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 SOME EXCURSIONS, 93 by its habit of calling the attention of hunters to their quarry, by uttering a sharp note like the cry of a child. When about fifty reindeer, or, to give them their Indian name, " caribous," had been brought down by the guns, the flesh was cut into long strips for food, the skins being kept to be tanned and used for shoe-leather. -Besides the caribous, there were also plenty of Polar hares, which formed an agreeable addition to the larder. They were much less timorous than the European species, and allowed themselves to be caught in great numbers. They belong to the rodent family, and have long ears, brown eyes, and a soft fur resembling swan's down. They weigh from ten to fifteen pounds each, and their flesh is excellent. Hundreds of them were cured for winter use, and the remainder converted into excellent pies by the skilful hands of Mrs Joliff'e. While making provision for future wants, the daily supplies were not neglected. In addition to the Polar hares, which underwent every variety of culinary treatment from Mrs Joliffe, and won for her compliments innumerable from hunters and workmen alike, many waterfowl figured in the bill of fare. Besides the ducks which abounded on the shores of the lagoon, large flocks of grouse congre- gated round the «lunips of stunted willows. They belong, as their zoological name implies, to the partridge family, and might be aptly described as white partridges with long black-spotted feathers in the tail. The Indians call them willow-fowl ^ but to a European sportsman they are neither more nor less than blackcock {Tetrao tetrix). When roasted slightly before a quick clear fire they proved delicious. Then there were the supplies furnished by lake and stream. Sergeant Long was a first-rate angler, and nothing could surpass the skill and patience with which he whipped the water and cast his line. The faithful Madge, another worthy disciple of Isaak Walton, was perhaps his only equal. Day after day the two sallied forth together rod in hand, to spend the day in mute companionship by the river-side, whence they were sure to return in triumph laden with some splendid specimens of the salmon tribe. But to return to our sportsmen; they soon found that their hunting excursions were not to be free from periL Hobson per- ceived with some alarm that bears were very numerous in the neigh- bourhood, and that scarcely a day passed without one or more of