hee 
THE INDIANS 199 
The lake and river route from the middle George to 
Chimo leads westerly to Whale River. This is not the 
Whale River mentioned in connection with the coastal 
Indians, which is a great stream of the Hudson Bay slope. 
The present river is smaller, and is known to the Indians 
as Manouan, “Egg-gathering Place.” They describe the 
route as a hard one, and the Manouan as alinum, “ diffi- 
cult.’ The river route eastward to the Atlantic is not 
difficult for a light party, but as it includes more than twenty 
lakes with many long portages between, it is hard to follow 
without a guide, and is at best rather formidable for a loaded 
party. 
Formerly some of the southern Indians came up North- 
west River and hunted on its upper waters and those of 
rivers flowing eastward into the Atlantic. Their country, 
poor at best, suffered by fire; fish were small, the caribou 
more and more uncertain. Finding that the deer summered 
in the unoccupied lake country south of the Nascaupees 
and west of Hopedale, they adopted that region and gave 
up the dificult Northwest River route. Having changed 
their trading-point to Seven Islands, the easier route by 
the upper Hamilton and Lake Michikamau was very direct. 
The number of these families varies from half a dozen to 
as many as fifteen or more. Their summer route finally 
reaches the east coast by the Notaquanén (‘‘ Porcupine- 
hunting-place’’) River. 
In winter, they can traverse the country without much 
reference to watercourses. The camps are in sheltered 
places, where there are trees enough to protect from the 
wind, and are almost always near water. The ice becomes 
too thick to be cut through easily, but whenever there is 
