k of bushes and bark. The
weather was warm, and with the fire and two blankets they passed a
comfortable night. They heard their old friend the Horned Owl, a Fox
barked his querulous "_Yap-yurr!_" close at hand, and once or
twice they were awakened by rustling footsteps in the leaves, but
slept fairly well.

At dawn Yan was up. He made a fire and heated some water for tea. They
had very little bread left, but the Mallard was untouched.

Yan cleaned it, rolled it in wet clay, hid it in the ashes and covered
it with glowing coals. This is an Indian method of cooking, but Yan
had not fully mastered it. In half an hour he opened his clay pie and
found the Duck burned on one side and very raw on the other. Part of
it was good, however, so he called his companion to breakfast. Pete
sat up white-faced and miserable, evidently a sick boy. Not only had
he caught cold, but he was upset by the swamp water he had taken. He
was paying the penalty of his indiscretion. He ate a little and drank
some tea, then felt better, but clearly was unable to travel that day.
Now for the first time Yan felt a qualm of fear. Separated by a dozen
miles of swamp from all help, what could he do with a sick boy? He
barked a small dead tree with a knife, then on the smooth surface
wrote with a pencil, "Yan Yeoman and Pete Boyle camped here August 10,
18--"

He made Pete comfortable by the fire, and, looking for tracks, he
found that during the night two Deer had come nearly into the camp;
then he climbed a high tree and scanned the southern horizon for a
smoke sign. He saw none there, but to the northwest, beyond some
shining yellow hills, he discovered a level plain dotted over with
black Fir clumps; from one of these smoke went up, and near it were
two or three white things like teepees.

Yan hurried down to tell Pete the good news, but when he confessed
that it was two miles farther from home Pete had no notion of going
to the Indian camp; so Yan made a smoke fire, and knife-blazing the
saplings on two sides as he went, he set out alone for the Indian
camp. Getting there in half an hour, he found two log shanties and
three teepees. As he came near he had to use a stick to keep off the
numerous Dogs. The Indians proved shy, as usual, to White visitors.
Yan made some signs that he had learned from Caleb. Pointing to
himself, he held up two fingers--meaning that he was two. Then he
pointed to the Pine woods and made sign of the other lying down, a