llR- mill, li.)W il did pour : We stniiil.U-<l aiul >li<l :ilong 

 "uber stick and sk-in," and also over roots aiul ■■ stein." 

 and water and imid, swayino from side to side with our 

 unwieldy load, rille in one hand and the other steadying 

 Ihc pole on our shoulders, everv ii..w and then tramping 

 on the deer's head, which h.ung and dragged on the 

 oroniid. So for the mile and a half we trudged and 

 trudged until the canoes were reached. 



Here we found the guides angry and alarmed at our 

 prolonged absence, and, as they were soaking wet, we 

 ccmldn't blame tlieiii. We got into the canoes again and 

 paddled as hard as we could until a welcome light shone 

 ahead at the " Halfway House." This house is awav up 

 on a clay bank, set far enough back from the river so that 

 the spring and fall floods won't wash it away. Now a steep 

 clayev bank on a night when the water is pouring down 

 is not a nice one for a lot of half-iVo/en, half-drowned 

 HK-ii to clamber up. We slid and slipped here and there. 

 now down and now up, until we were well covered with 

 clay, but we were cheerful withal, and that's a great deal 

 towards contentment. We at hist reached the house, had 

 our baggage brought in. and, to our disgust, found every- 

 thing was" wet. overcoats, blankets, underclothes, nega- 

 tives^ etc.. etc. A big fire was built in a big st..ve. We 

 ate supper, hung our wet clothes around the \hx: emptied 

 all of our luggage sacks and hung IIk- contents of th.ni 

 upon the chairs and benches as well as np..n the wall, 

 and then to bed, where we slept the sweet sleep that 

 comes to all men who labor out in the open air, an<l who 

 whimper not at .toini or cold but try to make the be>t ..t 

 everything that f.atnne is pleased to shower upon them. 



139 



