OLD-TIME

and Cyrus had sap-yokes which they wore on their
shoulders to lighten the task of carrying the pails,
and sometimes too, they wore snow-shoes as they
trudged about over the crusty snow from tree to tree
through the tall, silent forest. The sap they gath-
ered was stored in a long trough from which the
It was little John’s business to

kettles were filled.

 
  

~.

COOKERY. 107
some of the neighbors’ boys would come over to pass
the evening, perhaps staying to “sugar off.” After
supper of toasted brown bread and roast squirrel,
they would lie down on the fragrant green floor and
tell stories of bears and wolves and panthers, the
scenes of which were so near, both in time and space,
that poor little John’s hair often stood on end, and

- he could plainly see fierce
eyes glaring from every bush
on the way home, until he

23,

  

Se,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

= SoS

  
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 

almost “ wished the old cat-
amount had him and done.
with it.” Sometimes they
told Indian stories, even
more frightful than those
of wild beasts ; for the fear
of the red man had not yet
passed away from the set-
tlements. But they gener-
ally forgot the terror each,
had in turn awakened, when.
the important moment ar-
rived of testing the slowly

 

DRYING BEANS.

 

keep the fires, and skim
the syrup as it boiled.
There was little time to
play, but what there was
was improved. They
climbed trees, shot game,
broiled bits of salt pork
over the fire for their
luncheon, and ate the froth
which danced on the top
of the kettles—it con-
tained all the impurities
of the sap, but no matter:

“ Anything sweet in the mouth
can sweeten
All this bitter world for a boy.”

Sometimes they had to boil at night, and an eerie
and a merry time both, they had then. The sap was
gathered before dark, and they repaired to the bush
house before the fire, going out occasionally to fill up
the kettles. A thick mat of odorous hemlock boughs
covered the floor of the house, and the great fire
shining in made it very light and warm. Generally

  

bubbling syrup to sce whether it would “ grain,”
trying it upon pieces of broken crockery, and waxing:
other spoonfuls on the snow for immediate consump~
tion while they waited for the test-portions to cool.
How delicious were the cold sheets uf waxen sweet:
that they peeled from the snow in yellow-brown rolls,
rivalling even the saucers of warm sugar. That tom