painful one, but by no means so difficult as
the girl had anticipated. Making a sling out of the pack ropes, Helen
held the injured leg clear of the ground, whilst Stane, using his arms
and his other leg, managed to lift himself backward on to his
improvised couch.

The strain of the effort tried him severely, and he lay for a long time
in an exhausted condition, with his eyes closed. This was no more than
Helen had expected, and she did not let the fact trouble her unduly.
Working methodically she erected the little tent in such a position
that it covered the injured man's bed; and then prepared a meal of such
things as their resources afforded, lacing the coffee she had made with
a little brandy.

Stane was too done up to eat much, but he swallowed a fair quantity of
coffee, whilst the girl forced herself to eat, having already realized
that the welfare of both of them for the time being depended upon her
and upon her strength. When the meal was ended, she found his pipe,
charged it for him, and procured him a light, and with a murmur of
thanks, Stane began to smoke.

From where he lay, through the open tent-fly, he could see a portion of
the windfall barrier which had been the cause of the disaster.

"I thought I was done for," he said as he looked towards the tangled
trunks. "I slipped and plunged right into a sort of crevasse, didn't
I?"

"Yes," answered Helen quietly. "It was a little time before I could
find you. There was a kind of den made by crossed trunks, and you had
slipped between them into it."

"How did you manage to get me out?" he asked, his eyes on the amazing
jumble of trunks and branches.

"Well," was the reply, given with a little laugh, "as I told you this
morning I am fairly strong. But it was a hard task for all that. I had
to cut away quite a number of interlacing branches, and hoist you out
of the crevasse with the pack ropes, then slide you down the deadfall
as best I could. It took me a full hour to get you clear of the trees
and safely to the ground, and all the time I was oppressed with the
thought that you were dead, or would die before I could do anything to
recover you. When I got you to the ground, I went through your pack and
found the brandy which I saw you place there this morning. The rest you
know."

Stane looked at her with eyes that glowed with admiration. "You make it
a little thing," he said gratefully, "but I know what it means. You
have saved my life, Miss Yardely