barren and nearly destitute of wood; but the mountains here do not lie in ridges, nor in any particular direction, and the lakes and rivers are much larger than to the eastward.

The most extensive lake in Newfoundland is called the Bay of Islands Lake, said by the Indians to be 60 miles long. The second is called the Lake of the Red Indians.

The largest river is Exploit River. The river of East Bay, in the Bay of Despair, admits of the Micmac Indians taking up their birch-bark canoes from the sea coast to Serpentine Lake. After that, they go on their hunting excursions, from lake to lake, in skin canoes, by means of the rivers, and, occasionally, by portages. From St George's Bay there is a portage of upwards of twenty miles to George the Fourth's Lake, before the Indians enter upon the great lakes of the interior.

Roads, or rather paths, which would admit of horses and cattle passing in summer, could be made across any part of the interior. The chief labour and expence attending their formation, would consist, in surveying the routes, to avoid lakes, and, in general, woods; the latter frequently covering very rocky districts. With proper and seasonable care, considerable quantities of wild hay could be procured from the marshes. Were Government to countenance the facilitating a communication overland, between St John's and the neighbouring bays, the intercourse would become more frequent and less dangerous than it has been, particularly in winter.

In a botanical point of view, the interior does not appear to be particularly interesting, after having examined the country near the sea coast. The Island altogether, however, affords a wide field for research to the botanist, particularly as to shrubs. The naked parts of the country, in general, including the marshes, exhibit appearances of having been once wooded. Roots and trunks of trees are generally found under the surface. Many are of larger dimensions than any now growing in their vicinity. They have evidently been destroyed by fire; and from the poor soil in this cold region several centuries seem necessary to produce a forest of any magnitude. A thin wiry grass, with lichens and mosses, cover the marshes; and these, with whortleberry bushes, and several diminutive shrubs, predominate on the higher unwooded districts. Spruces, Larch, and Birches,

compose the woods. The pine is seldom seen, and is commonly so stunted or shrubby, as to be of little value for timber. The mountain-ash is sometimes met with. The only good timber in Newfoundland grows near the sea coasts, and particularly, on the banks of the large rivers, where the best soil is found.

The western division being nearly destitute of wood, affords pasture to numerous herds of deer (the Carribou). Of these animals there are here many thousands; indeed, the country seems covered with them. They migrate eastward to the woody districts in winter, and return westward very early in spring. Their flesh forms almost the sole subsistence of the Indians.

Beavers have, in former times, abounded in all the woody districts, and in some places considerable numbers of them are still found, particularly north of the Bay of Despair and Fortune Bay, and in the vicinity of White Bay.

The other wild animals of the country are not numerous, except foxes, near the sea-coast.

Geese, ducks, and gulls, with some other aquatic birds of passage, breed in considerable numbers in the interior. They collect in flocks, and leave it for the coast, as soon as the ponds. are frozen over.

The Micmac Indians visit the interior chiefly in pursuit of beavers. They generally allow the different districts, where these animals are found, a periodical respite of three years, visiting them alternately in the autumn, in small hunting parties. On these occasions the Indians generally take their families with them. The canoes used on the lakes are partly from necessity, and partly for the sake of convenience, made of basket-work, covered over outside with deer-skins; the latter requiring to be renewed commonly once in six weeks. In construction these canoes resemble those of the ancient Britons.

The whole number of this tribe in Newfoundland does not, in as far as I could learn, much exceed 100. They are generally divided into three bands; one at Flat Bay in St George's Bay; one at Great Cod Bay river, and one at Bay of Despair, near Weasel Island. Part of them occasionally resort to two or three favourite places on the coast.

The attention of Government has several times been turned towards endeavouring to open an intercourse with the Red In

1

dians. All attempts hitherto to accomplish this object have been unsuccessful. The failure may, on very good grounds, be attributed to the interference of the Micmacs. The latter are jealous lest, if any intercourse were established with the English, the others should share in the fur trade. To prevent this, they take most effectual methods of impressing these timid creatures with a dread of their fire-arms, and of leading them to entertain the same fears from the fire-arms of the English.

The value of this piece of policy appears to be well understood by the Micmacs, and has been pursued unknown to the English. By a judicious management, however, the Micmacs might be made instrumental in bringing about the intercourse so much desired. As a first step towards it, it might not be improper for our Colonial Government to threaten in a manner suited to the occasion, such of the Micmacs as injure any of the other tribe, with severe punishment, and offer rewards to such of them as will interfere and bring about a friendly intercourse between the Red Indians and the English.

