noon
We lost the road , and had to retrace our steps . We strayed into a slough , and extracted ourselves with difficulty . The man who was riding the bay I had purchased forgot the secret which I had imparted to him , and got an ugly fall . En fin , after all these mishaps it wanted little of noon , and less to exhaust our patience , when at length we came in sight of Chateauroux . Before entering the town we had still an adventure ; for we came at a turn in the road on a scene as surprising as it was at first inexplicable . A little north of the town , in a coppice of box facing the south and west , we happed suddenly on a rude encampment , consisting of a dozen huts and booths , set back from the road and formed , some of branches of evergreen trees laid clumsily together , and some of sacking stretched over poles . A number of men and women of decent appearance lay on the short grass before the booths , idly sunning themselves ; or moved about , cooking and tending fires , while a score of children raced to and fro with noisy shouts and laughter .