THE ENCAMPMENT.
Our party of travellers remained at the place of their bivouack more than
an hour. At the end of that time, having eaten all that they had cooked,
they began to think of resuming their journey. Marco was sitting upon
the stone, wishing that he had put down one more potato to roast, when
suddenly he perceived a large grey squirrel upon a log near him. The
squirrel ran along the log, and Marco immediately rose and went in
pursuit of him.
The squirrel ascended a tree, running up the stem. Then he glided along
one of the branches till he came to the end of it, when he leaped
through the air and caught the end of another branch, which was growing
from another tree. This branch, which was very slender, bent down half
way to the ground under the squirrel's weight. Bunny ran up the branch,
however, as easily as if it remained level. Thus he went along from tree
to tree, following, generally, the direction of the path by which Marco
had descended in coming from the wagon.
At length he emerged from the wood, just at the point where Marco had
fastened the horse. But all farther pursuit of him, on the part of
Marco, was suddenly arrested by the astounding fact, which here burst
suddenly upon Marco, that the horse and wagon were gone. Marco looked
all about, this way and that, to assure himself that it was the very
same place where he had fastened the horse. There could be no doubt of
it. There was the very tree to which he had tied him, and the marks of
his feet, near it, upon the ground.
Marco was in consternation. He looked all around, and then ran into the
road and looked both ways, but no signs of the horse were to be seen. He
then hurried back to the edge of the woods and called out in a loud
voice:
"Cousin Forester! Isaiah! cousin Forester! our horse has got away."
Isaiah sprang from the seat and ran, quicker than the squirrel had done,
up the path. As he came out to the place where Marco was standing, Marco
began to say, "There's where I tied him. I fastened him strong to that
tree." But Isaiah paid no attention to what he said, but ran directly to
the road. He did not stop to look both ways, but taking the road which
led towards his home, he ran along as fast as he could go. Marco
followed him as far as into the road, and looked after him as long as he
could see him. Isaiah was, however, soon out of sight, and Marco went
back to find Forester. Forester was coming up the path very leisurely,
bringing the bag, with the remaining provisions in it, in one hand, and
the hatchet in the other.
"Well, cousin Forester," said Marco, "we are in a fine condition. Our
horse and wagon have run away, and now Isaiah has run away too."
"I think Isaiah will come back pretty soon," said Forester. "As to the
horse and wagon, that is more doubtful."
"And then what shall we do?" asked Marco.
"I don't know," said Forester. "We are ten miles from any house in one
direction, and fifteen in another. But I'm not commander. It's nothing
to me. I've only to obey orders. I'll do whatever you say."
"Yes, but I should think you might advise me," said Marco. "Generals get
advice from their captains and colonels in battle."
"Oh yes," said Forester; "I'll advise you. I think we had better wait
first till Isaiah comes back. Perhaps he'll find the horse."
They waited about fifteen minutes, and then Isaiah came back. But he had
no horse. He said he went on until he reached the top of a hill where he
could see the road for a long distance before him, but that the horse
was not to be seen.
"He'll get home before I should overtake him," said Isaiah.
"Yes," said Marco, "unless he stopped where the tree fell across the
road."
"True," said Isaiah; "perhaps he has stopped there."
"Or would not he find his way round the tree through the woods?" asked
Marco.
"I don't know," said Isaiah; "perhaps he would."
"Is he a pretty sensible horse?" asked Marco.
"Yes," replied Isaiah; "we have to keep the granary door locked, or else
he will open the latch with his teeth, and go in and get the corn."
"Then," said Marco, "I've no doubt that he will find his way around the
tree and go home; and so we've got nothing to do but to walk back
fifteen miles."
"Or forward ten," said Forester.
"Yes," said Marco; "we can go on, to be sure, if we only knew the way."
Here followed a long discussion as to what it was best to do. Marco
thought that, if there was any probability that the horse would have
stopped at the tree, it would be better for him to go back and get him;
but that, if he had got _by_ the tree, and had gone home, it would be
better for Isaiah to go back and get him, while they went forward to the
end of the day's journey. He said that the trunk might be sent on.
