclaimed his discovery, and it is said that a 

 beaver-lodge sometimes descends thus from father to son. 



July 8th. — Being in Mr. S.'s room this morning, a hunter came 

 in from the woods to get a supply of tobacco, Avhich, with ammuni- 

 tion and apparatus for making fire, are the hunter's indispensables, 

 and are never refused them. His first words (in Indian, for he 

 understood no English,) were an exclamation at the astonishing 

 quantity of flies. 



Happening to be in want of a tobacco-bag, I made a proposal 

 through Mr. S. for a rather ornamental one, (of broadcloth of various 

 colors, with hanging tassels, and worked with beads,) which the 

 Indian wore at his girdle. He signified his acquiescence, and 

 handed me the pouch ; but when in return I gave him a five franc 

 piece, he eyed it curiously, and bursting into a giggle, asked Mr. 

 S. what he should do with it ? Mr. S. satisfied him on this point 

 by telling him how much cloth it would buy, whereat he seemed 

 satisfied, and requested to have the things out of his pouch. These 

 consisted of a quantity of kinni-kmik, and fire apparatus, being 

 a small cylinder of wood, hollow at one end, round which was an 

 edge of steel. A quantity of the fibrous inner bark of the arbor- 

 vitne being placed in the hollow, is ignited by strikmg a stone across 

 the mouth. 



So large a number of Indians are collected here, (I think Mr. S. 

 said about 150,) that it would seem to be a good opportunity for 

 doing something towards civilizing them. There is certainly room 

 enough for improvement. They have no church, no schools, no 

 marriage ceremony, unless it be in the Indian style, every man 

 having as many squaws as he can support. They do not attempt 

 any agriculture, but depend on hunting, and when that fails, on the 



