Posted by Wanna Bee Cooper on May 10, 1999 at 11:49:25:
Fifteen days had passed away, ere it was in the power of She Who Tracks La Longue to reach the Glimmerglass. A peace had intervened, and it was on the eve of another, and still more important war, when She and her constant friend, The Old Crone, were hastening to the lake to seek the pirate treasure. Goat Foot accompanied them, and the three survivors had now become inseparable. They reached the lake just as the sun was setting.
The following morning, Goat Foot discovered a canoe drifted on the shore, in a state of decay. A little labor put it in service, and they all embarked with a desire to examine the place.
From the point, the canoe took its way towards the shoal, where the remains of the Hutter castle were still visible, a picturesque ruin. The storms of winter had long since unroofed the house, and decay had eaten into the logs. All the fastenings were untouched, but a swarm of bees rioted in the place as if in mockery at the attempt to exclude them. The Pirate Bees had arrived.
The palisades were rotting, as were the piles; and it was evident that a few more gales and tempests would sweep all into the lake and blot the building from the face of that mignificent solitude. The three adventurers secured their canoe to one of the rotting pilings and carefully made their way into the decaying structure.
An amazing sight met their eyes! Every nook and cranny was overflowing with golden honey. Bees darted in and out of the loopholes on their way to and from mountain meadows surrounding the lake. A cheerful humming rose from the swarm:
Yo ho ho and a jug o' mead -
Now we know what the traders need!
We'll get rich on our golden brew -
Here's to the trove of the Pirate crew!