Fallen trees in the woods.

The hard woods.

Mixed woods.

Wood/and as a soil indicator.

A saw mill near New London.

Wood-cutting practices.

we [made] of trees that lay down a good fire. We could see the Island [i.e. Prince Edward Island ] very plain. It appeard an entire wood as far as we tould see. [pp. 28-29]

For most of the winter Curtis was based at the settlement of New London 2:

l was deceived in many instances of consequence Sutch as Deer’s & Turkey's to be shot from your Windows without loss of time. During the Seven months l was confind their, I heard from many of the Inhabitants that their had been no Sutch a thing Seen on the Island by the Oldest lnhabytants. [p. 40]

one morning I took my Gun & went in the Woods to kill some partridges if I could find any. This I found was next to impossible for a stranger at this time of the year. I had not gone far in the Woods before I trod on the Crown of a great tree and Sunk as if I had gone in 3 Well about 15 or 16 feet.3 Endeavouring to get out again by taking hold or treading on the boughs it brought sutch large quantity’s of snow on my head as Allmost to Smother me. I met with mutch difficulty to get out but when out I returnd in my own track for fear of meeting with a worse till I found the path, then went home being very wett Gun and all as bad nearly as if I had been in a river. This I thought was the worst sport I ever met with and in a Country were I expected to have had the greatest pleasure with my Gun. | afterward found that some parts of the Woods was safe to travil in, Sutch as where the hard Wood grew for its common to find several Acres together of Beech or Birch or Maple or Which-Hazle the three latter growing mutch larger than any I ever Saw grow in England, they are very large trees in Other parts Pine of different quality, which grow very large and some parts is quite a mixture All sorts growing together with some few Oaks & Ash trees of a considerable Size.4 In this mixture of groath is the most dangerous traveling in winter there being so many large Trees blown down and covered that its not possibl to find them till you tread on them and sink in far over head and Ears.5 The Spots of land on which the hard Wood grows is thought by the Inhabitants to be far the best for growing corn6 or Vegetables and in those woods is safer traveling the trees growing strong and close the wind have not that power on them and pretty clear at bottom. My curiosoty led me once to see a Saw mill that was Erected for R Clarks use at a considerabl Expence, it being about 6 or 7 Miles from new London up the River [probably the present South-west River] on a convenient Spot and the fineest Timber growing round it I ever Saw. The mill was calculated to Work only one Saw at a time. l was informd by Respectable people that there were upwards of Seventy men one Winter employed to keep this Saw at Work in cutting Boards etc. From this circumstance I think the boards must be very dere if they were sold for their cost, as the Mill was not half its time at Work with all those hands. From what I could learn, one pair of Sawyers if they had their Work pitted would have been able to have cut as mutch Boards in the coarse of the Winter as this Mill. In a Country were Timber costs nothing one would Suppose Boards would be cheap but from their expencive mode of cutting are renderd very dere as if sold in England. In a Country were the snow is ten or twelve feet deep on a level in the woods its not an easy matter to convey large Trees at the small distance of one Hundred yards. Its customary their to cutt the trees off level with the snow be at what depth it will and the remaining Stump is Allmost shure to Stand in the way at some future time. These two very great ill conveniences in my Opinion renders this fine Timber of little Value. l was informed allso It is impossible for men to Work in the Woods in Summer the

Musketoes would soon blind them, and many other stinging flys thats very troublesome. (pp. 41-43]

’About the beginning of February’ they returned to the site of the wrecked ship where they had left three of their men:

35