4£4 A JOURNEY TO THE SHORES 



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to swim across the stream with a line, and to haul the raft over. 

 He launched into the stream with the line round his middle, but 

 when he had got a short distance from the bank, his arms became 

 benumbed with cold, and he lost the power of moving them ; still he 

 persevered, and turning on his back, had nearly gained the opposite 

 bank, when his legs also became powerless, and to our infinite alarm 

 we beheld him sink. We instantly hauled upon the line and he 

 came again on the surface, and was gradually drawn ashore in an 

 almost lifeless state. Being rolled up in blankets, he was placed 

 before a good fire of willows, and fortunately was just able to speak 

 sufficiently to give some slight directions respecting the manner of 

 treating him. He recovered strength gradually, and by the blessing 

 of God was enabled in the course of a few hours to converse, and by 

 the evening was sufficiently recovered to remove into the tent. We 

 then regretted to learn, that the skin of his whole left side was 

 deprived of feeling in consequence of exposure to too great heat. 

 He did not perfectly recover the sensation of that side until the 

 following summer. I cannot describe what every one felt at be- 

 holding the skeleton which the Doctor's debilitated frame exhibited. 

 When he stripped, the Canadians simultaneously exclaimed, " Ah 

 que nous sommes maigres." I shall best explain his state and that 

 of the party, by the following extract from his journal: " It may be 

 worthy of remark that I would have had little hesitation in any 

 former period of my life, of plunging into water even below 38° 

 Fahrenheit ; but at this time I was reduced almost to skin and bone, 

 and like the rest of the party, suffered from degrees of cold that 

 would have been disregarded whilst in health and vigour. During 

 the whole of our march we experienced that no quantity of clothing 

 could keep us warm whilst we fasted, but on those occasions on 

 which we were enabled to go to bed with full stomachs, we passed 

 the night in a warm and comfortable manner." 



In following the detail of our friend's narrow escape, I have 



