Egk42 904S YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY y ' ,"< The Allayiisb, the East and West Branches of the Penobscot. "Wliere the Sportsman Loves to Linger." A NARRATIVE OF THE MOST POPULAR CANOE TRIPS IN MAINE. THE ALLAGA5H, THE EAST AND WEST BRANCHES Of THE PENOBSCOT. BY G. SMITH STANTON. New Youk: J. S. OGILVIE PUBLISHING COMPAXY, 57 Rose Street. Mt£ :-:? COPYBIQHT, 100.5, BY G. S3IITH STANTON. .30 4 S To the registered guides of the State of Elaine, ever faith ful to their trust, this loolc is dedicated. !l P K E F A C E . The author has made many canoe and hunting trips through the woods of Maine and knows the benefit to health derived therefrom, and if this narrative is the means of restoring the health of even one reader, the object of its production will be attained. . c o :n" T E X T s . CHAPTER I. P^GE New York to Moosehead Lake ^^ CHAPTER I.T. From Moosehead to Ciiesuncook Lake 2-i CHAPTER IIL Chesuncook to Umsaskis Lake 3G CHAPTER IV. Umsaskis Lake to Fort Kent ^^ CHAPTER V. Fort Kent to West Branch— :\[ount Katahdin 61 CHx^PTER VI. West Branch — Mount Katahdin to Soukdxahunk Dead Water '*'3 CHAPTER VII. SOURDNAHUNK DEAD WATER TO ClIESUNGOOK 87 CHAPTER VIII. ''Suncook'" TO Grand Lake ^00 CHAPTER IX. From Grand Lake Home m \ LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE "North Star," Maine Steamship Company 12 Portland Harbor 1' Bar Harbor Express, Maine Central Railroad 15 Main Street, Bangor '" Moosehead Lake Division, Bangor and Aroostook Railroad i*^ First View of Kineo '^ Beat Landing, Kineo 20 View from Top of Kineo 21 Northeast Carry, Moosehead Lake 22 Where the Sportsman Loves to Linger 23 Northeast Carry, West Branch 23 Senior Member of the Transportation Company, Bateau and Canoe 27 They Watched Us as We Passed 2D Lobster Lake "" Beavers' Work 31 West Branch Above Moosehorn 33 West Branch Below Moosehorn 34 Chesuncook Lake 37 Mud Pond Carry 3S Mud Pond 39 Chamberlin Dam -11 We Were Within a Canoe's Length of This Gentleman 4:; The Greed of the Beef Trust Drives a Fellow to This 4Z The Author Supplying the "Meat Market" -U The Doctor Performing the Autopsy 45 The End of Chase's Carry— Au Revoir 47 Between Umsaskis and Long Lakes 50 The Winding Allagasb Si Allagash FaUs .->2 The Little Fawn We Saved sn The Allagash Entering the St. John :>! Taking-Out Place— Connors .",., Connors, N. B .-,i; The Kineo Indian and the Author 57 10 LIST OF illustrations. PACK The Valley of the St. John— Fort Kent 6D Taking-Out Place— Fort Kent 62 Historic Block House 63 The Modest Chorus Girl We Admired C4 Between Fort Kent and Norcross tj" Norcross 66 Ambaiejus Lake 68 Loon, or Great Northern Diver..... 69 Debconeag Falls 71 Poekwockamus Dead-water 71 Pockwockamus Carry 75 A Carry "6 Abol li'alls 77 From Mount Katahdin's Summit 79 "Good Morning, Mr. Trout! How Are All the Family?" SI Our Chicago Friend's Camp, Sourdnahunk Lake 82 Find the Fish 83 Wrecked on the West Branch 8i Grub for Itnights of the Tripod 86 Author's Tent, Where the Narrative Was Drafted 88 Sourdnahunk Stream 89 Sourdnahunk Falls ' 91 Ripogenus Gorge 92 Rlpogenus Carry 93 Between Ripogenus and Chesuncook 95 Chesuncook Dam 96 The "Caribou" 98 "Suucook"— Storm Coming 101 The Deer We Couldn't Eat 103 What We Saw on Webster Lake 104 Entering Grand Lake 105 Dream That Came True ; IOC Breaking Log Wings 107 Winter Scene 109 Making a Carry Over Logs 112 Rounding Log Wings— Hulling Machine 113 Taking a Breathing Spell 114 Up Against It at Last 113 Grind.stone— Scene from the Taking-Out Place. The End of Our Canoe Trip 117 Near Old Town— The Entire Party, by Request ot the Guides 118 Kenduskeag Stream, Bangor— Nearing tlie Buzz-Saw UD "City of Rockland" 120 "Priscilla" 122 Where the Sportsman Loves to Linger. CHAPTER I. NEW YORK TO JIOOSEIIEAD LAKE. As one of tlie officers of the "Xorth Star," of the Maine Steamsliip Company, as slie lay alonj^side of Tier 32, ]':ast River, in New ^'ork Harbor, on a hot afternoon in July,^\•as calling,-, "AU ashore! ^Ylio is goini;' a.sho]'e?"' tliere ra])iil]y drove on to tliepier a wagonette. The footman jumped from his seat and assisted a careworn gentleman to alight. Tlie occupant of the M-agonette was a member of tlie New York bar, and, being far from well, an old friend had reroiii- mended a canoe trip through the Avoods of Maine. Before the setting of the sun the "North Star" Avas well on her way along the IMediterrauean of America, Long Island Sound, and the next day at 1.30 p.ai. slie Avas rcmndiiig Cape Elizabeth and entering the harlior of Portland, one of the finest, if not tlie finest harbor along the entire At lantic Coast. Every stateroom of the "North Star" wa,^ occupied, the boat being crowded widi tourists bonnd fdi- the rcsorls of the Pine Tree State, New Rninswick and beymid. The u 12 ^V1IERB THE SPORTSMAN LOVES 10 LINGER. AVHERE TUB SPORTSJIAX LOVES TO LINGER. ]3 "North Star" is a splendid boat in every respect, and espe cially did we enjoy the location of the dining-room. The dining-room of a steamer is generally down below, but that of the "North Star" reminded us of the location of that xcry important annex in our downtown clubs. The dining- iV. "North Star," Maine Steamship Company. room of the boats of the Maine Steamship Company is on the upper deck, and runs the Avhole width of the boat, af fording plenty of fresh air and, no matter which way you look, a magnificent view of tlie water. As one enters NeAV England after leaving the metropolis it seems as if he were a Columbus and had again discov ered America. The signs of the bn.siness houses along the streets of bright and beautiful .Portland contain tlic good old Yankee names, and the street car employees and hack- men are a different article tiian those Avho order us about in cosmopolitan New York. If a stranger falls ill in Portland he should take the nearest hack and direct tlie driver to Longfellow's Statne and tlien down Congress Street toward the Union De]iot. We will guarantee lie Avill find the doctor at home, no mat ter Avhat his hours. We doubt if tliere is a parallel case on this continent. We do not exaggerate in stating that Ave belieA'e in that half mile there are more doctors than in any other half mile in any State of the Union. There is one thing certain, there couldn't be any more, as a doctor's sign is on CA'cry house, and AAdien you see a double house there you find a double doctor; and ^Ir. SaAvbones is not confined to one side of the stiret, as in every house ou each side the doctor is at your sei-A'ice. The Portland doctors seem to belicA-e in tliat p.itriotic phra.se, "United Ave stand, divided Ave fall." It is quite un fortunate that in so high and healthy a city the doctors have pre-empted the main artery between its busiest public square and the Union Depot. It produces a sickening impression. The depot used by the Jiaine Central Railroad is a fine architectural structure. We found that the cars of the Bar Harbor Express contained all the couATUiieuces that the most exacting passenger could ask for, and avc enjoyed CA-ery minute of the four hours Ave spejit s])eediug through the cool and beautiful country from Portland to Bangor. Our train made a ten-minute stop at Angiista. As avc looked OA-er the toAvn our thoughts Avandered back to Maine's great statesman — the Plumed Knight. There were tAvo men defrauded ont of the Presidenc.v, Samuel J. Tilden and James G. Blaine — Tilden in the Stale of Loui.siana and Blaine in Ncav York Citv. 14 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. An attractive city is Bangor, the toAvn at the head of navigation on the Penobscot. To the north of it lies the great Avooded Avilderness. Here Ave Avere to lay aside the dress appropriate along Fifth Avenue and don the Avood- man's attire, buy our stock of proA'isions, select our canoes. Portland Harbor. purchase our Avearing apparel, meet one of our guides, and, last but not least, greet the friend Avho Avas to accom pany us on the trip — Dr. Hazelton. While Ave Avere at breakfast at the Bangor House Ave received the Doctor's card. With him Avas a noble specimen of the red man, an Old ToAvn Indian, young, tall, athletic and unusually intel ligent. To him AA'as left all the arrangements for the trip, the hiring of an additional guide and the selection of the WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 13 camping outfit. 'We spent the day shoppiug. One of the most enjoyable additions to our camping pai-apherualia Avas a pilloAV. It may seem a little teuderfootish to take a pilloAv into tlie AA'oods, but it Avill help you to many an hour's good sleep. AA'liile in Bangor Ave .saw the former home of Hannibal Hamlin. What recollections it brought back to us! The partner, Ave might say, of "Old Abe" in those times that tried men's souls. The trials of all the other Presidents before or since could not conqjare Avith those of Lincoln; and yet, Avith all his honesty of purpose, "grave and rever end" Senatoi's of Ids oavu party considered the question of his impeachment. The stranger Avill find on the outskirts of New England cities, through the enterprise of the trolley lines, places of amufsement. For little expen.se, simply the car fare, he can take a delightful ride far into the country to some park in a lovely inland dale or along some riverside. Bangor is no exception. Four miles below the city, on the banks of the Penob.scot, the traction lines have laid out Riverside Park. The road Avinds along the river bank and through productive farms. At the park an amphitheatre greets you, surrounded by beautiful shaded grounds. Every af ternoon and evening one can listen to some vaudeville en tertainment. One can visit diirerent ]iarks, but the ear marks of otlu']' days Avill be on the programmes. The same old jokes Ave used to hear beating time along Coney's sandy shore we heard that afternoon resounding through the trees at RiA^ersside and echoing over the AA'aters of the Penobscot. "While Ave Avere in Bangor Ave visited the great lumber ing plants and saAV the raAV material converted into finished product. Logs that had made the trip doAvn the drive in 16 AVI-IERB TIIE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOA'ES TO LINGER. 11 company — ^boou companions, so to speak, possibly groAvn up together — noAV A^'ere Avaiting for the buzz-saAV, to part forcA'er, and, as in this life, one to reach no farther than the abode of the loAvly, while its more fortunate companion Avould ornament the home of the Avell-to-do. Bar Harbor Express, Maine Central Railroad. Everything Avas at last in readiness for our departure. One morning bright and eaidy Ave left on the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad for Moosehead Lake, arriving at Kineo that afternoon. There the second guide, another Indian, joined us. Before our departure from Bangor Ave got the first glimpse of Avhat Avas in store for us. A joyous lot of .sportsmen were at the depot. Canoes Avere being loaded into baggage cars. The trucks Avere loaded Avith bundles of tents, bedding and the like — in fact, the camping outfit of many a sportsman Avas piled here and there. Gnus and fishing rods Avere in eA'idence. Men, and ladies as Avell, in sporting costume, Avere making ready for the start. "What a jolly ride it was from Bangor to Moosehead ! The whole k^A^^M^'^M ..,;,,::.,. .;,^i|s|g^ Main Street, Bangor. atmosphere of the car Avas a tonic. What a contrast be tween that train load of merry passengers and the anxious commuter ou his AA'ay to the busy city, AA'ith its ''pace that kills." As one approaches ^loosohead Lake thc grand view of the mountains and A^allej's of the Pin(> Tree State opens uji before him, one unbroken forest as far as the eye can reach. We had often heard of the grandeur of Jlount Kiueo, but 18 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. as we rounded Deer Island the sight that met our view — • the great bald mountain seemingly in the center of the lake, Avith the well-knoAvn hostelry and its cottages at its base — Avas beyond our expectations. We found the service Moosehead Lake Division, Bangor and Aroostook Railroad. of that famous resort equal to any of the hotels along our coast. That night at Kineo AA'as the last we AA^ere to spend for some time in a civilized abode. On the morrow Ave Avere to enter the vast Avilderness, the haunt of Avild beasts, noth ing betAveen us and the stars but a piece of canvas, and the ground for a bed. That night Adsions of Indians, bears. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 19 bull moose and the like AA^ere constantly before us. We could see ourselves Avounded and no jjliysicians Avitliin a hundred miles; our canoes smashed, proA'isions gone, and perchance ourselves lost in the Avoods. How did Ave knoAv but that these Indian guides would scalp and rob us? "We First View of Kineo. aAVoke AA'ith the feeling that Ave would prefer "home and mother." A grand lake is jMoosehead. Set in that Avild and beautiful country, it is a jiicture beyond the pen to describe. It is the largest lake in the State, and is the main artery, AA'inter and summer, to the lumbering cainp.s of Maine. Anuiially millions of tons of provisions ]iass OA'er it by steamer in summer and by sleigh in winter. On account of its rough Avaters the steamer.s, though small, have poAverful engines, and, we might say, fiy over the lake, 20 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. often making the length of the lake in less than tAvo hours. While the lake is freezing over in the fall and breaking up in the spring the road along its shore is resorted to. In Avin- ter large limbs of the hemlock, Avith its CA^ergreen, are set upright in the ice and frozen-iu the Avhole length of the WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGICR. 21 Boat Landing, Kineo. lake, making a marked drivcAvay to guide the teamster avIio travels it. There is one peculiarity of IMoosehead Lake that has not its like iu the lakes of this continent : Avith its forty miles in length and four hundred miles of water line, its inlet and outlet are team re turning across the Carry and leaving ns alone in our glor,v. Everything in connection Avith our outfit seemed frail and small. The canoes that Avere to carry ns and all our belongings over rocky rapids and across deep, boisterous 22 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. lakes oue of the gnides could pick up A\'itli oue hand and shoulder AA-ith little effort. The tent, our house, AA-hich Avas to shelter us from the Avind and Aveather, Avas a little bundle not larger than a pilloAV, nor much heavier. The guides soon had the canoes loaded, and Avith an In dian in Ihe stern of eacli, ]iaddle in hand, tlie ti'i]i doAvn tlie ¦•.