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

by Quincy Allen

  CHAPTER XXXII.

  CONCLUSION.

  A tub race was a decided novelty to all the members of our partyexcept the young ladies, who had seen one in the preceding summer, butthere were special reasons now why they were as interested as theirfriends in the contest which was to take place. There were tubs largeand small, some new and some evidently having seen hard service, andthe paddles were of various sizes and ages. There were at leastfifteen of the contestants, and Bob's sturdy form could be easilydistinguished, for he was the fourth from the end nearest our friends.

  The report of the pistol rang out sharply, and in a moment the racewas begun. The scene which followed was one that beggared description.The observant crowd of spectators shouted and cheered and laughed, andit almost seemed as if pandemonium itself reigned supreme. Meanwhilethe contestants entered into the struggle with apparently all thezeal that had been manifested by their predecessors. The paddles weredriven deep into the water and some of the men were making desperateefforts to outstrip their fellows. But the control of the awkwardcrafts was no simple matter. At times, for some unaccountable reason,the tubs would begin to turn and whirl, and, despite the efforts ofthe paddlers, would go in a direction apparently opposite to thatwhich was desired. One poor fellow had already been thrown into thewater, and as he was speedily drawn forth by his waiting friends,shouts of laughter seemed to be his only reward.

  Bob was moving steadily with the current, and although several tubswere in advance of him, he did not appear to be troubled. He was notexerting himself as were most of the others, his foremost desire beingto keep his tub from whirling and within the current.

  Suddenly one of the tubs was seen to be headed directly toward Bob.The occupant struggled desperately to prevent a collision, but hisefforts only served to increase his helplessness.

  "Look out!" called Bob, sharply. "Keep off, or you'll hit me!"

  The man endeavored to change his course, but his increased exertionsonly deprived him of what little control he still had, and in a momentthe twisting, awkward craft came straight toward the alarmed Bob.

  The lad was watchful, however, and as the tub came within reach hegave it a sudden push with his paddle and the peril was averted. Theeffect almost destroyed Bob's own balance, and for a moment it seemedas if he must be capsized, but as he righted himself he glanced at hisrival, who was now in a sad state. He had raised his own paddle toreturn the thrust the anxious Bob had given him, but his zeal had notbeen wisely directed. The tub leaned dangerously to one side and asthe boatman strove to right it, he threw himself too far to the otherside, and after "wabbling" for an instant, it suddenly capsized andthrew its occupant into the water. As he came to the surface hehastily swam to the upturned tub, and was soon rescued by the men whowere skirting the racers for that very purpose.

  Bob, however, had no time to waste upon his unfortunate competitor,and was carefully guiding his own treacherous craft. He could seethat some of the desperate men about him were going sidewise orbackward, and were striking out wildly with their paddles, striving tochange the method as well as the direction of the procedure. Otherswere whirling and spinning about in a manner to make even an observerdizzy, to say nothing of the struggling paddler himself. Bob was notstriving for speed, and was trusting much to the swiftness of thecurrent to bear him on toward the coveted goal, and as he drew nearthe end, the wisdom of his course became apparent. Those who had beenin advance of him were losing the advantage they had gained by someunfortunate stroke of their paddles, which sent their unwieldy tubs towhirling madly, and speed and control were soon both lost.

  On and on moved the few tubs which still were in the race, bobbing upand down, and frequently stopping and whirling madly about as if somesudden and irresistible impulse had seized them. The confusionincreased as the goal could be seen, and the first prize lay betweenBob and two rivals.

  Slowly and carefully Bob increased his stroke, and now only ten feetyet remained to be crossed. The three tubs were close together, andbunched for the final effort. Suddenly Bob drove his paddle far downinto the water, and exerting all his strength, sent his tub forwardwith his final effort; but directly in front of him one of his rivalshad drifted, and in a moment they struck together. The othercontestant, to save himself, had instantly grasped Bob's tub and"wabbling," careening, threatening every moment to capsize, the twocrossed the line together, and their mutual rival was a full yardbehind them.

  Instantly the whistles and shouts announced the end of the race, andBob's rival turned good-naturedly to him and said,--

  "I've got the first prize and you the second, though you wouldn't havehad it if I hadn't towed you over the line."

  "That's for the judges to decide," laughed Bob. "I think you fouled meand held me back with your hands, or I'd been first."

  The boats now swarmed in, and, amidst the laughter of the people, itwas decided that the first prize should be divided, for the two tubshad crossed the line after the manner in which the Siamese twins hadmoved through life, together.

  "It's another case of 'united we stand, divided we fall,'" remarkedBob, as the decision was announced.

  But there was no opportunity for further conversation, for Mr.Clarke's yacht now steamed close in, and Bob and his tub were receivedon board.

  "A wise man of Gotham who went to sea in a bowl," said Miss Bessie, asBob quietly took his seat. "I congratulate you."

  "Thank you," replied Bob. "Did you say you had had your luncheon?"

  "No, we've been waiting for the victor. We'll have it now."

  As she departed to look after the various baskets, Jock said, "Bob,you're the greatest fellow I ever saw. You never seem to be workingmuch, but yet you always come out all right. It's the same way withyour studies. You don't work as hard as I do, but you always beat me.I don't understand it."

