TREED BY WOLVES DOs

in which the clouds are going, which way the hut ought to
lie. Always take with you one of your pistols; if you fire
it three times at regular intervals, it will be a signal that
you want help, and any of us who are within hearing will
come to aid you.”

With the exception of hares, of which a good many
were snared, the hunting was not productive. Tracks of
deer were seen not unfrequently, but it was extremely
difficult, even when the animals were sighted, to get across
the surface of the snow to within range of the clumsy
arquebuses that two or three of the men carried. ‘They
did, however, manage to shoot a few by erecting a shelter
just high enough for one man to lie down under, and leav-
ing it until the next snowstorm so covered it that it seemed
but a knoll in the ground, or a low shrub bent down and
buried under the weight of the snow. These shelters were
erected close to paths taken by the deer, and by lying
patiently all day in them the men occasionally managed to
get a close shot. Several bears were killed and two elks,
These afforded food for a long time, as the frozen flesh
would keep until the return of spring. Holes were made
in the ice on the stream, and baited hooks being set every
night, it was seldom that two or three fish were not found
fast on them in the morning. Altogether, therefore, there
was no lack of food; and, as under the teaching of the
captain, Charlie in time learnt to be able to keep his
direction through the woods, he was often able to go
out either with Stanislas or alone, thus keeping clear of
the close smoky hut during the hours of daylight. Upon
the whole he found the life by no means an unpleasant
one.

Among the articles purchased by the captain were high
boots linedwith sheep-skin coming up to the thigh. With
these and the coats, which had hoods to pull over the head,
Charlie felt the cold but little during the day; while at