•-i-'_-i--r-.'V-r': %....-i^^ .'¦^i^^raxfi^^^.:'^^^.'.''.:-^'' '^"^^''^.^ ' . . ¦ ' '-.'.: y'-'y^T^ ' ' ¦ . Northeast Carry, Moosehead Lake Allagash to the St. John, up the West Branch and doAvn the East Branch of the Penobscot, Avas on. Along this four hundred miles of jungle one often sees the camps of tlie young men who used to spend tlieir A'acations on the beach and in the ballroom, and generally returned home depleted in purse and in Avorse physical condition than Avlien they left. One meets them at Kineo and Norcross. AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 23 returning to the counting-house diifereut looking and feel ing individuals than after the summers spent at Cape Maj', Atlantic City, NcAA'port and Old Orchard. Where tliu Sportsman Loves to Linger. 24 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 25 CHAPTER II. FROM ISIOOSEIIEAD TO CHESUNCOOK LAKE. Ont/s first experience in a canoe is a feeling of uncei'- tainty, expecting every moment to be upset and, on account of its frailty, to see it crushed like an egg shell ; yet a canoe is as tough as a pugilist trained for a prize-fight. It is sur prising the rocks it can run into and on top of Avithout any apparent damage, and the heavy loads it can carry. We Avere surprised and amused at a load the OAvner of a hotel for lumbermen, ten miles beloAv the carry, Avas put ting into his canoe. The man himself Aveighed at least three hundred pounds, and he Avas loading the canoe Avith tAvo barrels of kerosene. As he started aAvay the canoe sank so deep in the Avater that it looked as if two kerosene bar rels and a fat man Avere floating on the surface. The fellow AA^as so fat his "habeas corpus" extended beyond the canoe and hung over the sides like the joaa-Is of the prize porker at a county fair. About all you could see of the canoe Avas the points at each end, reminding us of the jack trains in the mining regions of ("Colorado as Ave have seen them going up the mountain trail loaded with proA^ender and material for tlie mines aboA-e. About all you could see of the jacks Avere their ears. The canoe and bateau are the means of transportation oA-er the rivers and smaller lakes of Maine, They corre spond with the depot Avagon and the heaA'y truck. The smooth, symmetrical canoe is to the rough, ill-shaped ba teau as the sleek, handsomely formed deer is to the un gainly moose. Along the banks of the riA^ers of Maine are roads cut through the timber for hauling provisions dur ing the Avinter to sporting and lumber camps; in fact, you Northeast Carry, West Branch. will see them cut through the Avooded Avilderness in every direction. They tell us snow falls to the depth of seven feet on the level. In truth of that one often sees stumps, we might say, eight to ten feet in height, showing tliere the Avoodchopper .stood on the suoav Avhen he felled the tree. At one time they lumbered in Avinter-only; now the Avood- chopper's axe can be heard the vear round. 26 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. The West Branch at Northeast Carry is a sluggish, deep stream, about tAVO hundred feet in width. The Avater courses of Maine are either dead Avater, quick Avater, rap ids or falls. What most strikes the tenderfoot as he em barks on one of these canoe trips is the utter silence of that vast region. The canoe cuts the water Avith hardly a rip ple, and the paddling is as quiet as the grave. Though the dense jungle that lines the rivers and encompasses the lakes is inhabited every square mile by wild beasts, yet all is still. The young are taught that silence is golden. Even the breaking of a tAvig might lead to instant death No bleating of the calf for its mother, nor vice versa. An old coAV in a toAvn barn makes more noise than all the game in the State of Maine. We had gone doAA'n the stream about a couple of miles Avhen, rounding a bend in the river, one of the guides called our attention to Avhat appeared to be a red bush, but Avas in reality a deer. During Avhat is knoAvn as the "closed sea.son" the game is very tame. Standing on the bank of the stream Avith a little fawn, it Avatched us as Ave passed. What a shot it Avould have been ! On account of the frequent canoes passing betAveen Northeast Carry and Chesuncook Lake it is risky business to supply your larder Avith deer meat during the closed season, but the oppor tunities we had tliat day were very tantalizing. We Avere informed by the guides that AAdien Ave reached Churchill Lake Ave Avould then be safe to toy with venison, so we anxiously looked forAvard to our arrival there. AVhile coming up the lake from Kineo we "fell in" with a friend Ave had met abroad, AA'ho spends a month or two ctA-ery summer on Lobster Lake. He claimed there Avas no more beautiful body of Avater in this or foreign lands, and prevailed upon us to make the side trip into Lobster. Al- WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 27 though it took tAvo hours of the day, Ave Avere rcAvarded AA'ith seeing a lake that was the cap-sheaf of them all. Lob ster Lake is the ideal spot for the business man AAdio, Avhile enjoying the Avilds of the Avoods, Avishes to be at the same time in touch AA'ith his business, as it is only a tAvo hours' paddle — all dead Avater — from Lobster Lake to Northeast Carry, with its long-distance telephone and postoffice. Senior Member of the Transportation Company, Bateau and Canoe. Lobster Lake combines the beauties and grandeur of all the other lakes of the State. Wide, sandy beaches skirt its shores, affording, from AA'hat Ave saw that da,A', a race track for the many fleet-footed deer that visit it. High, rocky clitfs, Avonderful in formal ion, ]^rotect safe harbors Avitli beautiful camping grounds. Unsnr]iassed mountain .scenry surrounds it. Nature so ])laced it that the highest mountains in the State, the mighty Katahdin, the Spencers and others, look doAvu upon it. 28 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. The artist has his masterpiece, the author his favorite production, and if one should ask the Creator of the inland AA-atcrs of the State of Maine His ideal, the answer no doubt would be Lobster Lake. Coining back through Lobster outlet we noticed the work of the beavers. The stream Avas lined Avith their favorite food, the poplar. Their work is almost human. It is Avon derful wliat large trees they gnaAV through, selecting those that lean toAvards the water and will fall therein. We no ticed one tree partially gnawed through. We stopped nud examined it. The work showed that it had been done weeks before. The Indians said, "Tree no fall into the water." What knoAA-ledge Avas there ! The beaver, as is often the case Avith the woodchopper, saAv that his time AA^ould be Avasted. After the trees are fallen the beaver gnaws off the limbs, sinlcs them to the bottom, and in the winter time, Avhen the stream is frozen OA^er, Mr. Beaver enjoys his daily meal of the, to them, luscious bark of the poplar. He seems to knoAV the rainy day Avill come, and provides for it, thereby shoAving more sense than many a two-legged animal. Just before Ave came to Moosehorn, a stream that emp ties into the West Branch from the south, we saAV our first moose. He Avas feeding on liis faA'orite food, the roots of the lily pad. He paid but little attention to us. He was standing in the Avater, belly deep, Avith head submerged half the time in search of his favorite dish. As there was a spring near the mouth of the Moosehorn, and as the noon hour had passed, lunch suggested itself. The canoes were headed for the bank, a fire soon started, and, with the Kineo Indian as head chef, the first meal on our long trip Avas soon before us. From Northeast Carry to Moosehorn the West Branch WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 29 floAA's sluggishly on its course. The guides informed us that the next ten miles, from Jloosehorn to Ciiesuncook Lake, Ave would get a taste of rough Avater, and, sure enough, the first bend in the ri\-er dis"losed foam and rocks. The river became shalloAv and rapid, and rocks poked their They AVatched Us as AVo Passed. heads through the stream in cA-ery direction. The guides stood up, substituting poles for paddles. It Avas Avondorf ul AA'ith Avhat skill they handled the canoes in the onrushing Avaters a.nd ainong the great boulders. Time and again it looked as if Ave Avere going headlong into a rock, bnt a jab of the pole AA'Ould turn the canoe into the channel again. Thus the dreaded Fox Hole, Rocky Rips and Pine Stream Falls Avere safelv run. 30 WHERE TIIE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. Six o'clock found us on the headAvaters of Chesuncook Lake. As the daylight that Avas left before the setting of the sun Avould be needed to prepare for camp, and as just beloAV Pine Stream Falls Avas a beautiful camping ground, the canoes Avere headed for the shore, soou unloaded WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINCiER. 31 '^y^v r ^V'4^ *':.r\'r ;:%-., X->^>>5. Lobster Lake. and their contents carried onto the high bank, the canoes themselves being turned upside doAvn a short distance from the Avater. A dense jungle Avas on three sides of us. Poetry and prose have vied Avith each other in depicting the pleas ures of camping out. Friends haA'e gone into ecstasies OA'er it, but Ave approached the moment more Avith dread than pleasure. The small lieap that lay before us that Avas to protect our inner and onter man seemed entirely inade quate. Witli interest A\'e watched the Indians convert our small belongings into an imposing array. "With axes they disajipeared into the jungle, soon appear ing AA'ith forks and poles. The forks Avere driven into the ground, the poles laid acros.s, the tents unfolded, thrown OAcr tiie poles and tightened do\An. We had four tents, one for each of us, one for the Indians, and a toilet tent. The balance of our belongings AA'ere carried into the rc- Beavers Work. spectiA'e tents. A fireplace Avas next selected, a fork on each side and a pole across, back and end logs secui'ed, and hanger.s — a small forked stick Avitli a nail in one end — A\-ere hung across the pole, a proper distance from the fire. On the hangers are hung tlie pets and ket lies. One of the most important adjuncts of a camping outfit is a ''baker," a jie. u- liarly constrnclcd ])iec(> of tinware. \\'e enjoyed many a. hot biscuit from our little baker. The Indians again disapjieai'cd into tlie woods, this time to return Avith boughs for our beds; aniifnl after ariuriil they bj'onght and entwined, until the sof'lest, cleanest- and most inviting bed Avas before us. Fii'ewood Avas ne.\t pro- 32 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. cured. Along the shore line of all the lakes of Maine dry AA-ood abounds, cast there by the ravages of time. The win ter and summer storms and high water play havoc with the timber along the shore of the lakes; consequentlv, no matter Avhero you camp, dry wood is there— not a punkA'. rotten log, but AA'ood as "sound as a dollar" and "dry as a bone," and of all sizes, ready to cook your daylight meal and for the camp-fire in the stilly night. Of all the fircAvood for the camper, the most necessary is thc bark of the birch; AA'ithont that, many a cold meal Avould have been eaten and many a camp-fire neA^er lighted. No matter Avhat the Aveather condition.s, the birch bark Avill burn. It is easily secured ; Avith a "rip up the back" it read ily peals from the tree, and is as inflammable as kerosene. The guides soon had ample fircAvood in stock, and then they attacked the boxes and bags of provisions. In making a canoe trip one is naturally exposed to all kinds of Aveather, so your provisions are packed Avith that contingency in A'ieAV. Anything that AA^ater Avould injure is protected by waterproof material. Sugar, tea, coffee and the like are put up iu little Avaterproof bags, Avhich are then put in a larger bag. In our long trip bags of provender fell into the Avater Avithout any apparent damage to their contents. A Avell-cooked, bountiful meal Avas soon at our disposal, and as the sun sank amidst the dense forest the camp-fire Avas lighted. Around the camp-fires on our long trip the Indians interested and amused us Avith reminiscences of their lives. In the streams and Avoods the Great Spirit proA'ided OA'erything for them. The AAdld animals gave him rations and raiment. From the bark of the birch tree he made his canoe; with the boAA', arroAV and tomahaAvk ho procured his game; from friction he obtained fire; from bark and poles he made his house; herbs Avere his medicine; AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 33 and, Avith the money and serA'ant question obliterated, a happy and contented life he led. We never heard our West Branch Above iloobehuin. guides telling about their "old man" having to go to a sani tarium for nervous ]n'ostrati(m, nor Avalking the floor 31 AVHERE THE SPORTSJIAN LOVES TO LINGER. