s espying them as they were sweeping out to sea.

1. Daring rescues are countless. Do you know of any
in your community--by police, firemen, or
civilians?

2. What about the rescue described here is unusual?

DESCENDING THE GRAND CANON

One of the most daring voyages in the history of
American exploration was Major John Wesley Powell's
descent through the Grand Canon of the Colorado River,
in 1869. The river had been discovered three hundred
years before his memorable journey, but Major Powell was 5
the first to explore the magnificent gorge through which it
flows and to report his findings to the world.

Major Powell was a scientist. The lack of knowledge
about the Grand Canon was a challenge too strong for him
to resist. With a party of ten picked men he started on 10
the perilous voyage, on May 24, 1869. He did not know
that ahead of them was a seething stretch of water, two
hundred miles in length, broken by rapids and waterfalls,
teethed with jagged stones, and walled in by solid rock a
mile high in places. 15

Into the canon shot the frail boats. Oars were soon
broken on rocks, and new ones had to be made from drift
logs. The constant hammering of the boats made them
leaky. To calk the seams, the men had to climb thousands
of feet to get resin from some stunted pine tree. 20
More than once a boat filled with water in a turbulent
passage, but the swiftness of the current carried it to more
placid waters below, where it could be bailed out.

The difficulties of the explorers were increased by the
lack of daylight hours. The sun shines each day for only 25
a short time in the gorge, and twilight follows twilight in
close succession. Moreover, the winding passage prevented
a view ahead. Falls were guessed at by the roaring of
waters reverberating against the walls of rock. Upon
such a warning the boats were landed, and if there was
ledge room to walk, the men carried and dragged their
vessels around the danger spot. If there was no shelving 5
rock wide enough to permit a portage, the men climbed to a
higher ledge and eased the boats over the falls with ropes.
Sometimes nothing was left to do but to "shoot" the falls
and trust to luck to get over without capsizing.

The food sup