The Red Indians are not numerous. Judging from the extent of country which they inhabit, their number cannot exceed a few hundreds. They do not appear to go now farther south into the interior, than the vicinity of the Great Lake, the shores of which they inhabit, and which bears their name. They communicate with the sea from this lake by Exploit River.

It is a common report that the Micmacs plunder this tribe of their furs. There is no doubt that they frequent the Red Indian territory, and studiously conceal from the English the nature and object of such visits.

The Micmacs say, among other things, of the Red Indians, that they catch deer in the pound, and kill them with spears, and that they dry great quantities of their flesh in autumn, as provision for winter. They also complain, that when they are

encamped in the country of the Red Indians, the latter, during

the night, steal their axes. And they even affirm that this tribe are in the habit of devouring each other.

I discovered no traces of them, although I was, by the account of some Micmacs whom I met with hunting in the interior, at one time within twenty-five miles of their country. VOL. X. NO. 19. JAN. 1824.

I regretted very much that the smallness of my party, and more particularly the late season of the year, rendered it imprudent to go far enough north, to have an opportunity of seeing them. To the Right Honourable Earl Bathurst,

Secretary of State for the Colonies, &c. &c. &c.

W. E. CORMACK.

ART. XXVI.-Remarks on the Vegetation of the Danish Provinces. By Professor HORNEMAN *.

OF

F the Danish Provinces, Zealand is the richest in plants, and contains 56 species, which have not been discovered in the other parts of Denmark. This, however, is certainly owing to its having been more thoroughly investigated than any of the others.

A sensible difference may be observed between the Floras of the NE. and SW. parts of this island: the division may be well shewn, by drawing a line from Copenhagen to Nyekiöbing. Several plants occur in the SW. parts which are not found in the NE., though none have been remarked in the latter, which have not also been found in the other parts.

Jutland comes next, having 35 plants peculiar to itself. Were this promontory as well examined as the other provinces, the result would undoubtedly be to its advantage, as the influence of the Continent is very evident in it. Not one of the Danish provinces, in so short a space, shews such a difference in the natural productions as the east and west coasts of Jutland: the former possesses a fertile soil and a flourishing vegetation, while the latter consists of an almost entirely barren and constantly moving sand. Between the two extends that remarkable heath, which stretches from the point of Skagen far into Germany.

In that part of Jutland north of Randersfiord, we find marks of a more northern vegetation. In Vensyssel Cornus suecica is abundant, in other parts of Denmark it is rare.

The following plants appear to have attained their most northern limits in Jutland: Veronica longifolia, Sesleria (Aira)

*Extracted and translated from Professor Horneman's paper in the Transac. tions of the Danish Philosophical Society, 1821.

glauca and cristata, Festuca bromoides, Exacum filiforme, Eryngium campestre. Leucojum æstivum, Colchicum autumnale, Asarum europæum, Chelidonium glaucium, Digitalis purpurea, Lunaria rediviva, &c.

The plants which have been cultivated for arresting the progress of the sand-flood in North Jutland are Elymus arenarius, Arundo arenaria, and Carex arenaria. Arundo baltica (Flor. Dan. t. 1634), which has been used with success in Meklenborg, is also recommended for the purpose.

"From the year 1539, there have been several royal ordonnances against the destruction of plants growing on the sandhills; but it was not till 1779 that any attempt, worthy of notice, was made to arrest the progress of the sand-flood, when an ordonnance was issued for the district of Thisted, which, in 1792, was extended to the rest of the country; and a commission was appointed to superintend the operations carried on to stop the sand-flood, and to reclaim the land which had been covered by it. At that time the sand covered 112,159 tons of land, at 14000 [] ells each, of which, at the end of the year 1816, 74,658 tons had been recovered."-Esmarck's Account of the Sand-flood in North Jutland.

Funen has, with a few exceptions, the same Flora as Zealand. The plants peculiar to it amount to 12.

Laaland and Falster are of a low and clayey nature, and consequently produce several plants, which are more rare on the other islands, where the soil is more sandy, and not so moist. Laaland had long an article of trade in the manna-groats (the seed of the Poa fluitans, which is used for food in the North of Europe); it is, however, now destroyed, by the draining of the mosses, &c.

The plants peculiar to these islands amount to 10.

Althaea officinalis and Asparagus officinalis are here certainly near their most northern limit, and Ligusticum scoticum near its most southern.

Moën, though the smallest of these provinces, has long been known for its rich Flora, which it owes partly to its more southern situation, and partly to the variety of its soils, and particularly its chalk-hills, on which occur an abundance of the Orchideous plants, which are either not found at all, or but very