Chiploquorgan; or, Life by the camp fire in Dominion of Canada and Newfoundland

Preface

. The word " Chiploquorgan " is the Indian name, in the Milicite language, for the stick on which the kettle is suspended over the camp fire, as depicted on the cover of this book. The Indians attach a certain degree of superstition to the Chiploquorgan, and it is considered most un lucky to burn or remove it on leaving a camp. CHIPLOQUORGAN.

Chapter I

Sail for North America — Mishaps on the Voyage — Arrival at St. John, New Brunswick — First impressions of the town — My first fishing expedition — American Hotels — The Schoodic Lakes — ■ Yankee "Sportsmen" — Trout fishing — The Schoodic Indians — The musquitoes, and how to get rid of them. On the 24th of January, 1862, I sailed in the steam transport Adelaide, from Cork, for North America, with six companies of my regiment, which formed part of the force sent from Eng land at that time, in consequence of the seizure by an American man-of-war of Messrs. Mason and Slidell, while passengers on board the royal mail steamer Trent. After our engines breaking down on several occasions, and meeting other damages from a CHIPLOQUORGAN ; severe hurricane, we were obliged to put back to Plymouth for repairs.

Here we were detained three weeks ; and at the end of that time we sailed for St. John, New Brunswick. We were ordered to take the southern route as a means of avoiding the rough storms of the North Atlantic, against which our ship had proved herself totally unequal to make any headway. We were also ordered to touch at the Bermudas for coals. We reached those islands with just enough coal to take us into port. We stayed there ten days, and eventually reached St. John, New Bruns wick, on the 24th of March, seventy-nine days after our original departure from Cork. If we had embarked in one of Cunard's or Inman's steamers, we should probably have crossed the Atlantic in a fortnight, and besides having a pleasanter voyage, the saving of expense Avould have been considerable. The Adelaide was quite unfit to cross the Atlantic at that time of year, her engines being deficient in power, and being moreover old fashioned and worn-out.

Their defective state may be imagined from the fact that they broke down altogether about ten times. The Victoria, the sister ship of the Adelaide, sailed from Cork with the 96th regiment on board, the day after we left that port. She proved even in a worse state than the Adelaide, for besides being defective in her engines, her rigging Avas rotten. She also put back to refit, and starting again for America, got no farther than the Azores (she Avas likewise ordered to take the southern route), when her engines breaking down, she was obliged to return to port; nor did she make another attempt to cross the " herring pond." It is to be hoped that the lives of British soldiers will never again be entrusted to either of these ill-fated vessels. I had always a great longing to be quartered in North America, and make practical acquaint ance with the various sports to be obtained in that country.

My keenness had also been much increased by the description given to me by a near relative, who, thirty years ago, was quar tered in New Brunswick with the 34th regiment, and who spent all his leave in the woods. The Indians at Fredericton, to this day, speak of him as a Avell-remembered sportsman of the right sort, or, as an old Indian said one day when referring CHIPLOQUORGAN ; to him, " He great hunter, good hand in woods, same as Indian in canoe." On disembarking at St. John I was much struck with the appearance of the tOAvn, which Avas both novel and interesting : the sleighs flying about in all directions ; little boys sliding down the hilly streets on small hand-sleighs, aud gliding just clear of the horses when a collision appeared certain. This amusement is called "coasting;" and in winter appears to take the place of the marbles and peg-top of the boys at home.

Having shaken down into barracks, I began to make inquiries as to the commencement of the fishing season, and made arrangements to join a fishing party at the end of May to the Schoodic lakes, Avhich are situated in the State of Maine. On the 15th of May I was to start for these lakes by steamer from St. John to St. Stephen's ; but being detained, I sent all my traps and fishing gear with the rest of the party, and I myself left St. John the same evening by stage. Of all the miserable means of locomotion, a stage waggon in America is the most Avretched. The road was in parts very bad, and full of large boulders. Luckily I was the only occupant of the vehicle, except the driver, and so had plenty of room. I was amused, on driving up to a place where we changed horses, at the remark of a loafer to the driver, on his paucity of passengers, " Why, you have quite a small croAvd to-day, Jim."

