NIAGARA. 139 
and it alternately gathered and disappeared. An eminent 
friend of mine often speaks of the mistake of those phy- 
sicians who regard man's ailments as purely chemical, to 
be met by chemical remedies only. He contends for the 
psychological element of cure. By agreeable emotions, he 
says, nervous currents are liberated which stimulate blood, 
brain, and viscera. ,i The influence rained from ladies' eyes 
enables my friend to thrive on dishes which would kill 
him if eaten alone j/ A sanative effect of the same order I 
experienced amid ' the'spTay an3 thunder of Niagara. Q (^ 
Quickened by the emotions there aroused, the blood sped ^ t - 
exultingly through the arteries, abolishing introspection, 
clearing the heart of all bitterness, and enabling one to 
think with tolerance, if not with tenderness, on the most 
relentless and unreasonable foe. Apart from its scientitic 
value, and pin i elyjis_-a._mx>ral-gen4 r tEe : plfty "was "worth the/ 
candle. My companion knew no more of me than that I 
enjoyed the wildness of the scene; but as I bent in the 
shelter of his large frame he said, "I should like to sec 
you attempting to describe all this." He rightly thought 
it indescribable. The name of this gallant fellow was 
Thomas Conroy. 
We~retiirned, clambering at intervals up and down, so 
as to catch glimpses of the most impressive portions of the 
cataract. We passed under ledges formed by tabular 
masses of limestone, and through some curious openings 
formed by the falling together of the summits of the rocks. 
At length we found ourselves beside our enemy of the 
morning. Conroy halted for a minute or two, scanning 
the torrent thoughtfully. I said that, as a guide, he ought 
to have a rope in such a place; but he retorted that, as no 
traveler had ever thought of coming there, he did not see 
the necessity of keeping a rope. He waded in. The 
struggle to keep himself erect was evident enough; he 
swayed, but recovered himself again and again. At length 
he slipped, gave way, did as I had done, threw himself 
toward the bank, and was swept into the shallows. Stand- 
ing in the stream near its edge, he stretched his arm 
toward me. I retained the pitchfork handle, for it had 
been useful among the boulders. By wading some way in, 
the staff could be made to reach him, and I proposed his 
seizing it. " If you are sure," he replied, " that, in case 
of giving way, you can maintain your grasp, then I will 