  "Don't you believe that Bob doesn't work," interrupted Bert. "I knowhim better than you do. It's the thing he doesn't do that helps Bob,as much as what he does do. Now I watched him out there in the race.Most of the other fellows were striking out with their paddles inevery direction, but Bob here just watched the current and let that domost of the work. It's the same way with his studies. Most of thefellows spend half their time in fussing around and getting ready, andthen breaking in on their work after they've once begun. But you neversaw Bob do that. He never makes a false move, or an unnecessary one,and when he starts, he just keeps at the necessary things and lets theothers go. Bob does so well because he makes everything count."

  "That's the secret of success, young man," said Mr. Clarke. "Thereason why so many men fail in life is because they waste their timeand strength in unnecessary things, and don't learn what not to do."

  "I think our luncheon is ready now," said Miss Bessie, as she rejoinedthe group. "I had a basket of fruit I was going to give you," sheadded, speaking to Bob, "but I'm afraid it's spoiled."

  "Never mind. To the victors belong the spoils," said Ben. "Give it tohim just the same."

  A groan followed Ben's pun, but the sight of the welcome basketsspeedily banished all other thoughts, and for a time the scene onboard the yacht was one in which all who were there certainlyrejoiced. The perfect summer day, the sight of the many boats movingabout over the river, the bright colors to be seen on every side, theanimation and happiness of those on board the yacht, were sufficientto inspire all, and certainly the party in which we are particularlyinterested was not one that required much beyond the youth and healthwhich were theirs to make them have an enjoyable time.

  Their delight was increased when in the "finals" for the canoe racesBen was able to secure third prize. He himself was more than contentwith the award, for he had been compelled to enter the lists againstsome who had had the practice and experience of many summers, and hehad had but one. His long arms, and, above all, his persistence in theface of all obstacles, had availed; and when our boys returned to campthey were highly delighted with the achievements of the day, as we maybe well assured were the other members of t
he party.

  On the way home Mr. Clarke had related the further story of theexploits of the "pirate," Bill Johnston, but it is doubtful whetherany of the party retained a very clear recollection of the dark doingsof the aforesaid Bill, and even Bob himself had only a dim impressionthat after various brilliant-hued deeds, in the so-called patriot war,he had been captured and taken to Albany, but had soon procured arelease and returned to the Thousand Islands, where among his variousoccupations he had been keeper of one of the lighthouses to the day ofhis death.

  Miss Bessie had not entered the canoe races, as her father hadobjected, but she had expressed her willingness to race with Benwhenever he felt disposed to enter into a contest with her. Whether itwas her challenge or not, I cannot say, but in the days which followedthere were many hours spent by our boys at "The Rocks," or in coursingover the river in Mr. Clarke's fleet yacht.

  And what days they were! Every morning brought its own freshexperiences, and it was the regular thing for the boys to declare atnight when they returned to the camp and prepared for bed, that_this_ was the best day yet.

  But all things are said to have an end, and certainly the camp on PineTree Island proved to be no exception to the rule. The September dayshad come, and though the crowds about the river became decidedlythinned, our boys still remained, and Jock's mother was still at thehotel at Alexandria Bay. Only one week remained before the beginningof the fall term in college, and it was at last decided that on themorrow the camp should be broken.

  It was with special pleasure the last evening in camp that Jockbroached a subject to Ethan and Tom in which he had been deeplyinterested, and concerning which he had had much correspondence withhis father, and that was the promise of a position for Tom in Mr.Cope's office in New York.

  Ethan at first was inclined to demur, but at last gave his consent,inasmuch as the position promised to be one which eventually mightyield even more than the marvellous "dollar and a half a day," towhich he had made such frequent references during the summer.

  The last visit to the Clarkes had been made, the last sail taken inEthan's catboat, the last spin enjoyed in the canoes, and now the boyswere seated together for the last time before the roaring camp-fire,which in honor of the occasion had been made even larger than usual.Far out over the river the flickering lights cast their shadows. Themoaning in the tree tops was more pronounced, as was only fitting in aSeptember evening and before the departure of the boys. The sound ofthe laughter in the camp was more subdued, and all seemed to feel thesadness of parting, even from such inanimate objects as the rushingriver and the green-covered islands.

  For a time the boys were silent, then Ben, who could not long refrainfrom talking, said, "It's been a great summer, Jock. I don't know howwe'll ever repay you."

  "You have done that already," replied Jock. "I'm glad you fellows havehad a good time. I know I've enjoyed it."

  "There's been only one drawback," suggested Ben.

  "What's that?"

  "That volume of C's in the Cyclopaedia. Cartier, Champlain, Cavon,Cortereal, Chimney Island--"

  "Oh, that's all right, too," replied Jock, laughing. "We've been on_The Trail of the Early Discoverers_, haven't we? Well, we ought toknow something about them. We haven't had enough to spoil us."

  "I trow not," interrupted Bob, solemnly.

  "I say, fellows," said Jock, as a sudden thought seemed to strike him,"wouldn't it be a great thing to keep on with this! We've been on thistrail this summer; now, why shouldn't we keep on and follow them intoother places next summer?"

  "A colossal idea," said Bert, "if it can be worked out."

  "I'm going to fix that," said Jock, decidedly. "Come on now, fellows,it's time we were in bed. Let's fire off the cannon for the lasttime."

  In a moment the roar of the cannon awoke the echoes, and then silencerested over the camp and the river.

  * * * * *

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