IN AUDUBON'S LABRADOR 



in these cold regions, and tracks of this sort 

 take many years to obliterate. It reminded me 

 of a discovery by some Arctic explorer of the 

 tracks of a hand-cart at Melville Island made 

 by Parry's men over eighty years before. 



While I was pondering over these cart-tracks 

 I perceived a dozen ravens on the plain ahead 

 of me. Such a number of these birds together 

 was new in my experience, and I was anxious 

 to assure myself that my diagnosis was cor- 

 rect, and that they were not crows. Several 

 flew near enough for me to see their charac- 

 teristic fan-shaped tails, so different from the 

 slightly rounded tail of the crow, but I wished 

 to put the final stamp on their identity by 

 hearing their voices. They were singularly si- 

 lent as they flew away, but one was good enough 

 to turn and fly directly towards me and say 

 cra-a-k, cra-a-k instead of caw-caw, and then 

 I was as sure he was a raven as if he had told 

 me his name. 



I planned my arrival at Bradore Bay so as 

 to dine on the Sea Star, but, at the house of 

 the captain's brother-in-law, Captain Blais, 

 I learned that the whole company of the Sea 

 Star — captain, first mate, cook, and bota- 



2U 



