476 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
rDEo. 12, vm. 
YACHTING NEWS NOTES. 
The mesa dinners of the Seawanhaka O Y. 0. at the new town 
house on Saturday evenings promise to become a popular fea'ure of 
the off season in yachting. The entertainment committee proposes 
In the future to select some yachting topic for each evening, a short 
dissertation being given by some member, followed by an informal 
discuHsion. On Dee 18 a ladies' reception will bn given at the club 
house, 19 East Twenty-second street, from 4:30 to 7. 
Strae, steam yacht. T. A Mclntyre, has sailed for .facksonville, 
Fla., with Oapt. Geo, D, Purdy in command. Mr. Mclntyre has sent 
the yac^'t South for the sixth successive sea<<on, using heron the 
Onslow River, where he has a winter home. Before sailing she was 
thoroughly ovorhauled and refitted at the Nyack works of her build- 
ers, Seabnry & Oo. 
AMERICAN CANOE ASSOCIATION, 1896-97. 
Commodore, John N. MacKendrick, Qalt, Canada. 
Sec'y-Treas . John R. Blake. Gait, Canada. 
Librarian, W. P. St«phen8, Bayonne, N. J. 
FTTRSERS. 
Atlantic Division, H. W. Fleischman, 1611 N, 21st St., Fhila., Pa. 
Central Division, Laurence 0. Woodworth, Qouverneur, N. Y. 
Eastern Division, If. J. Burrage, West Newton, Mass. 
Northern Division, Francis H. Mannee, Kingston, Canada, 
Annual dues, ^1; initiation fee, fl. 
WESTERN CANOE ASSOCIATION, 1895-96. 
Commodore, C. F. i^ennewell, Detroit, Mich. 
Vice-Commodore, Nat. H. Cook, Chicago, 111. 
Rear-Commodore, E H. Holmes. Milwaukee, Wis. , 
Sec'y-Treas., W. D Stearns, Detroit, Mich. 
Executive Committee; B. M. Lamp, Madison, Wis.; O. J, Steadman, 
Cincinnati, O.; F. W Dickens, Milwaukee, Wis, 
LAKE HURON AND THE AUX SABLE 
RIVER. 
(Concluded from page h^b ) 
Aug 24.— The rarly part of tlie day was devoted to 
angling for bass, We', however, did not get any, nor did 
we capture a single specimen on the trip. The Captain, 
however, did get a mess of hrcam, whicb, if nieinory is not 
at fault, were forgotlen while in the pan and burned beyond 
recognition. 
Shortly after refurning to camp Jim silently stole away 
from our midst. He had not been seen leaving camp and 
was not missed until the rattling crash of a whole broadside 
announced his whereabouts on a commanding elevation 
about a fourth of a mile away, and throughout "the remain- 
der of the day he was momentarily within hearing; for, be it 
remembered, he had brought along five boxes of pistol 
.cartridges, and as he declare'd, was bound to work them off. 
The remainder of the party, in the absence of other amuse- 
ment now, also took to the hills, and labored assiduously in 
prostrating the decayed and tottering relics of a vanishing 
Joref-t. Another form of recreation occasionally indulged in 
was in accelerating the speed of certain rodents into their 
holes. We then wandered off to an elevation from which 
we cculd look, back along the course we had followed the 
day before, and though many points of interest were 
dimmed by distance, yet could we recognize them. Blue- 
beech, with great confidence, could point out certain features 
in the landscape by which he could tell beyond a peradven- 
ture the exact location of a certain bog hole that he had vis- 
ited, but a sadness camf! over him as he cast his eyes down 
to where the traces of "the conflict still remained on his boots 
and" maculate hosiery. By this time the lieat of the sun 
had become so great that we were glad to retrace our .steps 
to camp and the shades of the oaks. 
