were two small Indian children who were
now orphans, the mother having heen
killed by their father, and the latter sen-
tenced to life imprisonment for his crime.

The plane had hardly become air-borne
when the pilot noticed oil splashing on his
windshield. With a flight of three hundred
mules ahead, a leaky oil line was’a serious
matter, so Carey headed down for the
river again. He made a landing a short
distance from shore and turned the plane
for shallow water. When the door was
opened the two Indian children fell out
into the river. They were fished out un-
harmed and the aircraft was hauled to
shore. One of the passengers went back
to the base about five miles upstream for
a mechanic. On their return they noticed
when climbing down the bank of the river
a body lying in a hole near the root of an
upturned tree. It was half in and half
out of the water, and was hardly dis-
tinguishable from the surrounding mud.
On examination they discovered it was
that of a man, clothed in khaki coveralls
and wearing army boots. On one wrist

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was a strap watch, and the position of the
hands indicated that it had stopped at ten
minutes to four.

The body was removed to the under-
taking parlours at Prince George, and the
coroner issued his precept for an inquest
the following day. When the Coroner's
Court opened, a military officer produced
the army record of Lance Corporal Smith.
A record of scars corresponding with
those on the body established beyond a
doubt that it was that of the missing
soldier.

The unfortunate man’s body had drifted
down the Nechako River about six miles
into the Iraser, which had carried it a
further seven miles to its final resting
place. As the water was falling at this
time of year the body was left exposed
some distance from the main stream. Had
not the plane made a forced landing at
the point where it did, the possibility of
discovery was extremely remote, as the
Fraser River’s course was a considerable
distance from a road, and there would
be no reason for anyone to go to that
particular place. As the result of a con-
catenation of peculiar circumstances, the
case was cleared up, and the remains of
Lance Corporal Smith lie in a peaceful
grave in a Vancouver cemetery instead
of its last resting place remaining one of
the many secrets of the mighty Fraser.
ee ee ae

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