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diff --git a/old/68732-0.txt b/old/68732-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 71c46e1..0000000 --- a/old/68732-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3061 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The moral pirates, by W. L. Alden - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The moral pirates - -Author: W. L. Alden - -Illustrator: A. B. Frost - -Release Date: August 12, 2022 [eBook #68732] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Richard Hulse, David E. Brown, and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was - produced from images generously made available by The - Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MORAL PIRATES *** - - -[Illustration: THE TIDE AGAINST THEM. [_Page 23._] - - - - - THE MORAL PIRATES - - BY - W. L. ALDEN - - - _ILLUSTRATED_ - - - NEW YORK - HARPER & BROTHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE - 1881 - - - - - Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1880, by - HARPER & BROTHERS, - In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. - - _All rights reserved._ - - - - -ILLUSTRATIONS. - - - THE TIDE AGAINST THEM _Frontispiece_ - - THE “WHITEWING” AT HARLEM _faces page_ 13 - - HARRY SWIMS FOR THE EDDY “ “ 27 - - “IF YOU WANT TO DIG, DIG. I DON’T INTEND TO DO ANY - MORE DIGGING” “ “ 43 - - THE SOUP EXPLOSION “ “ 53 - - THE BOYS BUILT A ROARING FIRE ON A LARGE FLAT ROCK “ “ 58 - - JOE IS CAUGHT “ “ 64 - - MUMBLE-THE-PEG “ “ 72 - - LIFTING THE BOAT OVER THE PILES “ “ 81 - - GOING THROUGH THE LOCK “ “ 93 - - THE FIGHT WITH THE TRAMPS “ “ 104 - - HARRY AND JOE IN A TRAP “ “ 112 - - HARRY SETS OUT IN PURSUIT OF THE BOAT “ “ 124 - - BIDDING JIM GOOD-BYE “ “ 130 - - THE EXPLOSION IN CAMP “ “ 143 - - - - -THE MORAL PIRATES. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - - -“The truth is, John,” said Mr. Wilson to his brother, “I am troubled -about my boy. Here it is the first of July, and he can’t go back to -school until the middle of September. He will be idle all that time, -and I’m afraid he’ll get into mischief. Now, the other day I found him -reading a wretched story about pirates. Why should a son of mine care -to read about pirates?” - -“Because he’s a boy. All boys like piratical stories. I know, when -I was a boy, I thought that if I could be either a pirate or a -stage-driver I should be perfectly happy. Of course you don’t want -Harry to read rubbish; but it doesn’t follow because a boy reads -stories about piracy, that he wants to commit murder and robbery. I -didn’t want to kill anybody: I wanted to be a moral and benevolent -pirate. But here comes Harry across the lawn. What will you give me -if I will find something for him to do this summer that will make him -forget all about piracy?” - -“I only wish you would. Tell me what your plan is.” - -“Come here a minute, Harry,” said Uncle John. “Now own up; do you like -books about pirates?” - -“Well, yes, uncle, I do.” - -“So did I when I was your age. I thought it would be the best fun in -the world to be a Red Revenger of the Seas.” - -“Wouldn’t it, though!” exclaimed Harry. “I don’t mean it would be fun -to kill people, and to steal watches, but to have a schooner of your -own, and go cruising everywhere, and have storms and--and--hurricanes, -you know.” - -“Why shouldn’t you do it this summer?” asked Uncle John. “If you want -to cruise in a craft of your own, you shall do it; that is, if your -father doesn’t object. A schooner would be a little too big for a -boy of thirteen; but you and two or three other fellows might make a -splendid cruise in a row-boat. You could have a mast and sail, and -you could take provisions and things, and cruise from Harlem all the -way up into the lakes in the Northern woods. It would be all the same -as piracy, except that you would not be committing crimes, and making -innocent people wretched.” - -“Uncle John, it would be just gorgeous! We’d have a gun and a lot of -fishing-lines, and we could live on fish and bears. There’s bears in -the woods, you know.” - -“You won’t find many bears, I’m afraid; but you would have to take a -gun, and you might possibly find a wild-cat or two. Who is there that -would go with you?” - -“Oh, there’s Tom Schuyler, and Joe and Jim Sharpe; and there’s Sam -M‘Grath--though he’d be quarrelling all the time. Maybe Charley Smith’s -father would let him go. He is a first-rate fellow. You’d ought to see -him play base-ball once!” - -“Three boys besides yourself would be enough. If you have too many, -there will be too much risk of quarrelling. There is one thing you must -be sure of--no boy must go who can’t swim.” - -“Oh, all the fellows can swim, except Bill Town. He was pretty near -drowned last summer. He’d been bragging about what a stunning swimmer -he was, and the boys believed him; so one day one of the fellows shoved -him off the float, where we go in swimming at our school, and he -thought he was dead for sure. The water was only up to his neck, but he -couldn’t swim a stroke.” - -“Well, if you can get three good fellows to go with you--boys that you -know are not blackguards, but are the kind of boys that your father -would be willing to have you associate with--I’ll give you a boat and a -tent, and you shall have a better cruise than any pirate ever had; for -no real pirate ever found any fun in being a thief and a murderer. You -go and see Tom and the Sharpe boys, and tell them about it. I’ll see -about the boat as soon as you have shipped your crew.” - -“You are quite sure that your plan is a good one?” asked Mr. Wilson, -as the boy vanished, with sparkling eyes, to search for his comrades. -“Isn’t it very risky to let the boys go off by themselves in a boat? -Won’t they get drowned?” - -“There is always more or less danger in boating,” replied Uncle -John; “but the boys can swim; and they cannot learn prudence and -self-reliance without running some risks. Yes, it is a good plan, I am -sure. It will give them plenty of exercise in the open air, and will -teach them to like manly, honest sports. You see that the reason Harry -likes piratical stories is his natural love of adventure. I venture to -predict that if their cruise turns out well, those four boys will think -stories of pirates are stupid as well as silly.” - -So the matter was decided. Harry found that Tom Schuyler and the Sharpe -boys were delighted with the plan, and Uncle John soon obtained the -consent of Mr. Schuyler and Mr. Sharpe. The boys immediately began to -make preparations for the cruise; and Uncle John bought a row-boat, and -employed a boat-builder to make such alterations as were necessary to -fit his for service. - -The boat was what is called a Whitehall row-boat. She was seventeen -feet long, and rowed very easily, and she carried a small mast with -a spritsail. By Uncle John’s orders an air-tight box, made of tin, -was fitted into each end of the boat, so that, even if she were to -be filled with water, the air in the tin boxes would float her. -She was painted white outside, with a narrow blue streak, and dark -brown inside. Harry named her the _Whitewing_; and his mother made a -beautiful silk signal for her, which was to be carried at the sprit -when under sail, and on a small staff at the bow of the boat at other -times. For oars there were two pairs of light seven-foot sculls, and -a pair of ten-foot oars, each of which was to be pulled by a single -boy. The rudder was fitted with a yoke and a pair of lines, and the -sail was of new and very light canvas. On one side of the boat was a -little locker, made to hold a gun; and on the other side were places -for fishing-rods and fishing-tackle. When she was brought around to -Harlem, and Harry saw her for the first time, he was so overjoyed that -he turned two or three hand-springs, bringing up during the last one -against a post--an exploit which nearly broke his shin, and induced -his uncle to remark that he would never rise to distinction as a Moral -Pirate unless he could give up turning hand-springs while on duty. - -[Illustration: THE “WHITEWING” AT HARLEM.] - -Harry could row very fairly, for he belonged to a boat-club at school. -It was not very much of a club; but then the club-boat was not very -much of a boat, being a small, flat-bottomed skiff, which leaked so -badly that she could not be kept afloat unless one boy kept constantly -at work bailing. However, Harry learned to row in her, and he now -found this knowledge very useful. He was anxious to start on the -cruise immediately, but his uncle insisted that the crew must first be -trained. “I must teach you to sail, and you must teach your crew to -row,” said Uncle John. “The Department will never consent to let a boat -go on a cruise unless her commander and her crew know their duty.” - -“What’s the Department?” asked Harry. - -“The Navy Department in the United States service has the whole charge -of the Navy, and sends vessels where it pleases. Now, I consider that -I represent a Department of Moral Piracy, and I therefore superintend -the fitting out of the _Whitewing_. You can’t expect moral piracy to -flourish unless you respect the Department, and obey its orders.” - -“All right, uncle,” replied Harry. “Of course the Department furnishes -stores and everything else for a cruise, doesn’t it?” - -“I suppose it must,” said his uncle, laughing. “I didn’t think of that -when I proposed to become a department.” - -The boys met every day at Harlem and practised rowing. Uncle John -taught them how to sail the boat, by letting them take her out under -sail when there was very little breeze, while he kept close along-side -in another boat very much like the _Whitewing_. Harry sat in the -stern-sheets, holding the yoke-lines. Tom Schuyler, who was fourteen -years old, and a boy of more than usual prudence, sat on the nearest -thwart and held the sheet, which passed under a cleat without being -made fast to it, in his hand. Next came Jim Sharpe, whose business it -was to unship the mast when the captain should order sail to be taken -in; and on the forward thwart sat Joe Sharpe, who was not quite twelve, -and who kept the boat-hook within reach, so as to use it on coming -to shore. The boys kept the same positions when rowing, Tom Schuyler -being the stroke. Uncle John told them that if every one always had the -same seat, and had a particular duty assigned to him, it would prevent -confusion and dispute, and greatly increase the safety of the vessel -and crew. - -It was not long before Harry could sail the boat nicely, and the -others, by attending closely to Uncle John’s lessons, learned almost as -much as their young captain. So far as boat-sailing can be taught in -fair weather, Harry was carefully and thoroughly taught in six or seven -lessons, and could handle the _Whitewing_ beautifully; but the ability -to judge of the weather, to tell when it is going to blow, and how -the wind will probably shift, can of course be learned only by actual -experience. - - - - -CHAPTER II. - - -When Uncle John announced that the Department was satisfied with -the ability of the captain and crew to manage the _Whitewing_, the -day for sailing was fixed, and the boys laid in their stores. Each -one had a fishing-line and hooks, and Harry and Tom each took a -fishing-pole--two poles being as many as were needed, since most of the -fishing would probably be done with drop-lines. Uncle John lent Harry -his double-barrelled gun, and a supply of ammunition. Each boy took a -tin plate, a tin cup, knife, fork, and spoon. For cooking purposes, -the boat carried a coffee-pot, two tin cake-pans, which could be used -as frying-pans as well as for other purposes, and two small tin pails. -Harry’s mother lent him several large round tin boxes, in which were -stored four pounds of coffee, two pounds of sugar, a pound of Indian -meal, a large quantity of crackers, some salt, and a little pepper. -The rest of the provisions consisted of two cans of soup, two cans of -corned-beef, a can of roast-beef, two small cans of devilled chicken, -four cans of fresh peaches, a little package of condensed beef for -making beef-tea, and a cold boiled ham. The boat was furnished with an -=A= tent, four rubber blankets and four woollen blankets, a hatchet, -a quantity of spare cordage, a little bull’s-eye lantern, which burnt -olive-oil, a few copper nails, a pair of pliers, and a small piece of -zinc and a little white-lead for mending a leak. Of course there was a -bottle of oil for the lantern; and Mrs. Schuyler added a little box of -pills and a bottle of “Hamlin’s Mixture” as medical stores. The boys -wore blue flannel trousers and shirts, and each one carried an extra -pair of trousers, and an extra shirt instead of a coat. These, with a -few pairs of stockings and two or three handkerchiefs, were all the -clothing that they needed, so Uncle John said; though the boys had -imagined that they must take at least two complete suits. He showed -them that two flannel shirts worn at the same time, one over the other, -would be as warm as one shirt and a coat, and that if their clothing -became wet, it could be easily dried. “Flannel and the compass are the -two things that are indispensable to navigation,” said Uncle John: “if -flannel shirts had not been invented, Columbus would never have crossed -the Atlantic.” Perhaps there was a little exaggeration in this; but -when we remember that flannel is the only material that is warm in cold -weather and cool in hot weather, and that dries almost as soon as it -is wrung out and hung in the wind, it is difficult to see how sailors -could do without it. - -The boys agreed very readily to take with them only what Uncle John -advised. Tom Schuyler, however, was very anxious to take a heavy iron -vise, which he said could be screwed on the gunwale of the boat, and -might prove to be very useful, although he could not say precisely -what he expected to use it for. Joe Sharpe also wanted to take a -base-ball and bat, but neither the vise nor the ball and bat were taken. - -The _Whitewing_ started from the foot of East 127th Street, on a -Monday morning in the middle of July, at about nine o’clock. Quite a -small crowd of friends were present to see the boys off, and the neat -appearance of the boat and her crew attracted the attention of all the -idlers along the shore. When all the cargo was stowed, and everything -was ready, Uncle John called the boys aside, and said, “Now, boys, you -must sign the articles.” - -“What are articles?” asked all the boys at once. - -“They are certain regulations, which every respectable pirate, or any -other sailor for that matter, must agree to keep when he joins a ship. -I’ll read the articles, and if any of you don’t like any one of them -say so frankly, for you must not begin a cruise in a dissatisfied state -of mind. Here are the articles: - -“‘I. _We, the captain and crew of the_ Whitewing, _promise to decide -all disputed questions by the vote of the majority, except questions -concerning the management of the boat. The orders of the captain, -in all matters connected with the management of the boat, shall be -promptly obeyed by the crew._’ - -“Now, if anybody thinks that the captain should not have the full -control of the boat, let him say so at once. Very likely the captain -will make mistakes; but the boat will be safer, even if the crew obeys -a wrong order, than it would be if every order should be debated by the -crew. You can’t hold town-meetings when you are afloat. Harry, I think, -understands pretty well how to sail the boat. Will you agree to obey -his orders?” - -All the boys said they would; and Joe Sharpe added that he thought the -captain ought to have the right to put mutineers in irons. - -“That, let us hope, will not be necessary,” said Uncle John. “Now -listen to the second article: - -“‘II. _We promise not to take corn, apples, or other property without -permission of the owner._’ - -“You will very likely camp near some field where corn, or potatoes, -or something eatable, is growing. Many people think there is no harm -in taking a few ears of corn or a half-dozen apples. I want you to -remember that to take anything that is not your own, unless you have -permission to do so, is stealing. It’s an ugly word, but it can’t be -smoothed over in any way. Do you object to this article?” - -Nobody objected to it. “We’re moral pirates, Uncle John,” said Tom -Schuyler, “and we won’t disgrace the Department by stealing.” - -“I know you would not, except through thoughtlessness. Now these are -all the articles. I did think of asking you not to quarrel or to use -bad language, but I don’t believe it is necessary to ask you to make -such a promise, and if it were, you probably would not keep it. So, -sign the articles, give them to the captain, and take your stations.” - -The articles were signed. The captain seated himself in the -stern-sheets, and took the yoke-lines. The rest took their proper -places, and Joe Sharpe held the boat to the dock by the boat-hook. -“Are you all ready?” cried Uncle John. “All ready, sir!” answered -Harry. “Then give way with your oars! Good-bye, boys, and don’t forget -to send reports to the Department.” - -The boat glided away from the