-~

[ 372 1 ,..

L. RarJtcti!ars of the Country if Labra­dore, extraEled from the Papers of Lieutenant Roger Curtis, of His Ma"'f jefly's Sloop the Otter, with a Plane­Chart of the Coafl. Communicated by the Honourable Daines Barrington ..

:Redde, Feb • .24, THERE i's no part of the Briti!h 1

274· dominions fo little known as the-immenfe territory of LABRADORE. So few have vifited the northern parts of this vail: country, that almoft frotn the fireigbts ofBELLEIS-LE, until yoa come to the .. entrance of au osoN's BAY, for more than ten degrees of latitude,. no chart, which gave any tolerable idea. of the coafi, had hitherto been formed. The bar­rennefs of the country explains why it has been (()!

feldorn frequented.. Here avarice his but little tO; feed on ..

Perhaps, without an imm0derate !hare of vanity;. I may venture to prefume,. that,. as far as 1 havct been,. which is to the latitude of 59° 1 o', the draught, which I have been able to form, is by much the beft that bas hitherto been made •.

Others have gone before me, hie!} with abilities. !uperior to mine, and to whom I bGp¢ to be. though:

e'lual

,

[ 373 ] equal only in affiduity. But I had advantag s of' which they were de!Htute; with a fmall veifel, and. having an Indian with me, who knew of every rock and £heal upon the coaft, I was enabled to be ac .. t.urate 1n my obfervations; and thefe are the reafons,. wby I deem my own 1kctcb preferable to all others.

Of the coAST •.

A& th:s country is one of the mofi barren n the ,;,nown world, fo its fea-coafi is the mofi r 1narkable .. Bord red by innumerable iflands, and n1any of th m being a confider ble difh.nce from the main land, a thip of burthen would fail a great way along the­coatl, without being able to forrn any notion of it true fituation.

Hence it is that all charts of it have been fo ex-rctnely erroneous ; and hence arofe thole opinions,.

that fome of the inlets extended a vafl: dillance intQJ the country,. if not quite into the fea of 11 nsoN' BAY.

DAvrs"s 1 LET,. which has been fo much talked of, is not twenty leagues from the entrance of it to its extremity.

The navig:ttion here i.s extrcn1ely hazurdo s. To­ard the I nd, the fea is covered with large bodies,

and broken pieces, of ice} and the farther you oo 11orthward, the greater is the quantity you tneet with ..

Some of thofe maffi s, which the fc an1en call j -ands of ice, are of a prodigious magnitude, and thc:y are generally fuppofed to fwirn twa thirds. under water. You will frequently fee the1n more than a hundred fe t abov the furfacc) and to iliips in a

· fionn,.

( 3/4 ] ftorn1, or in thick w a her, nothing can be n1o e terrible.

Tbofe pro i ~ious pieces of · ce come fi·orn t e north, and ar 1uppofcd to be formed y tJ ·freezing of catarnCl: up n the lands abo t EAST GR EENLA

and the Pole. fi>on as t 1c ~-v rit r o the \vinter begins to abate, tl eir imtncnfe weight · ak them fron1 the ih r , nn th y are dri en to he fouth-v~rd. Tothcn1ifcra I inha itantso L BR DoE,

their app arance upon t c coaft {i rve a~ a o en of th approach of fu1nn1er.

Of the CLI ATE, OlL, an ATU AL RODUC•

T 101 s of the country.

Tl i vafi traB: of I an 1 is extr n1ely barren, and altog th r in apahle of ~ultivation. 'he fi rface jg v rywhere uneven, and cov red with larg on s,

.fo1ne of which arc o acnazing dirnenfiot • T e ·e are few fprings; y t, throu hout the country, ther are prodigious chains of lak , or ponds, wh: 1 re produced by the rains, an the m lting of the 10' ~. The£· ponds abou d in trout, but they are very ( 11· U.

here i no fuch thjng ns level land. It is a oun ry fanned of right ul mounrj. in , and unfruitful vallie~. The n1ountain are almofi dev id f every fort of herbage. blighted fl r b, and a littl xnofi, is fometin1es to b £en upon them; but, in gen raJ, the b re rock is all you behold. The lli are full of r oked -lo\V trc , filch as th di f r t pine .. , fpruce, bir h, and a fpecies of the c d r. p I<. tnt: of the d ep bays, and not far from the w t r, · is faid, ho ever, th re arc a ~ w fii k o no in-

confi rable

G 375 J ccnfiderabl fize. In a \'Vc t. w ole country is nothing more th~ n a prut j ious heap of barren re> ·ks.

