"Grey, Zane - Betty Zane" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grey Zane)

recreation.' I shall lend you the books."

"I have not seen a book since I came to Fort Henry."

"I have a fine little library, and you are welcome to any of my books. But to
return to fishing. I love it, and yet I nearly always allow the fish to go
free. Sometimes I bring home a pretty sunfish, place him in a tub of water,
watch him and try to tame him. But I must admit failure. It is the association
which makes fishing so delightful. The canoe gliding down a swift stream, the
open air, the blue sky, the birds and trees and flowers--these are what I
love. Come and see my canoe."

Thus Betty rattled on as she led the way through the sitting-room and kitchen
to Colonel Zane's magazine and store-house which opened into the kitchen. This
little low-roofed hut contained a variety of things. Boxes, barrels and
farming implements filled one corner; packs of dried skins were piled against
the wall; some otter and fox pelts were stretched on the wall, and a number of
powder kegs lined a shelf. A slender canoe swung from ropes thrown over the
rafters. Alfred slipped it out of the loops and carried it outside.

The canoe was a superb specimen of Indian handiwork. It had a length of
fourteen feet and was made of birch hark, stretched over a light framework of
basswood. The bow curved gracefully upward, ending in a carved image
representing a warrior's head. The sides were beautifully ornamented and
decorated in fanciful Indian designs.

"My brother's Indian guide, Tomepomehala, a Shawnee chief, made it for me. You
see this design on the bow. The arrow and the arm mean in Indian language,
'The race is to the swift and the strong.' The canoe is very light. See, I can
easily carry it," said Betty, lifting it from the grass.

She ran into the house and presently came out with two rods, a book and a
basket.

"These are Jack's rods. He cut them out of the heart of ten-year-old basswood
trees, so he says. We must be careful of them."

Alfred examined the rods with the eye of a connoisseur and pronounced them
perfect.

"These rods have been made by a lover of the art. Anyone with half an eye
could see that. What shall we use for bait?" he said.

"Sam got me some this morning."

"Did you expect to go?" asked Alfred, looking up in surprise.

"Yes, I intended going, and as you said you were coming over, I meant to ask
you to accompany me."