Another mistake which they made was, in the supposition that the river had any definite course. They had acted on the theory, not only that their own course was straight, but that the course of the river was straight also. Now, this river, like every other river, had a flow in one general direction, but its actual course was a winding one, and not far below the rock from which they had set out, it turned in a direction which was totally different from the one in which it was flowing when they left it. Thus they had been wandering in a very irregular course ever since they started. They had gone onward for mile after mile, and every step had carried them farther and farther away from the places in the neighborhood of which they wished to remain, and now, at this bewildered halt, they were in reality far, very far, away from that river which they had believed themselves to be approaching. Some such conviction as this came to their minds now,--that is to say, the conviction that they had wandered far away from the river,--but they had no idea how far away from it they really were, and they thought--that is to say, Bart and Pat thought--that their wanderings had begun only at their last change of course, near the wooded swamp. Thus far, the weather had been warm, but not so sultry as on the day before. The air appeared to have become cooled by that gentle breeze which had sprung up in the morning. The sky, however, had been overcast as before, and all the view overhead was covered with those rolling smoke clouds before mentioned. They noticed this now as they sat there, and it seemed to them that the sky was more enveloped with this sombre covering, and that the light was dimmer, and the scene more gloomy. The birds also seemed to have all fled away from that smoky sky. Their long tramp had sharpened their appetites, and they now began to think of lunch. Fortunately, Solomon, with his usual forethought, had saved the fish that had been left from their repast on the previous day, and these, with some sandwiches, furnished out a meal. They were without anything to drink, however; but a little search in the neighborhood revealed a slender rill of very warm water, which, warm as it was, they were glad to drink. On the whole, this frugal repast refreshed them and invigorated them; and after its conclusion, they began to consider once more the important question of the course which they should take next. What perplexed them most was the impossibility of knowing anything about the direction in which they ought to go. The points of the compass were all unknown. North, south, east, and west were all alike a mystery. The smoke clouds that covered the whole sky made it impossible even to conjecture, with any approach to accuracy, the possible position of the sun.