BLACK PESTS. 183 



The Priest read on. " ( The largest taken during this 

 expedition was killed by my companion, and caused more 

 trouble than all his other prizes. Not only did the fellow 

 attempt to clear himself by stemming the foam of a 

 rapid, and rubbing his nose against a rock, to break the 

 hook, but he also swept himself completely round a large 

 boulder, poked his head into a net, and ran, with the speed 

 of lightning to the extreme end of his line. It took my 

 friend forty minutes to land this salmon, and I assure you 

 he was particularly pleased when he found that his fish 

 weighed one pound more than the largest I had taken. 

 The fact was, our rods were almost precisely alike in length 

 and strength, and as two countries were represented in our 

 persons, the strife between us was quite desperate. I will 

 acknowledge that the Canada gentleman took the largest 

 salmon, but the States angler took them in the greatest 

 number. Notwithstanding all the fine sport that we enjoyed 

 on the Esquemain, I am compelled to state that it was more 

 than counterbalanced by the sufferings we endured from 

 the black fly and musquito. The black-fly is about half 

 as large as the common house-fly, and though it bites you 

 only in the day time, they are as abundant in the air as the 

 sand upon the sea shore, and venomous in an uncommon 

 degree. The musquito of this region is an uncommonly 

 gaunt, long-legged, and hungry creature, and his howl is 

 peculiarly horrible. We had been almost devoured by the 

 black-flies daring the afternoon, and soon as darkness 



