FIVE MONTHS MORE. I5 I The thermometer outside suddenly rose to 15° above zero, and to the frozen colonists it was like the beginning of spring. At eleven o'clock the same morning all were out of doors. They were like a band of captives unexpectedly set free. They were, however, absolutely forbidden to go beyond the enceinte of the fort, in case of awkward meetings. The sun had not yet reappeared above the horizon, but it approached it nearly enough to produce a long twilight, during which objects could be distinctly seen to a distance of two miles ; and Hobson's first thought was to ascertain what difference the earthquake had produced in the appearance of the surrounding districts. Certain changes had been effected. The crest of the promontory of Cape Bathurst had been broken off, and large pieces of the cliff had been flung upon the beach. The whole mass of the cape seemed to have been bent towards the lake, altering the elevation of the plateau on which the fort was built. The soil on the west appeared to have been depressed, whilst that on the east had been elevated. One of the results of this change of level would unfor- tunately be, that when the thaw set in, the waters of the lake and of Paulina river, in obedience to the law requiring liquids to main- tain their level, would inundate a portion of the western coast. The stream would probably scoop out another bed, and the natural harbour at its mouth would be destroyed. The hills on the eastern bank seemed to be considerably depressed, but the cliffs on the west were too far off for any accurate observations to be made. The important alteration produced by the earthquake may, in fact, be summed up in a very few words : the horizontal character of the ground was replaced by a slope from east to west. " Well, Lieutenant," said Mrs Barnett, laughing, " you were good enough to give my name to the port and river, and now there will be neither Paulina river nor Port Barnett. I must say I have been hardly used."
- Well, madam," replied Hobson, "although the river is gone, the
lake remains, and we will call it Lake Barnett. I hope that it at least will remain true to you." Mr and Mrs Joliffe, on leaving the house, had hurried, one to the doghouse, the other to the reindeer-stable. The dogs had not suffered much from their long confinement, and rushed into the
