and fell far more often than the rest on his clumsy feet on the
ice. Now, however, the smoke of the burning bunches of eagles' feathers
was mounting in pale blue clouds through the gorge. It was enough. At
the first sniff and savour of this evil smoke the Long-noses paused in
their mischief, coughing and sneezing. At the next sniff they paused no
longer. Away they scampered headlong, higgledy-piggledy, toppling one
over another in their haste to be gone, squealing with disgust and
horror; and the travellers at last were left in peace.

"I began to fear, O Man of the Mountains," grunted Thumb to Ghibba,
"that your wits had got frostbitten. But I am not too old nor fat to
learn wisdom."

Ghibba lifted his face and peered from under the bandage he had wound
over his sore eyes into Thumb's bruised face. "Munza or Mountains,
there's wisdom for all, brave traveller," he said. "They are very old
friends of ours, these Long-noses; they could smell out a mouse's
Meermut in the moon."

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

CHAPTER XVIII

The pass grew ever steeper, but now that the travellers were no longer
pestered by the Obobbomans they managed to struggle slowly on. And near
about sunset they had tugged their way to the top, and came out again
upon the mountain-side. They spread out their blankets and threw
themselves down, panting, bruised, and outwearied. But they made no fire
here yet, because their wood was running short, and all that they had
would be needed against the small hours of the night. They nibbled at
their blue cheese and a few cold eagle-bones, and, having cut one of
their skin-bags to pieces, broke up the frozen milk and shared the lumps
between them.

Thumb and Nod crouched down beside Thimble, who was now awake and in his
own mind. And they told him all that had happened since his megrims had
come on. He was still weak and fretful, and turned his eyes hastily from
sight of the mouldy cheese the Mountain-mulgars were nibbling. But he
sucked a few old Ukka-nuts. Then they lifted him gently, and with an arm
round Thumb's neck and a hand on Nod's shoulder, they walked him awhile
quietly in the snow.

While the brothers were thus walking friendly together, Ghibba groped
his way up to them.

"I come, Royal Travellers," he said, "to tell you that here our country
ends. Zut lies now behind us. Yonder stretches the Shadow Country, and
my people know the way no farther."

The three brothers turned the