day and we reluctantly returned to camp. Our failure was rather
discouraging because it meant a further loss of time, and I had hoped
that our route, until we reached Nipishish at least, would lie
straight and well defined before us.

Sunday was comfortably cool, with a good stiff breeze to drive away
the flies. I dispatched Richards, with Pete and Easton to accompany
him, to follow up our work of the evening before, and look into the
pass through the hills, while I remained behind with Stanton and
Duncan and kept the fire going under our venison.

I Had expected that Duncan, with his lifelong experience as a native
trapper and hunter in the Labrador interior, would be of great
assistance to us in locating the trail; but to my disappointment I
discovered soon after our start that he was far from good even in
following a trail when it was found, though he never got lost and
could always find his way back, in a straight line, to any given
point.

The boys returned toward evening and reported that beyond the hills,
through the pass, lay a good-sized lake, and that some signs of a
trail were found leading to it. This was what I had hoped for.

Our meat was now sufficiently dried to pack, and, anxious to be on the
move again, I directed that on the morrow we should break camp and
cross the hills to the lakes beyond.



CHAPTER V