CHAPTER I. 



WHO WE AEE— GRINGALET — SUNRISE — THE SUGAE-CANE — A HALT. 



IT was the 20th April 1864. The clock of the church of 

 the convent of Saint Joseph de Grace chimed four a.m. 

 just as we turned into the main street that leads out 

 of the town. 



Sumichrast took the lead. Tall in stature, noble in mien, and 

 broad-shouldered, he was, in spite of his blue eyes and fair hair, 

 the perfect representative of moral and bodily strength. I was 

 always in the habit of permitting him to lead the way, when, in 

 any of our excursions, it was necessary to favourably impress the 

 imagination of the Indians. He was distinguished as an orni- 

 thologist, and was never so much at home as in the midst of the 

 forests ; in fact, he often regretted that he had not been born 

 an Indian. His gravity entirely devoid of sadness, his skill in 



