Dolly's
a host in herself, and _almost_ as good as our Helen (the Arabs
would scalp me!), only, if you please, I'll swap her for Helen
when the year's up!"

Helen forgot to shut the windows, but she squealed. A great weight of
care slipped off her shoulders on to Aunt Dolly's.

"She won't forget the patch or the clothes-pins or _any_thing!" she
exclaimed. "Aunt Dolly's remember is miles, miles long!"

Downstairs a door opened, and through it was wafted up to Helen a low,
sweet strain of music, that grew, second by second, fuller and deeper,
till it seemed to embody all her own glad feelings, and to bear up on
its wings beautiful, prophetic hints of the joy that was on its way to
her.

SNOW-SHOES AND SLEDGES.

BY KIRK MUNROE.

CHAPTER XXVII.

LOST IN THE FOREST.

It was not difficult to find the Fox River, for it was the first stream
flowing into the Pelly on the right, and as the ice in the latter river
was much smoother than it had been on the Yukon, our sledge travellers
turned into it on the second day after leaving Harper's.

"Now," said Phil, "we must keep a sharp lookout for Cree Jim's cabin;
for as no one seems to know exactly where it is located, we may find it
anywhere between here and the head of the stream. At any rate, we can't
afford to miss it."

They did miss it, though, and after camping one night on the river,
reached its head in a lake that they knew must be the Fox. Although the
day was but half spent, Phil decided to camp at that point.

"You and I, Serge," he said, "must go back down the river, one on each
side, making long detours away from it, in hopes of finding either the
cabin or some trail leading to it. At the same time we must keep a sharp
lookout for game. Anything from a bear to a rabbit would be acceptable
now, for if we don't replenish our stock of meat pretty soon we shall
lose our dogs."

"All right," replied Serge. "Only, Phil, do be careful and not get
lost."

"Never you fear on that score," laughed the young leader. "I'll look out
for myself; but see that you do the same."

So the two lads set forth, leaving Jalap Coombs to prepare camp and boil
the oatmeal porridge, which, mixed with a small quantity of fish, now
formed the dogs' daily meal.

Phil plunged directly into the forest, deciding to start out with one of
the detours that he had planned. Once within shelter of the trees, he
found the snow so deep that but for his snow-shoes he c