noon
In this boyish picnic he missed Susy , and recalled , perhaps a little bitterly , her coldness at parting . But the novelty of his situation , the brilliant sunshine and sense of freedom , and the road already awakening to dusty life with passing teams , dismissed everything but the future from his mind . Readjusting his pack , he stepped on cheerily . At noon he was overtaken by a teamster , who in return for a match to light his pipe gave him a lift of a dozen miles . It is to be feared that Clarence 's account of himself was equally fanciful with his previous story , and that the teamster parted from him with a genuine regret , and a hope that he would soon be overtaken by his friends along the road . `` And mind that you ai n't such a fool agin to let 'em make you tote their dod-blasted tools fur them ! '' he added unsuspectingly , pointing to Clarence 's mining outfit .