46 AT THE NORTH OF BEARCAMP WATER . 
lie-spirited citizen. I felt that if any man on 
the southern side of the mountains knew a way 
through them, that man was Berry. Two years 
before, while wandering over the ridges of Cho- 
corua, I had been caught in one of Berry’s forty - 
pound steel bear traps. The springs of the trap 
were weak and it was deeply buried in the moss, 
so that before its cruel jaws had closed firmly 
upon my ankle, I thrust the stock of my gun 
between them and withdrew my foot. Berry’s 
greeting, as we drove up to his house, showed 
that he had not forgotten my ndventure, for 
he shouted, “Come at last, have you, to let me 
cut off them ears? Can’t c’lect my bounty on 
you without ’em.” A few words told Berry of 
my errand, and he at once showed interest in 
the quest. 
“Thirty-seven year ago,” he said, “when I 
was only twelve year old, a road was run 
through from this house to the back settlements. 
It was a winter road, but I recollect that a man 
and his wife drove over it in a pung. They 
went clean through. About fifteen year ago I 
went in where you are a-going, with a railroad 
surveyor, and he said there was only five hun¬ 
dred feet rising between here and the height of 
land. There used to be another road between 
Toadback and Passaconaway, but that ’s all 
choked up now by the harricane. This road is 
