the death of fire; we shall hear about the Great Dog which
stands on the hither bank of the river, over which all must pass who
would enter on the land of spirits, to guard it against the approach of
those who break from their chains in the place of torment before the
expiation is duly made, and attempt, with impure hands, to lay hold of
the pleasures of the happy regions." Thus they ran about the village,
shouting and singing, until all the people were collected together, and
then they moved in a procession towards the tree upon which the doves
were perched. They found them--beautiful birds! but they were not
birds, but souls changed into the form which betokens innocence and
purity; they found them, and long and earnestly did they gaze upon the
tenderly beloved beings they had formerly been, the pure souls they now
were. The happiness they enjoyed in their present state was seen in
their eyes, which were mild and beautiful beyond my power to tell. And
great appeared the love subsisting between them. The little dovelet
hopped on the back of its parent, who playfully pecked it in return, and
often were the eyes of the child turned fondly on its mother, as if
thanking her for the existence she had bestowed upon it, at the expense
of her own life. Glorious birds with soft eyes, and skyey plumage! never
hath aught so beautiful been seen in the land of the Knisteneaux.

[Footnote A: They (the Chepewyans) have some faint notion of transmigration
of the soul; so that if a child be born with teeth, they instantly
imagine, from its premature appearance, that it bears a resemblance to
some person who had lived to an advanced age, and that he has assumed
a renovated life, with these extraordinary symptoms.--_Mackenzie_,
cxix.]

[Footnote B: See note 4, p. 306 of this vol.]

At length the bereaved husband and father made his appearance, slowly
and with eyes which would have shed tears, had they been other than
those of a warrior. No sooner was he in view, than the little wings of
the doves were rapidly fanning the air towards him. One, the lesser, and
scarce larger than a fly, lighted on his lip, the larger crept to his
bosom, as it was wont to do in life, and was fondly pressed to his
heart, which loved the form it bore when living, and deeply cherished
its memory, and hailed its return to the earth, in a new shape, with
inconceivable delight. Having nestled awhile in his bosom, the soul of
the good and beautiful Fawn's Foot p