"Don't forget that we'll keep our eye on you the rest of the summer, and that at the first suspicious move, we'll arrest you," said another official.
"You will find that totally unnecessary. We have been coming up into this country for several years, and the delights of nature, the fishing, hunting and adventure are the only things we are after here," said Mr. Waterman.
"I hardly know what to believe," said the spokesman of the party. "That man Field was here on just the same plea that you have stated, and until a few days ago he was just as little suspected as you now actually are. Pardon my questioning, but it seemed necessary. We are camping over on Lac Corbeau for some time, so if you see more of us do not be surprised. For the present we'll assume that things are just as you state they are. I sincerely hope so, for otherwise it will be a very serious matter for you."
The two parties then separated, and Mr. Waterman led the way back down the mountain. They were just in time for a real good swim before supper. Jack had been out and he had gotten four ducks, so that they had a very fine meal. Duck, trout, biscuits hot from the pan, ginger-bread and apricots made up a meal that would have done credit to Delmonico's, let alone a camp far away in the Canadian wilds. They certainly enjoyed it.
The next morning they were up early. They were going to get over to the Escoumains River and this meant that they would have to portage through three lakes.
"We'll have some hard work this morning, boys, so let's get away as early as we can," said Mr. Waterman.
"How many portages have we?" asked Pud.
"It's all the same to me," said Pud. "I'm getting to like the feel of that old canoe on my neck. It certainly does not seem half as heavy as it was ten days ago."
"That's because you know how to distribute its weight so that you carry it with head, neck, and arms," said Mr. Anderson. "These canoes are especially made and they weigh only sixty pounds. You ought to carry the canoes we used the first year of the Saguenay Club. They were just the ordinary canoe and they weighed nearly one hundred pounds and were badly balanced. These canoes not only weigh less than any other canoes you will see in this country, but they are especially balanced so that they are thereby easier to carry."