Camping on the St. Lawrence; Or, On the Trail of the Early Discoverers

by Quincy Allen

  CHAPTER XIII.

  A MISHAP.

  Sunday morning dawned clear and beautiful. When Ethan came over to thecamp to prepare breakfast, the river lay like a sheet of glass beforethe vision of the boys. The twittering of the birds was the only soundto break in upon the stillness. The summer sunshine covered all thingsin its softened light, and as far as the eye could see the hush of asolemn silence seemed to have driven away all other effects. EvenEthan's manner was more subdued than on other days, and when our boysobeyed his call to breakfast, they also were in a measure under thespell of the perfect summer day.

  Sentiment did not interfere with appetite, however, and ample justicewas done to the boatman's labors; and though he referred to hisdesire, when he was ready to depart for home, to carry the boyshimself to the Bay to attend service, his offer was once morerefused.

  About an hour before the time when the service was to be held, theboys placed the two canoes in the water again, and with Jock and Bobin one, and their two friends in the other, they began to paddle. Thelight little crafts sped swiftly over the water, and keeping welltogether, not long afterward began to approach Alexandria Bay.

  To them all it seemed like a novel way of attending church, but theysoon discovered that they were not the only ones to come in thatmanner. Sailboats and skiffs, canoes and steam-yachts, could be seenin various directions, and though these were not numerous, it wasevident that they were all bent on an errand similar to their own.

  The boys were paddling more slowly now, as they came near the dock,and the two canoes were within a few yards of each other. Not anaccident had occurred, and the confidence of the young campers hadbeen largely increased by their success. They halted a moment todetermine where was the best place to land, when Ben glanced up at anapproaching yacht, and discovered his friends who had welcomed him totheir cottage when he had escaped from the storm. His own presence wasdiscovered by them at the same moment, and the girls crowded togethernear the rail, waving their handkerchiefs and calling to him, as theyperceived that he had seen them.

  Eager to return the salutation, Ben took his paddle in one hand, andwith the other tried politely to lift his cap. But alas for humanefforts! His movement suddenly destroyed the equilibrium of thetreacherous canoe, and as it tipped dangerously to one side, Bert, whowas taken unaware by the movement, strove to restore the balance; butunfortunately he leaned to the same side to which Ben turned, and in amoment the canoe was capsized, and the occupants sent speedily intothe water.

  A cry of alarm and dismay escaped the lips of the girls on the yacht,and the few men standing at the time upon the dock echoed it. Startledby the shout, Jock glanced up, and to his consternation discovered hisfriends struggling in the water. In his efforts to turn about his owncanoe, he too destroyed its balance, and instantly both he and Bobwere also thrown into the river.

  The second accident increased the confusion and alarm, both on theyacht and on the dock; but in a moment two skiffs were manned, thestruggling lads were drawn from the water, and the canoes as speedilyseized and restored.

  When it was seen that the boys were all safely landed, the yacht camein alongside the dock, and as the girls sprang lightly from the boatand beheld the dripping, woe-begone lads before them, they burst intoa hearty laugh, in which the boys themselves, in spite of theirconfusion, were compelled to join.

  "Good morning, Mr. Dallett," said Miss Bessie, to Ben. "What made yougo into the water? Did you think we wouldn't recognize you unless youcame before us in wet clothes?"

  Ben laughed, and presented his friends to the young ladies and then toMiss Bessie's father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. Clarke. The last namedexpressed her sympathy for the boys in their accident, and suggestedthat the yacht should be used to carry them back to their camp.

  "I don't believe they want to go back, unless Mr. Dallett wants to getthat suit of papa's he wore the other night," said Miss Bessie,mischievously. "That would make a good go-to-meeting suit for him."

  Ben laughingly declared that he preferred his present garments, butthe offer of Mrs. Clarke to the free use of the yacht was declined,and, waiting only until the party had disappeared up the street ontheir way to the church, the boys speedily reembarked, and began topaddle swiftly back toward the camp on Pine Tree Island.

