138 THE BEAVER RIYER WATERS. 



cease from troubling. The niglit was settling down upon 

 us as we reached South Branch, and we puslied up that 

 stream, a short distance, and made eamp. AVliile the 

 guides were constructing a " bower of boughs " we cast our 

 flies among the leaping trout, at the landing, and took a 

 gootl munl)er, but they were small. 



As the darkness closed in upon us and we gathered before 

 the rousing fire, and stretched our weary limbs upon our 

 couch of fresh and fragi-ant hcndock boughs, we discovered, 

 to our consternation, that the Manager and his guide were 

 missing. They were uncontrovertibly lost or di-owned, or 

 both. What precise mishap had indeed befallen them in 

 this inhospitable region we tried to imagine, but none of 

 the theories of their absence satisfied the whole party,— 

 doubtless because each man clung with affection and 

 respect to his own view of the case. It was certain that 

 our lost friend was without axe, blanket or camp-kit, although 

 it was an equally certain and miserable fact that the entire 

 food-supply of the party was with the missing boat, wher- 

 ever that might be. The conclusive statement of our chief 

 guide, upon this point, brought a groan from somewhere 

 near the stomach of the Editor, while the Judge decided 

 sententiously, quoting a semi-legal maxim in the body Qf 

 his opinion, that " what can't be cured must be endured." 

 The Thin Man, who had been gratifyingly successful with 

 his rod, generously and (they said) rather patronizingly 

 declared that there need be no fears for breakfast if all 

 hands would be content to eat his trout. 



