36 BOWDOIN BOYS IN LABRADOR. 



wharf. There we saw a ragged looking individual, smoking a 

 very short and black clay pipe, with one arm in a sling, who 

 seemed to recognize us, and waved his hat vigorously with his 

 well arm. Soon we recognized Young and were pumping away 

 at his well hand in our delight at finding his injuries no worse, 

 and that Gary and Cole were yet pushing on, determined to 

 accomplish their object. 



Yonng's hand had been in a critical state ; the slight injury 

 first received unconsciously, from exposure and lack of atten- 

 tion had caused a swelling of his hand and arm that was both 

 extremely painful and dangerous, and which, the doctor said, 

 would have caused the loss of the thumb, or possibly of the 

 whole hand, had it gone uncared for much longer. Of course 

 it was impossible to leave a man in such a condition, or to send 

 him back alone. So Smith very regretfully volunteered to 

 turn back at a point where a few days more were expected to 

 give a sight of the Falls, and when all thought the hardest 

 work of the Grand River party had been accomplished and 

 accompany Young back to Rigolette. 



It was a great sacrifice of Smith's personal desires, to be one 

 of the re-discoverers of the falls, to the interests of the expedi- 

 tion, and it involved a great deal of hard work, for, after pad- 

 dling and rowing all day, he had to build and break camp 

 every night and morning, as Young's hand grew steadily worse 

 and was all he conld attend to. At the mouth of the river, 

 which was reached in shorter time than was expected, and 

 without accident, Young obtained some relief from applica- 

 tions of spruce gum to his hand by Joe Michelini, a trapper and 

 hunter, famous for his skill in all Labrador. Northwest River 

 was reached the following day, and after a few days of rest for 

 Smith, during which time Young's injury began to mend also 

 under the influences of rest and shelter, they hired a small 

 schooner boat to take them to Rigolette. On the passage they 

 were struck by a squall in the night, nearly swamped, and com- 

 pelled to cut the Rushton boatadrift inorderto save themselves. 

 The next day they searched the leeward shore of the lake in 

 vain, and had to go on without her, arriving at Rigolette with- 



