Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1891-10-02

szz4s=ssss.zsssll
after and produce the finished picture for
their inspection.
Mr.. Nicholas Kyger lives in a comforta-
BILE residence Immediately Oh the summit of
the bluff above the spring, and the old gen
tleman, hobbling around on his canes, was a
frequent visitor at our camp in which he
took great interest, Both he and his estima-
BILE wife courteously did all they could to
render our stay pleasant and comfortable.
We also received many attentions from the
hOspitable management of Bear Lithia
Springs where we made our next camp,
and where we had couple of half-dayS
good fishing, being the guests of Mr.. and
Mrs. Bear for the supper and breakfast Of
our stay.
Much to the regret of all of us, Mr..
Cooke was recalled by telegram from Shenan-
doah on Wednesday morning leaving BealI
and myself to continue the cruise alone. So
after he had hidden us good bye. we pushed
off and turned our bows down stream with
Kemple's Falls as cur objective point, in
tending to camp at the foot of the falls for
couple of days to enjoy the fine fishing
there. But we were not destined to reach
the falls that day, for early in the afternoon
after an exciting, adventurous morning
cruise of 10 miles, over considerably the
toughest and worst river we had vet en-
conference.-the making a powerful sweep
to dodge sunken log just above an unusu-
ally large and high fish dam, Beall snapped
his paddle squarely in two, leaving him
helpless in swift current, scarce boat
length above foot fall. With the pres
ence of mind of a practiced canoeist, how
ever, he grasped his iron shod pike pole and
with sharp thrust at the log he swung his
canoe clear, and shot the fall, bow first.
Then, with the larger part of his broken pad
die, he succeeded in steering his boat
through half a mile of rapid until we reach
ed the farm house of MI. Stricken, where
we made landing and went into camp,
and Beall spent the rest of the afternoon
in Mr.. S. s tool house, whiting new pad
die out of poplar plank.
Our impromptu camp here was pleasant
one and the night was one Of the most i'm
pressively beautiful of the whole cruise.
Our tented canoes lay on gently sloping
little beach Of hard sand and gravel under
a gigantic sycamore, whose spreading
branches extended far out beyond us, over
the waters of the river which flowed swift
ly by us, but a few feet distant. The bank
on the other side rose steeply into the
heavily timbered spurs and foothills of the
Blue Ridge, broken by frequent deep Ia
vines, across which the railroad boldly
sprung in a succession Of dizzy looking
spidery trestle bridges, as it lay high UP to-
wards the top Of the bluffs in a red clay
shelf which stood out in marked contrast
against the great green back ground of the
tree clothed mountain spurs. We had a
good supper of bacon, eggs, boiled potatoes
and hot coffee, and as we sat in front of our
tents in the twilight, enjoying our evening
pipes, the scene was charmingly pastoral
and impressive. A couple of boys from the
riding down to the river hundred yards
below us, driving before them herd of loose
horses and cattle, who splashed noisily into
the water, with much plunging, lowing and
squealing, and then subsidized into a pictur-
esque group as they stood there flank deep
in the river, drinking copiously of the crys-
tai flood, the silence broken only by the
swishing of an occasional tail OF the splash
ing stamp of hoof. A humblel little house
nestled under one of the big trestles across
from us at the bottom of the nearest Ia
vine, from which little bare-footed girl
issued and wendell her way up the ravine af-
ter her COWS, singing over and over again as
she went the last two lines of some simple
little song, evidently dear to her, for how
she did sing it! Over and over, making the
woods and hills ring with her sweet, strong,
clear, bird-like voice. until we thought she
would split her little throat as she poured
her innocent heart and soul into her
simple little melody. A work train came
noisily rumbling along and stopped, upon
which gang of section hands gladly
pitched their picks and shoYels and, taking
up their empty dinner pals, hastily scram-
bled aboard, with visions of home and sup
per before them, as with few short, sharp
coughs, which sent shower of sparks and
rings of smoke from the stack of the engine
straight up into the clear, still air, the
train got under way and pulled out for
Shenandoah, while the smoke foated vague
ly away over the hills and diffused itself in
the surrounding atmosphere.
AS the twilight melted into darkness, the
full moon swung up into view over the
mountains, flooding hill and dale with her
brilliant silvery radiance sparkling back
from the rlpples of the swift flowing river
in million diamond points, and making the
night to rival the day in her glorious efful-
gence. Long we sat there, silently drink
ing in the exquisite beauty OF the perfect
night, before-with preliminary plunge
into the cold, sparkling river-we turned
in. each to our respective tents, and drop
ped off to sleep, with the soft, balmy beau
ty of the night full in our faces through the
open side Of our tents.
Way along in the small hours Of the
night, was awakened with start by the
deep fog-horn-like scream of whistle
which startled me half out of my tent,
and with roar and clatter a long ex-
press train went laundering by over the
lofty trestle bridge, full in the glare of the
moonlight, in which we could plainly read
the lettering on the sides Of the coaches;
and showing only star-like twinkle from
the engine cab, and the faint CLEAN of
lights through the long, narrow ventilato1
windows in the roofs of the sleepers, fol
lowed by the rapidly receding twinkle of the
two dull red eyes on the rear of the train as