ossified for its sins. Few men, white or brown, have trodden this mossy pavement and but one woman, Mrs. J. Olin Howe of Connecticut, who explored this region a few years ago with her husband and a guide.
To the strands and groves of lake islands one may paddle a club canoe, or idly evinrude, or mayhap hoist an umbrella sail and drift from shore to shore. Haul the boat up on the pebbles and listen to sounds in the wilderness . . . fish leaping in the pools . . . a porcupine setting ratlike teeth in the bark of a canoe birch . . . black loons mourning . . . the bark of a fox far-away on the mainland.
With care one may steal upon Br'er Porcupine and surprise him at his work. Arrow-pointed bristles cover the broad back and upper side of his tail. He will probably climb a tree at the crackle of steps, or lumber off as fast as a cumbersome body will permit. If he shows a disposition to lie on his belly and roll himself into a ball, beware of lunging quills and a thrashing tail. This rodent does not throw out his bristles as commonly supposed, but imbeds them in the flesh of the enemy by contact, though a few quills may fly wide during the assault. A brisk tap on the skull will despatch a troublesome porcupine, but it may require several shots from a gun to kill him.
The chromatic wail of the Northern Diver sets
