90 SPORTING ADVENTURES IN THE FAR WEST. 



whirlpools were too numerous and the current too strong 

 to enable me to do this, and it went rushing down the riv- 

 er at a pace almost sufficient to take my breath away. I 

 found it extremely difficult to keep my position, as the ed- 

 dies whirled the raft around so abruptly at intervals that 

 the base, side, or top was alternately in front, but neither 

 very long. I had ridden floating logs before in the pine- 

 forests of Maine, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, and thought I 

 was rather dexterous in the exercise, but on no former 

 occasion did I experience such a wild ride. 



Finding I could do nothing with my pole, it being per- 

 fectly useless in that mad current, I let the bark go where- 

 soever the water carried it, and devoted all my attention to 

 retaining my seat. In the course of perhaps a quarter of an 

 hour I reached a straight stretch of the river, and floated 

 steadily down this at a rapid rate, but, on rounding a bend, 

 I was startled to see before me an immense 'mass of fall- 

 en trees extending across the whole width of the stream. 

 Fearing a collision, I tried to push my unmanageable raft 

 ashore, but my efforts were in vain, and, before I could real- 

 ize my situation, the rude craft went crashing into the ob- 

 struction with such force that I was hurled into the water 

 with a velocity that sent me almost clean to the bottom at 

 one bound. I came to the surface again in a hurry, how- 

 ever, but only to be caught in a whirlpool that dashed me 

 against a tree with such power as to partially stun me, and 

 cause me to feel as if my head and ribs were broken. In 

 my wild anxiety to keep myself from the collision, I threw 

 out my left hand, and, fortunately for me, caught a strong 

 branch ; and when I recovered from the confusion of the 

 blow, I seized this with both hands and clambered on a 

 tree, but not without difficulty, as the current was so fierce 

 near the logs that it threatened to sweep me under them, 

 especially when my body was partially out of the water, 

 as it then exercised its full strength on my legs. I reach- 

 ed the barricade, however, in a short time, and on looking 

 about for my gun, saw it safely lodged among the branches. 

 This was a most pleasing surprise, as I expected that it was 