Three people would be quite a crowd, and four or five a big crowd, in the Yankee parlance of the country ; and this habit of calling every thing by the most grandiloquent names strikes a stranger as being especially ridiculous. Every pothouse is an hotel, every village a city, and the most dirty eating-room a dining saloon. I reached St. Stephen's at about nine o'clock the next morning, and Avent to an hotel to have some breakfast, Avhere I joined the rest of our party. I found that I was rather late for the table d'hote — all meals at American hotels being on that plan — as, on being shoAvn into the breakfast-room, I found all the servants of the establishment feeding on the remains. Fancy, in an English hotel, the servants being turned into the coffee-room, en masse, to feed ! The servants at the hotels iu this country are exceed- CHIPLOQUORGAN ; ingly touchy, and object to being called " waiter," or " boots," but expect to be addressed as "young man," or by their Christian name.

I remember, on one occasion, when dining at an hotel in St. John, an officer, whom I shall name Captain HeavysAvell, called to the waiter, during dinner, for a glass of beer. The man addressed "waiter," merely shouted to the bar-keeper, loud enough to be heard all over the room, " Pitcher of beer for Heavyswell." After breakfast we all started by train for Louis Island, a small village situated on one of the lower Schoodic lakes, at a distance of about twenty miles. Here we hired Indians and canoes, and took the steamer to the head of the lake, about fifteen miles off. Having disembarked our luggage, we portaged to the upper lake, which is connected with the lower one by a stream three miles long. In this stream the trout congregate at certain times of the year, as also in the other streams connecting the chain of lakes, which extend some sixty miles up the country.

We arrived at the head of the stream at sundown. Here was a lumber dam, and a large crew of men engaged in " driving " the timber brought down the lake in large rafts. Whilst the Indians were putting up our tents, I made haste to put up my rod, and have a cast before dark — my first cast in American waters. In half an hour I had landed nine trout, averag ing over two pounds each. These fish gave immense play, jumping high out of the Avater, several times on being hooked after the manner of sea trout at home. I may here say a Avord as to the species of trout in these lakes, as it has been a matter of a good deal of controversy between American naturalists, some of whom affirm that they are pent-up salmon. The St. Croix river, of which these lakes are the head waters, formerly abounded with salmon, but is noAV blocked up and quite impassible by the mill dams.

I, for my part, do not for a moment suppose that these fish are salmon. In my opinion the idea is absurd, as there is nothing to prevent the fish going down to the sea; and when the river was blocked up in the first place, surely the fish then in the river would have followed their natural instinct, and returned to the salt water. Besides, I know plenty of rivers CHIPLOQUORGAN ; in North America from which the salmon have been shut out, and they contain no such fish. The trout in question are only like salmon in two respects, in colour and shape. I can only account for their being called salmon from the general ignorance of the people in America of natural history, and their common habit of calling birds and animals by their wrong appellations, merely because they have a slight resemblance to the animals they are named after.

For instance, an American thrush (turdus migratorius) is called a robin, because it has a red breast; at the same time, it is the size and has the note of a thrush. I could enumerate many other like instances. But to resume. On returning to camp much gratified with my trial of the fishing, I soon dis covered that whilst I had been so occupied I had been most horribly bitten by musquitoes, which were in swarms everywhere. I had, in the inno cence of my heart, worn a pair of knickerbockers ; this was a lesson to me not to do so in future, as the musquitoes had stung me through my stockings in all directions. There were some excellent casts near some piles which were formed to guide the timber down the dam, and were filled up with stones above the water line. I found it a good plan to take up my station on one of these stands, with a good supply of rotten wood with which to make a fire with plenty of smoke, and so baffle the attacks of the musquitoes to a great extent.

I remained at this place about a week, and had capital sport, killing with the fly one day sixty-three trout, of an average of two pounds each, few being smaller than one and a half pound, and none over three and a quarter pounds. There were several camps of Yankees alongside of us, who were a great nuisance, following one about to any spot where they saw you successful, and fishing close to you with enormous flies, which fell with a great flop in the water. I managed to shake them off by fishing out of a canoe. These people were no sportsmen, and came out to have more what they call " a good time," and consume an unlimited quantity of liquor of the strongest kind. To escape these annoyances, and for the sake of change, one of our party and myself made an excursion in canoes to the stream connecting the CHIPLOQUORGAN ; lake on which we were camped with the one above.

After a paddle of about fifteen miles we arrived, towards evening, at our destination. The stream here, betAveen the upper and lower lake, was only a few hundred yards in length, and very rapid and rocky, but with a capital pool both at the inlet and outlet. The trout here rose so greedily that I continually hooked two at once ; and the fish broke my casting line so often by jumping in different directions at the same moment, that I was obliged to fish with only one fly. The scenery on our voyage up the lake was very pretty, the trees coming doAvn to the water's edge. The foliage was very beautiful, and of a brighter green than one sees in England, the birch and white maple especially so. I found that these trout took an artificial bait readily. I also caught with a spoon a togue (salmo siskawitz) of about six pounds.

