Homepage
Login
Profile
BookClubs
dmBox
Read Ebook: Harper's Young People September 7 1880 An Illustrated Weekly by Various
Font size:
Background color:
Text color:
Add to tbrJar First Page Next Page Prev Page
Ebook has 71 lines and 20272 words, and 2 pages
"Everything must be ruined," exclaimed Jim.
"Lucky for us that we put on our shoes this morning," Tom remarked, as he rowed steadily on. "That must have been one of my other pair that just went up."
When they reached the island they could not at first land, on account of the heat of the flames; but they could plainly see that the tent and everything in it had been totally destroyed. After waiting for half an hour the fire burned itself out, so that they could approach their dock and land on the smoking ash heap that an hour before had been such a beautiful shady spot. There was hardly anything left that was of any use. A tin pan, a fork, and the hatchet were found uninjured; but all their clothing and other stores were either burned to ashes or so badly scorched as to be useless. Quite overwhelmed by their disaster, the boys sat down and looked at one another.
"We've got to go home now, whether we want to or not," Harry said, as he poked the ashes idly with a stick.
"Well, we meant to go home in a few days anyway," said Tom; "so the fire hasn't got very much the better of us."
"But I hate to have everything spoiled, and to have to go in this sort of way. Our tin pans and fishing-tackle aren't worth much, but all our spare clothes have gone."
"You've got your uncle's gun in the boat, so that's all right," suggested Tom, encouragingly. "As long as the gun and the boat are safe, we needn't mind about a few flannel shirts and things."
"But it's such a pity to be driven away, when we were having such a lovely time," continued Harry.
"That's rubbish, Harry," said Joe. "We were all beginning to get tired of camping out. I think it's jolly to have the cruise end this way, with a lot of fire-works. It's like the transformation scene at the theatre. Besides, it saves us the trouble of carrying a whole lot of things back with us."
"The thing to do now," remarked Tom, "is to row right down to the outlet, and get a team to take us to Glenn's Falls this afternoon. We can't sleep here, unless we build a hut, and then we wouldn't have a blanket to cover us. Don't let's waste any more time talking about it."
After a supper that filled the colored waiters with astonishment, the boys selected arm-chairs on the forward deck, and began to talk over the cruise. They all agreed that they had had a splendid time, in spite of hard work and frequent wettings.
"We'll go on another cruise next summer, sure," said Harry. "Where shall we go?"
Tom was the first to reply. Said he, "I've been thinking that we can do better than we did this time."
"How so?" asked the other boys.
"But then," Harry suggested, "you couldn't drag a bigger boat round a dam."
"Let's have it," cried the other boys.
"We can hire a cat-boat about twenty feet long, and she'll be big enough, so that we can rig up a canvas cabin at night. We can anchor her, and sleep on board her every night. We can carry mattresses, so we needn't sleep on stones and stumps--"
"And coffee-pots," interrupted Joe.
"--and we can take lots of things, and live comfortably. We can sail instead of rowing; and though I like to row as well as the next fellow, we've had a little too much of that. Now we'll get a cat-boat next summer, and we'll cruise from New York Bay to Montauk Point. We can go all the way through the bays on the south side, and there are only three places where we will have to get a team of horses to drag the boat across a little bit of flat meadow. I know all about it, for I studied it out on the map one day. What do you say to that for a cruise?"
"I'll go," said Harry.
"And I'll go," said Jim.
Add to tbrJar First Page Next Page Prev Page