OF THE POLAR SEA. 



439 



our friends in the rear, whose lives depended entirely on our sending 

 immediate relief from this place. 



I found a note, however, from Mr. Back, stating that he had 

 reached the house two days ago, and was going in search of the 

 Indians, at a part where St. Germain deemed it probable they might 

 be found. If he was unsuccessful, he purposed walking to Fort 

 Providence, and sending succour from thence. But he doubted 

 whether either he or his party could perform the journey to that place 

 in their present debilitated state. It was evident that any supply 

 that could be sent from Fort Providence would be long in reaching 

 us, and could not be sufficient to enable us to afford any assistance 

 to our companions behind, and that the only relief for them must 

 be procured from the Indians. I resolved, therefore, in going also 

 in search of them ; but my companions were absolutely incapable of 

 proceeding, and I thought, by halting two or three days they might 

 gather a little strength, whilst the delay would afford us the chance 

 of learning whether Mr. Back had seen the Indians. 



We now looked round for the means of subsistence, and were 

 gratified to find several deer skins, which had been thrown away 

 during our former residence. The bones were gathered from the 

 heap of ashes, these with the skins, and the addition of tripe de rocke, 

 we considered would support us tolerably well for a time. As to 

 the house, the parchment being torn from the windows, the apart- 

 ment we selected for our abode was exposed to all the rigour of 

 the season. We endeavoured to exclude the wind as much as 

 possible, by placing loose boards against the apertures. The tem- 

 perature was now between 15° and 20° below zero. We procured 

 fuel by pulling up the flooring of the other rooms, and water for 

 the purpose of cooking, by melting the snow. Whilst we were 

 seated round the fire, singeing the deer skin for supper, we were 

 rejoiced by the unexpected entrance of Augustus. He had followed 

 quite a different course from ours, and the circumstance of his 