In the afternoon a sharp shower came on, driving us under 
the canvas; but when it had passed, leaving the air purer and 
cooler, we turned out for a paddle and enjoyed a delightful 
evening in exploring the river and the many bayous, in 
whose marvelous depths and cryst'il waters a museum of 
wonderful acquatic curios are to be seen. 
Aug. 35. — On awaking this morning our eai-s were greeted 
by the roar of the surf, as it thundered on the shores of Lake 
Huron half a mile away. A gale of wind too was blowing, 
the effects of which we could see and hear, but in our won- 
derfully sheltered nook scamely a breath of air wai^ stirring. 
The preparation for breakfast this morning was gone 
about in a most leisurely fashion. There was no hurry, no 
bustle about it, and after it was eaten there seemed no dis- 
position on the part of the squad to repeat the angling fail- 
ures of the past two days; moreover, there seemed to be a 
growing feeling of restlessness in the camp, an undefined 
sense of an approaching crisis. It took form as will be seen 
by the following dialogue, which took place bitween Jim 
and Bluebeech as the former sat intently ponng over the 
advertisement columns of FoiiBST and S'lBJiAM: 
Bluebt'ech: Hallo, Jiml what are you studying? 
Jim: Kinematics, 
Bluebeech: Minnow bucliets? 
Jim: Naw! Kinematics. 
Bluebeech: What's lhatV 
Jim: It's the science of getting a wove on, taking down 
the tents, packing the canoes and taking a sneak down 
stream, I give you a pointer, see! 
The Pilot now ro.«e to his feet, ^'^^ taking a step back 
bowed his willowy form, and warping bis fiogers around a 
teht stake wrenched it up with a mighty heave. The Treas- 
urer anticipating the move came in a close secoud, and in 
less than a half hour nothing was lelt of the camp but the 
camp-fire that did not smoulder, a few very empty cans, 
and a pair of the Treasurer's ruined slippers that had been 
nailed to a tree. We were floating merrily down stream. 
A half mile paddle brought us opposite the prettily located 
village of Port Franks, .situated on a level, sandy plain on 
the south bank of the river, which here runs nearly parallel 
with the (Shores of Lake Huron, leaving a narrow neck of 
land between. Along this neck of land a range of tovver- 
ing sandhills rear their bald heads hundreds of feet into the 
air, offering a splendid natural protection to the village 
from the biting north winds. Tne village atone time Wi^ 
a, brisk milling and salt-produeiog center, but with the dis- 
appearance of the pine and the filling up of the river by the 
washings of the Lake Burwell drainage canal' these indus- 
tries were abandoned, the population drifted away and now 
the pine mills and salt works are fast falling to decay. 
As we passed beyond the villnge a driving shower of rain 
•came on, with heavy gusts of wind, and coming to an open- 
ing in the hills, where tuy wind got a good slant at us, it 
taxed our energies to their utmost to av jid being driven on 
the shore; but on coming to a ■^iecoad l)e id in the riyer 
we were favored by a long, straighl,, down-wind course and 
went away over the troubled waters in a grand spurt that 
quickly brought us to the mouth of the river, where we 
pitched the tents and made snug for the night. 
Aug. 26.— The day broke bright and warm, though a 
strong wind was blowing, and a heavy sea continued to roll 
in all day long. We were, however, in the sand cherry 
country, and they being abundant on the hills, and our com- 
missary department being somewhat light in the luxuries, 
we were contented to remain and gather them, as they af- 
forded us an agreeable variation in our diet, and helped to 
kill time. When we had gathered a sufficiency of fruit we 
turned our attention to the exploration of Mud Creek and 
the marvelous labyrinth of bayous connected with it, and 
were well repaid for our trouble. 