Forester was himself very much at a loss to know what it was best to do.
As it was farther to go back than it was to go forward, it would be
plainly best for them to keep on, were it not for the difficulty of
finding their way. But Isaiah told them he thought they would not have
any difficulty on that account, as there were very few roads in such a
new country. He said that, if they kept the principal road, they could
get along without any trouble.
So Marco and Forester concluded to go on, while Isaiah returned. Isaiah
said that he was not afraid to return alone. He said also that, if he
found the horse at the tree, he would turn about and come and overtake
them. And if he did not find him there, he would walk on home, and come
the next day with their trunk.
Marco and Forester then went back to the place where they had dined, and
collected together all the food which had been left, thinking that they
might possibly have occasion to use it, before getting to the end of
their journey. They also took the hatchet with them, and bidding Isaiah
good-by, they set forth upon their solitary journey.
The road, though rough and narrow for wheels, was very good for a
foot-path, and the travellers went on for several miles without
difficulty, and with good courage. There was an unbroken forest on each
side of the way, with here and there a solitary bird in the topmost
branches, singing in melancholy notes, which echoed far and wide under
the endless colonnades of trees. After they had gone on about four
miles, they met a man coming with a team, who told them that there was
no road of any consequence to turn them off, and that they would,
therefore, probably find their way without much trouble. They were quite
pleased to hear this. In fact, it was some relief to them to know that
they were right, so far.
Marco was, however, not much accustomed to walk, and Forester, to
accommodate him, advanced slowly. When they had gone about five or six
miles, the shades of evening began to draw on. The days were getting
shorter at this season of the year, and then, besides, it happened that,
on this evening, there were some dark clouds in the west, and the sun
was darkened behind them before the regular hour of his going down.
Then, besides, the trees of the forest made it darker in the road in
which Marco and Forester were travelling.
Now, just as it was thus beginning to grow dark, they happened to come
to a place where the road divided, and Marco and Forester were both
puzzled to decide which was the one which they must take. The roads
seemed to be nearly equally travelled, though it was so dark that they
could not see very well. They examined both as carefully as they could,
and finally decided according to the best of their judgment, and went
on.
They had some doubt whether they were right, and Forester thought, as
they proceeded, that the road appeared somewhat different from the one
in which they had been travelling. However, they thought it best to go
on. After advancing about two miles, in a very circuitous direction,
they came at last to a place where several trees seemed to have been
cut away, and there were remains of several log huts. Marco was very
much interested in this discovery, and he wanted to examine the huts
very particularly. But Forester, when he found that they were not
inhabited, thought it best to lose no time, especially as it was now
beginning to be quite dark, and he urged Marco to leave the huts and
press on.
They went on for half a mile farther, when Marco, seeing a glimmer
through the trees, exclaimed that they were coming to some water.
"So it is," said Forester. "It looks like a pond or a river. If it is a
river, we're lost."
They walked on a short distance farther, and then they began to hear the
rippling of the water. In a few minutes, they were down upon the bank.
It was a small river, flowing rapidly along, between banks overhung with
bushes. Marco looked for a bridge, or for some place to cross, but they
found none. In fact, the road did not go down to the water, but seemed
to lose itself among the trees, before reaching the bank.
"This is not our road," said Forester. "We must go back."
"What road can this be?" asked Marco. "It seems to lead nowhere."
"I presume it is a logging road," replied Forester.
"What do you mean by that?" asked Marco. "Why, I suppose that those huts
must have been a logging camp, where the men lived in the winter, when
they came here to cut logs; and this is the road that they drew the logs
by, down to the water. But this summer it has been neglected. They don't
cut the logs in the summer."
"And what shall we do?" asked Marco.
"We must go back to the place where the road branched off," replied
Forester.
"Or else go and stay in the huts all night," said Marco.
