54 LUCY AMONG THE MOUNTAINS,

“ How far is that?” said Lucy.

“ Q, it is several miles, down the valley.”

“Ts it as many as seventy miles?” said Lucy

“No,” said Comfort, “ not quite seventy.”

“Ts it a hundred miles, then ?” said Lucy.

*¢ Why, a hundred miles are more than seventy,
child.” ;

While Lucy had been talking thus, she had
been lagging behind Comfort, and seemed reluc-
tant to advance. They had come to a steep
place, where they had to climb up a rocky ascent,
which turned, in a spiral manner, around the point
of a little precipice. There were bushes and
briers on each side, growing out of the crevices of
the rocks, and from the little patches of earth.
Comfort went up a few steps, and then stopped
for Lucy.

“ Come, Lucy; why don’t you come?” said
she.
“Why, I think, Comfort,” said Lucy, “ that
we had better not go any farther. I think we had
better go back and find my mother.”

“OQ, your mother is safe enough, child.”

“ But I am afraid she'll get lost,” said Lucy.

Comfort laughed at Lucy for being afraid that
her mother would get lost.

“She can’t get lost,” said she. ‘She can’t go