AND AMERICAN RURAL SPORTS. 



23 



time collected as many berries as we could eat, and enough 

 for our companions in camp. Bear signs were plenty, but 

 we could not lose time in hunting them. 



Soon after dark, came upon two deer which were in such 

 thick bushes that we found it difficult, owing to the dark- 

 ness, to make out their position, and did not fire for fear of 

 alarming our larger game: this precaution was, however, 

 unnecessary, as in a few minutes we heard the heavy 

 reports of t%vo muskets, which we then supposed were 

 those of our companions, but on our return, to our disap- 

 pointment found they had not seen any thing, nor dis- 

 charged their guns, which threw the Indians into great per- 

 plexity to imagine who could be hunting in this part of the 

 country, beside ourselves. After much consultation, they 

 concluded they were Mohawks, as none of the Penobscots 

 or Passamaquoddys had left their town since the middle of 

 summer; in addition to the guns we heard, there were fre- 

 quent indications of traps having been set for musquash, 

 and the places marked with slips of birch bark, in a par- 

 ticularly neat manner, foreign to the Indians of Maine, 

 and as the Mohawks and Penobscots are not on very 

 friendly terms, my friends became quite uneasy. 



The next morning it was clear, frosty, and colder 

 than the preceding, enough so, to form ice in the little 

 puddles, as thick as a quarter of a dollar. Three musquash 



in the traps, which came just in time for breakfast; and 

 as they are one of the greatest luxuries of the Penobscots, 

 I was pleased to find that my companions thought they 

 were living in clover. The unlucky circumstance of 

 another party having preceded us on the west branch, was 

 a death blow to my little expedition. Since a suspicion has 

 arisen of their being Mohawks, my guides began to waver, 

 and acknowledge they do not know any thing about the 

 country up this stream; and on the east branch, they say I 

 have no chance of success in hunting moose and carabou, or 

 in fact any game, as their tribe has been hunting there 

 most of the summer. To all my inquiries about our 

 course and game, Mitchell Louis, who seems to be the 

 leader of the two, always replied, " don't know bejockly, 

 may be we see um, may be he all gone; we go where you 

 want um go, spose so:" from all of which I drew the 

 inference, that it was spending my time and money to 

 little purpose to keep on with my present guides, unless 

 we could ascend the west branch; but this, both Indians 

 opposed, by saying, the " Mohawks berry bad men, we 

 not want to see um, may be kill um all the game too, den 

 dat not good spose for you;" so that I was obliged, though 

 reluctantly, to give the order " right about," and our canoes 

 once more headed towards lake Paoonook. 



nifilLBEBT 



Scene on the PassedujiJcy, 



ARCHERY. 



The value of agreeable amusements has been acknow- 

 ledged in every age, as the most important advantages to 

 health and happiness are in a great measure subject to their 

 influence. If we find that both are interested and im- 

 proved by archery, it must prove a sufficient reason for its 



being esteemed an eligible and useful amusement; and 

 if it can also be shown to possess some valuable qualifi- 

 cations which are not to be found in other diversions, the 

 benefits to be derived from its practice will be still more 

 conspicuous. 



Archery, in fact, possesses many excellencies as an 

 exercise, which renders it one of the most useful of the 



