1.  Aggie—­pike!

  2.  On consulting map find unnamed lake only a few miles away.  Shall
  investigate to-morrow.

  3.  Steamer has just gone.  Detective now has canoe, blue in color.  Also
  food.  He sent off his letter.

  4.  Fed worms.  Lizzie thinks they know me.  How kindness is its own
  reward!  Mr. McDonald is drawing in his anchor, which is a large stone
  fastened to a rope.  Shall take bath.

Tish’s notes ended here.  She did not take the bath after all, for Mr. McDonald made us a call that afternoon.

He beached the green canoe and came up the rocks calmly and smilingly.  Hutchins gave him a cold glance and went on with what she was doing, which was chopping a plank to cook the fish on.  He bowed cheerfully to all of us and laid a string of fish on a rock.

“I brought a little offering,” he said, looking at Hutchins’s back.  “The fishing isn’t what I expected but if the young lady with the hatchet will desist, so I can make myself heard, I’ve found a place where there are fish!  This biggest fellow is three and a quarter pounds.”

Hutchins chopped harder than ever, and the plank flew up, striking her in the chest; but she refused all assistance, especially from Mr. McDonald, who was really concerned.  He hurried to her and took the hatchet out of her hand, but in his excitement he was almost uncivil.

“You obstinate little idiot!” he said.  “You’ll kill yourself yet.”

To my surprise, Hutchins, who had been entirely unemotional right along, suddenly burst into tears and went into the tent.  Mr. McDonald took a hasty step or two after her, realizing, no doubt, that he had said more than he should to a complete stranger; but she closed the fly of the tent quite viciously and left him standing, with his arms folded, staring at it.

It was at that moment he saw the large fish, hanging from a tree.  He stood for a moment staring at it and we could see that he was quite surprised.

“It is a fish, isn’t it?” he said after a moment.  “I—­I thought for a moment it was painted on something.”

He sat down suddenly on one of our folding-chairs and looked at the fish, and then at each of us in turn.

“You know,” he said, “I didn’t think there were such fish!  I—­you mustn’t mind my surprise.”  He wiped his forehead with his handkerchief.  “Just kick those things I brought into the river, will you?  I apologize for them.”

“Forty-nine inches,” Tish said.  “We expect to do better when we really get started.  This evening we shall go after its mate, which is probably hanging round.”

“Its mate?” he said, rather dazed.  “Oh, I see.  Of course!”

He still seemed to doubt his senses, for he went over and touched it with his finger.  “Ladies,” he said, “I’m not going after the—­the mate.  I couldn’t land it if I did get it.  I am going to retire from the game—­except for food; but I wish, for the sake of my reason, you’d tell me what you caught it with.”