io the Strait <?/ 



97 



about with them to all places, placing them in a kind of bag, 

 ^vhich is itself placed within the skin which covers their shoul- 

 ders. It is not uncommon to see some of these women with 

 two children, one older than the other, situated in this manner, 

 without being at all hindered, by this double though precious 

 load, from performing the services to which they are destined. 



There is no doubt that tite principal food of these Indians is 

 shell-fish, which is found in great abundance all over their 

 shores; and the wandering unsettled life they lead, is caused by 

 the necessity they are under of changing tfieir place of abode, 

 ^vhen the stock is consumed ; that nature, providing for their 

 wants, may have time again to produce those very slielLfish in 

 the places where they are become too scarce to afford them an 

 useful supply. 



The deer which are met with in this region of the 

 strait fall sometimes into the hands of these Indians, as we per- 

 ceived, not only by their skins, but by pieces of flesh which 

 could have belonged to no other animal. As they possess a 

 great number of dogs, they probably use them in the hunting 

 of deer; which, however, are not often seen; so that they are 

 but seldom taken, as we observed that they seldom penetrated 

 into the thickest of the woods. It is probable that the natives 

 wait for these animals near the river-sides, wliither they are 

 used to repair, and there, with the help of their dogs, and with 

 sticks and stones, are enabled to kill some of them; for their 

 arrows and other arms are by no means proper for such sort of 

 hunting. We could not be sure wlietber they eat this ffesb raw^, 

 as they do the shell-lish, or if they put it on the fire ; but it is 

 probable that they do not take that trouble, as they have neither 

 instruments nor vessels fit for preparing their food. 



The different feathers we saw in t[>eir po^>&es>iofi showed 

 that the birds do not always escape their ckirts ; and, as they are 

 Tery dexterous in the use of the bow and sling, it is most pro- 

 bable, that they make use of one or other of these ways to obtain 

 their end ; however, they do not seem mwz\\ addicted to this 

 practice, as we never saw but a few birds together in their 

 hands : and we are of opinion, they do not eat their £esh, as we 

 never observed in their hovels any marks of such fotxl. 



Much more common than hunting o{ any kind, with them, is 

 . fishing, in which they are more dexterous. Although we are 

 ignorant of their mode of fishing, we know they are much 

 ^iven to it ; and tliey even came twice with a good quantity of 

 Iresh fish to sell on-board our vessel. 



They possess neither nets nor fishing-hooks; only we re- 

 marked that, at low-water, they used to fix sharp-pointed 

 YoYAGfis Travels, No, 5, Vol. II, o 



