Part 2 (1/2)
”The house is some way up the hill; I will steer you between the stu his arm to his mother, while the rest followed in their wake A few ht thee style; the defects of which, whatever they were, were not visible by ht There were four doors, and as many rather diminutive s ”This is but a summer house, re low building ”We had to build our house according to our planks; your roo-rooo the foundations were not co to raise a house in this country;--but, enter”
All were delighted, for although the cottage was but a long narrow shed, by means of three divisions and a liberal use of canvas and paper, Philip and his assistants had forher one for hi-roo lass, nor plate A bright laave it much of the appearance of a cabin ”We have only to fancy,” said Philip, ”that we are on board shi+p without the danger of shi+pwreck, or being turatulate ourselves on the extent of our accommodation We have twice as ers on board an erant shi+p, and can admit as much more as we please There, make yourselves at ho the kettle for tea in the kitchen I must be off, and hope to be back soon with D'Arcy and your traps”
Aent Philip down to the boat, whence his father with the rest had been bringing up her lading Who could have recognised in the energetic, high-spirited backwoodsman Philip had beco student of a year ago By-the-bye, the kitchen of which he spoke was a lean-to of birch-bark, under which a camp stove had been placed; near it was a shed prepared for the reception of the stores, a which Peter proposed to take up his abode Philip's plan of fitting up the cottage was much admired To the walls and roof he had first nailed some coain covered with a coenerally for covering walls
The table itself consisted of soh planks nailed to tressels, and the bedsteads were forh pine poles with canvas stretched across thes round the rooms would enable their inmates to keep them as neat as cabins
The voices of the rest of the party were heard sooner than was expected
”We pressed the third boat on the lake into our service and have brought everything,” said Philip, entering with a slight young h, entle my friend Mr Lawrence D'Arcy, my fellow labourer, who, let me tell you, made every inch of the furniture of our un it yesterdayme to paper the walls till nearly noon”
”It is the work of a self-taught artist,” said Lawrence D'Arcy ”But, really, there is little to boast of in having put together a few rough poles The plan is the only thing to merit commendation”
Of course everybody thanked Mr D'Arcy, and he at once felt himself perfectly at home Never did the finest baronial mansion afford more satisfaction to the occupiers than did Philip's quickly-built cottage
It stood on a platfor south over the lake, and sheltered by the ground above it from the icy blast of the north There was not space on the platfor; but a little way off was a s were laid for a log house
”The cottage was an after-thought,” said Philip, showing the plan of the log house ”I knew that we could not get this fitted up in tiht e which will serve you till you can get into theup outside it h even for winter” Never was a family more busy, or one more contented and happy
”Our present abode willhouse quickly rising ”How clean and nice the pans will look arranged round the walls and the churn in the rand, I fear, dear,” said her ot one cow, and there will be room here for the milk of fifty”
”Ah! but the day will come e may have fifty That beautiful ht will feed alnes
”I should be content with four or five, so that we may make our own butter and cheese, and have cream and milk in abundance,” observed fanny ”I should like to have tis; and then, rees, so we , and then there will be all sorts of household work to attend to”
Sophy sided with fanny, and Philip put an end to the discussion about the dairy, by telling thee for the flooring of part of the new house
That building got on onderful rapidity Day after day Mr Lawrence D'Arcy came over with his man Terry, a faithful fellow, born on his father's estate in Ireland, who had been his servant in the army for several years Philip had, for the purpose of econo, resolved to make the house of two stories The walls were for was scooped out so as to admit the round of the one above it to fit in, and the ends were deeply notched for the logs forht sufficient for the ground floor chaained, notches were cut and the rafters placed across Shears were erected to raise the higher logs, and shi+ngles, which are thin split planks of fir, formed the roof The house stood on a platfor thus soround A verandah ran round the whole building, affording a sheltered hen the inet fresh air
Had not the settlers been so strong handed, the work now accomplished could not have been performed before the winter; but it was the fable of the bundle of sticks exe would not have been attempted except for the sake of the ladies, as the settlers would have eround for cultivation
That necessary proceeding was not however neglected, and six acres were chopped and burnt off before the snow covered up the brushwood
”Here we are, fairly settled in our log house,” said Mr Ashton, as he surveyed the result of his son's architectural skill ”Let us with grateful hearts thank our Heavenly Father who has led us thus far in safety”
CHAPTER FIVE
There were signs that the winter was about to begin Snow-storms had appeared from over the hill and swept across the lake Ice had fores in shallow pools, but the hot sun had co the pine woods the heat was excessive Had it not been for the rich growing tints of the trees which fringed the lake and covered its islets, it would have been difficult to suppose that suht reds and yellows of the maple, the pale straw-colour of the beech, the copper hues of the oaks; and, indeed, Sophy found that she could exhaust all the brightest colours of her paint-box, and yet not give sufficient variety or brilliancy to portray correctly the gorgeous tints of the landscape spread out before the ; nor was there blue to be found equal to the blue of the lake, still less of the sky above it She was glad that she had finished her drawing in ti up, and a sharp frost sent every leaf, pinched off, flying away, and the next ave a soreen and dark brown appearance of the lake shore
”Excellent! it would give my dear people at home some idea of the beauties we have out here,” exclaimed D'Arcy, who happened to look in the day Sophy had finished her sketch ”I should be so thankful if you could ht aspire to possess the original”
”What could have nes, after D'Arcy had taken his leave ”There the dear thing stands looking at the lake: what a wonder to see her doing nothing”
D'Arcy leaped gaily into his boat, hoisted the e one for her size, cast off the painter, and hauling aft the main-sheet as she paid-off with the fore-sail, waved an adieu to his friends on shore
The lake sparkled brightly as miniature waves curled over its surface; faster and faster the boat flew aht in her freedo the course of the river from Lake Huron; it rushed across the sky, followed by others, casting a shadow over the lake A shriek from Sophy made Philip rush out from his workshop, saw in hand, followed by Harry The white sail of D'Arcy's boat had disappeared, and a dark mass was alone visible on the spot where she had been
”He is a good swiot upon the bottoave him, for the cold wind had made D'Arcy put on his thick coat and heavy boots; Harry ran towards their large boat The sails and oars were on shore ”No, no,--the canoe!” cried Philip An Indian hunter, a friend of D'Arcy's, had left his canoe on the beach in the erly in was the work of an instant; and fast as Philip and Harry could ply their paddles, the light canoe flew across the lake