retty
well along on the return journey when suddenly I heard somethin' snap,
and before I had time to even jump aside a big dead tree slams down,
knockin' me over an' catchin' my left leg under it.

"Waal, I saw stars fer a few minutes, but as soon as my head cleared off
a mite I tried to wriggle myself loose. But the tree couldn't seem to see
it that way. It had me good an' tight, and appar'ntly meant to enjoy my
company fer a spell. At first, though, I couldn't seem to understand that
I was really caught hard an' fast, an' it took a little time fer the idea
t' sink in. When it did filter through to me I pretty near went crazy, I
guess. I remember turnin' and twistin' until my leg felt like it was
goin' to break clean off, an' I almost wished it would. But after a while
I pulled myself together a little, an' tried to think o' some way out. As
soon as I lay still even fer a minute the cold began to gnaw through me,
and I knew I'd have t' do whatever I was goin' to do mighty quick, or I'd
freeze to death.

"An' that warn't the only danger, neither. It was beginnin' to get dark,
and suddenly, 'way off to the north, I heard the yell of a painter (or a
panther, as you lads might call it)," turning toward the three comrades,
who were listening intently.

"Waal, when I heard that yell somethin' that seemed colder even than the
icy air clutched at my heart. O' course, I didn't have any weapon with
me, except as you might call my axe one. I looked around fer it, and saw
that it had fallen about three feet farther than I could stretch, and lay
half buried in the snow, only the haft stickin' out.

"I made up my mind that I'd have to have that axe, anyway, an' I set to
work gettin' it. After thinkin' a few minutes I took off a long leather
belt I was wearin' and made a loop by runnin' it through the buckle. From
where I was layin' it was an almighty hard job to throw that loop around
the axe handle, an' I reckon I must 'a' tried twenty times before I
finally made to throw it over. Then I started pullin' easy-like on the
belt to tighten the loop, so it would hold on the slippery handle. The
belt was a leetle stiff, though, an' the loop wouldn't tighten very
close. When I tried to pull in on it, the axe stuck in the crust that
covered the softer snow underneath, an' the belt slipped off the handle.

"Waal, boys, I've had my share o' disappointments in this world, I
reckon, but I think that was the hardest o' them all to bear. Ho