INTRODUCTION xiii 



have been given to the principal characters and to the prin- 

 cipal trading posts, lakes, and rivers herein depicted. Further- 

 more, in order to give the reader a more interesting, complete, 

 and faithful description of the daily and the yearly life of 

 the forest dwellers as I have observed it, I have taken the 

 liberty of weaving together the more interesting facts I have 

 gathered — both first- and second-hand — into one continuous 

 narrative as though it all happened in a single year. And in 

 order to retain all the primitive local colour, the unique cos- 

 tumes, and the fascinating romance of the fur-trade days as I 

 witnessed them in my twenties — though much of the life has 

 already passed away — the scene is set to represent a certain 

 year in the early nineties. 



Arthur Heming. 



