Page:Boy scouts in the White Mountains; the story of a long hike (IA boyscoutsinwhite00eato).pdf/185

 however, and it wasn't till about 1840, I believe, that one of Abel's sons converted it into a bridle path and carried it on to Washington. You see, by that time, people had begun to visit the mountains for their vacations in large numbers."

"So the part we are on is nearly a hundred years old!" Lou exclaimed.

They plodded steadily upward, by a fairly steep grade, though not a difficult one. The rising sun was now striking down into the spruce and hemlock woods about them, but they noted that it was rather a hazy sun.

"I bet there's a cloud on Washington," Art muttered.

"What'll we do if there is? Can we climb in it?" Frank asked.

"That all depends," the Scout Master replied, "upon how bad a cloud it is. If we get into a storm up there, a real storm, we'll beat it back, you bet! I haven't told you, I guess, that as late as 1900 two men lost their lives on this path in a snow-*storm on the 30th of June—that's hardly more than a week earlier than to-day. Down here it's midsummer, but up there on the five thousand or six thousand foot level it's still early spring."

"Golly!" said Peanut, in such a heartfelt manner that the rest laughed—though they laughed rather soberly.