old fellow over the water made the forest ring again with his howling.
He was answered from miles away down the lake by another. Their voices
kept the forest echoes busy, until we laid ourselves away in our
blankets, where we slept till wakened by the glad voices of the birds
in the early morning.




CHAPTER XVIII.

AN EXPLORING VOYAGE IN AN ALDER SWAMP--A BEAVER DAM--A FAIR SHOT AND A
MISS--DROWNING A BEAR--AN UNPLEASANT PASSENGER.


We started the next morning on an exploring voyage round the lake, to
look into the bays and inlets, try the fish and deer, and see what we
could see generally. We struck across to an island opposite our
landing-place, containing five or six acres, covered with a dense
growth of spruce, hemlock, and fir, with an occasional pine standing
with its tall head proudly above the other forest trees, while along
the ground the low whortleberry bushes, loaded with fruit, now just
ripening, grew. This island is near the south shore, and separated
from it by a narrow channel some twenty rods in width. We landed, and
were regaling ourselves upon the berries, leaving our boats and guns
on the lake side of the island. We had wandered near the centre of the
island, when three deer started up within two rods of us, and rushed
whistling and snorting in huge astonishment across the island in the
direction of the mainland, and dashing wildly into the water, swam to
the shore and disappeared into the forest. We, in truth, were little