about four o'clock in the afternoon
This he took beside a stream of clear water at the bottom of a vast coulée that lay athwart his path . While his biscuits were baking he bagged a couple of prairie-chickens . One he ate , and one he carried along with him , `` for Clare 's supper . '' At about four o'clock in the afternoon , that is to say , the time of the second spell , he struck the edge of the bench again , and once more the valley was spread below him . He searched it eagerly . The forest covered it like a dark mat , and the surface of the river was only visible in spots here and there . He found what he was looking for , and his heart raised a little song ; a thin thread of smoke rising above the trees alongside the river , and at least a couple of miles in his rear .