It was nearly dark, but the fire, which they kept burning brightly, gave a good light and he began work at once hewing out the paddles. Fortunately the little hatchet was sharp, but even so, it was slow work. It was late when at last he pronounced them finished. They were rough, to be sure, but Rex was amazed that they could be made so well with only a knife and a hatchet as tools.
“There’s not much outside of the canoe to watch to-night,” Bob said, after he had praised Kernertok’s skill.
“But that’s a very important article just now,” Jack asserted.
“Sicum him keep watch now him all right.” Kernertok was very positive in his statement.
“Then to make things doubly safe, I move that we make our beds two on each side of the canoe,” Bob suggested.
“Heap good think,” Kernertok grunted.
“Hope the weather stays warm till we get out,” Bob said. “If it should turn cold it would be mighty uncomfortable without blankets, and we’d better make the beds as close to the fire as possible, because it’s not going to be very hot round the edges along toward morning.”
It was nearly twelve o’clock by Rex’s watch, which, as it had a water-proof case, had not stopped, before they were ready for bed.
“It’s a mighty lucky thing that we went over in time to get our clothes dry before night,” Jack declared, as he stretched himself out on his bed of fragrant spruce boughs.
Bob and Rex had dragged onto the fire two good sized logs which they had found near the bank of the river, and Bob declared that they ought to keep it going until morning.