I remember that it was the last of March and very
cold, but there were big fires to get warmed at, and we had a
delightful time."
"Were there any Indians there, Miss Harson?" asked little Edith, after
being quiet for some time. Vermont was such a long way off on the map,
besides being up almost at the top, that Indians and bears and all sorts
of wild things seemed to have a right to live there.
"No," said her governess, smiling at the question; "I did not see one,
even at the sugar-camp. Yet the Indians made maple-sugar long before we
knew anything about it, and from them the white people learned how to
do it."
"Well, that's the funniest thing!" exclaimed Malcolm. "I thought that
Indians were always scalping people instead of making maple-sugar."
"They did a great many other things, though, besides fighting, and their
life was spent so much out of doors that they studied the nature of
every plant and living thing about them. The healing-properties of some
of our most valuable herbs were first discovered by the Indians, and, as
they never had any grocery-stores, the presence of trees that would
supply them with sugar was a blessing not likely to be neglected. The
devoted missionary John Brainerd first heard of this tree-sugar from
them, and it is said that he used to preach to them when they were thus
peacefully employed, and obtained a better hearing than at other times."
"Have we any maple-sugar trees?" asked Clara.
"No," replied Miss Harson; "there are none at Elmridge, and I have seen
none anywhere near here.
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