“Well, you’re all here I see,” Bob greeted them.
“Yes, and we came pretty near catching the lalapaloosla,” Rex said.
“How near?”
“Well, as a matter of fact, I guess we really came about as near as the Irishman did to selling his pig,” Rex laughed.
“How was that?” Jack asked.
“Pat had a pig to sell, and after a trip to town with it, he told a friend that he came mighty near to selling it. His friend asked him the same question that you asked me, and he replied, ‘Sure an’ I asked a feller didn’t he want ter buy a foine pig, an’ he said no, but if he’d a said yes, sure an’ I’d sold him.’”
“And if you’d caught it, why you’d have caught it, eh?”
“That’s about the size of it,” Rex laughed.
After a hurried breakfast Kernertok announced that the canoe was in good shape for use, and packing up their stuff as quickly as possible, they pushed off. There is but little current to the Allagash, as it runs out of Long Pond, but with Bob and Kernertok at the paddles, they made good time.
“It seems strange to be going down river and north at the same time,” Rex said.