174 
FOREST •AND STREAM. 
IFa, 28, J903. 
v/ith his tongue hanging straight out, and ran directly to 
poor Lizzie. Her screams would have drowned the 
sounds of a fog horn. The terrified dame started to turn 
snd run, but she fell. The fox, being closely pursued by 
eld Stonewall, took refuge in the folds of Aunt Lizzie's 
dress. One of the huntsmen rode up quickly and reached 
the poor darkey before the pack of hounds did. This 
timely assistance alone saved her life. 
"Boss, is you dun cotch him?" were the first words 
said after recovering from a cold shower bath, which had 
to be used to restore her to consciousness. 
A Dogf that Longed foi* His Old Home, 
A FEW days ago a half-starved, exhausted setter dog 
strayed into West Springfield. His body was gaunt, his 
eyes glassj', his legs tottering. A man possessed of the 
innate necessary requirements for membership in the 
society with a long and much-abused name was attracted; 
by the dog's appearance. He noticed on examination that 
the dog wore a collar bearing the name "Benjamin Pep- 
per, Hartford, Ct." The man took the dog home and 
gave him a square meal and lodging, and in the meantime 
communicated with the man in Hartford whose name 
v/as on the dog's collar. .A. prompt reply came, and the 
following story was disclosed: "During the blizzard of 
1888 the dog was given shelter in the home of Mr. Pep- 
per, where he had been duly adopted. In time the crea- 
ture became greatly attached to his new quarters. Last 
simimer the owner of the dog gave him away to a man 
in New Hampshire, 200 miles distant from Hartford. 
His dogship, however, chafed under his new ownership. 
One day the animal, with a most determined air, left his 
new home and started southward. From that day until 
he appeared in West Springfield, the dog was heard of no 
more. At last faithfulness is to be rewarded, and the dog 
will doubtless live and die in the home of his- former 
pwuer at Hartford. — Springfield Republican. 
— ® — 
Prizes for Canoeists, 
In order to encourage canoeists and small boat sailors,, 
who do their knocking about on inland waters, to keep- 
a record of their trips and experiences, the publishers of; 
Forest and Stream offer cash prizes for the best ac- 
counts of cruises taken during the season of 1903. As 
few restrictions as possible will be imposed, and those 
given are made only with the view of securing some uni- 
formity among the competitors' stories, so that the 
judges will be able to make a fair award. 
The prizes will be as follows : 
First, $50.00. IJ .'■ '■ 
Second, $25.00. iff 
Third, $15.00. f ' ^ 
Fourth and Fifth, $10.00 each. 
Sixth to Eighth, $5.00 each. 
I. The cruise must be actually taken between May i 
and November i, 1903. 
II. The cruise must be made on the (fresh water) in- 
land streams and lakes of the United States or Canada. 
III. The canoe or boat in which the cruise is made 
must not be more than i8ft. long over all. 
IV. An accurate log of the trip must be kept and all 
incidents and information that would be of value to other 
canoeists covering the same route should be carefully 
recorded. 
V. A description of the boat in which the cruise is 
made should preface the story, and a list of outfit and 
supplies. 
VI. Photographs of the boat and of the country passed 
through, not smaller than 4x5, should, if possible, accom- 
pany each story, and they will be considered in making 
the awards. 
VII. Stories should contain not less than five thousand 
words, written on one side of the paper only. 
VIII. An outline chart of the trip drawn on white 
"paper in black ink (no coloring pigment to be used) 
should also be sent in. 
IX. Competitors should avoid the use of slang or in- 
correct nautical expressions in their stories, as it will 
count against them in awarding the prizes. 
Each manuscript to which a prize is awarded shall be- 
come the property of the Forest and Stream Publishing 
Company. All manuscript should reach the office of 
the Forest and Stream Publishing Company, 346 Broad- 
way, New York, N. Y., on or before December i, 1903. 
