"Why, we've drifted to leeward," said Jonas, "and I must bring her up; for we want to land around behind that point on the starboard bow."
Rollo did not understand Jonas's technical language very well. He particularly did not know what Jonas meant by bringing her up, for it seemed to him that the pond was perfectly level, so that there was no up or down either way. He did not know that, in sea language, against the wind was always up, and with the wind, down.
Jonas found it hard to bring the boat up into the wind. The waves had begun to be pretty large, and they beat against the bows of the boat, and some of the water dashed over upon Rollo. The wind blew quite heavily, too; and now that they had changed their direction so as to bring the wind upon their side, it embarrassed, if it did not absolutely retard their progress. Some drops of rain also began to fall.
However, by hard and persevering exertion, Jonas at length succeeded in urging the boat forward until he began to draw nigh to the point of land; and soon afterwards they came under the shelter of it, where the water was smooth, and the air comparatively still. Here Rollo put in his oar again, and they passed along close under a high shore, for some distance, until they came to the landing. Here they fastened the boat, and then began to walk along up the road.
The road lay through the woods, and among hills, so that it was sheltered; and the only indications of the wind which the boys noticed, was a distant roaring sound among the forests. They came at length to the bridge, where they found several workmen busily engaged in laying abutments of stone, but the carpenter himself was not there. The men told Jonas that he had gone about half a mile away, on a by-road, to select and cut some timber to be used in the construction of the bridge.
"How long will he be gone?" asked Jonas.
"He will be gone two or three hours," said a man with a stone hammer in his hand.
"What shall we do now?" asked Rollo, addressing Jonas, after a short pause.
"Keep on until we find him," replied Jonas. "But you may stay here and see them build the bridge, while I go after the carpenter."
Accordingly Jonas went on, leaving Rollo seated upon a bank watching the work. In about three quarters of an hour, he returned; and then he and Rollo went back to the boat. The wind had all this time continued to increase, though they were so much sheltered, that they did not notice it much.