IN THE BEGINNING 



curiously marked side probably induced the In- 

 dians to name it Psagatsitag. Beyond this latter 

 mountain lies another beautiful sheet of water, 

 Winnebago, on whose shores I had once longed 

 to build my camp. At the western end of Insley 

 Lake rises a beautiful peak known as Moosi- 

 wadchet. The waters of this lake, after passing 

 through the other lakes of the chain, form the 

 well-known Nameskowhegan River, so impor- 

 tant to the manufacturing interests of the State at 

 Fryeburg and other points. 



The region is a very beautiful one, and at 

 an altitude of about 1700 feet above sea-level 

 one is sure of charming weather throughout the 

 summer, — if anything, generally a little too cool, 

 and absolutely perfect when the papers in Boston, 

 New York, Philadelphia, and other cities are 

 filled with stories of sunstroke and prostrations 

 from the intense heat. Americans make annual 

 pilgrimages to Switzerland, and rave over the 

 beauty of its lake and mountain scenery, oblivi- 

 ous, apparently ignorant, of the fact that our own 

 country furnishes every variety of the picturesque 

 in the superlative degree, compared with anything 

 that can be found in Europe. 



Three strangers met one night in a small hotel 

 5 



