the cliff, now his feet
were planted on a ledge of rock, and he stood there to rest. Then again
on he went. The fresh hide stretched fearfully, and it seemed as if to
a certainty it would give way. There was no turning back, however. Now
he came to a part of the cliff where he had to trust entirely to the
rope. With hands, and knees, and feet, he worked away. None but a
seaman or a backwoodsman could have accomplished the undertaking so
rapidly, if at all. He was almost at the top. Sam reached over to help
him. We held our breath. Now seemed the critical moment. How was he
to scramble up over the edge of the cliff, exhausted as he must be with
his exertions? Sam seized him by the collar and throwing himself back,
dragged him up by main force. Now we all uttered a loud shout of
congratulation, for thus far Obed was safe. Three or four of the other
men followed. The last, having more friends to help them over the edge
of the cliff, found it easier than Obed had done.

My turn came at last. Only Elihu and another man had to follow. My
arms ached as I got half-way up, and the sickening idea came over me
that the bear's hide was chafed, and would break with me just as I got
up to the most critical part. I rested for a moment on the last spot
which afforded space for my feet, and then swung off into mid-air. I
now knew the sensations which my companions must have experienced. They
were very like those which one has occasionally in a nightmare sort of
dream; to feel that one ought to be climbing up, and yet scarcely to
have strength to lift one's arms. It must be remembered that we were
all clad to keep out extreme cold, and that a buffalo coat is a pretty
heavy weight to have on one's shoulders even under ordinary
circumstances. My great consolation was, that the snow was pretty soft,
and that if I did fall, I might possibly, having once taken the tumble,
escape without breaking my neck.

To make a long story short, I did reach the ledge at last, and so did
the rest of my companions; and then we hauled up the bear's hide, and
commenced our still more perilous ascent to the top of the cliff. By
the bye, Elihu and the other man had bethought them that we might be
hungry after our exertions, and had brought up a supply of bear steaks,
which added not a little to their weight. I doubt if one man alone
could have succeeded in scaling that height, for it must be remembered
that Sam Short had only gone up th