Chap. X. FRANKLIN AND RICHARDSON'S JOURNEY. 401 



us that he had halted for the purpose of putting his gun in 

 order, with the intention of attacking us, perhaps whilst we 

 were in the act of encamping." — p. 458. 



The loss of poor Hood was a severe blow, and 



Richardson and Hepburn had the last mournful 



office to perform over his remains, by interring* 



the body in a clump of willows, and reading the 



funeral service, in addition to the, evening prayers. 



" The loss of a young officer, of such distinguished and 

 varied talents and application, may be felt and duly appre- 

 ciated by the eminent characters under whose command he 

 had served ; but the calmness with which he contemplated 

 the probable termination of a life of uncommon promise, 

 and the patience and fortitude with which he sustained, I 

 may venture to say, unparalleled bodily sufferings, can only 

 be known to the companions of his distresses. Bicker stetK s 

 Scripture Help was lying open beside the body, as if it had 

 fallen from his hand, and it is probable that he was reading 

 it at the instant of his death." — pp. 456, 457. 



Dr. Richardson says that in the preceding part 

 of the narrative he has dwelt upon many circum- 

 stances of Michel's conduct, " not for the purpose 

 of aggravating his crime, but to put the reader 

 in possession of the reasons that influenced me in 

 depriving a fellow-creature of life." 



Six days had the two remaining desolate and 

 unhappy travellers to drag themselves through deep 

 snow, without food, and almost without any fire, 

 existing on lichens and scrapings of the skin-cloak 

 of poor Mr. Hood. On the fifth day Dr. Richard- 

 son fell down among large stones under the snow 



2d 



