kly to the right or left;
over a hill-top, close by, a solitary wolf steals away. Quickly the vast
prairie begins to grow dim, and darkness forsakes the skies because they
light their stars, coming down to seek in the utter solitude of the
blackened plains a kindred spirit for the night.

On the night of the 4th November we made our camp long after dark in a
little clump of willows far out in the plain which lies west of the
Touchwood Hills. We had missed the only lake that was known to lie in
this part of the plain, and after journeying far in the darkness halted
at length, determined to go supperless, or next to supperless, to bed,
for pemmican without that cup which nowhere tastes more delicious than in
the wilds of the North-west would prove but sorry comfort, and the supper
without tea would be only a delusion. The fire was made, the frying-pan
taken out, the bag of dried buffalo meat and the block of pemmican got
ready, but we said little in the presence of such a loss as the steaming
kettle and the hot, delicious, fragrant tea. Why not have provided
against this evil hour by bringing on from the last frozen lake some
blocks of ice? Alas! why not? Moodily we sat down round the blazing
willows. Meantime Daniel commenced to unroll the oil cloth cart cover-and
lo, in the ruddy glare of the fire, out rolled three or four large pieces
of thick, heavy ice, sufficient to fill our kettle three times over with
delicious tea. Oh, what a joy it was! and how we relished that cup! for
remember, cynical friend who may be inclined to hold such happiness
cheap and light, that this wild life of ours is a curious leveller of
civilized habits--a cup of water to a thirsty man can be more valuable
than a cup of diamonds, and the value of one article over the other is
only the question of a few hours privation. When the morning of the. 5th
dawned we were covered deep in snow, a storm had burst in the night, and
all around was hidden in a dense sheet of driving snow-flakes; not a
vestige of our horses was to be seen, their tracks were obliterated by
the fast-falling snow, and the surrounding objects close at hand showed
dim and indistinct through the white cloud. After fruitless search,
Daniel returned to camp with the tidings that the horses were nowhere to
be found; so, when breakfast had been finished, all three set out in
separate directions to look again for the missing steeds. Keeping the
snow-storm on my left shoulder, I went alon