MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 



475 



to be sufficient for us, I gave 

 orders to embark, and we all went 

 on board. Two men were in the 

 act of loosening the fastenings, 

 when a shock occurred nearly 

 equal to the first in violence. The 

 men lan up the bank, in order to 

 save themselves on the island, but 

 before they could get over the 

 chasm, a tree fell close Wy them, 

 and stopped their progress. The 

 bank appeared to me to be moving 

 rapidly into the river, and I called 

 out to the men in the boat ' Cuu- 

 pez les cordes!' on hearing this, 

 the two men ran down the bank, 

 loosened the cords, and jumped 

 into the boat. We now found 

 ourselves again on the river : the 

 Chenal du Diable was in sight, and 

 appeared absolutely impassable, 

 from the cpiantity of trees and 

 drift wood, that had lodged during 

 the night against the planters fixed 

 in the bottom of the river ; and in 

 addition to our difficulties, I no- 

 ticed that the patron and the men 

 appeared to be so terrified and con- 

 fused, as to be almost incapable of 

 action. I determined to stop, 

 previous to passing the channel, 

 in order that the men might have 

 time to become more comjiosed. 

 I had the good fortune to discover 

 a bank, rising with a gentle slope, 

 where we again moored, and pre- 

 paied to breakfast on the island. 

 Whilst that was preparing, I 

 walked down the island, in com- 

 |)any with Morin, our patron, to 

 view the ciiannel, in order to as- 

 certain the safest part, which we 

 soon agreed u])<m. Whilst we 

 were thus employed, we expe- 

 rienced a very severe shock, and 

 found some difficulty in ])reserving 

 ourselves from being thrown 

 down; another oicurred durini^ 



the time we were at breakfast, 

 and a third as we were preparing 

 to reimbark. In the last, Mr. 

 Bridge, who was standing within 

 the declixity of the bank, nar- 

 rowly escaped being thrown into 

 the river, as the sand continued to 

 give way under his feet. As I ob- 

 served that the men were still very 

 much under the influence of ter- 

 tor, I desired Morin to give to each 

 a glass of spirits, and reminded 

 them that their safety depended on 

 their exertions, and we pushed out 

 into the river. The danger we 

 had now to encounter was of a 

 natui'e which they und;.'rstood : 

 the nearer we approached it, the 

 more confidence they appeared to 

 gain ; and, indee<l, all their 

 strength, and all the skill of Mo- 

 rin, was necessary, as there was 

 no direct channel through the 

 trees, and we weie several times 

 under the necessity of changing 

 our course in the space of a few 

 seconds, and that instantaneously, 

 not a moment being left for deli- 

 beration. Immediately after we 

 had cleared all danger, the men 

 dropped their oars, crosse<l them- 

 selves, and gave a shout, congra- 

 tulating each other on our safety. 



" We continued on the river till 

 eleven o'clock, when there was a 

 violent shock, which seemed to 

 affect us as scnsilly iis if we had 

 been on land Th,; tiees on both 

 sides of the river were most vio- 

 lently agitated, and tlie banks fell 

 in, in several places, within our 

 view, carrying with them iimu- 

 merable trees, the crash of which 

 falling into the river, mixed with 

 the terrible sound attending the 

 shock, and the screaming of the 

 geese, and other wild-fowl, prc- 

 dnced an idea that all nature was 



in 