shore with Tom and Jim each pulling a -pair of sculls. The group on the dock gave the boys a farewell cheer, -and in a few moments they were hid from sight by the Third Avenue -bridge. The tide was against them, but the day was a cool one for the -season, and the boys rowed steadily on in the very best of spirits. -There was a light south wind, but, as there were several bridges to -pass, Harry thought it best not to set the sail before reaching the -Hudson River. It required careful steering to avoid the steamboats, -bridge-piles, and small boats; but the _Whitewing_ was guided safely, -and her signal--a red flag with a white cross--floated gayly at the bow. - -Uncle John had made one serious mistake: he had forgotten all about -the tide, and never thought of the difficulty the boys would find -in passing Farmersbridge with the tide against them. They had passed -High Bridge, and had entered a part of the river with which the boys -were not familiar, when Joe Sharpe suddenly called out, “There’s a low -bridge right ahead that we can’t pass.” A few more strokes of the oars -enabled Harry to see a long low bridge, which completely blocked up the -river except at one place, that seemed not much wider than the boat. -Through this narrow channel the tide was rushing fiercely, the water -heaping itself up in waves that looked unpleasantly high and rough. The -boat was rowed as close as possible to the opening under the bridge; -but the current was so strong that the boys could not row against it, -and even if they had been able to stem it, the channel was too narrow -to permit them to use the oars. - -Harry ordered the boat to be rowed up to the bridge at a place where -there was a quiet eddy, and all the crew went ashore to contrive some -way of overcoming the difficulty. Presently Harry thought of a plan. -“If we could get the painter under the bridge, we could pull the boat -through easy enough if there was nobody in her.” - -“That’s all very well,” said Joe, “but how are you going to get the -painter through?” - -“I know,” cried Jim. “Let’s take a long piece of rope and drop it in -the water the other side of the bridge. The current will float it -through, and we can catch it and tie it to the painter.” - -The plan seemed a good one; and so the boys took a piece of spare -rope from the boat, tied a bit of board to one end of it for a float, -dropped the float into the water, and held on to the other end of the -rope. When the float came in sight below the bridge they caught it with -the boat-hook, and, throwing away the piece of board, tied the rope to -the painter. “Now let Joe Sharpe get in the bow of the boat, to keep -her from running against anything, and we’ll haul her right through,” -exclaimed Harry. - -Joe took his place in the bow, and, pushing the boat off, let her float -into the current. Then the three other boys pulled on the rope, and -were delighted to see the boat glide under the bridge. Suddenly Joe -gave a wild yell. “She’s sinking, boys!” he cried: “let go the rope, or -I’ll be drowned!” The boys, terribly frightened, dropped the rope, and -in another minute the boat floated back on the current, half full of -water, and without Joe. Almost as soon as it came in sight, Harry had -thrown off his shoes and jumped into the river. - -[Illustration: HARRY SWIMS FOR THE EDDY.] - - - - -CHAPTER III. - - -As Harry vanished, Joe’s head appeared, as he climbed up the side of -the bridge and joined his brother and Tom. Their anxiety was now for -Harry, who had been swept through the channel under the bridge, and -was manfully swimming toward the eddy where the boys had landed. He -came ashore none the worse for his bath, and was delighted to find -that Joe was not only safe but dry. Joe explained that the boat had -drifted against one of the piles of the bridge, and the current and -the tow-rope together had forced one of her sides so low down that the -water began to pour in. Joe thought that if the river intended to get -into the boat, he had better get out; so he sprung up and caught one of -the timbers of the bridge, and so climbed safely up to the roadway. -The boat, relieved of his weight and freed from the tow-line, drifted -quietly away, and was now floating peacefully on the river about twenty -rods from the shore. - -Luckily an old man in a row-boat saw the runaway _Whitewing_, and -kindly caught her and brought her up to the bridge. As the boys baled -her out, they told him how the accident happened, and the gruff old -man said it “sarved ’em right.” “When you tow a boat next time,” he -continued, “you’ll know enough to put all your weight in the stern. -Did you ever see a steamboat towing a row-boat with a man in the bow? -If ever you do, you’ll see him going overboard mighty quick. A boat’ll -sheer all over creation if you tow her with a fellow in the bow. You -just put the biggest of you fellows in the stern of that there boat, -and she’ll go through under the bridge just as steady as a church.” - -The boys gladly took the old man’s advice. When the boat was baled -out, they floated the rope down again, and when it was made fast, Tom -Schuyler, who was the heaviest of the boys, offered to sit in the -stern. His weight brought the bow of the boat out of the water, and she -was towed quickly and safely through. The boys resumed their places as -soon as Harry had put on dry clothes, and after a short and easy row -glided under the Spuyten Duyvel railway bridge, and found themselves on -the broad and placid Hudson. They rowed on for nearly a mile, and then, -having found a little sandy cove, ran the boat aground, and went ashore -to rest. After a good swim, which all greatly enjoyed, including Harry, -who said that his recent bath at Farmersbridge ought not to be counted, -since it was more of a duty than a pleasure, they sat down to eat a -nice cold lunch of ham sandwiches that Mrs. Wilson had kindly prepared; -and when they were no longer hungry, they stretched themselves lazily -in the shade. - -“Well, boys,” said Harry, “we made a big mistake at the bridge; but we -learned something, and we won’t get the boat swamped that way again.” - -“I’m awfully obliged to Harry for jumping in after me,” said Joe; “but -it’s the first time I ever heard of a captain jumping over after a -sailor. When a sailor falls overboard, the captain just stands on the -deck and looks around, kind of careless like, while the second mate and -four sailors jump into a boat and pick the man up. That’s the way it’s -done; for I know a fellow that saw a man fall overboard on a steamship, -and he said that was how the captain did.” - -“All right,” said Harry; “I won’t jump in for you again, Joe. The -fact is, boys, I oughtn’t to have done it without waiting to find out -whether there was really anything the matter with Joe. I’ll tell you -what we’ll do. Joe is a first-rate swimmer, and we’ll make a rule that -whenever anybody is to jump into the river for anything, Joe shall do -it. What do you say?” - -“Oh, I’m willing enough,” said Joe. “I don’t care who jumps as long as -the captain don’t. It won’t look well for the captain to be all the -time jumping overboard to pick somebody up.” - -“A better rule,” remarked Tom, “would be that no fellow shall fall -overboard.” - -“I move to amend that,” cried Jim, “by forbidding any accidents to -happen to any of us.” - -“But you can’t do that,” said Tom, who never understood a joke. -“Accidents never would happen if people could help themselves.” - -“Well,” said Harry, “if the rest of you will agree not to fall -overboard, I’ll promise that the captain sha’n’t spend all his time -in jumping after you. But if you are all ready, we’d better start on. -There’s a nice little breeze, and we can rest in the boat.” - -By this time Harry’s shirt and trousers, which had been wrung out and -hung up on a bush, were perfectly dry. He packed them away with his -rubber blanket rolled tightly around them, and Jim attended to the duty -of stepping the mast. Then the boys took their places, and Joe pushed -the boat off with the boat-hook. The gentle breeze filled the sail, and -the _Whitewing_ went peacefully on her way up the river. - -“Boys,” said Harry, presently, “it’s getting awfully hot.” - -“That’s because we’re sailing right before the wind,” said Tom. “We are -going just about as fast as the wind goes, and that’s the reason why we -don’t feel it.” - -“Is this a lecture on wind, by Professor Thomas Schuyler?” asked Joe. -“Because if it is, I’d rather hear it when it’s cooler. Let’s go over -to the other side of the river, where we can get in the shade of the -Palisades.” - -It was now about three o’clock, and the sun was very hot. The boat -seemed to the boys to creep across the river, and the Palisades seemed -to move away just as fast as they approached them. When they finally -did come into the shadow of those huge rocks, they thought they had -never known anything so delightful as the change from the scorching -sunshine to the cool shade. Joe and his brother stretched themselves -out, and put their blankets under their heads; presently they grew -tired of talking, and in a little while they were fast asleep. Tom was -not sleepy; but he was so delighted with the beauty of the shore, as -seen from the boat, that he did not care to talk. - -For a long time the boat glided stealthily along. The Palisades were -passed, and a long pier projecting into the river from the west shore -gradually came in sight. When the boat came up with the pier, half a -dozen barges lay along-side of it, into which men were sliding enormous -cakes of ice. The Sharpe boys woke up, and proposed to stop and get a -little ice. The men let them pick up as many small pieces of ice as -they could carry, and they went on their way so much refreshed that -they chattered away as gayly as possible. - -Uncle John had warned them to select a camping-ground long before dark. -They remembered this advice, and at about five o’clock they landed -on a little low point of land a few miles below the entrance to the -Highlands. They first hauled the boat a little way up the beach, so -that it would be sure not to float off, and then began to take the -tent, the cooking things, and the provisions for supper out of her. - -“We want to pitch the tent and make a fire,” said Harry, “and somebody -ought to get some milk. Let’s pitch the tent first.” - -“I’ll do that,” said Tom, “while you fellows get the supper.” - -“It takes two or three fellows to pitch the tent,” said Harry; “you -can’t do it alone.” - -“I’ll undertake to pitch it alone,” replied Tom. “One of you can get -firewood, one can go for milk, and the other can get out the things for -supper. Here goes for the tent.” - -The tent was furnished with two upright poles and a ridge-pole, each -one of which was made in two pieces and joined together with ferules, -like a fishing-rod. Tom selected a soft sandy spot close by the water’s -edge, where he spread out the tent, and pinned down each of the four -corners with rough wooden pins, which he cut with the hatchet from a -piece of driftwood. Then he crept under the canvas with the poles. -He put one of the upright poles in its place with the end of the -ridge-pole over it, and then, holding the other end of the ridge-pole -in one hand, he put the second pole in position with his other hand, -and pushed the end of the ridge-pole into its proper place. The tent -was now pitched; and all that remained to be done was to tighten the -four corner pegs and to drive in the other ones. - -Meanwhile Jim had taken one of the pails and gone toward a distant -farm-house for milk. Joe had collected a pile of firewood, and Harry -had lighted the fire and put the other tin pail half full of water -to boil over it. By the time the water had boiled, Jim had returned, -bringing the milk with him. It did not take long to make coffee; and -then the boys sat down on the sand, each with a tin cup of hot coffee -at his side, and proceeded to eat a supper of ham sandwiches and cake. -It was not the kind of supper that they expected to have on subsequent -nights; but Mrs. Wilson’s sandwiches and cake had to be eaten in order -to keep them from spoiling. After the coffee was gone they each had -a cup of cold milk, and then put the rest of it in a shady place to -be used for breakfast. The provisions were carefully covered up, so -as to protect them in case of rain, and then the beds were made. This -last operation was a very easy one, since the sand was soft enough for -a mattress, and all that needed to be done was to spread the rubber -blankets on the ground as a protection from the damp. Then the boys -rolled up their spare clothing for pillows, and, wrapping themselves in -their blankets, were soon sound asleep. - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - - -Some time in the middle of the night Joe Sharpe woke up from a dream -that he had fallen into the river, and could not get out. He thought -that he had caught hold of the supports of a bridge, and had drawn -himself partly out of the water, but that he had not strength enough -to drag his legs out, and that, on the contrary, he was slowly sinking -back. When he awoke he found that he was very cold, and that his -blanket felt particularly heavy. He put his hand down to move the -blanket, when, to his great surprise, he found that he was lying with -his legs in a pool of water. - -Joe instantly shouted to the other boys, and told them to wake up, -for it was raining, and the tent was leaking. As each boy woke up he -found himself as wet as Joe, and at first all supposed that it was -raining heavily. They soon found, however, that no rain-drops were -pattering on the outside of the tent, and that the stars were shining -through the open flap. “There’s water in this tent,” said Tom, with -the air of having made a grand discovery. “If any of you fellows have -been throwing water on me, it was a mean trick,” said Jim. All at once -an idea struck Harry. “Boys,” he exclaimed, “it’s the tide! We’ve got -to get out of this place mighty quick, or the tide will wash the tent -away.” - -The boys sprung up, and rushed out of the tent. They had gone to bed -at low-tide, and as the tide rose it had gradually invaded the tent. -The boat was still safe, but the water had surrounded it, and in a very -short time would be deep enough to float it. The tide was still rising, -and it was evident that no time should be lost if the tent was to be -saved. - -Two of the boys hurriedly seized the blankets and other articles which -were in the tent, and carried them on to the higher ground; while the -other two pulled up the pins, and dragged the tent out of reach of the -water. Then they pulled the boat farther up the beach, and, having thus -made everything safe, had leisure to discover that they were miserably -cold, and that their clothes, from the waist down, were wet through. - -Luckily, their spare clothing, which they had used for pillows, was -untouched by the water, so that they were able to put on dry shirts -and trousers. Their blankets, however, had been thoroughly soaked, and -it was too cold to think of sleeping without them. There was nothing -to be done but to build a fire, and sit around it until daylight. It -was by no means easy to collect firewood in the dark; and as soon as a -boy succeeded in getting an armful of driftwood, he usually stumbled -and fell down with it. There was not very much fun in this; but when -the fire finally blazed up, and its pleasant warmth conquered the cold -night air, the boys began to regain their spirits. - -“I wonder what time it is?” said one. - -Tom had a watch, but he had forgotten to wind it up for two or three -nights, and it had stopped at eight o’clock. The boys were quite sure, -however, that they could not have been asleep more than half an hour. - -“It’s about one o’clock,” said Harry, presently. - -“I don’t believe it’s more than nine,” said Joe. - -“We must have gone into the tent about an hour after sunset,” continued -Harry, “and the sun sets between six and seven. It was low-tide then, -and it’s pretty near high-tide now; and since the tide runs up for -about six hours, it must be somewhere between twelve and one.” - -“You’re right,” exclaimed Jim. “Look at the stars. That bright star -over there in the west was just rising when we went to bed.” - -“You ought to say ‘turned in!’” said Joe. “Sailors never go to bed; -they always ‘turn in.’” - -“Well, we can’t turn in any more to-night,” replied Tom. “What do you -say, boys? suppose we have breakfast--it’ll pass away the time, and we -can have another breakfast by-and-by.” - -Now that the boys thought of it, they began to feel hungry, for they -had had a very light supper. Everybody felt that hot coffee would be -very nice; so they all went to work--made coffee, fried a piece of ham, -and, with a few slices of bread, made a capital breakfast. They wrung -out the wet blankets and clothes, and hung them up by the fire to dry. -Then they had to collect more firewood; and gradually the faint light -of the dawn became visible, before they really had time to find the -task of waiting for daylight tiresome. - -They decided that it would not do to start with wet blankets, since -they could not dry them in the boat. They