The climate is extrem ly j orou , There i but little appearance of fum/ne:- b fore th n1iddlc of July; and, inS pt mber> the approach of winter is v ry \tident. l t has been remark d, that the win­ters, within thefe few y'"nr , have en lefs fevere than they w re known heretofore. The cau of fuch n alteration it onld be diffi '"'ult to difcov r.

I' 11 along th o fi: there are many riv rs, which mpty th mfelves into the fea; ·et thcr ar but few

of any confideration, and you muft not itnagine that the 1 rg ft are any thing like wh t i · 6enerally ond r- . flood by a river. Cufion1 has taucrht us to give th m this appell tion, but the mofl: of then1 are no­thing more than bro rooks, or rjvul ts. As they are only drajns from the ponds, in dry weath r they are everyw.here fordable; for running upon a fvlid rock, they bt: otn broad, ;vithout having a bed any depth below the furface of tl~e banks.

The fuperficial a pearance of thi country is ex­ceedingly un~avournble. \Vhat may be hi den in its

O\ els, we cannot pretend to fuggefi; probably it may prodL ce £ me copper; th ro k", in m:.wy place~, ar impregnated 'i an ore of that n:femblanc~. Something f a horny lubftance,. which j extremely tran{f arent, and .which will fcale out into a nJulti­tude of (mall H1eets, i o ten found amidfl: the fiones. Ther are both · lack and white of thi ~ rt, but the black i the mofl: rare. It has en t tied in fire, Gut fec1n d to be no We}' afreetcd by h at.

The

- .

[ 376 ] te fpecies of wood htre are not very various:

excepting a few au~bs, which have as yet received no name fr01n the Europeans, the principal produce of the country is the different forts of sPRuCE and PINE. Of thofe, even in the tnore fouthern part .. , there is not abundance; as you advance northwards, they gradtnlly diminith, and by the time you arrive a the fixti th degree of latitude, the eye is not de­lighted with any fort of herbag • Here the wretched refidcnt build their n1iferable habitations with the bones of whales. If ever they cheer their aching limbs with fire, they gather a few fiicl·s fro the iea-lhore, \vhich prob bly have be n w fi l from

'ORWAY, or from LA 'L D. Hetc a aft q tantity f fnow remains upon the land throughout the year.

Although the "inter her i fo excefiively rigid, in fummer the heat is fometim s dif:1greeable, and in that ( · ion the weather is very mod rate, and re· markabl fcren • It is but feldon1 foggy, fpeaking con1parc. ivclybetwecn thi and ·E\-VFOUN LA o; nor arc you (o frequently li le to thofe d~llructiv O'Jl s of' ·in , which vifit rnany other parts of the glol c.

It is, in general, 1 igl llnd, and fometimes ou 1 t \V'th mo otain of an afioni!hing height; yo

ere a)lo frcqu ntly prefented with profpeCls that are really a vful, and extretnely rom· ntic.

There is n )"reat variety of animals in thi rocky count1 y, nor arc they at all numerou . I I ere are the 1 El -DEER ; th ~ 111 les have horn·, which na .. nu has giv n rhcn1 to procure food, for with the e they b t away the f, ow in winter, and, by that DlC' n., come at the tops of t rces, which, during 1 1 in lc1nency of that feafon, is their oi ly fuflenance.

1 There

,

[ 377 ] There are' BEARS lack and white, ·woLv.E-s, he CA •

KASHE\\', FOX , POl CUPl ·Es a great many, the

MOUNT IN-C T, ARTINS, BEAVERS, OT' ERS,

HARES, and fewER 1 E.

The£ n1al EARS, fpecially the white, in d fence of their young, ill att ck any thing; h t at other times, unlefs you woun them, it is fai t1 ey are not very danger~ms. A any oplc afl1nn, ancl n1en· tion inft:ances, that, being purfue by n bear, if you fall on your face, nd ain immoveable, it will retire, \ ithout doing you 1 i 1nifi ief. A fingl ..

LP w·u n ver ppr c , m n, no need he be afraid of [I \~cr. 1 , ta l-in hir to ether, unlefs in winter, \\hen th y arc it pcll to it by hunger.

