ASCENDING THE RAPIDS.
Page 188.
again and made fast to the second canoe. I could see, as the ascent commenced, that she made a dip like her predecessor, and was very glad that Teta had consented to lash me. Having nothing else to attend to, I now watched the ascent most carefully, and could see that it was with the utmost difficulty the men inside kept her from being smashed on the rocks, and that she often came perilously near capsizing; but she too was got up in safety, so was the third canoe, and then it came to our turn to make the ascent.
I did not feel very comfortable as we were dragged through the broken water, which flew into the canoe until she was half full. As we made the dip and drive into the rapids at their foot, the water struck me with such force as to knock all the breath out of my body; but the send we gave as the canoe recovered herself sent all flying out over the stern and left her nearly free.
I watched as we made our slow and perilous ascent, sometimes not going ahead an inch, and sometimes even receding and coming dangerously close to the rocks,—the men in the canoe with me exerting their utmost strength and skill to prevent her being stove in.
After a bit I saw we were getting more to the middle of the rapids than the other canoes had done, and that the rope from the shore was singing like a harpstring as the water struck against us. I do not know why it was, but one knot about a couple of fathoms from the canoe seemed to have a peculiar fascination for me, and I soon saw that it was giving. The men in the canoe saw this too, and shouted with all their strength for their friends on shore and on the rocks to ease us down again so as to secure it afresh; but the noise of the rapids drowned their voices, and their cries being understood to be cries of encouragement, the men manning the ropes hauled away all the more vigorously.