La Hontan, in 1684, gives the same description of the bark canoes, and complains of "the inconvenience of their brittle and tender fabric. If they do but touch or grate upon stone or sand, the cracks of the bark fly open, upon which the water gets in, and spoils the provisions and merchandise. Every day there is some new chink or seam to be gummed over. At night they are always unloaded and carried on shore, where they are made fast with pegs, lest the wind should blow them away." Charlevoix gives a nearly similar account in 1720, vol. v., p. 285. He adds: "Tous ces canots, jusqu'au plus petits, portent la voile et avec un bon vent peuvent faire vingt lieues par jour. Sans voiles il faut avoir de bons canoteurs pour en faire douze dans une eau morte." No. XXIX. "Many of the species of _Acer_ form large, ornamental, and valuable trees. The kinds in most esteem for making sugar are _Acer dasycarpum_ (white, or soft maple), _Acer nigrum_ (black sugar maple), and _Acer saccharinum_ (the sugar maple), the last two yielding the greatest quantity of sugar. The process by which the sap is obtained is extremely simple, nothing more being necessary than to bore a hole in the tree, and conduct the flowing liquid, by means of a hollowed piece of wood, into a vessel beneath. Whatever quantity of sap is collected, it must be boiled down the same evening, as it is liable to be spoiled by fermentation in the course of a few hours. The operation of boiling is generally performed in a very primitive way: it is thus described by the intelligent authoress of _Backwoods of Canada_: 'A pole was fixed across two forked stakes strong enough to bear the weight of the big kettle. The employment during the day was emptying the troughs and chopping wood to supply the fires. In the evening they lit the fires and began boiling down the sap. It was a pretty and picturesque sight to see the sugar boilers, with their bright log-fire among the trees, now stirring up the blazing pile, now throwing in the liquid, and stirring it down with a big ladle. When the fire grew fierce it boiled and foamed up in the kettle, and they had to throw in fresh sap to keep it from running over. When the sap begins to thicken into molasses, it is then brought to the sugar boiler to be finished. The process is simple: it only requires attention in skimming, and keeping the mass from boiling over, till it has arrived at the sugaring point, which is ascertained by dropping a little into cold water. When it is near the proper consistency, the kettle or pot becomes full of yellow froth, that dimples and rises in large bubbles from beneath. These throw out puffs of steam, and when the molasses is in this stage it is nearly converted into sugar. Those who pay great attention to keeping the liquid free from scum, and understand the precise sugaring point, will produce an article little, if at all, inferior to Muscovado.' It is, however, often adulterated