4 The Black Bear 



them rolhng, both men and horses had become ex- 

 hausted. And so, when a cold storm had added itself 

 to our other troubles, we had pitched camp in a little 

 opening facing the south and settled down to wait for 

 better days. And we had waited there three solid weeks. 

 Once, on the morning of the 19th of June, dawn had 

 shown us a clear sky, against which, fifty miles to the 

 east of us, we could see the main range of the jagged 

 Bitter Roots; and after eating a cheerful breakfast 

 we had hastily broken camp, packed our horses, and 

 started for the summit of the ridge along which we 

 proposed to travel. But here, roaring up out of the 

 next valley, we had met another great storm of icy wind 

 and swirling snow, and I had soon been forced to leave 

 my companions with the horses while I stumbled down 

 the mountain and hunted up another sheltered spot 

 where we could take refuge from the huge storm. And 

 so by noon we had once more found ourselves crowded 

 under a hemlock bark lean-to, thankfully facing a 

 blazing fire of logs and listening to the wind howling 

 overhead. And it was not until the afternoon of the 

 21st that the storm had passed. Then at last the sun 

 had come out hot and clear and had begun forcing the 

 great masses of snow that clung to the limbs of the 

 trees to loosen their grip so that the forest was filled 

 with the splash of their falling, while laden bushes 

 jerked their heads free from the weight that bore them 

 down and the horses stood steaming with the warm air. 