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 35 nights on account of the note due at the bank ou the mor- roAV ; nor did they have any recollections of hearing their mother discuss Avith other squaAVs about "my operation" ; nor did they remember in their papoose days of having been introduced to Uvs. AVinsloAV or Mr. Paregoric. Upon our arrival at (Chesuncook Ave already began to feel 1' 2. > West Branch Below Moosehorn. the delightful effects of the change. He Avho continually lives along the coast line knoAveth not the benefit of the A^•oods of ilaine. The Avord humidity is not in the bright lexicon of the Pine Tree State. Poor appetite has no abode there. Indigestion is a stranger in the laud. Stomachs that rebelled ai-e forgiven and forgotten. Nervousness soon seeks other climes. Imaginary evils A'anish into thin air. What seem mountains elscAvhere to the tired brain become molehills. Jiiorbid thoughts giA'e AA'ay to pleasaut reflections. The iuAvard antipathy hidden by outAvard cour tesy of man towards man resolves itself into the true Chris tian spirit. A^^oman's jealou.sy of Avoiuan lias no abiding place in the AA'Oods of Maine. The struggle for Avorldly goods that is driA'ing many business men to the asylum and penitentiary ceases for tlie time being. In fact, the surroundings there give one that quiet repose that enables you to see this life as it should be seen. 3G AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AA'IIERE THK SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 37 CHAPTER III. CHESU.N'COOK TO UMSA.SKIS LAKE. Fragrance from hemlock boughs must be a panacea for insomnia, as the night passed mid pleasant dreams. For breakfast Ave had some delicious trout caught in the early morn liy one of the Indians. The tented field of the night before, Avith all our belongings, AA'as loaded into the canoes, and Ave started on a day's journey in Avhich before night fall Ave Avere to experience all the varieties of canoeing through the Avilds of JMaine. An hour's paddling on the lieadAvaters of Chesuncook Lake brought us to tlie lake proper. The lake lay to the .south of us, and off to the southeast old Katahdin loomed skvAvard. At the little settlement at the head of the laka AA',as a postoffice, the last until AA'e arrived at Connors, on the St. John, one hundred and twenty-fiA^e miles further north. Our course lay across the head of the lake to the mouth of Umbazooksus stream. The canoeman gets lots of experience going up Umbazooksus stream to a lake of the same name. The first .six miles is narroAV, winding and muddy; the last three shallow and rocky, where one has to don rubber boots and lead tlie canoe. Umbazooksns Lake is situated iu a country wild Avith scenic beauty. Across the foot of it our course lay to some sporting camps near the famous Mud Pond Carry. Mud Pond Carry, Avhich is tAA'o miles long, crosses the A'ertebne of the State of Maine. It is on tlie AA'atersIied. It Avas raining Avhen Ave crossed it, and stopping for a moment on its apex, Ave saAV the rain drops choose their course, bidw Bruns- Avick to the .sea. The trannvay enables the luiiibernien on Eagle Lake to float their logs via Gliamberlain and the Ea.st Branch to the mills on the Penobscot, thereby avoid ing a Canadian lax. As one traverses the AVOods of Maine he is often reminded of bygone da^'s by the immense rotting stuiiqis of the for- 42 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. mer monarchs of the Avoods, the pine trees. One occasion ally lies Avith its full length on the ground, covered AAuth moss, one of those giants left for some cause by the AA'^ood- choppers. No other timber in the AVOods did or ever Avill equal the proportions of the pine. They seemed to have AVe AVere Within a Canoe's Length of This Gentleman. liA'ed in the age of human giants and the animals and fish of biblical times, and in the days Avhen the giant angler. "His angle rod made of sturdy pine, AVith a cable, that storms ne'er broke, for a line; His hook he baited Avith a dragon's tail. And sat on a rock and bobbed for a Avhale." AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 43 We found ma,nj inaccuracies in maps and descriptions as published. Among other things, maps shoAV a dam and a carry betAveen Churchill and Umsaskis Lakes, to this day called Chase's Carry. There Avas at one time a dam there, but there has not been for, lo! these many 3'ears. A The Greed of the Beet Trust Drives a Fellow to This. dam Avas a long time ago constructed on the Allagash be- loAV Churchill Lake to raise the Avater of Eagle, but some of the boys in the lumber business on the loAver Allagash, being short of Avater to float their log.-;, sneaked up the river one night and in the dark of tlie "moon dynamited the dam, Avhich Avith a cra.sli disappeared from the Allagash, but .seemingly not from maps and liter. itnre. The next morning, leaving the guides at home, we took a Avalk doAvn the lake. Rounding a point, we saw, feeding, 44 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. some distance along the shore, a red object Ave had seen so many times before. The Avind Avas in our faA^or, enabling us to bring the young buck, as he proved to be, Avithin easy range. It is surprising hoAV suspicious they are, forcA'er looking around while feeding, their heads constantly going UJ) and doAvn, ahvays on the alert. Something Avonderful The Author Supplying the "Meat Market." is their sense of smell and hearing. It must haA'^e heard us, and suddenlA' turned, facing us. The time had come, aud Avith a roar that .sounded over the lake like a cannon the object of our aim dropped, then arose and ran doAvn the shore of the lake. One often hears the assertion that a .shot through the heart means instant death, but that animal ran one hnndied A-ards shot tlirougli the heart. AA'e returned to the camp for a canoe, and, Avith the Doctor as AVHERE THE SPORTSM.AN LOA'ES TO LINGER. 45 chief .surgeon, the tenderloin aud hindquarters Avere soon hanging on a tree a .short distance from the camp. Meat in that high, dry atmosphere soon cures. "Sports" keep The Doctor Pi'ddnnin^ the AiUopsy. the "meat market'' some distance from the camp, as the laAv requires you to be caught Avith the "goods on." The bill of fare for the next two days consisted of "teiidei'loin of buck a la Churchill Lake." One day avc spent in the AVQods successfully hunting partridges, 4G WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. During our stay on Churchill we visited the camp of Senator Quay on Spider Lake. A thoroughfare from Churchill leads to Spider. The camp was closed. AA'^hat a contrast betAveen that beautiful lake, situated in one of the most attractive spots for a sportsman in Maine, and the Capitol at AA'ashingtou! As AA'e sat on the Senator's piazza, breathing in the delicious fragrance of the trees that surrounded it and looking over the clear and lovely lake, Ave could not help but think what fools men are Avhen they have accumulated sufficient AVorldly goods to sacri fice their health for more. To retain the poAver the SeU' ator had in the State of Pennsylvania, and to keep in touch Avith his henchmen, the days of midsummer found him in the hot city, instead of enjoying that cool and healthy spot. It does seem that, like AA'omen for social .standing, men Avill for Avealth and poAver sacrifice every-^ thing. If the Senator had spent more time on Spider Lake and less in AA'ashington he Avould have lived longer to en joy Avhat it had been his good fortune to accumulate; but, like the AVall Street manipulator, the ticker Avas his life. The dread of Chase's Carry began to koe)) us aAvakc, so Ave broke camp and started doAvn the long lagoon that leads to the commencement of the Allagash. If any one wants to get his mind off his business, Ave will guarantee, when he is going doAvn the Allagash from Churchill, no matter AA'hat his occupation, he Avill be think ing of nothing but rocks. We doubt if that eleven miles has its equal for Avildness in the State of Maine. ToAA'ering banks, with dense jungle, are on both sides; immense trees lean over the stream as if to grab you. The current runs like a mill race; great boulders are everyAvhere, alongside of you, under you, and you are lucky if some do not get on top of you. The channel, if there is one, is narroAV and AVHERE THli) SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 47 constantly circling around and among huge boulders, first on one sitle of the river and then on the other; in the middle and then Avhere the onrushing Avaters take yon. Canoes are constantly being swamped. Along the bottom of the riA'er one catches glimpses of baker.s, tin cans, kettles, bags The End ot Chase's Carry. Au Revoir. of provisions — in fact, all kinds of camp equipage lost by unfortunate cauoemen. Some day Chase's Carry Avill be Avorked to good advantage, as there is lots of pay dirt deposited there and more being constantly added. The day we made the run Avas dark and lowering. AA"e had AVorked our Avay doAvn stream not more than a mile. Avheu the elements concluded tliey Avonld take a hand in the game and opened Avith one of the Avorst thunder .show ers AA'e CA'cr passed (brough. The rain came iu torrents 4S WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 40 and the lightning aavis a hair-raiser. Through it all the faithful guides stood their ground, pole in hand, guiding us safely through the treacherous channels. As the dark ness passed aAvay and the sun .shone forth Ave dropped into Umsaskis dead Avater, completing the Avildest ride on tlie entire trip. AA^e Avere drenched to the skin and Avere half scared to death along the Avhole eleven miles. Chase's Carry and the headAvaters of Umsaskis Lake are simply a repetition of this life; do not falter when the tug comes, as come it will, but brace against it, as there is always quiet Avaters beyond. CHAPTER lA^. umsaskis lake TO FORT KENT. In all stages of decay lumber camps are found along the rivers and (m the sliores of the lakes of .Alaine. AA'e found the old cedar .shingles of the roof of one of the buildings nearby Avhere aac camjied A'ery desirable fireA\-ood. AA"(> stayed on Umsaskis two days, our time being occupied dry ing our clothes. A keeper once Avrote on the door at Sing Sing AA'here prisoners first cuter, "He avIio enters here leave hope behind." The sjiortsman Avho enters the AA'oods of Elaine should leaA^e cotton goods at home. EA'ery article of clothing should be avooI. Strong, common-sense shoes and moccasins should be the footAvear; a pair of rubber boots Avonld not come amiss. Jlore than once, after a good drenching, our Avoolen clothes saA'cd us from catching cold. Many times Ave haA'e taken off our moccasins, emjitied out the Avater, AA-rung out our Avoolen socks, and put the same socks and mocca.sins on again, Avitli no bad results. On the second day of our stop on Umsa.skis Ave saw a battle royal betA^'ecn tAvo bull moose. Coming from oppo site directions, they met at the lake side, not far from our camp. They locked horn.^ .shoving each other up and down the beacli, paying no attention Avhatever to us. After sma.shing all the dr.v-ki and overturning every stone Avithin a radius of a hundred feel, one, evidently having enougli. 50 AVHERE THE SPORTSiMAN LOVES TO LINGER. plunged into the lake and sAvain for the opposite shore. The other stood looking at him, and, as the victor turned to go into the woods, he stopped for a moment vicAving our camp, as if to say, "AA'ell, boys, I made him take Avater." On the afternoon of the same day Ave saAV the most laugh- Between Umsaskis and Long Lakes. able incident that occurred on our trip. Our tents Avere pitched on high gronnd, a short distance from the lake. The AVOods had been cleared away in front. There AA^as a small island a short distance off shore. AA'e noticed seA'-eral moose here and there in the Avater. One Avas Avell out in the lake and gradually AA'orking his AA'a3' to our camp, his head being under Avater half of the time after the roots of the lily pad. He kept on coming nearer and nearer, evi- AYHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOAVES TO LINGER. 51 dently not seeing us. He no doubt had traveled the same route before. He finally caught sight of the camp, stood for a moment looking at those AA'hite objects AA'ith the dark woods as a background, became frightened, AA'hirled and started for the island, disappearing therein, but iu a fcAV -..-¦>,'' ;. ...^.'i.'&,'Aji2-.ikfikii:ii!AiMSiw Thc Winding Allagash. moments reappeared and plnnged into the Avater, Avith two more moose Avith liim, all striking out for the ojiposite shore. One could imagine that as soon as he struck the island the other nioo.se had asked Avliat Avas up, aud he no doubt replied, "Don't ask me any questions, but: run for your life." Taa'o other moose, aa'Iio had been feeding avcII out in the lake, saw the rush coming, and they, too, A\'ere stampeded, and the Avhole bunch Avere still ou the lojie as they disappeared in the tinilier. 52 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. Passing out of Umsaskis Lake and through the thorough fare, one enters Long Lake, the last lake on the Allagash trip. Years ago, on account of a love affair, one Priestly sought an isolated abode. He came to Long Lake, on the Allagash. As years rolled on he cleared up quite a farm. Allagash Falls. I'lie farm AA'as bought by one Harvey, Avho also evidently preferred isolation. Sportsmen often stopped at the place, some of Avliom had been SAvamped in Chase's Carr3^ Har vey established a supply depot, toting the supplies from Canada during the Avinter. Our supply of sugar having been AA'aterlogged in Chase's Carry, Ave Avere glad that Priestly had b-^en discarded by one of the Aveaker sex, as it enabled us to suiq^ly our larder at Depot Farm. All da.v long Ave glided doAA'u the rapid, rocky Avaters of the AAinding Allagash, seeing deer and moose at every turn. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 5.j eating our lunch as vre floated OA'cr the only dead Avater on the river, and as tAviliglit Avas ca.sting its shadoAvs across the stream Allagash Falls was reached, near which Ave pitched our tents. The only sleepless night on the Avliole trip Ave passed at Allaga.sh Falls. It seems the Allagash log driA'e failed to get through, and logs AA'ere scattered along tlie river from Round Pond to the St. John. BeloAV Allagash Falls the river Avas full of them, except a narroAV clianuel for canoes. The LitHc Fawu Wo Saved. About midnight Ave aAvoke, hearing a sound like that of a crA'ing baby; AvhencAer the A\"ind ble\\- the sound of the falls awaA' Ave could lu.'ar the cry. Sometimes it Avonld .sound like a child and then like a calf. At the break of day AA'e dre.s.sed, still hearing the same little AA'ail. Tt sounded among the logs. The Indians Avere already up and Ave called their attention to it. Together Ave inA'esti- gated, and there in the Avattu', 1)etween some logs, Avas a. little faAvn. One of the Indians .said at dusk the night, be fore he had seen a doe crossing tlu! logs, n.'llowed by a fawn. The little felloAV had evidently fallen in aud Avas uearh- 54 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. chilled to death. The mother Avas uoAA'here in sight. AA'e carried the poor thing up to the camp, rubbed it dry and fed it some condensed milk and hot Avater. It became a passenger on our trip as far as Connors, Avhere Ave gave it aAvay. We stopped at a farmhouse a feAv miles beloAv the The Allagash Entering the St. John. falls, obtained some coav's milk, aud fortunately a rubber nipple, and our little charge had its rations early and often and seemed to enjoy our society. On the menu card at Allagash Falls Avas "fruit in sea son." Forest fires had left great tracts of timber land along the Allagash bare and desolate; acres of red rasp berry bushes had groAvn thereon, and the fruit was ripe Avhile Ave Avere there. AA'HERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 55 Among the trophies Ave gathered on our trip, a bear pelt we obtained at Allagash Falls Ave prize above all others. AA'hile the Kineo Indian Avas getting the noonday meal the Bangor guide Avont in search of raspberries. He had been gone about half an hour, Avhen Ave heard a shot, the groAvl * - ."T^- - ¦¦ ^ - ' .