charles fled and hid in a wood, where some poor wood-cutters took care of him and helped him. he put on some of their clothes, cut his hair short, and stained his face and hands brown so that he might appear to be a sunburnt workman like them. but it was some time before he could escape from the wood, for cromwell's soldiers were searching it in the hope of finding some of the king's men. one day, charles and two of his friends had to climb into the tall oak to avoid being caught. they had with them some food, which proved very useful, for they were obliged to stay in their strange hiding-place for a whole day. the top of the oak-tree had been cut off some few years before this time, and this had made the lower branches grow thick and bushy, so that people walking below could not easily see through them. it was a fortunate thing for charles, for while he was in the tree, he heard the soldiers beating the boughs and bushes in the wood as they searched here and there, and even caught glimpses of them through the leaves as they rode about below.