IN THE ADIRONDACKS. 
n. 
What We Did There. 
Aristarchus said that it -would be all folly for me to 
go back without seeing something of the Adirondacks, 
now that I was there, and I might as well stay and 
share his good times. He and Furguson had planned 
for a camping expedition, and were so enthusiastic over 
the delights and benefits of camp-life in the woods that 
I consented to join them. I had not, however, come 
prepared for such an expedition, I had worn an old 
black silk suit for the journey, and had only taken with 
me a small satchel containing a change of clothing, my 
toilet articles, and a loose wrapper of navy-blue flannel. 
But this wrapper Aristarchus pronounced just the thing 
for the trip, so I shortened it and took the ribbon from 
my bonnet to belt it with. The bonnet was unsuitable, 
and I bought a shade hat from one of the waiter girls, 
and with my traveling ulster found myself tolerably 
well equipped. 
The morning on which we were to set out having ar¬ 
rived, the boats, tents, and other baggage were packed 
on a long, two-wheeled cart to betaken to the landing of 
the Upper Saranac, and when it was ready to start Aris¬ 
tarchus cooly added me to the load, while he and Fur¬ 
guson set out on foot. Arrived at the landing, the team 
was unloaded, the boats launched, and the goods divided 
between them. Furguson, with the guide, embarked in 
one boat, while the other was for Aristarchus and my¬ 
self with the other guide. The boats were long, narrow 
and slight, and as Aristarchus helped me in he said, 
peremptorily: 
“Now, Cordelia, there must be no jumping about or 
screaming, for it wouldn't take much such nonsense to 
send us into the lake.” As if I ever screamed ! 
“Step exactly into the middle of the boat and sit 
down carefully,” he added. 
I endeavored to do so, but the frail boat shook and 
rocked threateningly beneath my weight, but after 
what Aristarchus had said I would have gone to the 
bottom of the lake in silence sooner than have uttered a 
sound! But as my husband took his seat at the other 
end of the boat, and the guide took the middle seat and 
the oars and pushed off, I mentally congratulated my¬ 
self that my hair was parted in the middle and that my 
feet were both of the same size. Anything in the shape 
of water-craft more frail than those Adirondack boats I 
have never seen. 
But the beauty of the lake and its surroundings soon 
made me forget my nearness to the water. There were 
charming little islands here and there covered with 
Evergreen trees, and the banks of the lake ■ were bor¬ 
dered with dense forests that seemed to shut us in like 
impenetrable walls. The morning was bright, and the 
lake shown like a sheet of silver in the sunshine. Not 
long after leaving the shore we passed a barren island 
that seemed connected with the main land by large 
rocks that rose above the water at short intervals, and 
looked like the ruined arches of an old bridge. The 
guide said it was called “ the devil’s bridge.” So pict¬ 
uresque it looked that I forgot myself, and stood up to 
see it better, but Aristarchus called out, “Sit down 
quickly, Cordelia,” in such an angry tone that I was 
frightened and lost my balance: as tbe boat rocked one 
way, I swayed the other, and sat down—-ire the lake. 
Of course, as I went in I shut my eyes and opened my 
mouth—but I didn’t scream 1 I couldn’t, my mouth 
wss too full for utterance ! Aristarchus lost no time in 
pitching in after me. the guide kept the boat steady 
with one oar and helped us with the other, and I was 
soon in the boat again, choking and spluttoring in a 
most unsentimental manner, while Aristarchus was 
thumping me on the hack with an energy that threat¬ 
ened to disable me for life. As soon as I rogained the 
use of my tongue, I objected on principle to wife-beat¬ 
ing as a pastime suited only to savage lands and uncivil¬ 
ized people, but Aristarchus insisted that it was the 
best way to get the water out of me, and save me from 
being strangled. 
“Besides,” said Furguson, whose boat was now along¬ 
side, “ we couldn't spare so much water; our boats would 
have stuck in the mud if she had swallowed much more.” 
“ What made you cut up such a caper?” asked Aris¬ 
tarchus, who was busy wringing the water from such 
portions of my wrapper as he couhl get hold of. 
“You told me to sit down, and lobeyed,” I answered, 
spitefully. “ It is a pity if one can’t sit down where 
one pleases; don’t you mean to allow me any liberties 
during this trip?” 
“Take all the liberties you like, but don’t expect me 
to follow your lead hereafter,” answered my spouse. 
The guides had respectfully refrained from comment, 
but various chuckles and mysterious coughs testified to 
their appreciation of the situation, and in spite of the 
defiant attitude I assumed, I felt as if a wet blanket had 
been thrown over me, in more senses that one. But the 
boats were steadily gliding on and bearing us over the 
shining surface of the lake, which was much more at¬ 
tractive than its chilly depths. All around the bor¬ 
ders of the lake and in its small inlets, were quantities 
of Water-Lilies, so purely white that, at a little distance, 
they resembled foam on the water, while the air was 
laden with their delicious perfume. The guides rowed 
in among them and Aristarchus gathered whole hand¬ 
fuls and threw them over me, and I reveled in their 
cool, rich fragrance. 
“I say, Aristarchus,” called out Furguson, “this isn’t 
much like our trip across the Lower Saranac in that 
thunder storm the other night, when the waves kept 
sweeping over the boat and threatening to swallow us 
up, and the thunder made such a racket we couldn’t 
hear ourselves think, and the lightning kept smashing 
the darkness all to splinters every few seconds. Corde¬ 
lia ought to have been with us then.” 
“You ought to have heard Furguson make poetry 
about it,” interposed Aristarchus; “ he said it was so in¬ 
spiring, and he went on about like this: 
‘ Out on the raging Saranac 
The angry waves go whack, whack, whack! 
The lightning scoots along the sky, 
And thunder bumps about on high! ’ ” 
The guides choked, Aristarchus and I giggled, and 
Furguson looked sheepish, but soon retorted: 
