re desperately hungry, made a final
attempt in the direction of the fowl-house, found the roof, tore off
some shingles, and returned with a few aged hens, which were mere
bundles of feathers after their week's starvation. The servants
consented to rise and pluck them, whilst the gentlemen sallied forth
once more to the stock-yard, and with great difficulty got off two of
the cap or top rails, so we had a splendid though transitory blaze,
and some hot stewed fowl; it was more of a soup than anything else, but
still we thought it delicious: and then everybody went to bed again,
for the house was quite dark still, and the oil and candles were running
very low. On Monday morning the snow was washed off the roof a good deal
by the deluge of rain which had never ceased to come steadily down,
and the windows were cleared a little, just at the top; but we were
delighted with the improvement, and some cold weak fowl-soup for
breakfast, which we thought excellent. On getting out of doors, the
gentlemen reported the creeks to be much swollen and rushing in yellow
streams down the sides of the hills over the snow, which was apparently
as thick as ever; but it was now easier to get through at the surface,
though quite solid for many feet from the ground. A window was scraped
clear, through which I could see the desolate landscape out of doors,
and some hay was carried with much trouble to the starving cows and
horses, but this was a work of almost incredible difficulty. Some more
fowls were procured to-day, nearly the last, for a large hole in the
roof showed most of them dead of cold and hunger.

We were all in much better spirits on this night, for there were signs
of the wind shifting from south to north-west; and, for the first time
in our lives I suppose, we were anxiously watching and desiring this
change, as it was the only chance of saving the thousands of sheep and
lambs we now knew lay buried under the smooth white winding-sheet of
snow. Before bedtime we heard the fitful gusts we knew so well, and had
never before hailed with such deep joy and thankfulness. Every time I
woke the same welcome sound of the roaring warm gale met my ears; and we
were prepared for the pleasant sight, on Tuesday morning, of the highest
rocks on the hill-tops standing out gaunt and bare once more. The wind
was blowing the snow off the hills in clouds like spray, and melting
it everywhere so rapidly that we began to have a new anxiety, for the
cr