nearly ten o'clock
It would seat about a dozen persons , and was protected by a roof of pine-boughs , interlaced together so as to keep off the sun , without affording protection from the rain . In the rear of this stand were two long tables , made of rough boards , and supported on stout joists , crossed on each other in the form of the letter X . A canopy of green leaves shaded the grounds , and the whole grove , which was perfectly free from underbrush , was carpeted with the soft , brown tassels of the pine . Being fatigued with the ride of the previous day , I did not awake till the morning was far advanced , and it was nearly ten o'clock when Andy and I took our way to the camp-ground . Avoiding the usual route , we walked on through the forest . It was mid-winter , and vegetation lay dead all around us , awaiting the time when spring should breathe into it the breath of life , and make it a living thing . There was silence and rest in the deep woods .