^ '-'-U I ' X,' -.^".. .-,"- '^ ¦ Taking-Out Place— Connors. of an animal and the Indian crying for help. AA'e all started in the direction of the noise, but neglected to take our guns. The cook, Avho Avas cleaning fish at the time, had a knife in his hand, and fortunately took it Avith him! The Kineo Indian told us as AA'e ran, tumbling over loi^s and limbs, that it Avas nndoubtedly a bear. It seems a large-sized she bear Avas also hunting berries, and the guide getting sight of her, sneaked up to clo.se range and fired. Unfortunately In; had bnt one cartridge; the shot onlv 56 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AVHERE THE SPORTS:\rAN LOVES TO LINGER. wounded and infuriated the animal, AAdio made for the In dian. He had no means of defense except a club, and AAdien we arriA^ed the Indian and bear AA'ere having a rough-and- tumble fight among the bru.sb, first the bear on top and then the Indian, The Kineo Indian, knife in hand, jumped Connors, N. B. into the fray, and soon poor bruin AA'as dead. The Bangor Indian's arms Avere fearfully lacerated, putting him out of commission. He AA'as unable to paddle, and Ave found ourselves the next day going doAA^n the Allagash Avith the stern paddle in hand. If it Avere not that the Kineo In dian kucAv every foot of the river and took the lead, Ave AA'Ould have been in the Avater more times than in the canoe. AA'hile running TavIu Brook rapids our heart and Adam's apple Avere holding close conmiunion. At noon Ave ran Nigger Brook rapids and entered the A'alley of the St. John, one of the grandest river A^alleys in North America. Four o'clock that afternoon found us at the hotel at (Jonnors, Ncav BrunsAvick, sending telegrams - i.-a.-^_- -a- MMm The Kineo Indian and the Author. to anxious friends, reading letters and newspapers, in an endeavor to catch up Avith the Avorld. Camping out is no doubt great, but it Avas a delightful change from eating your meals in the Avilds of the Allagash 58 AAHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. on a bare table Avhile sitting at an angle of forty-five de grees, Avith an Indian as chief cook and bottle-Avasher, avIio never could be hung for his cleanliness, to the dining-room of the Hotel NeAv BrunsAvick. It seemed good to get our legs again under the mahogany of a hotel dining-rooni. HoAA" sweet the clean linen and the neatly dressed Avaiter girls looked to us. The menu cai'd contained all the appetite could crave; the viands were Avell cooked and served to the queen's taste. What a pleasure .sitting in the rotunda of the hotel in a comfortable chair, smoking your favorite brand. Hoav inviting Avas a porcelain bathtub, AA'ith its necessary side- partner. AA'hat a "dift'erence in the morning" betAveen the easy chair of a Avhite-coated tonsorial artist to haA'ing your neck stretched OA'er a stump, with a clumsy Indian bran dishing a dull razor in close proximity to your jugular. It Avas Saturday Avhen Ave arrived at Connors; Ave thought it was Sunday. Greatly to our disgust, anger and mortification, the Kineo Indian that evening met some con- vivial friends, who imbibed too freely of Canadian Club, and, unfortunately for all of us, proceeded to paint the little frontier toAvn a beautiful crimson. Most success fully they accomplished the task, and ere the decorating process cea.sed the roosters Avere informing the subjects of King EdAvard that another day was daAvniug. To atone for this "Avar dance," Ave, Indians and all, attended the only church in toAvn — a Catholic one. Much of the service Avas in French. That langTiage seemed to predominate on both sides of the St. John. But Ave Avere not to get off so easily. While coming out of church the Kineo Indian AA'as served Avith a paper to a])pear before "^ly Lud" the folloAving morning. The court, being informed of our profession, alloAved us to ap- WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 59 pear for the defense. AA'e put in a i^lea of justification. We produced a sample of the vile stuff Ave bought in thc "States'' and compared it A\-ith the smooth, oily extract sold over the bar of the Hotel NeAV BrunsAvick, claiming that no one Avas to blame for imbibing too freely of such a de- &'jfM^.&*::- .» J-' :«.U.;.'A--'^--?.^.:^ ^,- htSJ^'flJ-- ¦y^A%.~ h.:^:,ri--::. i^-.,-^!^.-^:^^^^^''!.-^^ The Valley of the St. John— Fort Kent. licitms article after such a "torchlight procession" as Ave bought in Bangor. In fact, avc prai.sed eAcrything Cana dian and condemned everything that em- was or ever aaIII be across the border. The court generally takes "the pa pers,'' but in this case it took a sample of the Ibmgor brand and then that of Canada, sustained our jilea ol jiistitication and dischai'ged the prisoner on condition that he leave town at once, Avhich avc agreed to do and did. GO AVIIEIUO TIIK SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGKR. In all our long trip over the Avaters of iMaiiie, thc four hours Ave passed that lovely August afternoon going doAvn the St. John from ("'onnors to l-'oi't Kent Avas the most en joyable; after our experience on the rushing Allagash, con stantly ou the lookout for rocks, it Avas restful to glide along the clear Avaters of the St. John. The dee]), smooth river, the Avide valley, dotted here and there Avith little ham lets aud productive farms, Avith ranges of mountains iu the background, Avas a sight that Avill linger long in our memory. AVIIIORH THE SI'ORTSMAX LOVIOS TO LINCJER. Gl CHAPTER A^ FORT KIINT TO AA'EST RRAXl'II. MOUNT KATAHDIN. I'ORT Kent recalled the exciting political contest "when she Aveiit for (JoA'enior Kent, 'i^iiipecanoe, and Tyler, too.'' Among the other atti-actions of the place, Ave visited the historic old blockhouse. At Fovt Kent we Avere to take the railroad for Norci'oss, a town one hundred miles soulh. wliere the AVest Branch trip usually ends. \A'e were agree ably sui'prised to find such good hotel accominodatioiis at these little frontier towns. As Ave entered the room of the hotel Ave Avere pleased and astonished to find it croAA'ded Avith a, bcA'y of young, liandsc^iiie and frolicking girls, hi- (iniring of the Avaiter avIio tluw Avere, he informed us tlie.v AN'cre "the cIku'us oP the s1ioa\" to-night." It seems inaii\' theatrical troupes follow the vacationists to Alaine. Se\- eral of the young ladies insisted on dining at the same table with our gnides, and kejit up (|iiite a llirtatiou Avitli the noble red men, greatly to the amnsemeiit of the guests, but to the discomfiture of the Indians. After dinner A\-e asked the Kineo guide Avhat he thought of the girls. "Heap fine squaws." AA'e Avent to the slunx', of cmirse, and the reveii'A' of the night hroiight back to (Uir recollection the Kialto in little old New A'ork. AA'e dreaded the I'ailroad ride, as we exjiected in this I'ar- Off Avibleruess to find dirty and broken-down rolling stock, 62 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. an uneven roadbed, a rough lot of passengers, and, as usual at terminals on the frontier, the depot a box-car, Avith a stoA'epipe for a chimney. Imagine our surprise to find a handsome depot, and standing, on the main line beside it a railroad train, from the coAV-catcher to the hind plat- Taking-Out Place— Fort Kent. form on the last car, in equipment equal to any running ont of the Grand Central Depot, and far superior to many trains coming into Ncav York carrying the bustling com muter. The trainmen, in their neat uniforms, Ave found gentlemanly, social and accommodating. The roadbed shoAved that the superintendent and section men under stood tlieir business. 11(! who travels over the, B. & A. from Fort Kent to Nor cross need not fear he is going to .starA'e because there is WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES '10 LINGER. 63 no dining car on the train nor eating stations along the line, as about the time for luncheon the conductor passes through the train announcing the fact that luncheon Avill be brought aboard the train at the next station for those; > ., a%?T-r„,^i, '"^i.-*v <; -,.^ ¦ . "^y''\'-iy-^ •- - -, > > . '11 „ 'y X ^ Historic Block House. who AA'ant it; and a nice one it is, put in a paper box aud left Avith you to eat at your leisure. There AA'as a county fair somcAvhere doAvn the road, and AA'e had an opportunity of seeing the natives. AA'hat a con trast between AA'hat Ave call a New A'orker and the citizens of Aroostook County! The former a pale, anxious-looking citizen, c(mtinually on the verge of a collapse; the laltiT a healthy, rosy-cheeked, contented indiAidual, who looked 64 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. and acted as if the greed for gold Avas not the aim of life. • AA'hat a contrast betAveen those excursionists, on pleasure bfent, and the pale, sickly denizens of the East Side as Ave The Modest Chorus Girl We Admired. liaAc seen them on some barge on their AA'ay np the Sound to some picnic grounds' The road led on doAvn through the Avoods alongside of the lakes, over the streams and around the mountains of that health-restoring country. WHERE THE SPORTSJIAN L()V1':S TO LINGER. 0;> As one passes through the farming districts of Maine, if he has ever lived in the country, he Avill appreciate the manner of the construction of the farm buildings. On account of my health the fifteen years folloAA'ing my gradu ation from Columbia College LaAv School I spent on a stock Between Fort Kent and Norcross. ranch in the State of loAva, in a county bordering on the Missouri RiA'er, and Avould have likely remained there if the Beef Trust had ca'cu left me the first cut back of the horns; but it insisted on taking the AA'hole steer. If before I had erected my loAva buildings I had taken a tri]"> through Maine I aa'OuUI have bunched them instead of isolating them. The JMaine farmer joins all his buildings together. First comes the house, then the carriage house, then the GO AVHERE TIIE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AvoodsJied and the animal quarters, Avith other necessary buildings joimnl thereon, Avith doors opening from one to the other, Avhereas the AVestern man builds his apart. AA'e have often heard our Ncav York friends speak of the blizzard of ISSS, but AA'e tell them they do not knoAV Avhat Norcross. a blizzard is, and Ave are bold enough to say that a Maine farmer has something to learn in that line. He who Ha'CS in a Avooded country knoAVS nothiug of the storm-SAvept prairies. AA'hile the blizzard is on the iMaine farmer can rise in the morning and Avalk under cover from his parlor to his pig-pen, everything jirotected within, Avhile tlie storm hoAvls Avithout. Not so Avith his AVestern neighbor, Avith his detached buildings, Avitli clotheslines as guide ropes. AVHERE THE SI'ORTSM.\.N LOVES TO LINGER. 67 strung from building to building, so as not to lose the trail ; the hired hand, Avith a scoop-shovel, trying to locate the AA'oodpile; tlie boss of the ranch Avallowing through suoav to his arm-pits in a A'ain endeaA'or to reach the animal king dom; the horses, for AA'ant of food, eating up the stable in front and kicking holes through it in the rear; the coavs belloAving to be milked, the hog-pen coA'ered with moun tains of SUOAV, the haystack and corn-crib out of .sight, and the u.sually patient houscAvife yelling at her lord at the top of her voice through a crack iu the door, "Dry Avood, or no breakfast!" Through the courtesy of the superintendent of a pulp mill AA'e stopped over at JMillinocket and saw the process Avherebj' the virgin forest is turned into jiaiier. The logs AA'ere saAA'cd into block.s, the blocks gronnd into pulp and the pulp converted into pa]jer. The lumbering camps of Maine are fast reniOA'ing thc trees from which the State got its sobriquet; nor does the pine tree come again Avliere once cut off. Strange as it may seem, Avlierc years ago the great pine forest Ava.s, noAV oue has difficulty iu finding a pine tree. As a gcmeral rule, similar groAvlh springs up from the stump of a tree cut doAvn, but not so Avitb the "pumpkin" pine. Almost invariably birch comes instead. AA'e .saw repeatedly Avhite birch gi-owing from the siiim]i, Ave might saA', of a inne tree. From the AA'ay the pine ivee is disappearing ?klaine Avill haA'e to change her other name. There AA'as a time AA'hen pine Avas the only tree cut iu the State; uoav the spruce and hemlock are also fast disajipear- ing. But Avorse than the AV(iodclio])per are the ])nli) mills. They clean ont everything in sight, large and small. Laws .should be enacted protecting the young timher. or Afaiiie will lose its attractiveness for the American sjioi'fsman. AA'hat a magnificent spectacle the Avoods of Alaine must 68 AVHERE THE SPOKTSiiAN LOVKS TO lASsam. have been Avhen the pine Avas in its glory and the under brush Avas an urdinoAA^n quantity! "The shades of night Avere falling fast" as the trainmen announced: "Norcross the next station." AVe AA'ere some what disap]wiuted with Norcross; for the taking-out place IF" ^k^ V^^i^TW i^^'-^^' ¦¦¦ '^¦' >¦¦''¦¦' Ambajejus Lake. of tl'.e most popular canoe trip in the State we expected to see an up-to-date toAvn, but Ave found it next door to nothing. But, as avc Avere looking for ozone and not style, for the Avork of nature and not that of "the man in the over alls," Ave entered the hotel, abont the only building in toAvn, Avbere Ave put np for the night. Connected Avith the hotel was a supjily store. The next morning Ave laid in our sup])lies for the AA'est Branch trip. AA'e left Norcross on a little steamer Avhich runs through WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 69 North TAvin, Pemadnmcook and Ambajejus Lakes. As one sails up those lakes there is constantly in A'iew and nearer and nearer he approaches old Katahdin. Thousands of logs AA'ere floating on the