86 



THE GUIDE TO NATURE. 



How the wind blew; the rain came 

 down in sheets ! Charming Wife re- 

 tired into the cabin where she was 

 soon mixed up with satchels, cots, food 

 and the rain that blew in from a broken 

 porthole. She was game, however, 

 and never murmured ; at least, Fat One 

 said he could hear nothing and the 

 Captain and Old Bill were too polite 

 to listen. 



We had dressed in our ''store 

 clothes" that morning, expecting to 

 take the noon train fifteen miles away, 

 so were not exactly prepared for the 

 storm that broke suddenly upon us. 



The waves lifted the stern so high 

 out of the water that the wheel would 

 race and the boat lose headway. We 

 surely had our hands full of boat and 

 our clothing full of water before we 

 reached the dock. 



Charming AVife was separated from 

 loose articles in the cabin with dif- 

 ficulty. Fat One tried hard to smother 

 a grin as he saw she needed a few 

 slight repairs, but his smile ceased 

 when she coldly called attention to his 

 own wet clothing. Old Bill busy with 

 unloading the baggage, his face red 

 and covered with perspiration, was 

 asked innocently by Charming Wife, 

 why now that we had arrived he did 

 not wipe the rain off his face. But Old 

 Bill very much occupied at the time, 

 getting her dress suit case off the boat, 

 only gave a glance which should have 

 withered her. 



The Captain, hustling the rest of the 

 party on the train, sat down on the 

 edge of the platform, exhausted and 

 wet, while into his brain seemed to 

 come, floating through the air from 

 the train, these words: "We have had 

 such a nice time." But his conscience 

 was seared and the sarcasm never 

 reached him. 



Nature and Humanity. 



I hone the da}- will come when it 

 shall be considered as commendable 

 to dissect a lake or brook as a latuirus 

 or brokinoptus. To climb a mountain 

 and gain a view is as "scientific" as 

 to "shin" a tree and photograph a nest. 

 Get nature — large or small — in your 

 own way and be improved by the get- 

 tin 2f. 



Camping in Bear Canyon, Sandia 

 Mountains, New Mexico. 



BY C. E. KEXSEY, D.D.S., ALBUQUERQUE, 

 NEW MEXICO. 



The accompanying picture shows an 

 ideal camp, both in location and equip- 

 ment, and the five weeks that the 

 writer spent in this delightful spot dur- 

 ing July and August last year still 

 lingers in pleasant memories. 



The altitude of this place is 7000 

 feet and, on up to "Rim rock" which 

 is shown in the background, being 

 10000 feet and was a days journey 

 there and back from this camp. 



Located near a large spring, the 

 water of which was clear and cold as it 

 came bubbling out of the rocks. A 

 small stream ran close by and its rip- 

 pling waters seemed like music at 

 night. 



On awakening in the early morn 

 could see the sun rise over the distant 

 ridge and the voices of robins and 

 mocking birds filled the air in one 

 grand chorus. Could see squirrels run 

 up the sides of huge boulders from my 

 cot in tent and goats jumping from one 

 ledge to another in search of tender 

 green boughs. 



Although alone "dame nature" her- 

 self robed in all her grandeur was suf- 

 ficient company. The fragrance from 

 the pines and the pure moutain air 

 seemed to permeate ones whole being 

 and an appetite for bacon and beans 

 was not lacking. 



Large pine cones were easy to gather 

 and made a quick hot fire in a little 

 sheet iron camp stove. There were no 

 flies or mosquitoes to bother and to an 

 old camper this means a great deal. 



The nights were rather cool for mid- 

 summer and tw r o army blankets and a 

 comforter felt good towards morning. 



A "fly" for a tent is indispensable for 

 it rains in the mountains considerable 

 in the summer season, and one of the 

 hardest hail storms I ever experienced 

 came up suddenly one afternoon about 

 four o'clock and lasted about thirty 

 minutes and left about five inches of 

 hail on the ground ; next day however, 

 was bright and warm. 



Many people go out to these moun- 

 tains from Albuquerque during the 



