198 Maxey 



started when a chilling wind from the north warned 

 him of the coming winter. The first few days they 

 made good progress, and the summit of the range 

 was left behind. On the third day a leaden sky shut 

 down upon the mountains, seeming to shroud their 

 tops and extend even to the distant plains beyond. 

 Occasionally a white cloud-mass would come sailing 

 down from the north, and striking the precipitous 

 sides of some peak break into a multitude of moist 

 fluffy cloudlets. At times these fleecy travellers 

 would completely envelop Herbert and his toiling 

 companion, and it was only with difficulty that they 

 could keep the trail. But the stay of these white- 

 winged visitors was short, and they quickly passed 

 along, leaving the dark unchanging sky above. 



Toward night it began to snow ; slightly at first, 

 as if only as a quiet reminder that winter was on 

 its way. But the flakes, which were small and scat- 

 tering in the beginning, grew larger and larger and 

 came in greater numbers. They would strike the 

 cold sides of the mountain, find a little lodgment, 

 and sift down into the crevices and ravines. They 

 pelted the faces of the two travellers, as if chiding 



