sister Velvet-paw. "We shall not be long in reaching yonder island, and
there, no doubt, we shall get a good breakfast."

So the little swimmers proceeded on their voyage, furrowing the calm
waters as they glided noiselessly along; their soft grey heads and ears
and round black eyes only being seen, and the bright streaks caused by the
motion of their tails, which lay flat on the surface, looking like silver
threads gently floating on the stream.

Not being much used to the fatigue of swimming, the little squirrels were
soon tired, and if it had not been for a friendly bit of stick that
happened to float near her, poor Velvet-paw would have been drowned;
however, she got up on the stick, and, setting up her fine broad tail, went
merrily on, and soon passed Nimble-foot and Silver-nose. The current drew
the stick towards the Pine Island that lay at the entrance of Clear Lake,
and Velvet-paw leaped ashore, and sat down on a mossy stone to dry her fur,
and watch for her brother and sister: they, too, found a large piece of
birch-bark which the winds had blown into the water, and as a little breeze
had sprung up to waft them along, they were not very long before they
landed on the island. They were all very glad when they met again, after
the perils and fatigues of the voyage. The first thing to be done was to
look for something to eat, for their early rising had made them very
hungry. They found abundance of pine-cones strewn on the ground, but, alas
for our little squirrels! very few kernels in them; for the crossbills and
chiccadees had been at work for many weeks on the trees; and also many
families of their poor relations, the chitmunks or ground squirrels, had
not been idle, as our little voyagers could easily guess by the chips and
empty cones round their holes. So, weary as they were, they were obliged to
run up the tall pine and hemlock trees, to search among the cones that grew
on their very top branches. While our squirrels were busy with the few