The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1885-09-10

slippery slidswe managed to haul over.
This was accomplished at about dark.
We had selected the camp ground,
pitched the tent and secured wood for
fire during the night and had supper on
arriving, so that after the haul over we
were ready to get beneath the blankets.
This will give you rs good an idea of
our voyage up, as ii gave the details
of every day. We had no regular hour
for meals but when hungry went ashore
and the guide would start fire while
| took some trout, and on seeing a good
spot for camp, stopped although it
might not be near night. After the
second day signs of deer, m DOSE and
caribou were seen all along the shore,
but not until we arrived at the upper
lakes were they seen, owing to the
noise made in polling; but on reaching
the lakes paddles were used, instead,
and our progress was noiselessly made,
and deer and moose were met with
most every day. In one day / saw
three moose and five deer most of them
at short range; some within the length
of the canoe.
AT this season of the year the attacks
of punkies, mosquitoes and midges are
terrible to every creature, driving them
to seek relief in the water, which they
are loath to leave. We padded several
times close to them by moving when
they were not looking up One bull
moose, a veritable Jumbo, who must
have weighed ID or IA hundred, stood
until the canoe was less than forty feet
of him. | raised my rifle and took aim
several times ere he ran off unmolested.
This happened just in the dusk of eve
ming. Caribou did not show themselves
though they are very plenty. We saw
many tracks back in the woods. l
Judge they are not very sensitive to the
attacks of flies. We paid tribute III
blood, but never grudge it, for were
it not for these pests the game would
have been killed long ago. There are
thousands of men with the instinct or
hunters but cannot endure the pests.
When these are gone so as to make
hunting endurable, the game goes back
from the water courses and can take
care of itself. All the way on the
stream the river was shut in by steep
banks, but emerging into the chain OF
lakes the prospect widcncd out, and the
hills and mountains stretched far away
on every side. AT the upper lake l
found a beautiful shelving bank where
once had been log-landing. ! erected
, home camp. A disused logging camp
furnishing abundance of cedar splits
= for the roof. 1t is always rainy at the
lakes in summer, and in case of hard
, storm needed something more service
: able than canvass. My forethough1
, was wise for the three last days of JUNO
brought the worst storm | ever knew
We lay perfectly dry all this time OK
cept as we went to the old camp fol
. tirewood. Only that the spruce log;
composing the walls were seasoned We
, could not have kept fire going. a
fire is always company in camp anc
more so during a storm, and one of tho
t greatest plcasuses of camp life is snus
y camp with plenty of wood during Sc
, we're storm.
! From this camp | made several ex'
cursions to adjacent waters for the ex
: ercisc of padding and seeking new
, scenery. Occasionly an old lumbei
q camp would be discovered partly hid
! den always by the second growth, ant
:, it was a pleasure to land and inspec
: them and people them again in TIN
, minds eye with those brawny men
! Here, too, a close inspection would re
veal the tell-tale, horns and bones o
? the moose, deer and caribou consumed
;, in winter. Every winter large shar
:, of camp living is furnished in this re
y gion by this species of game, and tn
9 togue, large fish, congencr of tn
>. trout, whose flesh almost equals thu
, salmon and grows to & large size.
=, knew of one taken last winter nca
where | was hunting, at the headquar
=, tiers of the Penobscot, that weighed 2
Q lbs. these fish, as well as trout, ar
q very plenty. The severe storm so rails
ed the water as to interfere great
with getting about, besides, the engage
- ment of the guide would soon be out SC
= taking advantage of the high pitch o
= water we broke camp and commence
i, return, which was made in littl
> more than one day. The river so flu
4 of huge boulders on our ascent, whic
~ now were hidden, was swollen to pei
, feet torrent with large foaming wave
,o caused by the rocks below. The cano
% shot these rapids like an arrow, whic
~ was celebrating Notwithstanding I'll
+ danger, for slight miscalculation c
ii miss-strokc of the paddle and we shoul
f. be sent to the bottom. But with col
er fidencc born of long experience IN
lr guide stood erect, his 1.-THE and mascl
IN lar form responding to every movemei
is of the bounding craft of which he seen
ed ed part. We met with no mishal
a. save a drenching from the combel
IT, that broke over the sides of the canO
lg My trip resulted in restoration {
O. health. In fact in less than a wee
re after the beginning of the trip | coul
re make lunch of bareback and raw sa
g. pork with impunity; and such an OH
ul ing will cure dyspepsia ereryt time, met
d. icinc nerer, physicians to the con.gar
til Notwithstanding
as Yours very truly,
ly c.. l.. WHITMAN.