ithin himself, rolled himself up, so
to speak, in his primitive habits, and waited for the healing power of
nature. Before our feeble fire disappeared, we smoothed a level place
near it for Phelps to lie on, and got him over to it. But it didn't
suit: it was too open. In fact, at the moment some drops of rain fell.
Rain was quite outside of our program for the night. But the guide
had an instinct about it; and, while we were groping about some yards
distant for a place where we could lie down, he crawled away into the
darkness, and curled himself up amid the roots of a gigantic pine, very
much as a bear would do, I suppose, with his back against the trunk, and
there passed the night comparatively dry and comfortable; but of this we
knew nothing till morning, and had to trust to the assurance of a voice
out of the darkness that he was all right.

Our own bed where we spread our blankets was excellent in one
respect,--there was no danger of tumbling out of it. At first the rain
pattered gently on the leaves overhead, and we congratulated ourselves
on the snugness of our situation. There was something cheerful about
this free life. We contrasted our condition with that of tired invalids
who were tossing on downy beds, and wooing sleep in vain. Nothing was so
wholesome and invigorating as this bivouac in the forest. But, somehow,
sleep did not come. The rain had ceased to patter, and began to fall
with a steady determination, a sort of soak, soak, all about us. In
fact, it roared on the rubber blanket, and beat in our faces. The wind
began to stir a little, and there was a moaning on high. Not contented
with dripping, the rain was driven into our faces. Another suspicious
circumstance was noticed. Little rills of water got established along
the sides under the blankets, cold, undeniable streams, that interfered
with drowsiness. Pools of water settled on the bed; and the chaplain had
a habit of moving suddenly, and letting a quart or two inside, and down
my neck. It began to be evident that we and our bed were probably the
wettest objects in the woods. The rubber was an excellent catch-all.
There was no trouble about ventilation, but we found that we had
established our quarters without any provision for drainage. There was
not exactly a wild tempest abroad; but there was a degree of liveliness
in the thrashing limbs and the creaking of the tree-branches which
rubbed against each other, and the pouring rain increased in volum