NINE MONTHS IN THE ARCTIC. 165 



through the last part of our journey. Strength 

 was given to us by the great Father of all. It 

 was of the Lord's mercies that we did not yield 

 to final despondency, and utterly despair of ever 

 beholding the countenances of our friends again. 

 Hope and heart were in the ascendant ; if they 

 had once fallen, all would have been over 

 with us. 



Sometimes we crawled along on our hands 

 and knees ; at other times we would fall down, 

 both upon the right hand and upon the left, and 

 it seemed to us that we could not rise ; and then, 

 again, we would get up and struggle on. In this 

 manner we traveled miles, and especially the last 

 part of the way. Indeed, our feet had become 

 dreadfully inflamed, and large blisters had formed 

 on the sides of them, which made the labor of 

 walking exceedingly and distressingly difficult. 



Captain Norton was so completely overcome 

 and exhausted when he reached the hut, that he 

 fell prostrate upon the floor, unable to advance 

 one step farther, and lay almost senseless. 



Not only were our feet inflamed and blistered 

 in the most shocking manner, but our clothes 

 were stiff with frost in consequence of perspira- 

 tion, by our extraordinary efforts to reach the set- 

 tlement before night. We were treated with 

 great kindness by the natives; our stiff and 