surface of the lake, as the AA'est Branch drive had just gotten through. AA'e had quite an exciting Loon, or Great Northern Diver. and amusing experience on the little steamer which plies between Norcross and Ambajejus Falls. The deck of the boat AA'as loaded with sportsmen, both men aud women, canoes and dunnage, and we were all enjoying the delight ful i:rip, when, with a roar, volumes of'st(\ii'n bnrst fnnii the pilot-house; aud the pilot', who acted as cajitain, deck hand, assistant engineer and cook, all combined iii one 70 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. came rushing hxxt of the pilot-house, yelling, "Over Avith the lifeboats." Everybody thought the boat Avas going to bloAv up. OA'er Avent the canoes, OA'er Avent the passengers, some landing in the canoes, others in the Avater. It seems a stop-cock on a steampipc in the pilot-house had burst. The combination pilot, captain, deckhand, assistant engi neer and cook rushed back into the pilot-house and, in an attempt to shut off the steam, choked, fainted and got scalded. AVe might as Avell have stayed Avhere we Avere, as the steam soon exhausted itself. It Avas oue of those cases AA'hen the crcAV lost its head. The passengers returned to the boat and attempted to rcA'ive the "combination." In stead of attending to the poor felloAv's Avounds, everybody suggested giving hiin Avhiskey, Avhich resulted in completely stupefying him. As our boat Avas being toAved l)ack to Norcro.ss alarming reports preceded us. The family of the "combination," physicians Avho had been telegraphed for along the line and the feAV inhabitants of the toAvn Avere there to meet us. Everybody Avas sympathetic as they began to carry out the "dt.'ad," and Avei-e sur])rised and relieved to find that the only "dead one" Avas the "combination." After a hasty examination by the physicians and explanations by the passengers "a Avalk around the block" brought the "com bination" back to life, little the Avorse for his experience as a navigator over the Avaters of Maine. And the last we heard of him he Avas singing "The Yarn of the 'Nancy Bell' " : "O, I am a cook and a captain bold. And the mate of the 'Nancy' brig. And a bo-sun tight, and a midship mite, And the crcAV of the cai)tain's gig." AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 71 AA'e Avere transferred to another steamer, aud at the head of Ambajejus all our belongings Avere unloaded and again the wild life of the canoeist Avas before us. The guides Avere again our guardians, xill will admit there is a difference Avhether yon are going up hill or doAvn. Debconeag Falls. EA'erything so far Avas doAA'u stream, but uoav avc were "up against it." AA'here one canoeist goes up the AA'est liranch hundreds go doAA'u. As the (\ay Avas Avell gone, avc camped ou the shore of Ambajejus Lake, and Avhile lying on our bough bed, listening to the continuons wail of tlie griMt Northei'ii diver, 3!orpheus claimed ns ns his own. Before ns for the next day was the h.ardesi day's work for the guides of the entire trip. There Avere fi\'e carrys 72 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. on the next ten miles, bnt it Avas surprising to see hoAv easily and quickly the Indians made them. That night Ave camped Avhere Abol stream enters the West Branch, at the foot of AA'hat Pike's Peak is to the Rockies, the "tie to" of Northern Alaine, Katahdin IMountain. "Katahdin is the monarch of mountains ; They croAvned him long ago On a throne of rocks, in a robe of clouds, AA'^ith a diadem of snoAV." AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 73 CHAPTER A'l. AVEST P.RANCH — MOUNT KATAHDIN TO SOURDNAHUNK DEAD AVATER. Fortunate it AA'as for a poor guide on PockAvockamus Carry that the dental colleges of to-day require students Avho graduate therefrom to be thoroughly proficient iu an atomy. AA'hile the guides Avere making the carry Ave strolled along the riA'er bank, casting our lines for an occasional speckled beauty. The Bangor Indian came rushing to u.s, saying there Avas a man hurt. AA'e found a guide lying on the gronnd, .suffering excruciating pain. It seems he had stumbled Avhile carrying a canoe and bad dislocated his knee-joint. They Avere about to take him to Norcross, Avhen the Bangor Indian informed the party that a doctor Avas one of his party. All hands made way for the doctor. The operating table Avas' the ground and sympathy the ames- thetic. The doctor stripped the clothing from the guide's leg, placed him in a projier position, put his knee ou the dislocated bone, and ordered us to catch hold of the fel- loAv's leg and pull. AA'ith a groan from the guide aud a snap of the bone the knee Avent back into place. The Doc tor informed the party that they had better set up a tent then and there, as the patient Avtnibl not be able to move for a fortnight. It generally takes about fcuir round-trips to make a 74 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. carry. The canoe is usually the first load, aud is carried bottom side up on the shoulders of the guide. Then fol- loAVS the rest of the outfit, the guide taking on each trip about Avhat he thinks he can couA'eniently lug. Straps such as soldiers use in carrying their knapsacks are used Pockwockauius Dead AVater. in carrying the teuts aud bedding, Avhicli are covered Avith Avaterproof blankets. The longest carry for the guides on the AA'est Branch is PockAvockamus; and on the East Branch, Haskell Rock, both about three-quarters of a mile. On the Allagash there is only one carry, aa'C might say, and that a short one, at Allaga.sh Falls, iu cousequeuce of AA'hich the Allagash trip Avas becoming A'or.v pojmlar. A guide al- AA'ays breathes easier AA'hen the ".sports" inform him that they are going to take the .Vllagash trip. AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 75 From our infancy Ave have heard of Plymouth Rock and the rockbound Ncav England Coast, but the rocks of the State of ilaine are not all along the coast line. Canoes can testify that there are a fcAV along the rivers. The rocks along the Allagash East and AVest Branch sIioav evidence Pockwockamus Carry. of contact with canoes by the paint left thereon. If it Avere not that the constant Aoav of Avater for ages has Avorn the rocks smooth, the canoe trips that al'fm'd so much plea-sure to the sportsman could not he accompli.shed. AA'e doul)t if there are any more rocks in a given s]i:ice in the State of ilaine, or iu any other State, for that matter, than there is at PockAvorkamns h^jills, on the AA'est Branch of tlie Penobscot Ri\-er. ^j'liere are enoiu;li i-ocks there to build the foundations for all the .skyscrapers that Avill be AA'IIERE\ THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. rG erected on ^^lanhattan Island during this generation. It looks as if the Suin-eine Being, Avhen He commenced dis tributing stones along the AA'est Branch, must have become leg-Aveary or Avent on strike when He reached Pockwocka mus Falls and there dumped the balance of His load. A Carry. One gets lots of outdoor exercise betAveen Ambajejus IjVdce and Abol stream ; iu fact, Ave got so much of it that Ave Avere reminded of the story of the English letter-carrier. His route aa'us on the outskirts of London, and in order to make his rounds be Avas compelled to Avalk seA'enteen miles a day. The ])oor felloAV broke doAvu under the strain, Avas taken ill and sent for a doctor. The doctor examined his pulse, looked at his tongue and asked the letter-carrier his AVHKRK THE SPORTSMAN L()Vi:S '10. LINGER. I I occupation. The letter-carrier told him he Avas in the Post- office Department. The Avise diagnostician, iuferring that his patient Avas confined in some dingy jiostal office, thought he AA'as .safe in saying, "AA'hat you Avant is outdoor exercise." AA'hile in camp at the foot of Mount Katahdin we Avere f^tV*&i*;-.r*>^ ¦-Tf^<3''^:-- :•¦->- '''•^¦"l>y--'^iSS '.¦^v.^:^.>.\J=^.ih,V>-'.::i^^i 'i^r.,t.&^i^'^^..',:if.j..i,.'. 'L'^x-^'.,i,.i.i:^LLyi^^'^-.ii^,^it>j'-t.^.~^:.'-.i'^'':i.{'h-',^'.'ytLi*.^^ Abol Falls. to start another meat market, AA'ith the same brand of goods AA'e had in stock at Churchill Lake, aud aa'c Avere also to ascend the mountain; so Ave had the Indians lay out the camp in due and ancient form. Obtaining venison along the AA'est Branch is a much more risky business than along the Allagash, as where you Avill meet one canoeman on the Allagash you will meet hundreds on the AA'est Branch. 78 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. There Avas game in plenty, and all night long you could hear the "bloAv" of the deer and the heavy tramp of the moo.se. One of the feAv noises denoting the presence of game is the snort of the deer through curiosity. This same curiosity has cost many of them their lives. They are like the horse in the pasture Avho sees some strange object and cannot rest until he finds out Avhat it is. The silent ap proaching canoe has held game as if riveted to the gronnd, they thinking there is no danger until the floating object comes nearer, little knowing that the deadly rifle has them already in range. The hunter Avho has never visited Maine during the closed season has no idea hoAV tame the game is. One has no difliculty getting Avithin a couple of canoe-ieugths of deer and moose. They are constantly around the camp, day and night. It is an aAvful temptation to the average sportsman. One of the guides remarked, "They seem to knoAV Avhen it is closed season." AVhen October comes and the firing begins they aAvake to a sad realization that it is no longer "closed season." After breakfast, leaving the Indians at home, we took a stroll along the river bank. The only game Ave saAV that afforded us any kind of a shot Avas a deer across the riA'er. It AA-as a long shot, but Ave scored a hit. Returning to the camp, Ave Avere soon paddling to AA'here Ave thought Ave had shot the deer. After a long hunt Ave Avere startled in seeing the deer a hundred yards from Avhere AA'e shot it, dragging its hind parts. It had been shot in the back, paralyzing its hind legs. We soon put it out of its misery. It is sur prising that, no matter Avhat the conditions, seldom do game make any noise; there Avas that animal in aAvful agony, yet not a sound did it giA'e forth. "if any reader of this narrative ever takes the West WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGIvR. 7n Branch trip, he should not neglect asceuding Mount Katah din. The vicAV from its summit is uo doubt oue of the most inspiring in all this land. The day Ave made the ascent From Mount Katahdin's Summit. the camp AA'as early astir, as it is a hai-d and long day's tramp to the summit and return. At sunrise, Avitb the tAvo Indians, Ave started on the spotted trail that leads along Sandy stream and through the dense forest to Avhat is called the "slide." Iu the early forties a laudslide oc- so AVHERE THE SPORTSiMAN LOVES TO LINGER. curred on the southern slope of the mountain. Up and up that gravelly, rocky patlnvay Ave and the tAVO Indians dug along. Six hours after AA'e left camp aa'c Avere on the summit. ;Mount Katahdin reminded us of the Rockies, on account of its timber line. One could easily imagine that the beautiful lakes, mountains and streams, spread out be fore us as far as the glass could reach, Avonld some day be the summer homes of America's multi-millionaires. For a time a passing thunder storm, halfAvay doAvn the moun tainside, obstructed our view. The sun was but a feAV hours high AA'hen Ave began the ascent; notAA'ithstanding it grcAV dark, the Indians folloAved the spotted trail to the camp, and that ended the hardest day's work on the entire trip. AA'hile Ave Avere in camp at the foot of Mount Katahdin Ave met some friends from Chicago, Avho invited us to spend a day or tAVO at their camp on Sourdnahunk Lake to enjoy the fishing. If the angler Avants to satisfy his heart's de sire, he can find no better place in all ]\Iaine than in the Sourdnahunk region. The little ponds along Sourdnahunk stream abound Avith speckled beauties, and they rise to any kind of fly. "A-sudden, the .speckled haAvk of the brook Darts from his covert and seizes the hook. SAvift spins the reel; Avith easy slip The line plays out, and the rod, like a whip, Lithe and arroAvy, tapering, slim. Is bent to a boAv o'er the brooklet's brim, Till the trout leaps up in the sun and flings The spray from the flash of his finny Avings." AA'e had often admired the head and horns of an immense moose in our friend's Chicago banking house, and, uoav that WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. SI Ave Avere on the lake where he secured it, Ave heard the story of the trick, often tried, but seldom accomplished, of simu lating the call of the coav nioo,se and bringing the bull. "One clear, cri.sp afternoon one of the guides informed the camp of his intentions. Fashioning a megaphonic horn "Good Morning, Mr. Trout! IIow Are All the Family?" of birch bark, he Avent about a quarter of a mile from the canip,Avhere a toting road ended at the lake. AA'e soon heard echoing through the timber and over the lake au exact imi tation of the long draA\'n-out, Aveird, iierAC-racking plaint of the COAV moose. At intervals the guide continued the call. You could hear a pin di-op in the camp. BetAveen tinies one could hear the busy 'slake-driA'er,' the report of the gnu of some distant hunter and the Avail of the loon. AA'liile Ave AA'ere intently listening one of the guides jumped to his 82 WHERE TIIE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. feet, remarking, 'Did you hear that?' Like the animals that roam those forests, the guides acquire a keen sense of sight and hearing. Thc guide continued calling Avith re- ncAved vigor. Soon the Avhole camp heard, fai' away to Avard Mount Katahdin, the faint ansAver of the monarch Our Chicauo Friend's Camp, Sourdnahunk Lake. of the forest. (.)iie of the gnides estimated the distance as at least seven miles. One could hear the ansAvering call plainlA', and then hardly perceptible; yet Ave could tell that the animal Avas gradually approaching. Three of us hid behind trees a short distance back from the tote road. "Aftei- tAVO hours of patient Avaiting, and just as the sun Avas sinking, Avitli the cracking of dry-ki aud smashing of limbs, the huge, ]>anting beast came in sight on a ledge some distance up the road. He Avas mud to his belly, AVHERE THE SPORTSAIAN LOVES TO LINGER. S3 caused by