roic, something done by
somebody. If that awful-looking mountaineer--that man with the long hair
and mustache, and that horrible gold ring,--why such a ring?--was only
different! But he was probably gorging beefsteak or venison with her
father and Mr. Waterhouse,--men were always such selfish creatures!--and
had quite forgotten all about her. It would have been only decent for
them to have brought her down something hot; biscuits and honey were
certainly cloying, and somehow didn't agree with the temperature. She
was really half starved! And much they cared! It would just serve them
right if something DID happen to her,--or SEEM to happen to her,--if
only to frighten them. And the pretty face that was turned up in the
moonlight wore a charming but decided pout.

Good gracious, what was that? The horses were either struggling or
fighting in their snow shelters. Then one with a frightened neigh broke
from its halter and dashed into the road, only to be plunged snorting
and helpless into the drifts. Then the other followed. How silly!
Something had frightened them. Perhaps only a rabbit or a mole; horses
were such absurdly nervous creatures! However, it is just as well;
somebody would see them or hear them,--that neigh was quite human
and awful,--and they would hurry down to see what was the matter. SHE
couldn't be expected to get out and look after the horses in the snow.
Anyhow, she WOULDN'T! She was a good deal safer where she was; it might
have been rats or mice about that frightened them! Goodness!

She was still watching with curious wonder the continued fright of the
animals, when suddenly she felt the wagon half bumped, half lifted from
behind. It was such a lazy, deliberate movement that for a moment she
thought it came from the party, who had returned noiselessly with the
runners. She scrambled over to the back seat, unbuttoned the leather
curtain, lifted it, but nothing was to be seen. Consequently,
with feminine quickness, she said, "I see you perfectly, Mr.
Waterhouse--don't be silly!" But at this moment there was another shock
to the wagon, and from beneath it arose what at first seemed to her to
be an uplifting of the drift itself, but, as the snow was shaken away
from its heavy bulk, proved to be the enormous head and shoulders of a
bear!

Yet even then she was not WHOLLY frightened, for the snout that
confronted her had a feeble inoffensiveness; the small eyes were bright
with an eager, almost childish