The wind was off shore and favorable, so the White Wings seemed to fly that morning. The boys found comfortable positions and enjoyed the sail and the scenery.
Soon Rockland was left behind, disappearing from view behind the point on which the hotel sat. And then the Camden mountains began to loom higher and higher to the northwest.
"We met a warm reception in Rockland," said Frank. "I wonder how it will be in Camden."
The sunshine was bright on the blue bay. The distant islands looked inviting, and there was something about the cool greenness of the woods along the shore that was soothing to the eye.
It was not long before Rockport lighthouse came into view. Beyond the lighthouse they saw the narrow harbor and the village, with the houses seeming to cling to the heights that surrounded the harbor. From the limekilns rose black smoke that added to the picturesque charm of the scene.
But Rockport was quickly passed and Negro Island, at the mouth of Camden harbor, was before them. There was a lighthouse on the island, standing there like an old woman in a white dress and black cap.
Now the mountains, seeming to rise from the very sea, were near at hand and strikingly beautiful, clothed in their summer garments of green. On the top of the nearest mountain stood a hotel with a high observation tower.
"Boys," cried Diamond, "I am going up there and stop a week!"
"I wonder how anybody ever gets up there," grunted Browning. "I shall not go if I have to climb."