Besides, they took naterally to the woods, makin' fust rate scouts an' hunters, an' ef that ain't proof o' the stuff that's in people, nothin' is." This day upon the waters was one of unbroken peace.

The flood, as Henry had predicted, continued to rise, spreading far into the woods and out of sight.

Now and then some portion of the shore, eaten into continually by the powerful stream, would give way and fall with a sticky sigh into the river.

Uprooted trees floated in the current or became wedged in the forest.

But the sunlight remained undimmed and they began to grow familiar with the river.