The Overseer Was Again Attacked With Dysentery.

At night the clouds gathered heavily around, and the weather being mild and soft, I fully expected rain; after dark, however, the wind rose high and the threatened storm passed away.

On the 21st, I was seized again with illness. The overseer continued to be affected also, and we were quite unable to make the necessary preparations for our journey to the westward, which I fully intended to have commenced to-morrow. For several hours we were in the greatest agony, and could neither lie down, sit up, nor stand, except with extreme pain. Towards the afternoon the violence of the symptoms abated a little, but we were exceedingly weak.

April 22. - Upon weighing the meat this morning, which as usual was left out upon the strings at night, I discovered that four pounds had been stolen by some of the boys, whilst we were sleeping. I had suspected that our stock was diminishing rapidly for a day or two past, and had weighed it overnight that I might ascertain this point, and if it were so, take some means to prevent it for the future. With so little food to depend upon, and where it was so completely in the power of any one of the party, to gratify his own appetite at the expense of the others, during their absence, or when they slept, it became highly necessary to enforce strict honesty towards each other; I was much grieved to find that the meat had been taken by the natives, more particularly as their daily allowance had been so great.

Enter page number Go  Previous Next
Page 384 of 914
Words from 107131 to 107399 of 254601