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Ice-chisels, flint hatchets, and spear-heads may have slipped accidentally through holes kept constantly open, and the recovery of a lost treasure once sunk in the bed of the ice-bound stream, inevitably swept away with gravel on the breaking up of the ice in the spring, would be hopeless.
A small portion of ice being broken off now and then by bars, handspikes, and ice-chisels, floated, to the surface, and was hooked out by piecemeal. This operation was a cold and tedious one and required nine days to complete it.
Orders were given for the ice to be chipped clear of the rudder. The men poled the blocks out of the way when they had been detached from the floe with the long ice-chisels, and we were able to haul the ship's stern into a clear berth. Then the boiler was pumped up.
There was a sheet of ice right ahead which the ship could not clear, but which she was pushing out to sea in advance of her. Suddenly this took the ground and remained motionless. "Out there with ice-chisels! Sink a hole like lightning! Prepare a canister, Mr. Bolton quick!" shouted the captain in desperation, as he sprang over the side and assisted to cut into the unwieldy obstruction.
Often they pitch their tent on the ice, and then cut such holes through it, using ice-chisels of metal when they can get copper or iron, but when not, employing tools of flint or hornstone. The great accumulation of gravel at St. Acheul has taken place in part of the valley where the tributary streams, the Noye and the Arve, now join the Somme.
Radisson had been reappointed superintendent of trade over the entire Bay; and he recommended for this year 20,500 extra flints, 500 extra ice-chisels for trapping beaver above the waterfalls, and several thousand extra yards of tobacco thereby showing the judgment of an experienced trader. This spring the curious oaths of secrecy, already mentioned, were administered to all servants.
A slight movement of the ice round the ship caused the rudder to become dangerously jammed on the 21st, and we had to cut away the ice with ice-chisels, heavy pieces of iron with 6-ft. wooden hafts. We kept steam up in readiness for a move if the opportunity offered, and the engines running full speed ahead helped to clear the rudder.
There was a sheet of ice right ahead which the ship could not clear, but which she was pushing out to sea in advance of her. Suddenly this took the ground and remained motionless. "Out there with ice-chisels. Sink a hole like lightning. Prepare a canister, Mr Bolton; quick!" shouted the captain in desperation, as he sprang over the side and assisted to cut into the unwieldy obstruction.
The first part of the journey over the rugged ice was not so difficult as had been anticipated, because they found a number of openings narrow lanes, as it were winding between the masses, most of which were wide enough to permit of the passage of the sledges; and when they chanced to come on a gap that was too narrow, they easily widened it with their hatchets and ice-chisels.
Quite a number of boxes of flour, etc., had been stowed in a cabin in the hold, and these we had been unable to get out before we left the ship. Having, therefore, determined as nearly as possible that portion of the deck immediately above these cases, we proceeded to cut a hole with large ice-chisels through the 3-in. planking of which it was formed.