therefore continued to keep -up a brisk fire, and to watch the blankets closely, in order to see -that they did not get scorched. After a time the sun came out bright -and hot, and took the drying business in charge. The boys went into the -river, and had a nice long swim, and then spent some time in carefully -packing everything into the boat. By the time the blankets were dry, -and they were ready to start, the tide had fallen so low that the boat -was high and dry; and in spite of all their efforts they could not -launch her while she was loaded. - -“We’ll have to take all the things out of her,” said Harry. - -“It reminds me,” remarked Joe, “of Robinson Crusoe that time he built -his big canoe, and then couldn’t launch it.” - -“Robinson wasn’t very sharp,” said Jim. “Why didn’t he make a set of -rollers, and put them on the boat?” - -“Much good rollers would have been,” replied Joe. “Wasn’t there a hill -between the boat and the water? He couldn’t roll a heavy boat uphill, -could he?” - -“He could have made a couple of pulleys, and rigged a rope through -them, and then made a windlass, and put the rope round it,” argued Jim. - -“Yes; and he could have built a steam-engine and a railroad, and -dragged the boat down to the shore that way, just about as easy.” - -[Illustration: “IF YOU WANT TO DIG, DIG. I DON’T INTEND TO DO ANY MORE -DIGGING.”] - -“He couldn’t dig a canal, for he thought about that, and found it would -take too much work,” said Jim. - -“But we can,” cried Harry. “If we just scoop out a little sand, we can -launch the boat with everything in her!” - -The boys liked the idea of a canal; and they each found a large shingle -on the beach, and began to dig. They dug for nearly an hour, but the -boat was no nearer being launched than when they began. Tom stopped -digging, and made a calculation. “It will take about two days of hard -work to dig a canal deep enough to float that boat. If you want to dig, -dig; I don’t intend to do any more digging.” - -When the other boys considered the matter, they saw that Tom was right, -and they gave up the idea of making a canal. It was now about ten -o’clock, and they were rather tired and very hungry. A second breakfast -was agreed to be necessary, and once more the fire was built up and a -meal prepared. Then the boat was unloaded and launched, and the boys, -taking off their shoes and rolling up their trousers, waded in the -water and reloaded her. It was noon by the sun before they finally had -everything in order and resumed their cruise. - -There was no wind, and it was necessary to take to the oars. The -disadvantage of starting at so late an hour soon became painfully -plain. The sun was so nearly overhead that the heat was almost -unbearable, and there was not a particle of shade. The boys had not -had a full night’s sleep, and had tired themselves before starting -by trying to dig a canal. Of course the labor of rowing in such -circumstances was very severe; and it was not long before first one and -then another proposed to go ashore and rest in the shade. - -“Hadn’t we better keep on till we get into the Highlands. We can do it -in a quarter of an hour,” said Tom. - -As Tom was pulling the stroke oar, and doing rather more work than any -one else, the others agreed to row on as long as he would row. They -soon reached the entrance to the Highlands, and landed at the foot of -the great hill called St. Anthony’s Nose. They were very glad to make -the boat fast to a tree that grew close to the water, and to clamber a -little way up the hill into the shade. - -“What will we do to pass away the time till it gets cooler?” said -Harry, after they had rested awhile. - -“I can tell you what I’m going to do,” said Tom; “I’m going to get some -of the sleep that I didn’t get last night, and you’d better follow my -example.” - -All the boys at once found that they were sleepy; and, having brought -the tent up from the boat, they spread it on the ground for a bed, -and presently were sleeping soundly. The mosquitoes came and feasted -on them, and the innumerable insects of the summer woods crawled over -them, and explored their necks, shirt-sleeves, and trousers-legs, as is -the pleasant custom of insects of an inquiring turn of mind. - -“What’s that?” cried Harry, suddenly sitting up, as the sound of a -heavy explosion died away in long, rolling echoes. - -“I heard it,” said Joe; “it’s a cannon. The cadets up at West Point -are firing at a mark with a tremendous big cannon.” - -“Let’s go up and see them,” exclaimed Jim. “It’s a great deal cooler -than it was.” - -With the natural eagerness of boys to be in the neighborhood of a -cannon, they made haste to gather up the tent and carry it to the boat. -As they came out from under the thick trees, they saw that the sky in -the north was as black as midnight, and that a thunder-storm was close -at hand. - -“Your cannon, Joe, was a clap of thunder,” said Harry. “We’re going to -get wet again.” - -“We needn’t get wet,” said Tom. “If we hurry up we can get the tent -pitched and put the things in it, so as to keep them dry.” - -They worked rapidly, for the rain was approaching fast, but it was not -easy to pitch the tent on a side hill. It was done, however, after -a fashion; and the blankets and other things that were liable to be -injured by the wet were safely under shelter before the storm reached -them. - - - - -CHAPTER V. - - -It was a terrific storm. The wind swept down the river, raising a ridge -of white water in its path. The rain came down harder, so the boys -thought, than they had ever seen it come down before, and the glare of -the lightning and the crash of the thunder were frightful. - -“What luck it is that we got the tent pitched in time,” exclaimed Joe. -“We’re as dry and comfortable here as if we were in a house.” - -“Pick your blankets up quick, boys,” cried Harry. “Here’s the water -coming in under the tent.” - -Joe had boasted a little too soon. The water running down the side of -the hill was making its way in large quantities into the tent. To save -their clothes and blankets, the boys had to stand up and hold them in -their arms, which was by no means a pleasant occupation, especially as -the cold rain-water was bathing their feet. - -“It can’t last long,” remarked Tom. “We’re all right if the lightning -doesn’t strike us.” - -“Where’s the powder?” asked Harry. - -“Oh, it’s in the flask,” replied Joe, “and I’ve got the flask in my -pocket.” - -“So, if the lightning strikes the tent, we’ll all be blown up,” -exclaimed Harry. “This is getting more and more pleasant.” - -The boys were not yet at the end of their troubles. The rain had -loosened the earth, and the tent-pins, of which only four had been -used, were no longer fit to hold the tent. So, while they were talking -about the powder, the tent suddenly blew down, upsetting the boys as it -fell, and burying them under the wet canvas. - -“Lie still, fellows,” said Tom, as the other boys tried to wriggle out -from under the tent. “We’ve got to get wet now, anyway; but perhaps, if -we stay as we are, we can manage to keep the blankets dry.” - -The wet tent felt miserably cold as it clung to their heads and -shoulders, but the boys kept under it, and held their blankets and -spare shirts wrapped tightly in their arms. Luckily the storm was -nearly at an end when the tent blew down, and a few moments later the -rain ceased, and the crew of the _Whitewing_, in a very damp condition, -crept out and congratulated themselves that they had escaped with no -worse injury than a wet skin. - -“Where are your rubber blankets?” asked Harry, presently. - -“Rolled up with the other blankets,” answered everybody. - -“It won’t do to tell when we get home,” remarked Harry, “that, instead -of using the water-proof blankets to keep ourselves dry, we used -ourselves to keep the water-proofs dry. It’s the most stupid thing -we’ve done yet; and I’m as bad as anybody else.” - -“It was a good deal worse to pitch a tent without digging a trench -around it,” said Tom. “If I’d dug a trench two inches deep just back of -that tent, not a drop of water would have run into it.” - -“And I don’t think much of the plan of using only four pins to hold a -tent down when a hurricane is coming on,” said Joe. - -“And I think the least said by a fellow who carries two pounds of -powder in his pocket in a thunder-storm the better,” added Jim. - -It took some time to bale the water out of the boat, for the rain -and the spray from the river had half-filled it. But the shower had -cooled the air, and the boys were glad to be at work again after their -confinement in the tent. They were soon ready to start; and, rowing -easily and steadily, they passed through the Highlands, and reached a -nice camping spot on the east bank of the river below Poughkeepsie, -before half-past five. - -This time they selected a place to pitch the tent with great care. It -was easy to find the high-water mark on the shore, and the tent was -pitched a little above it, so as to be safe from a disaster like that -of the previous night. Harry wanted it pitched on the top of a high -bank; but the others insisted that, as long as they were safe from the -tide, there was no need of putting the tent a long distance from the -water, and that they had selected the only spot where they could have a -bed of sand to sleep on. - -This important business being settled, supper was the next subject of -attention. - -“We haven’t been as regular about our meals as we ought to be,” -said Harry, “but it hasn’t been our fault. We’ll have a good supper -to-night, at any rate. How would you like some hot turtle-soup?” - -“Just the thing,” said Joe. “The bread is beginning to get a little -dry; but we can soak it in the soup.” - -“About going for milk,” continued Harry; “we ought to arrange that and -the other regular duties. Suppose after this we take regular turns. -One fellow can pitch the tent, another can go for milk, another can -get the firewood, and the other can cook. We can arrange it according -to alphabetical order. For instance, Tom Schuyler pitches the tent -to-night; Jim Sharpe goes for milk, Joe gets the firewood, and I cook. -The next time we camp, Jim will pitch the tent, Joe will get the milk, -I will get the wood, and Tom will cook. Is that fair?” - -The boys said it was, and they agreed to adopt Harry’s proposal. Jim -went off with the milk-pail, and when the fire was ready, Harry took a -can of soup and put it on the coals to be heated. - -Jim found a house quite near at hand, where he bought two quarts of -milk and a loaf of bread, and was back again at the camp before the -soup was ready. He found the boys lying near the fire, waiting for the -soup to heat and the coffee to boil. - -“That soup takes a long time to heat through,” said Tom. “There isn’t a -bit of steam coming out of it yet.” - -“How can any steam come out of it when it’s soldered up tight,” replied -Harry. - -[Illustration: THE SOUP EXPLOSION.] - -“You don’t mean to tell me that you’ve put the can on the fire -without punching a hole in the top?” - -“Of course I have. What on earth should I punch a hole in it for?” - -“Because--” cried Tom, hastily springing up. - -But he was interrupted by a report like that of a small cannon: a cloud -of ashes rose over the fire, and a shower of soup fell just where Tom -had been lying. - -“That’s the reason why,” resumed Tom. “The steam has burst the can, and -the soup has gone up.” - -“We’ve got another can,” said Harry, “and we’ll punch a hole in that -one. What an idiot I was not to think of its bursting! It’s a good job -that it didn’t hurt us. I should hate to have the newspapers say that -we had been blown up and awfully mangled with soup.” - -The other can of soup was safely heated, and the boys made a -comfortable supper. They drove a stake in the sand, and fastened the -boat’s painter securely to it, and then “turned in.” - -“No tide to rouse us up to-night, boys,” said Harry, as he rolled -himself in his blanket. “I sha’n’t wake up till daylight.” - -“We’d better take an early start,” remarked Tom. “We haven’t got on -very far because we started so late this morning. If we get off by six -every morning, we can lie off in the middle of the day, and start again -about three o’clock. It’s no fun rowing with the sun right overhead.” - -“Well, it isn’t more than eight o’clock now; and, if we take eight -hours’ sleep, we can turn out at four o’clock,” said Harry. “But who -is going to wake us up? Joe and Jim are sound asleep already, and I’m -awful sleepy myself. I don’t believe one of us will wake up before -seven o’clock anyway.” - -Tom made no answer, for he had dropped asleep while Harry was talking. -The latter thought he must be pretending to sleep, and was just -resolving to tell Tom that it wasn’t very polite to refuse to answer a -civil question, when he found himself muttering something about a game -of base-ball, and awoke, with a start, to discover that he could not -possibly keep awake another moment. - -The boys slept on. The moon came out and shone in at the open -tent-flap, and the tide rose to high-water mark, but not quite high -enough to reach the tent. By-and-by the wheezing of a tow-boat broke -the stillness, and occasionally a hoarse steam-whistle echoed among the -hills; but the boys slept so soundly that they would not have heard a -locomotive had it whistled its worst within a rod of the tent. - -The river had been like a mill-pond since the thunder-storm, but about -midnight a heavy swell rolled in toward the shore. It came on, growing -larger and larger, and, rushing up the little beach with a fierce roar, -dashed into the tent and overwhelmed the sleeping boys without the -slightest warning. - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - - -The wave receded as suddenly as it came. The boys sprang up in a -terrible fright, and indeed there are few men who in their place would -not have been frightened. The shock of the cold water was enough to -startle the strongest nerves, and as the boys rushed to the door of the -tent, in a blind race for life, they fully believed that their last -hour had come. Before they could get out of the tent, a second wave -swept up and rose above their knees. With wild cries of terror the two -younger boys caught hold of Tom, and, losing their footing, dragged him -down. Harry caught at Tom impulsively, with a vague idea of saving him -from drowning, but the only result of his effort was that he went down -with the rest. Fortunately the wave receded before the boys had time -to drown, and left them struggling in a heap on the wet sand. There was -no return of the water, and in a few moments the boys were outside of -the tent and on the top of the bluff above the river. - -“It must have been a tidal wave,” said Jim. “Oh, I’d give anything if I -was home! The water will come up again, and we’ll all be drowned!” - -“It was the swell of a steamboat,” said Tom. “There’s the boat now, -just going around that point.” - -“You’re right,” said Harry. “It was nothing but the swell of the -night-boat. What precious fools we were not to think of it before! -To-morrow night we’ll pitch the tent about a thousand feet above the -water.” - -“Then there’ll be a water-spout or something,” said Jim. “We’re bound -to get wet whatever we do. We only started yesterday, and here we’ve -been wet through three times.” - -“And Harry has been wet four times, counting the time he jumped in the -Harlem for me,” added Joe. - -“It won’t do to stand here and talk about it,” said Tom. “We’ve got to -have a fire or we’ll freeze to death. Look at the way Joe’s teeth are -chattering. The blankets and clothes are all wet, and the sooner we dry -them the sooner we’ll get warm.” - -[Illustration: THE BOYS BUILT A ROARING FIRE ON A LARGE FLAT ROCK.] - -There happened to be a dead tree near by, and it was soon converted -into firewood. The boys built a roaring fire on a large flat rock, and -after it had burnt for a little while they pushed it about six feet -from the place where they had started it, and, after piling fresh fuel -on it, laid down on the hot rock with their feet to the flames. The -fire had heated the rock so that they could hardly bear to touch it, -but the heat dried their wet clothes rapidly, and kept them from taking -severe colds. Meanwhile their blankets had been spread out near the -fire, and in half an hour were very nearly dry, and pretty severely -scorched. Two large logs were then rolled on the fire, and when they -were in a blaze the boys wrapped themselves in their blankets, and, -lying as near to the fire as they could without actually burning, -resumed their interrupted sleep. They found the rock rather a hard bed, -and it offered no temptation to laziness; so it happened that they were -all broad awake at half-past four; and though somewhat stiff from lying -on a rocky bed, were none the worse for their night’s adventure. - -“There’s one thing I’m going to do this very day,” said Harry, as they -were dressing themselves after their morning swim. “I’m going to write -to the Department to send us a big rubber bag, that we can put our -spare clothes in and keep them dry. There’s no fun in being wet and -having nothing dry to put on.” - -“If we have the bag