Queen of Moccasin-Flo-wers 63 



order to swell the felly, and thus tighten the tires to my 

 rattling wheels. Although I felt that by driving along 

 the highway I was losing much beauty that was un- 

 folding in the fields and fence corners, I found this 

 method of progress quite comfortable. 



How these East Pownal bogs came by the musical 

 name of Etchowog, I am not quite certain; nor do I 

 know exactly what it means. It may have come from 

 a primitive language of a mythological age for all I 

 know, or it may have come from the Itch -Weed or 

 Indian Poke and Poison Rhus, which cause much irri- 

 tation of the skin. I am safe in saying that it is a 

 corruption of the Indian's Greek and Latin words for 

 "itch" and "bog," — at least this etymology quite 

 suits the designation of these swamps. Ever since I 

 can remember I have heard the older folk of the town 

 call it Etchowog. I have associated the region with 

 rare flowers, orchids, pollywogs, snapping-turtles and 

 mud-holes, together with the schoolhouse in District 

 Thirteen, where the good people hold Advent meetings, 

 and set the dates for the world to come to an end. To 

 me it seems one of the brightest, richest of swamps, 

 full of" Bottomless Dead Holes," where only bull- frogs 

 peep and trill and croak the whole season through, till 

 their notes blend with the chirp and whirr of the 

 autumn crickets. 



At the Barber Mill, I hitched Bonny to a fence-post 

 and started on my excursions. I looked through the 

 open meadow east of the mill to see if I could find any 

 rose-colored Pogonias and Grass-Pinks. There was as 



