TWO DIANAS IN ALASKA 55 



belts of cottonwood trees, but none of any girth, rested 

 about noon, and after a further trek in the afternoon 

 hours lighted on a place which seemed an ideal camp- 

 ing ground. With ready hospitality the trees gave 

 us of their best, and the ridge poles for our tents were 

 fitted with agility. That night, in spite of the rein- 

 deer sleeping-bags, we felt the cold intensely, and 

 next morning, like Balbus, we built a wall around 

 us, on the zareba principle, and it was not long 

 before we felt the difference of temperature in the 

 tents. 



The Leader came into camp with news of the most 

 wonderful fall of water, a small Niagara, he said, and 

 dwelt so long on its myriad charms that I was up and 

 off with him the instant we finished breakfast. The 

 booming of the water came to our ears before we 

 breasted the intervening hill, and as we got nearer 

 and nearer the wild music seemed to vibrate in all the 

 air. Then, suddenly, without any warning, the glory 

 of the falls burst on my delighted vision. A great 

 torrent rolled down the precipitous sides of a gigantic 

 granite kloof in exceeding volume, and then broke up, 

 descending quite slowly, like snow. 



How I should love to see the chaos that the rains 

 would bring. The early sun gave a glint to the white- 

 ness which was indescribably beautiful, the etchings 

 were limned so clearly, the colours painted so defi- 

 nitely. At the bottom where the fall met the river 

 was an indistinguishable boiling, seething pot; and 

 the tossed spray arose, enshrouding the falls, and as 

 it lighted on the Titanic masses of granite, meeting a 