sent to Albany, it will get there by the time we -do,” said Tom. “You write the letter while we are getting breakfast.” - -So Harry wrote to the Department as follows: - - “DEAR UNCLE JOHN,--We’ve been wet through with a steamboat once, - and the tide wet us the first night, and we got rained on, and I - jumped in to get Joe out, and we’ve had a gorgeous time. Please send - us a big water-proof bag to put our spare clothes in, so that we - can have something dry. Please send it to Albany, and we will stop - there at the post-office for it. Please send it right away. You said - the Department furnished everything. We’ve been dry twice since we - started, but it didn’t last long. There never was such fun. All the - boys send their love to you. Please don’t forget the bag. From your - affectionate nephew, - - “HARRY.” - -“This was the morning that you were going to sleep till eight o’clock -without waking up, Harry,” said Tom, as they were eating their -breakfast. - -“There’s nothing that will wake a fellow up so quick as the Hudson -River rolling in on him. I hadn’t expected to wake up in that way,” -answered Harry. - -“So far we have done nothing but find out how stupid we are,” said Tom. -“Seems to me we must have found it pretty near all out by this time. -There can’t be many more stupid things that we haven’t done.” - -“There won’t any accident happen to-night,” replied Harry; “for I’ll -make sure that the tent is pitched so far from the water that we can’t -be wet again. I wonder if every fellow learns to camp out by getting -into scrapes as we do. It is very certain that we won’t forget what we -learn on this cruise.” - -“I’m beginning to get tired of ham,” exclaimed Joe. “We’ve been eating -ham ever since we started. Let’s get some eggs to-day.” - -“And some raspberries,” suggested Jim. “It’s the season for them.” - -“And let’s catch some fish,” said Tom. - -“That’s what we’ll do,” said Harry. “We’ll sail till eleven o’clock, -and then we’ll go fishing and catch our dinner.” - -This suggestion pleased everybody; and when, at about six o’clock, they -set sail with a nice breeze from the south, everybody kept a lookout -for a good fishing-ground, and wondered why they had not thought of -fishing before. - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - - -The sun was getting to be rather too hot for boating when the boys saw -the half-sunken wreck of a canal-boat close to the west shore, where -there was a nice shady grove. They immediately crossed the river, and, -landing near the wreck, began to get their fishing-tackle in order. - -As there were only two poles, one of which belonged to Harry, and the -other to Tom, the two Sharpe boys were obliged either to cut poles -for themselves, or to watch the others while they fished. Jim cut a -pole for himself, but Joe preferred to lie on the bank. “I don’t care -to fish, anyhow,” he said. “I’ll agree to eat twice as much fish as -anybody else, if I can be excused from fishing.” - -“If you don’t want to fish, you’d better hunt bait for us,” said Tom. - -“I never thought about bait,” exclaimed Harry. “How are we going to dig -for worms without a spade?” - -“Who wants any worms?” replied Tom. “Grasshoppers are the thing; and -the field just back of here is full of them. Come, Joe, catch us some -grasshoppers, won’t you?” - -“How many do you want?” asked Joe. “I don’t want to waste good -grasshoppers on fellows who won’t use them. Let’s see: suppose I get -you ten grasshoppers apiece. Will that do?” - -“Are you getting lazy, Joe?” said Tom, “or are you sick? A fellow who -don’t want to fish must have something wrong in his insides. Harry, -you’d better give him some medicine.” - -“Oh, I’m all right,” replied Joe. “I’m a little sleepy to-day, but I’ll -get your grasshoppers.” - -Joe took an empty tin can and went in search of grasshoppers, while -the rest were getting their hooks and lines ready. In a short time -he returned, and handed the can to Tom. “There’s just thirty-one -grasshoppers in that can,” said he. “I threw in one for good measure. -Now go ahead and fish, and I’ll have a nap.” So saying, he stretched -himself on the ground, and the other boys began to fish. - -There were quantities of perch near the old canal-boat, and they bit -ravenously at the grasshoppers. It took only about a quarter of an hour -to catch nearly three dozen fish. These were more than the boys could -possibly eat; and Tom was just going to remark that they had better -stop fishing, when they were startled by a loud cry from Joe. Harry, in -swinging his line over his head so as to cast out a long way into the -river, had succeeded in hooking Joe in the right ear. - -[Illustration: JOE IS CAUGHT.] - -Of course Harry was extremely sorry, and he said so several times; but, -as Joe pointed out, “talk won’t pull a hook out of a fellow’s ear!” -The barb made it impracticable to draw the hook out, and it was quite -impossible that Joe should enjoy the cruise with a fish-hook in his -ear. Jim said that the hook must be cut out; but Joe objected to having -his ear cut to pieces with a dull jack-knife. In this emergency -Tom proposed to break off the shank of the hook, and then to push the -remainder of it through the ear. It was no easy matter, however, to -break the steel. Every time the hook was touched, Joe winced with pain; -but finally Tom managed to break the shank with the aid of the pair of -pliers that formed part of the stores. The hook was then gently and -firmly pressed through the ear, and carefully drawn out. - -“I knew,” said Tom, “that something must be wrong when Joe said he -didn’t want to fish. This ought to be a warning to him.” - -“It’s a warning to me,” said Harry, “not to throw my line all over the -State of New York.” - -“Oh, it’s all right now,” said Joe. “Only the next time I go cruising -with Harry, I’m going to take a pair of cutting pincers to cut off the -shanks of fish-hooks after he gets through fishing. We’d better get a -pair at Hudson, anyhow, or else we’ll all be stuck full of hooks, if -Harry does any more fishing.” - -Harry was so humbled by the result of his carelessness that he offered, -by way of penance, to clean and cook the fish. When this was done, -and the fish were served up smoking hot, they were so good that Joe -forgot his damaged ear, and Harry recovered his spirits. After a course -of fish and bread, a can of peaches was opened for dessert, and then -followed a good long rest. By three o’clock the heat began to lessen, -and the _Whitewing_ started on her way with a better breeze than she -had yet been favored with. - -The boat travelled swiftly, and the breeze gradually freshened. The -whitecaps were beginning to make their appearance on the river before -it occurred to the boys that they must cross over to the east shore, -in order to camp where they could find shade while getting breakfast -the next morning. It had been one of Uncle John’s most earnest bits -of advice that they should always have shade in the morning. “Nothing -spoils the temper,” he had said, “like cooking under a bright sun; so -make sure that you keep in the shade until after breakfast.” Harry -felt a little nervous about crossing the river in so fresh a breeze, -since, as the breeze blew from the south, the boat could not sail -directly across the river without bringing the sea on her beam. He -did not mention that he was nervous, however, and he showed excellent -judgment in crossing the river diagonally, so as to avoid exposing the -broadside of the boat to the waves, that by this time were unpleasantly -high. The east bank was thus reached without taking a drop of water -into the boat, and she was then kept on her course up the river, within -a few rods of the shore. - -This was a wise precaution in one respect; for, if the boat had -capsized, the boys could easily have swum ashore; but still it is -always risky to keep close to the shore, unless you know that there -are no rocks or snags in the way. Harry never thought of the danger of -being shipwrecked with the shore so close at hand, and was enjoying -the cooling breeze and the speed of the boat, when suddenly the -_Whitewing_ brought up with a crash that pitched everybody into the -bottom of the boat. She had struck a sunken rock, and the speed at -which she was going was so great that one of her planks was stove in. -Before the boys could pick themselves up, the water had rushed in, and -was rising rapidly. “Jump overboard, everybody!” cried Harry. “She -won’t float with us in her.” There was no time in which to pull off -shirts and trousers, and the boys plunged overboard without even taking -their hats off. They then took hold of the boat, two on each side of -her, and swam toward the shore. With so much water in her, the boat -was tremendously heavy; but the boys persevered, and finally reached -shallow water, where they could wade and drag her out on the sand. - -“Here we are wet again!” exclaimed Jim. “The blankets are wet, too, -this time.” - -“Never mind,” replied Tom. “It’s not more than five o’clock, and we can -get them dry before night.” - -“We’ll have to work pretty fast, then,” said Harry. “Jim and Joe had -better build a big fire and dry the things, while you and I empty the -boat; or I’ll empty the boat, and you can pitch the tent. We’ll have to -put off supper till we can make sure of a dry bed.” - -Harry took the things out of the boat one by one. Everything was wet -except the contents of the tin boxes, into which the water luckily had -not penetrated. As soon as the fire was built, Jim and Joe gave their -whole attention to drying the blankets and the spare clothing; and -when the boat was emptied, it was found that a hole nearly six inches -long and four inches wide had been made through one of the bottom -planks. Harry and Tom set to work to mend it. They took a piece of -canvas--which had luckily been kept in one of the tin boxes and was -quite dry--and tacked it neatly over the outside of the hole. They -next covered the canvas with a thin coating of white-lead, except at -the edges, where the white-lead was laid on very thickly. Over the -canvas the piece of zinc that had been brought for just such a purpose -was carefully tacked, and then thin strips of wood were placed over -the edges of the tin, and screwed down tightly with screws that went -through the zinc, but not through the canvas. Finally, white-lead was -put all around the outer edge of the zinc, and the boat was then left -bottom-side up on the sand, so that the white-lead could harden by -exposure to the air. - -Nobody cared to go for milk in wet clothes; and so, when the boat was -mended, the boys all sat around the fire to dry themselves, and made a -supper of crackers. What with the heat and the wind, it was not very -long before their clothes and blankets were thoroughly dried; and they -could look forward to a comfortable night. The tent was pitched where -no steamboat swell could possibly touch it, and the boat was apparently -out of reach of the tide. It was very early when the boys “turned in,” -and for the first time in the cruise they slept peacefully all night. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - - -The next morning the boys awoke early, having had a thoroughly -good night’s rest. Tom, whose turn it was to go for milk, found a -well-stocked farm-house, where he obtained not only milk, bread, and -eggs, but a supply of butter and a chicken all ready for cooking. After -breakfast the boat was put in the water, and, to the delight of all, -proved to be almost as tight as she was before running into the rock. -A little water came in at first under the edges of the zinc, but in a -short time the wood swelled, and the leak entirely ceased. - -The boat was loaded, and the boys were ready to start soon after six -o’clock. There was no wind, but the two long oars, pulled one by Tom -and the other by Jim, sent her along at a fine rate. They rowed until -ten o’clock, resting occasionally for a few moments, and then, as there -were no signs of a breeze, and as it was growing excessively hot, they -went ashore, to wait until afternoon before resuming their journey. - -The sun became hotter and hotter. The boys tried to fish, but there was -no shade near the bank of the river, and it was too hot to stand or -sit in the sunshine and wait for fish to bite. They went in swimming, -but the sun, beating on their heads, seemed hotter while they were in -the water than it did when they were on the land. Jim and Joe tried a -game of mumble-to-peg, but they gave it up long before they had reached -“ears.” It was probably the hottest day of the year; and as it was -clearly impossible to row or to do anything else while the heat lasted, -the boys brought their blankets from the boat, and, going to a grove -not far from the shore, lay down and fell asleep. - -[Illustration: MUMBLE-THE-PEG.] - -They were astonished to find, when they awoke, that it was two -o’clock. None of them had been accustomed to sleep in the daytime, and -they could not understand how it came about that they had all slept -for fully two hours. They had yet to learn that one of the results -of “camping out,” or living in the open air, is an ability to sleep -at almost any time. All animals and wild creatures, whether they are -beasts or savages, have this happy faculty of sleeping in the daytime. -It is one of the habits of our savage ancestors that comes back to us -when we abandon civilization, and live as Aryan tribes, from whom we -are descended, lived in the Far East, before they marched with their -wives and children and cattle from India, and made themselves new homes -in Europe. - -After lunch the boys prepared to start, although there was still no -wind; but when they went down to the boat they found that the sun was -as hot as ever. So they returned to the shade of the grove, and made up -their minds to stay there until the end of the afternoon. - -“Harry,” said Tom, “we’ve been on the river three days, and we are -only a little way above Hudson. How much longer will it be before we -get to Albany?” - -“We ought to get there in two days more, even if we have to row all the -way,” replied Harry. - -“And after we get to Albany, what are we to do next?” - -“We are going up the Champlain Canal to Fort Edward. There we will have -a wagon to carry us and the boat to Warrensburg, on the Schroon River, -and will go up the river to Schroon Lake. Uncle John laid out the route -for us.” - -“How many days will it take us to get to the lake?” asked Tom. - -Harry thought awhile. “There’s two days more on the Hudson, two on the -canal, and maybe two on the Schroon River. And then there’s a Sunday, -which don’t count. It’ll be just a week before we get to the lake.” - -“I’ve got to be home by two weeks from next Monday,” continued Tom, -“so I sha’n’t have much time on the lake. Can’t we get along a little -faster? There’s a full-moon to-night, and suppose we sail all night--or -row, if the wind doesn’t come up.” - -“That’s a first-rate idea,” exclaimed Harry. “We can take turns -sleeping in the bottom of the boat. Why, if the breeze comes up in the -night, we might make twenty or thirty miles before morning.” - -All the boys liked the plan of sailing at night, and they resolved to -adopt it. While they were yet discussing it, a light breeze sprang up, -from the south as usual, and they hastened to take advantage of it. In -the course of an hour more the sun began to lose its power; and when -they went ashore at six o’clock to cook their supper, they had sailed -about fifteen miles. - -As they expected to make so much progress during the night, they were -in no hurry about supper, and it was not until after seven o’clock -that they again made sail. Harry divided the crew into watches--one -consisting of himself and Joe Sharpe, and the other of Tom and Jim. -Each watch was to have charge of the boat for three hours, while the -other watch slept. At eight o’clock Tom and Jim lay down in the bottom -of the boat, and Joe came aft to take Tom’s customary place at the -sheet. Harry, of course, steered. - -All went well. The breeze was light but steady, and Harry kept the boat -in the middle of the river to avoid another shipwreck. The watch below -did not sleep much, for they had had a long nap at noon, and, besides, -the novelty of their position made them wakeful. They had just dropped -asleep when eleven o’clock arrived, and they were awakened to relieve -the other watch. Tom went sleepily to the helm, and Harry and Joe -gladly “turned in,” and were soon fast asleep. - -Tom always declares that he never closed his eyes while he was at the -helm, and Jim also asserts that he was wide awake during his entire -watch, though neither he nor Tom spoke for fear of waking up the other -boys. It was strange that these two wide-awake young Moral Pirates did -not notice that a large steamboat--one of the Albany night-boats--was -in sight, until she was within a mile of them, and it is just possible -that, without knowing it, they were a little too drowsy to keep a -proper lookout. - -As soon as Tom saw the steamboat, he remarked, “Halloo! there’s one of -the Albany boats,” and steered the boat over toward the east shore. The -breeze had nearly died away, and the _Whitewing_ moved very slowly. The -steamboat came rapidly down the river, her paddles throbbing loudly in -the night air. Jim began to get a little uneasy, and said, “I hope she -won’t run us down.” “Oh, there’s no danger!” replied Tom; “we shall get -out of her way easy enough.” But, to his dismay, the steamboat, instead -of keeping in the middle of the river, presently turned toward the east -shore, as if she were bent upon running down the _Whitewing_. Tom was -now really alarmed; and as he saw that the sail was doing very little -good, he hurriedly told Jim to take down the mast and get out the oars -as quick as possible. Jim rapidly obeyed the order, dropping the mast -on Harry’s head, and catching Joe by the nose in his search for the -oars. By this time Tom had begun to hail the steamboat at the top of -his lungs; but no attention was paid to him by the steamboat men, since -the noise of the paddles drowned Tom’s voice. Harry and Joe, who were -now wide awake, saw what danger they were in, and they sprang to the -oars. The steamboat was frightfully near, and still hugging the shore; -but Tom called on the boys to give way with their oars, and steered -straight for the shore, knowing that there must be room for the boat -between the steamboat and the bank of the river, and fearing that if he -steered in the opposite direction the steamboat might change her course -and run them down, when they would have little chance of escape by -swimming. - -It was certainly very doubtful if they could avoid the steamboat, and -Tom was well aware of it. He told the other boys that, if they were -sure to be run down, they must jump before the steamboat struck them, -and dive, so as to escape the paddles. “I’ll tell you when to jump, -if worst comes to worst,” said he; “but don’t you look around now, nor -do anything but row. Row for your lives, boys.” And the boys did row -gallantly. Harry had a pair of sculls, and Jim had a long oar, and -between them they made the boat fly through the water. As they neared -the shore, it seemed to them that there was not more than three feet -of space between the steamboat and the land; and Tom had almost made -up his mind that the cruise was coming to a sudden end, when the great -steamboat swung her head around, and drew out toward the middle of the -river. She did not seem to be more than a rod from them as she changed -her course, though in reality she was probably much farther off. At the -same moment the _Whitewing_ reached what appeared to be the shore, but -what was really a long row of piles projecting about a foot above the -water. The boys had just ceased rowing, and Tom had given the boat a -sheer with the rudder, so as to bring her along-side of the piles, when -the steamboat’s swell, which the boys, in their excitement over their -narrow escape, had totally forgotten, came rushing up, seized the boat, -and threw it over the piles into a shallow and muddy lagoon. - -It was almost miraculous that the boat was not capsized; but she was -actually lifted up and thrown over the piles, without taking more than -a few quarts of spray into her. When they saw that they were absolutely -safe, the boys began to wonder how in the world they could get the boat -back into the river, and Jim proposed to light the lantern and see if -anything was missing out of the boat, and if she had been injured. - -“Now I see why the steamboat did not notice us,” exclaimed Tom. - -“Why?” asked all the others together. - -“Because,” he replied, “we have been such everlasting idiots as to sail -at night without showing a light.” - -[Illustration: LIFTING THE BOAT OVER THE PILES.] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - - -The boat was in a shallow part of the river, between the shore and a -long row of piles that marked the steamboat channel. Harry sounded with -an oar, and found that the water was only two feet deep. “We’ll have -to get overboard and drag the boat over the piles,” said he, “and it’s -going to be a mighty hard job, too. That swell threw us over as neat as -the bull threw Joe over the fence up at Lenox last summer.” - -“When I got pitched over that fence I stayed there,” said Joe. “I -didn’t try to get back into the field where the bull was, and I don’t -see what we want to get back where the steamboats are for.” - -“That’s so,” exclaimed Harry. “We’re safe enough here. Let’s get the -water out of the boat, and keep on this side of the piles.” - -When the boat was made dry, and the lighted lantern was hoisted to the -top of the mast, Tom resumed his place at the helm, and Harry and Joe -prepared to take another nap. “I don’t want to grumble,” said Joe, “but -I wish I didn’t have to lie on the coffee-pot and a tin cup. I don’t -feel comfortable on that kind of bed.” - -“I’ll change with you if you like,” replied Harry. “I’m sleeping on a -beautiful soft bottle of oil, and some sardine boxes, but I don’t want -to be selfish and keep the best bed for myself.” - -“Oh, never mind,” returned Joe. “I’ll manage to sleep if Jim don’t step -on my face. I always did hate to have anybody step on my face when I -was asleep.” - -“Well, good-night everybody,” said Harry. “I’m going straight to sleep. -Tom, be sure you wake me up if a steamboat tries to climb over these -piles.” - -This time Tom did not fall asleep at the helm, but the wind gradually -died away, and the sail hung limp and useless. Jim got out the oars -without stepping on anybody, and rowed slowly on. In a little while -they came to the end of the shallow lagoon into which the swell had so -unexpectedly cast them. A sand-bank stretched from the shore to the -line of piles, and it was impossible to go any farther. Tom decided to -make the boat fast to the limb of a willow-tree that projected over -the water, and to go ashore and sleep on the sand. Neither he nor Jim -thought it worth while to wake the other boys; so they gathered up -their blankets, crept quietly out of the boat, and were soon asleep on -the soft, warm sand. When Harry and Joe awoke at daylight, stiff and -cramped, they were disposed to be rather indignant at Tom and Jim, who -were sleeping so comfortably on the sand; but Tom soon convinced them -that he had acted from the best of motives, and they readily forgave -him. - -Of course breakfast was the first business of the day, and after that -was finished the boat had to be entirely unloaded before she could be -lifted over the piles into the channel. For the first time since they -had started on the cruise the breeze was ahead, but it was so light -that it was of very little consequence. The sky was cloudy, and the -day promised to be a cool one; so the boys resolved to take to their -oars and try, if possible, to reach Albany before night. When the boat -was loaded, Tom and Jim each took a long oar, and Harry took his usual -seat in the stern-sheets. They all felt fresh in spite of their night’s -adventure, and started gayly on their intended long day’s row. - -By this time they had found out that, although round tin boxes were -very well to keep things dry, they are by no means handy to carry in -a boat. Their shape made it impossible to stow them compactly. Joe, -who sat at the bow, always had to pick his way over these tin boxes in -going to or coming from his station; and he was constantly catching -his foot in the spaces left between the boxes, and falling down on -them. This smashed in the covers, and tried Joe’s temper sorely. Once -he sat down so violently on the box which held the sugar, that he -went completely through the cover, and was fastened in the box as -securely as a cork in a bottle. He was only released after a great deal -of work, and just in time to enable the boys to have sugar in their -coffee at night. Harry resolved that he would never cruise again with -round boxes, but would have small rubber bags made, in which to put -everything that required to be kept dry. - -The boys took turns at the oars every hour, and rowed steadily until -noon. They gave themselves an hour for lunch and resting, and then -resumed their work. Late in the afternoon they came in sight of Albany, -and went ashore, so as to get their dinner before reaching the city. -After dinner they again pulled away at the oars, and at about nine -o’clock they stopped at a lumber-yard on the outskirts of Albany, and, -creeping in among the lumber, wrapped their blankets around them, and -dropped asleep, completely worn out, but proud of their long day’s row. - -Before sunrise the next morning, Tom was awakened by a stick which -was thrust into his ribs. Without opening his eyes, he muttered, “You -quit that, or I’ll get up and pound you!” and immediately dropped -asleep again. Somebody then kicked him so sharply that he roused -himself up, and, opening his eyes, was dazzled by the gleam of a -bull’s-eye lantern. He could not at first imagine where he was; but, -as he presently found that a big policeman had him by the collar, and -was calling him “an impudent young thief,” he began to imagine that -something was wrong. - -“I’ve got you this time,” said the policeman, “and the whole gang of -you. Where did you steal that property in your boat from, you precious -young river pirate?” - -“We’re not river pirates,” replied Tom. “We’re Moral Pirates, and we -brought those things in the boat with us from New York.” - -“Well, I like your cheek!” said the officer; “owning up that you’re -pirates. Now just you and your gang take everything out of that boat -and let me see what you’ve got. If any of you try to escape, I’ll put -a bullet into you. You hear me?” - -The other boys had been awakened by the loud voice of the policeman, -and were staring at him in utter astonishment. - -“He thinks we’re river thieves,” said Tom. “Harry, we’ll have to show -him what we’ve got in the boat, and then he’ll see his mistake.” - -Harry eagerly assured the policeman that they had come from New York -on a pleasure cruise, and had nothing in the boat except provisions -and stores. “That’s a pretty story,” said the officer. “You can tell -that to the court. Your boat’s full of junk that you’ve stolen from -somewhere; and you’d better hand it out mighty quick!” - -The boys were thus compelled to unload their boat, while the policeman -stood over them with his club in one hand and his lantern in the other. -He was not a stupid man, and he soon perceived that the boys had told -him the truth; they were not the gang of river thieves for whom he -had mistaken them. He therefore apologized, in a rough way, and even -helped the boys repack the boat. - -“What I can’t understand,” said he, “is why you boys come here and -sleep in a lumber-yard, when you might be sleeping at home in your -beds. Now if you were thieves, you couldn’t get any better lodgings, -you know; but you’re gentlemen’s sons, and you ought to know better. -Why don’t you go down to the hotel and live like gentlemen? Where’s the -fun in being arrested, and taking up my valuable time?” - -The boys assured him that they had never enjoyed themselves more than -they had while on the cruise, and after a little more talk the officer -turned slowly away. - -“By-the-bye,” he exclaimed, suddenly turning back again, “one of you -told me you were pirates. I ought to take you in after all. I believe -you’re a lot of boys that have been reading dime novels, and have run -away from home.” - -“I didn’t say we were pirates,” replied Tom. “I said we were Moral -Pirates. That’s a very different thing.” - -“Of course it is,” said Joe. “A Moral Pirate is a sort of missionary, -you know. I’m afraid you don’t go to Sunday-school, officer, or you’d -know better.” - -The policeman could not quite make up his mind whether Joe was in joke -or in earnest; but as he could find no real reason for arresting the -boys, he contented himself with telling them to leave the lumber-yard -as soon as the sun rose. “And you’d better look out,” he added, “that -you don’t come across any real river thieves. They’ll make no bones of -seizing your boat, and knocking you on the head if you make any noise.” -When he was fairly out of sight, the boys crept back to their shelter -among the lumber, and coolly went to sleep again. They were so tired -that neither policemen nor river thieves had any terrors for them. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - - -The policeman did not return, and the boys slept until an hour after -sunrise. They then rowed down the river to the steamboat landing, -where they left their boat in charge of a boatman and went to a hotel -for breakfast. The waiters were rather astonished at the tremendous -appetites displayed by the four sunburnt boys, and there is no doubt -that the landlord lost money that morning. After breakfast Harry went -to the express office, where he found a large water-proof India-rubber -bag, which the Department had sent in answer to his letter. At the -post-office were letters from home for all the boys, and a postal order -for ten dollars from Uncle John for the use of the expedition. Harry -had no idea that this money would be needed, but it subsequently proved -to be very useful. - -Quite a quantity of stores were bought at Albany, for the voyage up -the Hudson had lasted longer than any one had supposed it would, and -the provisions were getting low. No unnecessary time was spent in -buying these stores, for a fair wind was blowing, and all the boys were -anxious to take advantage of it. By ten o’clock they were again afloat; -and soon after noon they reached Troy and entered the canal. - -The canal basin was crowded with canal-boats, and to avoid accidents -the _Whitewing’s_ mast was taken down, and the oars were got out. Harry -knew that, in order to pass through the locks, it would be necessary to -pay toll, and to procure an order from the canal authorities directing -the lockmen to permit the _Whitewing_ to pass. The canal-boatmen, of -whom he made inquiries, told him where to find the office, which was -some little distance up the canal. When the office was reached, an -officer came and inspected the boat, asked a great many questions about -the cruise up the Hudson, and seemed to be very much interested in the -expedition. He told the boys that the water was low in the Champlain -Canal, and that the lockmen might not be willing to open the locks for -so small a boat; but that they could avoid all dispute by entering the -locks at the same time with some one of the many canal-boats that were -on their way north. He charged the _Whitewing_ the enormous sum of -twenty-five cents for tolls, and gave Harry an important-looking order -by which the lockmen were directed to allow the skiff _Whitewing_, -Captain Harry Wilson, to pass through all the locks on the canal. - -[Illustration: GOING THROUGH THE LOCK.] - -Thanking the pleasant officer, the boys pushed off. After they had -passed the place where the Champlain Canal branches off from the Erie -Canal, they were no longer troubled by a crowd of canal-boats, and were -able to set the sail again. Unluckily, the mast was just a little too -high to pass under the bridges, and at the first bridge which they met -they narrowly escaped a capsize--Jim succeeding in getting the mast -down only just in time to save it from striking the bridge. They had -hardly set sail again when another bridge came in sight, and they could -see just beyond it a third bridge. It would never do to stop at every -bridge and unship the mast; so Harry went on shore, borrowed a saw from -a cooper’s shop, and sawed six inches off from the top of the mast, -after which the bridges gave them no more trouble. - -The boys were very much interested in passing the first lock. They -slipped into the lock behind a big canal-boat, which left just room -enough between its rudder and the gate for the _Whitewing_. When the -lockmen shut the gate behind the boat, and opened the sluices in the -upper gate, the water rose slowly and steadily. The sides of the lock -were so steep and black that the boys felt very much as if they were at -the bottom of a well; but it was not many minutes before the water had -risen so high that the upper gates were opened, and the big canal-boat -and its little follower were released. - -Passing through a lock in a small boat, and in company with a -canal-boat, is not a perfectly safe thing to do; for if the ropes which -fasten the canal-boat should break--which they sometimes do--the water -rushing in through the sluices would force the canal-boat against the -lower gate, and crush the small boat like an egg-shell. It is therefore -best always to pass through a lock alone, or in company with other -small boats. The danger, however, is in reality very slight, and very -few accidents occur in canal locks. - -The wind died away before sunset; and the boys having had only a light -lunch, which they ate on the boat, were glad to go ashore for supper. -They bought some corn from a farmer, and roasted it before the fire, -while some nice slices of ham were frying, and the coffee-pot was -boiling, and so prepared a supper which they greatly enjoyed. The moon -came up before they had finished the meal, and they felt strongly -tempted to make another attempt at night-work. - -“I’ll tell you what we can do,” exclaimed Harry. “Instead of rowing, -let’s tow