North-West Continent of America. 1ST 



tent : he had been very much alarmedin going down some 

 of the rapids with us, and expressed an anxiety to return. 

 He showed us a mountain, at no great distance, which he 

 represented as being on the other side of a river, into 

 which this empties itself. 



Thursday 13. At an early hour this morning the men 

 began to cut a road, in order to carry the canoe and lading 

 beyond the rapid ; and by seven they were ready. That 

 business was soon effected, and the canoe re-laden, to pro- 

 ceed with the current which ran with great rapidity. In 

 order to lighten her, it was my intention to walk with 

 some of the people ; but those in the boat with great ear- 

 nestness requested me to embark, declaring, at the same 

 time, that if they perished, I should perish with them. 

 I did not then imagine in how short a period their appre- 

 hension would be justified. We accordingly pushed off, 

 and had proceeded but a very short way when the canoe 

 struck, and notwithstanding all our exertions, the violence 

 of the current was so great as to drive her sideways down 

 the river, and break her by the first bar, when I instantly 

 jumped into the water, and the men followed my example ; 

 but before we could set her straight, or stop her, we came 

 to deeper water, so that we were obliged to re-embark 

 with the utmost precipitation. One of the men who was 

 not sufficiently active, was left to get on shore in the best 

 manner in his power. We had hardly regained our situa- 

 tions when we drove against a rock which shattered the 

 stern of the canoe in such a manner, that it held only by 

 the gunwales, so that the steersman could no longer keep 

 his place. The violence of this stroke drove us to the op- 

 posite side of the river, which is but narrow, when the 

 bow met with the same fate as the stern. At this moment 

 the foreman seized on some branches of a small tree, in 

 the hope of bringing up the canoe ; but such was their elas- 

 ticity, that, in a manner not easily described, he was jerked 

 on shore in an instant, and with a degree of violence that 

 threatened his destruction. But we had no time to turn 

 from our own situation to inquire what had befallen him ; 

 for, in a few moments, we came across a cascade, which 

 broke several large holes in the bottom of the^canoe, and 

 started all the bars, except one behind the scooping seat. 

 If this accident, however, had not happened, the vessel 

 must have been irretrievably overset. The wreck becom- 

 ing flat on the water, we all jumped out, while the steers- 