A 'enomous r ptilc, or inl , · not to b . found h r , e ep T n , and they are xtr m ly rar . 1~he vl ol 111try is filled with v ry n · 11 . , which are ex e din ly tormenting.

li rc arc GLE:i, HAWKS, the JlOR ... Q\ L, and the 1 ED·G \. E, t ith a finaller tort whi h re en1 e thcm,caJl the SPRUCE-I' R TRIDt1E: th fi we m y call t 1e contlant inhabitan of tl ~ ath red kind.

Of fea- bird., t re ar 0 1 e t \' ricty. · In the fumm r, th w o s arc viiited with many

fort of little bir ts, an me of them ar of beauti .. ful plumage. tfh y breed her ) but, towards win· ter, they f~ek a happier lin1 t .

In the autumn, th rc ome a pr~ igious quantity of bird,\ 1 ich arc call d CURLE\ • 'fhey arc about the fize of a wood-cock, lhaped like them, and near I} of the fame colour; extremely fat, and moll: delicious eating. They continue here but a very

VoL. LXIV. C c c little

[ 378 ] little t ·hil , nor is j kno\ 'n from ' h~nce they come, or \V ither they go.

It is a v ~y r tnark ph non no 1) that fever· 1 call: , an fom of the birds, change tl ir colour

\Vith tl f~afons. In the wint r, your e. e tcarcely eholds any thing but -c.vh tis ·white. n this iferabl

climate, provid nee h· s an d tnofr nintals with a de~ n e a ainfi th rigour of .;nt r. The quadru­pedes are cloat ed with a long r thi ker hair, o fur; to tl e birds re given fo down, an ~ th r ~ of a clofer 01 texture, tl an t 10r. f n1ilder cot n rie .

~I he prin ipal are' 'H L , the c on-I ISH1 an SA MO • Of SHELL•·fiSH, ther ate but [i W fort , nd t c e in no great plenty. LOB"'TgRs, there are

n ne at all; vbich i v ry remarkable; {! r, at a par .. t1cul· r p rt · n the tr ight of Bcllifie, not n1ore tl an five r fix Jcagu ., fr 'In · \ 7foun 1· nd, th re are great abund nee.

Obferving that the feal-darts of every Indian were bead d ' ith the teeth of the -CO\V, I \ J le to · nquir , how they a me by the ; nd rticularly, as pon thefc inflrurnent they f e11 d to fix bl!t little value, I ~as in£ rn1ed that th y pu hafi hem fr01n the Indhu .; ... uc van , a out the

latitude 6oo; and that thofc In i ns w re iiited by 1ultitudes of the fea-cows, in the vint r, an th

the ki le a vafi nun1b r o them. In ian, of whot o t in rhi 1 no-c.\ led e,

eould not t 11 me where the t e fum er) bec:n fe h h, n 'rer een beyon

uckvank i but he told n e, that he had ofte eard the northern India. s fi .. ?, that, a g on way

ard

[ 379 ] farther to the north,' they •.rent alhore upon ifiands, which was thought a ver} extraordinary thing.

If the fituation of th fe iO.. nds was known, it is very probable, an e~·tremdy valu ble fea-cow fia1ery might be carried on there.

Of th I •trABITANTS.

It is not furprizing, that fuch a country as has be i1 defi rib d !hou d be thinl inhabited. Th human fpecics upon this cxtenfiv territory are but few; and fuch as we know of are xtren1ely favage. The populoufnefs of n1ankind generally bears an affinity to the foil they live on. Upon barren rocks, covered vith fnow for rnore th n half the year, and where

the winters are lo rigorous, and of fnch long con- · tinuance, ;ve cannot xpeet to find the inh oitaots fo very numerous.

The people of this country foro1 various nation or tribe ; and are at perpetual war with each o her. Formerly the ESQ..YIMAux, who may be called a n1aritime nation, w re fettled at different places upon the fea coafi: quite own to the river sT. JOH 's.; but, for many years pafr, hether it has been owing to their quarrels wi h the Mountain rs, or the in .. croachments of the Europ~;ans, they have tak n up their refid nee far to the north.