In the afternoon, while Jim and the Captain were on one 
of their voyages of discovery, they came upon an old aban- 
doned dugout canoe, and their curiosity to experiment with 
it led them to undertake the arduous task of transporting it 
over the sandhills to the river, where they launched it; but it 
looked so dangerously unstable that neither was disposed to 
risk his valuable life afloat in it. Jim persistently argued 
that the Oiptain, having a wide and varied experience in the 
handUng of strange craft, should be the first to experiment 
with this one. The Captain could not see it, and argued 
that, as ,Iim was an expert canoeman, a nimble athlete and a 
good swimmer, and not having the care and responsibility of 
a family, he should be the first to step into the breach and 
immortalize his name. Jim demurred. They then re- 
paked to a seat on a convenient log, where, seeming to think 
there was as much pleasure and diversion in arguing the 
point as in anything else, they continued the debate. They 
needed a rest too, as the labor of trailing this old relic to 
where it then laj"^ had been very great. 
The debate after a long and earnest discussion came to an 
end, they apparently having reached an agreement, as the 
Captain produced a strong cord from his pocket and at- 
tached it to the bow of the canoe and proceeded to tow it up 
to camp, while Jim aided him by keeping it away from the 
shore with a pole. As the procession approached camp tthe 
squad filed out to witness the triumphal entrance of the 
Captain with his prize. Wlien the Captain had swung 
his craft to anchor and had mopped the perspiration from 
his brow he proceeded to point out its fine qualities 
and easy, graceful lines; he also describeil in lurid hues 
the magnitude of the task they had undertaken in transport- 
ing it overland to the river. "Great interest was manifested 
during the recital of this tale, but when the Captain described 
where and how be had found it a discussion arose as to the 
li gality of his rights, title, interests or claims in the craft. 
II'! was in possession, but not by inheritance; therefore he 
could have no claim in, to. out "of, or uoon the said craft. 
The roar that burst from the Captain as he tumbled up at 
this stage of the discussion wai like a near- hand storm, and 
as he waved his hand to command attention he said im- 
pressively: "Gentlemen, I am in possession of this craft by 
right of discovery, and no one may deprive^ me of my legal 
rights but the legiti mate owner. " As may be guessed , this ended 
the discussion, the Captain iiaving established his claim be- 
yoo'd doubt, and he announced that henceforth the vessel 
should be known as the Molliesquash. Then in a burst of 
magnanimous liberality he tranferred all his claims over to 
Jim, who had rendered him such valuable service in trias- 
porting it. The Molliesquash, though hardly deserving to 
be rated higher than Al as a floating palace, yetwas in many 
ways superior as a means of travel to a saw log. as Jimafter' 
ward abundantly veiifled by making several successful trips 
in her, 
Aug. a7, — We were greatly disappointed on turning out 
this morning to find a^heavysea still running on the lake. 
We had intended to continue our journey along the shore to 
Kettle Point, where we wished to remain over the next day. 
which was Sunday. At this camp we had not been success- 
ful in-taking any bass We had pretty thoroughly harvested 
the sand cherry crop, and having about exhausted every 
other source of amusement, we were now becoming im- 
patient to be moving; but as this was out of the qu'^stion 
we did the only thing that was open for us, i, e., inaugurated 
a grand regatta in a sheltered part of the river, where for the 
greater part of the forenoon the white sails and bright canoes 
flitted hither and thither, races were indulged in spasmodi- 
cally, and were brimful of excitement. Occa!<ional exhibi- 
tions loo of some of the most astonishing evolutions were 
giv'^u, these invariably occurring at a time when the wind 
cime in from several points of the compass at the same time. 
Drifting races, hurry-scuiry races and tacking down wind 
were features of the grand display that helped to wile away 
the time tdl the dinner hour. 
After dinner the question of making the attempt to reach 
Kettle Point, only about seven miles distant, was again free- 
ly discussed. Tliere was still a very heavy sea running, but 
we fancied it was going down. Finally Bluebeech paddled 
out to the mouth of the river, and after feeling the force of 
wind and waves returned and reported it too r ough for the 
Pdot and Treasurer, whose canoes were not provided with 
aprons, but as they were most anxious to be moving they 
expressed a willingness to make the attempt. 
