Breen, whose motherly watchfulness
prevented more than a few consecutive moments' sleep. The camp was
quickly aroused. All were nearly frozen. Hiram Miller's hands were so
cold and frosted that the skin on the fingers cracked open when he tried
to split some kindlings. At last the fire was somehow renewed. Meantime
they had discovered their leader - he who had been working throughout
the night-lying cold, speechless, and apparently dead upon the snow.
Hiram Miller and Wm. McCutchen carried the man to the fire, chafed his
hands and limbs, rubbed his body vigorously, and worked with him as hard
as they could for two hours before he showed signs of returning
consciousness. Redoubling their exertions, they kept at work until the
cold, gray morning dawned, ere the man was fully restored. Would you
know the name of this man, this hero? It was James Frazier Reed.
From this time forward, all the toil, all the responsibility devolved
upon Wm. McCutchen and Hiram Miller. Jondro, Dofar, and Turner were
caught in the drifts ahead. The fishers or other wild animals had almost
completely devoured the first cache of provisions, and while these men
were trying to reach the second cache, the storm imprisoned them. They
could neither go forward nor return. Cady and Stone were between Donner
Lake and Starved Camp, and were in a like helpless condition.
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