In my sleep I had heard for hours, so it seemed, the thunder of rapids and falls greater than Niagara, into which the canoe was slipping against all my power to steer or stop her. Nearer and nearer the horror came; there were people on the shore shouting, and one of them blew a whistle that would wake the dead, and I sprang up in the tent at the same moment that Smith jumped to his feet. Without moving farther we saw the cause of the disturbance. Within forty yards of us ran a railroad, along which was thundering one of these interminable coal trains, that are longer, I am sure, than any other trains in the world. The noise had affected us both in almost the same way; and we were so completely awakened that to sleep again seemed out of the question.
So we piled up our firewood till the flames illuminated the sombre hills. Then we mixed with sugar and water a stiff dose of our remedy for the malaria; but before enjoying this, the night was so warm and lightsome and the river so tempting, I plunged into the deep water for a short swim. When I came in, Smith was singing; and we sat by the fire and sang on and on, and the screech owl stopped to listen; and the fire and the tobacco burned as if they enjoyed it; and it was well for the malaria that it did not come around that night.
