noon
I knew they would , every man of them . Even the voyageur -- the least brave of the party -- would not have flinched ; for , in the midst of brave men , cowards cease to be . But such a course would indeed have been folly -- madness . We thought not of adopting it ; all approved of the plan I had formed , and which I had already laid before them as we tarried by the noon halting-place . Several had volunteered to be my companions -- to venture along with me into the camp of the savage ; to share with me the extreme of the danger ; but for several reasons I was determined to go alone . Should even one of them be along with me , I saw it would double the risk of detection . In this matter , stratagem , not strength , was needed , and speed in the last moments would be worth both .