This fish is of the trout species, but never rises to a fly. They give no play, and their flesh is white, and very indifferent eating. They are some times caught as large as thirty pounds and up wards. I saw some specimens of the wood duck, so useful to the fly-makers, but was unable to bag one. Loons, also, were plentiful, with their peculiar weird-like note. I do not know anything more mournful, and at the same time more fascinating, than the cry of a loon on a still night, coming across a large lake, and echoing back among the forests. The flies I found most killing in these waters were a light mallard Aving, with red or orange body, and red cock's hackle. In the middle of the day, when the sun was bright, I did good execution with small greys and dark browns. I was astonished at the ease and skill with which the Indians paddled their bark canoes, which were of the Milicite pattern — long, narroAV, and crank.

A single-bladed paddle is used ; and one man at the stern, paddling from one side, both steers and propels the canoe with the same stroke. It looks very easy, but I, avIio was at that time quite a tyro as regards the Avoods, and had never been in a canoe before, on at tempting to paddle one found myself describing small circles, nor did I feel exceedingly safe from turning a turtle at any moment. However most things are to be learnt by CHIPLOQUORGAN ; practice and perseverance ; since then many a mile have I paddled, many the hour have I stood up pole in hand forcing the frail birch bark up the foaming rapid where loss of balance would be an upset, and an upset the loss of one's tackle and perhaps the ruin of the ex pedition. We kippered several hundred of the largest trout, which one of our Indians packed in a box made of spruce bark and sewn with the roots of the same tree.

The Indians were of the Milicite tribe, and a very lazy lot. One of our men, Joe by name, especially so. On one occasion after breakfast we paddled up the lake about four miles to try a brook for broAvn trout ; on our return in the evening, Joe appeared slower than usual, and on being asked Avhy he did not paddle quicker, replied in very doleful accents, " Me had no breakfast, me had no dinner ; " the amount of pork and trout he had consumed at the first mentioned meal would have sufficed two ordinary men. Owing to a raft of timber which blocked up the end of the lake, we had to land and walk home about a mile. Joe being too idle to carry his canoe, left it on the beach. Next morning he went to fetch it, and returning with a very long face, informed us in a whining voice, " Canoe spoilt. Porcupine he eat him hole last night."

Sure enough, the animal had evidently dined off the canoe, eating a large hole in the bark. These Indians of the State of Maine were very exorbitant in their charges. A dollar a day is the regular tariff, but the folloAving year they wanted to charge a party from New Brunswick a dollar and a half per diem, expecting to receive it in gold or the equivalent, although no such stipula tion was made. The party at last agreed to give them what they demanded, but when pay day arrived, handed the Indians the amount in green backs, much to their disgust and discomfiture. As the premium Avas at that time very high they received in reality less than a dollar in gold. Some Yankees avIio were present at the time were much amused, and guessed the strangers " were pretty smart." I consider the trout fishing in the Schoodic lakes the best in North America, for although there are plenty of both sea and broAvn trout to be killed in most of the streams, they do not CHIPLOQUORGAN ; jump when hooked, and I have never met any fish either at home or abroad, which for their size gave equal play to these " lake shiners," as they are called by the settlers.

I learnt one wrinkle by this trip — viz., how to dress for the flies, which had punished me most severely. I have never but in one place since found them so numerous. A person fresh from England always suffers at first, the bites sAvelling very much, but after a year or two one's blood seems to get accustomed to the stings, for although they annoy at the time, the swelling soon subsides and the irritation is much less. There are many receipts for keeping off flies ; the most effective of any, and I have tried most of them, is a mixture of hog's lard and Stockholm tar, three parts of the former and one of the latter mixed together. It easily Avashes off, the grease preventing its sticking. With a small box of this in my pocket I could ahvays in a few minutes render myself proof against mosquitoes, black flies or sand flies, the latter called by the Indians " bitum no seeum," are the worst of all, but are only very thick in light soils.