  "I say, fellows," said Ben, eagerly, as they landed, "let's dress upand go back again. We'll get there in time for the benediction."

  "It's more than that you need," said Bert, glumly. "Tipping two canoesover in one morning ought to be enough to satisfy you."

  "Ben's right," said Jock, quickly. "It'll be all the better to go backnow. We don't want to give up, do we? We started out to go to church,and I say let's go. We'll have to be quick about it, though, to get ineven for the benediction."

  The proposal was agreed to, and hastily changing their clothing theyresumed their places in the canoes, and soon afterward landed at thedock at Alexandria Bay. Then they walked swiftly up the street to thelittle church, but were chagrined to find that they were too late evenfor the final part of the service. The congregation had already beendismissed, and as the boys approached the building they discovered thepeople just beginning to depart.

  Their friends soon perceived them and expressed their surprise attheir return, which Ben hastened to explain had been brought about bytheir desire to accomplish that which they had set out to do in thebeginning. "They were not going to be floored," he declared, "by anysuch little thing as the upsetting of a canoe."

  As they walked down to the dock, Mr. Clarke said to Jock, "I receiveda letter from your father, yesterday."

  "Did you?" replied Jock, eagerly. "I didn't know that you knew him."

  "Oh, yes, we've had business relations for years. He's a good man."

  "You're not the only one to hold that opinion," said the boy, with alaugh.

  "No, I am aware of that. He wrote and requested me to keep an eye onyou. From what I saw this morning, I'm afraid I ought to keep twoeyes in the direction of your camp, instead of one."

  Jock laughed, and his cheeks flushed slightly as he heard the laughechoed by the girls, but he protested that such an accident as thatwhich had occurred was not to be considered in a serious light.

  "Not that, perhaps," replied Mr. Clarke, "but the one your friend hadthe other night was serious enough. It was a narrow escape he had."

  "Yes, we were all badly frightened."

  "I'm not going to scold you, for I doubt not you'll learn by yourmistakes. Still I should advise you not to take many chances withcanoes on this river. What with the swift current and the squallswhich come, no man knows when or how, it's hardly safe for one who isnot an expert."

  "I know that, and we shall be careful."

  "That's right. Now Mrs. Clarke would be pleased, I know, to have yougo back home with us and dine there to-day; or if it is not convenientto-day, then some other day will do as well," he added, as he saw thatJock hesitated.

  "I thank you, Mr. Clarke, and I am sure all the boys will be glad tocome, but Ethan will come over to get our dinner for us to-day, andthere's no way of getting word to him."

  "Very well; then come some other day. You'll let us carry you back toyour camp in our yacht, won't you? It's directly in our way."

  The invitation was accepted, and the canoes taken in tow. Upon theinvitation of the boys the party all landed at the dock and went up tothe camp together. There everything was of interest, particularly tothe girls, who wanted to understand just the uses of all the variouscamp belongings.

  Doubtless very clear explanations were given, for at last when theyreturned to the yacht they all expressed themselves as delighted withwhat they had seen, and the boys were glad to renew the promise Jockhad given that the invitation to dine at "The Rocks," the name bywhich Mr. Clarke called his cottage, would be accepted soon.

  Not long afterward, Ethan appeared, and as he began his preparationsfor dinner, he said,--

  "I hear ye had trouble over to the bay to-day."

  "Who told
you?" said Ben, quickly.

  "I don' know as I just remember. Everybody was talkin' of it, though.I warned ye. Yer pa can't say I was responsible."

  "You aren't responsible, Ethan," said Jock, quickly; "'twas Ben."

  "How?" inquired Ethan, stopping short in his occupation, with thefrying-pan in his hand.

  "He got light-headed and destroyed our balance. The centre of gravityfell outside the base, and as a natural consequence what took placenaturally occurred."

  "Was that it?" said Ethan, slowly. "I heard ye capsized."

  After dinner the boys stretched themselves upon the bank, and in thecool shade began to talk over the experiences of the morning. At lasteven that topic ceased to interest them, and for a time they weresilent.