the boat. One fellow can tow while another steers, and the -rest can sleep in the boat.” - -“All right,” said Joe. “I’m willing to be a mule. Only I’d like to know -where my harness is coming from.” - -“We’ve got rope enough for that,” replied Harry. “I’ll take the first -turn, and tow for an hour, while Joe steers; then I’ll steer for an -hour, while Joe tows. Then the other watch will take charge of the boat -for two hours, and Joe and I will sleep.” - -“If I’m to sleep on the bottom of that boat,” said Joe, “I want some -nice sharp stones to sleep on. I’m tired of sleeping on coffee-pots, -and want a change.” - -A long tow-line was soon rigged on Harry’s shoulders in such a way that -it did not chafe him; a space in the bottom of the boat was cleared of -coffee-pots and other uncomfortable articles, and a pair of blankets -was spread on the bottom board, so as to make a comfortable bed, -which Tom and Jim hastened to occupy. Joe took the yoke-lines in his -hand, and called to Harry to go ahead. When Harry first tugged at the -tow-line, the boat seemed very heavy; but as soon as she was in motion, -Harry found that he could tow her as fast as he could walk, and without -any difficulty. - -Had the locks been open and the canal-boats been out of the way, the -experiment of towing the _Whitewing_ at night would have been very -successful. As it happened, the locks were kept closed during the -night, because the water was low; and the canal-boats, not being able -to pass the locks, were moored to the tow-path. These boats gave Harry -and Joe a great deal of trouble. When one of them was met, Harry had to -unharness himself and toss the rope into the boat, and Joe had to get -out an oar and scull around the obstacle. This happened so often that -Tom and Jim got very little sleep; and long before it was time for them -to resume duty, a lock was reached, and Harry had to call all hands to -drag the boat around it. - -This was a hard piece of work. First, all the heavy things had to be -taken out of the boat and carried around the lock. Then the boat had -to be dragged out of the canal on to the tow-path; hauled up a steep -ascent, and launched above the upper gate. It took a good half-hour to -pass the first of these closed locks, and when the boat was again ready -to start, it was time to change the watch. - -Tom and Jim had managed to get only a few minutes’ sleep, but Harry and -Joe could not sleep a single wink. They had not “turned in” for more -than ten minutes, when another lock was reached. This involved a second -half-hour of hard work by all hands, and twenty minutes later three -more locks close together blocked the way. It was foolish to persevere -in dragging the boat around locks all night long; so, after getting her -out of the canal on the side opposite to the tow-path, the boys dragged -her behind some bushes, where the canal-boatmen could not see her at -daylight. They then spread their rubber blankets on the ground, and -prepared to sleep through the remaining four or five hours of darkness. - -“Boys,” said Joe, suddenly, “does it hurt a fat woman to jump on her?” - -“Don’t know,” answered Harry. “What do you ask for?” - -“Oh, nothing,” said Joe. “Only when I was jumping from one canal-boat -to another while I was a mule, I landed awfully heavy on a fat woman -who was sleeping on deck.” - -“What did she do?” asked Harry. - -“She didn’t do anything. She just said ‘Go way wid you now, Pathrick,’ -as if she was half asleep and dreaming. Pathrick must be in the habit -of jumping on her.” - -“Well, if she likes it, that’s her business, not yours,” suggested -Harry. “Go to sleep, do!” - -“I am going to sleep; but I don’t think we ought to spend our nights in -getting run down by steamboats and jumping on strange fat women. I’m -sure it isn’t right. There, you needn’t throw any more shoes at me! I -won’t say another word.” - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - - -“Boys,” said Tom, as he was kindling the fire the next morning, “do you -know what day it is?” - -“Saturday, of course,” replied the others. - -“You’re wrong; it’s Sunday.” - -“It can’t be,” exclaimed Harry. - -“But it is,” persisted Tom. “Last night was the sixth night that we’ve -slept out-doors, and we started on a Monday.” - -Tom was right; but it was some time before his companions could -convince themselves that it was actually Sunday. When they finally -admitted that it was Sunday morning, they gave up the idea of -proceeding up the canal, and began to discuss what they had better do. - -The boat, which had been drawn out of the water the night before, was -concealed by a clump of bushes from the canal-boatmen. The boys decided -to leave it where it was, and to carry the tent and most of their -baggage to a grove a quarter of a mile distant, where they could pass -a quiet Sunday. The locks were not yet opened, and no canal-boats were -stirring, and the boys made their way to the grove at once while their -movements were unobserved. They were afraid that if they attracted the -attention of the boatmen to the clump of bushes some one would steal -the _Whitewing_ while her crew were absent. They had already seen -enough of the “canalers” to know that they were a wild and lawless set -of men, and they were not anxious to put the temptation of stealing a -nice boat in their way. - -The grove was a delightful place; and when they had pitched the tent -under the shadow of the great oak-trees, they were glad of the prospect -of a good day’s rest. Tom and Harry walked nearly a mile to church in -the morning, leaving the Sharpe boys to look after the camp, and they -all slept most of the afternoon. - -About dusk, as the fire for cooking supper was blazing briskly, Joe -returned from a foraging expedition, quite out of breath, and with his -milk-pail half empty. He said that he had met three tramps on the road, -which passed through the grove not very far from the camp, and that -they had snatched a pie from him that he had bought at a farm-house, -and had chased him for some distance. - -He had been badly frightened, as he frankly admitted; but the other -boys thought that it was a good joke on him. They told him that the -tramps would track him by the milk that he had spilt, and would -probably attack the camp and scalp him. They soon forgot the adventure, -however, with the exception of Tom; who, although he said nothing at -the time, poured water on the fire as soon as the supper was cooked--an -act which somewhat astonished the rest. Soon afterward he went into -the tent for a few moments, and when he returned he was beginning to -advise Joe not to laugh quite so loud, when the crackling of branches -was heard in the grove, and three very unpleasant-looking men appeared. - -It was fast growing dark, but Joe immediately recognized them as the -tramps who had stolen his pie. “We’ve come to supper,” said one of -them. “Let’s see what you’ve got. Give us the bill of fare, sonny, and -look sharp about it.” - -Tom immediately answered that they had eaten their supper, and that -there was nothing left of it but some coffee. “If you want the coffee, -take it,” said he. “There isn’t anything else for you.” - -“That ain’t a perlite way to treat three gen’lemen as come a long ways -to call on you,” said the tramp. “We’ll just have to help ourselves, -and we’ll begin by looking into your tent. P’raps you’ve got a crust of -bread there, what’ll save a poor starvin’ workin’-man from dyin’ on the -spot!” - -Tom hastily stepped before the tent. “You can’t go into this tent,” he -said, very quietly; “and you’d better leave this camp and go about your -business.” - -“Just hear him,” said the tramp, addressing his companions. “As if this -yere identical camp wasn’t our business. Now, boys,” he continued, -“you’ve got money with you, and you’ve got clothes, and one on you’s -got a watch, and you’re goin’ to give ’em to three honest hard-workin’ -men, or else you’re goin’ to have your nice little throats cut.” - -“Here, boys, quick!” cried Tom, rushing into the tent, where he was -followed by the other boys before the tramps could stop them. “Here, -Harry,” he continued, “take the boat-hook. There’s a hatchet for you, -Jim, and a stick for Joe. Now we’ll see if they can rob us!” So saying, -he stepped outside the tent with the gun in his hand, followed closely -by his little army. - -The ruffians hesitated when they saw the cool way in which Tom -confronted them. So they proposed a compromise, as they called it. -“Look a here,” said the one who had hitherto been the spokesman; “we -ain’t unreasonable, and we’ll compromise this yere business. You give -us your money and that chap’s watch, and we’ll let you alone. That’s -what I call a very handsome offer.” - -“We won’t give you a thing,” replied Tom; “and I’ll shoot the first one -of you that lays a hand on us.” - -The tramps consulted for a moment, and then the leader, with a -frightful oath, ordered Tom to drop that gun instantly. - -Tom never said a word, but he cocked both barrels and waited, with his -eye fixed on the enemy. - -Presently the tramps separated a little, the leader remaining where -he had been standing, and the others moving one to the right and the -other to the left of the boys. They evidently intended to rush on Tom -from three directions at once, and so confuse him and prevent him from -shooting. - -“I’ll take the leader and the man on the right,” whispered Tom to -Harry. “You lay for the other fellow with your boat-hook. I’ve given -you fair warning,” he continued, addressing the ruffians, “and I’ll -fire the minute you try to attack us.” - -[Illustration: THE FIGHT WITH THE TRAMPS.] - -The boys were standing close together in front of the tent, Tom -being a little in advance of the others. Suddenly the leader of the -tramps called out, “Now then!” and all three made a rush toward Tom. He -fired at the tramp in front of him, hitting him in the leg and bringing -him to the ground; but before he could fire again, the other two were -upon him. - -The boys gallantly stood by Tom. Harry attacked one of the tramps -with the boat-hook so fiercely that the fellow cried out that he was -stabbed, and ran away. Meanwhile Tom was struggling with the third -tramp, who had thrown him down, and was trying to wrench the gun from -him, while Jim and Joe were hovering around them afraid to strike at -the tramp for fear of hitting Tom. But now Harry, having driven off his -antagonist, flew to the help of Tom, and seizing the tramp by his hair, -and bracing one knee against his back, dragged him backward to the -ground, and held him there until Tom regained his feet, and, holding -the muzzle of the gun at the robber’s head, called on him to surrender, -which the fellow gladly did. - -“Get some rope, Jim, and tie him!” cried Tom. “Hold on to his hair, -Harry, and I’ll blow his brains out if he offers to move.” - -The tramp was not at all anxious to part with his brains, and he -remained perfectly quiet while Jim and Joe tied his feet together, and -his hands behind his back. - -“Now you stand over him with the boat-hook, Harry,” said Tom, “and I’ll -see to the other fellow.” - -The other fellow was, of course, the man who had been shot. Tom lighted -the lantern, for it was now quite dark, and found that the ruffian had -been shot in the lower part of his right leg, and had fainted from loss -of blood. Taking a towel, Tom tore it into strips, and bound up the -wound, and by the time he had finished the patient became conscious -again, and begged Tom not to take him to prison. - -Now this was precisely what the boys did not want to do, as it would -probably delay them for several days, and perhaps put an end to their -cruise. Tom therefore said to the prisoner, whom Harry was guarding, -that if he would promise to help the wounded man away, and take him -to see a doctor, he would be released. The tramp gladly accepted the -offer, and Harry unfastened the rope from his legs and arms, while Tom -kept his gun in readiness to use it at the first sign of treachery. -The tramps, however, had quite enough of fighting, and were only too -anxious to get away. The wounded man was helped to his feet by his -companion, and the two went slowly off, one half carrying the other, -and both cursing the coward who had run away. As they hobbled off, Tom -called out, “I’m sorry I had to hurt you, but I couldn’t help it, you -know; and if any of you come back here to-night, you’ll find us ready -for you.” - -It was a long time before the boys fell asleep that night, and Tom was -overwhelmed with praise for his coolness and bravery. Though he felt -certain that the tramps would not return, he proposed that a sentinel -should keep guard outside the tent, offering to share that duty with -Harry, since the other boys were not familiar with guns. So all night -long Tom and Harry, relieving one another every two hours, marched up -and down in front of the tent, keeping a sharp watch for robbers, and -preparing for a desperate fight every time they heard the slightest -noise. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - - -Though no tramps appeared during the night, the sentinels proved to be -useful; for as soon as the day began to dawn, Harry, who was on sentry -duty, called his comrades, and thus they were enabled to get breakfast -early, and to start before six o’clock. They had to wait half an hour -for the first lock to be opened, but after that they had no difficulty -in passing through the other locks. They rowed steadily, taking turns -at the oars, and occasionally fastening the boat to the stern of a -canal-boat, which would tow them while they took a short rest. Early -in the afternoon they reached Fort Edward, where they disembarked; and -Harry and Tom went in search of a team, which they hired to carry them -to Warrensburg, on the Schroon branch of the Hudson. - -When the teamster drove down to the bank of the canal, Tom and the -Sharpe boys began to unload the boat. Harry stopped them. “There isn’t -any use in taking the things out of the boat,” said he. “We can draw -her out of the canal and put her on the wagon just as she is.” - -“Her stern will dip under when we haul her bow out,” said Tom. - -“No it won’t,” replied Harry. - -“Let’s take the things out of the stern-sheets, anyhow,” urged Tom. -“All our shoes are there, and we can’t afford to lose them.” - -“Nothing will happen to them,” answered Harry, confidently. “It’s my -boat, and I’m going to haul her out with the things in her.” - -Tom said no more, but took hold of the bow of the boat with the others, -and they began to pull her out of the water. As Tom had prophesied, -when she was about half-way out her stern dipped under, the water -poured in, and nearly everything in the after-part of the boat floated -out. The harm was done now, so the boys hastily dragged the boat up -the bank, and then began to lament their losses. - -There was not a shoe left, except the shoes that Harry and Tom had put -on when they went in search of the team. The mast and sail and two oars -were floating on the water, and a quantity of small articles, including -the tin frying-pans and a tin pail, had shared the fate of the shoes, -and were lying at the bottom of the canal. - -“It was my fault,” said Harry; “and I beg everybody’s pardon. I’ll -strip and duck for the things till I find them.” So saying, he threw -off his clothes and sprang into the canal. Joe, who was, next to Harry, -the best swimmer of the party, followed his example; and a number of -the villagers and “canalers” collected on the tow-path to watch the -divers. - -The canal was not more than eight feet deep, but the bottom was very -muddy, and the boys had to feel about in the mud with their feet for -the lost articles. They were very fortunate, and before long succeeded -in recovering all the shoes, except one of Joe’s, and several other -things. Meanwhile three women and half a dozen girls, all of whom lived -on board the fleet of canal-boats that were lying near by, joined the -spectators, and seemed to think that the whole business was a capital -joke. Harry and Joe were now anxious to come out of the water; but they -could not come ashore while the women and girls were there, so they -swam some distance up the canal, and crept out behind a barn. - -Meanwhile Tom and Jim were busily bailing out the boat, and arranging -the wet things so that the sun could dry them. They were so busy that -they forgot all about Harry and Joe. Presently Tom said, “Hark! I think -I hear somebody calling.” - -They listened, and presently they heard a voice in the distance -calling, “Tom! Jim! boys! somebody! Bring us our clothes!” - -“It’s Harry and Joe,” exclaimed Tom. “Where on earth are they?” - -[Illustration: HARRY AND JOE IN A TRAP.] - -They looked up the canal, and finally discovered a naked arm waving -frantically from behind a barn that stood near the water. “They -must be behind that barn,” said Tom. “Why, the mosquitoes will eat ’em -alive! I’ll take their clothes to them right away.” So saying, Tom -gathered up the shirts, trousers, and hats of the two unhappy divers, -and ran with them to their owners. He found Harry and Joe crouched -behind the barn, chattering with cold and surrounded by clouds of -eager