AN ODD STORY. 255 



camped. Wai, I tuck an idee that prehaps the boat 

 hed been stolen by some Injuns as lived up-stream 

 some ten mile or thurabouts, an' so I jest streaked it 

 fur thur diggin's. I hedn't med half a mile when what 

 shed I see clost in agin the bank but my canoe, 'ithout 

 a scratch or arey a bit missin' from it ! You bet but I 

 wur surprised ; an' more'n that, when I found out how 

 the thing hed happened. Ye see I hed left a kupple o' 

 night-lines hangin' overboard, an' a raal sockdollager o' 

 a fish hed put hisself outside o' one o' 'em ; an' findin' 

 hisself hitched by the innards, hed mizzled up-stream 

 draggin' the canoe behint him ! The boat wur tangled 

 in a lot o' drift- weed an' sich rubbish ; an' when I got 

 into it, I felt something a-pullin' an' a-tuggin'. Sure 

 enuff I wa'n't long in findin' out what wur the matter, 

 an' a lump o' lead from my rifle turned up the white o' 

 as big a fish as I've laid eyes on since, though I've seed 

 a-many. Now, young fellurs," concluded Jake, "yer 

 sees a boat, an' mebbe a raft, kin run up-stream now an' 

 agin !" 



" We had no night-lines set, anyhow," said Pierre, " and 

 therefore we cannot hope anything from that source." 



" No ; but thur wur deer-meat aboard," said Jake, 

 " an' thur wur a sight o' ropes, I'll allow. This coon 

 thinks it jest possible that a b'ar has hed somethin' to 

 say to the bisness." 



"A bear, Jake!" exclaimed Gaul tier; "how could a 

 bear have had anything to do with the disappearance 

 of the raft?" 



