in view at once. For a
moment, I felt somewhat disheartened. All our books--almost every record
of the journey--our journals and registers of astronomical and
barometrical observations--had been lost in a moment, But it was no time
to indulge in regrets; and I immediately set about endeavoring to save
something from the wreck. Making ourselves understood as well as
possible by signs, (for nothing could be heard in the roar of the
waters,) we commenced our operations. Of every thing on board, the only
article that had been saved was my double-barreled gun, which Descoteaux
had caught and clung to with drowning tenacity. The men continued down
the river on the left bank. Mr. Preuss and myself descended on the side
we were on; and Lajeunesse, with a paddle in his hand, jumped on the
boat alone, and continued down the canon. She was now light, and cleared
every bad place with much less difficulty. In a short time he was joined
by Lambert and the search was continued for about a mile and a half,
which was as far as the boat could proceed in the pass.

Here the walls were about five hundred feet high, and the fragments of
rocks from above had choked the river into a hollow pass, but one or two
feet above the surface. Through this, and the interstices of the rock,
the water found its way. Favored beyond our expectations, all our
registers had been recovered, with the exception of one of my journals,
which contained the notes and incidents of travel, and topographical
descriptions, a number of scattered astronomical observations,
principally meridian altitudes of the sun, and our barometrical register
west of Laramie. Fortunately, our other journals contained duplicates of
the most important barometrical observations. In addition to these, we
saved the circle; and these, with a few blankets, constituted every
thing that had been rescued from the waters.

THE RESCUE.

A young girl has been captured at her father's hut, when all the males
of the household are absent hunting wolves. She is seized by the
Indians, and borne swiftly away to the encampment of a war party of the
Osages. She is then placed in a "land canoe" and hurried rapidly forward
toward their villages. Among the party she recognizes one whose life she
had been instrumental in saving, when a prisoner. He recognizes her, and
promises to assist her escape. At this point the following narrative
commences:

At a late and solemn hour, the Indian who had been the