mosquitoes. “We’ve been here half an hour,” cried Joe, “and the -mosquitoes would have finished us in another half-hour. I think my -right leg is nearly gone already.” - -“And I know I must have lost a gallon of blood,” said Harry. - -“But why on earth did you come here?” asked Tom. - -“Because the canal is just lined with women and girls,” replied Joe. -“They think it’s a circus; but I’m not going to do circus-acting -without tights.” - -The boys hurriedly dressed themselves, and returning to the boat helped -to put it on the wagon; and with the wet shoes hanging from the -cart-rungs they started on their ride to Warrensburg. It was a hot and -tedious ride, and as the wagon had no springs, the boys were bumped so -terribly that they ached all over. They tried to sing, but the words -were bumped out of them in the most startling way; and after singing -one verse of the Star-spangled Banner in this fashion, - - “The St-t-tar-spangl-led-led ba-a-an-na-na--” - -they gave it up. - -About four o’clock they reached Warrensburg, and after getting some -dry sugar to replace that which had been mixed with canal water, they -launched the boat, and rowed up the river. They found it a narrow -stream, with a rapid current and a good depth of water. After their -tiresome ride the smooth motion of the boat seemed delightful, and they -were really sorry when they found it was so late that they must camp -for the night. - -They chose a pleasant sandy spot between the river and the edge of a -thick wood. The opposite bank was also thickly wooded, and they felt as -if they were in the depths of a wilderness; though, in reality, there -were houses quite near at hand. They pitched their tent, made a good -supper--of which they were in need, for they had eaten very little at -noon--and then “turned in.” - -For some reason--perhaps because the mosquitoes had so cruelly -maltreated him--Joe was not sleepy; and after having lain awake a long -time while the other boys were sleeping soundly, he began to feel -lonesome. He heard a great many mysterious noises, as any one who lies -awake in a tent always does. The melancholy call of the loon sounded -ghostly, and the sighing of the wind in the trees seemed to him like -the breathing of huge animals. After awhile he found himself getting -nervous as well as lonesome, and imagined that he saw shadows of -strange objects passing in front of the tent. By-and-by he distinctly -heard the twigs and branches crackling, as somebody or something moved -through the woods. The noise came nearer, and suddenly it flashed upon -Joe that a bear was approaching the tent. He crept carefully to the -opening of the tent, and putting his head out, saw indistinctly a large -animal moving slowly in the shadow of the bushes only three or four -rods from the tent. - -Joe lost no time in waking up the other boys, cautioning them as he did -so not to make the least noise. “There’s a bear close by the tent,” he -whispered. “I’ve been listening to him for a long while, and just now I -saw him.” - -Harry immediately grasped the gun, both barrels of which he had loaded -before going to sleep. Tom wished that he had the hatchet, but as it -had been left in the boat, he had no weapon but his penknife. Thus -armed, the two crept stealthily out of the tent to fight the bear, -leaving Joe and Jim in a very unhappy state of mind, with nothing to -defend themselves against the bear, in case he should attack the tent, -except a tooth-brush and a lantern. - -The outline of the animal could be seen, but Tom and Harry could not -make out which end of it was its head. “You must shoot him just behind -the shoulder,” whispered Tom. “That’s the only spot where you can kill -a bear.” Harry said nothing, but watched carefully to see the animal -move. Presently it threw up either its head or tail--the boys could -not tell which--and started toward the tent. Harry forgot all about -shooting at the shoulder, but in his excitement fired at the animal -generally, without picking out any particular spot in which to plant -his shot. - -The effect of the shot was surprising. The bear set up a tremendous -bellow, and by the flash of the gun the boys saw their dreaded enemy -galloping away, with its horns and tail in the air. Tom burst into a -loud laugh. “Come out, Joe,” he cried. “Your bear’s gone home to be -milked--that is, if Harry hasn’t mortally wounded her.” - -Fortunately, Harry had made a miss; and he found his whole charge -of shot the next morning in the trunk of a big white birch-tree. -The innocent cow that Joe had mistaken for a bear was, however, so -thoroughly frightened that she did not come near the camp again. - -“I stick to it that it was a bear!” said Joe, as the boys were wrapping -themselves in their blankets. “Cows go to roost at sunset. Suppose it -did bellow: how do you know that bears don’t bellow when they are shot?” - -“How about the horns, Joe?” asked Tom. - -“There’s horned owls--why shouldn’t there be horned bears? Anyway, I -believe it was a bear, and I shall stick to it.” And to this day Joe -believes--or thinks he does--that he had a very narrow escape from a -ferocious bear on the banks of the Schroon. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - - -The cruise up the Schroon was a delightful one while it lasted. The -river was so narrow that the trees on either side frequently met, -forming a green and shady arch. Although there was a road not far -from the river, and there were houses and small villages at a little -distance from its banks, the boys while in their boat saw nothing -but the water, the trees, and the sky, and felt as far removed from -civilization as if they were sailing on an African river. They saw -nothing to shoot, after their adventure with Joe’s bear, and there -were no signs of fish in the water; but they delighted in the wild and -solitary river, and were very much disappointed when, at the close of -the day, they reached a dam so high that it seemed hopeless to try to -carry the boat around it. - -Before camping they walked some distance above the dam, and found that -the river was completely blocked up with logs, which had been cut in -the forest above and floated down to the saw-mill. The men at the mill -said that the boys would find the river choked with logs for a distance -of nearly three miles, and that a little farther up it became a mere -brook, too shallow and rapid to be navigated with the _Whitewing_. - -It was clear that the cruise on the Schroon had come to an end, and -that it would be necessary to hire a wagon to take the boat to the -lake. Having reached this decision, the boys made their camp; and being -very tired, put off engaging a team until morning. - -When morning came, one of the men at the mill came to see them while -they were at breakfast, and advised them not to go to Schroon Lake. He -said that the lake was full of houses--by which he meant that there -were a great many houses along its banks--and that if they were to go -there they would find neither shooting nor fishing. He urged them to -go to another lake which they had never heard of before--Brandt Lake. -It was no farther off than Schroon Lake, and was full of fish. Besides, -it was a wild mountain lake, with only two or three houses near it. The -boys thanked him, and gladly accepted his advice. They had supposed -that Schroon Lake was in the wilderness, and were exceedingly glad -to find out their mistake in time to select a more attractive place. -The owner of the saw-mill furnished them with a wagon, and soon after -breakfast they started for Brandt Lake. - -When, after a pleasant ride, they came in sight of the lake, they were -overjoyed to find how wild and beautiful it was. Steep and thickly -wooded hills surrounded it, except at the extreme southern point, -where they launched their boat. It was not more than two miles wide at -the widest part, and was about five miles in length, and they could -see but two houses--one on the east, and the other on the west shore. -They eagerly hoisted the sail, and started up the lake to search -for a permanent camping-ground; and, after spending the afternoon in -examining almost the entire line of shore, they selected a little rocky -island in the upper part of the lake, which seemed made for their -purpose. - -There was a great deal of work to be done, for they intended to stay at -Brandt Lake for a fortnight. They had to clear away the underbrush, and -cut down several small trees to make room for the tent. Then a small -landing-place had to be built of stones and logs, so that the boat -could approach the island without striking on the sharp rocks which -surrounded it. Then the stores were all to be taken out of the boat, -and placed where they would be dry and easy of access. The provisions -had by this time become nearly exhausted; but the boys had been told -that they could get milk, eggs, butter, bread, and vegetables at one of -the houses which was not more than a mile from the camp, so they were -not troubled to find that of their canned provisions nothing was left -except a can of peaches. - -Of course all this work was not done in one day. On the afternoon of -their arrival at the lake the boys merely pitched the tent, and then -went fishing with a view to supper. Fishing with drop-lines from a -large rock at one end of their little island, they caught perch as -fast as they could pull them in, good-sized pickerel, and two or -three cat-fish. That night they ate a supper that would have made a -boarding-house keeper weep tears of despair, and went to bed rather -happier than they had ever felt before. - -Tom was to row over to the house for milk and other provisions in -the morning; but when morning came the boat was gone. She had broken -loose during the night, not having been properly fastened, and had -floated quietly away. A faint speck was visible on the surface of the -lake about two miles away, which Harry, who had remarkably good eyes, -said was the _Whitewing_. Whether he was right or wrong, it was quite -certain that the boys were imprisoned on the island, with nothing to -eat but a can of peaches and some coffee and sugar. - -The fish, however, were waiting to be caught, and before very long a -breakfast of fish and of coffee without milk was ready. The boys then -began to discuss the important question of how they were to get back -their boat, or to get away from the island. - -It was a mile to the shore, and nobody felt able to swim that distance. -Joe proposed that they fasten one of their shirts to a tall tree, as a -signal of distress, and then fire the gun every minute. The objection -to this plan was that the nearest house was out of sight behind a -little point of land, and that no one would see the signal, or would -understand why the gun was fired. Then Tom proposed to build a raft, -on which two boys could paddle after the runaway boat. This was a -practicable suggestion, and it was at once put into execution. - -[Illustration: HARRY SETS OUT IN PURSUIT OF THE BOAT.] - -It was hard work to cut down timber enough to build a raft, but by -perseverance the raft was finished before noon. It consisted of -four logs laid side by side, and bound together with handkerchiefs, -shoe-strings, green twigs, and a few strips from one of Harry’s -shirts, which he said was unnecessarily long. It was covered with two -or three pieces of flat driftwood; and when it was finished a piece of -board was found which was shaped with the hatchet into a rude paddle. -Then Tom and Harry proceeded to embark. - -The raft floated Harry very well, but promptly sank when Tom also -stepped on it. Either more timber must be added to it, or one boy must -go alone in search of the boat. Harry insisted upon going at once, and -as the lake was perfectly smooth, and he could swim well, there did not -seem to be great risk in his making the voyage alone. Bidding the boys -good-bye, he paddled slowly away, and left his comrades to anxiously -wait for his return. - -It was ticklish work paddling the raft. The logs were fastened together -so insecurely, owing to the fact that all the rope was in the runaway -boat, that Harry was in constant fear that they would come apart, and -was obliged to paddle very carefully to avoid putting any strain on -the raft. With such a craft speed was out of the question; and after -an hour of hard work the raft was only half-way between the island and -the boat. Harry was not easily discouraged, however, and he paddled on, -knowing that if nothing happened he must reach the boat in course of -time. - -Something did happen. When, after paddling for more than two hours, the -_Whitewing_ was rather less than a quarter of a mile from the raft, -Harry missed a stroke with his paddle, and tumbled over. He struck the -raft with his shoulder, and went through it as easily as if it had been -fastened together with paper. When he came to the surface again he -found that the raft had separated into its original logs, and that his -voyage on it was ended. Luckily the _Whitewing_ was now within swimming -distance, so he struck out for her, and finally crept into her over the -stern, so much exhausted that he had to lie down and rest before taking -to the oars. Had the raft gone to pieces half an hour sooner he would -have been in a dangerous position; for it is doubtful if he could have -clung to one of the logs long enough to drift to the shore without -becoming totally exhausted. - -The boys on the island did not witness the end of Harry’s raft, for it -was too far away when the accident occurred for them to see anything -but a little black dot on the water. They became, however, very -anxious about him as the hours went by and he did not come back. Tom -was especially uneasy, and blamed himself for permitting Harry to go -alone. He thought of making another raft and going in search of Harry; -but there were no more strings with which to fasten logs together, -and he did not quite like to tear up his clothes and use them for -that purpose. He did, however, resolve that, if Harry did not come in -sight within another hour, he would take a small log and, putting it -under his arms, try to swim to the main-land and borrow a boat, if one -could be found, in which to search for his comrade. He was spared this -hazardous experiment; for toward the end of the afternoon Harry and -the _Whitewing_ came in sight, and were welcomed with a tremendous -cheer. - -Tom took the boat and went for provisions, and when he returned -the _Whitewing_ was not only dragged on shore, but fastened to two -different trees with two distinct ropes. The boys were determined that -she should not escape again; and when Joe proposed that somebody should -sit up with her all night, so that she could not cut the ropes and run -away, Tom seriously considered the proposal. The next day a snug little -dock was built, in which she seemed quite contented, and from which she -could not escape without climbing over a stone breakwater--a feat of -which there was no reason to believe that she was capable. