would need a sledge, and then, too, we wanted to make an ice
boat. It would hardly pay to build these on the island and then cart
them home, so it was decided to break up camp a couple of weeks before
school commenced.

BREAKING CAMP.

Consequently, on the first day of September we gathered up our
belongings, corraled our chickens, packed our goods, and the next day
started for home. Mr. Schreiner, in response to a letter from the
secretary, came down with a large wagon in which the majority of the
things were packed. The rest of our luggage was stowed in the scow and
the canoes, and these were towed down the canal, as before. We reached
home late in the afternoon, tired and hungry. It was a treat to sit at
the table again and eat some of Mother's appetizing dishes. And say,
wasn't that pie great, though! My, how ravenous we were! And then a
soft, comfortable bed with spotless white sheets and pillow cases. How
soundly we did sleep that night! You can just bet we were all glad
enough to get back to civilization, though, of course, no one could have
dragged out the confession from a single one of us.

THE ICE BOAT.

[Illustration: Fig. 163. The Backbone.]

[Illustration: Fig. 164. Frame of the Ice Boat.]

[Illustration: Fig. 165. Runner Shoe.]

[Illustration: Fig. 166. The Rudder Shoe.]

School commenced on the 20th of September that year, so we hadn't much
time to spare. Work was begun immediately on the ice boat. Our first ice
boat was rather a crude one. A 2 by 4 inch scantling 14 feet long was
used for the backbone of the boat. The scantling was placed on edge, and
to lighten it and improve its appearance it was tapered fore and aft
from a point 4 feet from the bow end. The thickness of the ends of the
backbone was but 2 inches, as shown in Fig. 163. To the under edge of
the backbone, 5 feet from the forward end, a crosspiece was nailed. This
crosspiece was a 1-inch board 6 inches wide and 9 feet long. Braces were
then run from the ends of the crosspiece to the forward and rear ends of
the backbone, and at the rear end several boards nailed across the
braces served as a seat for the boat.

Our next task was to rig up the runners. For these we used skates, which
were so arranged that we could remove them whenever we wanted to. Three
blocks of wood were used for the runner shoes. Two of them were cut from
a 2 by 4 scantling and measured a foot in length. The third block was
only 1 inch thick, but was ot