A good 'vay up the country live a people diftin­guifhed by the appellation MOU T IN ER , be ... tween whom and the Efquimaux here fubfifi an unconquerable averfion. .1 xt to the M0unt~ ineer , and ftill farther weftward, you come to a .nation

C c c 2 called

[ ·

•

;

[ 381 ]

,

[ 382 ] They tell ·au, that as it is with difiiculty they procure the ecelfaries of life, they can admit of non , who do not co1 tribute towards acquirjng it; that having JlO fi4 cd r fidence, and i being impoffib}e to catry the h 11 leis with them, as they are oblig d to be continually traveding the co Hry; they aik you, if it i not better to put an end to mifera c bein , t .lln ft Her th m to pcrilli with old and hung r? 1 he 01 gcncratly es this '·in o 1 e for the fa-th r; and, it :nin ver c n· a p, i c amon !hem, tJ t.y won er at our confid ring it a n a6l f II lUl at lJ.

f the ES Ul 1A ,_:,

'he ES UJM.AUX Indians, inhab:ting the fea .. coafi of the non ern part of L BRADO E, are indifp tabJy from G R E LA1 D. They are a v ry deep tawney, or rather of a p, le copper-coloured cmnplcxion. Cootdered alto ether, they ar infe­rior in fiz~ to the generality o · ... urop ans; and but a few among them are of good fiatur .. They bear a very near refemblance to the LAPLA DERs,

both in their perfons and cufl:oms. It is not infinuat d that they are a Lapland colony ; but it is cry p oba­ble, they came originally from Grc:enlan • T y have beards, fo have the rcenlanders, and ind fo h ve the inhabitants of Lapland: whereas theIr quoi the Hurons, the Efcopic , and the Mount ine rs their

·neighbours, have hair no ·where excep on the head. It is true this is no proof. The Samojedes are no more hairy than the nations we have juft mentioned;

but

[ 3 ] e new world

have no fort · of bread ; but li\'C chieRy on of feal deer, fitb, and of birds. Till ry. y a e every thin r w, and putr Ction. a no obj dian.

win r ey live in houfes,.. or rather. ca for they are fun in the rth. I e fum

w ll in t nts, hich are ma e drcul r wi pol , and .covere with &ins fewe to ether. The houf nfifis of one room, nd thou h no

~ ~

•

[ 384 ] very large, yet it contains feveral brothers or other -relations, with their \Vives and chi dren. heir tents are frill more crouded; becaufe, the whole fummer they are generally rambli g p and down the coaft, they endeavour to diminifh eir baggage as much as poffible.

In the fum1net· they find no difficulty ir pr curing food ; but it is not fo with them in win er, againfl: which feafon they dry fi!h in the f n, d pretcrve the fa or oil of fcals in fkin vefieis.

They have no fort of beverage an1cnz:; them, ex­cept water. They are not as yet on of fpirituous liquor , and there are but few that \lVill tafl:e of any. It is certain they are able to fubfiU a long vhile vithout eating ; but when they have plentx, they

devour a prodigious quantity. When they are preifed with hunger, and h ve not · n to fatisfy it, they n1ake their nofes bleed, and fuck the blood to fop-port themfelves. ·

They appear to be abfolutcly without any fort of religion ; nor have they fo n1uch as an ~ea of adoration atnong then1. They live happy in their ignorance, ~nd enjoy the bleHing of being ftr,lngers to pedecution and torture.

They are without any government; and no man is fuperior to another, but as he excels in firength or in courage, and in having the gre;udl: number of wives and children. Being entirely without Jaws, general cenfure is the only punifhment for the moft detefiable crimes.

They have no marriage ceremony. A wife is confid red as property, and a hufuand lends one of his wives to to a friend. The wives are given very

early

[ 385 ) early in mnrriage, fi·equently feveral years before confummation; and the reafon of this is) becaufe the girfs father, by that means, has one lefs in family to provid for.

The Efquimeaux m n are extremely indolent; and the women are the great fi drudges upon the face of the earth. They do every thing except pro· cure £ od, and ev n in that th "'Y are frequently affill:ants; fo that they are at continual labour. They few with the finews of .deer, and their needie-work is amazingly neat.

Their language is the fa1ne as the Green1anders. It is not altogether devoid of harmony, and the wotnen have very delicate voices.

The(e Indians are !hangers to jealoufy; they do not appear to be at all quarrelforne, and they \'ery feldom fl:cal fron1 one another. They do ~ot feem very paffionate ; but woe be to the wornan that offends her hufuand.