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - - -The boys had been on their island for more than a week when they -resolved to make an excursion to Schroon, which was the nearest -village, in order to get some sugar, coffee, and other necessaries. -Schroon Lake, or rather the lower end of it, was not more than five -miles from Brandt Lake; but there was a range of high hills between the -two, and the village of Schroon was situated at the head of the lake, -which was nearly ten miles in length. A long and tiresome journey was, -therefore, before them, and they ought to have started early in the -morning; but they did not start until nearly eleven o’clock. Harry, -Tom, and Joe were to go to Schroon together, and Jim was to stay at the -island until six o’clock, when he was to row over to the west shore -and bring the others back to the camp. - -[Illustration: BIDDING JIM GOOD-BYE.] - -When they bade good-bye to Jim, the three other boys assured him that -they would certainly be back as early as six o’clock, and warned him -not to fail to meet them with the boat. They then started to cross -the hills, following a foot-path, that was so little used that it -was hardly visible. Unfortunately the path led through a thicket of -raspberry bushes, and the fruit was so tempting that the boys lost a -good deal of time by stopping to gather it. After a tiresome tramp -under the mid-day sun they reached the lower end of Schroon Lake, where -they hired a crank little row-boat, and rowed up to Schroon. There was -a fresh northerly breeze which delayed them; and the spray from the bow -of the boat sprinkled them, so that they were uncomfortably wet when -they reached the village. By this time they were very hungry as well -as tired, and so they went to the hotel for dinner. It was half-past -six o’clock when they started to row down the lake, and several men -who saw them warned them that they were running a good deal of risk in -attempting to return at so late an hour. - -The trip down the lake was certainly a rather foolhardy one; for there -was a good deal of wind and sea, and long before they reached the -landing-place it was quite dark. But the boys were anxious to get back -to their camp, and for the first time during the cruise they acted -somewhat recklessly. However, they met with no accident; and when they -had returned the boat to its owner, they set out to cross the hills. - -The path was not easy to find in the daylight, and it was next to -impossible to find it in the night. A dozen times the boys lost -themselves, and were compelled to depend entirely upon the stars to -direct their course. The woods had been all cleared away for a space -of a mile or a mile and a half wide between the two lakes, except just -along the shore of Brandt Lake; so that it was not absolutely necessary -for them to keep in the path, as it would have been had they been -passing through a thick forest. Still it was not pleasant to lose the -path, and stumble over stones and stumps, and of course it made the -journey longer. They must have walked at least seven or eight miles on -their way back before they finally reached their own lake at midnight, -at the point where they expected to find Jim waiting for them. - -Neither Jim nor the boat was there. He had waited until ten o’clock, -and then, making up his mind that they had decided to spend the night -at Schroon, he rowed back to the island, and went calmly to bed. An -hour later a dense fog settled over the lake; and when the tired boys -reached the shore they could see but a few yards in front of their eyes. - -It was a terrible disappointment, but Harry tried to be cheerful. “We -shall have to stay here to-night, boys,” said he; “but we will build a -good fire and keep warm.” Tom said that he thought that was the best -thing to do, for without a fire they would suffer severely from the -cold, wet fog, and he asked Harry if he had any matches. Harry had -none, Joe had none, and Tom had none; so the plan of building a fire -came to nothing. - -The cold gradually chilled them as they stood talking over their -adventure, and their teeth began to chatter. Joe said he wished he -could get hold of Jim for about five minutes, so that he could warm -himself up by convincing him that he ought not to have taken the -boat back to the island. Harry said nothing; but he was wondering -whether he would freeze to death in the fog, and tried to remember how -travellers overtaken by the snow on the Alps contrive to fight off the -terrible drowsiness that steals over them when they are freezing. Tom -was more practical. He did not expect to freeze in July, although he -was miserably cold; and he did not want to punish Jim for a mistake -of judgment. He knew that the house where they were accustomed to get -milk was not far off, and that a boat usually lay on the shore near -the house; so he proposed to Harry and Joe to borrow the boat and make -their way into the camp. - -“If we go to that house at this time of night, we shall get shot,” -remarked Harry. “The man is an ugly-tempered chap, and I heard him say -the other day that if he ever heard anything prowling around the house -at night, he always fired at it.” - -“Then we won’t ask him for his boat: we’ll borrow it without leave, and -Jim can bring it back in the morning,” replied Tom. - -“This is nice conduct for Moral Pirates,” said Joe. “Capturing a vessel -at night is real piracy, and when Jim takes the boat back the man -will be sure to shoot him. I’m sorry for Jim; but I hope it will be -a warning to him not to leave his friends in such a fix that they’ve -either got to borrow a boat without leave, or freeze.” - -They made their way stealthily and with great difficulty to the place -where the boat lay. It was high and dry on the beach, and though the -fog hid the house where the owner of the boat lived, the boys knew that -it was very near. They launched the boat with the utmost caution, lest -any noise should awaken the bad-tempered man with the shotgun. They -had it almost launched, when Harry’s foot slipped on a wet stone, and -he fell with a dismal crash, clinging to the boat, and dragging Tom and -Joe down with him. - -It was very certain that if anything could wake the owner of the boat, -he must be awake by this time; so the boys sprang up, and shoving -the boat into the water regardless of the noise, seized the oars, -and rowed away into the fog. When they had gained what they thought -a safe distance from the shore they ceased rowing, and congratulated -themselves that they were all right at last. To be sure, Harry had -scraped his ankle badly; Tom had forgotten the coffee, and left it on -the shore; and Joe had put the sugar in the bottom of the leaky boat, -where it was rapidly dissolving into sirup; but they were once more -afloat, and expected to reach their comfortable camp within the next -twenty minutes. - -There was not a particle of air stirring, and not a star was visible, -so they had absolutely nothing to steer by. They could not even hear -the sound of the water which ordinarily lapped the shore. Still they -were not discouraged. Harry thought he knew which way the camp lay, and -so he and Tom rowed in what they imagined was the right direction. - -They rowed for two hours without finding the island, and without -reaching the shore. They could not understand it. The lake seemed to -have grown in the night, and to have reached the size of Lake Ontario. -They knew that by daylight they could row across it at its widest part -in less than an hour, but now it seemed impossible to find any shore. -Joe had just suggested that they had made a mistake in coming back from -Schroon, and had walked all the way to Lake Champlain, on which they -were now rowing, when the bow of the boat struck the shore. - -It was some consolation to know that the lake actually had a shore; -but they could not tell what part of the shore they had reached. They -pushed off again, and resumed their hopeless search for the camp. A -new trouble now harassed them. From seeming to have no shore at all, -the lake now seemed to have shrunk to a mere mud-puddle. No matter -in what direction they rowed, they would strike the shore within ten -minutes, and always at a different place. Joe said that he had never -dreamed that so much shore and so little lake could be put together. - -Toward morning Harry and Tom became too tired to row, and they lay down -in the bottom of the wet boat, and tried to keep warm by lying close -to each other. Joe took the oars, and tried to row without hitting the -shore; but he had hardly dipped his oars when the bow grated on the -pebbles. He promptly gave up the attempt, and making the boat fast to a -tree, joined Tom and Harry, and shared their misery. - -They were much too cold and wretched to sleep, but they managed to -keep from growing positively stiff with cold. The sun rose, but it -did not for a long time make any impression on the fog. All at once, -about seven o’clock, the fog vanished; and the boys found themselves -in a little bay near the extreme northerly part of the lake. They had -been rowing across this little bay, first in one direction and then -in another, during all those miserable hours when they found such an -unaccountable quantity of shore. - -Of course they rowed down to the camp, where they found Jim still -sleeping soundly, with a contented, happy look that was awfully -exasperating. They woke him up, and scolded him with all the strength -they had left, and then, putting on dry clothes, “turned in,” and slept -all day. Jim towed the borrowed boat back, but was not shot; and the -boys afterward said that, on the whole, they were rather glad that he -still lived, and that they would mercifully forgive him. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - - -There was only one fault to be found with Brandt Lake; there was hardly -anything to shoot in its vicinity. Occasionally a deer could be found; -but at the season of the year when the boys were at the lake it was -contrary to law to kill deer. It was known that there were bears in -that part of the country as well as lynxes--or catamounts, as they -are generally called; but they were so scarce that no one thought of -hunting them. Harry did succeed in shooting three pigeons and a quail, -and Tom shot a gray squirrel; but the bears, deer, catamounts, and -ducks that they had expected to shoot did not show themselves. - -On the other hand, they had any quantity of fishing. Perch and cat-fish -swarmed all around the island; and large pickerel, some of them -weighing six or eight pounds, could be caught by trolling. Two miles -farther north was another lake that was full of trout, and the boys -visited it several times, and found out how delicious a trout is when -it is cooked within half an hour after it is taken out of the water. -In fact they lived principally upon fish, and became so dainty that -they would not condescend to cook any but the choicest trout, and the -plumpest cat-fish and pickerel. - -It must be confessed that there was a good deal of monotony in their -daily life. In the morning somebody went for milk, after which -breakfast was cooked and eaten. Then one of the boys would take the gun -and tramp through the woods in the hope of finding something to shoot, -while the others would either go fishing or lie in the shade. Once -they devoted a whole day to circumnavigating the lake in the boat, and -another day a long rain-storm kept them inside of the tent most of the -time. With these exceptions one day was remarkably like another; and at -the end of two weeks they began to grow a little tired of camping, and -to remember that there were ways of enjoying themselves at home. - -Their final departure from their island camp was caused by an accident. -They had decided to row to the southern end of the lake and engage -a team to meet them the following week and to carry them to Glenn’s -Falls, where they intended to ship the boat on board a canal-boat bound -for New York, and to return home by rail. To avoid the heat of the sun, -they started down the lake immediately after breakfast, and forgot to -put out the fire before they left the island. - -After they had rowed at least a mile, Tom, who sat facing the stern, -noticed a light wreath of smoke rising from the island, and remarked, -“Our fire is burning yet. We ought not to have gone off and left it.” - -Harry looked back, and saw that the cloud of smoke was rapidly -increasing. - -“It’s not the fire that’s making all that smoke!” he exclaimed. - -“What is it, then?” asked Tom. - -“Perhaps it’s water,” said Joe. “I always thought that where there was -smoke there must be fire; but Harry says it isn’t fire.” - -“I mean,” continued Harry, “that we didn’t leave fire enough to make so -much smoke. It must have spread and caught something.” - -“Caught the tent, most likely,” said Tom. “Let’s row back right away -and put it out.” - -“What’s the use?” interrupted Jim. “That tent is as dry as tinder, and -will burn up before we can get half-way there.” - -“We must get back as soon as we can,” cried Harry. “All our things are -in the tent. Row your best, boys, and we may save them yet.” - -The boat was quickly turned, and headed toward the camp. The fire was -rapidly increasing, and it was apparent that the dry underbrush must -have caught; in which case the fire would soon fasten on the trees, and -sweep over the whole of the little island. - -[Illustration: THE EXPLOSION IN CAMP.] - -“There’s one reason why I’m not particularly anxious to help put that -fire out,” Joe remarked, as they approached the island, and could see -that a really alarming fire was in progress. - -“What’s that?” asked Harry. - -“As near as I can calculate, there must be about two pounds--” - -He was interrupted by a loud report from the island, and a shower of -pebbles, sticks, and small articles--among which a shoe and a tin pail -were recognized--shot into the air. - ---“Of powder,” Joe continued, “in the flask. I thought it would blow -up, and now that it’s all gone I don’t mind landing on the island.” - -“Everything must be ruined!” exclaimed Jim. - -“Lucky for us that we put on our shoes this morning,” Tom remarked, as -he rowed steadily on. “That must have been one of my other pair that -just went up. I remember I put them in the corner of the tent close by -the powder.” - -When they reached the island they could not at first land, on account -of the heat of the flames; but they could plainly see that the tent and -everything in it had been totally destroyed. After waiting for half an -hour the fire burnt itself out, so that they could approach their dock -and land on the smoking ash heap that an hour before had been such a -beautiful, shady spot. There was hardly anything left that was of any -use. A tin pan, a fork, and the hatchet were found uninjured; but all -their clothing and other stores were either burnt to ashes or so badly -scorched as to be useless. Quite overwhelmed by their disaster, the -boys sat down and looked at one another. - -“We’ve got to go home now, whether we want to or not,” Harry said, as -he poked the ashes idly with a stick. - -“Well, we meant to go home in a few days anyway,” said Tom; “so the -fire hasn’t got very much the better of us.” - -“But I hate to have everything spoiled, and to have to go in this sort -of way. Our tin pans and fishing-tackle aren’t worth much, but all our -spare clothes have gone.” - -“You’ve got your uncle’s gun in the boat, so that’s all right,” -suggested Tom, encouragingly. “As long as the gun and the boat are -safe, we needn’t mind about a few flannel shirts and things.” - -“But it’s such a pity to be driven away when we were having such a -lovely time,” continued Harry. - -“That’s rubbish, Harry,” said Joe. “We were all beginning to get tired -of camping out. I think it’s jolly to have the cruise end this way, -with a lot of fireworks. It’s like the transformation scene at the -theatre. Besides, it saves us the trouble of carrying a whole lot of -things back with us.” - -“The thing to do now,” remarked Tom, “is to row right down to the -outlet, and get a team to take us to Glenn’s Falls this afternoon. We -can’t sleep here, unless we build a hut, and then we wouldn’t have a -blanket to cover us. Don’t let’s waste any more time talking about it.” - -“That’s so! Take your places in the boat, boys, and we’ll start for -home.” So saying, Harry led the way to the boat, and in a few moments -the _Whitewing_ was homeward bound. - -The boys were lucky enough to find a man who engaged to take them to -Glenn’s Falls in time to catch the afternoon train for Albany. They -stopped at the Falls only long enough to see the _Whitewing_ safely -on board a canal-boat, and they reached Albany in time to go down the -river on the night-boat. - -After a supper that filled the colored waiters with astonishment and -horror, the boys selected arm-chairs on the forward deck, and began -to talk over the cruise. They all agreed that they had had a splendid -time, in spite of hard work and frequent wettings. - -“We’ll go on another cruise next summer, sure,” said Harry. “Where -shall we go?” - -Tom was the first to reply. Said he, “I’ve been thinking that we can do -better than we did this time.” - -“How so?” asked the other boys. - -“The _Whitewing_ is an awfully nice boat,” Tom continued, “but she is -too small. We ought to have a boat that we can sleep in comfortably, -and without getting wet every night.” - -“But, then,” Harry suggested, “you couldn’t drag a bigger boat round a -dam.” - -“We can’t drag the _Whitewing_ round much of a dam. She’s too big to be -handled on land, and too little to be comfortable. Now, here’s my plan.” - -“Let’s have it,” cried the other boys. - -“We can hire a cat-boat about twenty feet long, and she’ll be big -enough, so that we can rig up a canvas cabin at night. We can anchor -her, and sleep on board her every night. We can carry mattresses, so we -needn’t sleep on stones and stumps--” - ---“And coffee-pots,” interrupted Joe. - ---“And we can take lots of things, and live comfortably. We can sail -instead of rowing; and though I like to row as well as the next fellow, -we’ve had a little too much of that. Now we’ll get a cat-boat next -summer, and we’ll cruise from New York Bay to Montauk Point. We can -go all the way through the bays on the south side, and there are only -three places where we will have to get a team of horses to drag the -boat across a little bit of flat meadow. I know all about it, for I -studied it out on the map one day. What do you say for that for a -cruise?” - -“I’ll go,” said Harry. - -“And I’ll go,” said Jim. - -“Hurrah for the cat-boat!” said Joe. “We can be twice as moral and -piratical in a sail-boat as we can in a row-boat, even if it is the -dear little _Whitewing_.” - - -THE END. - - - - -TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: - - - Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_. - - Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. - - Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized. - - Archaic or variant spelling has been retained. - - The cover image for this eBook was created by the transcriber using - the original cover as the background and is entered into the - public domain. - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MORAL PIRATES *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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