ike this.

"After her excitement Almia felt somewhat weak; she needed food; and
when they had crossed the roadway they stopped to rest under the shade
of a spreading oak. Unfortunately the soldiers had brought no rations
with them, and Almia had only some Albert biscuit, which she did not
wish to eat because she had brought them to relieve the faintness of
some wounded soldier. 'If you will permit us,' said the soldier with the
black hair, 'we two will go out and forage. Each of us will see to it
that the other returns.'

"While they were gone the Exceptional Pedestrian conversed with Almia.
'During my investigations of the social aspects of this region,' he
said, 'I put many miles between myself and the army to which I belong,
but by closely adhering to certain geological and topographical
principles I knew I should eventually find it. In fact, when you met
with me I was making some final calculations which would not fail to
show me where I should find my comrades. There is no better way to
discover the position of an army than by observing the inclination of
the geological strata. In this section, for instance, the general trend
of the beds of limestone and quartz indicates the direction of the
running streams, and these naturally flow into the valleys and plains,
and the land, being well watered, is more fertile; consequently it was
soonest cleared by the settlers, while the higher ground surrounding it
is still encumbered by timber growth. An army naturally desires open
ground for its operations, for large bodies of cavalry and artillery
cannot deploy to advantage through wooded districts. Therefore, if we
follow this roadway, which, as you see, slightly descends to the
northeast, we shall soon come within sight of the opposing forces.'

"'But,' said Almia, 'the roar of the battle comes over from that way,
which must be the northwest.'

"'That may be,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'but the principle
remains.'

"The two soldiers now returned, bearing two large apple-pies resting
upon two palm-leaf fans. 'These were all we could procure,' said the
brown-haired soldier, 'and the woman would not sell her plates.' The
pies were rapidly divided into quarters, and the hungry party began to
eat. 'It is true,' said the Exceptional Pedestrian, 'that the character
of the apple indicates the elevation above sea-level of the soil in
which it grew. The people who grew these apples would have done much
better if they had