t pretend to load their fusees
again, but stand ready every one with a pistol, for we were all armed
with a fusee and a pair of pistols each man; so we were, by this method,
able to fire six volleys, half of us at a time: however, at present we
had no necessity; for upon firing the first volley, the enemy made a
full stop, being terrified as well with the noise as with the fire; four
of them being shot in the head, dropped; several others were wounded,
and went bleeding off, as we could see by the snow. I found they
stopped, but did not immediately retreat; whereupon, remembering that I
had been told that the fiercest creatures were terrified at the voice of
a man, I caused all the company to halloo as loud as we could; and I
found the notion not altogether mistaken; for upon our shout they began
to retire, and turn about. I then ordered a second volley to be fired in
their rear, which put them to the gallop, and away they went to the
woods. This gave us leisure to charge our pieces again; and that we
might lose no time, we kept going: but we had but little more than
loaded our fusees, and put ourselves in readiness, when we heard a
terrible noise in the same wood, on our left, only that it was farther
onward, the same way we were to go.

The night was coming on, and the light began to be dusky, which made it
worse on our side; but the noise increasing, we could easily perceive
that it was the howling and yelling of those hellish creatures; and, on
a sudden, we perceived two or three troops of wolves, one on our left,
one behind us, and one in our front, so that we seemed to be surrounded
with them: however, as they did not fall upon us, we kept our way
forward, as fast as we could make our horses go, which, the way being
very rough, was only a good hard trot. In this manner we came in view of
the entrance of a wood, through which we were to pass, at the farther
side of the plain; but we were greatly surprised, when coming nearer the
lane or pass, we saw a confused number of wolves standing just at the
entrance. On a sudden, at another opening of the wood, we heard the
noise of a gun, and looking that way, out rushed a horse, with a saddle
and a bridle on him, flying like the wind, and sixteen or seventeen
wolves after him, full speed; indeed the horse had the heels of them,
but as we supposed that he could not hold it at that rate, we doubted
not but they would get up with him at last; no question but they did.

But h