he
portage, and soon the boats again were loaded. They found this most
easterly of the three lakes on the summit to be of about the same size
as the one which they had just left. It was rather longer than it was
wide, and they could see at its eastern side the depression where the
outlet made off toward the east. Again taking their places at the
paddles in the order established at the start of the day, they rapidly
pushed on across. They found now that this lake discharged through a
little creek which rapidly became deep and clear.

"It's going to be just the way," said Rob, "that Sir Alexander tells.
I say, fellows, we could take that boat and come through here in the
dark, no matter what Simon Fraser said about Sir Alexander."

They found the course down this little waterway not troublesome, and
fared on down the winding stream until at length they heard the sound
of running water just beyond.

"That's the Parsnip now, no doubt," said Alex, quietly, to his young
charges. Already Moise had pushed the _Mary Ann_ over the last
remaining portion of the stream, and she was floating fair and free on
the current of the second stream, not much larger than the one from
which they now emerged.

"_Voila!_" Moise exclaimed. "She'll been the Peace River--or what
those _voyageur_ call the Parsneep. Now, I'll think we make fast ride,
yes."

Jesse, leaning back against his bed-roll, looked a little serious.

"Boys," said he, "I don't like the looks of this. This water sounds
dangerous to me, and you can't tell me but what these mountains are
pretty steep."

"Pshaw! It's just a little creek," scoffed John.

"That's all right, but a little creek gets to be a big river mighty
fast up in this country--we've seen them up in Alaska many a time.
Look at the snow-fields back in those mountains!"

"Don't be alarmed, Mr. Jess," said Alex; "most of the snow has gone
down in the June rise. The water is about as low now as it is at any
time of the year. Now, if we were here on high water, as Simon Fraser
was, and going the other way, we might have our own troubles--I expect
he found all this country under water where we are now, and the
current must have been something pretty stiff to climb against."

"In any case," Rob added, "we're just in the same shape that Sir
Alexander and old Simon were when they were here. We wouldn't care to
turn back, and we've got to go through. If they did it, so can we. I
don't believe this stream's as b