69 



stopped a moment to be cheery and sociable. 

 I remember once when a party of four made 

 camp after a driving rain-storm. Everybody (^"rieedee-Iokhsis 

 was wet ; everything soaking. The lazy 

 man had upset a canoe, and all the dry 

 clothes and blankets had just been fished 

 out of the river. Now the lazy man stood 

 before the fire, looking after his own com- 

 fort. The other three worked like beavers, 

 making camp. They were in ill humor, 

 cold, wet, hungry, irritated. They said 

 nothing. 



A flock of chickadees came down with 

 sunny greetings, fearless, trustful, never 

 obtrusive. They looked innocently into 

 human faces and pretended that they did 

 not see the irritation there. " Tsic a dee. I 

 wish I could help. Perhaps I can. Tsic a 

 dee-e-e?" — with that gentle, sweetly insinu- 

 ating up-slide at the end. Somebody spoke, 

 for the first time in half an hour, and it was 

 not a growl. Presently somebody whistled 

 — - a wee little whistle ; but the tide had 

 turned. Then somebody laughed. " ' Pon 

 my word," he said, hanging up his wet 