The tents were soon taken down, the canoes packed, and 
we were off. As we neared the mouth of the river and 
viewed the blue, foam-capp !d expanse of rolling billows, 
it looked as though we were about to commit the grand folly 
of our lives. 
The Captain ventured the remark that it looked pretty 
dirty outside, but there was no response from the crow', 
who seemed to have made up their minds to go it, sink or 
swim 
W c were soon going it in a grand dash through the boil- 
ing, seething succession of curling breakers, tumbled and 
tossed about We found we had a much larger task than 
we had hnrgained for; beyond the breakers our condition 
was not mu,_;h improved, as the course we wished to take was 
directly in the trough of the sea. 
Watching our opportunity, we would dash along with all 
possible speed ; then as a great breaker threatened to engulf 
us we would head into it until it had passed, and thensquare 
away again with might and main; every minute or two we 
were forced to head in, and each time added a little more 
moisture in the bottom of the canoes. At one time our at- 
tention was attracted to Yukon by Bluebeech, who shouted 
"There's an upset," as a great wave struck Yukon broadside 
on with a tremendoiis thud, enveloping her for a moment in 
a mass of seething foam and flyiag spray, but in a moraent 
she reappeared again, right side up, with the Treasurer sit- 
ting in his place untnoved and cool as a cucumber. The 
only c'mmcnt he was heard to make was the brief one "lel- 
<'r-out;" nevertheless Yukon had taken a fine cargo of 
wuer aboJird, wrhich the duflle was absorbing. A. si mi In r 
process WJis going on in the other canoes^ and our own cloth- 
ing clung to our backs like a wet pack, cooling our ardor 
and preparing us for a flunk all along the line. 
For an hour we had been working like beavers and had 
only made a mile, and at this rate of speed it would take us 
until evening to reach our destination, and should our 
canoes continue to take in water at the same rate at which 
they had been we would be swamped before we could cover 
a quarter of the distance. 
But at this juncture an event occurred that speedily settled 
the matter for us This was the approach of three huge, 
towering, white-erested combers that came sweeping along 
with the speed of a race horse. We promptly headed up, 
and as we did so the Captain coolly remarked: "Boys, I 
gue«s we'll have to swim." As the first one came on the 
canoes rose, dove into and neatly split it in two, staggered a 
little, then bobbed up serenely on the other side. We now 
dug our paddles in with desperate energy as we dove down 
into the trough of the sea, up we climbed again, cut through 
the second and again through the third; the danger was now 
past, we were sttll afloat, every article in the canoes was 
afloat also and off on a little erratic cruise of its own. 
We might have regarded the experience of those few min- 
utes as something splendid were it not for the fact that we 
were drenched to the skin and the canoes half filled with 
water. Without any prehminaries every canoe was headed 
for shore and was urged along with a zeal and energy that 
betokened an earnest desire in each canoeist's heart to reach 
it by the shortest route and in the quickest possible time. 
On we went into the breakers, and amid the boil and roar 
and tumult were tumbled on the beach in an indescribable 
jumble and scramble. Bluebeech made a clean home run of 
it, but admitted being butted aft by an incoming wave as he 
made his way up the beach on his hands and knees; and 
though the opportunities were not favorable for close observa- 
tion it is more than probable that the rest of the squad 
reached the shore in a manner not differing materially from 
that adopted by him. We were in a bad plight, everything 
wet, our staff of life afloat in the bread box; but so well 
pleased were we to be once more on solid ground that we 
would not have taken it seriously amiss had it been afloat in 
the middle of Lake Huron. 
When the canoes had been hauled up beyond the reach of 
the waves they were unpacked and turned over to allow 
them to drain out. The duffle was then carried up to a 
slight depression between two hills, where a huge fire was 
built and everything hung up to dry. Exposing our own 
clothing to the fire by a revolving process of the body, we 
soon dried ourselves out. We responded to a call from the 
Captain to discuss a project which he had formulated for our 
deliverance from our present camp site to a more favorable 
one. His plan was to procure a team at Stony Point to move 
our outfit along the shore to Kettle Point, and as this plan 
was agreeable to all, the Captain and Jim started for the 
Point, a mile distant. 