If polygamy was not allo~ ed among them, their numbers would be very few. Some of the women bear many children ; but, in general, they are by no merns fruitful. The wives live hnppily together; and, if defcrving, ili:1rc equally in their huiband's favours.

They have but few difcafes among them, and confequently are without phyficians; they believe, that tying to their neck or wrifts the particular part of fome fifu or animal, according to the complaint, will produce a cure. The moft dreadful malady upon earth, has not as yet reached them: nor have they ever been vifited by the finall pox.

Vot. LXIV. Ddd Thefe

386 J liefe Indian .annat r ckon nun1 ri l.\lly beyond

£x; and their campo 1nd nun1 ers r c 1 no farther than t vcnty-one. t:cry thing b } ond is a multi· t de.

1 he live nhvat s on tl fca.(l ore ~ fro their r ad of the Mo 1nt in"' rs. Their canoes contain

only one pcrfon ; th y ar e. tremely lono- in pro­portion to th ir rca th, b iog upwards o t\ · nty feet by t o ; th y are covere ith fkin ·, and are exrren1t·-J i t, fo that t ey are o" r11 with the lealt in din tio 1 to one fide or th othe • It is really

v ry cxrraordin:1ry circnmfi n , that hough thefe opl~ re almot1: ever in theit cano , 'vhi h are fo

xceffively ticklilh, there is not' one atuo them that can 1\ im.

The.,r na\ ig< tc th-ir (h lops \vithout a con\ (s in the thick It fo s, nnd are ' ry goo oafier • They have al ;vay a vaft number o do0 in their cam.r, which are of feveral uie . " hcfc :mi' als ferve a a guard ; they are food~ their ins a valuable for doathing; and they draw their fled es i winter. " hey have not the pow r of barking, but their howl · s hideous ; they arc I rg , and have a ead like a fox, whereas the og o the Mountaineers are ex­tr-emely fmall. The Samojede nJ.'ld the L planders ~rain the r it .. deer to e cir fl dg s. iFhe country of La r3dere produces tl fc r imals; but t 1

are only f rv· able to the ' fi irneaux for ood a rain1ent.

The Vi eapons of thefe Indians are, the dart and t e bow and arrow. They are not very expert in .J.e ufe of either; altho\ gh it is i h ~ e th y de­

fend

[ aB7 J fend themfelves, and procure the nee ffaries of life.

f their 'u E a.s,

This is a calculation not eafily fonucd, I hav been at fornc pains to obtain inforolation upon this head; and by the n1cans which I ll1all pur ue, of their populoufnefs one o1ay be able to rna ~e a tole· rable ftimation.

Lelving the ftraights of Belleifle, and proceeding northwards, the firft trib , or fl ttlen\ent, you come to, is that J)r gbuCl:oke. Here they have th moO: boats, by r fon of th ir being nearefl: to the Euro· peans; and allowing fifteen p dons to eat:h boat, in .Jnding men, women, and children '·hich is r ther an under-rating, he boats being eighteen, the nutnber of this tribe will be, 27rJ

The nex tribe is at Nonynoke, \vher the ~]oravians are fettled. hefe have only five

100 boats ; but then they are 1nore crouded, fo admitting twenty to a boat their number is,

cewcdloke is the fat of the next tribe. Here they have no tnore than fix boats; yet\ notwithftanding, they are the largefi tribe upon ·

360 the coaft. 1\ y Indian io1agin d them to be one third more numerous than the Ogbucktoke tribe, fo that they amount to about

epawktoot, 70

Roo

D d d 2

[ 388 ]

Cannuklookthuock, loke, fuppofe,

Brought over, Soo nearly equal to Kee~ved }

345 - Chuckluck, about

Chuckbelweet, Noolatucktoke,

uckvauk, Hitherto, as I was myfelf no farther than

Keewedloke1 I have been guided in my cotnputation by the Indian that accompa­ni d me; but he having never been be­yond Nuckvauk, irnagines, by what he has heard relat d, that at the following places, 'vhich are all the fettlements he has ever heard of, there tnay be at each, upon an average, about thirty :

Cummucktobick, , Kidlenock, Toogeat, Conger haw, Ungabaw, Ivevucktoke, lgloo-ockfhook,

30 JO 30 30 JO 30 30

1623

If this calculation comes any thing near the truth, the ESQ.YIMEAUX inhabitants of LABRADORE are far from being numerous ; and thofe favages who inhaoit the inland parts are ftill lefs populous.

XLI . .An