We wish to call attention to the insertion of condition 
IX. in the announcement of the Canoe Cruising Compe- 
tition. The publishers of Forest and Stream were 
prompted to make this addition at a suggestion made by 
Mr. Theodore C. Zerega (who judged the last cruismg 
competition) in a letter which we published last week. 
In this communication, after criticising the stories sub- 
mitted, he adds that almost all the articles were dis- 
figured by the free use of slang and incorrect nautical ex- 
pressions*. To avoid any such unfortunate condition in 
the future the publishers felt justified in incorporating 
condition number nine in the prospectus, for it no way 
aft'ects the fairness of the competition, as the cruise must 
be taken between May first and November first of this 
year. 
The A. C. A, Committees. « 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
I notice in the issue of Forest and Stream February 
31 1903 an article pertaining to the affairs of the A. C. 
A. signed Ilka, and am pleased to see it published, and 
I assume that Ilka is a member of the A. C. A. I think 
it would vastly further our interest if our members took 
the same interest in affairs that Ilka does; at the same 
time I wish to criticise to a slight extent the article re- 
ferred to. 
Ilka is correct in his statement as to chairman of the 
^'Regatta Committee." It seems most difficult to find an. 
•ex-racing man in the Atlantic Division who will care-* 
fully fulfill this position. 
I am also informed that the chairman of the Camp 
Site Committee and the chairman of the Transportation 
Committee are having difficulties in filling these com- 
mittees. 
In regard to my not belonging to the racing element 
in the Sailors' Union, would say that this is true; but 
that I will endeavor to procure a "Regatta Committee" 
who will be absolutely fair with the racing men, and I 
promise to be fair also. 
Other committees of the A. C. A. are at work, and it 
is time that a "Regatta Committee" is in action. 
Nathaniel S. Hyatt, 
Commodore A. C. A. 
OssiNiNG, N. v., P'eb. 19. 
The Cruise of the Mosquito. 
BY HULBERT FOOTNER. 
It was Fourth of July morning; the Hudson lay like 
a sheet of dusty glass in the sun and the further shore 
was almost mdistinguishable through the hot haze. 
The long, slim canoe, which we had dubbed Mosquito 
and painted a beautiful bottle-green, was cleaving the 
oily surface noiselessly, and the hearts of the crew were 
light with the prospect of two weeks' entire freedom 
and strange adventures to befall. The mate knelt in 
the bow, striving manfully to accustom his bones to> 
the strange demands of his position, his bare arms 
pinking rapidly under the kiss of the sun; baggage was; 
piled amidships, including many goodly things for the 
refreshment of the inner man, and the skipper sat up- 
on the stern deck and surveyed the course. 
We had left Coxsackie, whereto we had taken pas- 
sage to avoid the tides and squalls and railroad trains 
of the Lower Hudson, a few hours before, feeling 
abundantly able to cover the twenty-five miles to 
Albany before night; but, alas! the humiliating confes- 
sion must be made, we had done no more than ten 
before the sun and ebb tide (which he had not es- 
caped after all) had taken all the steam out of our 
strokes, and we were even now thinking how pleasant 
it would be to have a tow through the heat of the day. 
To that end, we hailed a couple of steamers from 
midstream, but they did not appear inclined to stop for 
us. Most inconsiderate, we thought, on a holiday, too, 
when good will should be in the air. But by and by 
we came upon a barge moored to a wharf, and about 
to return to Albany with a load of excursionists. We 
promptly made fast to the stern, and this was the be- 
ginning of our first adventure. 
Now excursion barges are not remarkable for speed; 
I suppose this one made about eight miles an hour; 
it would have looked slow enough from the shore, but 
to us in a frail canoe dangling at the stern, with the 
wake of the clumsy vessel pounding our bows and 
threatening to capsize us momentarily, the rate was 
nothing less than terrific. If the barge was moving at 
eight miles an hour, the water was thrown back of 
her stern at about the same rate, making our gross 
progress through the water about sixteen miles an 
hour, which is pretty good for a canoe. Our line got 
jammed; and in order to be able to let go at a mo- 
ment's notice, the mate had to unloose it and hang 
on by main strength. We determined not to let go the 
rope until we were actually in the water. The skipper 
balanced in the stern and tried to steer — tried, because 
the Mosquito acted exactly like a gamy fish with a 
hook in its gills, darting first to one side, then the 
other. Over and over we'd go, till just as we thought 
it was all up with us, off she'd shoot to the other side. 
