14000 MILES 



lovely afternoon the last of June, with maps of Maine, 

 New Hampshire and Vermont, but without the faintest 

 idea which we should use. 



If we were to have a journey, we must go somewhere 

 for the first night ; and we decided on Groton, as we have 

 been asked so many times if we have ever stayed at the 

 cosy inn kept by two sisters. We found it as pleasant as 

 had been described to us, and it seemed a good opening 

 for our twentieth to find such a pretty new place for our 

 first night. But where next? 



Does it seem strange to you, to go off for a three weeks' 

 trip without the slightest idea whether you are bound for 

 mountain or sea shore? Well, our experience is that the 

 best journeys make themselves, as the best books write 

 themselves, for they accomplish what we should never 

 think to plan. 



Once more we spread our maps, as we have done so 

 many times, just to find a place for the next night. We 

 pinned Maine on to New Hampshire and Massachusetts, 

 and how big it looked ! Surely if we once got into Maine 

 we could roam at will, with no fear of being lost over the 

 borders. It looked very tempting too, for it was a new 

 map, and the colors were bright, while the other maps 

 were faded and worn. As we traced one possible route 

 after another, it really seemed as if Maine was our desti- 

 nation, unless we should encounter the "green-heads," 

 which would send us flying, for Jerry would be frantic. 

 We folded the maps after deciding on Andover for the 

 second night. On our way we left cards at a friend's 

 house in Westford, bought a box of strawberries at 

 Lowell, and had our first camp by the wayside. 



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