58 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. IO7 



the entire St. Lawrence region that in any way fits the documentary 

 descriptions. Moreover, it has all the strength of the Nova Scotia 

 theory in being immediately connected with a tidal inlet correspond- 

 ing to Streamfirth whether we identify it with the strait north of 

 Anticosti Island or look for it higher up in the St. Lawrence estuary. 

 Jacques Cartier (Biggar, 1924, p. 74) gives testimony to the strength 

 of tides in the former in the record of his first voyage. His longboats 

 were sent ahead of the vessels to row up to the head of Anticosti on 

 its northern side, but — 



when we had rowed along the said coast for some two hours, the tide began to 

 turn and came against us from the west so violently that it was impossible to 

 make a stone's throw of headway with thirteen oars. And we deemed it advis- 

 able to leave the long-boats, with part of our men to stand guard over them, 

 and for ten or twelve of us to go along the shore as far as that cape where we 

 found that the coast began to turn off towards the south-west [i.e., to North 

 Point on Anticosti]. When we had seen this, we made our way back to our 

 long-boats and returned on board the ships, which were still under sail, hoping 

 always to make headway; but they had drifted more than four leagues to lee- 

 ward from the spot where we had left them. 



The tides in the St. Lawrence estuary are stronger yet, attaining 

 their maximum at the mouth of the Saguenay where they reach a 

 velocity at times of 6 or 7 knots an hour (St. Lawrence Pilot, 1924, 

 p. 411). 



Either of these locations would fit the statements in the narra- 

 tives which give us to understand that Streamfirth was near the 

 Wonder-strands and that it was entered immediately after passing 

 them. The Saga says : "Then the country became indented with bays, 

 and they steered their ships into a bay." On reading this some have 

 supposed that the voyagers passed a number of bays and chose to 

 enter one of them, I think, however, that the first part of the sentence 

 is merely introductory to the second. They had been sailing along what 

 seemed to them an open coast, and afterwards came to a part of it 

 where bays began and they sailed into one of them which we may 

 equally well suppose was the first. 



The Saga continues : 



There was an island out at the mouth of the bay, about which there were strong 

 currents, wherefore they called it Straumey [Stream Isle]. There were so many 

 birds there, that it was scarcely possible to step between the eggs. They sailed 

 through the firth, and called it Straumfiord [Streamfirth], and carried their 

 cargoes ashore from the ships, and established themselves there. They had 

 brought with them all kinds of live-stock. It was a fine country there. There 

 were mountains thereabouts. They occupied themselves exclusively with the 

 exploration of the country. They remained there during the winter, and they 