Our tow line was not long enough, and it was impos- 
sible to keep her straight. 
The barge was crowded as only excursion barges 
can be. Those hanging over the stern amused them- 
selves by jeering us, and even peppering us with buns 
and bits of ice. We were much too busy to think of 
returning their fire, and it was hard to preserve our 
dignity. Others seemed to think we were there for the 
express purpose of filling their pitchers with water, 
and were quite indignant at our refusal. We would 
have liked to have had a drink ourselves. I suspected 
we worked harder for those two hours than if we had 
paddled, but the excitement of the strenuous ride was 
fine, and we were able to camp in sight of Albany 
after all. , 
On a trip like this there is generally a day when one 
thing after another goes amiss, and this is the time 
that proves the temper of the crew. Our run of hard 
luck struck us on the first night out. In the first place 
we delayed too long in choosing a camping ground, and 
darknes's commencing to fall, we had to go ashore 
where we were, and it was the worst kind of a mud- 
hole. ' Then when the fire was lit a swarm of gnats 
descended on us, and in combating them the skipper 
kicked over the soup. We had a miserable supper and 
a great struggle to put up the tent in the dark, and 
when we finally managed to turn in, dog-tired and cross, 
our troubles were not over even then. 
Toward morning we were awakened by the steamer 
Adirondack passing up the river. It was raining 
hard, and our feet were in a pool of water. We swore 
at each other for pitching the tent over a hollow, and 
drawing up our knees prepared to go to sleep agam, 
when suddenly the flaps parted inward and a wave 
which looked enormous to our dazed senses lifted up 
and fell on us, followed by half a dozen others. We 
leaped to our feet, and found that half the tent was 
pitched in the river; the waves were the rollers from 
the Adirondack. All the day before the tide had run 
strong against us, and when we had naturally come 
to the conclusion it never ran the other way, it had 
risen in the night and tried to drown us. We decided 
that tide had a personal spite against the crew of the 
Mosquito. 
That was a miserable morning; everything was soak- 
ing wet, and after our sodden breakfast a heavier 
shower than ever came up. We embarked in the 
midst of it, and it was a notable sight to see the 
millions of fat drops plumping themselves all over 
the face of the river. But the cursed tide was now run- 
ning out again like a mill-race, and mackintoshes hurt 
out sun-burned shoulders cruelly. With the greatest 
efforts we could scarcely make any headwy, and com- 
ing to a wharf presently, we hung on to rest for a 
while, almost ready to give up. 
We enviously watched a launch breasting the current 
easily. "If we were only hitched on behind!" we ex- 
claimed to each other, and at that very minute, as if 
in answer to our prayer, the launch ran smack aground. 
You may be sure we did not take long to go to her 
assistance. We found a crew of eight men on board 
and seven of them giving orders. It immediately be- 
came apparent that the gentlemen had been celebrating 
the holiday not wisely, but too well. The eighth was 
even now fortifying himself in the cabin against the 
liorrors of a watery grave. Of course with our light 
craft we could do nothing to help them, but we hung 
around and added our voices to the seven already talk- 
ing, and when the launch finally slid off the stones, the 
grateful gentlemen gave us all the credit for it and im- 
mediately offered to tow us up against the current. 
