"Doubtless," she said, enthusiastically, "a dingue will come out of
the lake to-night to feed on our spruce-tips. Then," she added, "we've
got him."
"True!" I said, earnestly, and pressed her fingers very gently.
Her face was turned a little away; I don't remember what she said; I
don't remember that she said anything. A faint rose-tint stole over
her cheek. A few moments later she said: "You must not do that again."
It was quite late when we strolled back to camp. Long before we came
in sight of the twin tents we heard a deep voice bawling our names. It
was Professor Smawl, and she pounced upon Dorothy and drove her
ignominiously into the tent.
"As for you," she said, in hollow tones, "you may explain your
conduct at once, or place your resignation at my disposal."
But somehow or other I appeared to be temporarily lost to shame, and I
only smiled at my infuriated president, and entered my own tent with a
step that was distinctly frolicsome.
"Billy," said I to William Spike, who regarded me morosely from the
depths of the tent, "I'm going out to bag a mammoth to-morrow, so
kindly clean my elephant-gun and bring an axe to chop out the tusks."
That night Professor Smawl complained bitterly of the cooking, but as
neither Dorothy nor I knew how to improve it, she revenged herself on
us by eating everything on the table and retiring to bed, taking
Dorothy with her.
I could not sleep very well; the mosquitoes were intrusive, and
Professor Smawl dreamed she was a pack of wolves and yelped in her
sleep.
"Bird, ain't she?" said William, roused from slumber by her weird
noises.
Dorothy, much frightened, crawled out of her tent, where her
blanket-mate still dreamed dyspeptically, and William and I made her
comfortable by the camp-fire.
It takes a pretty girl to look pretty half asleep in a blanket.
"Are you sure you are quite well?" I asked her.
To make sure, I tested her pulse. For an hour it varied more or less,
but without alarming either of us. Then she went back to bed and I sat
alone by the camp-fire.
Towards midnight I suddenly began to feel that strange, distant
vibration that I had once before felt. As before, the vibration grew
on the still air, increasing in volume until it became a sound, then
died out into silence.