AUDUBON AND BOONE. 139 
leaving one of my assistants to look after them, I set out, 
accompanied by the other, and my Newfoundland dog. We 
had eighteen miles to go; and as the sun was only two hours 
high, we struck off at a good rate. Presently we entered a 
pine barren. The country was as level as a floor; our path, 
although narrow, was well beaten, having been used by the , 
Seminole Indians for ages, and the weather was calm and 
beautiful. Now and then a rivulet occurred, from which we 
quenched our thirst, while the magnolias and other flowering 
plants on its banks, relieved the dull uniformity of the woods. 
When the path separated into two branches, both seemingly 
leading the same way, I. would follow one, while my com- 
panion took the other, and unless we met again in a short 
time, one of us would go across the intervening forest. 
The sun went dgwn behind a cloud, and the south-east 
breeze that sprung up at this moment, sounled dolefully 
among the tall pines. Along the eastern horizon lay a bed 
of black vapor, which gradually rose, and soon covered the 
heavens. The air felt hot and oppressive, and we knew that 
a tempest was approaching. Plato was now our guide, the 
white spots on his skin being the only objects that we could 
discern amid the darkness, and as if aware of his utility in 
this respect, he kept a short way before us on the trail. Had 
we imagined ourselves: more than a few miles from the town, 
we would have made a camp, and remained unger its shelter 
for the night; but conceiving that the distance could not be 
great, we resolved to trudge along. 
Large drops began to fall from the murky mass overhead ; 
thick, impenetrable darkness surrounded us, and to my dis- 
may, the dog refused to proceed. Groping with my hands 
on the ground, I discovered that several trails branched out 
at the spot where he lay down; and when I had selected one, 
he went on. Vivid flashes of lightning streamed across the 
heavens, the wind increased to a gale, and the rain poured 
down upon us like a torrent. The water soon rose on the 
