fires could be lighted
to cook meals without pausing to land. When we recall the experiences
of Mackenzie and Fraser on this river, it seems almost incredible that
these landsmen made {74} the descent on rafts with their few remaining
ponies and oxen tied to the railings; yet so they did. If we imagine
rafts, with horses and oxen tied to the railings, trying to run the
whirlpool below Niagara, we shall have some conception of what this
meant.

The canoes sheered out of the way and the rafts were unmoored. The
Scarborough raft, with men from Whitby and Scarborough, near Toronto,
swirled out to midstream on the afternoon of the 1st of September.
'Poor, poor white men,' sighed the Indians; 'no more see white men';
but the men in the canoes rapped the gunnels with their paddles and
uttered rousing cheers. Then the _Ottawa_ and the _Niagara_ and the
_Huntingdon_ rafts slipped out on the current. All went well for four
days. Sweeps made of trees with the branch ends turned down and long,
slim poles kept the rafts in mid-current. Meals were cooked as the
unwieldy craft glided along the river-bank. Two or three men kept
guard at night, so that the rafts were delayed for only a few hours
during the darkest part of the night. The sun shone hot at midday and
there were hard frosts at night; but the rest in this sort of travel
was wonderfully refreshing after four months of toil across prairie and
{75} mountain. But on the afternoon of the 5th of September the rafts
began to bounce and swirl. The banks raced to the rear, and before the
crews realized it, a noise as of breaking seas filled the air, and the
_Scarborough_ was riding her first rapid. Luckily, the water was deep
and the rocks well submerged. The _Scarborough_ ran the rapid without
mishap and the other rafts followed. On the next day, however, the
waters 'collected' and began running in leaps and throwing back spume.
Some one shouted 'Breakers! head ashore!' and the galloping rafts
bumped on the bank of the river. The banks here were steep for
portaging; and the Scarborough boys, brought up on the lake-front, east
of Toronto, decided, come what might, to run the rapids. They let go
the mooring-rope and went churning into a whirlpool of yeasty spray.
All hands bent their strength to the poles. The raft dipped out of
sight, but was presently seen riding safely and calmly below the rapids.

Those watching the _Scarborough_ from the bank breathed freely ag