vapour had taken the appearance of smoke. At the same time we heard a
sort of distant crackling, like a heavy running-fire of musketry, and
which was repeated at short intervals. Each time it was heard, our
horses appeared scared and trembling.

The creek was getting rapidly wider, and the ground so swampy that it
was impossible to proceed further. Seeing this, we agreed to return to
the prairie, and to try if it were not cooler among the palmettos. But
when we came to the place where we had crossed the creek, our horses
refused to take the leap again, and it was with the greatest difficulty
we at length forced them over. All this time the redness in the horizon
was getting brighter, and the atmosphere hotter and drier; the smoke had
spread itself over prairie, forest, and plantations. We continued
retracing our steps as well as we could to the spot where we had halted.
"See there," said Carleton; "not half an hour ago those reeds were as
fresh and green as if they had just sprung out of the earth, and now
look at them--the leaves are hanging down, parched and curled up by the
heat."

The whole prairie, the whole horizon to the south-west, was now one mass
of dense smoke, through which the sun's disc looked scarcely brighter
than a paper-lantern. Behind the thick curtain which thus concealed
every thing from our view, we heard a loud hissing, like that of a
multitude of snakes. The smoke was stifling and unbearable; our horses
again turned panting round, and tore madly towards the creek. On
reaching it we dismounted, but had the greatest difficulty to prevent
them from leaping into the water. The streaks of red to our right became
brighter and brighter, and gleamed through the huge, dark trunks of the
cypress-trees. The crackling and hissing grew louder than ever. Suddenly
the frightful truth flashed upon us, and at the very same moment