30 Account of an Excursion to Mount Katahdin. 



ever, in spite of the rain, until we had reached a point about six hun" 

 dred feet from the summit. By this time I became so much exhausted 

 as to fear I would not be able to reach the summit, and have strength 

 enough left to return to the boat that afternoon. Our time being lim- 

 ited, as well as our provisions, it was necessary that we should reach 

 the boat that day ; for fear therefore of detaining the party 1 determin- 

 ed very unwillingly not to exhaust my strength by ascending any high- 

 er. Had the day been fine there would have been more inducement 

 to proceed; but we were enveloped in clouds, drenched with rain, and 

 there was no prospect of the weather becoming such as to enable us 

 to enjoy that view from the summit which is the principal inducement 

 to reach it. Mr. Barnes with the two guides determined to pro- 

 ceed, while Mr. Keely and myself were to return to the camp and 

 prepare a fire. Before descending, I examined the plants growing 

 at the elevation which we had reached. I found the following in 

 great abundance near the slide, viz. : Ledum latifolium, Vaccinium 

 Vitis Idaa, Vaccinium uliginosum, and Solidago virgaurea, var. 

 alpina. In the slide itself were large patches of Potentilla triden- 

 tata, and Arenaria glabra. (The P. tridentata is somewhat im- 

 propBrly called Mountain potentilla ; it however flourishes within a 

 iew yards of the ocean, near the observatory at Portland.) We 

 found also in descending, many bushes of Ribes ringens, whose 

 berries, though ripe, were very nauseous at first ; but my thirst made 

 me persist in eating them, and I soon found them quite palatable. 

 We examined the rocks in the slide while on our way to the camp, 

 but found little of interest : fragments of shell limestone were not 

 uncommon, besides which were many fragments of hornblende rock, 

 graywacke, and amygdaloid. Some of the latter has a green paste 

 resembling compact epidote ; in this was once imbedded a substance 

 which has decomposed, leaving the globular cavities which it once 

 filled, nearly empty. The vesicular stone thus formed has a striking 

 resemblance to a volcanic product. I also noticed many fragments 

 of jasper of a fine red color. No indications of any ores were per- 

 ceived. 



When we arrived at our camp, we found our fire extinguished, 

 and ascertained, much to our chagrin, that our friends had taken with 

 them our only means of kindling one. The rain was increasing in 

 violence, our only resource therefore, was to spread one blanket 

 on the ground and another over it as a tent, by which we were partly 

 sheltered from the storm. In about an hour we heard the merry 



