DR. HAYES' TERRIBLE BOAT TRIP 381 



"The shore was steep, almost perpendicular ; and it was some time before 

 we found a place which offered the least chance for executing our intention. 

 At length we discovered a little cove, or rather a cleft in the rock, about 

 twenty feet in width and twice as deep. The rocks to the right and behind 

 were vertical; but the cleft ran off to. the left, and there the rock sloped 

 gradually upward. If we could strike this inclined plane, by a fortunate turn 

 of the boat after entering, we should be landed in safety. The boat was 

 headed square for the opening, the men gave way on their oars, and we rode 

 in on the top of a swell which, as it retreated, left us high and dry. Next 

 moment all hands sprang out, and, seizing the boat by the gunwale, hauled 

 her out of danger. 



"As we came across the ice, John had discovered a wounded duck sitting 

 behind a hummock, and secured her with an oar. A fire was kindled in a 

 crevice in the rock ; the saucepan was half filled with sea-water, and the four 

 quarters of the unfortunate eider were soon boiling in it. The head was 

 knocked out of the bread-barrel, and eight biscuits were added to the con- 

 tents of the pot. 



"We were too cold and too nearly famished to wait with much patience, 

 and the stew was speedily pronounced done. Plates and spoons we had none, 

 so each one handled his share of the duck, and then we took turns with the 

 lid for the soup. 



"This hot meal warmed us up a little, but with it vanished our stock of 

 comforts. With a cup of coffee, or even tea, we should have made out 

 very well. 



"There was a gloomy prospect for the night. Nowhere could we find 

 protection against the wind, which not only swept in from the sea, but came 

 furiously down upon us through the rocky gorges. We had not as much as 

 a blanket to cover us, and the cold gusts blew most cruelly through our water- 

 soaked cloth coats and canvas pantaloons. We clambered about in the dark- 

 ness along the rocky ledge, under a great black wall, hunting in vain for a 

 lea ; but no sooner had we found a place which seemed to offer us protection, 

 than the wind shifted. Indeed, it seemed to blow, in one and the same min- 

 ute, from every quarter of the heavens, north, south, east, and west; and 

 when it could not get at us from either of these directions, it rolled down over 

 the cliffs and fell upon us like an avalanche. We returned to the place where 

 we had landed, and "erected an extempore tent. One end of an oar was 

 thrust into a crack in the rock, the other end was supported upon the barrel. 