AvalloAving tlu'ougli bogs on his hasty trip. He stood for a moment, grunting and scenting the air. The guide, AA'ho had in the meantime climbed a tree, continued Find the Fish. to call. The moose, being on high ground, and in the twi light, looked as big as an elephant. The wind Avas blowing tOAvard him, and lie no doulit scented us; yet doAvn th(^ tote road, Avitli that aAvkward tliongh rapid gait, he came, head erect and his great antlers brushing the boughs. AVoe 84 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. be to the poor marksman who undertakes to stop a moose under such conditions. Just as he got opposite us we opened fire, and doAvn went eleven hundred pounds of moo,se meat. No finer head of horns ever left the Pine Tree State." Wrecked on the West Branch. There were scA'cral parties camping near us at Abol stream, among them a laAvyer, with his family, from Bos ton. The question aro.se regarding shooting" deer out of .sea.son. It seemed to be the uuiver.sal opinion that the in tent of the law Avas solely to jirevent the Avanton destruc tion of game, not that one .should deprive himself of fresh meat, killed for his own immediate u.se. It is the general opinion ainong lawyers that if a case AA'as carried^ to the AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOA'KS 'J'O LINGKR. S.5 liigher court that court Avould hold (hat a sportsman who killed game out of season for his own u.se Avliile in camj) Avas not A'iolating the intent of the law. In your stock of ])i'ovisions it is aacII to take some plug tobacco, even if you do not chew it. AA'e placed a certain plug Avhere it did us a Avhole lot of good. AA'liile av(^ A\-ere in camp at the foot of :Mount Katahdin, on the West Bi'anch, a bateau A\'as seen coming up stream loaded Avith barrels and boxes of ])ro\-isions. They stoiiped op])osite our camp, aud a A'ery good-looking felloAV came ashore and asked if Ave bad any plug tobacco. AVe made him a present of a plug. He AA'as trans])orting supplies for some civil engineers avIio AA'ere building a dam at Sourdnahunk Falls for a corporation known as the Great Northern (^)m])any. Horses and a sleigh called a "jumper" were n.sed bv tlie company traus])orting the suiq)lies o\'er the carrys. Some times tlie carry AA'ould be ou (me side of the rivei' and then on the other, necessitating the horses swimming the river. They seemed to seu.se the .situation and took to the AAate;' as if they had some duck blood in their veins. The great question in the lumbering business in the State of JMaine is to get snlficient Avat(>r to float a log to the mill. The Great Northern must have a ]mll with' the ],ower.s that be, as they dam up the river.s, cn-ertlow the lakes and change the AA-ater connses of the State with imiiunitv. But a man living where Tammany Hall rules supreni"e does not throw up the .sponge if he hajipens to run up against a pull; if he did the sponge Avould be in the air all the time. The incident of the jdng of tobacco had pa.ssed ont of mind as we broke camp and stai't<>d on our trip np the river. AAlien avc reached the foot of Soiirdmihunk Falls Ave Avere surpri.sed to again see the young man to whom aa'O had given tlie tob.acco. It seems he was the bo.ss of the 86 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. transportation lines along the AA'est Branch of the Great Northern Company. He invited us to the supply camp, insisted on our taking dinner, and made us a present of Grub for Knights of thc Tripod. some delicious fruit, had his men help us over the carry, and telephoned to the man Avho totes parties over Ripo genus Carry to be on the lookout for the "most accommo dating sportsmen that ever Avent up the AA'est Branch." WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. CHAPTER VII. SOURDNAHUNK DEAD WATER TO CHESUNCOOK. Our next camping place Avas on Sourdnahunk dead Avater, at the foot of the Horserace, and Avas the ideal camping gronnd of the entire trip. Here the riA'er broad ens into a miniature lake, calm and placid, the banks ea.sy of access and timbered, not Avith the Maine jungle, but similar to tlie woods of the Central States, into AA'hich one can see long distances. Spring Avater and birch aliound, the scenery is picturesque beyond description, deer and moose are plentiful, aud the Avaters of the nearby brooks are alive Avith delicious trout. There the Aveary toiler from the hot city Avill find his haven of rest. He Avill indeed believe that "Cod made the country aud man made the toAvn." The next tAvo miles before us Avas the dreaded Horse race, a second Chase's Carry, and the toughest proposition for the canoeist along the Avhole AVest Branch trip. It is difficult aud dangerous to go doAvn, bnt going doAVu is not a bagatelle to going up. The Avay the Avaters run no doubt gaA'e it its name. Along the river banks of Alaine tliere are paths made by lumbermen and game on Avhicli one can easily AA'alk. The day Ave Avent u]) the Horserace AA'e Avere to meet our first misfortune of any consei|uence, los ing practically all onr provisions. The Horserace going 8S AVHERE TIIE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. SO doAA'n can be run on the paddle, but going up canoes have to be led all the Avay. From the high cliffs along the river bank Ave could see the Indians in the valley beloAV battling Avith the rushing Avaters among the rocks. The Kineo Indian got reckless, and in endeavoring to Author's Tent, Where the Narrative Was Drafted. pole his canoe upset it, and, Avith the exception of some salt pork and prunes that Avere in the other canoe, our stock of provisions mingled Avith the waters of the Horse race, to be seen no more. Yet with all his faults we loved him still. He Avas the cook, and a good one. We haA'e eaten many a meal at SAvell restaurants along upper Broad way that could not compare in the art of cooking- Avith that of the head of our culinary department — the gentleman from Kineo. AYhile Ave were in camp on Sourdnahunk dead Avater Ave came near AA'itnessing a terrible tragedy through the crimi nal oversight of a careless hunter and the lack of knowl edge on the part of a parent. A gentleman from St. Louis, Avith his family, Avas camping a short distance from us. Sourdnahunk Stream. Ills family consisted of his Avife and tAvo children— a son about tAvelve years old and a daughter about six. A little beloAV Avhere the St. Louis man camped Avas a sandy beach, where the children played much of their time. During the summer the coat of the deer is red, Avhereas later in the fall it sheds its coat of red and brown hair comes in its place. The night before the incident occurred a party came doAvn the riAcr and pitched their tent on the o]iposi(e shore from the .sandy beach, distant abont half a mile. 90 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. The day of the incident the mother unfortunately dressed the little girl in red. The brother had taken his sister to their favorite playing grounds, and, unbeknoAA'n to the parents, had gone fishing in a nearby brook. AA'e heard a sliot, and almost at the same time a canoe pushed out from the opposite shore, headed toAvard the sandy beach. The canoe had goue only a fcAV lengths Avhen it turned, and the occupants paddled rapidly back from Avhere it started. In the ineauAvhile we saAV the little girl running toAvard us, crying as if her heart Avould break. AA'e all rushed doAvn to meet ber. She Avas holding a little, headless doll in her hands. From all appearances the head had been shot off. The Indian guides, Avho had heard the shot and seen the action of the canoe, informed us that the little girl had no doubt beeu taken for a deer. In com pany Avith the Doctor and the St. Louis man Ave crossed the river to the camp, and it Avas AA'ith difficulty Ave re strained the father from giving the impertinent felloAV Ave found there the AA'hipping he deserved. If there was an example made of some of those careless hunters, AA'ho shoot Avitbout knoAving Avhat they are shooting at, there Avould be a fcAV less dead men carried out of the Maine AA'Oods. Big Eddy was our next camping place, and there Ave spent the most miserable time of all our trip. Fighting black Hies and "no see em's" on a diet of salt pork and prunes is not a very enjoyable occupation. If it Avere not for a smudge campers-out would pass many sleepless nights. The next three miles was over the roughest carry and alongside of the grandest gorge in the State. Big Eddy is at th.e foot of Ripogenus Gorge, the dread of the lumber men of the AA'est P>rancli. The Avater rolls and tumbles OA'er .and among great precipices, and AA'hen the drive is WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 91 on log jams are of frequent occurrence. In the settlement of the early AVest there Avas a common expression that "life there Avas death to Avomen and oxen." The Ripogenus Carry and gorge is death to horses and logs. On all the other carries the guides either did the carry- Sourdnahunk Falls. ing or our outfit Avas transported by wagon; but a tAvo- horse sleigh, or, in other words, a "jumper," Avas the means of conveyance over that carry. AA'ith the canoes and dun nage securely tied on the jumper, Ave started ou foot over the three miles that ended at Ripogenus Lake. It Avas Chase's Carry on shore. Over stumps, logs and boulders the horses picked their Avay and the "jumper" jnni'ped. AA'e expected any moment the juniper to up.set oi- climb a tree. Some of the gulleys Avere so steej) the.v had to snub 92 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. the jumper Avith a rope to keep it from jumping clear OA'er the horses. If CA'er a person earned six dollars, the old man Avho jumped us across that carry was the indlA'idnal. Ripogenus Gorge. AVe paddled across Ripogenus Lake, another short carry, and Avere again on the AA'aters of Chesuncook. AVe took lunch Avith tbe.oAvner of the jumper at his log hut at the foot of the lake. WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 93 Skins of bears and foxes hung on the Avails of the old man's ranch. The old felloAv lives tliei'e alone all Avinler aud summer. In the "good old summer time" he totes "sports" over the cari-y and in Ayinter he trajis. He sells the skins and also gets a bounty from the county for scaljis. - I., Ripogenus Carry. By energetic paddling, in Avhich aa'c all took a hand, the seA'enteen miles to the little toAvn of Chesuncook, at the head of the lake, Avns covered as dusky tAvilight stole upon us. AVith our arrival at the head of Ciiesuncook Lalce Ave had loojied the loop, so to sjieak. AVe had surrounded all the country lying between Avliat is knoAvn as the .Allagash trip, on the north; the Ibmgor and Aroostook IJailroad from Fort Kent to Norcross, on the east; the AVest Branch, 94 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. on the south, and Chesuncook, on the Avest, embracing one- third of the State, and Ave Avere uoav to go through the center by Avay of the East Branch. What a game preserve that Avould make 1 One hundred and scA'enty-fiA'e miles in length by seventy-five miles in Avidth, inhabited by thousands of Avild animals, fish and feathered foAvl. On the borders of the preserve are the joostoffices from which the dAvellers of that vast Avilderness obtain their mail. Yon who find fault Avith only one mail a day, and kick if your morning ncAvspaper is not iu the vestibule before daylight, should haA'e a dose the inhabitant of that portion of the l.Tuion gets. Chesuncook, or, as it is pronounced by the natives, "Sun- cook," is the ideal frontier toAvn. As a general rule the names of the lakes and streams of Maine can stand crop ping oft' a syllable or tAVO with a certainty that there Avill be plenty left. As VA'e try to find time to pronounce some of the names, we do not blame the natives for dropping a syllable noAV and then. Their action reminds us of the experience of a Avould-be dramatic writer Avho called on a manager Avith his ncAvly Avritten play for the manager's acceptance or rejection. The manager cut out portions of it and finally rejected it. The author took it to another manager, Avho cut ont more of it and also rejected it. The third manager cut out more of it, and, iu returning it, cruelly Avrote the poor author that if he could find another manager who Avould cut out the rest it Avould be one of the best plays ever AA'ritten. Chesuncook is over sixty miles from the nearest rail road station — Greenville, at the foot of Moosehead Lake. From Greenville the mail is carried forty miles by steamer np the lake, tAVO miles by Avagon over Northeast Carry, and then by canoe tAA'enty miles to Chesuncook, As Ave passed A\'HERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. d: up the lake the following day Ave met the mail-carrier com ing down, Avith "Uncle Sam" in the bottom of the canoe. The arrival of the canoe at Chesuncook is looked forward ' to Avith as much anxiety and pleasure as the railroad train and stage coach in other parts of the country. Half of the Between Ripogenus and Chesuncook. eastern portion of that great preserve go to riiesnucook for their mail. There is one sati.sfaction — it takes a long time to get the customary reipiest to "please remit." The hotel at Chesuncook Avas the typical Avoodsman's liostelrA'. Its presentation AA'as anA-thing but inviting, yet CA'erything Avas salisl'actorA" A\ithin. The wooden floors shoAved the imprint of the s)iiked sluies ol the lumbermen. As Ave entered, a large open firejibu-e Avith logs alire greeted 96 AVHERE TIIE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. US. The hotel Avas full of sportsmen and guides. Yale College students Avere SAvapping yarns with the sons of the forest. AA'e listened Avell on to midnight to the interesting experiences of the guides of Northern ilaine. It Avas Avith interest Aye heard the story of one of the guides shoAving Chosuueook Dam. the in.stinct of the monarch of the game of Maine — the moose. It Avas during the early hunting season. The guide Avas one of tAvo in charge of a Philadelphia party who Avere camping on Eagle Lake. As near as we can recol lect, the story ran as follows : "AA'e got our drinking Avater at a spring near the lake. The night before aac Avere to break camp there Avas a fall of about tAVO im lies of suoaa'. As I AA'ent to the spring the next morning I noticed the largest moose tracks I ever AVHERE THE .SPORTSMAN LOA'ES TO LINGER. 