When he stripped the Canadians simultaneously exclaimed "Ah! que nous sommes maigres!" I shall best explain his state and that of the party by the following extract from his journal: "It may be worthy of remark that I should have had little hesitation in any former period of my life at plunging into water even below 38 degrees Fahrenheit, but at this time I was reduced almost to skin and bone and, like the rest of the party, suffered from degrees of cold that would have been disregarded in health and vigour.

During the whole of our march we experienced that no quantity of clothing would keep us warm whilst we fasted, but on those occasions on which we were enabled to go to bed with full stomachs we passed the night in a warm and comfortable manner." In following the detail of our friend's narrow escape I have omitted to mention that when he was about to step into the water he put his foot on a dagger which cut him to the bone, but this misfortune could not stop him from attempting the execution of his generous undertaking.
In the evening Augustus came in.

He had walked a day and a half beyond the place from whence we turned back but had neither seen Junius nor Mr.
Back.

Of the former he had seen no traces but he had followed the tracks of Mr.Back's party for a considerable distance until the hardness of the ground rendered them imperceptible.

Junius was well equipped with ammunition, blankets, knives, a kettle, and other necessaries; and it was the opinion of Augustus that when he found he could not rejoin the party he would endeavour to gain the woods on the west end of Point Lake and follow the river until he fell in with the Esquimaux who frequent its mouth.