e little dog the while began a furious
fit of barking, so much so, that I was sure that with what his master had
learned about me, he could not fail to believe I was about his premises. I
quickly crossed the road, and got into an open field opposite. After
stepping lightly about two hundred yards, I halted, and on listening, I
heard the door open. Feeling about on the ground, I picked up two stones,
and one in each hand I made off as fast as I could, but I heard nothing
more that indicated pursuit, and after going some distance I discharged my
encumbrance, as from the reduced state of my bodily strength, I could not
afford to carry ballast.

This incident had the effect to start me under great disadvantage to make
a good night's journey, as it threw me at once off the road, and compelled
me to encounter at once the tedious and laborious task of beating my way
across marshy fields, and to drag through woods and thickets where there
were no paths.

After several hours I found my way back to the road, but the hope of
making anything like clever speed was out of the question. All I could do
was to keep my legs in motion, and this I continued to do with the utmost
difficulty. The latter part of the night I suffered extremely from cold.
There came a heavy frost; I expected at every moment to fall on the road
and perish. I came to a corn-field covered with heavy shocks of Indian
corn that had been cut; I went into this and got an ear, and then crept
into one of the shocks; eat as much of it as I could, and thought I would
rest a little and start again, but weary nature could not sustain the
operation of grinding hard corn for its own nourishment, and I sunk to
sleep.

When I awoke, the sun was shining around; I started with alarm, but it
was too late to think of seeking any other shelter; I therefore nestled
myself down, and concealed myself as best I could from the light of day.
After recovering a little from my fright, I commenced again eating my
whole corn. Grain by grain I worked away at it; when my jaws grew tired,
as they often did, I would rest, and then begin afresh. Thus, although I
began an early breakfast, I was nearly the whole of the forenoon before I
had done.

Nothing of importance occurred during the day, until about the middle of
the afternoon, when I was thrown into a panic by the appearance of a party
of gunners, who passed near me with their dogs. After shooting one or two
birds, however, and passing wi