In a little while they returned with the discouraging an- 
nouncement that they had failed to procure a team, but 
while at the Point they had learned that a gentleman who 
had left just a few minutes before their arrival had been 
making inquu-y whether a party of canoeists had passed that 
place, and naving been answered in the negative had driven 
away. The description given of the gentleman and also that 
of a dog that accompanied him left no doubts in our minds 
that the person described was the cl'ib's Sacretary, and our- 
selves the parly of canoeists whom he was in search of. 
Why the Secretary should be searching for us we could not 
guess, unless he was thT bearer of a message to us of some 
great calamity that had befallen the folks at home. With 
this thought uppermost in our minds, and believing that he 
would continue his search to Port Franks, and as the only 
road by which he could reach that place ran at some dis- 
tance ba-k from the shore, we determined to intercept him 
at the Port. 
The Treasurer and Bluebeech, nOw thoroughly alarmed, 
started for the Port at top speed. Taking the beach until 
the river was r ;ached, they then followed along its banks 
to M id Creek, which they crossed oh a raft of cedar posts,, 
and theu a brisk walk of five minutes brought them to^tfle; 
village, where inquiry was made at several' places,, but no* 
trace could be found of the Secretary ; he had' not arrived! 
They then started out along the road by which he would bs; 
sure to enter, but after traveling for about a couple of miles; 
and not meeting him it became evident that he had not, 
gone to th i Port, as had he done so they should have met; 
him long before this. Satisfied of^ this, they retraced! their- 
steps to the Port, where they hired a' boatman to take themi 
down to the mouth of the river, from where they sprintedt 
it to camp, reachina: it long after nightfall, thoroughly tiredi 
out and hopelessly mystified. 
As we had already failed lo procure a team, and as a, 
heavy sea was still running on the lake, there seemed no other- 
alternative but remain where we were until morning, when,, 
if the sea had gone down, we would push on down to Blain's, 
Grove, and there procure a conveyance. Should the lake; 
stiU be rough in the morning w ^ would hive to adopt some- 
other means of getting out, With this plan agreed upon,, 
we turned in for the night. 
Aug. 28. — At 6 A. M , the lake being calm, we shoved off 
from the shore, and for a few miles paddled briskly to get 
up a little circulation, as the morning was cool; then settling 
down to steady work we did not relax until Kettle Point, 
was reached, where we rested a few minutes and then pushed, 
on again. At Jeff's resort we ran in and inquired for the; 
Secretary, but getting no intelligence of him we continued 
on down to Cedar Point, where we lunched and rested our 
weary bones for half an hour. Fearing we might be storm- 
bound, we once more — wearily, and with aching arms and 
blistered hands — grasped the paddles, with a grim determi- 
nation to do the last stretch as quickly as possible and be done 
with the suspense. 
On reaching Blain's Grove and the end of our cruise, we 
selected a favorable place for our camp and prepared and ate 
our dinners, after which the Captain and Treasurer left us 
to go in search of a conveyance to take them home. This 
we afterward learned they failed to procure, and . were 
forced to walk the entire distance home. Ten miles of dusty 
roads in a scorching sun, parched with thirst and footsore, 
was what they experienced on that trip; and on reaching 
home they found all their fears were without foundation. All 
were well, and the Secretary's mission had been merely one 
of business. ' 
Aug. 30,— At about 10 o'clock the team came to take 
us home, where we arrived in due time Though the outing 
could hardly be called a howling success, yet there was 
much in it that was pleasant, many incidents that were very 
amusing, and many that were very much the opposite; but 
•rn the whole it was about what we expected it to bp, and we 
■were not disappointed, - J3liibbbech,* 
