ing at the fore end
of the boat. He brought with him his horse cloth as well as his
other belongings. The men, who were clearly in a hurry to be away,
pushed the boat off from the shore as soon as he had taken his
place.

"We want to be back as soon as we can," the owner of the boat said,
"for it will not be long before the ice begins to form, and we
don't want to be frozen in."

"It does not feel to me quite so cold this morning," Fergus
remarked.

"No, sir; we are going to have more snow. That won't matter to us,
and if it snows for the next week, all the better. It is not often
that the river closes altogether until after Christmas. In the
mountains the river seldom freezes at all. There is too much
current, and besides, in shelter of the hills the cold is not so
great."

Two oars were got out, for the purpose of steering rather than of
hastening the progress of the boat; and once well out in the
current, she was allowed to drift quietly with the stream. Fergus
spread his horse cloth on the rushes by the fire, and found no need
for his sheepskin coat; the cloak, loosely thrown over his
shoulders and the collar turned up, to keep off the draughts that
blew in under the bottom of the thatch, being sufficient to make
him thoroughly comfortable.

There was nothing to see outside, the shore being low and flat. He
had brought a large supply of meat with him, and handed over a
portion of this to the man who acted as the cook of the crew, and
told him to make broth for them all. This was a welcome gift to the
crew, who but seldom touched meat; and with the addition of barley,
coarse flour, and herbs that they had brought for their own use, an
excellent stew was provided. The pot was kept going through the
journey, fresh meat and other ingredients being added, from time to
time. In addition to this, slices of meat were grilled over the
fire, and eaten with the bread they had brought. The gift of a
bottle of wine between the crew, each day; and of a small ration of
spirits, the last thing in the evening, added greatly to the
satisfaction of the men.

By nightfall they arrived at the entrance of the defile. The snow
was falling heavily, and they tied up against the bank. Fergus
chatted with the men, and listened to their stories of the river,
for some hours.

All of them had, at various times, gone on timber rafts. They
bewailed the war, which would do them much harm. It would not
altogether interrupt trade, for ti