their things on to their backs. In all directions they saw the marks of
the wolves' feet on the snow. They followed them up some little way to
see what they had been feeding on during the night.

"Why if this isn't the very place where we killed the deer and there is
our venison still hanging up in the tree, which the brutes couldn't get
at, and that made them howl so," cried out Tony, who was a little before
the rest. They found then that after all their wanderings in the
afternoon they had come back to the _very_ spot they had left at
mid-day. They hoped that now, if they made a fresh start, that they
might reach the blaze. They more carefully noted the moss on the trees.
The sun too shone out brightly. They were stepping out merrily, and
they thought that they must be near the blaze, when before them was seen
a large cedar swamp. The tree in Canada called the cedar is low,
twisted, and knotted, with straggling roots growing in moist ground. It
makes a thicket which the wind cannot pass through. Indians often cut a
way into a cedar swamp in winter to build their wigwams in it. The
travellers knew that they could not pass through the swamp, which was
all moist, so they had to find their way round it. They fancied that
they could not fail to reach the blaze. At last they got very hungry
and had to stop and light a fire and breakfast. They knew that they
were fortunate in having plenty of food, for they had heard of people
wandering about in the woods for days together without anything to eat.
Noon came round again. No blaze yet seen.

"When shall we find our way out of this, Rob?" asked Tony.

"May be in a day or two, may be in a week," answered Rob.

Tony and Tommy looked very black at this. They were getting tired
walking about all day in the snow, with heavy loads on their backs.
Tommy began to cry. Just then a shot was heard. They ran on in the
direction from which the sound came, and Rob fired his gun in return.
In a few minutes they met a tall, thin, oldish man, with a gun in his
hand and a bag at his back.

"Why, youngsters, where have you come from?" he asked.

Rob told him.

"Not much out, youngsters; why you are scarcely more than two hundred
yards from the blaze, and haven't been for some time past," the old man
replied. "Come, I'll show you."

The old hunter stalked away at a great rate, and they followed as fast
as they could.

"That's your way," he said; pointing to the blazes