THE MONTAGNAIS INDIANS AND THEIK 

 FOLK-LOKE 



A DEscEiPTioN of the Canadian environment of the 

 ouananiche would be necessarily incomplete without 

 some account of the aboriginal inhabitants of the coun- 

 try. The sportsman who penetrates into its interior 

 engages these Montagnais Indians as his guides, and 

 he need not be an enthusiast in the science of eth- 

 nography to desire some knowledge of the tribal 

 peculiarities of this interesting people, and of the 

 strange beliefs, superstitions, and manners of the men 

 who paddle and pole his canoe in the water, carry it 

 over the portages, pitch and take down his tent, make 

 his bed and his fire, cook and serve his meals, and con- 

 duct him to the likeliest spot for a shot at a bear or a 

 caribou, or to the most promising grounds for ouana- 

 niche or trout. 



Already in the chapter upon Canoeing and Camp- 

 ing, and elsewhere in the foregoing pages, has ample 

 testimony been borne to the efiiciency of the guides 

 with pole and paddle and axe, in rapids or on portage, 

 in camp or in the trackless forest. 



These Indians are a branch of the Cree family, and 

 are divided into two tribes— the Nascapees or inland 



