SOURCE OF ST. peter's kiver. 143 



which was however increased on discovering that the black 

 boy (Andrew) had not returned with them ; he having unfor- 

 tunately lost his way in the woods. Our search after him hav- 

 ing proved vain, we wrote directions for him to pursue our 

 track, affixed them to a tree, and were on the point of 

 leaving the camp, when fortunately he made his appear- 

 ance. It is probable, as we afterwards found out, that he 

 would have perished in the woods had he not come in 

 just at that moment ; for it would have been impossible 

 for him to have traced the party in the thick forest 

 through which our course led us : neither would it have 

 been prudent for us to have remained any longer there, 

 as our horses gave evident signs of their having been 

 on short allowance since noon of the preceding day. 

 Andrew's return to the camp enabled us then to attend to 

 what appeared to be the most important object, which was 

 to seek for a place where the horses might pasture to ad- 

 vantage. We therefore resolved upon following as short a 

 course as we could to the prairie land, endeavouring at the 

 same time to keep near enough to the river to reach the 

 second crossing before night. In this attempt we met with 

 great difficulties, from the closeness of the forest and the 

 swampy nature of the ground. The horses laboured much 

 to get through, and when we stopped at noon to pasture 

 them on a small patch of grass, we found that our progress 

 during four hours had been but about six miles. We had 

 met with a bold and hitherto undescribed stream, about 

 twenty yards wide, which empties into the Elkheart about 

 three miles below the usual crossing, and which we have 

 designated in our map as the south-west branch of that 

 river. From the rapidity and depth of this branch we anti- 

 cipated the same difficulties which we had encountered the 

 evening before, but on continuing along the bank, for some 