"Yes," replied Forester, "we can do that. Let us go back and see."
They accordingly went back to the huts. Marco asked Forester whether he
thought they had better stay there.
"I don't know," said Forester, "Let us strike a light, and see how the
huts look."
Marco took out his match-box, and, after first gathering a few dry
sticks, he struck a light, and soon made a little fire. They found a
birch tree growing near, and they stripped off some pieces of the bark.
These they laid upon the fire, holding the ends of two long sticks upon
them, in such a manner, that, as the pieces of birch bark curled up
under the influence of the heat, they curled around the ends of these
sticks, thus making flambeaux. These flambeaux, though of rude
construction, gave a very excellent light, and Marco and Forester walked
about the huts, waving them in the air, and illuminating the whole scene
in a very brilliant manner.
They found that the huts were in a ruinous state. Only one of them had a
roof, and that had been originally made of hemlock branches, which had
now become entirely dry by long exposure. This covered hut was only a
sort of booth, being entirely open on one side. Forester said that he
recollected having heard of such huts, and that the men built their
fire, not in them, but on the ground opposite the open side.
Forester and Marco concluded to remain in this hut for the night. They
got together a great many hemlock branches, which they spread in the
bottom of it for a bed, and they built a fire opposite the open part, to
keep them warm.
Marco took a great interest in this fire. He piled the dry sticks upon
it until he had a very warm and cheerful blaze, and then he collected by
the side of it a heap of fuel, to use during the night.
In fact, Marco raised his fire too high; for, from the column of smoke
and sparks, one little brilliant fragment lighted upon their roof; and
it was slowly burning and smoking there, while Forester and Marco were
opening their bag of provisions, to see what they could make out for
supper.
Marco was counting out the potatoes, saying, "two for you, and two for
me," when his attention was arrested by a spark which, at that instant,
fell into his lap. He looked up to see where it came from, and saw that
the fire, which had spread from the original spark which had fallen upon
the roof, had burned a hole through, and the air, which was drawn up
through the opening, was at that moment fanning it into a flame.
Marco ran out, calling out, "Get some water! Get some water!"
There was plenty of water in a brook, which flowed with a murmuring
sound down a little glen behind the huts, but there were no buckets, and
Marco called in vain. It would have been equally useless to have raised
an alarm of fire, as there was nobody within ten miles to hear the cry.
The flames spread rapidly, and Forester and Marco soon saw that there
was nothing to be done but for them to stand quietly by and witness the
conflagration. The flames rose very high and raged fiercely, and the
light shone far into the forest, bringing into distinct view the whole
scene around, which had been involved in deep obscurity. The roof was
soon consumed, but the logs, of which the walls had been built, were
much longer in burning. The fire made by these logs, when they fell in
together upon the bed which Forester and Marco had prepared, was so
intensely hot that it could not be approached for a long time.
As soon as the intensity of this fire had a little declined, Forester
said that they must go to work and build themselves another hut. They
examined the ruins of those which remained, but they concluded that it
would be better to build a new one than to attempt to repair one of
these. They accordingly determined to build one anew.
They found two young trees, growing pretty near each other, which had
branches about six feet from the ground, so situated that they could
place a strong pole across from one tree to the other, resting the ends
upon the branches. This, Marco called the ridge-pole. They then cut
other poles, which they placed with the end on one side upon the ground,
and the other ends upon the ridge-pole. These were rafters, and upon the
rafters they placed a great many branches of hemlock, which formed a
roof. This roof, however, was only upon one side. The other side of the
hut was open, and they built a fire opposite this opening, feeling safe
in regard to their roof, as it was made of green branches.
[Illustration]
This work occupied them an hour. At the end of that time, they put
their potatoes into the fire to roast, and then laid down upon the
hemlock beds which they made, to rest themselves a little while, till
the potatoes should be done. Wearied with their long walk and the labors
of the evening, they fell asleep, and did not wake again till four
o'clock the next morning.