THE TAMING OF OL’ BUCK 225 
Then a strange thing happened, something quite 
new to his experience, at any rate. A great 
snow-storm came, without much wind even up on 
the exposed ledges, and the snow piled up and 
up, and up, till all the grass and moss and even 
the bushes were covered, and even the most ener- 
getic stamping and pushing along paths by the 
whole herd could not avail to keep the food sup- 
ply uncovered. Of course, the ground hemlock 
was covered, too, and though there were the top 
shoots of saplings sticking up in the woods, and 
hemlock branches to eat, the food question be- 
came rather serious. Nor did this snow melt. 
Instead, more came, and more, till at last there 
were six or seven feet of it up on the moun- 
tain. 
Or Buck led the way down, always seeking for 
some variety in diet, and for enough succulence 
in the food to supply the warmth their bodies 
needed. In this search, he came early one morn- 
ing on a lumber slash. He heard horses champ- 
ing in a stable somewhere, and caught warning 
odors—but he was hungry, and the cutting had 
brought down within reach branches of trees 
