noon
His strong arms swept the paddle through the water for a long time . The action was purely mechanical . His muscles were so thoroughly trained and hardened that he was not conscious of action . He was watching instead for the first sign of Wareville 's presence , and a little before noon he saw it , a thin spire of smoke rising high , until it stopped like the point of a spearhead against the sky . He knew at once that it hung over Wareville , and his heart throbbed . He loved the great wilderness with an intensity that few men felt for their own acres , but he had been away a long time , a time , moreover , so crowded with events that it seemed far greater than reality . He did not yet awaken Paul and the schoolmaster , but , putting more power in his arms , he sent the boat on more swiftly .