"Don't be a 'fraid-cat, Dottie," snorted Sammy. "I never saw such a girl!"

"Am not a 'fraid-cat!" declared the smallest Corner House girl, prompt to deny such an impeachment. "Snow don't hurt. But you can't see where you are going when it snows so thick,"

"Shucks!" said Sammy. "We can't get lost on this road, can we, Tess?"

"No-o," agreed Tess. "I guess we can't. We can't get off the path, that's sure. And we can see the marks the big sled made all the way."

These tracks, however, were rapidly being effaced. The children were not cold, for as the snow increased it seemed to become warmer, and the hard walking helped to keep them warm.

They had to put Dot back on the sled and draw her the final two or three hundred yards to the top of the hill. There, fast as the snow was gathering, they could see where the other coasters had turned the bobsled around and prepared to launch themselves from the top of the hill.

"I guess they slid almost all the way home," said Tess, with some anxiety. "I hope we can do as well, Sammy."

"Sure," agreed Sammy. "Ain't no need to worry about that. Now I'm goin' to lie right down, and Dot can straddle me. Then you push off and hang on at the back end of the sled, Tess. Don't you kids fall off."

"I wish you wouldn't call me a kid, Sammy Pinkney," complained Dot.

"And don't wiggle Bo if I've got to sit on you."

"Well, I got to get fixed," Sammy rejoined. "Hang on now. All ready, Tess?"

"Yes. My! how the wind blows this snow into your face."

"Put your head down when we get started. I've got to keep lookin'

ahead. Bet this is a dandy slide--and such a long one!"

"Here we go!" cried Tess, pushing with vigor.

The sled started. It seemed to slide over the soft snow very nicely.

She scrambled on, and, sitting sideways, clung with both hands to the rails. Dot was hanging to Sammy's shoulders.

"Choo! Choo! Choo! Here we go!" yelled Sammy, wriggling with eagerness.

"_Do_ keep still, Sammy!" begged Dot.

But the sled did not gain speed. The gathering snow impeded the craft even on the down grade.

"Kick! Kick behind, Tess!" yelled Sammy. "Kick _hard_."

"I--I am kicking," panted his friend. "Why don't the old thing go better?"

"This snow is loadin' right up in front of it," sputtered Sammy. "It's too de-e-ep! Aw--shucks!"

The sled almost stopped. Then it went over a thank-you-ma'am and slid a little faster. The slide was nowhere near as nice as they had expected. Why! they were not going downhill much faster than they had come up.

The snow was sifting down now very thickly, and in a very short time the trio was likely to have to drag the empty sled through deep drifts. Even Sammy was secretly sorry they had come such a long way from the Lodge. Although it was barely mid-afternoon, it seemed to be growing dark.

They struggled to make the sled slide, however; neither Sammy nor Tess was a child who easily gave up when circ.u.mstances became obstinate.

Tess continued to dig her heels into the snow, and when the sled almost stopped, Sammy plunged his arms elbow deep into the snow to aid in its movement.

But suddenly they went over a hummock. It seemed a steep descent on the other side. In spite of the gathering snow the sled got under better headway.

"Hurrah, Tess!" yelled Sammy. "We're all right now."

"I--I hope so!" gasped the older girl.

"Oh! Oh!" shrieked Dot. "We're going!"

They really were going--or, so it seemed. Faster and faster ran the sled, for the hill had suddenly become steep. It was snowing too thickly for any of them to notice that this part of the track was entirely new to them.

They shot around a turn and took another dip toward the valley. Sammy did not mind the snow beating into his face now. He yelled with pleasure. The little girls hung on, delighted. The sled sped downward.

All marks of the bobsled's runners were long since lost under the new snow. The hill grew steeper. Sammy's yells were half stifled by the wind and snow.

It did seem as though that slide was a very long one! In climbing the hill the trio had had no idea they had walked so far. And how steep it was!

Over a level piece the sled would travel at a moderate rate, and then shoot down a sudden decline that almost took their breath. Surely they must have traveled almost to the Lodge from which they had started.

Finally the path became level. Great trees rose all about them. They could see but a short distance in any direction because of the falling snow.

The sled stopped. The girls hopped off and Sammy struggled to his feet and shook the snow out of his eyes.

"Je-ru-sa-_lem_!" he choked. "What a slide! Did you ever, Tess?"

"No, I never did," admitted Tess quite seriously.

"Oh!" cried Dot. "Let's go home. I'm co-co-o-old. Why--why--" she gasped suddenly, looking about on all sides.

"Well, don't cry about it," snorted Sammy. "Of course we'll go home.

We must be almost there now--we slid so far."

"Oh, yes. We _must_ be near Red Deer Lodge," agreed Tess.

It did not look like any place they had ever seen before. The trees were much taller than any they had noticed about the Lodge. Yet there was the open path ahead of them. They set Dot upon the sled again, and Tess helped Sammy drag it and her sister straight ahead. Somewhere in that direction they were all three sure Red Deer Lodge was situated.

CHAPTER XX

FOLLOWING ANOTHER TRAIL

After all the activities of the forenoon both by the older boys and girls of the vacation party at Red Deer Lodge, and by the children as well, the soft snow was considerably marked up by footprints around the premises.

Ike M'Graw and Neale O'Neil, searching for prints of the feet of those who they thought had left the vicinity of the house early that morning, struck directly off for the edge of the clearing.

"The best we can do," M'Graw declared, "is to follow the line of the woods clean around the clearing. Somewhere, whoever 'tis got that fox and lifted the canned goods, must have struck into the woods. They ain't hidin' in the barns or anywhere here. I've been searchin' them.

That's certain."