the
Pacific; York Fort, on the shores of Hudson Bay; and Moose Factory, on
the shores of James Bay--whence they are transported in the Company's
ships to England. The whole country in summer is, consequently, in
commotion with the passing and repassing of brigades of boats laden with
bales of merchandise and furs; the still waters of the lakes and rivers
are rippled by the paddle and the oar; and the long-silent echoes which
have slumbered in the icy embrace of a dreary winter, are now once more
awakened by the merry voice and tuneful song of the hardy _voyageur_.

This slight sketch of the Hudson Bay Company and of the territories
occupied by them may, for the present, serve to give some idea of the
nature of the service and the appearance of the country. We shall now
proceed to write of the Indiana inhabiting these wild regions.

[Doubtless the reader is aware that the chartered rights of the Hudson
Bay Company now (1875) no longer exist; nevertheless their operations
are still conducted in the same manner as of old, so that the above
description is applicable in almost all respects to the greater part of
the country at the present time.]

CHAPTER FOUR.

NORTH AMERICAS INDIANS--THEIR MANNERS AND CUSTOMS--COSTUME, DWELLINGS,
IMPLEMENTS, ETCETERA.--A TALE OF MURDER AND CANNIBALISM--A NIGHT
EXCURSION WITH AN INDIAN--A DEER HUNT.

The aborigines of North America are divided into a great number of
nations or tribes, differing not only in outward appearance but also in
customs and modes of life, and in some instances entertaining for each
other a bitter and implacable hatred.

To describe the leading peculiarities of some of these tribes,
particularly those called Crees, will be my object in the present
chapter.

Some of the tribes are known by the following names:--Crees, Seauteaux,
Stone Indians, Sioux, Blackfeet, Chipewyans, Slave Indians, Crows,
Flatheads, etcetera. Of these, the Crees are the quietest and most
inoffensive; they inhabit the woody country surrounding Hudson Bay;
dwell in tents; never go to war; and spend their time in trapping,
shooting, and fishing. The Seauteaux are similar to the Crees in many
respects, and inhabit the country further in the interior. The Stone
Indians, Sioux, Blackfeet, Slave Indians, Crows, and Flatheads inhabit
the vast plains and forests in the interior of America, on the east and
west of the Rocky Mountains, and live chiefly by the produce of the
chase. Their c