The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1903-11-13
The Plot
That allied

ness man Of friend about to set of
on his vacation the other day.
Whereabouts in Canada are you go
ing? To the Muskoka Lakes? Well,
II It's not too late / should like to
sound a note Of warning. for I've been
there. my boy. Since that summer
have classified three things as dan
gerous to trihe with in my dictionary
-Muskoka, moonlight and Canadian
girls. l must tell you my experience
so you can profit by 1t and be wary.
Il was there In August, and late in
the month. The girl who attracted
me had had a gay summer and had
all the accomplishments of sum
mer girl in excellent practice. and
was, Of course. as pretty as a picture
all Canadian girls are.
There was another fellow there
confounded Toronto bank clerk,
think-and to my sorrow she seemed
to prefer him to me, laughing at my
swimming and padding, and telling
me l was at my best in q ballroom. /
was not perfectly at home in a canoe,
but made a pretty good showing,
thought beside her precious bank
clerk. and at the rather scarce dances
we did have a pretty good time to-
gether, she and l.
"And when she let me take her out
in the moonlight on Lake Rosseau,
with it's dark pines against the sky
making the most romantic back
ground, she and l In light canoe on
the ripping water. her little brown
head against my Yale cushion-well.
my boy, you'll find out what 1t feels
like before you're many weeks olderor
I'm much mistaken. OF course, I
made fool Of myself-for any mans
fool who persists SIS | did with so
little encouragement, but we did have
a pretty nice time. only she would con-
tinue to laugh at me.
Time went on and had only one
day more to spend at the hotel.
Things were getting serious She was
offended with me for a faux pas l had
made the day before. and evidently
meant to give me the cold shoulder
and II was my last day. l decided on
action as absolutely essential to bring
things to a point, and after thinking
it over very deeply / decided that she
might love me If she could respect
and admire me more than she did
then. So l must compel this emo
tion, and how better, / thought, than
by saving her life at the (apparenD
risk Of my own.
Nov, am a good swimmer, though
not as fast as the other fellows up
there, who spend long summers on
the water, doubtless, which l have
never done. They called me Ferry
boat and 'Molasses' when we all went
swimming together. So l determined
to give the lie to their odious epithets
and win my lady's gratitude and ad-
miration at one fell blow, by getting
her out in my canoe, upsettng us
both, and doing a grand rescue act.
"The first and most difficult part Of
my plot was getting the girl to come
out with me at all. but by being very
pathetic about my last day I man
aged that much and my courage rose.
Where shall we go?' l asked,
when | had her in a neat, white dress
and sunbonnet in the bow Of my
canoe
LET us 90 to Port s. she re-
piled demurely. want to get a
film for my camera. Is that too far?'
Nothing could be too far TO me
when you are with me- l answered.
mentally determined. however. that
our accident should happen before we
went half the FIVE miles that lay be-
tween our hotel and Port s..
"She smiled a little. but her man
ner was still cool, and she allowed the
conversation to languish as we came
out of the bay and turned westward
up the lake. Here there was quite a
sweep, and the waves and wind we're
dead against us, so that had to pad
die my hardest to make the boat go
against them. Suddenly she ex-
claimed Let me help yot.' and in
spite Of my beseechings insisted on
turning round and padding. too. II
did make a difference. and we went
along beautifully after that. as her
1.-THE body bent to the even strokes Of
her paddle But had only her back.
and occasionally her profile, to look
at, so pushed on in order to get round
the next point where we should turn
south and so get out Of the sight OF
our hotel and the neighbordng islands.
| wanted 10 do up this adventure
brown and have the whole landscape
TO ourselves alone, and so make my
declaration in really favorable sur
roundings.
I'VE went on till we had left the
point behind us and turned our course
so that the waves came directly on
our starboard side. The canoe was
difficult to keep straight, and as we
were bothleaniDgoYer our paddlesand
throwing a good deal ofweight on our
own sides of the craft it was scarcely
necessary for me TO DO anything. "A
stroke too long, as the poet says, was
all that was needed and there was a
lurch and splash, and over we went
But through some stupidity on my
part my feet got caught in the thwsrt.