Lost on a Mountain in Maine by Donn Fendler

Author:Donn Fendler
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins

CHAPTER 9

I HEAR AN AIRPLANE • SIXTH DAY

A GENTLE breeze was blowing across that hill and it kept the flies and mosquitoes away from me. For once I was free of them. I’ll never forget how warm and comfy that blanket felt. The cuts and bites on my legs seemed to stop hurting. My feet felt warm and safe and even my toes softened a little as I fell asleep. That was early morning.

When I woke up, the sun was way down on the other side. I had slept all day, and boy, did I feel good! I sat up and wondered what to do next, then I noticed something was the matter with the backs of my legs. They smarted and pained as though I had sat down on hot coals. I got up and examined them. The skin was as red as paint and all hot and fiery-looking. Lying there in the sun for so many hours had given me the worst sunburn I ever had. After that, for a long time, I found it more comfortable to keep going than to sit down to rest. I put on my reefer and threw the blanket over my arm. It was awfully heavy but I had to have it. I remember I carried it a long way.

Just as the sun was sinking I came around a bend in the tote road and saw something that made my heart jump with joy. There, right in front of me was a telephone wire nailed to trees. I shouted and danced and laughed and then I cried some. I was saved at last. All I had to do was follow it. It would lead me straight to some camp. I looked at the wire. It didn’t seem too old. Since it led into the tote road at that point, I decided to keep going just as I was. Boy, the sight of that wire running along ahead of me gave me a lot of courage and cheered me up a good deal.

That night I crawled under a down tree and curled up in my blanket. I didn’t feel so bad. But I was hungry, my head felt hot and I had queer dreams. I dreamed I was in a New York automat with a lot of nickels in my hand.

I’d put in a nickel and down would drop the door on a ham sandwich. Then a hand would reach in over my shoulder and take the sandwich. I’d move on to a big piece of lemon meringue pie and drop in a nickel. Down would drop the door and, before I could reach in, a hand would go across my shoulder and take the pie. Pretty soon I had used up all my nickels and hadn’t had a thing to eat. That was pretty tough and I wanted to get mad, but I couldn’t. I just went out for some more nickels.

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