202 LOST IN THE WILDERNESS 



We could hardly see fifty yards ahead of us and 

 the walking was getting heavy. We came out on 

 a lake. The Indian stopped, looked around a 

 little, and then started to cross, taking a look be- 

 hind him now and then to see if he was going 

 straight. The lake was half a mile wide. On 

 reaching the other side I noticed that he was ap- 

 parently looking for some familiar object before 

 continuing. Evidently satisfied at last, we en- 

 tered the woods, where being sheltered we took a 

 couple of minutes' rest and spoke a few words, 

 my companion remarking that this storm was 

 going to delay us on account of the bad walk- 

 ing. We had figured on reaching the first set- 

 tlement, Mr. Joseph Thibeau's on the third 

 day, but for this we had to average about sixteen 

 miles per day. This may appear a very short dis- 

 tance, but when you have to carry a pack of even 

 only fifteen pounds and break a path in bad snow 

 and locate your route through the wood at the same 

 time, it makes quite a good day's work. At least 

 this is the result of my experience of it. When 

 the snow is good it does not matter much who 

 breaks the path, but when heavy and soft it is 

 awfully tiresome doing so, and one man alone 

 cannot travel very far without taking a short 

 breathing spell, and in the evening he will be 

 pretty well fagged out. On this day I took my 

 turn with the Indian, he giving me the direction. 

 For an hour or so we jogged along and came to an- 



