Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-07-08
UNKNOWN LABRADOR.
A Vast Territory Which Two Canadians VIII
Endeavor to Explore.


Endeavor to Explore.
From the Boston Herald.
Two members OF the geological survey of
Canada have just left Quebec on one Of the
longest, most important and most perilous
exploratory surveys ever undertaken into what
Is now generally supposed to be the wild. in.
hospitable territory in the far north Of eastern
Canada, known as the Labrador peninsula. The
expedition will be absent from civilization for
nearly two years, and before its return to
Quebec hopes to have solved the enigmas both
OF the great Lake Mistassini and Of the cataract
OF the Hamilton river, concerning which such
| fabulous tales have been told. It expects to
traverse the very interior Of Labrador from
south to north, a. well as from west to east, and
to visit alike Ungava bay, in the extreme north,
aud Rigolet and Hamilton iniess, in the ex-
treme east.
The expedition Is led BY Mr. A. p. Low OF
the geological survey Of Canada, and his chief
assistant lie Nj. D. /. Eaton. Mr.. Low hAs al
ready visited and surveyed Mistassini lake, de-
claring 1t to be about 100 miles in length, but
his report has been disputed by other Cana
! dian surveyors, by the Indians who roaui ever
the interior Of this country. asi PRINCIPALLY by
Mr.. W H. Il (Adir0ndnck) Murray. So has
the story of an English explorer, that be kas
recently found on the Hamilton river gigantic
falls over 1000 feet high
These alleged features of the great Labrador
peninsula will, no doubt be thoroughly exam
ined by the expedition, though the object of
its mission is rather to report upon the course,
condition and character Of two vast streams,
the East Main river, running west into James
bay. and the Hamilton, running east in the
same latitude into Hamilton inlet, which Il is
proposed to make portions Of the northern
boundary Of the province Of Quebec. The
change suggested will give to the province an
additional strip Of territory $50 miles in width
ut its western extremity, and including the
whole Of Lake Mistassini and the Rupert river
and surrounding country. The East Main
river, 800 miles from its mouth and in the GEN.
ter Of its course, is LOO feet in width. Near
the source OF this river, and not very far from
that OF the Hamilton, is Nichicoon post, where
Indian hunters yearly assemble with the pro-
duce OF their chase, as we'll from Hudson and
Ungava bays as from the shores Of Labrador
and the st. Lawrence.
No white man has yet made the journey
mapped out for Messrs. Low and Eaton. and
few can imagine the dangers and difficulties
they must encounter in the interior Of Labra-
DOR where the flies in summer are larger than
horse flies and bury their larv@ deep in the
flesh of the reindeer, causing them 70 migrate
from the woodlands to the treeless, barren
wastes every year.
The surveyors will winter with the Eskimos
probably at Fort Chino at Ungava bay, the
most northerly fort OF the Hudson Bay Com
pany in eastern America. where in winter
there Is but four hours daylight in TWENTY
four. Next year they will ascend the Koksoak
river from the fort into the interior Of the
peninsula, and then descend the Hamilton
river to Hamilton inlet, whence they expect
to find their shortest way home BY Hudson Bay
Company steamer from the Labrador coast to
London, and thence across the Atlantic to
Quebec.
Not ONLY ia II sprr,;sn5 ia A..
waters of Labrador abound in fresh water fish
of commerce, but the promoters Of proposed
railway from Lake st. John to Mistassini and
thence to Hudson bay, are anfiously awaiting
the report of the expedition to Judge Of the
possibility OF connecting the great bay by rail-
Of the northern whale fisheries.
As an instance Of the extent OF country to be
explored by Messrs. Low and Eaton, it may be
mentioned that Moose Fort. on James bay, il
as far away from the easterly point of the lab
rador coast as it is from Washington. 1t is a
terra incognita, as truly 30 as when il was, in
popular belief, the home of pigmies,
of dwarfs, Of giants, Of headless men and
semi-human monsters. 1t has always been.
as it were, beyond the line Of accurate knowI-
edge. jacques Cartier, the discoverer Of Cam
ada, narrates that the Indian king Donna
coma, told him that he saw there men who did
not eat, but WHO lived on liquids; that in
another region were men who had but ore leg
and thigh. with a very large foot, two hands
on the same arm, the waist extremely square.
the breast and head fat and a very small
mouth.
In l717 young Eskimo girl was captured in
Labrador and seen in Quebec in 1720 by fr.
Charlevoix, to whom she said that in her coun-
try she had seen men Of monstrous size and
others resembling those Of whom Cartier wrote.
and who were amphibious, and could remain
under water three-quarters Of an hour at a
hat no Eeki tbor 20
fish up the fragments Of ships lost on the coast.
She also averred that around Ungava bay was a
people entirely black, with large lips. broad
nose and straight hair; that these men were
very wicked, and. although badly armed, hav-
! ing only knives and axes without any iron, they
bad rendered themselves terror to the Eski-
mos.
Nobody supposes that any Of the people so
described will be discovered by Messrs Low
and Eaton, but the result of their exploration
Is expected to cast an interesting light upon a
mysterious and entirely unknown country, and
| the races of people iuhabiting it