ould boil
it for about an hour, then, after it cooled, would mix it with
the fat of game and fry it, after which the compound was eaten in
slices. They also made mealcakes, johnnycakes and hoecakes.

Albert was fond of fish, especially of the fine trout that they
caught in the little river, and soon he invented or discovered a
way of cooking them that provided an uncommon delicacy for their
table. He would slit the trout open, clean it, and the season it
with salt and also with pepper, which they had among their stores.
Then he would lay the fish in the hot ashes of a fire that had
burned down to embers, cover it up thoroughly with the hot ashes
and embers, and let it cook thirty or forty minutes--thirty minutes
for the little fellows and forty minutes for the big ones. When he
thought the fish was done to the proper turn, he would take it from
the ashes, clean it, and then remove the skin, which would almost
peel off of its own accord.

The fish was then ready for the eating, and neither Dick nor
Albert could ever bear to wait. The flesh looked so tempting and
the odor was so savory that hunger instantly became acute.

"They are so good," said Albert, "because my method of cooking
preserves all the juices and flavors of the fish. Nothing
escapes."

"Thanks, professor," said Dick. "You must be right, so kindly
pass me another of those trout, and be quick about it."

It is a truth that both boys became epicures. Their valley
furnished so much, and they had a seasoning of hard work and open
mountain air that was beyond compare. They even imitated Indian
and trapper ways of cooking geese, ducks, quail, sage hens, and
other wild fowl that the region afforded. They could cook these
in the ashes as they did the trout, and they also had other
methods. Albert would take a duck, cut it open and clean it, but
leave the feathers on. Then he would put it in water, until the
feathers were soaked thoroughly, after which he would cover it up
with ashes, and put hot coals on top of the ashes. When the bird
was properly cooked and drawn from the ashes, the skin could be
pulled off easily, taking the feathers, of course, with it. Then
a duck, sweet, tender, and delicate, such as no restaurant could
furnish, was ready for the hardy youngsters. At rare intervals
they improve on this by stuffing the duck with seasoning and
Indian meal. Now and then they served a fat goose the same way
and found it equally good.

The