harf was in course of construction, and
that the contractor's sign read: "Northern Exploitation Company." M.
Danton informed me that this was a lumber company which had already
begun operations, and that the establishment of its camps accounted for
the absence of inhabitants.

In fact, our arrival was almost unobserved, and two hours afterward we
had set forth upon our journey.

I wondered what Jacqueline remembered. Vague and unquiet thoughts
seemed to float up into her mind, and she sat by my side silent and
rather sad. I think she was afraid of the knowledge that was to come
to her.

God knows I was, and for this reason was resolved to ask no questions
unless they should become necessary. Whether or not she even knew the
route I had no means of discovering.

The sun shone brightly; the air, intensely cold, chilled our faces, but
could not penetrate our furs. Sometimes we rubbed each other's cheeks
with snow when they grew threateningly white, laughing to see the blood
rush to the under surface of the skin, and jested about our journey to
drive away our fears.

And it was wonderful. It was as though we were the first man and woman
in the world, wandering in our snow-garden, and still lost in amazement
at each other. The prospect of meeting others of our kind began to be
a fantastic horror to me.

We were happy with each other. If we could travel forever thus! I
watched her beautiful, serene face; the brown hair, brought low over
the ears to guard them against the cold; the big grey eyes that were
turned upon mine sometimes in puzzled wonder, but very real content.

I held her small gloved hand inside the big sable muff, and we would
sit thus for hours in silence while the dogs picked their way along the
trail. When I looked back I could see the tiny pad-prints stretching
away toward the far horizon, an undeviating black blur upon the
whiteness of the snow.

It was a strange situation. It might easily have become an impossible
one. But it was a sacred comradeship, refined above the love of friend
for friend, or lover for lover, by her faith, her helplessness, and
need.

We tried so hard to be merry. When we had fed the dogs at noon and
eaten our meal we would strap on the _raquettes_, the snow-shoes with
which Danton had furnished us, and travel over the crusted drifts
beside the stream. We ran out on the surface of the river and made
snowballs, and pelted each other, laughing like school chil