CAREY'S CLEARING 301 



With the breaking up of the camp he passed out 

 of my life for over ten years. How I met him again 

 came about in this way : I was walking across 

 country on what might be called a visiting tour, the 

 next point of attack being a distant relation living 

 near North Gower, in the County of Carleton. It 

 was a warm day, along towards the latter part of 

 June, when a farmer, who had given me a lift from 

 Becket's Landing, dropped me at a corner of wliat he 

 called the Concession. On our way over I told him 

 where I was going, and before parting he said that I 

 could cut off three or four miles of the journey by 

 going through the bush by way of a place called 

 Carey's Clearing. In those days I was not very par- 

 ticular whether I lost my way in the woods or not, so 

 I struck into the bush on what looked like an old 

 winter road, but which proved to be the eastern out- 

 let for the man who had made the clearing. After 

 walking for what seemed to me at least an hour, I 

 came to a bush fence, and farther on, three or four 

 rails across a gap between the roots of two trees that 

 had been blown over, with considerable soil and earth 

 still clinging to them. As the road led to it, I knew 

 that it must be the entrance to the clearing, and as I 

 could step on the head of my shadow I knew that it 

 was midday ; but where was a hungry traveler going 

 to get a meal in that "neck of woods?" With this 

 thought uppermost, I slipped between the bars and 

 made a survey of the clearing. As near as I could 

 see, there was a patch of corn and potatoes at one 

 side of it, while to the left there appeared to be a 

 bunch of hay and a few acres of either oats or wheat 

 growing in the rich virgin soil, while the black 