  "This is a great river," remarked Ben, at last, breaking in upon thestillness, and looking out over the water, which was sparkling underthe rays of the sun.

  "So it is," replied Bob, lazily. "That was an original remark, myfriend. I'd like to know just how many times it's been said since thefirst white man saw the river."

  "Bob's going to tell us about Carter," said Bert, solemnly.

  "I know of no Carter. Cartier discovered the river, if he's the oneyou have in what you are pleased to call your mind."

  "I stand corrected," replied Bert. "Go on with your Carter orCartier."

  "I don't know that there's much to tell. Jacques Cartier was aFrenchman who lived about four hundred years ago. Just think of it,fellows; four hundred years, almost, since the first white man saw theriver St. Lawrence."

  "Did you say he lives here now?" inquired Ben, solemnly.

  Bob gave him a look of scorn and then went on with his story. "FrancisI. fitted him out with two ships of sixty tons each, and with a crewof a hundred and twenty men he set sail from St. Malo, April 20, 1534.They say it was only twenty days later when he reached the east coastof Newfoundland."

  "They say?" interrupted Ben. "Who are 'they'?"

  "The historians, and other fellows. He sailed north, and finallyplanted a cross on the coast of Labrador near Rock Bay."

  "What did he plant it for?"

  "Then he went south," continued Bob, without giving any heed to theinterruption, "and came down the west coast of Newfoundland untilfinally he was driven by the unfavorable winds toward the MagdalenIslands. He soon started out again, and, still sailing west, landed atlast at the mouth of the Miramichi, and with some of his men began toexplore the bay of Chaleur; but pretty soon afterward he set sail withhis ships--"

  "Did he take his men with him?" interrupted Ben.

  "And sailed north and landed in the bay of Gaspe. He thought the baywas the mouth of a large river, so he landed and remained there alittle while before he started on again."

  "He was a wise man," said Ben. "Now if he'd remained there after he'dstarted on, that would have been another matter. But to remain therebefore he left the place,--ah, that's the man for me, every time."

  Even Bob laughed good-naturedly at the interruption, and then resumedhis story.

  "He had some dealings with the Indians there at the bay of Gaspe, andone of the chiefs was so taken with Cartier that he gave himpermission to take his two sons back to France with him on thecondition that he would bring them back in the following year."

  "Whose two sons? Cartier's?" inquired Bert.

  "No, the Indian chief's. Of course the Frenchman promised; but beforehe left he planted another wooden cross there, and put on it a shieldwith the arms of the French king, and the words, _Vive le roi deFrance_."

  "How the king must have felt to have his arms left there," murmuredBert.

  "Cartier soon after set sail, and after doubling the point ofAnticosti found himself in a channel and sailed a little way up whatwas really a branch of the St. Lawrence, though he didn't know then,of course, that there was any such river."

  "He'd found the St. Lawrence and didn't know it?" inquired Jock.

  "Yes."

  "He was like some men I know," said Bert. "He knew more than hethought he did."

  "Some men think they know more than they do," replied Bob, soberly."Well, Cartier knew the winter was coming on, so he decided to gohome. He sailed out through the straits of Belle Isle, and finallyarrived at St. Malo, September 5, 1534. The king was mightily pleasedwith the trip, and promised to send him again in the next year."

  "Then, as I understand it," said Jock, "Cartier didn't really sail upthe river in 1534. He only found a little piece of it, and didn't knowwhat it was he had discovered."

  "That's it. He'd discovered it, but didn't know it."

  "Poor fellow!" murmured Ben. "And, Bob, did he die?"

  "You'll find out," said Bob, "when I tell you the rest of it."

  "What! is there more to follow?"

  "Yes, it's 'to be continued in our next.'"

  "I don't know what I've done to deserve all this," said Ben, "but Isuppose I'll have to put up with it. When's the next instalment due?"

  "Not till after we've finished the other thing we're to do to-morrow."

  "What other thing?"

  "Oh, that's a secret between Jock and me," was Bob's reply, as he rosefrom the bank and started toward the camp, an example which all of hiscompanions at once followed.