CHAPTER VII
UP THE RIVER
Coming from Sunday-school on Sunday afternoon the boys fell in with Jed Sanborn, the old hunter who had gone out with them on more than one trip. They were rather surprised to see the man carrying his shotgun, for Jed usually believed in respecting the Sabbath day.
"Been out hunting?" queried Snap as all came to a halt.
"Well, yes, kind of," answered the old hunter. "But not any reg'lar game."
"I didn't think you'd be out on Sunday," said Whopper.
"I took it into my head yesterday to look fer that lion as got away at Railings," was Jed Sanborn's answer. "Somebuddy said as how he was keepin' shady over to Merrick's woods, so I tramped over. Stayed in the woods all night an' this mornin'."
"Did you see the lion?" asked Snap eagerly.
"Nary a hair o' him, lad, an' I don't think he's in the woods, nuther."
"But he must be somewhere," insisted Giant.
"Thet might be, but he ain't in Merrick's woods. I'll bet a glass o' cider on't." Jed Sanborn looked at the boys and grinned. "Goin' out huntin' ag'in, so I hear."
"Yes."
"Whereabouts this time—-up whar ye see the ghost?" And the old man chuckled, thinking of what the ghost had proved to be.
"No. We are going over to Windy Mountains this trip," answered the doctor's son.
"That far, eh? It's quite a trip. Hope ye find it wuth so long a journey. I don't know as the game thar is any better nor around the lakes close to hum."
"We are going for the fun of camping partly," said Shep. He did not care to say anything about the picture-taking for his father. "Do you expect to come out that way?"
"I might."
"If you do you must hunt us up," put in Snap.
"I'll do thet, sure pop," answered Jed Sanborn. He started off, then turned back. "Oh, I say!" he called.
"What is it?" asked Whopper.
"It's about thet pesky Ham Spink," went on the old hunter. "Did
I tell ye about my spring?"
"No. What of it?" asked Giant.
"Ye know I've got a nice spring o' cold water up by my cabin. Well, some days ago Ham Spink an' thet Dudder boy came up there, an' on the sly caved the spring in on me. I caught 'em coming away. I had my shotgun with me, an' I was mad, good an' proper. I said they must fix the spring or somebuddy'd git shot. They got scart, I kin tell ye, an' they got on their hands an' knees in the sand an' rocks an' mud and worked like beavers till they had the spring fixed. It jest about ruined their clothes, an' when they went off they was as mad as hops. Spink said he would square up, but he's a blower an' I ain't afraid o' him."
"It was just like Ham's meanness, and Carl Dudder's meanness, too," said Snap.
The new cameras and supplies had come in on Saturday night, and on Monday morning the boys received a new tent from Dr. Reed, and a tarpaulin from Mr. Dodge. Mr. Dawson gave the boys some blankets, and Mrs. Caslette promised to supply them with a hamper of table delicacies.
"With so many good things we'll have a better time than ever before," said Snap.
"Nothing like winding up the summer in good shape," answered the doctor's son.
The chums went over their boat with care, to make certain that it did not leak, and then looked over their guns and the rest of their outfit. On Monday evening everything was taken down to the boathouse for readiness early Tuesday morning.
"I am glad of one thing," remarked Whopper. "Ham Spink and his crowd are not on hand to molest our things, as they tried to do before."
"Well, we gave 'em a warm reception when they did come to the boathouse," answered Snap with a grin, referring to an event related in detail in "The Young Hunters of the Lake."
For this particular outing the supplies were extra numerous, and the boys knew it was going to be no light task to transport them by boat and pack.
"We'll have to make the best of it," said the doctor's son. "When we are in the boat we'll have to row with care, and if we can't tote the stuff over to the mountains in one trip we'll make two."
It was somewhat gloomy Monday evening, and the boys were fearful that it might rain by morning. But the clouds cleared away during the night and the sun came up in the morning as brightly as ever. Each got an early breakfast, and by eight o'clock all were assembled at the boathouse.
"Everything all right?" asked Whopper, who was the last to arrive.
"All O.K.," answered Snap.
Soon the supplies were stowed away with care, and then the chums entered the craft. It was agreed that two should row at a time, and Snap and Giant took up the oars. Several men and boys had gathered to see them start.
"Don't forget to bring back another bear!" sang out one man.
"If you should happen to see that lion, better run for it," cautioned another.
"We don't expect to see the lion, and we aren't looking for more bears," answered Snap. "We are going to take it easy this trip."
"Well, I wish you luck," said the man. Then the boys set up a cheer from the shore, and the chums answered it.
