CAMP OF DISASTERS. 31 



"When we awoke, tlie sun was already high, 

 shining brightly, and undimmed by a single cloud, 

 and our blankets were already half dry. We there- 

 fore turned out, spread our things on the bushes, and 

 made an attempt to light a fire. All our matches 

 and tinder were wet, and we wasted a long time 

 in fruitless endeavours to get a light by firing pieces 

 of dried rag out of a gun. Whilst we were thus 

 engaged, another adventurer appeared, coming down 

 the river in a " dug-out,'' or small canoe hollowed out 

 of a log. We called out to him as he passed, and 

 he came ashore, and supplied us with some dry 

 matches. He had camped in a sheltered place before 

 sundown, on the preceding evening, and made every- 

 thing secure from the rain before the storm came 

 on. We soon had a roaring fire, and spent the 

 rest of the day in drying our property and patching 

 our canoes, which we did caulk most effectually this 

 time, by plastering strips of our pocket-handkerchiefs 

 over the seams with pine-gum. But our misfortunes 

 were yet far from an end. We broke the axe and the 

 handle of the frying-pan, and were driven to cut 

 our fire-wood with our hunting-knives, and mani]3ulate 

 the cooking utensil by means of a cleft stick. 



Our expectations of haidng a good night's rest 

 were disappointed. About two ^hours before daylight 

 we were awakened by the rumbling of distant thunder, 

 and immediately jumped up and made everything as 

 secure as possible. Before very long, a storm almost 

 as terrible as the one of the night before burst over 

 us. Our waterproof sheets were too small to keep out 



