SETTING OUT OF THE TRAPS 107 



&quot; Don t touch it,&quot; commanded Carcajou. &quot; Just 

 leave it, and Fran9ois will spend many days wait 

 ing for your thick fur.&quot;- 



&quot; But if I c hole-up here the Man will break 

 into my house and kill me while I sleep.&quot; 



&quot; How can he find you ? &quot; asked Jack, incredu 

 lously. &quot; It s going to snow again, you 11 be all 

 covered up deep and he 11 never know where 

 you are.&quot; 



&quot; Won t he, Little Brother ? Man is not 

 so stupid. How do you suppose I breathe ? 

 There 11 be a little hole right up through the 

 snow, all yellow about the edges, and Fran9ois 

 will find that ; also, if there s frost in the air, see 

 my breath. No ; I Ve got to make another nest 

 now. I should have turned in before the snow 

 fell, then I d have been all right.&quot; 



&quot; We 11 help you fix a new house,&quot; said Black 

 King; &quot;but you had better wait perhaps this 

 snow will go away ; then there will be no tracks 

 to lead Trappers to your nest. It is really too 

 bad to keep you up when you are so sleepy, but 

 it s the only way.&quot; 



&quot; And to think how I worked over it,&quot; la 

 mented Muskwa. &quot; For a week I carried sticks 

 until my arms ached ; and scraped up leaves, and 

 spruce boughs, and soft moss, until my hands 

 were sore. It would have been the finest c hole- 



