30 jock's lake. 



percli and winged his silent Avay into recesses of the forest 

 where human foot never trod; the nervous little chipmunk 

 watched the singular invaders of his domain, chippered, 

 and plunged into his hole; a partridge or two whirred and 

 darted olf out of sight, almost too swift for the vision to 

 follow; and an occasional rahl)it hopped nimbly out of the 

 path and disappeared in the bushes. 



This was about all the life of the woods that was revealed 

 to our eyes. But there were tracks in the soft earth l)y the 

 streams where the timid deer had stealthily crept and fed; 

 scratchings on tree-trunks Avhere bruin had stood up and, 

 cat-like, dug his claws into the wood and stretched himself ; 

 and we knew that the helmeted sentinels around us, if they 

 could but speak our language, would tell us of the lithe 

 panther, the prowling and sneaking wolf, and of tragedies 

 among hungry beasts quite as entertaining as histories of 

 man's inhumanity to man. 



Wilkinson was compelled to chop out several trees that 

 had fallen across the path, which delayed him somewhat, 

 but the delay was not ungrateful to us. Indeed, as often 

 as the interesting proceeding had to be repeated, we 

 sat down on a convenient and adjacent log with great 

 patience, and superintended the work as wisely as if we 

 were born Avood-chdppers. Nobody complained of fatigue. • 

 If one fell behind, he was examining the geological speci- 

 mens which the rocks afforded. If he sat down, without 

 a general order to halt, his shoe needed tieing. If one stag- 

 gered and stumbled, it was only " a confounded root " ; pale 

 or Hushed,— he was "a little thirsty, you see." No body 



