k clouds
overspread the sky. Our men now began to find their burdens very
oppressive and were much fatigued by this day's march but did not
complain. One of them was lame from an inflammation in the knee. Heavy
rain commenced at midnight and continued without intermission until five
in the morning, when it was succeeded by snow on the wind changing to
north-west, which soon increased to a violent gale. As we had nothing to
eat and were destitute of the means of making a fire, we remained in our
beds all the day, but the covering of our blankets was insufficient to
prevent us from feeling the severity of the frost and suffering
inconvenience from the drifting of the snow into our tents. There was no
abatement of the storm next day; our tents were completely frozen and the
snow had drifted around them to a depth of three feet, and even in the
inside there was a covering of several inches on our blankets. Our
suffering from cold in a comfortless canvas tent in such weather with the
temperature at 20 degrees and without fire will easily be imagined; it
was however less than that which we felt from hunger.

The morning of the 7th cleared up a little but the wind was still strong
and the weather extremely cold. From the unusual continuance of the storm
we feared the winter had set in with all its rigour and that by longer
delay we should only be exposed to an accumulation of difficulties; we
therefore prepared for our journey although we were in a very unfit
condition for starting, being weak from fasting and our garments
stiffened by the frost. We had no means of making a fire to thaw them,
the moss, at all times difficult to kindle, being now covered with ice
and snow. A considerable time was consumed in packing up the frozen tents
and bed clothes, the wind blowing so strong that no one could keep his
hands long out of his mittens.

Just as we were about to commence our march I was seized with a fainting
fit in consequence of exhaustion and sudden exposure to the wind but,
after eating a morsel of portable soup, I recovered so far as to be able
to move on. I was unwilling at first to take this morsel of soup, which
was diminishing the small and only remaining meal for the party, but
several of the men urged me to it with much kindness. The ground was
covered a foot deep with snow, the margins of the lakes were encrusted
with ice, and the swamps over which we had to pass were entirely frozen
but the ice, not being sufficien