They shouted, skated and tore at each
other for a long time, then wearied of the game and sat down on the log
by Mike to hear a story.

Just as Mike finished telling of an adventure, a loaded sledge came down
the road and Paul called to the driver.

"Give us a ride?"

"Climb up!" replied the man.

"Room for us all?" asked Meredith.

"'Nodder comin' right behind," replied the driver.

Paul looked and nodded.

"Mete, you and the kids get on this one with Mike, and Vene, Elizabeth
and I will get on the next load. We'll all meet down by the river and
come back together."

"Let's take our dinner with us and eat it down there. Then we can sit on
the logs by the river and come back with the men on the next load,"
suggested Meredith.

"Good idea!" exclaimed Paul. "You get up on this and I'll run for the
lunch boxes and get back before the other sleigh gets here."

So the Starr children, with Mike, climbed up and sat upon the logs of
the first sledge, and the other children waited for the second load to
come in sight.

The sleigh-ride over the rough road to the river was great fun, for
often the sleigh would bump over a huge snow-covered stump or rock, and
make the children roll against each other and cling fast to the chains
that bound the logs together.

The horses went slowly, for the loads were heavy and the road hard and
rough, so the ride of two miles took some time.

The children had visited the roll-ways at the river before, but had
never had an opportunity to remain and understand the whole scene.

Arrived at the roll-ways, the men made quick work of unloading the logs
from the sledge and rolling them down to the river's edge. In many
cases, where the water was shallow, or the ice thick enough, the logs
were rolled out a few feet, and piled up in tiers so that when the
spring freshet came they would sink down into the water and be the first
to float down stream.

In several instances, rafts had been made and floated out a short
distance from the shore, and here the timber-men used to fish before the
river froze over. These rafts were still there, and the ice between them
and the shore was safe.

After the sledges returned to the forest, Meredith suggested that they
walk out to the rafts and have their lunch there. The other children
greeted the idea with glee and Mike looked carefully about to decide
that it was all right.

"Mike get fire, boys take dinner out," advised Mike, as he began picking