“Well, ye’re likely to have a good deal more’n a taste, I’m thinkin’. Now, then,” he said to Tom when the dinner had been eaten, “I’ll leave ye here to look after the boys while I go over to the Bay an’ get the trunks an’ things that were checked through. I’ll be back by the middle o’ the afternoon. Ye can get along without me, can’t ye?”
“Yes, yes,” said Jock. “We want to get out our rods and fix things up a little. We can try the fishing to-morrow, can’t we, Ethan?”
“Yes, ye can try it,” replied Ethan, dryly.
“You don’t think we’ll do much? Is that it, or isn’t the fishing good this summer?”
“Oh, the fishin’ is all right. Lots o’ fish here. No trouble about that.”
But Ethan at once went down to the dock and set sail for Alexandria Bay, and the boys began to look to their rods and guns. Tom, who was supposed to be clearing away the dishes, frequently paused in his occupation to examine the belongings of the campers; but, although he was feeling more at ease now with them, not one word of surprise or commendation did he bestow. Indeed, his companions began to fear that their tackle must all be wrong or out of date, for the only response Tom would make to any of their anxious inquiries, was that ‘he supposed ’twas all good enough; he could tell better to-morrow.’
When everything had been done which could be done before the trunks came, the four boys together left the camp and walked up the shore. The novelty was still strong, and they were eager to examine their immediate surroundings. And there was much to interest them. Swift steam yachts frequently passed up the river, and the groups of happy people on the decks could be plainly seen from the shore. Occasionally a puff of smoke could be seen, and the boom of a small cannon on some of the neighboring islands could be heard, and then the shrill scream of the whistle of a passing yacht or steamer would respond in acknowledgment of the salute. Skiffs were also seen, and the rod held in the hands of the person seated in the stern would indicate the occupation upon which he was bent.
Above them was the clear blue sky, behind them the whispering trees of the forest, and before them the great, onward-rushing river, its blue waters knowing no rest, and yet in spite of their evident haste imparting a feeling of restfulness to all the beholders, so vast was the power, so slight the effort required to maintain the steady, constant course.
To Jock the great river almost seemed to be alive. At times it was restless and almost angry, and then again it seemed to be hastening past him as if it were unmindful of its surroundings, or scornful of the puny people who sailed over its surface or stood wondering upon its banks. But the feeling of exhilaration, the delight in the presence of one of nature’s most wonderful works, was apparent in all the boys.