44 THE GEOCKAPHKAl. EVOLUTION OF LABRADOR. 



hay ; . . . they paint themselves with certain Roan 

 colors ; their boates are made of the barke of birch trees, 

 with the which they fish and take great store of scales, 

 and as fane as we could vnderstand since our coraming 

 thither, that is not their habitation, but they come from 

 the maine land out of hotter countries, to catch the saide 

 seals and other necessaries for their lining." These red 

 men must have been the Mountaineer Indians, which 

 still come down to the coast from the warmer interior 

 each summer to fish for seal. Cartier makes no men- 

 tion of the Eskimo, who would undoubtedly have been 

 encountered if their roving bands had been living on 

 the coast from Chateau Bay to the Seven Isles, which he 

 so carefully explored. 



This coast appeared to Cartier so disagreeable, un- 

 productive, and barren, that he exclaimed, " It ought to 

 be the country which God had given to Cain." So he- 

 crossed the Strait of Belle Isle, sailed over to Newfound- 

 land, coasted that Island to Cape Anguille, which he 

 reached on the 24th of June. From there he sailed over 

 to the Magdalen Islands, to the Bird rocks (Isles aux 

 Margaulx ), thence to Prince Edward's Island, thence to 

 Miramichi, afterward to Gaspd Bay, and coasted i\nti- 

 costi, crossing over again to near and within sight of the 

 Mingan Islands. Not on this voyage discovering the 

 river St. Lawrence, he finally turned homewards, coast- 

 ing along the Labrador shore, touching at Cape Tieii- 

 not, now called Cape Montjoli. Thence he returned to 

 France through the Strait of Belle Isle. 



The next year Cartier returned, sailing again through , 

 the Strait of Belle Isle ; and, coasting along the southern 

 shores of, Labrador, discovered the river St. Lawrence. 



