over us. The blankets were decidedly narrow
for three men to get under, and it was necessary for us to lie very
close together indeed; but our new method enabled us to keep fairly
warm and we continued its use.

On Sunday (September 20th) the temperature dropped to 29 and the
squalls continued. In desperation we broke camp in the morning and
tried to cross the lake with our outfit, but the wind soon drove us
back to shelter. While we were out on the lake we caught a namaycush
on the troll, and this fish we had for luncheon, together with some
cranberries we found on a ridge near where we had taken refuge on the
shore. A little later I was attacked with vomiting and faintness.
When I tried to swing an axe, I reeled and all but lost consciousness.

Late in the afternoon the squalls subsided, and we made another attempt
to escape from the prison in which we were slowly starving. Fortunately
the wind continued fair and there were no cross-seas; and on and on we
paddled in the direction of--home! Oh, the great relief of it! For
nearly two weeks we had been held on that dreadful lake. Day after day
the relentless storm had raged, while hunger leered at us and tormented
us with its insistent clamour as we, with soaked rags and shivering
bodies, strove vainly to prevent the little stock of food from
diminishing that we felt was our only hold on life. And now we were
going home!

Darkness had long since fallen when we reached an island near the point
where we had entered the lake. In a driving rain we pitched our camp.
For supper we had the last of the little stock of fish that we had been
able to dry. This meant that, in addition to our stock of tea, the
only food we had left on hand was sixteen pounds of pea meal. But we
did not worry. We were going home. And on Monday morning, September
21st, though the wind was again blowing a gale, and the passage among
the spray-covered rocks was filled with risk, we paddled over to the
mainland, ready to begin our race for life down the trail we had fought
so hard to ascend.

XII. THE BEGINNING OF THE RETREAT

Upon reaching the mainland we stopped to assort and dry our baggage.
All of us felt we had entered upon a race against starvation, and
everything that was not strictly necessary to aid our progress to
Northwest River Post we threw away. In addition to many odds and ends
of clothing we abandoned about three pounds of tea. Tea was the one
thing of which we h