threatening him.

Even Pat was at length beginning to despair. Alick cheered us on. "You
must not give in, boys; you must not give in," he exclaimed over and
over again.

I felt that his advice, though good, was impracticable. The evening was
approaching. I could scarcely drag one foot after another. We yet had
some distance to go before we could reach a valley which lay below us,
with a stream in summer flowing through it, and a grove of trees by its
side.

Unable longer to support myself, I sank down on my knees, my gun
dropping to the ground. My eyes were dimmed by my frozen eyelashes.

Alick and Pat were assisting me to rise, when Martin, who was a little
ahead, exclaimed, "I see something coming along the valley: it's a
cariole. There's another and another."

I passed the cuff of my coat over my eyes. My companions held up their
hands and shouted at the top of their voices, Bouncer at the same time
lifting up his head and barking with all his might, as if conscious of
the importance of being heard.

The carioles came on at full speed along the valley, their drivers
running behind them. There were twenty or thirty of them, each drawn by
eight or ten powerful dogs. I could now see them clearly.

Then came a number of baggage-sledges with more men on snow-shoes, all
keeping up the same steady pace.

Our dread was that the travellers would pass without seeing us. Who
they could be we could not tell, but they were evidently coming from the
direction of the place to which we were bound. Again we shouted and
waved our hands, and then Alick bethought him of firing off his gun. We
all discharged ours, and presently we saw the leading sledge stop, the
driver making a signal to the one behind him. It was passed along the
line, and the whole train came to a halt.

"We are saved! we are saved!" we cried in chorus. The knowledge of this
restored our strength.

I was helped up by my companions, and we all, straggling on, reached the
bottom of the valley close to the leading sledge.

A gentleman got out of it and came towards us. We at once saw that he
was Mr Meredith, though he at first evidently did not recognise any of
us.

"What!" he exclaimed at length; "Alick McClellan!--David! can it be
you?"

He pressed our hands.

"I little expected again to see you.--And Martin Crisp! can that be you?
I know you now, though you look dreadfully pulled down. There are
those behind to whom your appearance