ply of the crew soon ran low. The flour 10
was water-soaked, the bacon became tainted, and much of
the supply was lost by going overboard.

Short rations, scant sleep on damp ledges, and the hard
labor of navigation soon told on the men. But most of
them were of tried courage and endurance. One day they 15
came to a little patch of earth by the side of the river. On
this some corn and squashes were growing--probably
planted by Indian tribes living at the top of the gorge.
The corn was too immature to be eaten; but the men enjoyed
a feast of baked squash, even though the squashes 20
were green.

At the end of fifteen days all of their provisions were
gone, excepting some heavy flour and dried apples. They
had arrived at a place where they could climb out of the
canon and the question arose as to seeing the voyage finished 25
or giving it up. Three men decided to give up; so they
took their share of provisions and guns and climbed out,
only to be killed shortly afterwards by the Indians. The
remainder pursued their awful way, not knowing how much
longer they must endure the terrible hardships. 30

Suddenly, on the sixteenth day, they emerged into an
open space. The Grand Canon had been traversed!

Down the river they floated till the following day, when
they found some settlers drawing in a fish net. These
settlers had heard that Major Powell had been lost in the
canon and were keeping a lookout for pieces of boats.
Instead, a worn but victorious party confronted them. 5
Food in plenty was soon forthcoming, and the members of
the party were feasted as heroes.

1. Give a two-minute talk on the Grand Canon,
touching on location, general character, etc.
Consult your geographies and reference books for
material. Make your talk interesting.

2. Why did Major Powell undertake this dangerous
trip? How many men went with him? How many deserted
him? What were some of the troubles they
encountered? How did the venture turn out?

3. Name some other famous explorers. Who discovered
the north pole? The south pole? The Mississippi
River? The Pacific Ocean?

NIGHT FISHING IN THE SOUTH SEAS

BY FREDERICK O'BRIEN

Mr. O'Brien spent some time among the South Sea