New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-07-24
BY Edward Cave

- I is not an impossibility to obtain genu-
inc motion pictures Of wild animals fee
RI ing from forest fire. We did not go
= to Quebec for this purpose. Our party
Vas not at all interested in forest fires. We
we're out for motion pictures of moose, deer
nd bears in their natural surroundings. with
eautiful scenic backgrounds We chose the
axe Abitibi region as offering the best oppor-
mites for these and we were right. We
,und game in abundance in lake and river
luntry. And we got the pictures we went
,r. Besides, get all we wanted of other
qually good backwoods subjects, such run-
hing rapids camping, fishing, the life of
9 are ranger and woodcrsft OF Indian guides.
Then the forest fires stepped in, two big ones,
and gave us thrilling experience and some
films we had not bargained for. | am glad
TO add however, that they did no damage in
the beautiful Messagam reserve.
80 We went from Montreal to the little from
tier village of Lasarre, which is about
> swenty-four hours by train northwest of Mont
real, passing through the town of Mattice
where the American balloonists returned to
civilization last winter after being lost in the
Canadian wilderness. Our party included j. r.
Bray, Walter F. Schaefcr, our camernan, and
E. S. Peck, Director of Exhibits and Publicity
of the Department of Trade and Commerce at
Ottawa. At LaSarre we were joined by DR..
Fred R. Capp and Andrew c. Wesberg, of
South Bend, Ind, who were on fishing trip
S. E. Sangster, of Ottawa, who out6tted us
and provided the privileges of the Messagami
hunting and fishing reserve, OF which he is
the lessee, met us with his launch and two
halfbreed guides from North Bay, Ont
Ernest COuchsi and Dave Fauhart
From Lasarre we went down the Whitefsh
River, to the south, and on the way met large
barge crowded with Indians from Abitibi Post
on their way to see a little transforming
circus which was billed to show in Lasarre
They had big French flag flying on the barge
and a jolly, long bearded priest for spiritual
ballast. We had one of our two cameras set
up, SO, of course, turned up on them. Most
of them seemed to know all about the
movies" and laughed and gest;culated, but
few lodged cut Of sight.
Things were very different at Abitbi Post,
on Lake Abitb, from what they were at this
and other Hudson's Bay Company trading
posts in the old days before the railroads
opened up the real north country. Abitibi
used to be one OF the principal posts in the
James Bay watershed, and on the main route
OF the fur brigades travelling between the
bas and the Hudson's Bay Company's terminal
post of Mattawa, down on the Ottawa River
To-day it is cut off from the north by a string
of sprouting railroad towns and settlements
and no longer controls the trade of the
Indians Of the district. David Mckenzie, the
factor there since far back in the old DAYS, is
still on the job. / never saw a man of his
years 80 spry Oil his feet, except Edward
Payson Weston the famous pedestrian, and
never one SO energetic with paddle. Nor
have ever seen anywhere, from Nova Scotia
to British Columbia, a stronger paddler thaA
his halfbreed son, Dave
From Abitibi Post we continued on across
Whitefish Bay and southwark up the Abtibi
River, which flows north to the Dancing
Portage. There we left the launch and took
to canoes. Continuing up the Abtibi, we
came to Lake Duparquet. Since leaving
Whitefsh River the settlements had been left
behind and now we began to enjoy the sum-
mer charms of the beautiful wilderness which
lay about US. Along the Abitibi River we
were of course shut in by the forest, but out
here on this grand lake, with its many bold
rocky islands, we obtained vstas stretching
miles away.
The weather was fair, with clear skv
scarcely any wind, exceptionally high tenn
eperature and heavy atmospheric pressure.