noon
They did not borrow any trouble , and as they drove away from the scenes that had grown so familiar to them , they looked forward , as all boys would , to an adventurous voyage down the Missouri , and a welcome home to their mothers and their friends in dear old Dixon . The nights were now cold and the days chilly . They had cooked a goodly supply of provisions for their journey , for they had not much ready money to pay for fare by the way . At noon they stopped by the roadside and made a pot of hot coffee , opened their stores of provisions and lunched merrily , gypsy-fashion , caring nothing for the curious looks and inquisitive questions of other wayfarers who passed them . For the first few nights they attempted to sleep in the wagon . But it was fearfully cold , and the wagon-bed , cluttered up with trunks , guns , and other things , gave them very little room . Miserable and sore , they resolved to spend their very last dollar , if need be , in paying for lodging at the wayside inns and hospitable cabins of the settlers along the road .