AND THE WILDERNESS BLOSSOMED 



out, were often very amusing. Once going into 

 Winnebago, the road seemed to divide, one trail 

 making off more to the left. We took the right- 

 hand trail, and as one of the wheels of the buck- 

 board mounted a rock as big as a tea-table, I 

 asked Ned where the other trail went. " Oh," 

 he said, " that 's the old trail. They abandoned 

 it because it was a leetle mite rough." 



Passing a clearing in which there was a dilapi- 

 dated barn and a ruined house, the surrounding 

 land being remarkable solely for the number and 

 size of the rocks on its surface, I asked Ned what 

 had become of the tenant. " Oh, he 's retired," 

 answered Ned, "made his fortin' and retired. 

 Ye see that was n't hard for him to do, for his 

 farm was good strong land. It had to be strong, 

 or it could n't 'a' held up so many big rocks." 



Once after a successful day, Ned and I had a 

 pint of champagne together, drinking it out of 

 tin cups, — a horrible profanation. Ned smacked 

 his lips over it and remarked critically : " That 

 ain't a bad sort o' drink. I should think that 

 'ud be first-rate to drink at meals instead o' tea." 



Every one who has fished in the Insley region 

 during the past thirty or forty years knows old 

 Richardson. A number of years ago I was down 



SO 



