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186 TRAVELS
he made to dance in the air, by alarming his fears, added new
wings to his flight. When he had fled to a confiderable diftance
from us, he appeared from time to time as a dark {pot which con-
tinued to diminifh in the air, and at laft totally vanifhed from
our fight. ‘Then it was that we recognized the prudence of hay-
ing in our party fome {pare horfes, and we were fully fenfible of
the danger that muft attend a journey acrofs the gulf of Bothnia
without fuch a precaution. The peafant, who was the owner
of the fugitive, taking one of the fledges, went in fearch of
him, trying to find him again by following the traces of his flight.
As for ourfelves, we made the beft of our way to the ifles of
Aland, keeping as nearly as we could in the middle of the fame
plain, ftill being repeatedly overturned, and always in danger of
lofing one or other of our horfes; which would have occafioned
a very ferious embarraffment. During the whole of this journey
we did not meet with, on the ice, fo much as one man, beaft,
bird, or any living creature. Thofe vaft folitudes prefent a defert
abandoned as it were by nature. The dead filence that reigns
is interrupted only by the whiftling of the winds againft the pro-
minent points of ice, and fometimes by the loud crackings occa-
fioned by their being irrefiftibly torn from this frozen expanfe ;
pieces thus forcibly broken off are frequently blown to a confider-
able diftance. Through the rents produced by thefe ruptures,
you may fee below the watery abyfs; and it is fometimes necef-
fary to lay planks acrofs them, by way of bridges, for the fledges
to pafs over. |
The
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