"I know what Rogers is about to do. We are going right up into Canada to the St. Lawrence River, to attack the St. Francis Indians who made Captain Kennedy and his men prisoners." As I said this, Edmund laughed, and I knew that I had hit it. "By the g-great Horn Spoon! That b-beats anything that Weaver David ever dreamed of. Is that it, Edmund?" "I can't tell you where we are going, but don't say a word of what you suspect; for if any of our party were caught and knew where we were going, it would be sure death for the rest of us; so just hold your mouth and don't talk." CHAPTER XVII MARCH TO THE VILLAGE--THE RETREAT We landed at Missisquoi Bay and pulled our boats up into the woods. Near them we hid the provisions for our return. We distributed the rest of the food among us, put it on our backs in sacks, and started off to the northeast. We left behind us a couple of Stockbridge Indians to watch the boats and give us notice if they were discovered. We had only marched two days when these two Indians caught up with us. "Frenchmen and Indians find boats. Heap big party follow us. Three hundred men." Rogers said: "Boys, we are out to punish some Indians, and the only course for us is to outmarch the enemy, do our work, and get out of the way." We plodded along day after day, from daybreak to dark, most of the time through spruce bogs where the water was sometimes ankle-deep, and at times up to our thighs. We were wet all the time, and our shoes began to rot and go to pieces. [Sidenote: DAMP WALKING] At night we cut down trees, laid boughs from one tree to another, and slept on them to keep out of the water. Nine days we marched and slept in this manner. It was a terrible strain even to hardy men such as we were, accustomed to forest life. Amos said: "We're just like a procession of cold, miserable frogs, h-hopping along through the water. This is the biggest fool trip I ever heard of." "Think of the glory, Amos, of going into the heart of the enemy's country and punishing these Indians." "Glory be h-hanged! I wish I was with Davy, hunting foxes and listening to his big stories of what he did do, or would have done if something hadn't happened." "But when you get back, Amos, you can crush him by telling of this trip." "Yes, when I g-get back. When I get back! I should rather be b-back without the story. L-Looks to me as if Davy's chance of hearing it is rather slim." On the tenth day after we left Missisquoi Bay we reached a river.