LABRADOR JOURNAL 187 



bitch, weighed forty-iiiiie pounds, stood twenty- 

 seven inches high, and, from her nose-end to her 

 rmnp, measured three feet seven inches. Another 

 wolf followed my track of yesterday, to seven of 

 my traps, one of wliicli he struck up but would 

 not meddle with the rest. I had a loin of w^olf, 

 and part of a loin of wliite-bear roasted for my 

 dimier; the former was the sw^eetest, but the lat- 

 ter, by much the tenderest of the two. 



MoHclau, January 15, 1776. All hands went 

 round the traps, which were found drifted up; I 

 had a raven's beak in one, and a marten had been 

 caught in the spring-snare, but carried it off by 

 cutting the line. My feet w^ere on tlie point of 

 freezing the whole tune I w^as out although they 

 were well defended by flannel and Indian boots: 

 the httle finger of my left hand was burnt from 

 end to end, by touching a trap as I was tailing it; 

 but I soon took the frost out of it by the immediate 

 application of snow\ This accident brought a 

 couplet of Hudibras to my recollection: he says, 



" And many dangers shall environ, 

 The man who meddles with cold iron; " 



which so tickled my fancy, that I could not help 

 repeating it all the rest of the day. 



Sunday, January 21, 1776. T made prepara- 

 tions {{iY a cruise on a party of pleasure. 



Monday, January 22, 1776. At half past seven 

 this morning, taking four men with me, and our 

 provisions on two Nescaupick sleds, one drawn by 

 two Newfoundland dogs, Ihe other by two of the 



