This, as it happened, proved our salvation.

"We sat cross-legged one morning, figuring out by the notch calendar how
many weeks of winter remained. Suddenly a most startling sound rose
above the din of the snarling, fighting beasts outside.

"A shot rang out, followed by a shrill yelp of pain from one of the
beasts; again a rifle cracked, and one more wolf was struck, judging
from the noise and confusion that ensued.

"Hal and I looked at each other as if in a dream; then we comprehended,
and almost choked with joy. The beasts outside slunk away as the
strangers who had dealt death so swiftly among them approached. Hal and
I both raised our voices and shouted and called as loudly as we could. I
thought of his rifle, and brought it to him.

"'Shoot through the rifle-hole in the door,' I said, excitedly.

"'Sure thing!' he cried, raising his gun to his shoulder and shooting
toward the sky.

"We heard an answering shot, and then voices approaching to within a few
yards of the hut. We pried the door open far enough to hand out the
spade. The unknown visitors already had one spade, and between the two
we were soon excavated, the door was opened, and we leaped forth! There
stood an Indian squaw with a boy of about twelve.

"Fancy our chagrin and sinking hearts! Hal said afterward that he
thought a rescue party had started out to find us, although he knew this
was practically impossible.

"The squaw and Hal could speak, after a fashion, and he explained to me
that she and her son were hunting the day before, and had been caught by
night's swift approach. They were forced to rest in a cave until
morning. Here they had to keep the wild animals at bay, although they
could see them moving around in the shadows just outside the circle of
their campfire, and heard them howling all through the night. When light
came again, they started to find their way home, and had seen the beasts
prowling around a hump in the snow from whence issued a thin stream of
smoke. They knew immediately that some human being was there, and tried
to drive away the animals long enough to investigate.

"Hal explained how we had come to be there--and how grateful we would be
to get away. The squaw managed to tell us that she would return to her
tribe at once and find out whether or not we would be welcomed among
them.

"Hal made her understand how much money she would have if she would help
us reach Forty-Mile, where he had 'much money' waiting f