A RAINY DAY IN CAMP 



among the brilliant leaves, as if with 

 their autumnal hues they were given 

 transparency. Some unfelt waft of the 

 upper air casts aside for a moment the 

 curtain of mist and briefly discloses a 

 mountain peak, radiant with all the hues 

 of autumn, and it is as if one were 

 given, as in a dream, a glimpse of the 

 undiscovered country. He realizes a 

 dreamy pleasure in watching the waves 

 coming in out of the obscurity and dash- 

 ing on the shore, or pulsing away in 

 fading leaden lines into the mystery of 

 the wrack. 



In the borders of the mist the ducks 

 revel in the upper and nether wetness, 

 and with uncanny laughter the loon re- 

 joices between his long explorations of 

 the aquatic depth. A mink, as heedless 

 of rain as the waterfowl, comes stealing 

 along the shore, thridding the intricacies 

 of driftwood and web of wave-washed 

 tree roots, often peering out in inquisi- 

 tive examination of the quiet camp. 

 Less cautious visitors draw nearer 

 the friendly chickadee, hanging from the 

 nearest twig ; the nuthatch, sounding 

 his penny trumpet, accompanied by the 



