appliances complete, while over in one of the other
corners was what remained of Joe's first scroll-saw, rather dilapidated
and cheap-looking now, but still of some service. Joe would not have
parted with it even if he did not use it, for with it he developed his
first love for carpentry, which had finally led to the present shop.

"Now look here," said Joe; "my scheme is the simplest in the world; it's
a plan to catch those bass in Laurel Lake which we can't get any way
we've tried so far. It isn't the bait. Jingo! we've tried everything,
from grasshoppers, dobsons, and live bait down to worms; they just look
at it, and then look up at the boat over their heads, and scoot.
Remember that monster we saw off Sea Lion last Tuesday? What would you
give to get him, eh?"

"What would I give? Why, Joe, he's the biggest bass in that lake. I'd
give--now, let me see," said Ned, scratching his head as he turned it
from one side to the other; "I'd be willing to throw my new rod in the
lake and stop fishing the rest of the summer."

"So would I," said Joe. "But look here, just get that cross-cut saw and
help me get this plank so that we can get at it, and I'll explain as we
go along." Joe measured off on the board ten divisions of eight inches
each, and started sawing across the first line. "Now, you see," said he,
"what I propose is that we take each of these ten pieces, cut up that
old line of mine into lengths of about eight or nine feet, and
then--see? Isn't that easy? The beauty of it is that we have a chance in
ten different places; just string them along the shore, leave them, and
while we wait jump in and play fish ourselves off Baldwin's Cliff; we
can easily watch the floats from there. Catch?"

Ned had been listening eagerly, and approved the scheme heartily, only
wondering why it had not occurred to them before. When Joe finished, Ned
raised the question of bait, but was put off by Joe's saying there would
be time enough to get all the grasshoppers and crickets they wanted, and
maybe a few frogs, so they went to work, coats off, and sleeves rolled
up in a businesslike manner. In the course of an hour or more they had
that part of the work all done, and a short time afterwards they started
up to the stable with their arms full of their invention, and deposited
it complete in the box under the seat of Ned's buckboard.

"Now for bait," said Joe; "you take this box and keep along by that old
stone wall and look sharp for