d upon
these he rested his pole, extending it from tree to tree. This was to
form the ridge pole to support the roof of his lean-to, for he was to
form a shelter similar to that improvised by the two men the evening
before.

Then he cut other poles to form the roof, and resting them upon the
ridge pole and the ground at a convenient angle to make a commodious
space beneath, he covered them with a thick thatch of boughs, which
were easily broken from the overhanging limbs of surrounding trees.
This done he enclosed the ends of his shelter in like manner, and laid
beneath it a floor of boughs.

Jamie surveyed his work with satisfaction and hope. No snow could
reach the cave-like interior; it was as well protected and as
comfortable as ever a lean-to could be made, and a very little fire
would warm it. Though much smaller, it was quite as good a shelter as
that made by the two men, and possessed the added advantage of closed
ends, which would render it much easier to heat. He had occupied more
than two hours in its construction, and it had called for ingenuity
and much hard work.

The opening of the lean-to faced the fallen tree trunk, which lay
before it in such a position that it would serve excellently as a
backlog.

Though he had no axe with which to cut firewood, he soon discovered
upon scouting about that scattered through the forest were many dried
and broken limbs that could be had for the gathering, and in a little
while he had accumulated a sufficient supply to serve for several
hours.

This done he pushed away the snow from before the fallen tree trunk as
best he could. Using as tinder a handful of the long hairy moss that
hung from the inner limbs of the spruce trees, he lighted it with a
match from the tin box salvaged the previous day at the big rock.
Placing the burning moss upon the cleared spot next the log he applied
small sticks and, as they caught fire, larger ones, until presently a
fire was blazing and crackling cheerily in front of his lean-to with
the fallen tree as a backlog to reflect the heat.

Utterly weary Jamie stretched himself upon his bed of boughs, and it
seemed to him that he had never been in a cosier place in all his
life.

"Pop were sayin' right when he says grit will help a man over any
tight place," breathed Jamie contentedly. "If I were givin' up I'd
sure perished before to-morrow mornin', for 'tis growin' wonderful
cold; but I has grit and a stout heart like a man, and I