October 15th.

In the course of this day Michel expressed much regret that he had stayed behind Mr. Franklin’s party, and declared that he would set out for the house at once if he knew the way.  We endeavoured to sooth him and to raise his hopes of the Indians speedily coming to our relief but without success.  He refused to assist us in cutting wood but about noon, after much solicitation, he set out to hunt.  Hepburn gathered a kettleful of tripe de roche but froze his fingers.  Both Hepburn and I fatigued ourselves much today in pursuing a flock of partridges from one part to another of the group of willows in which the hut was situated, but we were too weak to be able to approach them with sufficient caution.  In the evening Michel returned, having met with no success.

Next day he refused either to hunt or cut wood, spoke in a very surly manner, and threatened to leave us.  Under these circumstances Mr. Hood and I deemed it better to promise if he would hunt diligently for four days that then we would give Hepburn a letter for Mr. Franklin, a compass, inform him what course to pursue, and let them proceed together to the fort.  The non-arrival of the Indians to our relief now led us to fear that some accident had happened to Mr. Franklin, and we placed no confidence in the exertions of the Canadians that accompanied him but we had the fullest confidence in Hepburn’s returning the moment he could obtain assistance.

On the 17th I went to conduct Michel to where Vaillant’s blanket was left and after walking about three miles pointed out the hills to him at a distance, and returned to the hut, having gathered a bagful of tripe de roche on the way.  It was easier to gather this weed on a march than at the tent, for the exercise of walking produced a glow of heat which enabled us to withstand for a time the cold to which we were exposed in scraping the frozen surface of the rocks.  On the contrary when we left the fire to collect it in the neighbourhood of the hut we became chilled at once and were obliged to return very quickly.

Michel proposed to remain out all night and to hunt next day on his way back.  He returned in the afternoon of the 18th, having found the blanket together with a bag containing two pistols and some other things which had been left beside it.  We had some tripe de roche in the evening but Mr. Hood, from the constant griping it produced, was unable to eat more than one or two spoonfuls.  He was now so weak as to be scarcely able to sit up at the fireside and complained that the least breeze of wind seemed to blow through his frame.  He also suffered much from cold during the night.  We lay close to each other but the heat of the body was no longer sufficient to thaw the frozen rime formed by our breaths on the blankets that covered him.