wed. The hunters were at the same time so scattered that they
could render each other no assistance. Indeed, the various groups did
not know whereabouts the others were. Some were never found. Here and
there whole families, despairing of life, weakened by want, and
perishing with cold, huddled themselves together for warmth. At first
the heat of their bodies melted the snow and soaked their garments.
These soon froze and completed the work of destruction. They died where
they lay. Some groups were afterwards discovered thus frozen together
in a mass of solid ice.

While the very young and the feeble succumbed at once, the more robust
made a brave struggle for life, and, as always happens in cases of
extreme suffering, the good or evil qualities of men and women came out
prominently to view. The selfish, caring only for themselves, forsook
their suffering comrades, seized what they could or dared, and thus
prolonged awhile their wretched lives. The unselfish and noble-hearted
cared for others, sacrificed themselves, and in many cases were the
means of saving life.

Among these last were Baptiste Warder and Winklemann.

"I vill valk to de settlement," said the latter, one morning towards the
middle of January, as he rose from his lair and began to prepare
breakfast.

"I'll go with you," said Warder. "It's madness to stop here. Death
will be at our elbow anyhow, but he'll be sure to strike us all if we
remain where we are. The meat we were lucky enough to get yesterday
will keep our party on short allowance for some time, and the men will
surely find something or other to eke it out while we push on and bring
relief."

"Goot," returned the German; "ve vill start after breakfast. My lecks
are yet pretty strong."

Accordingly, putting on their snow-shoes, the two friends set out on a
journey such as few men would venture to undertake, and fewer could
accomplish, in the circumstances.

On the way they had terrible demonstration of the extent of suffering
that prevailed among their friends.

They had not walked twenty miles when they came on tracks which led them
to a group--a father, mother, and two sons--who were sitting on the snow
frozen to death. In solemn silence the hunters stood for a few minutes
and looked at the sad sight, then turned and passed on. The case was
too urgent to permit of delay. Many lives hung on their speedy
conveyance of news to the settlement. They bent forward, and with l