Everybody went back to the shelter and waited another half hour, which seemed more like two hours, as Peanut said. Then somebody went out again to reconnoitre, and returned with the information that the cloud was lifting still more, and the northern valley was visible. In another half hour even from within the cabin they could see it was very perceptibly lighter. The hurricane had subsided to a steady gale, which Rob estimated at forty miles an hour, by tossing a bit of paper into the air and watching the speed of its flight. It was warmer, too, though still very chilling in the fireless cabin. In another half hour you could walk some distance from the cabin without losing sight of it, and Peanut and Art went down to the spring behind for water. Then Mr. Rogers took the Scouts back on the trail a short distance and showed them a peep of the two Lakes of the Clouds back on the col toward Monroe.
"We were going to have lunch by those lakes," he said. "I wanted to show you several interesting things about them. But they'll have to wait. It's a regular Alpine garden down there, and it's coming into flower now. If we get a good day to-morrow, we can take it in, though."
"Look," cried Lou, suddenly, "there's Monroe coming out of the cloud!"
"And there's Franklin behind it!" cried Frank.
