the suggestion of a prudent lowering of their voices,--and fell asleep.
He woke up twice in the night with a sensation of cold so marked and
distinct from his experience of the early evening, that he was fain to
pile his clothes over his blankets to keep warm. He fell asleep again,
coming once more to consciousness with a sense of a slight jar, but
relapsing again into slumber for he knew not how long. Then he was
fully awakened by a voice calling him, and, opening his eyes, beheld the
blanket partition put aside, and the face of Jay thrust forward. To
his surprise it wore a look of excited astonishment dominated by
irrepressible laughter.
"Get up quick as you kin," she said gaspingly; "this is about the
killingest thing that ever happened!"
She disappeared, but he could still hear her laughing, and to his utter
astonishment with her disappearance the floor seemed to change its
level. A giddy feeling seized him; he put his feet to the floor; it
was unmistakably wet and oozing. He hurriedly clothed himself, still
accompanied by the strange feeling of oscillation and giddiness, and
passed though the opening into the next room. Again his step produced
the same effect upon the floor, and he actually stumbled against her
shaking figure, as she wiped the tears of uncontrollable mirth from her
eyes with her apron. The contact seemed to upset her remaining gravity.
She dropped into a chair, and, pointing to the open door, gasped, "Look
thar! Lordy! How's that for high?" threw her apron over her head, and
gave way to an uproarious fit of laughter.
Hemmingway turned to the open door. A lake was before him on the level
of the cabin. He stepped forward on the platform; the water was right
and left, all around him. The platform dipped slightly to his step. The
cabin was afloat,--afloat upon its base of logs like a raft, the whole
structure upheld by the floor on which the logs were securely fastened.
The high ground had disappeared--the river--its banks the green area
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