"Say, Snap, what makes you think this is going to be a real quiet picnic?" asked Whopper on the way. "Now, I expect to bag about fifty rabbits, a hundred partridges, some wild turkeys, a bear or two, and that lion in the bargain!"
"Wow!" gasped Giant. "Whopper is to the front once more. Why not make it two lions while you are at it?"
"Because there is only one, and I don't want to be—-er—-piggish."
"Why not say lionish?" questioned Shep.
"Aren't you going to hunt at all?" demanded the boy who loved to exaggerate.
"Of course," drawled Giant. "I am going to hunt ants, and June bugs, and horseflies, and worms, and——-"
"Oh, come off!" growled Whopper. "You know what I mean."
"To be sure we'll hunt," said the doctor's son. "But the cameras are going ahead of the guns this trip."
"Speaking of cameras and worms puts me in mind of something I heard yesterday," said Snap. "It's about trick photography. An amateur photographer showed a picture he had of what looked like a fierce snake on a rail fence. By and by he gave the trick away. The snake was nothing but a garden worm wound around some little sticks and toothpicks, and the picture had been snapped at close range."
"That's like a trick picture I heard about, taken on two plates," said Giant. "It was one of a man wheeling himself in a wheelbarrow."
"I know of three fellows who took a queer-looking picture," said Whopper. "Now, this is true," he continued, noticing the others look of doubt. "They got an oilcloth sign, a square one, and then one fellow got up on another fellow's shoulders. The two fellows held the sign in front of them while the third chap took the picture. When the photo was printed it looked as if the boy carrying the sign was about nine feet high."
"I heard of that in a different way," said Snap. "A fellow out in the country took two horses back of a henhouse. He had the head of one horse sticking beyond one end of the henhouse and the hind legs of the second horse sticking out at the other end, and the picture looked as if that horse was fifteen or twenty feet long."
On they went along the river, past Pop Lundy's orchard, where they had once had quite an adventure. It was rather warm, but a light breeze cooled those at the oars. Snap and Giant rowed for about a mile and were then relieved by their chums, and thus they changed about until it was time for lunch, when they ran ashore at an inviting spot.
"Rowing makes a fellow hungry," observed Whopper. "I think I can eat at least fifteen sandwiches, not to mention some cake and a few pieces of pie."
"Perhaps you want the whole lunch yourself," said Snap. "Well, you don't get it."
"Anybody want coffee?" asked Shep. "If so we'll have to start up a fire."
"Don't bother to-day. Water is good enough," said Giant, and so they rested in the shade of the trees and ate their sandwiches and a pie Mrs. Caslette had baked for them, washing the food down with water from a handy spring.
"I am going to take my first picture," said Snap, and made the others get in a group, each with a piece of pie in his hand. He took a snapshots and then marked the picture in a book he had brought along for that purpose.
"What do you call it?" asked Whopper.
"Pie-ous Time," answered Snap, and then dodged a tin cup the other flung at him.
"We must try to reach Lake Cameron before night," said Shep, when they were once more on the way. "I shouldn't care to camp out along the river."
"Oh, you might find a worse spot," answered Snap. "However, we'll get to the lake if we can."
As my old readers know, Lake Cameron was connected with the river by a narrow creek, the banks of which were overhung with bushes. Since the boys had come home from their last outing the rains had been heavy, consequently the creek was well filled with water.
"This makes getting through easy, and I am glad of it," said Whopper. "I was afraid we'd have to carry some of the stuff around, so as to lighten the boat."
"Are you going up the lake shore very far tonight?" questioned Giant.
It was already growing dark.
"No, I think we had best camp near the mouth of the creek," answered the doctor's son, and the others agreed with him.
As soon as the lake was reached Giant, who was the best fisherman of the crowd, baited up and threw out his line. For some time he did not get a bite, but then came a sharp tug, so dear to the heart of the angler.
"What have you got?" asked Whopper.
"Might be an elephant, but I—-I guess not," cried the small youth.
The others stopped rowing and Giant began to play his catch with care. Soon he brought to light a fine pickerel, and dropped the fish in the bottom of the boat.
"Good for Giant!" cried Snap. "A couple of more like that and we'll have a dandy fish supper."
Again the line was baited and thrown in and the boys took up their rowing. Presently came another tug and again Giant was successful, bringing in a fish several inches larger than the first.
"This is pickerel day," cried Whopper "Reckon I'll try my luck," and he did, and presently brought in a pickerel almost as large as the others. But that was the end of the luck for the time being.
"Never mind," said Shep. "Three are enough. Now to land and get our camp into shape for the night—-and then for supper." And a few minutes later a landing was made.