layed by his eldest
daughter in hastening to the assistance of a wounded neighbour, through
the unknown intricacies of a Canadian forest, led me to consider her
character in a new and endearing point of view.

A Mr. G. and his family had just commenced a settlement, about four
miles east of Mr. Reid's clearing, when, early one morning, his eldest
son, a lad of twelve or thirteen, with a face full of trouble ran to
tell us "that his father had nearly cut his foot off with an axe while
chopping logs to build his house, that his mother could not stop the
bleeding, and that they were afraid he would bleed to death."

Mr. Reid's eldest daughter immediately volunteered to return with the
boy, to render what assistance she could. Without any thought of
fatigue, or danger, or trial to her feelings, she set out instantly
with the proper bandages. Mr. Reid, his sons, and myself were all
chopping in the woods when the lad came, so that Mary followed the
spontaneous impulse of her own heart; but as soon as we heard what had
happened, her father sent over the river for our nearest neighbour, a
stout canny Scotchman, to assist us in carrying the wounded man through
the woods to his (Mr. Reid's) house.

John Morison readily obeyed the summons; and had we required any
additional help we should have had no difficulty, in a case like this,
of finding plenty of volunteers. The only road leading to Mr. G.'s was
from the town, a mere bush-road, and full three miles farther than if
we could go straight back through the woods.

As the number of his lot was the same as the one* we resided on, we
knew that a direct east course would bring us within call of his
clearing. It was, therefore, agreed that Mr. Reid's eldest son should
endeavour, with a pocket compass, to run a line in the direction which
we wanted to go, and that I should blaze+ out the line with the axe,
while the rest chopped out the under-brush and levelled the path
sufficiently wide to allow the passage of a litter.

[* Each concession is divided into two hundred acre lots, numbering
from the boundary line from number one upwards. According to the new
survey, the lots run nearly east and west; therefore, number one in the
first concession will have a corresponding number west across every
concession in the township.
+ Blazing is a term used by the backwoodsman for chopping off a portion
of the bark from each side of a tree to mark a surveyor's line through
the woods. All co