.

SLIDING DOORS.

[Illustration: Fig. 144. Section of the Door and Frame.]

We had two doors; one at the back of the house, from which a ladder
extended down to the ground, and another opening out onto the veranda,
from which we dropped a ladder down to the Goblins' Dancing Platform. In
order to save space we used sliding instead of swinging doors. The back
door frame was 5-1/2 feet high and the front door frame 6 feet high. The
doors were mounted on the outside of the building. The side posts of
each frame were 2-1/2 feet apart, and the lintel and sill extended 3
feet beyond the side post at one side. The upper face of the lintel was
planed down perfectly smooth, and its edges were tapered off to make a
track for the rollers on the door. The rollers consisted of two spools,
which turned on tenpenny nails driven into the top of the door. At the
lower end two more spools were mounted, turning on nails driven in the
bottom edge of the door. The rims of the spools extended slightly beyond
the outer face of the door and rolled against the sill. To keep the
water from leaking in at the top a slanting board was fastened above it,
as shown in Fig. 144. The back door was similarly constructed. Our tree
house was completed by a running balustrade around the veranda.

It strangely happened that just after our tree house had been built we
received a photograph from Uncle Ed of a Filipino tree house made of
bamboo.

[Illustration: A Filipino Bamboo Tree House.]

CHAPTER XII.

TROUBLE WITH THE TRAMPS.

We were a proud lot when the house was finally completed. From the
veranda we had an excellent view up and down the river. We could see our
camp on the island and keep watch of our goods. Late one afternoon
Dutchy and I were lolling about on the Goblins' Platform, idly watching
a hawk soaring above us. The rest of the boys had returned to the island
in canoes an hour before and left the heavy scow for us to row back. It
was drawing near supper time and we had about decided to start for home,
when I chanced to see a scow up the river. It looked exactly like ours,
and in it were two men, evidently drunk, from the way they carried on. A
glance showed me that our scow was not at its moorings. How were we to
reach the camp? One of the men had evidently seen us and was pointing us
out to his companion. We rushed down the Jacob's Ladder, but by the time
we reached the river bank they were in midstream and heading rapidly