This specific requires to be reneAved about every hour. A veil is also of great use with a broad brimmed hat to keep it off one's face ; but it is a great obstacle to the sight which, when fly fishing, as I need not mention, requires to be quick and sharp. CHIPLOQUORGAN ;

Chapter II

Expedition to the Bay of Chaleurs— A Settler's fishing gear. No sport in the Bay — Depart for Bathurst — Gaffing lobsters — Encamp on the borders of the Nepisiguit — French settlers— The Rapids — Fishing stations on the Nepisiguit — Bringing the Yankees to terms — How to smoke salmon — Fishing in the Nepisiguit — Evenings on the river. On the 1st July of the same year I left St. John on a salmon fishing expedition to the Bay of Chaleurs accompanied by two brother officers, Captains Butter and Coventry. We reached Dalhousie by steamer from Shadiac. Having here hired three Miemac canoes and six Indians, we chartered a schooner to drop us at the mouth of the Cascapediac, a river some distance down the Bay. We commenced the ascent of the stream, each one in a canoe with two Indians to pole, one at the stern, the other at the boAV.

The stream was so rapid that although our men were first-rate polers, we did not make more than ten miles a day, and that without much delay except for dinner at mid-day. The way our canoes were forced up the strongest rapids appeared to us wonderful. Of what use would a Rob Roy be in such Avaters ? A Rob Roy canoe is a cockney craft, fit only for the Thames or other such sluggish waters, and easily to be paddled by any muff. In a country where the rivers are the only roads, as in parts of America, it is of no use whatever. After a week's hard work we arrived at the Forks, about sixty miles from the sea. The river for most of the way ran through a deep gorge, with high and very steep mountains on each side, wooded to the water's edge. We caught plenty of sea trout on our way up, some as heavy as five pounds.

I met a settler coming doAvn the river with his canoe half full of them. His fishing gear was the most primitive I ever saw. A stiff spruce pole served him for a rod, string for a line, and his fly was a bunch of feathers and red worsted fastened anyhow to a large hook. He had no reel, and on hooking a fish hauled him at once by main force into his canoe. We were much surprised and disappointed at CHIPLOQUORGAN ; the paucity of salmon on our way up, and when we reached the Forks only succeeded in killing two, after several days fishing. We therefore came to the conclusion that the river as regards salmon was a myth, and decided to return to the sea. It only took us one day to run down to the salt water, so rapid was the stream, especially at one place called " Indian falls," which we ran in our canoes, and very ticklish Avork it Avas.

There are no settlers on the Cascapediac be yond a distance of ten miles from New Richmond, the village at the river's mouth ; here Ave hired a schooner, and having embarked with our canoes and Indians, set sail for Bathurst, a small village situated at the mouth of the Nepisiguit river, Avhere we determined to try our luck ; getting becalmed about tAventy miles from Bathurst harbour we left the schooner, and prepared to paddle along the coast, the rest of the distance. Going ashore to have breakfast, we found SAvarms of lob sters in the shallow water among the rocks. We succeeded in gaffing about thirty of them, these made a welcome addition to our breakfast. The number of lobsters all along the coasts of North America is astonishing; there are CAMs FIRE. many companies who make a lucrative business by potting them.

After a long paddle we reached the head of the tide way of the Nepisiguit, late in the evening, where we made a fire and camped behind an old canoe lying on the shore ; a canoe turned bottom up, makes a very good impromptu camp on a wet night. The settlers here were for the most part French, some of them capital hands in canoes, and first rate fishermen ; although their tackle is bad, and their flies very indifferent, they kill many fish, as they know where the salmon lie to an inch, this in any stream is half the battle, as a rising fish will often take a seemingly worthless fly, especially if the man at the end of the rod knows how to place it over him. The Nepisiguit is one of the most celebrated rivers in New Brunswick. The Indian name is " WinpigikeAvick," meaning troubled waters. The first three miles above the tide way is called "the rough waters;" this part of the stream is wide, and intersected by large rocks in all direc tions, forming most beautiful pools and "heights."

The salmon here stand almost always on the ledges CHIPLOQUORGAN ; of rock at the top of the rapids and " pitches," as a small fall is called. Some of these pitches are too steep to pole up, but most of them can be run ; to do this requires nerve, and a steady hand, but is not so difficult as it appears at first sight. On a subsequent visit to this river I was able to do boAv-man in a canoe, and poled up, and ran places that appeared on my first visit extremely perilous and difficult. The canoes on this river are of Micmac pattern, requiring two men, and are quite steady enough to stand up in, and fish out of. Two miles above the rough waters are the Round Rocks, which is a very fair fishing station when the river is high and the fish are running. Four miles above, at the bottom of the Pabneau Falls, is a most excellent pool; the stream at this spot is not more than twenty yards across, and can be fished with a trout rod.

