A stock of new, dry wood for wet weather helped to show how much
too small the cabin was; and now the heavier work was done, and
Rolf had plenty of time to think.
Which of us that has been left alone in the wilderness does not
remember the sensations of the first day! The feeling of
self-dependency, not unmixed with unrestraint; the ending of
civilized thought; the total reversion to the primitive; the
nearness of the wood-folk; a sense of intimacy; a recurrent
feeling of awe at the silent inexorability of all around; and a
sweet pervading sense of mastery in the very freedom. These were
among the feelings that swept in waves through Rolf, and when the
first night came, he found such comfort -- yes, he had to confess
it -- in the company of the helpless little dog whose bed was by
his own.
But these were sensations that come not often; in the four days
and nights that he was alone they lost all force.
The hunter proverb about "strange beasts when you have no gun"
was amply illustrated now that Quonab had gone with their only
firearm. The second night before turning in (he slept in the
shanty now), he was taking a last look at the stars, when a
large, dark form glided among the tree trunks between him and the
shimmering lake; stopped, gazed at him, then silently disappeared
along the shore.
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