|
Main
- books.jibble.org
My Books
- IRC Hacks
Misc. Articles
- Meaning of Jibble
- M4 Su Doku
- Computer Scrapbooking
- Setting up Java
- Bootable Java
- Cookies in Java
- Dynamic Graphs
- Social Shakespeare
External Links
- Paul Mutton
- Jibble Photo Gallery
- Jibble Forums
- Google Landmarks
- Jibble Shop
- Free Books
- Intershot Ltd
|
books.jibble.org
Previous Page
| Next Page
Page 31
I came to the foot of a high hill about two o'clock P.M., which I
ascended, and got a very good view of the surrounding country from its
summit; hills and lakes appeared in every direction; but the sight of
these objects only served to impress my mind with the conviction,
that, unless Providence should direct my steps to the establishment,
the game was up with me. Having descended, I sauntered about the
remainder of the day, my ideas becoming more and more bewildered, and
my strength declining; and passed the night sometimes sitting,
sometimes standing, sometimes moving about;--but sitting, standing, or
moving about, subjected to the same tortures.
I endeavoured during the night to compose my mind as much as possible;
some happy thought might perchance suggest itself, which might lead to
my deliverance. Nor were my efforts without some success: I called to
mind the position of the post with respect to the rising and setting
sun; another circumstance of importance also recurred to me.
A Canadian hunter, who received his supplies at my post, had told me
that such Indians as did not wish to pay their debts at the post,
frequently passed unperceived by a chain of small lakes that ran
parallel to the river, and extended from Lac de Sable to somewhere
near the rapid, whence I had taken my departure. I recollected, too,
his having mentioned that some Indian families occasionally made sugar
on the borders of these lakes, and that a good path lay from their
camp to the post. Having passed the night in a deep valley, the sun
did not appear until late in the morning, when I shaped my course, to
the best of my judgment, for the post. Two or three hours' walk
brought me to the foot of a high hill, nearly destitute of wood on one
side; and expecting that some discovery might be made from the top
which might be of use to me, I resolved on attempting the ascent--an
undertaking of no small difficulty in my enfeebled state. I succeeded
in gaining the top, and to my unspeakable joy, perceived a chain of
lakes within about two miles of me, exactly corresponding to the
description given me by the Canadian hunter. I also heard the reports
of guns, but so indistinctly that I could not determine the direction
the report came from. Noting with the utmost care the course that
would lead me to the lakes, I descended the steep declivity with a
degree of speed that surprised myself,--such is the powerful influence
the mind exercises over the body.
I expected an hour's walk would bring me to the lakes, but the sun
being in the zenith, and my way lying through a dense forest of pine,
I could not keep a straight course. I proceeded onward, however, as
well as _reason_ could direct me, and most willingly would I have
exchanged a little of that _faculty_ for the _instinct_ that leads the
brute creation with unerring certainty through the pathless depths of
the forest.
The sun was rapidly declining, and my hopes with it, when suddenly I
fancied I heard the murmuring sound of running water. Could it be
really so? What a delightful feast I should have! for I had passed the
day, like the preceding, without a drop of water to allay my raging
thirst. I listened; the sound became more distinct--it was no
illusion. I quickened my pace, and soon came upon a charming rivulet,
flowing rapidly over a bed of white pebbles, its water clear as
crystal. I rushed into the midst of it, and fervently thanking the
Giver of all good, threw myself on my knees, and drank draught after
draught till my thirst was quenched. I felt refreshed to an
extraordinary degree, and concluding that the stream would lead me to
the river, or to some lake communicating with it, I followed its
course, wading in the water that there might be "no mistake," and soon
came out on the border of a small lake, where I had the additional
satisfaction of hearing the report of guns so distinctly as to
convince me that the party firing them could be at no great distance.
I walked round the lake, and at its far end fell on a portage path
that soon conducted me to another lake. This, then, must be the chain
of lakes I was in search of! I was transported at the thought.
But an incident soon occurred that served to damp at once my spirits
and my person: a distant peal of thunder was heard; peal after peal
succeeded; the heavens were obscured, and heavy drops of rain, the
harbingers of an approaching storm, fell from the dark clouds. I
strained every nerve to reach the firing party ere the storm should
burst upon me. I reached the foot of the hill, but the firing had
ceased. I nevertheless ascended as quickly as my wearied limbs would
carry me, but on reaching the spot found no one there.
The storm now burst upon me in all its fury. Flash followed flash in
quick succession, and the rain fell in torrents, which, however, as
the few clothes that still adhered to my person were already saturated
by the previous rain, caused me but little additional inconvenience. I
descended to the lake, and by the time I reached the far end of it the
darkness had increased so much, that I could proceed no farther.
Perceiving an old encampment--a few half-decayed branches of balsam,
at the foot of a large hemlock--I took up my quarters there for the
night. The tufted branches of this tree render it a much more secure
retreat in a thunder-storm than the pine, whose pointed branches and
spiral shaped top frequently attract the electric fluid.
Previous Page
| Next Page
|
|