Chapter 15 14.night by the river

By the time Stuart reached his camp by the river, he was tired and hot.He lowered the canoe into the water and immediately found that it was leaking badly.The stern was made of birch bark, and water seeped in through the seams, and in a few seconds the canoe was half full. "Damn it!" said Stuart. "I've been duped." The real Indian birch boat he had bought for seventy-six cents turned out to be a leaky thing. "Damn, hate, hate," he kept complaining. He bailed water out of the canoe and carried it to shore for repairs.He knew he couldn't take Harriet around in a leaky boat--she wouldn't like it.Tired as he was, he climbed a needle-tree, and found some turpentine glue in it, which he applied to the joints of the boat, and finally stopped the leak.Even so, the canoe looked rickety.If Stuart hadn't had sufficient experience on the water, he would have had nothing to do.Even when the boat is placed on the counter, it is still very unstable.Stuart carried some stones from the water's edge into the canoe to stabilize it.He also provided Harriet with a back seat in the boat, where she could sit if she liked, and put her hands out to splash in the water.He also wrapped one of his handkerchiefs into a little pillow.Then he wanted to find something to replace the oars.He was mad because he couldn't find anything better than an ice cream scoop and had to let it go.He wondered if Harriet would see that his oar was nothing more than an ice cream scoop.

Stuart worked in the canoe all afternoon.Adjusting the ballast stones, gluing the seams, and getting everything ready for tomorrow.Nothing was on his mind except his meeting with Harriet.When it was time for supper, he took his axe, and felled a dandelion, opened a tin of pepperoni, ate some ham, and drank some dandelion milk.After dinner, he leaned against a fern, nibbled off some latex, and chewed it as he lay down on the bank to dream his sweet dreams.He kept imagining every detail of tomorrow's meeting with Harriet.Although he closed his eyes, he seemed to see it all clearly - what she looked like when she walked to the bank, how still the river would be at dusk, how beautiful the canoe would look moored on the bank .He also imagined how he spent every minute of this good night with her.They would paddle against the current to a big lotus leaf, and he would invite Harriet to sit on it and take a nap.Stuart was going to wear swimming trunks under his clothes so he could swim under the lotus leaves.He would swim freestyle, round and round the lily pads, and Harriet would call him a swimming genius. (Chewing faster as he thinks about these vignettes.)

Suddenly, Stuart opened his eyes and sat up. He couldn't remember whether the letter he wrote had been mailed or not.The letter was so small that it might not be found.The thought frightened and worried him.But before long his thoughts returned to the creek, and Stuart fell asleep at last when the night-birds began to sing on the other side, and darkness fell over the land. The next day was a bit cloudy.Stuart was going into town to fill up his car, so he tied his canoe to a rock and hid it under the leaves, and went away full of longing for Harriet and anticipation of the day. up.It looked like it was going to rain.

Stuart came back from town with a headache, and he hoped to be well by five o'clock.He was very distraught because he had never been in a canoe with a girl before.He spends his afternoons at his camp trying on different shirts, trying to figure out which one looks better on him, and he keeps combing his beard.But the last shirt he put on was later soiled, wet from the sweat of his underarms from the tension, and he had to put on a dry one.He changed into a clean shirt at two o'clock, another at three o'clock, another at four-fifteen.The rest of the afternoon was spent in this way.It was almost five o'clock, and Stuart became more and more nervous.He kept looking at his watch, looking down the path, combing his hair, talking to himself, distracted.The sky was getting cloudier, and Stuart thought it must be raining soon.He wondered what to do if it rained while he and Harriet were rowing.

Finally, five o'clock finally arrived.Stuart heard the sound of someone approaching.It was Harriet.She has accepted his invitation.Stuart leaned against the stump, trying to look as relaxed as he could with girls.He waited until Harriet was beside him before rising. "Hello," he tried to sound normal. "Are you Mr. Little?" asked Harriet. "Yes," said Stuart. "Glad you're here." "Oh, thank you for the invitation," Harriet replied.She was wearing a white cashmere coat over a tweed shirt, white wool socks and snakeskin shoes.She has a bright turban wrapped around her head and holds a box of mints in her hand.

"You're welcome, I'm honored," said Stuart. "I just hope the weather gets better. It looks pretty bad, doesn't it?" Stuart tried to sound like a standard British accent. Harriet looked at the sky and nodded. "Oh yes," she said. "Looks like it's going to rain." "Yes," repeated Stuart. "Looks like it's going to rain. My canoe is just parked on the shore. The road is rough, can I take you there?" Stuart was a polite mouse. But Harriet said she didn't need help.She is a girl with a good body and does not trip over when she walks.Stuart walked with her to the place where the boat was hidden, but when they got there, Stuart was horrified to find that the boat was gone.It's gone.

Stuart's heart sank, and he felt that he was about to cry. "The canoe is gone," he moaned. Then he began to search up and down the shore, and it took him a long time to find it-but it was in disrepair.Someone must have played it.A long rope was attached to the stern of the boat, the ballast stones were gone, the pillows were gone, the back seat for resting was removed, the gum had been ripped from the seams, and there was mud all over the boat , one oar was twisted and bent.What a mess.Some big boy must have found it and spoiled it like this. Stuart's heart was broken.He didn't know what else to do.He sank down on a twig and buried his head in his hands. "Oh, damn it," he kept saying, "oh, damn it, saboteurs!"

"What's the matter?" Harriet asked. "Miss Eames," Stuart's voice trembled, "I assure you that everything was arranged perfectly—everything, but now it's all over!" Harriet was going to repair the canoe, but Stuart was desperate. "It's useless," he said bitterly. "It's impossible to get back to it." "What was it like?" asked Harriet. "As good as I did it yesterday. I'm afraid a woman can't do it right. Look at that rope! It's tied so tight I can never get it off." "Oh," suggested Harriet, "let's just let it drag in the water as we row."

Stuart looked at her desperately. "Have you ever seen an Indian canoe sailing on calm water with a rope trailing at the stern?" he asked. "We can pretend we're fishing," said Harriet, feeling that one needn't worry about the little things about the boat. "I don't want to pretend I'm fishing," cried Stuart desperately. "Besides, look at the mud! Behold!" His voice was louder. Harriet sat down on the branch where Stuart sat.She handed him a mint, but he shook his head. "Oh," she said, "it's going to rain, and if you don't take me for a canoe, I'd better go home quickly. I don't see what's the use of you sitting here in a daze. Would you like to come to my house Will you take me dancing at the country club after supper. It'll cheer you up."

"No, thank you," Stuart replied. "I can't dance. Besides, I'm going to leave early tomorrow morning. I'll be on my way by dawn." "So you slept in the rain?" asked Harriet. "Of course," said Stuart. "I can hide from the rain under the canoe." Harriet shrugged. "Well," she said, "goodbye, Mr. Little." "Good-bye, Miss Ames," said Stuart. "I'm sad that our meeting at the Night River is over." "Me too," said Harriet.She walked down the wet path to Tracy Avenue, leaving Stuart and his canoe alone, disillusioned.

Note ①: Night owl (Whippoorwill), I have mentioned this note in , so I won't repeat it.