1768-1782]
J. Long's Voyages and Travels
121
trader to ascertain any thing more than the Indian distance from one lake to another. As Mr. Carver, in his map, says that the branches which run from Riviére St. Louis, at the end of West Bay, in Lake Superior, are but little known, I can with equal propriety observe that those from Lake Alemipigon, or Nipegon, both east and west, are very difficult to describe geographically. The known candour of my countrymen, will, I am persuaded, pardon any errors of this sort, as I can assure them I have exerted my best endeavours to render the description of places, with respect to distances and situation, as clear as possible, which the chart I hope will more fully explain.[1]
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- ↑ In the language of James Bain, Jr., librarian of the Toronto Public Library, "Long is the most indefinite of travellers, and English names of lakes and rivers unstable." It seems an almost hopeless task to localize several of his geographical names by the aid of modern maps. As a matter of fact this part of Northwestern Ontario from Lake Nipigon to Lake Abittibi is still almost terra incognita. For the best current maps and descriptions, see Canadian Department of the Interior Report, 1890, part v; also Ontario Bureau of Mines Report, 1900.—Ed.
