could see in the distance, rising needlelike and black
against the gray sky.

This was Long Tom Butte, after which the ranch, which Ted had leased,
had been named.

Suddenly, Ted felt something wet on his cheek, and looked up. A
snowflake, big and floating lazily down, had struck him.

Others followed it, and soon there were myriads of big, wet snowflakes
falling slowly through the air.

The cattle began to hurry, and were lowing in a distressing way. Their
instinct told them to seek shelter, and they were telling their drovers
as much in their own fashion.

For a half hour the snow continued to come down, wet and soft.

But suddenly the wind changed in temperature. Before it had been raw and
damp. Now it became sharp and frosty.

The snow changed quickly from heavy, wet flakes, to small, dry, sharp
particles, which, driven by a strong wind, which had veered around into
the north, stung the faces of the boys like needles, and worried the
cattle, which seemed to want to lag in their pace.

"Kit, go back and tell the boys to keep pushing harder. The cattle want
to stop, and if they quit now it's all up. There's a blizzard coming. If
we can keep them at it an hour longer, we will be in the lee of the
buttes, and there's a deep coulee into which we can drive and hold them
until morning."

At Ted's command Kit dashed toward the rear, and repeated the order, and
the cow-punchers rode into the herd with shouts and with active lashing
of their quirts, and the beasts picked up their pace again and hurried
forward through the snow, which had begun to whiten the ground.

Kit returned to Ted's side.

"What do you think of it?" he asked.

"If we had an hour more of daylight, I think we could make it," said
Ted.

"Any doubt of it?"

"Well, when it becomes dark we'll lose sight of Long Tom, and we're
likely to drift, because, unless the cattle are driven into the storm,
they'll turn tail to it and go the other way."

"I can't see Long Tom now."

"I can, although the snow almost blots it out. There it is right in the
northwest. I can just make it out. The herd is drifting south of it now.
Better get over on your point, and head them up this way a bit."

Soon the herd was driving forward in the right direction again.

But suddenly the darkness came down like of pall of black smoke,
shutting out everything, and the wind increased in violence, rising with
a howl and a shriek like some enormous and terrible animal i