97 saAV. On my return to the camp I reported what I had seen . At breakfast tAvo of the 'sports' decided to track the ani mal, and chose me to guide them, the rest of the party re turning to Chesuncook and home. It proved to be the longest and toughest hunt for game I ever made, but the tAA'o 'sports' AA'ere young and full of ginger and stood the tramp Avithout a murmur. Taking three sleeping bags and grub euough to last for a Aveek, Ave started on a^trail tliat ended on Munsungan stream, about thirty miles from the start. "That moose Avas a past-master in trickery. The first day he took a bee-line through the Avoods for ten miles, and just about time for us to camp for the night he commenced to circle. A moose knoAvs AA'hen anybody is on his trail, and, to convince himself of it, he Avill travel in a circle, and then a circle Avithin a circle, and theu stand for hours to see if his pur.suers are still after him. Another peculiarity : a moose Avill seldom lie doAvn if he thinks he is being fol- loAved, and thus a hunter Avill tii'e him out. You can camp and go to sleep, but no sleep for him uutil he is sure the hunt is off. "Most of the day we folloAved the tracks, circling for miles among the AA'oods, the moose no doubt seeing ij, but we getting no sight of him. Late in the aftei'iioon we struck the cross-trail, and then for aiu)ther straight run for ten miles to Muusuugau stream, A\here we camped for the night. The trail led doA\-n the stream. During the night the moose track and everything else Avas buried under a foot of SUOAA', and the next morning, instead of hunting moose, Ave Avere hunting a camp. AVe started down the stream for a camp I knew, and had nor gone over two miles AA'hen there, mired in a bog. Avas our friend, too exbaustiHl to extricate himself. AVe .severed th(> head, Avith as fine ^ 98 AVHERE THE SI'ORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. set of horns as I eA'er saAv, and they to-day ornament the 'den' of one of Philadelphia's millionaires." There is a little steamer at Che.suncook that carries sup plies up and doAvn the lake, and is also hired by "sports" for excursion purposes. The name of the boat is the "Cai-i- H»>1«1 1 1iVi The "Caribou." bou." Tavo days before our arrival some "sports" had en gaged the boat for a fishing trip doAvn the lake. A drunken felloAV got aboard the boat, and the boys Avith much diffi culty thrcAv him off. As the boat started aAvay the felloAV pulled out liis gun and made a target of the stern of the boat. He Avas arrested, and in tehq)lioning to Kineo for a constable the wag who did the telephoning, unknown to anybody, said a man had shot a caribou and they Avere holding the culprit. Tliere are ahvays game Avardeus at AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOA'ES TO LINGER. 99 Kineo, and tAvo immediately started doAvn the AA'est Branch. On their arrival at (Jhesuncook they found the prisoner in a barn, Avitli tAvo or three felloAvs sitting on him, and they Avanted to knoAV the Aviiereabouts of the cari bou. They Avere iuformed that' the "Caribou" had gone doAA'u the lake, but Avould be back shortly. The Avardens finally ascertained Avhat kind of a caribou had been shot, and made an unsuccessful hunt for the felloAV Avho did the telephoning. The boys, getting tired of sitting on the prlsonei', telephoned to the sheriff, and the day after our arriA'al the sheriff and his prisoner started in a canoe for the shire-toAvn. loa AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. CHAPTER VIIL ""SUNCOOK" TO GR.A.ND LAKE. AVE laid in suflicient provender at Chesuncook for the trip to Grindstone, and the morning after our arrival at the hotel saw our canoes again cro.ssing the head of the lake for Fmbazookus stream. Again we were toted across Mud Pond Carry; again cut the AA-aters of Alud Pond, with Its lily pads aud moose, and down the outlet again to Chamberlain Lake. Our course lay down the lake "instead of up It. As we reached Telos Lake the afternoou was fast passing away, and on its .shore we pitched our tents for the fir.st niglit by the Avaters that fiow to the East Branch. The devout angler camping at Telos Lake should take the mile tramp over to Coffeelos ; there he will find as good fish ing as in the ponds of the Sourdnahunk region. AVhile passing doA\'n the outlet from Mnd Pond we met coming up the narrow, rocky channel a canoe, or, more properly speaking, an improvised ambulance. A poor fel low had had his leg crushed at the tramway between Eagle and Chamberlain Lakes, and his companions were hurrying him to Kineo, sixty miles distant, it being the nearest ])lace where he could receive medical treatment You who liA-e in the city, with a doctor on every block, think of what this man had to endure. AAHERIO THE SPORTSJIAN LOA'ES TO LINGER. 101 AA'lien the accident happened he A\as seAcnty miles from a pJiysician and nearly a hundred miles from a railroad. He was placed in a bateau, rowed. ten miles doAA'u Cham berlain, transferred into a canoe, taken up Mud Pond out let and across iVlud Pond, transferred to a wagon and tran.sported OAer the rough and rocky Mud Pond Carrv Pbtced ,n a canoe, passed over Umbazookus Lake down the nine miles of Umbazookus stream, acro.ss Chesuncook Lake and then poled and paddled twenty miles up the AA'est Branch to Northeast Carry, placed again on a AA'agon, trans ported over the carry to Afooseliead Lake and then twentv miles by steamer down the lake to Kineo, reaching a phvsi- ciau thirty-six hours after the .'u-ci.lent. How AA';uld that strike the impatient invalid who growls at the nurse if his 102 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES '.'O LINGER. AA-ants are not satisfied as soon as the button is pressed? The ladies seem inclined to folloAV the men to the AVOods, as they haA'e on the bicycle and golf grounds. They need not fear the fatigue of a canoe trip over the Avaters of Maine, as they Avill flnd it far less fatiguing than a season spent at one of onr summer hotels ; nor need they Avait for an escort, as in the hands of the registered guides of Maine they are as safe as if they Avere Avith a brother, and much more so than in the company of the average young man of to-day. They can rest assured they Avill be welcome, as Ave had evidence of that Avhile Ave Avere on Telos Lake. A large party from Louisville, Ky., among Avhom Avere sca'- eral young ladies, Avere in camp not far from us, and Ave noticed that all the "sports" Avho Avere on Telos and Cham berlain seemed to spend their evenings close to the girls. Some six months after our sojourn there Ave received cards inviting us to a Avedding, the bride and bridegroom having flrst met on picturesque Telos. The day after our arrival on Telos Ave had a seance Avith some feathered foAvl, and Ave are not likely to repeat the experience. Leaving the guides at home, Ave Avent ou an unsuccessful expedition for another supply of venison. Not a deer or a moose did Ave see. On the rivers and lakes of Maine one often sees flocks of young ducks skipping along, too young to fly; they are ahvays led by the old ones? As Ave Avere coming out of a small tributary of Telos, just as Ave entered the lake, not less than forty ducks came "out of the grass, slid into the Avater, and started SAvimming up the lake. AVe fired our rifle and expected them to rise and fly; as they did not, Ave, of course, thought they were too young, and so an easy task to run doAvn. Away went the ducks, churning the water, and we after them. 6>oon they strung out in line, one seeming to be WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 103 the leader, Avhich kept up a peculiar noise — a call, we in ferred. AA'e paddled Avith all our strength, the ducks kick ing up the Avater in great shape, making a noise like a cataract. Occasionallj' they AA'ould rest for a moment; Ave thought they Avere AA'inded and that Ave Avere gaining on The Deer AA'e Couldn't Eat. them, but the gaining Avas merely a delusion. For several miles AA'e kept up the chase, but finally, through exhaustion, were compelled to call a halt and started home. AA'e did not mention the occurrence to our guides, as Ave AA'ere not very anxious for them to know that Ave had bemi making fools of (Mirselves. AA'e Avere under the impression that if our Avind had not given out aiid we could have con tinued a mile or tA\-o further Ave aa'ouUI have bagged the 104 AA'HERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. game, but that evening Ave learned to the contrary. We determined to find a solution of the problem that very night. Further up the lake Avas another camp. After sup per Ave pushed one of the canoes into the lake and called on the occupants of the other camp, to "feel" of them con- What We Saw on Webster Lake. cerning our experience of the afternoon. AA'e approached the subject carefully, and had asked but a few questions when they all broke into a laugh, they having seen the Avhole circus and having been themselves taken in by the same game. They had seen us going home and, thinking we had tired the ducks out, proposed to bag the Avhole bunch; so into their canoes they went after the ducks, and, from what they told us, they ran them at least three miles further np the AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 10!: lake, Avith the same result So Ave avou Id suggest that if any hunter wants to bag ]\laine ducks he had better try them on the Aving and not on the AA'ater. The next day aa'C were more successful in supplying our "meat market" But the meat Ave threw aAvay; we could Entering Grand Lake. not bear to eat it It Avas a doe aac killed, and she Avas giving milk. AVe imagined Ave could see the helpless little faAvn in that lonely Avilderness Avaiting and starving for the mother that m^ver returned. AA'e decided then and there to lay aside our firearms for the rest of the triji, and we kept our resolution. The thonght of AA'hat Ave had done saddened in a measure the balance of the trip. We de- ri\'ed some consolation from the fact that if Ave were the 106 AVHERE THE SPOR'rSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. means of the death of a faAvn at Telos, Ave savcMl one on the Allagash. Fortunate it is for those who traA'crse the AVoods of Maine for pleasure or profit that upon nearly all the lakes are the habitations of man. Fcav of the lakes but have their SiJiSdri^ai; Dream That Came True. sporting camps, generally kept by some guide. Telos Avas no exception. From a guide at the sporting camp at the foot of the lake Ave heard some ucavs concerning Avhat they called "the second East Branch drive" Avhich gave us little concern at first, but Avhich afterAvard uearlj' caused us to give np the trip down the East Branch. To help the log drive along, the gates AA'ere up at the dam at the foot of T(dos, giving plenty of AA'ater to run our canoes through the canal to AA'(>bster Lake. It seems that WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 107 years ago the ontfloAv of Telos and Chamberlain Lakes Avent doAvn the All.agash. All logs cut in that vast region reached the sea through Canadian Avaters, the lumbermen being compelled to pay the "Canucks" a tax thereon. To avoid this the lumbermen dammed up the outlet from Breaking Log AVings. Chamberlain — Avhere Ave camped on the Allagash trip— and opened up the canal Ave Avere about to go doAvii, thereby changing the Aoav of the Avater of these lakes aud their tributaries from Canadian to American rivers. The canal at the foot of Telos is a boisterous stream of AA-ater, .somcAvhat rocky, and it r(>(|iiired ex]icrt canoeinii,- on the i)art of the guides to float ns .safely into AVebster Lake. Chase's Cari-y, on the Allagash, and the Horserace, on the 108 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AVest Branch, got us Avell acclimated to take the medi cine dealt out to us along AVebster stream. AA'e found it as hard a problem to solve as one Avill meet in many a day, aud before we got through it one of the canoes landed on a sliarp rock, cutting a hole a foot long through the can- A'as, compelling the occupants to jump into the river. The accident occurred just before Ave reached Indian Carry at the falls, Avhere Ave intended to camp for the night. In that smash-up Ave met Avith our greatest misfortune, losing a camera containing many of our pictures. With extra canvas, tacks and Avhite lead the canoe Avas repaired, and the next morning saAV us passing through Second Lake on doAvn the thoroughfare to Grand Lake, the last lake of the trip. Through an oversight, Ave discovered, Avhen too far to turn back, that Ave had left a bag containing, among other things, our supply of tea, coffee and tobacco, Avhere Ave had camped the night before. Fortunately thore Avas a supply depot on Grand Lake. The tea and tobacco Ave got there Avei^e passable, but the Avord "coffee" on the package Avas the only coffee about it. As Ave neared the end of Grand Lake aa'c could hear the sound of oar-locks. AA'ith a glass Ave could see a bateau filled AAith men toAving logs and, further doAvn toAvard the outlet, acres of logs floating on the surface. HaA'ing been told Avhat difficulties and dangers one encounters in navi gating streams Avhile a log drive is on, AA'e looked foi-Avard to the balance of our trip Avith apprehension. But Ave look back to that forty miles from Grand Lake to Grindstone as the most exciting, interesting and instructive of the AA'hole four hundred, as often in this life the dreaded expectancy proAcs to be a pleasant materialization. Little does one realize, as he sits in his comfortable home, AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 109 what hard.ships men have endured to obtain the materials that compose it. In the Avinter, Avith it.s deep snoAVS and zero Aveather, far up on the mountainside the poorly paid Avoodchoppers AVork from early morn until late at night, some felling trees, others cutting off the limbs, saAving off AA'inter Scene. the tops and stripping the bark; others, Avith the aid of horses, hauling the logs doAA'n the mountainside onto the frozen lakes aud streams, on AA'hich, as the ice goes out, they are floated to the mills. They told us feAv parties tike the East Branch trip, being discouraged by guides, Avho trutlifiill.v tell of its rough AA'aters; so Ave Avere somewhat of a curiosity. The Maine log-driA'er is generally French. There are a foAV Indians 110 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. and an occasional "Yank." The bosses are all Americans, some being young men and Avell educated. That night Ave camped at the dam at the foot of Grand Lake and saAV for the first time the sluicing of logs. WHERIO THE SPOR'rSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. Ill CHAPTER IX. FROM GRAND LAKE HOME. The East Branch from Grand Lake to BoAvlin Pitch is about as rough a piece of Avater as the average canoeman cares to tackle, and AA'hen, in addition, you have a lot of logs sailing on all sides, it is enough to give you a good start for a sanitarium. There AA'as no alternative fin* us but to go on Avith the logs, for if Ave Avaited for the drive to get through to GriiuLstone the business of a cei'tain Ncav York laAv office Avould come to a stop aud the patients of a Bangor dentist Avould be hoAvling Avith pain. The telephone is a godsend to the river driA'er. Prior to its use, AA'heuever there Avas a jam there Avas no way of stopping the oncoming logs or securing help except by the sloAV information conveyed by men on foot. AA'e found the telephone all along the East Branch. At all the falls. rapids and sharp bends in the river Avcre telephone boxes nailed to trees, Avith men nearby ready to notify those above of any jam beloAV. The day we selected to start from Grand Lake, on ac count of a jam further dOAA'u, they stopi^ed sluicing, leaving the river free of logs aud affording ns smooth sailing to Stair Falls. At that pfM'nt there is a carry. As we neared Ila.skell Rock aa'o could see logs and trouble ahead. They were holding back the logs on account of the jam beloAv. 