Here is that famous cast from the flat rock, so well known to all sportsmen who have visited the river. We camped within a few yards of this place, and built a smoke house of spruce bark, as we decided to make this our headquarters, one of us always remaining here during our stay on the river. Some Yankees were camped not far off, so we sent to make arrangements to fish the flat-rock pool day about, as it Avas the best in the neighbourhood, these gentlemen refusing to come to any terms at all, Ave sent an ultimatum to the effect, that under these circumstances, one of us would sleep nightly on the flat rock to be ready for the morning cast. This threat was after wards carried out, and was soon the means of bringing the Yankees to their bearings. We then made an amicable arrangement, and Avere good friends ever afterwards.

From the Pabineau to the Grand Falls is eleven miles. In this distance there are two good fishing stations — viz., Middle Landing and Chain of Rocks ; the former is an excellent pool in any water, and easily to be fished ; the latter is good only in high water. Grand Falls is the best station on the river, containing four good pools ; it was, on our arrival, occupied by a party, so we were unable to fish there until a short time before our departure from the river. The salmon cannot get above the Grand Falls, though steps might be made, and there is sixty miles length of river above, and excellent spawning grounds. There are, however, great quantities CHIPLOQUORGAN ; of brown trout above, especially at a place called the "Devil's Elbow," where they are large, some weighing three and four pounds.

During our stay on the river, which lasted a month, we smoked over a hundred and twenty salmon, Avhich we packed in boxes and sent off to our friends at St. John. The following is the receipt for that process : — Split the fish down the back and clean them, cutting out the gills at the same time ; this should be done as soon as possible after they are caught, or the fish will become soft ; immerse for two days in a strong pickle of salt and water, a trough for this purpose is easily hewn out of a fallen spruce or pine, or, in lieu, use a dish of birch or spruce bark. After taking the fish out of the pickle, wash them in running water, then hang them up in a smoke house for six days. A smoke house is built in the shape of a wigwam, and covered with birch or spruce bark ; great care must be taken to keep the fire, which is placed in the smoke house, always burning very slowly, if it gets too hot the fish become cooked and therefore spoilt ; it is a good plan to place the entrails of fish on the fire to keep it cool.

The scenery on the Nepisiguit, though pretty, has very little grandeur about it, the land being comparatively flat on both sides of the river, which with the breadth and shallowness of the stream in many parts, soon causes the water to become hot after a drought, when the fish natu rally become sulky, and will not rise. I remember once, under these circumstances, whipping the stream for four days without a rise, although there were many salmon up at the time. I consider this river therefore most uncertain, though if one is lucky enough to hit off the right height of water, excellent sport is to be had. The flies for the Nepisiguit are of a plain description, especially as regards the Avings, which should be broAvn mallard, Avith a few sprigs of golden pheasant neck feather underneath ; body fiery brown with blue and claret hackle, Avound on together, is a standard fly, and is knoAvn by the name of the " Nicholson," so called after the inventor, a Avell-known sportsman of St. John, New Brunswick.

Black body, black hackle and yellow tip is a killer, and the same fly with a crimson tip fishes well at Middle Landing. Grey CHIPLOQUORGAN ; monkey body and Irish grey hackle is very good in clear water. Body half grey, half claret fur, with grey and claret hackles placed on to gether, is an admirable fly for the Pabineau. This fly was invented by my friend Captain Coventry, who stuck many a fish with it off the Flat Rock. The climate is charming in the summer, hot days succeeded by most lovely still evenings, which you can never so thoroughly enjoy as when camped alongside a noble river, smoking your after supper pipe ; you listen to the shrill cry of the mosquito hawks (a species of night jar) ; and the notes of the frogs, which vary from a shrill whistle to the hoarse croak of the bull frog, intermingled with the pleasant sound of running water.

Your rod, ready for the morning cast, is leaning against a bush ; at length you lie doAvn to rest, speculating where you will rise him in the morning, and determined not to miss that fish which comes up by the white stone, as you did yesterday.

Chapter III

Second Expedition to the Bay of Chaleurs — The inquisitive Storekeeper — a type of the settling class — Leave for the Restigouche and Metapedia — Quality of the sport — Milisite Canoes — Want of protection of the rivers — Necessity of enforcing the Fishery Laws — Instances of the carelessness of the officials — How to protect the rivers — Advantages of the American waters for sport. The following year I paid another visit to the Bay of Chaleurs, and on the 6th of August reached the mouth of the river Bonaventure, having paddled along the coast in a Micmac canoe Avith two Indians from Dalhousie, a distance of fifty miles. We had employed one of my Indians, named Peter Grey, during the previous year ; he was a good poler and kneAV how to gaff salmon, Avhich is an art that feAv Indians understand, their idea being to strike him dead in the water, not to land him, consequently many is the fish they have lost me.