THE DEEDS OF HEROES 197 



the boats till helped by their companions, staggered 

 feebly ashore, and tried to crawl up the steep gulch 

 from their landing place ; but strength failed them, 

 and four more died after landing. It was a sad 

 ending to so brave a fight. 



Deeds worthy of the highest praise were enacted in 

 that gulch that day, the stronger helping the weaker, 

 and endeavouring to restore and encourage those 

 who were abandoning themselves to death. One 

 tells how " I saw Robert Bannister manage to crawl 

 partly up the cliff on his hands and knees. At last 

 he just stopped, said, ' God bless us,' and died where 

 he was. His son was lying dead near him." The 

 nearest house was two miles away, but three men 

 had now spied them. Hastily making a fire of brush- 

 wood, they helped the still living up the cliff, and 

 putting some of their own garments on them, nursed 

 some back to life but here two more poor fellows 

 perished, while their rescuers carried or helped 

 them over that long two miles. Not one but 

 suffered terribly from frost-bite, especially one poor 

 fellow who had given his mittens to a lad without 

 any. 



There were still twenty-four boats missing. What 

 of them? Ice-covered, frost-bitten, and exhausted, 

 some had reached harbours in the great ,bay, situated 

 not so directly in the teeth of the storm; but of 

 those who made for Bonaventure, Deer Harbour, 

 Thoroughfare, and Ireland's Eye, only one had died 

 in the boat. But now deeds of even greater hero- 