The sun came out, and our troubles were over. One 
of the crew took up a position on the stern of the 
launch, and with the kindest intent bombarded us with 
bottles of beer. His aim was bad, and we nearly 
capsized trying to catch them; but fortunately some 
•came fairly aboard. Whenever we became thirsty 
•during the rest of the trip we always thought regret- 
fully of those bottles of beer lying at the bottom of 
the Hudson. As it might be supposed, our friends 
steered as straight as they would have walked on land; 
zigzag is the word to describe our course. When the 
•channel marks indicated the right bank we hugged the 
left; when we should have stayed on the left we 
straightway crossed to the right. However, the Provi- 
dence who is supposed to look after jovial gentlemen 
hrought us to Albany without further mishap. 
The next three days were occupied in passing 
through the Hudson and Champlain canal. One might 
think that seventy miles of such a narrow, sluggish 
waterway would become monotonous, but such is by 
no means the case. There was more variety than on 
any part of our trip. You obtain an intimate personal 
view of the country from the canal; you have plenty 
of company, and may talk to passers-by on the banks. 
You look up and down the village streets and into 
the very doors of the houses, as it were, and all the 
time the banks are moving past at a most encourag- 
ing rate, whereas on a big piece of water you scarcely 
seem to progress at all. Lastly, as we told ourselves 
•over and over, there was no tide with a grudge against 
us. 
When we wanted a change of exercise we landed, 
lit our pipes and trudged along the tow-path towing 
the Mosquito. We could always find a good camping 
spot on the bream side (opposite the tow-path). In 
many places quantities of berries hung over the water 
waiting to be picked; the numerous locks provided a 
spice of excitement, especially when the lock tender 
proved ill-tempered at having to exert himself for so 
small a craft, and let the water in too fast; and alto- 
gether we enjoyed the canal mightily. 
The population took the greatest interest in our 
progress. They could not understand why two fellows 
should work so hard just for fun, and when they saw 
us towing our boat they openly jeered. I suspect they 
thought it was like a man inviting his horse to sit in the 
buggy while he took the shafts. The same volley of 
questions was fired at us twenty times a day: "Where 
are you from?" "Where are you going?" "How long 
have you been?" "Do you camp out nights?" etc., etc. 
It became very difhcult to answer the twentieth civilly. 
The children used to gather around us and ask if we 
didn't have any home. 
The last day on the canal was spent in the most 
luxurious pleasure. A litle steam yacht picked us up 
early in the morning, and all day we swept between the 
banks lying at our ease in the canoe smoking and 
watching the scenery, which was at this end of the 
canal A'ery beautiful. The country was hilly and broken 
and quite unspoiled by ugly towns; the canal wound in 
and out like a river, and numbers of lofty pine and 
elm trees hung over the water. At noon we prepared 
quite an elaborate collation while still under way, and 
ate in style spread out on the suit case between us. 
People who witnessed these proceedings from the bank 
were greatly amused. Afterward we wrote postal cards 
to our friends, dating them "Canoe Mosquito, En 
Route," and when at last the owner's wife and her 
two pretty daughters brought their fancy work out on 
the after deck of the yacht and fell into conversation 
with us, our cup of happiness was full. 
Forward in the little yacht things were not pro- 
gressing so smoothly. The owner was engineer, his 
son pilot and there were frequent clashes of authority 
between the parent and the navigator. The old canal- 
ers who have a childish jealousy and fear of steam 
craft, would begin shouting to us to slow up while we 
were yet an eighth of a mile away, and as we passed 
their barges as like as not they would slyly try to 
shove us up on the bank. This led to frequent engine 
room signals, but the engineer was disposed to ques- 
tion the pilot's wisdom, and instead of obeying the 
signals, he would stick his head out of the engine room 
window and carry on an argument. Once right in the 
middle of such a discussion the yacht ran up on the 
bank, much to the delight of the oassing canalers. The 
crew of the Mosquito earned their tow on this occasion 
by pulling the larger craft off the mud. 
Next morning we proceeded up Lake Champlain 
under our own power. We were much disappointed 
with our first sight of that famous body of water; the 
lower end is no wider than a river, sluggish and foul 
with marshy banks. For mile after mile under a blazing 
sun we .sought in vain for a place to go ashore; every 