112 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOV]:S TO LINGKR. 113 The banks of the river Avhere Ave struck the logs Avas Ioaa', the Avater backing far into the interior. There Avas a quar ter of a mile of logs betAveen us and Haskell Rock; the afternoon Avas Avaning aAvay; there Avas no place to camp there, and Ave Avere simply being deA'oured by that affectiou- Malcing a Carry Over Logs. ate little creature, the mosquito, Avhich seems to be ever in CA'idence, Avhether you are in the tropics, under the bamboo tree, or in the Arctic Circle seeking gold along the Yukon. After tAVO hours of punching logs and dragging the canoes over them Ave struck solid ground that led to Haskell Rock. There are ahvays pitched at convenient distances along the river during a log drive tAVO tents — one a large "lean- to," for the men to sleep in, and the other a place to eat. In the latter, called a "Avangan," are the cook's quarters. AA'here all the cooking is done. There are no more hos pitable set of men on earth than the cooks in the AVoods of jMaine. As a stranger enters a "Avangan" almost the first AVord spoken is an invitation from the cook: "Will you have a dish of beans and a cup of tea?" No one knoAvs Rounding Log AVings— Hulling Machme. Avhen a stranger enters a "Avangan" Avliore he comes from. Possibly he has beeu lost iu the Avoods and is in a star\'ing condition. AVhile Ave AA-ere in camp that night at Haskell Rock we Avere informed bv the Bangor Indian that the boss of the rear of the drive Avas eating his supper in the "wangan." Our experience Avith the aA'crage New York politician had taught us that it Avas not a bad idea to get ou the right side of the "man higher up." From the men along the line IU AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. Ave Avould likely seek information and possibly require as sistance. AA'e kncAV something abont the potency of Avhis- key, especially in a prohibition State, Avhere a river driver Avas concerned. One quart bottle of the tAVO we had pur chased at Clair's, ou the Cauadian frontier, opposite Fort Taking a Breathing Spell. Kent, remained. On scA'eral occasions aa'c noticed that the Kineo Indian liad his eye on it, and, fearing that he might get his hand on the object of his eye and paint some "Avan gan" the same beautiful color he had the little NeAV Bruns Avick toAvn of Connors, we proceeded to place that bottle of '-medicine" AA'here it Avould do the most good, and it proA'cd to be the best investnumt Ave made on the entire trip. There is a great dilference betAveen a NeAv Yorker and a Ncav Englauder as regards getting acquainted. It did not AVHERE THE SPORTSJIAN LOVES TO LINGER. 115 take ns long to get a little Scottish importation inside of the anatomy of the boss of the rear of the log drive aud tlie bottle in one of liis hip pockets. Just before we retired for the night the Bangor Indian poked his head into our tent, telling us: "EA'erything is O. K. You fixed it." Up Against It at Last. Next day Ave started doAvu the I'iver AA'ith tlie logs, a canoe accompanying us, occupied by tAvo river dri\'cr.s, as a "wind shield" against the logs. Acro.ss all the carrys the occu pants of the canoe assisted us. The AA'ord was telephoned along the line: "Distinguished party cimiing do\\-H the river; render all assistance." AVhat an important message that Avas to us. Instead of meeting a lot of rough river drivers, an army of Chesterfields Avas continually at onr ser vice. Our reception AA'as like the triumphant return of the 116 AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AVHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 117 A'ictor with the spoils of Avar. Ea'cu the stolid Indian gnides could not help bnt smile at the sequel to the presentation of that bottle of nervine. The innocent log-driver thought he Avas paying homage to some high and mighty potentate, and it seems cold-blooded that a beneficiary of his kind ness should be the first to publish the deception to the Avorld. The Kineo Indian shed a feAV tears when Ave parted Avith our last drop of "fire-water," but afterA\'ard admitted that "the Ncav Yorker knoAvs a trick or tAvo." At BoAvliu Falls, Avhere we were to camp that night, ended the hard part of the river. There our escort bade us good-bye, and Ave pitched our tents on the brink of the falls, Avhere Ave Avere to pass the most memorable night of any yet experienced. It AA'as a beautiful moonlight night; one could see the passing logs rolling and plunging over the falls into the AA'hirlpool below. Occasionally a jam Avould form beloAV the falls, and men Avith dynamite Avould break it, throAV- ing pieces of logs from the riA'er valley far back into the AVoods. BetAveen the plunging logs, roar of the Avaters aud discharges of dynamite there was an aAvful noise the AA'hole night through. All the next day, doAvn to AVhetstone, Ave had many narroAv escapes from being crushed, and it re quired the best kind of a canoeman to save us from being sucked under AA'hile rounding log Avings. From AA'hetstone to Grindstone, the end of onr canoe trip, Avas ten miles. From Avhat they told ns np river abont the log jam at Grindstone, Ave considered ourselves fortu nate in getting to AVhetstone. At every turn of the river Ave expected to see our further progress blocked. As luck Avould have it, avc struck the solid jam opposite some sport ing camps, Avhere Ave hired a team to take us overland to Orindstone, there catching the evening train for Bangor. The East Branch from BoAvlin Avaters doAvn runs through as Avild and picturesque a country as the most devout loA'er of nature could long for. The rapid river Avinds among high, densely AA'ooded banks. Already the autumnal hue AA'as adding to the beauties of the Avhole scene. The crimson maple leaf, AA'ith the evergreen foliage as a back ground, Avas an ideal picture for the artist . As avc glided along, the struggling logs Avere battling Avith each other for supremacy. Like poor unfortunates along the coast line of the Sea of Life, the banks Avere strcAvn Avith them. Some tired, so to speak, of the struggle, had sought rest A'oluutarily; others, croAvded from the race by the more poAverful, combinations formed to destroy the hopes of the Aveaker, Avere at one time floating in peace in smooth lis AVHERE THE SPOR'rSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. AvaterSjthen scarring each other Avhile pounding over rough and rugged pathways, and then again floating into pleas ant AA'aters — all blindly rushing on, ignorant of purpose, and hoAV, Avhen or Avhere it would all end, yet finally to be transformed, as Ave hope to be, into something grander and nobler. Near Old Town. The Entire Party, by Request of the Guides. At I'.angor Ave parted Avith our faithful gnides, changed buckskin for broadcloth, bough beds for microbe mat tresses, the plain cooking of the guides for the dyspeptic combination of the average chef, eight hours of refreshing sleep for more or less tossing, three square meals for no appetite, pure air for seAver ga.s, the rod and the rifle for the pen and the roUtop desk, health and happiness for AVork and AA'orry — in fact, turned our backs on Avliat they AVHERE THE Sl'ORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 119 tell ns is a barbaric life for what avc are taught to believe is civilization. The night after Ave arriA'ed in Bangor Ave attended a grand rally of the Democracy. Being Democrats, Ave tried Kenduskeag Stream, Bangor. Nearing thc Buzz-Saw. tosAvell the croAvd, and, then, Ave ahAays did have a fclloAV- feeling for the under dog. Through the courtesy of the jMayor of the city Ave had seats on the platform. They Avere electing a Governor — Ave do not mean the Democracy; they Avould not be guilty of that oUVnse; only tAvo or three 120 AVHERE THE SPORTSiMAN LOVES TO LINGER. times in the history of the State have they shoAvn such dis courtesy tOAvard the Republicans. There is one satisfac tion a Democrat in IMaine can speak his mind Avithout en dangering the success of his party. There is some conso lation in that. The different speakers Avere given plenty of rope, with- '^ill^i^x ITT f-rnmrrrnil^i 'th'S«S;ih\ii&tSfi4£iS.sii:ti,^!i!/'.kyi<£i-SSb.xi^m 'City of Rockland." out any fear of hanging themselves, as all sides admittal that the execution was over before the curtain went up. A felloAV has lots more fun in a game when he has nothing at stake. AVhile the Republicans were collared, bridled and coached, the Democrats were collarless, unbridled and unhorsed. A man by the name of Cobb was the Republican candidate. All the speakers spoke well of him personally, AVHERE THE .SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 121 but the great cond)inations he belonged to and fostered were the objects of the Democracy's attack. One of ihe speakers broke all the furniture AA'ithin his reach emphasiz ing Avhat AA'ould happen to the State of iMaine in particular, and the country in general, if monopolist Cobb reached the Governor's chair. AA'e certainly AA'ould not poke fun at our oaa'u party, but AA'e can appreciate a good thing Avhen Ave see it, even if it is on us. After the meeting was over aa'c made in(|niries as to Cobb's monopolistic associations. Our informant — a AA'ag, no doubt — said Cobb Avas treasurer of a lime com pany having a capacity of ten barrels a Aveek ; was director of a street car company, AA'hose equipment consisted of tAA'O cars and three nutlet; was vice-president of a bank that had nine thousand seven hundred and eight-four dol lars and sixteen cents subject to check, and Avas president of the Rockland Baseball Club. Cobb Avas elected and "the goA'ernment at AA'ashington still lives." The next afternoon we took passage on the Boston boat, the "City of Rockland." As Ave passed doAvn the valley of the Penobscot our thoughts Avandered back to its head Avaters, and Ave Avondered if the same little dro])s of Avater Ave cut Avitb our canoes iu that far-off Avilderiu>ss Avero float ing the "Rockland" to the sea. Abmg the river banks one could see large ice-honse.s, S(mte iu process of decay. Hack of each Avere the little settlements of the i(;e harvester.s, AA'ho had bought land and built houses, believing they Avould alAA'ays find employment at their vocation. Little did they knoAV that ou the formation of Avhat is knoAA'u as the American Ice Company the Avork that God had pro vided for their support Avas to be tak(Mi fi'om them by man. That great combination bonght all the ice-houses on the Penobscot and the Hudson, the source of the main ice sup- 122 WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. ply of NeAV York and Ncav England. As it was to its interest, some years it Avould harvest no ice on the Penob scot, and consequently many of those poor people lost their homes. The ice harvester of the Penobscot is, not the only victim of monopolistic tendencies in this coun try; there are like examples throughout the oil regions of Pennsylvania and over the cattle ranges of the plains. t I I '^Z ..rV,^t S 4» r i t, fe' -¦ f 3 at jS.. /ii SililJiiL' ffiiiiB^imll^Kt^i;JiSin''Hl'!2«*ia ^^^m^mi irXK"*.'- WHERE THE SPORTSMAN LOVES TO LINGER. 123 some boats of the Boston and Baugor line And its accom modating ofticers also add pleasure to the trip. The rising sun Avas burning a hole through the fog as the "City of Rockland" AA'as slowly feeling her Avay np the harbor of Boston. AVe spent the day AA'ith some friends at NeA\'port, and that evening boarded the "Priscilla," of the Fall Ri\er Linc^— the queen of the coast line steamers. It Avas delight ful to be again aboard a Ncav York boat, especially the finest; of them all, \Aith its stylishly goAvned ladies, its band of music, its brilliantly lighted saloons, and its service sur passed by none. As we passed doAvu the East RiA'er early the folloAving morning aa'c saluted the "North Star" at her dock, and, rounding the Battery, Ave Avere soon alongside of Pier 19, North River. The same faithful servants Avith the same Avagonette were there to meet us. AVhat a change! The pale, thin disciple of Blackstone had been transformed into a sunbroAvned, strenuous athlete. AVhat a blessing it is that there are havens Avhere one can regain his health, Avithout Avhich this life is not Avorth the living! "Priscilla." There is no more interesting river ride in this country than doAvn the Penobscot from Bangor to Rockland. The boat makes many landings, AAdiich, instead of causing an- noj'ance, as stojis generally do, add interest to the trip, as the docks at the little toAA'us are croAA'ded Avith natives and tourists, and the hustling freight handlers cause many amusing scenes. As Ave landed at Bucksport aa'c imagined AA'e could see old Jed Prouty, still the quaint boniface of the little hotel on the hillside. The Avell-built and hand- YALE THE END. j,^ H w 1 w p i