"The owner of yonder little craft is either asleep or absent from her; for
I see no paddle, and it is evidently drifting without any one to guide it,"
said Hector, after intently watching the progress of the tempest-driven
vessel; assured as it approached nearer that such was the case, they
hurried to the beach just as a fresh gust had lodged the canoe among the
branches of a fallen cedar which projected out some way into the water.
By creeping along the trunk of the tree, and trusting at times to the
projecting boughs, Louis, who was the most active and the lightest of
weight, succeeded in getting within reach of the canoe, and with some
trouble and the help of a stout branch that Hector handed to him, he
contrived to moor her in safety on the shore, taking the precaution of
hauling her well up on the shingle, lest the wind and water should set her
afloat again. "Hec, there is something in this canoe, the sight of which
will gladden your heart," cried Louis with a joyful look. "Come quickly,
and see my treasures."
"Treasures! You may well call them treasures," exclaimed Hector, as he
helped Louis to examine the contents of the canoe, and place them on the
shore, side by side.
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