Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1886-08-08
TN NATURES HEART.
A HUN0RISTS LIFE WITHIN THE CANVAS
WALLS.
Delights Of Tent Life During Brisk Adirondack
Gale-Worse Things Than Lions Disoov-
cred in the FJreSt.
Burist.e In Brooklyn E,Igle.

BurCist.e IN Brooklyn Eagle.
NV boy when You 90 out a-camping,
don't rough it, too much. Don't go
without tents. A camp without tents is
like an orchard without apples. And don't
move into hotel cottage and call il camp
ing" That is rs much like camping rs
paving 81 a pound and fishing in stocked
fish-pond is like trout fishing. Take a
tent-the army wall tent is the most COM
fortable-and enjoy yourself. The guide
book will tell You, rs it told us, it is I'M
necessary. That 1.-THE author and his
friends were camped in the Adirondacks,
sleeping in the open air every night for
forget whether il was three months OF
three years-and never felt drop of rain.
Well. maybe that is true. We caught
about five weeks of rain in the month of
June. but then this was an unusually rainy
June. You had better takea tent. There
may be some more rare JuncS where this
one came from.
But the great charm of the tent does not
lie in its utility rs an umbrella. Ii shows
of TO best advantage on windy night.
That is why | recommend the wall tent
rather than the "A or wedge tent. We
have both vanitieS in our camp, out when
the winds are boiSterouS the wall tent has
few fancy steps that the a. tent can
never hope To initiate. Night has fallen.
On the other hand the wind has gotten up.
! retire to the cot that says down like u
water trough To receive me, and the circus
begins. am not afraid that the tent will
blow overt takes terrific wind Ia cap
size Il. well pinned, neatly adjusted tent.
But don't see why il can't stand still. |
hear the wind waving among the trees. |
look at the cot where the prince is sleeping,
aud half wish hadn't brought him out
into this land of furious storms. lie down
again, look at the Swaying lantern and
think will get up and put il out. Sud
denly the tent SIuat$ down like n collapsed
balloon. and then before | can throw my
arms over the prince 10 keep the ridge pole
from hitting him. the tent stands straight
up three feet higher than its best standing
record. Another roaring tempest through
the trees: the
FOUR SIDES or THE TENT BULGE OFT
until il j. Us round Is a Siblcy tent; then il
collapscS and sucks in until there is hardly
room inside for the lantern, Then three
sides stiitcnup like shect-iron, while the
fourth flaps itself mai for no particular
reason. The tent squatS again. and when
il stands up this time the fly begins to flap
and pound over your head, faster than you
can think, like the roll of n mutlled drum
varied now and bv n crack like the shot of
a gun. 4 moments lull, suddenly the
winds seem to he rrnding the forests, and
both tent poles fore and aft. are seized
with the dclcrium trcmcnS, and shivcr and
shake and trcmblc in OScillatIng spaSmS,
while the walls dance up and down, tluttcr,
bulge. collapse and stretch, and the frantic
tly. "aS fast .lS mill wheels strike smitc
the top of the tent in furious loudSound-
ing whackS. that make the very lantern
burn blue with fear: the moaning of the
wind in the trees grows To a shrek: under
the impression that the whole mountain is
flowing away, and | spring TO my feet,
rush To the tent door. tear il open.
The blucSt skies, the brightest stars, the
lovclicSt night in all this land grccts me
with the blessing of peace. The night
wind is signing softly in thcgcntlc swaying
trcr-tOpS. a lullaby of the summer night a
liquid whisper; the very undertonc Of a
zephyr, scarce rs loud ~ the purling muir
muir of the dreamy little brook. Growing
itself 10 sleep in the starlight. That is all.
But why should il sound like Bedlam
inside the tent? That's what | want Ia
know There is one thing up this way
than makes me think the mountains are
not very far from heaven The birds
There seems TO he Il limitcSS variety of note
and plumagc. Plain housekeeping birds
in raimcnt Of quiet browns. or soft grays
and birds rs brilliant rs living blossoms
Birds that sing and sing from daylight to
sunset. a mclodlOIIS concert, and
BIRDS THAT HAVE JUST WHISTLE ENOUGH
to show what they could do had their
voice more compass. There is one little
fellow who can only whistle one note and
he t00tS il in quarter notes, four 10 u meas
urc all day long. Sometimes We hear him
in the night, trying his whistle, as though
he feared he might have torgotton the pitch
But he never loses IL; he hits il every time
There is an old night hawk. who Joins the
concert after dusk, with a croak that
sounds ~ dismal aS growing pain. But
he doesn't mean anything. As there ism
a cat, dog or gun about the camp the birds
are tame rs chickens, and hop up close To
the dining tent for something to eat. when
we leave them anything Which isn't
often. And there isn't one solitary, mis-.
cradle, fighting, squawking. bcastly little
scavcnger of IN English sparrow mall this
bird blessed land. Nothing but real birds.
Camp life Is not without its pcrils. ]
used to think that some of the Adirondack
stories were cXaggrcgatcd. Now | know
that they are not. There is great bare
place right in front of our camp. II is II
mountain, with all the trees cut OF It's
rocky brow. / don't know its family. but
We call it Mount Elisha because il is bald
headed. am thus specific about its bald.
Medicines because the foo; and the sides
of the mountain are not bald. Last week
shot a porcupinc with a revolver, close "a
camp. ! had the revolver, the pOrcupinc
didn't. shot il because all the rest of
the camp was afraid Of It. That is. ! shot
at it. Accent heavy on the "at." II
wasn't a porcupne, anyhow; it was only a
bcaStIy cad of common hedgehog We
trapped bear, too. We heard il several
nights gnawing things around the camp.
80 | SET MY MOUSE TRAP,
one of these circular fOur-shoOter affairs.
under the tent floor, and caught il. Every
night we read thrilling chapters from
Adirondack Mvrray's eeric weird tales. and
the next morning We were grateful, oh. 80
grateful, that We do not wake up beside q
bear or lion. There are worse things in the
woods than lions. Thee s beautiful let
black ant, scant thrce-quarters of an inch
long, with mandibles like telegraph pliers.
In the dusky night he grows a-cold in his
little home under the sand hill and comes
out and wraps the drapery of our tra-la-
la-loOns about him and lies down to pleas
ant dreams, until you disturb him BY put
ing on your lawful tr-hOw?-sers i'm the
morning. Then he wakes up. So do you.
When three or four ants of his dcnomina.
ton encamp in cach-er-Iimb Of your
apparel their presence in the morning
casts gloom over the entire programme
And since July has set in new-kind of 6y
has registered and taken rooms. lie takes
great deal of room too. He is about az
Ia al.